Episode 147. Previous (2)
All my principles of action boil down to one.
You see the ending of the world in this novel and return to the real world.
To this end, I did not choose any means and methods.
As a result, although it appears to be a good deed, it does not change the fact that the principle of action is selfish.
It was the same with this war.
Let’s ask our conscience.
Did I really do the right thing?
Wasn’t Lorraine, who rose up purely for the freedom of the beasts, an oppressor and dictator, and ruined it?
Aren’t I acting as if I gave freedom to prisoners who would have had freedom if they were left alone?
Either way, this was hypocrisy.
Of course, I do not regret this choice.
I was just thinking of taking the least responsibility.
“Lorraine Phillippe.”
“············”.
As soon as the door opened, the figure of Lorraine appeared from the iron cage inside.
The plate served for the meal was untouched.
I sighed and signaled the soldier to leave.
Soon, the soldiers withdrew, and I spread out to the cognitive low-resolution realm, and I was definitely alone with Lorraine.
“What was the reason you surrendered so early?”
“It’s busy season soon.”
“What?”
“The time is approaching when farmers are busy moving and harvesting crops. So what soldiers should carry is a sickle and a flail, not a weapon.”
“············”.
It would be a lie if I said that Lorraine had no insidious ambition at all.
But if you ask him if he wants to become the king of the South and cause a civil war, I can say no, as the original author, firmly.
Lorraine apparently sympathized with the oppressed prisoner slaves and sympathized with their rebellion.
The basis for this was the establishment of a republic rather than a kingdom.
Lorraine was trying to establish a nation of the people, not her own.
Although the process was somewhat bloody, he was clearly for the freedom and independence of prisoners.
“The disposition against you has been decided.”
“You will be sent to the Islands. You already know.”
“Wrong. You will be executed tomorrow morning in the square of the 4th castle.”
“What······?”
Then Lorraine lifted her head and looked up at me.
It was a face full of embarrassment.
“Why…why why…? Are you disobeying the Emperor’s orders?”
“As for the disposition of you, the Emperor’s orders have not yet been issued. I plan to use this to cut my throat.”
What if Lorraine was transported to the Islands?
The result was obvious.
They will take away my dignity as a human being by accusing me of this and that, and then commit torture that is hard to see with my eyes open.
So much so that I’d rather die.
I will show the whole empire the process of slowly dying, and even after I die, I will not be able to sleep comfortably and will be humiliated.
We have to promote the rebellion by making the end of the rebel as terrible as possible.
However, if they were executed here, the idea was to kill them with a single knife and send them to the island, where they would be buried in a dark place that no one knew about.
That was the last favor I could do to one who was ruined by my hypocrisy.
“Are you crazy? You’re going to win the war and do something that undermines the emperor’s trust?”
“Why. Do you prefer to be repatriated to the system?”
“It’s not….”
“Then let him be executed with gratitude.”
“············”.
Are you gratefully executed?
There was something strange to say.
“Lorraine Phillippe. What made you start the country?”
“Are you asking that now?”
“Yes. Answer me.”
“It was to resist the tyranny of the empire and create an independent state only for the southerners.”
“No. Not that, but the real reason.”
“I’m here. I have nothing to hide. To establish a puppet state that acts as a breakwater for the great forest, and to live a prosperous life with full material support from the great forest-“
“No. I’m not asking for an external cause. I’m asking about your inner feelings. Answer me.”
“For the freedom of prisoners of war.”
Lorraine shook her head and answered.
It’s for the sake of the freedom of prisoners.
The cause and intent were reversed from that of a normal person.
“Then congratulations. You’ve accomplished your purpose.”
“Are you going to keep the Slave Emancipation Proclamation?”
“How can I pick up the words I once said as a knight under His Majesty the Emperor?”
“ah······.”
Lorraine’s dream came true.
Even though it was in the form of something I snatched in the middle.
Still, if I paid tribute to Lorraine, it was right to grant him his last wish.
That was the way to keep my conscience left.
“That’s right. Schlus Heinkel. You chose both the unity of the Empire and the liberation of slaves. It’s hard to understand why. Instead of turning them into enemies, why is there an easier way?”
It was a difficult question to answer.
“Ah. Now I see. You’re looking farther ahead. Is something big enough to require the power of the beasts as well as the United Empire Federation in the future?”
“······································································!
For a moment, he couldn’t contain his body trembling.
A smile spread across Lorraine’s lips as if he had accepted my reaction as a positive one.
sh*t. I never dreamed I’d get caught on this.
Confused, he brought his hand to the handle of the sword, and Lorraine burst into laughter.
“hahahahaha! Got it! All right! I’m going to die before tomorrow comes. I’ll keep everything a secret until the moment I die. Make a promise in return, Schlus Heinkel.”
“What promise?”
“I wish I could tell you all my sins before execution.”
“What a sin…”
.
.
.
I woke up to the sound of crowds of people.
Last night I couldn’t sleep.
Thinking about today, I couldn’t sleep at all.
“Sullus-nim. It’s time. Shall we send Lorraine up?”
Taylor came over and whispered into my ear.
I got up from my seat and looked around.
The large square was full of people.
It wasn’t just the residents of the 4th castle.
The square was crowded with residents from 3, 2, and 1 provinces.
In fact, it was safe to say that all the inhabitants of the South had gathered.
“You may upload it. Now let’s proceed slowly.”
“Yeah. I’ll do it as ordered.”
Taylor went down, and soon the wagon slowly entered the square.
What was brought out was a man with a hood over his face and handcuffs.
He was caught by two knights and climbed the stairs to the platform.
The knight took off the hood, and only then did Lorraine’s face appear.
The sound of people talking could be heard from all directions.
“Lorraine Phillippe. The former Duke of the Southern Colonies, right?”
“That’s right. That’s me.”
“I’ll make you accuse me.”
I took a deep breath.
Lorraine, who was staring at me with straight eyes, made eye contact.
It was his turn to keep his promise.
“The crime of inducing rebellion by inducing hatred against the Empire by spreading tyranny over the southern colonies. The crime of putting the leader of the slave rebellion, Darius, into a battle that was likely to be defeated. The crime of deceiving the prisoners of the South. And the crime of sucking the blood of the people by using it. The last crime of trying to sell the South to the great forest. Do you admit all these sins?”
“············”.
As the number of crimes increased, the embarrassment intensified.
There is probably no one who truly hates Lorraine among the beasts.
No matter how much I talk about the suppression force, who is on the side of the Empire, it will be accepted as a motherf*cker.
After all, it was Lorraine who freed them from slavery.
“I will admit all my sins.”
But what if Lorraine admits that?
That gratitude turns into a feeling of betrayal in an instant, and that feeling of betrayal turns into hatred.
Lorraine, who could have died as a Southern hero, decided to receive the hatred of all beasts.
In order to stop the meaningless consumption of emotions, he had chosen to sacrifice to break the chain of hatred that would continue incessantly.
“You admitted it? Really?”
“Darius-sama died because of Lorraine?”
“Then, was he a spy who was concocted to the Great Forest?”
The effect was immediate.
There was no need for any reason.
It was because the prisoners had already accepted all their sins as true just by admitting them.
They were confused for a while, but their faces were gradually blushing and showing their anger.
“He said he freed us! It was all lies!”
“Dare you listen to us!”
“Kill! Kill!”
The stupid public was so deceived.
Me and Lorraine’s Two Man Show.
Loud shouts echoed from all directions.
Orders to kill Lorraine continued to pour in.
“Therefore, I sentence Lorraine Phillippe to death.”
“Waa!!!”
cheers rang out.
I turned around and went back to my seat and sat down.
It was not me who executed the death penalty.
There was someone better suited.
“Felline.”
“Yes.”
Pelline, who was sitting next to me, jumped up.
A wicked person who deceives the prisoner is killed by the beast.
This was the end of the skit.
“Schlus Heinkel-sama! Schlusth Heinkel-sama!”
“···········?”
At that moment, a man running through the crowd from behind the podium called me.
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Judging from the costume, it was a messenger from the Imperial Family.
He was desperately trying to hand me a letter.
“Receive! Hurry!”
“Hmmmm….”
I slowly leaned back and accepted the letter.
No wonder it was a letter from the emperor.
“Please open it quickly! Please!”
“············”.
I glanced over at the messenger’s face, rushing in a hurry.
What was written inside was obvious.
The emperor must have received the news about yesterday that I had negotiated with the Great Forest and achieved a great victory.
Until he sent me away, the emperor had said that it did not matter whether he was captured or killed.
I must have said it casually because I didn’t think I was going to upset the charter.
However, as victory approached, the emperor must have urgently decided to dispose of Lorraine and sent it to me.
Perhaps it is written that they must be captured unconditionally and transported to the system…
The problem is that if I open this and do not order the execution to be stopped, it will be disobedience.
“Let’s open it after the execution is over.”
“No! Open it right now!”
“Why?”
“Yeah, the disposition for Duke Lorraine is in-“
“How do you know that? Oh ho. Did you, by any chance, secretly open and peek at His Majesty the Emperor’s letter?”
“Heo Eok…!”
It was meant to pressure me, but to no avail.
If the contents of the letter are inferred and the opening is accelerated, it is enough to drive the letter as secretly spying on it.
The messenger was finally speechless and hesitant.
I sat back down and watched the execution table.
Suddenly, Lorraine knelt in front of the basket and bowed her head, while Pelline held her sword high.
“···········?”
Is it because of the feeling?
The moment the sword descended.
It was as if there was a faint smile on Lorraine’s lips.
Scratch!
“Waa!!!”
The basket rattled and wobbled and was stained with blood.
finished.
Lorraine fell as a giant evil carrying all evil.
Now I am the only one who knows his true face.
And as promised with Lorraine, I will keep it a secret until the moment I die.
As he died keeping my secrets.
“Whoa.”
Only then did I break the seal and open the letter.
Coincidentally, the content was exactly what I expected.
In summary, it was like this.
How did you negotiate the deal?
Anyway, well done.
You defeated 2000 men by yourself.
It’s hard to believe, but it worked well anyway.
And if we receive Lorraine’s surrender, we must go to the system without a single wound…
“It’s already too late.”
I smiled bitterly and folded the letter.
It seemed like a messenger was saying something from behind, but I couldn’t hear it properly because I was buried by the shouts from all directions.
People were genuinely rejoicing at the death of the persecutor, spy, and hypocrite.
Lorriene the hero