Chapter 167

Chapter 167

In the shadowed echelons of the Revolutionary Army, the Leader was a man shrouded in mystery. His name was unknown even to his own legion commanders, a testament to the veil of secrecy that cloaked him.

Yet, one truth was irrefutable: his strength was unparalleled, a force so formidable that none could dare to challenge. His raw power alone was enough to quell the dissent and challenges of any legion commander who dared to rise against him.

Even Electus, the most twisted and temperamental among the commanders, could not openly defy the Leader. His silent acquiescence spoke volumes, as if his very spirit had been subdued by the sheer might of the leader.

* * *

Yan observed the silence of the two, his thoughts swirling.

‘A tempest of emotions suddenly frozen over. Is the Chief that fearsome?’

Aisha von Lüpenhagen and Electus were known among the revolutionaries for their fiery temperaments.

Yet, at the mere mention of ‘the Chief,’ they clamped their mouths shut—a clear testament to the current Chief’s imposing stature.

It was Werner who broke the silence.

“…Can you stand by your words?”

“Yes.”

As Yan nodded, Owen, who had been watching from the side, let out a derisive snort.

“Ha! I knew this madman would stir up trouble someday.”

Owen spat out a curse, mocking Aisha and Electus.

“Wouldn’t your dead subordinates be pleased? To see those who trusted and followed you cower upon realizing they’re up against the Chief?”

Aisha glared at Owen, as if ready to devour him.

“Shut it, Owen.”

“Chuckle, seems you’re picking the wrong fight, aren’t you, mate?”

“You crazy old coot!”

“Enough!”

Werner’s sharp command silenced Aisha and Owen.

He then turned to Yan, asking,

“So, if it turns out the Chief is behind this, you’ll be able to explain how it all happened, right?”

Werner pulled up a chair, sat down, and fixed his gaze on Yan.

It was a prompt for Yan to unravel the story.

Yan nodded and began to explain the sequence of events.

Of course, the tale was a mix of one part truth to nine parts fabrication.

* * *

“So, you’re telling me… the Chief sought to sway Darkin to assassinate the Pirate Empress?” Aisha and Electus asked incredulously.

Yan nodded, and they chuckled in disbelief.

“My disciple Henry died trying to save the Pirate Empress?”

Electus’s question was, in a way, expected.

He had instructed Henry not to worry about the tests but to eliminate Yan.

So, even if the Pirate Empress fell into a trap, Henry and Loen would have followed his orders rather than save her.

But why then did Henry, who was after Yan, die at the hands of Castro Chang’s subordinates?

Electus’s sharp question made the other legion commanders look at Yan.

But Yan was ready for this question and answered without difficulty.

“Darkin intended to eliminate the other candidates from the start.”

“That cur? My disciple? Absurd. How could such a weakling harm my disciple?”

Darkin was at the 6th-grade mature stage, and Henry was just entering the 5th grade.

The gap between them was insurmountable without significant variables.

However.

Yan added a footnote.

“Henry fought not only Darkin but two others. And as I mentioned earlier, he ultimately died at the hands of Mel and Don, subordinates of Mr. Castro Chang.”

“The Chief killed my disciple to sow discord among the centrist legion commanders?”

“Perhaps. It means the Chief might have swayed not only Darkin but also Mel and Don.”

Castro asked while fiddling with his monocle.

“Young man, are you saying that Mel and Don sided with the Chief, not me?”

“It seems so. Otherwise, how could we explain these scars?”

At Yan’s words, Mel and Don, standing beside Castro, widened their eyes in shock and shook their heads vehemently, as if to deny it.

But Castro kept his gaze fixed on Yan.

“I know it’s hard to believe…”

Then Yan turned his gaze to Karam and Loen.

Loen’s face turned pale, and he bowed his head, saying,

“I witnessed Mel and Don killing Henry while he was fighting Darkin.”

Karam, with a better expression, continued Loen’s words.

“At that time, Yan and Cruel were with me.”

As even Karam and Loen, who were hostile to Yan, stepped forward, Castro shook his head.

“It’s a headache. Someone is lying, that’s for sure… but if we only listen to one side, it seems like a foregone conclusion.”

At that moment, Castro’s monocle flashed.

And simultaneously…

With a screech…

Fine cracks appeared on the necks of Mel and Don, who were glaring at Loen with bulging eyes.

Thud. Rolling down…

They fell to the ground.

Castro had sided with Yan.

Yan’s eyes sparkled.

‘Crafty old fox. He probably never cared about the truth of the matter.’

As a member of the Kingdom Alliance, all that mattered was dealing a blow to the Empire.

And seeing him discard his subordinates to support Yan…

‘It seems he’s judged that this incident will deal a significant blow to the Empire.’

Even the Chief couldn’t suppress the discontent and conflict with force in this situation, so there was only one direction he could move.

War.

There’s nothing like creating an external enemy to quell internal dissatisfaction.

What Castro wanted was the mutual destruction of the Empire and the Revolutionary Army.

Naturally, he would be satisfied with the stage Yan had set.

Yan smiled to himself.

‘Do you think I’d let things turn out that way?’

He had no intention of doing such a favor for others.

Castro wiped his sword and tucked it back into his coat.

He bowed to Electus without looking at the bodies of his subordinates.

“I apologize. It seems I’ve mismanaged my subordinates.”

Electus lifted one corner of his mouth as he looked at Castro.

A sharp aura tore through Castro’s neat suit as if to shred it.

“The likes of you, plotting another cunning scheme.”

“Heh, it’s troublesome if you won’t accept an old man’s apology.”

The one who intervened was Werner.

“Let’s stop these baseless provocations and get things in order.”

He said to Yan,

“If what you said is true, we’ll have to hold the Chief accountable, but as you know, all evidence has vanished, hasn’t it?”

Yan nodded.

“Yes, that’s right.”

“So, we’ll need time to conduct our investigation. Your appointment as an officer will have to wait until after that.”

Yan grinned broadly.

There wouldn’t be any evidence left.

The Chief wouldn’t have left any, and Yan himself had covered up the lies, erasing all traces.

The only thing left was…

‘Loen and Karam… but there’s no need to worry.’

He had taken appropriate measures with them, so unless someone opened their skulls to check their memories, there was no risk of being discovered.

Having finished his thoughts, Yan replied,

“Yes, I understand.”

He had successfully planted the seeds of rebellion in the Revolutionary Army.

Now it was time to wait for the fire to blaze.

* * *

A week had passed.

The Chief, who had been away on a journey, returned.

Upon hearing the news, Werner immediately summoned the legion commanders.

The agenda was the ‘recruitment of the Pirate Empress,’ but none were ignorant of the implications.

It was a hearing for the Chief.

Even the usually tardy neutral faction commanders gathered promptly in the meeting room, a sense of urgency about them.

All the candidates were summoned.

As Yan entered the conference room, he could feel the heavy tension in the air.

He quickly scanned the surroundings.

At the highest seat, the red-haired Chief sat, scanning the crowd with an interested gaze.

‘It seems the other commanders have controlled the information well.’

The radical faction commanders seemed clueless about the somber mood.

In contrast, the centrist commanders all wore grim expressions as they glared at the Chief.

And Owen.

He seemed quite pleased with the situation, a grin reaching his ears.

Once everyone necessary had gathered, Werner stood up and addressed the Chief.

“Chief, there’s talk that you interfered with the candidates’ test. I’d like to hear your side of the story.”

The Chief’s lips curled up.

He had grasped the situation immediately from Werner’s words.

He shrugged nonchalantly.

“Me, interfering with the candidates’ test? That’s a baseless accusation.”

Werner continued as if he had expected such a response.

“Three of the eight lieutenants, including a candidate, died this time.”

At the mention of three deaths, the Chief’s smile tightened ever so slightly.

But as if it never happened, his expression returned to normal.

Only Yan noticed it.

“Oh, really? Was the Pirate Empress that much of a handful?”

Werner sighed deeply at the Chief’s feigned ignorance.

It was blatant, but without evidence of his interference, they couldn’t press him further.

“Is that so? Well, if you say it wasn’t you, then it must not be. After all, there’s no evidence.”

Werner’s voice was sharp, and the Chief chuckled, nodding his head.

“You make it sound so disappointing. Anyone would think I’m a tyrant. Isn’t that right, Aisha?”

Yan clicked his tongue as he watched the Chief.

‘Is he that confident?’

Such arrogance could only come from someone certain there was no incriminating evidence.

But by provoking the centrists…

Before Yan could finish his thought, Aisha sprang to her feet.

Her face flushed red, each of the Chief’s words seemingly provoking her.

“You think I don’t know you tempted Darkin!”

Despite her angry outburst, the Chief’s expression remained unchanged, and he asked with apparent interest.

“How do you know that? And if I had tempted your lover, why would I have left him to die?”

Yan’s eyes widened.

‘So that’s why he’s provoking the centrists!’

He was baiting her to reveal the mastermind behind his plans by leading her into a provoked confession.

‘This is dangerous!’

He hadn’t expected the Chief to go so far as to provoke the centrists to find him.

His schemes were no ordinary feat.

Considering how close the Pirate Empress came to falling into a trap, excluding himself would make mending the division with the centrists a piece of cake.

He couldn’t just let this happen.

Yan racked his brain feverishly.

And before Aisha could shout anything else.

“The Pirate Empress already knew.”

Yan spoke first.

The Chief’s gaze turned to him.

His lips curled up in a clear sneer, as if to say, ‘Do you think that makes any sense?’

But for Yan, it was the best move.

The Chief of the Revolutionary Army couldn’t possibly have shallow intelligence.

But even he couldn’t investigate the Pirate Empress, who had a tight grip on her fleet.

So.

‘Selling her name is the best strategy.’

Yan could see the doubt hidden behind the Chief’s sneer.

Now he was wondering if Yan was the culprit.

“And then…”

Just as the Chief was about to speak.

Boom-!

The conference room door shattered as if hit by a bomb.

A cloud of dust billowed, and through it came the husky voice of a middle-aged woman.

“Why are there so many blockheads here? Couldn’t even hear the conversation?”

The people inside the conference room widened their eyes at the voice.

The Chief, too, withdrew his gaze from Yan and tensed up at the ominous presence by the door.

As the dust settled.

A woman wearing an eyepatch emerged, waving her hand dismissively as she stepped forward.

“Hey, all new faces here. But for an invitation, the hospitality’s lacking, isn’t it?”

She let out a hearty laugh and slammed her curved sword into the ground with a thud!

The Chief chuckled as if caught off guard.

“Welcome, Pirate Empress.”

The Pirate Empress looked at the Chief and asked.

“Are you the Chief?”

As the Chief nodded, the Pirate Empress gave a sardonic smile.

“Seems we have a lot to talk about, but how about we clear the room of prying eyes first?”