Chapter 5

Suddenly, out of nowhere, a rebel army—no, the Northern Revolutionary Army—was formed on the spot.

Let’s take a moment to assess the state of this army, with me as its leader.

First, we still have plenty of supplies. Since this region is so remote, we stock up heavily whenever supplies come in. The last resupply was a month ago, so we won’t have to worry about starving for the next couple of months.

What about internal unity?

Among the higher-ranking officers, there shouldn’t be any issues. Most of the Northern Army has been fighting here since they were rookie lieutenants. They’ve been stuck in the same unit without transfers or promotions since the war started.

Years of shared life-and-death struggles have forged an unbreakable bond. Many consider each other sworn brothers. So, the chances of betrayal, desertion, or internal dissent are practically nonexistent.

These are ideal conditions for standing against the government… but there’s still one obstacle: the soldiers.

“Why are the soldiers a problem?”

“They don’t even know what we’re thinking. And the common folk are surprisingly obedient.”

If this were the 21st century, it’d be different, but this is a medieval fantasy world. Sure, there are some anachronistic things like running water and electric lights, but overall, it’s closer to the early modern era.

In other words, forget higher education—most people can’t even read or write. It’s so bad that if someone can read, they start as a non-commissioned officer right away.

Schools? Poor commoners are too busy trying to survive to attend. They’d rather spend their time plowing fields.

“They’ve been told their whole lives to be loyal to the country and sacrifice themselves for the royal family. Do you think they’ll suddenly listen if we tell them to rebel?”

“Ah.”

Most of these uneducated, common-born soldiers attend church every weekend. They go to Sunday Mass and pray.

From a young age, they’ve been taught that the kingdom’s state religion, the Goddess Faith, is common sense. Even the laziest among them rarely skip Mass.

And what do the priests and clergy teach them at church? Of course, it’s brainwashing about obeying the Goddess and her representatives, the royal family. They disguise it as sermons and blessings to instill loyalty to the state and the church.

Having absorbed such teachings since childhood, it’s no wonder they’d struggle to accept a sudden call to rebel against the royal family.

“That’s why persuasion and agitation come first. We need to unite the Northern Army, regardless of rank.”

If they hear the full story, they’ll understand and accept it. But we can’t explain it later like an afterthought. That would weaken the persuasion and create distrust.

Our first priority is to publicly declare our stance, gain everyone’s agreement, and boost morale. The most effective way to do that? A speech, of course.

“I told you to gather everyone at the training ground after lunch. Did you do it?”

“Yes, General. They’ve been waiting for ten minutes.”

“Good. Tell them I’ll be there after I change.”

So, as soon as the officers reached a consensus, I ordered everyone to assemble.

A few are absent due to guard duty on the front lines, but that’s unavoidable. We’ve gathered everyone currently available in the army.

“Calm down. It’s no different from the usual pep talks. The topic’s just a bit heavier.”

After calming myself by looking in the mirror, I took a deep breath and headed to the training ground.

“Vice Commander entering!”

At the adjutant’s booming announcement, all the soldiers turned to look at me. Seventy thousand pairs of eyes, filled with trust, curiosity, worry, and every other emotion, focused on me.

Struggling not to buckle under the pressure, I hardened my expression and slowly began to speak.

“Long time no see, everyone.”

My voice, amplified by Amplification Magic, reached every member of the Northern Army. My fear, my anger—I didn’t show them. Instead, I continued in a dignified, trustworthy tone befitting a commander.

“You’ve probably heard rumors that we’re abandoning the Northern Front and retreating to the rear. Maybe even from your commanders directly.”

Regardless of how far the news has spread, the fact that we’re abandoning the front lines is still classified. In principle, only the officers are supposed to know; it’s not yet public to the soldiers.

But I laid it all bare. To instill a sense of despair and helplessness in the soldiers, most of whom are from the Great Plains.

“Unfortunately, it’s true. We’re planning to abandon the land we’ve fought and bled for endlessly. We’ll flee beyond the Snowy Plains to a place with better transportation and easier supplies. Yes, all the way to the Great Plains, the homeland of many of you.”

And then, I transformed that despair and helplessness into anger and hatred by revealing the truth.

“Why? Because we didn’t fight well enough? Because the enemy was too strong? No. We did our best. You fought more bravely than anyone in the kingdom, displaying valor that will go down in history. Everyone in the kingdom knows how the Northern Army has steadfastly defended the front lines.”

“But apparently, that ‘everyone’ doesn’t include His Majesty the King and the noble lords in the capital.”

Using such informal language in a formal setting—even referring to the nobles as “lords”—made everyone’s eyes widen. They looked at me as if I’d misspoken.

Sorry, but you heard me right. Frankly, calling them “lords” is too generous. Vermin or bastards would be more appropriate.

“A few weeks ago, I received a notification from the central command. They said they could no longer send supplies and ordered us to retreat. No explanation, just a single sheet of paper telling us to pull back immediately.”

I waved the document the commander had given me.

“I couldn’t accept it, so I investigated personally. I wanted to know why the supplies we’d been receiving steadily for ten years had suddenly stopped. But the reason I uncovered was utterly ridiculous and nonsensical.”

“Everyone, the royal family is cutting our supplies to save money for their luxuries.”

—BANG!

I slammed my fist on the podium to show my genuine anger.

“Does that make any sense? If it were because the people were suffering or the treasury was empty, I might have understood. But for luxuries? Prioritizing the queen’s jewelry for a banquet over defending the front lines and the homeland—is that even remotely acceptable?!”

I finally shared the truth that the officers had already heard with everyone.

Instead of continuing, I paused to clear my throat, giving the soldiers time to process and accept what I’d said. So they could understand the implications of the royal family cutting supplies to buy luxuries.

After maintaining an uncomfortable silence, as the atmosphere began to heat up, I finally got to the heart of the speech.

“I’ve been thinking. Is it right to stand by and watch this situation? Should we remain loyal while the country heads down the wrong path? Today, I’ve finally reached a conclusion.”

“Everyone! This country, our homeland, is no longer a normal nation. It’s a twisted state where insane tyranny is normalized—sacrificing vast territories and the people living there for the queen’s disposable luxuries! Should we continue to stand by and watch this pathetic spectacle?!”

“NO!!”

The pre-arranged agitators responded.

Soon, murmurs of discontent spread among the soldiers. Why should we endure this? We need to teach the nobles a lesson.

Even if the atmosphere was artificially stoked, the fact that such words were spoken showed how much resentment had built up.

Pouring fuel on the fire, I declared before everyone.

“We can’t live like this anymore. Let’s overthrow it all! Let’s take down the royal family and nobles who suck the blood of the people to fill their greedy bellies! It’s time to collect the price for the blood, sweat, and devotion our ancestors have paid for generations!!”

“Those who agree with me, shout! Don’t be afraid. What we have to lose are the chains of slavery, and what we’ll gain is freedom and a just nation! Soldiers, unite! Take up your arms and join me in setting our homeland right!!”

“WAAAAAH!!!”

“Long live the General! We’ll follow you to the end!!”

“We’re not rebels. We’re revolutionaries fighting to restore the kingdom! Let’s sweep the kingdom away with the wave of revolution!!”

The training ground erupted like a cult gathering. Seeing this, I was convinced.

It’s done. The Northern Army is now fully united. There’ll be no hesitation as we overthrow the kingdom.

But before that…

“W-what? What nonsense are you spouting? Overthrow the kingdom? Do you even know what that means?!”

We’ll have to deal with the uninvited pest.

“Looks like we have an unwelcome guest. Someone tie him up!”

The Supreme Commander, who just woke up and was shocked by the situation, was promptly ordered to be restrained.

A normal soldier would have some combat skills and wouldn’t be easily captured. But this guy, true to his parachuted position, couldn’t even resist and was quickly brought to his knees. Honestly, incompetence has its limits.

“K-Karolus. What’s going on, huh? Is this some kind of sick joke? Right?”

“Still haven’t figured it out, or are you pretending not to know? It’s a revolution. A revolution to purge scum like you and rebuild the kingdom.”

Perfect timing. We needed a symbolic event to unite the Northern Army.

I turned on Amplification Magic and shouted to the soldiers.

“Everyone! This idiot here has been tormenting us as the royal family and nobles’ lackey. He demanded reckless offensives without understanding the situation and neglected our supplies! Is there anyone willing to execute this sinner and elevate our cause?”

At first, everyone hesitated. Killing the Supreme Commander out of the blue was understandably shocking.

But soon, dozens of soldiers rolled up their sleeves and stepped forward.

“General! We’ll do it.”

“Good. Handle him as you see fit.”

They surrounded the Supreme Commander and raised their boots.

“Stop it, you lowborn scum! Do you know how many connections I have in the capital?! One letter, and you’ll all—”

“Shut up, you bastard! Hans starved to death because of you! My friend of 20 years!!”

“Do you know how much the General suffered because of you?! Today’s your death day, you bastard!!”

They stomped, kicked, and crushed him. No matter how much he begged for mercy, they broke his bones and burst his eyes.

Under the baptism of pure hatred and disgust, his weak body quickly turned into a bloody pulp, right in front of the entire Northern Army.

This will be etched in everyone’s minds. Having killed the Supreme Commander, there’s no going back for us. The only way out is to see this through to the end and achieve victory. Otherwise, we all die.

“Well done. Go wash your hands and boots.”

“Yes, sir! Understood, General!”

After praising the soldiers, I turned to my subordinates.

“Prepare to march. We’re moving out immediately.”

Now, it’s time for revolution.