Having passed through the capital and reached the vast desert, Saltar stopped in his tracks. 

 

The rebel encampment visible in the distance was, even at a glance, a considerable size, large enough to number in the hundreds.

 

A head-on clash with the rebels here would inevitably result in massive casualties for both sides.

 

‘The enemy of my enemy is my ally. As comrades with a shared purpose, we cannot afford to lose military strength.’

 

Saltar turned and looked upon the imperial troops who had followed him this far.

 

“Listen, all of you.”

 

Saltar looked over the majestic soldiers standing in formation, one by one, and revealed his intent.

 

“The Baran kingdom has long been in decline due to enduring corruption and the tyranny of the privileged. Therefore, I, Crown Prince Baran Saltar, intend to overthrow this rotting nation, which has already lost the light of the goddess Nuit, and establish a new country.”

 

The crown prince, who had come to suppress the rebels, was openly declaring his intent to rebel. 

 

Taken aback by his sudden announcement, the imperial troops exchanged glances, unable to hide their confusion.

 

Seeing the unsettled soldiers, the Crown Prince shouted loudly.

 

“I am now going to that rebel encampment to make them my troops! Should any of you raise a banner against this will of mine and be unable to join me, you may leave the ranks now and return to the imperial palace!”

 

The murmuring whispers soon spread like a roaring flame. 

 

However, they only cautiously gauged each other’s reactions—not a single person stepped forward to profess loyalty to the emperor or to leave the ranks. 

 

The reason, in truth, was that they too were aware of the corrupt Baran kingdom teetering on the brink of collapse.

 

As they stood at the crossroads of conflict, Saltar opened the bag tied to his saddle. 

 

hat emerged from the bulging bag was none other than a small vial.

 

“Behold! The divine power granted to me by the Goddess Nuit is contained within this!”

 

He had brought all the blood he had previously drawn from Dahlia in the underground prison.

 

“Those who fight with me shall be blessed by the grace of the Goddess Nuit!”

 

Saltar’s powerful shout echoed as he curled his lips into a grim, bloodthirsty smile.

 

“Not even death will dare to stand in our way.”

 

The soldiers’ eyes began to change uniformly upon witnessing the sacred blood. With the divine power, no matter how severely they were cut or stabbed, they could heal in an instant. 

 

As long as the Crown Prince was with them, they could become near-immortal beings.

 

In other words, the imperial palace, now abandoned by the Crown Prince, no longer held any hope.

 

“I will stand with His Highness, the Crown Prince!”

 

Then, one of the generals from the Emperor’s army stepped forward and declared his support for Saltar. 

 

Immediately after, another general stood by his side and voiced his support as well.

 

“I, too, will stand with His Highness, the Crown Prince.”

 

The resolve of the two generals was enough to sway the soldiers who were still uncertain. Even the hesitant generals were swept up as if by a rapid current, compelled to stand with them.

 

Finally, all the soldiers knelt before the Crown Prince and swore their loyalty.

 

“The Goddess Nuit will surely look favorably upon your loyalty!”

With a formidable army now at his command, Saltar had nothing left to fear. He observed his troops with satisfaction, then, alone, he crossed the desert to meet the rebels.

 

When Saltar returned, behind him were fifty thousand rebels—no.

 

Fifty thousand soldiers of the Prince’s army were now with him.

 

💫

 

Hissin slowly lifted his eyelids. His red pupils, staring into the lightless darkness, emitted a fierce glow. 

 

A violent heartbeat resonated within his chest.

 

The day of judgment had now arrived.

 

“The time has come.”

 

Hissin rose to his feet. His body, cleansed days ago by Dahlia’s blood, was woven with solid muscle, without a single wound. 

 

The muscles shifting ominously with his slightest movement looked incredibly robust, unlike those of a prisoner confined for months in a cell.

 

“Arise, my warriors.”

 

Thump, thump, thump, thump—

 

Beneath the thin fabric, hearts beat violently, sounding their pulse. 

 

Through the strong, contracting echoes of their hearts, Hissin could feel the Moon Lions beginning to move.

 

Creeak— 

 

Hissin opened the cell door himself and stepped out. 

 

Thud—!

 

His gaze fell upon something his foot had touched; a guard lay collapsed on the floor. 

 

It was that very new guard whose blood he had secretly fed upon shortly after arriving in the underground prison.

 

Unaware of the heart’s vow etched into him, the one who had smirked obsequiously had just become Hissin’s puppet, opening the cell door before taking his own life. 

 

The sight of him having eagerly offered his own body, never expecting this outcome. 

 

Hissin passed the guard, who couldn’t even close his eyes, and exited the underground prison.

 

Emerging from the secret passage, Hovan, who had come out upon receiving the heart’s echo beforehand, greeted him.

 

“You have come.”

 

Hovan, bowing respectfully, handed Hissin a sack tied to a camel. 

 

Inside was an ivory armor, identical to what the Moon Lions wear.

 

Hissin looked down at his armor, encountered after so long, and asked.

 

“What is the situation within the palace?”

 

“The Emperor is intoxicated with blue smoke, and the Chancellor has returned to his private residence. The Defense Ministry has lost over eighty percent of its troops due to the recent fierce battle and the suppression of the current rebellion—it seems they will not hold out for long.”

 

Hissin, who had been gazing softly into the empty air, murmured quietly.

 

“The Princess must have begun to move as well.”

 

She is a clever woman—she would have realized early on that the Crown Prince, who left to suppress the rebellion, would turn his army back. 

 

The moment the two sides clash fiercely and victory or defeat is decided, that will be the end of the Baran Kingdom.

 

“Ensure the Princess is protected to the very end.”

 

“Yes.”

 

Hovan, bowing deeply, retreated back inside the walls.

 

Left alone in the vast desert, Hissin’s pupils glowed red, capturing the distant imperial palace of the Baran Kingdom.

 

💫

 

“They are rebels! Everyone, take cover!”

 

The rebels who had passed through Viantar were entering the capital. 

 

The imperial citizens of the capital, startled by the sudden appearance of the rebels, fled in panic.

 

The number of rebels armed with all manner of weapons and entering the capital was a staggering fifty thousand. 

 

Faced with such an immense force, large enough to overwhelm the entire capital, the soldiers did not dare to even think of stopping them.

 

But there was something else that shocked them even more.

 

“The… the Crown Prince and the Imperial Army… are with the rebels!”

 

The very Crown Prince Saltar, who had been sent to suppress the rebels, was now leading them. The people could only watch helplessly as the Crown Prince led the massive army towards the imperial palace.

 

The news that the Crown Prince had turned his army and was leading the rebels spread quickly to the imperial palace.

 

“What! Saltar is…!”

 

Khankundra, who had never dared to imagine Saltar’s betrayal, was deeply shocked by his son’s treachery.

 

However, his mind, already thoroughly poisoned by the smoke, could formulate no countermeasures, and his body, emaciated with muscle and flesh gone, seemed incapable even of escape.

 

“Dispatch all remaining Imperial troops! Block them thoroughly; do not let a single step into the imperial palace!”

 

At the Emperor’s shout, the remaining soldiers hurriedly surrounded the imperial palace.

 

But the number of troops previously sent out to subdue the rebels was already greater than the number remaining. 

 

Now, combined with the rebels, they faced a fierce enemy force. Even before the fierce battle began, the Imperial soldiers had already foreseen their death and lost the will to fight.

 

Amidst all this turmoil.

 

“Your Highness, it is done.”

 

Dahlia slowly raised her head. Having removed her long, sheer skirt that reached her ankles, she now wore riding clothes that revealed her legs, with a wide hike wrapped around them.

 

The triangular gold decoration on the riding clothes signified the throne of the Baran Kingdom.

 

Dahlia intended to quell this rebellion and ascend to the throne herself.

 

“Let’s go.”

 

“Yes, Your Highness.”

 

Dahlia slung a bow and arrows over her shoulder and descended from the high princess’s palace. 

 

As Bertha opened the firmly closed door of the princess’s palace, two soldiers who were always stationed guard outside lay on the ground, struck by arrows.

 

“Be careful, Your Highness.”

 

“You too, Bertha. Do not come out; hide safely inside. Understood?”

 

“Yes.”

 

Bertha swallowed her sobs and went back inside the princess’s palace. 

 

Dahlia looked at the princess’s palace with complicated eyes, then mounted her horse.

 

As she headed to the promised place, the army covering the vast desert came into view.

 

“We greet Her Highness, the Imperial Princess.”

 

Mudhat Osahar, a central noble of the Baran Kingdom, paid his respects to Dahlia with proper etiquette. 

 

Along with him, Miftah Hayad also demonstrated his loyalty to the Imperial Princess by plunging his sword into the ground.

 

Behind them, tens of thousands of soldiers knelt before Dahlia. 

 

They were the stalwart allies who would fight against Saltar in this war.

 

In the name of the Imperial Princess, Dahlia of Baran.

 

“Today, the goddess Nuit will bear witness to your noble sacrifice.”

 

Dahlia raised a gleaming dagger. She lifted her arm high for all to see and drew the blade across her own palm.

 

The brief surprise at the clear, red line was short-lived.

 

“Th-the wound…!”

 

Gasps arose from all around as they saw her wound heal instantly, leaving only a trace of blood.

 

“I am the one chosen by the goddess Nuit.”

 

Clutching her own blood, Dahlia shouted to her soldiers.

 

“By the will of the goddess, you must protect this land of Baran!”

 

The soldiers, having witnessed a miracle before their very eyes, roared in unison. 

 

Feeling the fighting spirit emanating from thousands of soldiers throughout her entire being, Dahlia finally began to charge towards the fierce battle.

 

It was time to establish the true will of the goddess upon this land.