I Became King by Following My Little Sister's Advice. Now the Princess I Forced to Marry Is Giving Me Death Stares, What Should I Do? - Chapter 31

Chapter 31: The Traitor’s Fate

“Uwaaaaaaaaaaaaah!”

“Run, retreat!”

While Van was celebrating a great victory over the Zelos army, an incident was occurring in the capital city of Arlengs Kingdom.

Van had led his army to the battlefield, and at that moment, a certain noble family attacked the capital.

The culprit was the Denilly Count’s family, a noble with territories on the southern side of the capital and a former finance minister. 

Denilly, who managed the royal treasury, had embezzled a significant amount of money during his tenure. 

When Van took over the palace, Denilly’s crimes were exposed, and he was dismissed from his position. 

Though he escaped execution, most of his assets were confiscated, and he was now living a humble life on his estate.

“Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa! Why, why is this happening to meeeeeeeeeee!?”

The once-proud Denilly Count was now fleeing on horseback, crying as he ran. 

Several knights were chasing him from behind.

If he slowed down even a bit, they would catch him immediately.

“I shouldn’t have raised an army! I shouldn’t have plotted revengeeeeeee!”

After being dismissed from his position as finance minister and having his assets confiscated, Count Denilly’s resentment and hatred grew. 

During this time, he received a letter from the Crown Prince of Zelos Kingdom, asking him to attack the capital of Arlengs Kingdom from within as Zelos planned an invasion.

Count Denilly was overjoyed.

He was tired of living under the rule of Van Arlengs, a young man of common birth who had become king. He had been waiting for an opportunity to escape this situation.

Finally, he thought his chance had come and quickly sent his agreement.

Just as he had been informed, Van led a large army out of the capital. The information from the Zelos Kingdom seemed accurate. 

Taking advantage of the king’s absence, Count Denilly raised his forces to capture the capital.

He intended to reclaim the country from the usurper and regain his former power. However, as soon as he arrived at the capital, he encountered the returning Arlengs army.

And thus, the present situation unfolded.

The five thousand-strong Arlengs army crushed Count Denilly’s forces like wet paper. 

Now, Count Denilly, who had fled, was being pursued by knights.

“This isn’t how it was supposed to be… Whyyyyyy!?”

Count Denilly didn’t know.

This was a strategy devised by Van Arlengs and Moa Arlengs. 

Upon receiving a declaration of war from the Zelos Kingdom, Van proposed a plan to infiltrate the enemy camp alone and capture the crown prince. 

However, Moa suggested that this might be too dangerous even for Van. So, Moa proposed using a hundred cavalrymen, made up of magicians, as a decoy.

This was the strategy executed at the Roicardan Plains, but Moa had another plan. 

By leading five thousand soldiers out of the capital, Van intended to flush out any rebels.

Moa knew that if Van left with a large army, the rebels would immediately target the capital. 

At the right moment, the soldiers, minus Van and the hundred cavalrymen, would return to the capital and eliminate the invading rebels. 

Count Denilly fell right into this trap.

“Take this!”

A knight pursuing Count Denilly threw a spear. 

It flew sharply into the sky before descending in an arc, piercing the rump of Denilly’s horse.

“Gyain!”

Count Denilly was thrown from his horse. 

The knights surrounded the middle-aged man as he screamed in misery.

“That’s enough… Former Finance Minister Ordover Denilly!”

“Ah, you are…!”

Count Denilly looked up at the knight who had been chasing him, his voice trembling.

“Lady Lyusha Ulbers, the Marquis’ daughter…!”

The pursuing knight was a woman. 

Moreover, she was one of Van’s wives, Lyusha Ulbers.

“It’s Lyusha Arlengs now. I’m no longer a lady of the Ulbers family.”

Lyusha said, looking down at Count Denilly with a cold tone.

Count Denilly, trembling in fear, tried desperately to explain himself.

“N-No, it’s a misunderstanding!”

“…”

“I was deceived… Yes, by the crown prince of Zelos…”

“Deceived, and you tried to attack the capital?”

“That… that is…”

“When His Majesty Van ascended the throne, you begged for your life and swore loyalty. How do you explain betraying that oath?”

“I-I had no choice! To survive… Dying would have accomplished nothing!”

Count Denilly cried out in desperation.

“Don’t blame me… Blame that man who destroyed the Kingdom of Aidron! Why am I being treated as a traitor?”

“Why, you ask?”

“Yes! You should know… The real traitor is Van Arlengs! What is wrong with raising an army to kill him? What I did was never… Gah!”

“Enough.”

Lyusha took a spear from another knight and swung it down from her horse. The sharp spear pierced Count Denilly’s chest, killing him instantly.

“If you don’t like His Majesty Van, you should say so to his face. Challenge him openly instead of resorting to cowardly tactics. You are nothing but a cowardly traitor. Don’t spew filthy words. They make me sick.”

“Second Queen, that was unbecoming.”

An older knight admonished.

The knight was a royal guard who had originally served the Ulbers family and had followed Lyusha when she married into the Arlengs family.

“Was it alright to kill him? What about interrogation?”

“It wasn’t necessary. Someone like him wouldn’t have important information.”

Lyusha stated firmly. 

She pulled out the spear and lightly shook it to remove the blood.

“If everything goes as planned, His Majesty Van will capture the crown prince of Zelos. Any other traitors will be exposed soon enough.”

“That’s true…”

“Let’s head back.”

Leaving Count Denilly’s body behind, Lyusha departed.

By the time soldiers came to collect the body of the former finance minister, it had been looted of its clothes and valuables, and the remains had been pecked at by crows.