Gacha Kingdom Building-Chapter 250: Hunter and Prey

Due to its size, taking control of Amencia was incredibly challenging.

The losses we incurred when Isabella's army was caught in Hamperlon's trap also didn't help when the time came to bring order to the chaos.

Still, with a missing king and most of their knights and commanders either lost or confirmed dead, there was no leadership, and most of the resistance Isabella found was caused by confusion and fear.

Thanks to her, it didn't take too long for order to be restored to the city.

She also did an excellent job with the task I gave her.

Every remaining minister, strategist, knight, or loyalist was imprisoned, and a week ago, their executions began in the city square.

The place was visible from the Royal Palace, and had been used for public demonstrations many times in the past by the same people who would now experience it from the closest spot.

Although...

The most anticipated execution was yet to happen.

Pamela: "When I chose your side, I never imagined this would be the result. To bring three kingdoms under... You must feel-"

Miwen: "Tired."

A month had passed outside the Kingdom, but I didn't get to rest.

I didn't leave the room where we kept the Gerbil, even for a moment.

The entire day, I paid close attention to each of his words, screams, and reactions.

Everything the girls taught me, everything I could teach them.

It was quite a learning experience, but I'd prefer not to go through it again.

Pamela: "I was going to say majestic."

Miwen: "Pfft. Far from it..."

I could see why Pamela would think that way, but regardless, the only thing I stood to gain from all of this was personal satisfaction.

Unlike Isabella, my name wasn't spread in this world, and I had no claim over any territory, nor any interest in acquiring it.

The only thing in this world I wanted for myself was the Snow White Wolves tribe.

And revenge for what happened the last time I stepped foot in here.

While I did accomplish everything I wanted, it was a little too soon to say whether or not I felt any joy towards it.

Only when the last blade fell would I know how I felt about it all.

Miwen: "Did you prepare?"

Pamela: "As much as I could."

Miwen: "You still have some time. We'll part after the celebrations."

Pamela: "I see. In that case-"

A loud bang happened behind us.

It was the door to the room being slammed open with enough force to break it in half. fɾeewebnoveℓ.co๓

Even without looking their way, I could feel the urgency in their heavy and fast steps.

Nothing could distract her as she walked straight toward me.

But seeing as I wasn't alone, she stopped right before stepping onto the balcony.

She stood still a couple of meters away from us, holding her hands and head down, waiting patiently without saying a word.

Pamela: "I guess that's my cue. It was a pleasure, as always."

I wasn't sure if I agreed with that.

I couldn't even tell what was supposed to be pleasurable about it.

But at the very least, I responded with a nod.

Pamela: "If you'll excuse me, Lady Mia."

Mia: "Yes..."

The two of them crossed paths, only for an instant.

Their exchange was just as brief, and Mia didn't even look her way.

As soon as Pamela had left the room, Mia joined me on the balcony in her place.

Mia: "I don't like her."

That was pretty obvious, but I couldn't blame her.

Miwen: "Same... But she's proven her usefulness."

Isabella's stepmother was quite interesting, in many ways.

We began our relationship after the kidnapping incident.

Pamela discovered the betrayal of her servants, but kept quiet about it.

At the time, I thought this was because of her desire to hide the ugly side of the household, but instead, she tried to use them as leverage against me through Isabella, who had formed a small connection with them.

As for what she wanted from me...

Well, she wanted to know who I was and all of my secrets.

I had some trouble dealing with her at first, but once I understood that her feelings for her sons were genuine, I decided to take a gamble to bring her to my side.

Surprisingly, she accepted the truth about her husband and the plans he had for his family quite easily.

Although, to be fair, she had already been betrayed by him once, and while they were married, it was mostly for show at that point. She had become nothing more than a trophy wife, and she didn't seem to have any interest in seeing the death of her kids.

I would've liked her more if she had half the care for Isabella as she did for any of the brothers, but still, before long, we found ourselves allies.

Albris paid a lot of attention to his responsibilities as Duke of Evretis, and Pamela had always been the one taking care of the house.

At least inside their mansion, she had almost the same authority as her husband, who had been happy to leave such matters to her for years.

Thanks to her position, she played a key role in slowly changing the place to further weaken Albris's control through the hiring and education of new staff.

It was barely perceptible, but things had changed...

Even without being a citizen, we kept in contact, and when the time came, she had already prepared everything we needed for the downfall of Albris.

It wasn't a coincidence that we just happened to have an employee who looked exactly like Albert to sacrifice when Albris set his plan in motion.

Pamela had hired him way before that, but to make sure no suspicions would arise, she disguised his appearance as much as possible.

It was thanks to her that we could move freely in the house, and that the atmosphere was more welcoming towards Isabella.

The lack of emotion and surprise she showed towards her husband's supposed death could've exposed her, but still...

It wasn't that unexpected coming from the calm and quiet wife.

Her ability to manage all of that while still keeping up an act that a man who lived with her for so long couldn't see through...

Even for me, it was astonishing.

Mia: "She smells like danger. Are you sure about bringing her in?"

As the Kingdom develops, there's a good chance I might someday find myself in a position similar to Albris's.

With so much to handle, I'm bound to have to trust someone with things such as household matters.

Pamela has proved her ability with it.

I would prefer if someone else were to take the role, but not only has Pamela proven her ability...

Miwen: "I'm not sure how I feel about leaving Isabela to deal with her. It's best if we take her in."

Mia: "I guess..."

While Mia and I were talking, the name of the next prisoner to be executed was called.

Like everyone else before, he was escorted to the scaffold, tightly handcuffed.

However, the crowd that had gathered today was the biggest yet.

And also the most nervous of all.

Under such circumstances, a commotion started.

Name calling, stone throwing, the whole nine yards...

There were also some willing to defend him, despite the perceived consequences, which led to more than a couple of fights starting.

Quelling them didn't take long for the guards, but every second that delayed the man's execution added to the mounting anxiousness in everyone's hearts.

And then, as if the pressure in the air wasn't strong enough, to the surprise of all who were watching, the Umbral Queen, victorious in the conquest of half of the continent's lands, made an appearance.

That woman had stepped above kings so easily, the title "Umbral Empress" was now being spread among a few circles.

Her mere presence shut everyone down.

No matter their circumstances, they knew better than to make a single noise in her presence.

Once she began listing the crimes committed by the condemned, even the sky itself quietly turned dark.

Miwen: "Can you hear him?"

Mia: "The crowd is a little loud, but if I concentrate... Yes..."

Miwen: "What is he saying?"

Mia: "He's calling his brothers... His mother..."

Miwen: "I see."

I didn't have many questions left I wanted answered, but killing one's family was so disgusting and unimaginable to me, I couldn't not confirm it by myself.

Unfortunately, most of it was as we had expected.

Among his family members, his first victim was Normyu, the brother who aided in the invasion of Maides Island.

He knew that the Snow White Wolves warriors had the best chance of killing his brother, so, from a young age, he used his position and perceived intelligence to convince his father to attack the island.

He also purposefully stalled the fight as much as he could, so that Normyu would eventually be sent.

And when the Island fell, the battle that took both Melissa and Normyu's lives started.

Melissa trapped both of them in her earth dome, and Gerbil, famed as a strategist more than a fighter, made himself a liability to his brother.

Thanks to this, Melissa was able to tire Normyu and force him to cycle through more Gifts than she otherwise would have.

The most important of which was his ability to heal himself.

Once he had killed Melissa, he lowered his guard, only to see her rise again from the dead.

With his back turned, he was caught by surprise, backstabbed by the brother he tried to protect.

Normyu never stood a chance.

He was stabbed multiple times, poisoned, and paralyzed... Without his ability to heal himself, Melissa's corpse finished him off.

From what I understand, while he wanted to obtain the strongest Snow White Wolf to one day kill his brother, he was surprised by Melissa's power, and took the chance right there to turn both into his undead knights.

And well... Fate was surely working in his favor.

In a master stroke, he managed to blame the Seven Rainbow Miracles for his brother's death.

He didn't know about her ability to revive in a new body, but... In the end, that was more like a curse for her.

She had to confront her own corpse, but since Gerbil already planned on using his last remaining undead knight slot on his oldest brother, he didn't have much reason to kill her.

So her fate became something else, as torturous as the others.

I couldn't understand why he would go this far, killing his entire family just for power...

I felt like there should be more to it, but his answers shocked me a little.

Everything he did, from a young age, was all to get revenge on his father.

A king who discarded his own wife, Gerbil's mother, in favor of a new spouse when that would reinforce his alliance with Okeans, the kingdom on the other side of the channel.

Of course, he didn't decide on a divorce.

She was slowly poisoned to death while Gerbil was still young.

He never forgot it.

It fueled his hatred, and...

Mia: "That... Doesn't change anything."

Right...

I understood why...

But even though I could never imagine the impact of having his father kill his mother for such a meaningless reason, or the environment he lived in, with his brothers who believed it couldn't be helped...

I would never feel sympathy for him.

If anything, the hatred I had for him only grew.

Before I discovered that Normyu and the King had already died, I felt disappointed that our revenge would only target Gerbil, but...

Knowing the circumstances that led to all of this, I felt like he was the worst of them all.

Not that I felt any sympathy for the rest of his family, though...

All I felt towards them was disgust.

And as if sharing my feelings, the guillotine's blade that was supposed to end his life stopped short after falling on his neck.

It was like even the steel was too disgusted by him to go further.

Isabella: "Oh, my... Bring the mythril one, then."

A product only found in Hamperlon, the raw materials for which became available after the conquest of Maides Island, had unmatched sharpness.

No matter how thick-coated he was by the worst a man had to offer, the blade was bound to bring an end to his suffering.

Mia: "You... Tampered with it, didn't you? I thought you promised him a quick death if he were to cooperate."

Miwen: "...Yes. But I believe in their ability to change the blades quickly."

I wanted to make him suffer as much as possible, and just when death became his hope, I'd take it from him too.

Only for a brief moment, though.

Gerbil's caused so much damage to so many people, there was no way his end wouldn't be an ironic one.

He was executed on the same platform as the Seven Rainbow Miracles, by a blade made from what he took from the Snow White Wolves, coated in the same poison he used to kill his brother.

Seeing his head fall, I couldn't say I felt any joy, but at the very least, a weight had been lifted off my shoulders.

Mia: "..."

She stared intently at the corpse of the man responsible for so much tragedy in her life.

It was like she feared he would rise again...

Miwen: "It's over now."

I patted her head, ready to turn and leave, but once I touched her hair, I noticed something unusual.

Since she runs so much, it's usually quite disheveled, but this time it was neatly brushed and softer than I had ever felt.

And although I had told her to leave the Kingdom to heal and rest, I could still see a few injuries on her body, which meant she had stayed inside instead...

It was nothing like before; just a few scratches remained, but even that was too much given the time Raella and Agatha would have had to treat her.

As soon as my hand left her head and I turned my back to her, she grabbed my arm.

Without Cassandra, she was much stronger than I, and shaking off her grip was impossible for me.

Mia: "...Not yet."

I couldn't see her eyes.

Or rather, she was hiding them from me...

It's not something I ever expected her to do, and for a second, I was confused.

Before I could process it, she pulled me closer, and when our eyes finally met, determined as hers were, the look in her face was like she was begging me for something.

She released my arms, but with both hands, she pushed against my chest, making me fall into the room's bed.

Miwen: "...Mia?"

She approached me without saying a word. All I could hear from her was her uneven breath.

And the feeling she gave was...

It was like she had given in to her hunter instincts, and I was her prey.

When I saw her face again, I was the one who had to look up.

She pinned my wrists down, and when she saw the confusion in my eyes...

Her tense expression twisted into an amused smile.

I almost instinctively smiled back, seeing her having fun, but...

All the alarms in my body were screaming the same thing.

I was in danger.

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