A few months had passed since the revolutionaries arrived at Armand's manse. He had kept up correspondence with Eris a few times over the months, scheming something together. Winter had arrived. Snow blanketed the ground. Armand had performed his duties with usual competence while also trying to get rid of his reputation as a lunatic. But today, as he sat in his solar, the boy contemplated something.

"I'm 14 now. Eris and I will get married this Spring. Even after turning back time, after seeing that Eris had a good side...it's still surreal to think about," Armand thought. "The last time around, even if His Majesty told me to marry Eris, I'd have thought him mad. But this time...I hope this change is for the better."

Then, a knock came at the boy's door. Armand made sure his sword and pistol were within reach before speaking.

"Who is it?" he asked.

"My Lord," the voice was from one of his guards. "There's a letter for you."

"Slide it under the door like usual," Armand ordered.

The guard did as commanded. Armand waited a few moments before picking up the letter and bringing it to his desk. Then, he opened and read it.

"To the Lord Concord,

We have located your hated enemy, Brutus Medici. We can give this to you, provided you agree to support our cause. Meet us at the execution grounds in your city tonight. Do not bring anyone else.

From anonymous."

Armand let out a slight grin at this.

"It seems they've finally fallen for our trap. But not bringing anyone else? Do they think I'm a fool?"

The boy's smile turned into a grimace.

"This could be a trap on their part. The revolutionaries cannot be trusted, and if Eris is right, they are divided themselves. I'll need to take precautions in case they intend to take my life. I want to reach full maturity before I become a strigoi."

That night, Armand went to the execution grounds. He wore a cloak over his body. Under it was a suit of full plate armor. A dent on its breastplate served as proof that it could withstand arquebus fire. But the boy did not come alone.

A group of mercenaries followed him. Some were on the ground. Others, armed with arquebus, went from rooftop to rooftop. In all cases, they avoided getting attention. These were the greatest of Armand's personal guard.

The lord stepped into the execution grounds. A gallows hung high over the area. Nearby, it was a stool for the headsman. Bloodstains coated the wood and ground. There was a stench of death in the air, ever present on a place like this.

"I never liked places like this. They bring up too many bad memories. But there are some crimes requiring killing," Armand thought. "Still, I feel horrible for the executioners. They were born into their professions, raised by their fathers to kill helpless people. And many executioners take their own lives. Everyone hates them for just doing their job. As horrible as it is, executioners are necessary I should try to make things better for them, even if it's only slightly."

Three cloaked figures emerged from the shadows. They surveyed Armand's form with dark eyes. One of them stepped forward further than the others before they all stopped.

"Are you Lord Armand Concord?" he asked.

"Yes, I am," the noble answered. "Your letter said you have information for me?"

The figure pulled out a pistol.

"Robespierre sends his regards," his voice was cold.

There was a loud bang! as the weapon fired. Its shot slammed into Armand's armor, bouncing off it and making another dent. Armand reached for his own pistol.

Several other bangs! rang out through the area. The mercenaries on the rooftops fired their weapons. As for the rest of Armand's guards, they rushed in to protect their lord.

One of the assassins dropped dead from the initial barrage of arquebus fire. The rest started to run. But Armand barked orders to his men.

"Capture them! I want them alive for interrogation!"

Not hesitating, the mercenaries rushed off towards their targets. They had only worn light armor to keep plate from rattling around and making noise. And now, it allowed them to get an edge in speed over Armand's attackers.

One of the mercenaries tackled one of his targets. Several others quickly joined him. The other assassin didn't make it far before being grabbed by several of Armand's men. They were restrained and brought before the lord.

"Damn you!" one of them shouted. "How could you side with a noble over your fellow commoners?"

"Nobles pay better," a mercenary replied.

The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

Another of Armand's men seemed confused.

"And why are you lot trying to kill Lord Armand?" he asked. "He's trying to make things better for commoners, part of the anti-serfdom faction and all that."

The rebel glared at him.

"So what if he's trying to help the commoners? He's still a noble! Some of the other revolutionaries think we can spare some of them, but we can't! We need to get rid of all of them if Foldzar is to improve!" he declared.

"And who would it be ruled by? You?" Armand asked.

"The Revolutionary Council will rule Foldzar after the nobles are all killed!"

"And how will you replace them?"

"We will vote for our new leaders."

Armand tilted his head.

"And if Robespierre decides he wants his son to succeed him?" the boy questioned.

"He'd never do that!" the rebel declared.

Armand sighed and shook his head.

"Naive and foolish. Or perhaps simply deranged? It matters little. You've already signed your revolution's death warrant," he said. "Men, take them to the torture chamber. If Robespierre trusted them with my death, they will likely know where his hiding holes are, along with those of the rest of this...Revolutionary Council."

As the captives were dragged away, Armand grimaced.

"It's a shame. Some of the points the rebels make are good. If they didn't commit treason, they could have genuinely helped Foldzar."

Eris rode through a dark forest. Much to her dismay, Lady Abene was there too. A tension was between the two that could be cut through with a knife.

"If she wanted me dead, now would be the perfect time," Eris thought. "In fact, now is the perfect time for me to kill her. If I drew my gun and shot her in the back, she'd be dead."

The Hapsburg girl reached for her cloak. Then, Lady Abene spoke up.

"Don't even think about trying to kill me. I told my allies that if I don't come back, assume you killed me," she threatened. "And I've been putting up with you of all people for the past few months. I deserve something for that at least."

Eris pulled her hand away. Lady Abene's threat hadn't phased her, but the Hapsburg realized that her enemy hadn't let her guard down as much as she'd thought.

"Tell me, Lady Abene," Eris changed the subject. "Why did you join this revolution?"

Inside, the girl was plotting.

"Maybe this will get her to lower her guard? Besides, I don't like how far into the woods we're getting. Secret meetings don't need this much distance."

"Because Foldzar is rotting from the inside out. Yes, we don't have many external threats, but we more than make up for it with our internal bickering. Someone has to do something about it, and His Majesty is too weak too. This revolution is the best chance our kingdom has," Lady Abene said.

Eris grimaced.

"If Foldzar is rotting, I guess that makes me a carrion-eating fly," she thought before speaking. "Really, now?"

"Yes. And I dislike the suffering the commoners undergo. They are often the victims of our wars. And serfdom is a plague upon the land," Lady Abene said.

She then sighed and shook her head.

"Part of the reason why I haven't killed you, Eris, is because Lord Armand Concord is your fiancé. He isn't going to change anything. That's impossible with his methods. But I respect him for trying."

The Hapsburg's eye twitched.

"You fool! Armand ended serfdom the last time around, and he will do it again! By the gods, why are you, of all people, underestimating him?" a gut-wrenching feeling passed through Eris. "Honestly, you'd make a better wife for Armand than I ever could. Your ideals are far more similar to his."

She clenched her reins tighter.

"Why are you starting to remind me of Armand? Some day, I'm going to kill you, Lady Abene. The last time around, you were almost as much of a thorn in my side as he was. So why can't I bring myself to hate you?"

The two found themselves in a clearing in the forest. Everything was quiet, far too quiet. Eris and Lady Abene both looked around. Nervousness settled into the two of them. Something that had been bothering the Hapsburg for a while came to the forefront of her mind.

"Lady Abene wasn't associated with the rebels the last time around. Or at least, I was never able to figure that out. What if she was part of them and then left for some reason?"

There was a flicker, a glint of steel in the moonlight. Lady Abene moved first, ducking. Eris' magic that gave her enhanced reflexes activated. She moved soon after.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

Gunshots rang out through the forest. They missed the two noblewomen. However, the horses were startled by the sudden loud noises and bucked around in a panic. Out of the forest, revolutionaries armed with weapons charged.

Lady Abene drew her blade while Eris pulled out a blunderbuss. There was a grim expression on the latter's face.

"What are you doing?" Lady Abene shouted. "We're on your side!"

"My apologies, My Lady! This is the Revolutionary Council's order: kill all the nobles in our ranks!" one of the onrushing rebels shouted.

Eris pointed her gun towards the sky and fired it. There was an even louder sound than with normal firearms, one that echoed through the forest. It was swiftly followed by the rumbling of cavalry. The grim expression on Eris' face was replaced with a smug smirk.

"You bitch!" one of the rebels shouted. "You had men waiting all along?"

Eris shot her a cold glare.

"Of course, I did! I never trusted you fools to begin with! Even if I was willing to work with you, I always suspected that you might betray me!" she declared.

Then, Eris drew her sword and pointed it as if jabbing a finger.

"And you lot have no right to complain," she said. "I was right. You lot were going to betray us. The only people you have to blame for your upcoming demise is yourselves, or perhaps that Revolutionary Council you fools put so much trust in."

No one could say anything to that. Then, to Eris' surprise, some of the rebels dropped their weapons.

"We surrender," one of them spoke.

At this point, the cavalry was so close their hoofsteps were almost deafening.

"What do you mean, we surrender?" another of the rebels shouted.

"It's over, and this is our fault," another of the revolutionaries said. "These nobles were willing to look past their social class to help us, but we couldn't see past it. Whatever happens next is the justice of the gods."

The cavalry broke through the tree line, lances and swords drawn. One of the hussars, the one at the head, shouted.

"Lady Eris! What is your command?"

In response, the Hapsburg girl said something she didn't think she'd ever say.

"Kill anyone on foot who has a weapon. Spare those who are unarmed. They are to be treated as honorable prisoners," she spoke before thinking. "What the hell am I saying? Well, at least I can say that I respect how they are learning their place...and what would Armand think if I slaughtered those who surrender, even if they are commoners?"

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.