1469 GoodBye, Mr. Traitor

What was going on here?

Many stared at the scene in confusion.

But the Commander and his forces only surrounded the scene with their chests raised to the sky in utter silence.

You look at me; I look at you.

No matter how they saw it, the scene was too out of place.

But it wasn't just Jameson's men who felt this. Rushing to the scene were many from the subcamps belonging to the other Generals under Commander Ferguson.

They had been alerted by those still up, saying they spotted the Commander taking a large gathering of men towards Jameson's camp.

So how could they not show up?

The Generals squinted their eyes with no one knowing what they were thinking.

An assassin?

It looked more unlikely.

.

Jameson's throat bobbed as he swallowed the built-up saliva in his mouth.

'Was I discovered? No! Impossible! I've been going against him in secret for a year and a half now without him discovering anything. The fool would never think bad of me. So I must be overthinking it.' Jameson said, comforting himself.

Settling his thoughts, Jameson kept his face as expressionless as he could.

The moment he showed any signs of weakness, uneasiness, or guilt, the fool might grow suspicious, feeling he was hiding something.

Looking at the assassin who was trying to flee, Jameson decided to turn his attention to the intruder. After all, the old fool must be here for this matter, right?

With enough brainwashing, he raised his hand arrogantly, pointing his dagger at the swaying and anxious-looking Assassin.

"Give it up! Your end is inevitable."

"Inevitable?" The assassin sneered, suddenly standing relaxed, as though whatever was going on had nothing to do with him.

"You!~~~".

Jameson's self-brainwashing had begun to falter. And the last hope he had was quickly thrown away the moment Ferguson spoke.

"That's enough!!!"

Ferguson's voice echoed out. If one listened carefully, one would hear his pain.

Step by step, the gallant man proceeded towards Jameson with his hands behind his back and a few of his men beside him.

Ferguson stared at Jameson in disappointment. Don't think he didn't see the expression this ungrateful white-eyed wolf made after seeing him arrive.

Though he quickly covered it up, Ferguson had seen his true feelings of jealousy, hate, greed, and hostility against him.

Ferguson only hated himself for being blind.

'To think I had taken him to my home, introduced him to my family, and welcomed him with open arms... Tsk... Ungrateful vagabond!'

.

"Commander!"

Many saluted humbly whenever Ferguson passed their way.

"General Jameson!"

Bubuum.

Hearing his name, Jameson felt a loud thumb in his heart.

"Commander!" He saluted, slightly bowing humbly to shield the turbulent emotions in his eyes.

Ferguson didn't bother talking to him, turning around to face the large gathering.

'Does he know or not?'

Jameson's uneasiness only grew deeper.

"Warriors of Deifer! Knights of pride! Since our young monarch took to seat, Deiferus had grown very prosperous. There is more food in the empire, and our families live better lives than before!"

Yes... That's right.

Many nodded in agreement, feeling the wave of their commander's words.

They weren't nobles but warriors with humble backgrounds. Before, some privileges could only be available to children from noble homes.

But now, their little sons, daughters, nieces, and nephews had access to this.

The times are booming, illiteracy has reduced significantly, their children seem happier, and many already feel comfortable with this new way of life.

Whether one hates their monarch or not, it is a fact that Deiferus' growth was something even the ancestors wouldn't have foreseen.

Unlike the nobles, they, ordinary folks, cared more about their day-to-day living.

What was even more fascinating was that their wives had started doing new and innovative trades, wracking income for their households too.

Before, women were indeed allowed to work. But they did jobs like being a maid, cook, farmer, laundry washers, and whatnot.

The jobs they did evolve around household tasks.

But now, the possibilities seem endless, with new job opportunities popping up now and then.

Though the pay as a common soldier was good, sometimes, it wasn't enough to deal with the many problems at home. So having their wives share some of the burdens was quite good.

Before, they lived hand to mouth. If they wanted to buy something, they would start saving and may be limiting their daily need to make things up.

But now, with both parents bringing a certain amount of income, their families have enough money to eat well and have fun.

Sending their children to a good Academy was no longer an issue, seeing how they could now make up the money faster than before.

It also made them feel good knowing that even if their wages were delayed for a while, their families wouldn't be in dire straits wherever they were.

Additionally, the overall economy of the empire was good, with people getting restricted on how high they could charge their goods.

Everything had a price range and guidelines that merchants had to obey, allowing ordinary people to get a taste of the 'luxury' life too.

Before, ordinary peasants couldn't afford to get a painter to paint their portrait, seeing that Painters charged thousands of copper coins for their services. But now, things have changed!

Those once proud painters who extorted them lowered their prices voluntarily, charging as low as 100 copper for a simple paint style. Complex paint sales would get charged higher. And the bigger the painting, the higher the price too.

All in all, the changes were acceptable to them, far better than before.

.

Hmmm...

Everyone nodded, feeling the Commander's words true.

Ever since his majesty Henry took over, their families lived far better than before.

The more they listened, the more solemn the atmosphere became.

"We, Warriors of Pride, have been fighting alongside his majesty to keep our glorified empire at peace from the enemy. We marched through Deiferus' many plains sharing one goal in mind... eradicating the enemy!"

Ferguson's voice though not calm, gave a thunderous clap in their eyes.

"In our midst, there is a traitor amongst us!"

Traitor?

Many looked between Jameson and the man in black. A majority didn't think it was Jameson, feeling that the man in black should be someone they know who betrayed them.

That is... How can General Jameson be the traitor? Even those in Jameson's camp felt so.

But as for the real culprit, he only felt cold sweat form on his back.

Bubuum.

'He... He knows?...'

Jameson's eyes darted about unfocused.

Even his men didn't know of his scheme.

As they say, if one wants something to be kept a secret, the more people one told, the more likely word was to spread. So how could he inform all 2000 of his men?

Only his hidden guards and one of his aides knew of his plans.

As for the rest, he planned to inform them after the Councilmen surrounded the group.

There, he would tell them to choose between death or joining him.

Jameson had calculated and thought it through.

... It was just that he didn't see the scenario of Ferguson's sudden change.

He had been with Ferguson for over 12 years now. And barely 5 years back, he got promoted to General that ms to his scheming.

But Maybe because he proved himself in knowing Ferguson like the insides of a book, he had subconsciously relaxed his guard.

However, reality was quick to smack him in the face.

.

Sling~

Furgeson unsheathed his blade at his dearest General.

What?!!!

The traitor was Jameson?!!!!

Everyone was in an uproar!

How could it be him?

Those in Jameson's camp didn't know how to react. The other generals also had various expressions of disbelief.

Even though they were jealous of how Ferguson treated Jameson, they never thought Jameson would betray the Commander.

'After all the commander did for him, he dared to do so?' Someone murmured in surprise.

Heh.

Ferguson didn't even want to talk much or ask Jameson why he couldn't wait for him to step down from his position at free will.

In 4 more years, he would be handed it over to him.

Sure enough. Impatience was a sin.

"General Jameson Smith IV. You are hereby charged with treason for attempted murder on his Majesty's life, attempted murder on your commander's life, attempted murder on the lives of the other Generals working alongside you, and a plan of mutiny, to call us all!"

Boom!

The words exploded out like drums. And the other Generals and warriors grew colder by the second.

So he wanted to kill them too?

What a good General Jameson.

Plop.

The hidden guard he sent out was thrown to the ground without mercy.

"General Jameson, in addition to those charges, you're also charged for conspiring with the enemy to do with us all. And as for your punishment... The choice is death!!"

"No!!~"

Jameson roared in disbelief, not wanting to accept his defeat.

He was this close. So what went wrong?

He lifted his head towards Ferguson to deny his accusations. But it was already too late.

Plop.

Everyone watched his head fall to the ground in utter silence.

(°π°)

Dead... He... He was really dead.