I Hate Him

A Collective Rebellion.

Tales stared blankly at the unsteady Naki.

The Royal Guard? A rebellion?

No one responded to Semir's cutting words.

Time seemed to freeze for a moment. Everything remained trapped in the past, no longer moving forward.

It was not until Little Barney's disdainful snort after inhaling that everyone was jolted awake from their astonishment.

"Ridiculous." Little Barney's voice sounded rather flustered. "Naki, your shameless lies are just like..."

"Lies?"

Like an enraged animal, Naki shouted back, cutting off Barney's unnatural question:

"Lies?"

There was a desperate chill in Naki's voice that made everyone shudder.

He swept his gaze over his fellow guardsmen, whose expressions varied, then addressed Little Barney with a half-smile:

"Take a guess, Barney."

"All those years in the Dungeon, what do you think caused the thirty-seven brothers you kept saying you would avenge and vindicate to die?"

Thirty-seven...

Without warning, Little Barney gave a violent shudder.

He was not the only one to react that way. Semir, Belleti, Talding, Cannon, and many others wore varied expressions.

Tales remained immersed in the terrifying news of the Royal Guard's collective betrayal. Pale-faced, he looked over everyone again.

According to Naki, half of the Royal Guard had known the truth about the King's assassination back then. Perhaps many had not been participants, but at the very least, they had stood by and done nothing.

Then what connection did the participants and informants in the Royal Guard—the ones who were now mostly dead—have with the Year of Blood, the tragedy of the royal family, and the Black Hand behind it all?

And what about the survivors here, the ones who had once sworn the guardsmen's oath and pledged eternal loyalty to the throne...

Belleti, Talding, Cannon, Bri...

Before he realized it, Tales had gone pale and taken a