“It’s taking them a lot longer than I thought.” Lee Ji-Hye pointed out.

“It’s because they don’t know how to rebel. Even though they’re scared and angry, they don’t know how to initiate it,” I replied.

“I understand that, but you must feel kind of disappointed,” she said.

“There’s nothing I can do about it, and I’m not that disappointed. I somewhat expected it and even if they joined a different force, do you really think these citizens who have been caged all this time will be able to jump out of their nests on their own? Once the signal is shot, they’ll probably start charging. Just look at their faces. I guarantee that saying, ‘Let’s fight together!’ would end everything,” I explained.

“The process of planting the idea in their heads was kind of hasty. Well, I already knew. I just said it out of disappointment. So, should we shoot it now?” she asked.

I had to think about it, and even though no one was saying it, the citizens were about to explode in fury. Charlia’s famous line was enough, but since this scene would go down in history, it had to look fancier. For example, the uprightness of a democratic fighter. It was a part of my plan, but Oscar’s image was too valuable to use as a signal.

“Let’s wait since she hasn’t finished her speech yet,” I suggested.

Actually, I was waiting for Charlotte.

The timing wasn’t so bad. This was a great time for her to calm the people down and march together on the streets. The enlightened nobles supporting Charlotte’s cause would probably stay with her, but I was sure they would think, ‘will I be able to maintain my power?’ after watching the video. To make things worse, some nobles in her faction appeared in the video, so at this point, I was certain that she was trying to comfort those people. I could also imagine a conflict between those who thought that controlling the anger of the people was impossible and those who thought that they still had to do their jobs.

‘I moved pretty hastily.’

So, she was in a hurry as well. And both sides were experiencing the repercussions of such actions.

That was when I nodded toward Lee Ji-Hye.

“All citizens should not fall for the traitor's sweet words and protect their place!”

I heard an amplified voice from the imperial castle, and when I waved my hand to signal her to withdraw from the plan, Lee Ji-Hye gave a sign saying that she understood.

‘Nice.’

This kind of battle of words wasn’t so bad. I thought Charlotte was going to respond to it first, but a representative of the imperial castle spoke first. I thought it would have been better if the emperor himself came out since this was important, but there was no way a coward like him would show himself in a situation like this. The dying old man was probably looking for Charlotte or me.

The knights appeared along with a loud voice in case of an unexpected fight, and the mages were trying to find ways to stop the magic hologram. It was amusing to see the archers shoot their arrows toward the hologram. Seeing that their response happened so fast, they had to have felt like they were in danger. They knew that something big would happen if they didn't calm the people down.

‘He’s not that incompetent.’

The dispatched knight tried to send the people back to their homes, but what was laid bare couldn’t be hidden, and they had to be forcefully sending them back because I started hearing screams. The behavior of those in power was the same as those on Earth, and I couldn’t help but laugh when I discovered that.

“I’ll say it once more. All citizens should not fall for the traitor’s sweet words and protect their place! Everything is a lie and has been fabricated with magic. People of the empire, what you see isn’t a blessing from the Benigoa Goddess, but the whisper of the devil. Oscar is a traitor to the empire! The same goes for those who support her belief and follow her. She’s the devil devouring the Holy Empire!” the voice yelled again.

‘I should start responding…’

Before I could even give her the signal, Aris spoke angrily and loudly for the first time.

- You guys are the ones devouring the empire! You dirty imperial family. It’s because of all of you that this empire is sinking. Look up to the sky. The dead and the dying citizens are aware of your evil deeds, and the goddess is aware as well.

“How dare you speak of the goddess with that dirty mouth of yours, you traitor!”

- You’re the traitors. You guys are the ones who disobeyed the goddess’ will that all creation under the goddess are equals! You guys are the traitors for creating the division of classes and separating noble blood from commoner blood. Think back to when you became the imperial family and witnessed the things those of so-called noble blood have done.

Unlike my concern that she might run out of things to say, Oscar was arguing by saying things she wanted to say. Naturally, Lee Ji-Hye started talking.

“That’s not scripted, right?”

“It’s not. She probably thought of it on the fly,” I answered.

“She’s more useful than Charlia,” she commented.

I had the same thought. I didn’t think she would be surprised, but Oscar had taken the lead and was denying the emperor’s power. Obviously, I found this scene amazing

- The empire only exists because of its people.

“The empire only exists because of His Majesty, you traitor! Look at yourself right now. You’re being agitated without showing your true face. People of the empire, Oscar is the devil trying to put all of you in danger. She may be saying sweet words, but she’s a witch who will push you off a cliff. Regardless of the reason and title, you’ll be given a title and a prize for capturing that witch, and it can be anyone. The witch has to be executed—she has to be!”

- I’m not hiding, you traitor of the goddess!

Aris had been looking directly at Jung Ha-Yan while the latter was transmitting the video, but she suddenly turned her back, and I saw her trying to walk out of the door.

‘Huh?’

I was kind of surprised, but it wasn’t bad. That act wasn’t in the script, but showing herself in front of the citizens was a good idea as well. I quickly signaled Jung Ha-Yan. It was time for Oscar to show herself to the world, so it wouldn’t be a bad idea to allow the citizens to see her location.

“Brother Lee Ki-Young.”

“You can do as you please, Miss Oscar,” I told her.

“Okay…”

To maintain the atmosphere, she raised a flag that had the Sacred Democracy logo on it, which had now become a symbol, and showed herself to the people. She was on top of a clock tower where she could see the entire capital. The way Aris raised the flag while standing there was enough to be recorded on a page of a history book. The citizens turned to the clock tower after recognizing the familiar landmark displayed in the magic hologram. The uplifting atmosphere was increasing, and I wanted to scream.

‘It’s perfect.’

With this kind of production, a sacrifice for a signal wasn’t necessary anymore.

“I don’t hide.”

- I don’t hide.

The goddess’ mirror echoed the words Aris was saying, and the people who thought that this was an illusion magic became confident. The soldiers immediately ran toward the clock tower, and the soldiers we had stationed there stopped them. There were loud voices everywhere and the fire they prepared beforehand started flying one by one. Magic and arrows started falling, but we obviously blocked them using the defense magic we had prepared ahead of time. I thought Aris would get scared, but she continued talking during all these and the image she displayed as a fighter for democracy was even better than what I had imagined.

- I don’t hide. Traitors of the Goddess. I’m not standing here to push the people off a cliff. I’m going to stand in front of all of them. Where is the emperor hiding?! I want the one who criticized me for hiding to speak. Where the hell is the emperor in this situation?!

‘She has awakened!’

This was a great example of what it meant to speak out. I guarantee that this was the most glorious moment of her life.

- Where’s the princess who decorated herself with the blood and sweat of the people? Where are the people who claimed that they had divine blood? I don’t want to hear your voice, you dog of the imperial family! I want to hear the voices of those who created this faulty system and are drinking the sweet wine behind it.

“I-I’m Charlotte, the Second Princess! Your desire will come true!”

Charlotte had to have run out in a hurry because she started yelling without the voice amplification magic. I wanted to play along with her, but it was too late. I didn’t want to ruin this historical moment.

“Ha-Yan, increase the volume on our side and if Charlotte’s party uses voice amplification magic, block it all. You too, Mr. Cheon Kwan-Wi,” I ordered.

“Okay, oppa!” Jung Ha-Yan answered.

Charlotte’s voice was subsequently buried underneath various noises, so no one paid any attention to her. Moreover, there was fire flying everywhere, so the knights ran out and tried to push her back inside. Charlotte loved her people more than anyone else, so she tried to push the knights away. However, how could her loyal subjects leave her alone in a dangerous situation like this? They knew very well that the situation was bad.

Instead of Charlotte’s voice, Oscar’s pleasant voice filled the capital as she maintained her momentum.

- People of the empire! They’re the ones hiding behind the castle walls because they’re afraid of getting hurt. This is the true color of those dogs with power who have been looking down on us for having commoner’s blood and have been telling us that they’ll protect us with their power and authority. Like it was reflected in the goddess’ mirror, they’re not interested in ruling the empire and leading us on the right path. All they want to do is seize power to fill their own bellies. Excluding the awakened nobles like Count Castlerock, Lady Caitlyn, Lady Elise, and those who have signed the Citizen’s Revolution Support Declaration, all the other nobles in this land are like cancer in our society.

I liked how she was doing what I wanted her to do, and revealing the names of her sponsors was a natural thing to do. The apprehension of those connected to me had to have been quenched by now as they nodded away.

I saw Oscar glancing over at me. It felt like she was asking if she could start it now, so I had no choice but to speak quietly.

If Charlia were like her from the start, then I wouldn’t have been forced to do such a tedious task like this.

In the end, Oscar delivered the words I said to her.

“You must rise.”

Aris raised the flag, and as she unsheathed her sword, she released her inner voice.

- You must rise!

“We must build an empire for the people of the empire.”

- We must build an empire for the people of the empire!

“My comrades.”

- My dear comrades!

“I’ll take the lead.”

- I’ll take the lead before anyone else.

“I’ll shed my blood first.”

- I’ll shed my blood first before you shed yours. I’ll shed my blood for the cause and for you.

“Wake up.”

- Wake up!

“Many people will support us.”

- Many people will support us. The Vatican is aware of the goddess’ true will, and they are sincerely praying for the empire. The nobles supporting us, as well as the foreigners who are like a family to us now—they will all be with you!

“Fight.”

- Stand up! Take up your weapon! You must take back your rights! My dear people of the empire. It’s time to fight! We must fight.

“End…”

- For the sacred democracy! Stand up and fight! My comrades!

The loud cheers throughout the capital, no, throughout the empire, started filling my ears.