NOVEL NEXT Chapter 417: Former Princess
After an hour of battle, Souta finished off the army of the empire. This was the first wave of the enemy's army, and he knew that there were still dozens of the enemy's ships in this world.
"The empire's army in this world is finished..."
Souta said as he sat down and leaned his back on the chair. He commanded some of his people to persuade the forces of this world to join them. He knew that some of the people who wanted to rebel against the empire were just lurking in the dark, waiting for an opportunity to strike.
"In a week, we'll be able to take over half of this land..."
These were his calculations based on their speed in clearing the empire's army. If his forces didn't require sleep, then their time in conquering this world would shorten.
He brought two Mega Type B1-O ships, also called Mother, into this world. Right now, the mother ships have increased by seven as they've plundered it from the empire's bases. Those seven Mother ships had twenty-five assault airships inside.
The assault airships weren't huge like mother ships. It only has a size of twenty-five meters, and its speed was several times faster than the Mother ship. Ten people were needed to pilot this kind of ship to completely fill up all of its functions, starting from controls to cannons.
If they were going to launch an all-out attack against the empire, then Souta needed more airships.
"I needed a talent for modifying airships..."
Souta muttered as he rubbed his chin. He was a commander of the Mechanic Country in the game, so he knew a lot of things about the Mechanic Country's battle airships.
He just needed someone to realize his thoughts about modifying these airships so that they could rival those airships from Mechanic Country.
At this time, Isabella walked towards Souta and said, "Souta, the girl is awake."
Souta raised his eyebrows, and he stood up. "Lead me to her." He said to Isabella.
This was a good thing for him. If the people that he rescued were still alive, then it wouldn't bother his quest. As long as they were alive, then Souta would do everything for them to survive.
...
Souta and Isabella arrived in the room where the people that he rescued were receiving treatment.
As soon as he entered the room, he saw the girl with long blonde hair sitting on a bed. This girl was the one who was inside the container with a number "08" carved into it.
The girl was looking around with a confused expression. It seems that she still doesn't know what's happening, but considering that she was in that laboratory, Souta could understand it.
He took a chair and placed it close to the girl's bed before he sat on it. His action gathered the girl's attention, so she glanced at him as if she were asking where she was or what she was doing in this place.
"I know you have a lot of questions, but I'm going to introduce myself first. I'm Souta Ieshi; you could say that I'm the leader of the rebel army against the Great Astley Empire." Souta said with a smile, and he was patient so that he wouldn't scare the girl.
The girl didn't say anything, and she just kept looking at Souta. But he could see that her brows knitted tightly as if she were wondering if what he said was true or not.
"Don't worry. I will not harm you, and I don't have a reason to lie to you. Also, I'm the one who rescued you in that laboratory," Souta explained to her how he saved her life so that she could trust him even by a small amount.
"It's true. The laboratory has now been destroyed. We've also rescued the other people there." Isabella said.
The girl didn't have a choice but to believe them. She slowly nodded her head and asked, "You said that you're the leader of the rebel army, is that right?"
"Yes, I'm sort of their leader. Most of the people on this ship are prisoners in Prison World, and I'm the one who gave them freedom. Currently, the Prison World is under our control. We've destroyed the empire's army in that world." Souta explained it to her.
"Impossible...!! Taking back a world from the Great Astley Empire's rule..." The girl couldn't believe what she just heard. It seems that she knew the forces that were controlling the Prison World, the wardens.
"Why is that impossible? We've done it, so it's not impossible anymore. Also, as long as you have enough strength, there's nothing that you can't do." Souta smiled, exuding great confidence in his words.
"Do you even know how powerful the forces in the Prison World are?" The girl still didn't believe him.
"Powerful? There's no such thing as power in their army. They only had one advantage against me, and that was their overwhelming numbers. All thirteen wardens are dead. Believe it or not, all of them are dead, and the Prison World is under my control." Souta paused for a moment before he added, "And we're currently on a conquest to conquer five worlds that are under the rules of empire.
This world is just one of them, and my forces are in the other four worlds."
The girl stared blankly at Souta for a few seconds. She could just believe Souta's words, but she subconsciously denied it. After all, no one has managed to take over the Prison World. Countless people tried to free the prisoners in that world, yet no one completed it.
The girl sighed and said, "Fine, I'll believe in you..."
"Good. I have a question for you. I want to know who you are and what experiments they did on you?" Souta nodded and immediately asked a question. Although he read those notes in the laboratory, he still needed to make sure that was right. Maybe there was something that he missed before, and this girl knew it.
"I have questions too." The girl raised her head and looked Souta in the eyes.
"As long as you truthfully answer my question, then I'll answer your question too. I'll even help you get back to your family or your homeworld." Souta nodded at her. He could have asked the other victims, but he chose this girl. Why? Because she looks important. Her container was separated from the rest of the subjects in that laboratory, and she's the only one who had words carved into it.
"I understand. Then, I'll start by introducing myself. I'm Jamine Fleu Rendxynuz, the first princess of the Hurjudin Kingdom." The girl introduced herself. She looked like she was in her teens, but she was already in her late twenties. She was the oldest of her siblings.
Her country was the overlord of the world, called Xinus. They had powerful technology and magic, yet when the empire appeared, they were defeated. They weren't defeated easily because they had a powerful army. The Hurjudin Kingdom resisted the forces of the Great Astley Empire for more than a decade. The only reason they got defeated was because... three out of their twelve vassal states betrayed them.
It leaves an opening in their defenses, so the empire managed to enter, and it became their nightmare. One by one, their soldiers were killed. The empire's forces advanced towards the Imperial Capital and took over their world.
After their defeat, the Hurjudin Kingdom became a vassal region of the Great Astley Empire. Jamine's parents were killed, and the empire used the children of the royalty to control the whole of Xinus and pacify its people. Then, the empire sent a high-ranking officer to the Hurjudin Region, and that officer was Lydia.
"Lydia? As in Lydia De Capell..." Souta was surprised to hear Lydia's name in her story.
"Y-Yes, that's her full name; do you know Lydia...?" Jamine, the former princess, was a little bit surprised when Souta asked her about Lydia.
After the empire took her homeland, she didn't have anything to rely on. Luckily, the empire sent Lydia, and the two became friends. Lydia didn't force her to do anything against her will, and they continued to provide resources to the empire every month.
Until one day, she was captured by a soldier of the empire. No one knew about it—even Lydia didn't have any idea about her disappearance. It was strange, but then she realized that she was inside a laboratory. In the laboratory, there were hundreds of people with her, and all of them were guinea pigs.
Souta sighed and explained, "Lydia, you could say that she's one of my subordinates. She betrayed the empire and became one of its most wanted criminals. She is currently with the other prisoner, attacking another world under my order."
"Is that real? Lydia betrayed the empire..." Jamine opened her eyes widely.
"Is that hard to believe? Well, the other commanders couldn't believe it either. For their understanding of Lydia, she's the type of person that wouldn't betray the empire," Souta smiled as he shrugged his shoulders.