GalaxyTL
* * *
The door Emi (forcefully) opened…
What lies beyond it, finally reached, is the deepest part of the Great Neverfall Sky Underground Labyrinth… and the heart of the Sky Kingdom of Neverfall, which continues to fly even after the eons of time.
What exactly awaits them there?
What will happen there?
I would like to tell you the whole story from now on.
…But!
Before that.
I would like to talk about the misfortune of a certain man, going back in time a little.
This man… was originally ‘scheduled’ to meet his downfall on this day.
However, due to Emi’s unintentional intervention… the way his downfall unfolded was slightly twisted.
…His name is Nabokoris.
A self-proclaimed… ‘corrupt prime minister’.
* * *
Neverfall Sky Kingdom, Central Boulevard.
This street, with its chaotic appearance, a mix of fancy, cute, and strange buildings built during the amusement park era, and “modern” buildings built using the inherited technology of the super ancient magical civilization… is, nevertheless, the commercial heart of this country, lined with government offices and large commercial facilities.
Therefore, normally, this street would be overflowing with travelers and shoppers, enveloped in a lively bustle.
However, at this very moment.
Central Boulevard is enveloped in silence.
“NAAAAH HAHAHAHA! NAAAAAH HAHAHAHA!”
Well… to be more precise.
On Central Boulevard…
While everyone around him is silent…
Only one man… is laughing loudly.
The man was in his sixties, with blond hair that had completely receded and was slicked back.
His eyes are drooping, but they are cold and clouded with desire, and there is not the slightest bit of kindness in them.
He is also quite obese, and whenever he laughs, the flesh on his jaw, so thick that it is impossible to tell where his neck is, wobbles up and down.
Yes… he is Nabokoris, the corrupt prime minister.
He’s the head of the so-called “Prime Minister faction”, who seized control of this country through his malicious tactics!
In other words, he’s a bad guy!
“You fools… this is what happens when you defy me!”
After a bout of laughter, Nabokoris kicks the stomach of the young man he had been kicking until then with all his might.
“Ugh…”
The young man rolled on the cobblestones, groaning weakly…
His clothes are already tattered, his face is covered in cuts and bruises, and blood is trickling from his mouth.
This young man’s name is Hectopa.
He’s the young leader of the anti-Prime Minister faction, who stood up to correct the corruption of this country, angered by the tyranny of the Prime Minister faction.
Today, he and his comrades, who share the same aspirations, held a large-scale protest.
They marched through the streets, denouncing the corruption of the Prime Minister faction, gathering support.
That’s the kind of thing they were doing.
And how did Nabokoris, the corrupt prime minister, respond?
It was suppression… through unjust violence!
“Whoa! Prime Minister-sama, you can’t do that anymore! You’ll get your clothes dirty! Hehehe…”
“Oh, you’re so thoughtful, Kiosen! Nahahahaha!”
The ones carrying out that violence are the soldiers led by the man currently polishing Nabokoris’ leather shoes, while chuckling vulgarly… Kiosen.
They’re one of the most corrupt units in the Sky Kingdom Army, a group of delinquents who can hardly be called soldiers who protect the people, and they have now completely become Nabokoris’ private army!
Kiosen’s soldiers suddenly attacked the citizens who were participating in the anti-Prime Minister protest and beat them up.
Even though they weren’t doing anything illegal!
Even now, those corrupt soldiers are laughing, surrounding the anti-Prime Minister faction people, who are unable to move after being assaulted, pointing their swords at them.
In other words, they are bad guys!
“Damn it! Hectopa-san…!”
“What should we do!?”
Many citizens participated in the anti-Prime Minister protest, and many of them escaped the violence of the corrupt soldiers.
But they, too, were hesitant to resist the soldiers any further, worried about Hectopa and the others, who were being held at swordpoint, like hostages.
They could only clench their teeth and watch as Hectopa and the others were assaulted.
Kiosen is rotten to the core, and on top of that, he’s a sadist who gets excited by seeing others suffer, but he’s also a master swordsman.
The anti-Prime Minister faction members, who have no combat skills, would definitely be defeated if they tried to fight.
Therefore, they were even more unable to take any further action.
“Well… I feel so refreshed after moving my body for the first time in a while! It’s good to exercise once in a while! Nahahaha!”
“Hehehe, you’re absolutely right!”
Nabokoris, after thoroughly enjoying tormenting Hectopa, laughed happily, while the anti-Prime Minister faction citizens watched with bated breath.
Kiosen bowed subserviently, wiping the sweat from Nabokoris’s cheek.
“So, I think I’ll get back to work, now that I’m refreshed.”
Saying that, Nabokoris turned on his heel and slowly started walking towards the palace.
However, he immediately stopped and turned around.
“Oh… right, Kiosen.”
“Yes sir!”
He looked down at Hectopa, who was glaring at him, covered in wounds, with contempt in his clouded eyes.
“That trash… dispose of it quickly.”
He gave Kiosen… that heartless order…!
“Hehehe! Yes, yes, with pleasureーーー!”
Kiosen, receiving that order, happily kicked Hectopa’s body, knocking him over!
“Ugh…”
“Hehehe, then, by order of the Prime Minister, we will begin the execution of Hectopa, the ringleader of that foolish group, the anti-Prime Minister faction! The charges are… ‘attempting to overthrow the nation’, and ‘insulting the Prime Minister’, that kind of stuffーーー!”
Kiosen, while loudly uttering those stupid lines, drew the sword from his waist and raised it to the sky!
The blade, shining coldly, reflecting the sunlight, drew gasps from the anti-Prime Minister crowd!
“Well then, boy, hehehe, suffer as much as possible… Byeーーー!”
And then, Kiosen, with his sword pointed…
Straightforward…
Towards Hectopa… and was about to swing it down…
…But it was at that moment!
“…AAAAAAAAAAHーーー!?”
Along with that scream…
Towards them…
From the sky…
…Something fell down!
“Huh!?”
Kiosen hurriedly turned towards the voice!
Then, what came into his field of vision was… a giant mass of flesh flying in the sky!
…No, that’s not right!
Like Kiosen, he was on the Prime Minister’s side and should have been holed up in the Air Force’s command center…
It was Kokiatsu, the Sky Kingdom Air Force Commander!