Chapter 180: Rebels of the Empire

A familiar voice.

Rebecca would never mistake it. In all those years she spent on the battlefield, every moment of life and death was guided by this voice, leading them to survive against all odds.

She gazed at the towering figure before her, astonishment filling her delicate blue eyes.

The hand holding the gun trembled slightly. Rebecca gritted her teeth, suppressing her confusion and astonishment. She pushed against the figure’s back with force.

“Turn around!”

There was a tremble of excitement in her voice, mixed with a hint of tears.

Leon raised his hands and turned around slowly.

Three years had passed, but in that moment when Rebecca saw that resolute and handsome face again, she thought she was dreaming.

Warm tears flowed uncontrollably from the corners of her eyes, her pretty face displaying a complex array of emotions.

Apart from surprise and astonishment, there was also confusion, gratitude, and relief, among others, a myriad of feelings.

After all, the captain who should have died in the enemy’s headquarters three years ago had miraculously “resurrected” and stood before her. Anyone would be dumbfounded, right?

Watching Rebecca’s expression and reaction, Leon secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

It didn’t seem like an act.

Leon understood her well since she joined his squad upon graduating from the Dragon Slayer Academy.

This crazy girl couldn’t hide her thoughts. Whatever was on her mind would show directly on her face.

Right now, what was written on her face was, “Holy crap, Captain, you’re actually alive!” rather than “Damn Casmode didn’t manage to kill him back then?!”

Leon lowered his gaze to the girl with twin ponytails who stood shorter than him, slowly lowering his arms. “How about we both put our guns down and sit down to talk?”

Rebecca had just recovered from her shock and astonishment. She shook her head, evidently accepting the fact that Leon was alive. But she didn’t let go of her gun.

Standing on tiptoes, Rebecca raised her arm, the dark muzzle of the gun pointed at Leon’s face. “Am I dreaming?”

“Of course not, why would you be dreaming in broad daylight?”

“No, Captain, I’ll shoot your thigh right now. If you yell in pain, it proves this isn’t a dream. Let’s begin.”

Leon’s eye twitched slightly. The Empire might have changed, but his gunner hadn’t. She was still the same neurotic girl.

But Leon remained calm and simply shrugged. “I told you, there are no bullets in your gun.”

Rebecca hesitated, then quickly retracted her gun to check the magazine. Sure enough, it was empty.

Then, she watched as Leon pulled out a handful of bullets from his pocket. “Your hiding spots for guns are too obvious, Rebecca.”

Before being certain if Rebecca was truly as trustworthy as his master claimed, Leon cautiously unloaded the bullets from her gun. When she returned home, he would see if she could communicate calmly. If not, he had nothing to fear from an unarmed gunner.

Rebecca stared blankly at the man in front of her. That was more like it.

The Captain’s nonchalant, cool demeanor was impossible for anyone to imitate. Finally letting her guard down, Rebecca opened her arms, ready to embrace Leon.

However, this action startled Leon, causing him to quickly step back and then extend his hand to stop Rebecca from coming any closer to hug him.

Rebecca blinked, “Captain, I don’t mind hugging a resurrected corpse, but you’re the one not willing?”

“The situation is different now, Rebecca.”

Indeed, the situation was different from three years ago. Back then, he was single, so a hug wouldn’t have been a problem. But now, three years later, he was not only married but also had three children.

Even though his wife was temporarily absent, he still had to adhere to the principles of being a husband. Casmode’s ‘virtue’ encompassed the virtues of a man, no doubt about it!

However, Rebecca clearly didn’t realize that her captain had already become a “redundant husband.” She interpreted Leon’s “the situation is different now” in a different light.

“Well, these three uncertain years of yours have indeed changed the internal situation of the Empire.”

Rebecca tossed her gun onto the nearby sofa, then went back to the door to pick up the large bag of snacks and fruits she had just bought.

Taking the opportunity, she glanced around the door to ensure there were no suspicious individuals watching before pulling her head back in, closing the door behind her.

“So cautious?” Leon asked.

“Of course, after all, if the patrol team finds out there’s an Empire traitor hiding in my house, it’s off to the gallows,” Rebecca replied matter-of-factly.

Upon hearing this, Leon froze. “Empire traitor? Who? You mean me?”

“Yeah, is there anyone else in this room, Captain?”

Oh no. Get married outside, only to come home and find out you’ve become a traitor?!

Regret for his master becoming a fugitive was a luxury he no longer had. Now, entering the stage was the rebel of the empire—Leon Casmode!

Rebecca placed the shopping bag on the coffee table, then stood in front of Leon again, hands on her chest, looking up at him.

Leon swallowed hard, forcing himself to stay calm. “How did I become a traitor?”

Rebecca didn’t beat around the bush, explaining straightforwardly, “Three years ago, we returned from the Silver Dragon Temple in defeat, with heavy casualties. The king was furious, and public opinion turned against the Dragon Slayer Corps. Our squad, along with several other assault teams, were temporarily suspended and had our military pay deducted for three months.”

“A few days later, the Imperial family provided the reason for the failure of the operation, claiming that during the assault on the Silver Dragon Temple, they were interfered with by a mole, exposing the positions of all Dragon Slayer squads, leading to their defeat.”

“This mole… or rather, traitor, is naturally you.”

“In the aftermath of a failed war, someone always needs to take the blame, right? And you, Captain, are the perfect scapegoat, because… ‘dead men’ don’t speak.”

Rebecca sat on the sofa, her pretty face darkening.

“After this news came out, I tried to explain to the military authorities that you weren’t a traitor. And then…”

The girl chuckled self-deprecatingly and shrugged her arms. “I was relieved of my duties in the Dragon Slayer Corps, and then reassigned to patrol duty. My job now is to wander the streets twice a day, completing my task without encountering any dangerous creatures or Dragon Kings ever again.”

After listening to Rebecca’s account, Leon fell into silence. The methods used after the failure of the war were indeed dirty, fitting his stereotypical image of the powerful.

Leon was well aware of the dark side of power struggles, so he never got involved with them or bothered to inquire about what happened “up there.” He guarded the Empire, not the well-fed royals and ministers, but the common people.

After a moment of silence, Leon sighed and said in a deep voice, “Thank you for believing in me, Rebecca.”

Rebecca’s face also became serious. She hesitated for a moment before adding, “Actually… during the attack on the Silver Dragon Temple, there was indeed a mole among us, wasn’t there?”

Leon furrowed his brow, “How do you know…”

“At that time, just as we entered the courtyard of the temple and were about to continue the attack, everything suddenly went dark before my eyes. I couldn’t see anything, and my hearing was blocked. Fortunately, this condition only lasted for a few seconds. But when I opened my eyes, you… had already been ambushed.”

Rebecca continued, “The position of our troops was exposed, and without your command, the Silver Dragons launched a full-scale counterattack. Our troops were completely defenseless. Victor ordered a full retreat, but you were already on the brink of death, unable to move. Taking you with us would have meant the entire Dragon Slayer squad being wiped out.”

“I insisted on taking you with us, but Victor said we could only leave you behind, or else we would all die here.”

Victor was the deputy commander who took over command from Leon at the time, and he was also the vice-captain of his Dragon Slayer squad. It turned out that at that time, Leon, in a daze, heard the team members arguing about whether or not to take him with them… But the outcome was already clear.

How could a gunner like Rebecca possibly argue with the vice-commander?

However, this didn’t mean that Victor was necessarily the mole who ambushed Leon at the time.

In that situation, leaving Leon behind, unable to move, was indeed the best choice. Even if they had taken Leon with them, they wouldn’t have stood a chance against the swift Silver Dragons.

“Afterwards, I thought about it carefully. The illusion that plunged me into darkness probably wasn’t cast by the Silver Dragons because at that time, there were no Silver Dragon soldiers around us, only… the four of us,” Rebecca said, relieved.

Then she continued, “But I didn’t tell anyone about this idea, otherwise… maybe even the patrol team wouldn’t have room for me, or maybe the next day I would have been… taken care of by certain people.”

She tilted her head, rolled her eyes, stuck out her tongue, and made a silly face.

Leon shook his head with a wry smile. The crazy girl’s head was still sharp, knowing how to protect herself in this treacherous empire’s cesspool.

“You’re right, Rebecca. It was indeed someone from within the team who ambushed me. They used a very special weapon to pierce through the Black Gold Battle Armor’s chest plate and pierced my heart,” Leon said.

Rebecca raised an eyebrow, “Was it Victor or… Martin?”

Martin was the youngest son of a minister and also a die-hard fan of Leon.

Leon shook his head, “I’m not sure. One of the purposes of my return to the Empire this time is to expose the mole who framed me back then.”

Rebecca clapped her hands, “It’s a fifty-fifty choice then. My suggestion is to take them both out. Better to kill one by mistake than to let one slip away! Captain, do you need weapons? I don’t have much else here, but I have plenty of guns for you to choose from!”

Leon chuckled. He knew Rebecca was joking. After all, he didn’t expect a neurotic chatterbox to stay serious for long.

But Leon was willing to play along. “You’re talking as if you’re the mole trying to take out all the good guys so you can win,” he teased.

“Indeed, Captain, that’s exactly what I think. You’re really smart! Should I award you with your favorite champion trophy?” Rebecca said, her expression dead serious.

Leon waved his hand, changing the subject. “You were assigned to patrol duty after the war. What about Victor and Martin?”

“Little Martin naturally hid under the protection of his minister father. But it seems like he also frequently gets scolded by his stepmother at home. As for Victor, as the vice-commander, he had a lot to answer for and was directly expelled from the Dragon Slayer Corps. Now he seems to be working as a resident singer in a tavern,” Rebecca said. “I last saw him a few months ago.”

“They’re both living pretty miserable lives,” Leon commented.

“Not as miserable as you, Captain. You must have suffered a lot during those three years in the enemy’s headquarters,” Rebecca said sympathetically.

Leon scratched his forehead. “Ah, well… it’s not exactly like that…”

“Alright, let’s not talk about it, Captain. I understand. Those are memories you’d rather not revisit. The important thing is that you’ve escaped back here,” Rebecca said.

Leon pursed his lips, avoiding eye contact, and replied with a muted, “Yeah…”

“Oh, by the way, Captain, how did you manage to escape from the Silver Dragon’s lair?” Rebecca asked.

Leon silently facepalmed. Do you believe the enemy boss personally escorted me back?