Remembrance of a Former Past(Fourth)

In the southern part of the continent, between the group of nations and the empire, a lone kingdom dwelled. Such a country was a massive one. It was known for its neutrality and wealth, along with its power and culture. It was called none other than the kingdom of Pax, the land of peace.

Many traders all over the world passed through such a country as it was the only place where the empire and the group of nations could coexist without battling each other. It was the citizen's pride to call themselves the central nation of peace. But unfortunately, a tragedy struck.

A piece of grave news was scattered everywhere, and it broke the very peace the kingdom of Pax was proud of. Many years ago, the tragic explosion of the military academy within the grand empire. It was brought upon by the royal family of Pax. They were the ones that killed a part of the future of the empire.

The moment this piece of information scattered throughout the entire continent. All of the nations worldwide knew the results of this revelation. The kingdom of Pax, the land of peace, would soon fall in the flames of battle. Such was the price of the things they had done.

It was an unfortunate fate for the land of peace.

But as one had said before, every action has consequences. The hatred and anger the empire had silently quelled would be unleashed over the entire country. The destruction of the kingdom of Pax was not a question but an answer to the tragedy.

Within the capital of the kingdom of Pax, the crimson flames of suffering shrouded the entire city. The grand buildings crumbled under the weight of the imperial cannons. The defenders had already left their post not too long ago, and the entire imperial army was storming the castle.

The citizens of the capital city had already been evacuated. But unfortunately for them, they had lost their home. They became refugees of the hundred-year war. No one would have ever thought that the kingdom of Pax would fall in such a manner.

No one even dared to think that they instigated the bombing of the military academy. But even then, the truth had been revealed. This battle and war were the results of it. The mistakes and the greed of the monarchy would make the citizens of the kingdom suffer.

"FIRE!!!"

"BURN THIS CITY TO THE GROUND!!!"

The shouts of the imperial soldiers sounded one after another as the thunderous sound of the gunfire echoed throughout the capital city. *BANG!!!* *BANG!!!* *BANG!!!* *BANG!!!* After the firing of the imperial cannons, the explosions of the impact were what followed. *BOOM!!!* *BOOM!!!* *BOOM!!!* *BOOM!!!*

The earth shook as the ground cracked. The mist of dust and ashes covered the entire streets, shrouded in an eerie silence. The imperial soldiers continued shouting as they stormed through the city with the intention of reaching the castle to find the royal family of Pax.

Meanwhile, in the castle found in the center of the capital city, the imperial soldiers within it had already captured the royal family of Pax. It appeared that they were gathering their wealth before leaving. Unfortunately, the blockade had reached them, making the entire monarchy trapped in the castle.

"So there they are! The bastards who bombed the military academy!!!"

"Do you bastards know how many died in there? Whether they were commoners or nobles, they were the future of the empire. The ones left behind in that bombing were scarred because of such an event. They became monsters because of you, and you were the reason for the conflict's escalation."

"Wow, I can't believe that you knew that."

One of the imperial soldiers was relatively good at gathering information. Even the soldiers around him were a bit surprised and shocked. But that wasn't the main problem. After all, one of the most terrifying generals was entering this castle. All of the imperial soldiers knew that.

"General Alastair Hecate is entering the castle!!!"

"Ready yourselves!!!"

A soldier shouted as a chill echoed within the spine of the soldiers around the royal family of Pax. Cold sweat dripped from their foreheads as they stood right beside the wall with a frozen expressions. They needed to present the captured monarchy to the general, or else there would be numerous dangerous things that could happen to them.

The king, who was in silence, also felt the chill within his spine. He himself didn't expect the general. He hoped that it wouldn't be that general he would meet. But unfortunately, the heavens and fate were against him. The king of Pax looked at the soldiers with a worried expression and questioned.

"Is she really coming? Is that general really coming?!"

Hearing his words, the soldiers looked at the king coldly as one of them replied. "Oi, do you think that we would joke about that general entering this castle? You seem to overestimate the imperial army." His words echoed throughout the area as the soldiers around him nodded in agreement.

"No! This is impossible. Why would the Demoness Alastair be here? Shouldn't she be in the north? What the hell is she doing here?!" The king shouted in confusion as he gritted his teeth. He had heard rumors about the general of the north. The way she does things were terrifying that even the devil itself would be her fan.

Other nations feared her and would rather not face her. Only the barbarians of the north had the guts to even try to fight her. But even then, they were slowly losing their land. Many of their so-called champions had already fallen. Demoness Alastair was nothing but a monster.

The empire, the imperial military, the group of nations, the north and the south. Many places all over the world knew about her monstrous tendency. She was a ruthless devil even to the empire itself. And what would those outside the empire think of her? Well, an abomination was what they called her.

"We don't know the answer to that, old man. Demoness Alastair had already arrived. It doesn't matter what you think about it." A soldier uttered as his expression slowly froze like many others. While meeting with the devil, it would be better for them to be as emotionless as possible.

"T-this..." The king broke down on the floor as tears escaped his eyelids. The royal members around him found themselves confused. Why was the king afraid of a single general? Shouldn't the general be fearful of the king itself? On the contrary, their king prides himself on his strength and intelligence.

This was practically the first time they saw the king breaking down like a thin shard of glass.

"B-but why should you be afraid, father? Isn't it simply a lowly general from the empire?" The prince questioned as he couldn't believe what he was seeing. His father wasn't someone that would easily break down upon the mentioning of some general. The prince simply couldn't accept it.

The king hearing the prince's words, coldly gazed at him. The prince shivered upon the expression plastered on his father's face. He didn't know what had happened, but he was sure he had messed up. The king then sighed as he calmed himself down. There was no use panicking.

In the end, the results would be the same.

"Demoness Alastair, or according to the imperial military, General Alastair Hecate. She was a soldier born through the rigorous special training recently created by the empire. She was the sole survivor of such training with a high mortality rate."

"After the special training, she joined the military academy and became acquainted with many higher-ups and nobles of the empire. She was popular because she was known to be the perfect soldier the empire had created. But after the military academy, it all changed."

"In her first battle, she beheaded the command and burned the entire command center to the ground. In her second battle, which was an insurrection, she decimated an entire city. In her third battle against the mountain soldiers, she flattened the mountain itself. Finally, on her fourth battle within the seas, she sank numerous islands in the archipelago."

"It was at that moment that Alastair Hecate wasn't considered the perfect soldier. Instead, she was a monster, a demon that emerged within the empire."

"Those that dared to underestimate her became the fertilizer of the northern forest. Even those that dared to betray her simply disappeared without a trace. The northern barbarians don't even consider her as an enemy general. They thought of her as one thing."

"An evil god pretending to be a human."

The more the king continued, the more his heart wildly beat. Sooner or later, the abomination within his explanation would emerge before him. There would be nothing he could do about it. His family would get executed, and their heads would be paraded all over the empire.

"You forgot one thing, king." A soldier uttered with a calm voice as he silently stood right beside the wall. The soldiers around him were in silence as they knew what the soldier was talking about. The soldier then continued and uttered something that the king would never forget.

"General Alastair Hecate is one of the few survivors in the bombing of the military academy. Some would say that the bombing was the reason why such a monster was born." The soldier sighed as he continued once again. "According to rumors, the general was different as a teenage girl."

"She also had someone who one could consider her best friend. But on the day of the bombing, that spoken best friend died before her. Since then, she had been trying to find the perpetrators of the tragedy. Going all over the world to find a lead."

"Now that I think about it, she might also have been the one that released the information regarding the kingdom of Pax."

But before the soldier could continue, a shout echoed throughout the castle.

"GENERAL ALASTAIR HECATE HAS ARRIVED!!!"

With such words sounding, the soldiers straightened their posture and turned their heads toward the doorway leading to the captured monarchy of the kingdom of Pax. In that doorway, the general would pass through and reveal herself. Such was the thought within their mind.

In the main hallway of the castle, a young lady was walking through the decimated floor. She was a gorgeous lady with pitch-black hair and coal-black eyes. She wore military clothing, specifically a general's outfit. The young lady was none other than the feared Demoness of the imperial military.

She was General Alastair Hecate.

As she continued walking through the main hallway of the decimated castle, the general had a serious and cold expression plastered on her face. Each step of hers echoed as the soldiers stood in silence right beside the pillars. Some gulped while others felt their cold sweat dripping from their foreheads.

The chaotic battle outside of the castle stopped as the imperial soldiers decided to maintain the silence for the general. Despite being surrounded by the sea of flames, no one wanted to offend the Demoness.

Seconds passed, and the clock kept ticking as the general's footsteps echoed throughout the decimated castle. It was rather strange for a general's presence to stop an entire battle. But such was the fact presented to everyone. The kingdom of Pax had finally been conquered.

General Alastair Hecate now stood at the decimated castle and was about to meet the perpetrators of the military academy bombing, The monarchy of the kingdom of Pax.

Back in the room where the captured monarchy was kept, the soldiers silently gazed at the doorway as a shadowy figure had finally revealed itself. They immediately straightened their stiff bodies as they uttered at the same time. "It's nice to see you, General Alastair Hecate!!!"

"We have captured the monarchy of Pax. Shall we leave this room?"

A soldier questioned with a calm tone as the general kept walking through the small hallway and didn't answer. It didn't take a while for the general to arrive before the monarchy of Pax. They gazed upon her in silence as the general looked at them coldly.

The king couldn't utter any words as nothing would escape his mouth. The family members around him were the same. The general wasn't some monster or abomination but was a beauty. A dangerous one at that.

The general turned her gaze towards the soldiers and replied.

"There is no need to leave this room."

"You all can watch."