140 new Nobility

In the kitchen, listening to the sound of soldiers' boots clacking against the floor, a woman in a white apron stared blankly at the teapot in front of her.

With trembling hands, she grasped a teacup, the tea inside swaying from the shaking, just like the rolling waves in the open sea.

Finally, amidst the sobbing cries of the soldiers outside, she gulped down the tea in her cup and her face immediately regained a sense of relieved calm.

"Open up!" the soldiers outside commanded loudly, followed by a sharp gunshot. The bullet pierced through the door, sending splinters flying through the air.

"Bang!" At last, the flimsy wooden door was forced open and several guards brandishing revolvers barged into the room, only to find an overturned teapot and the body of the woman next to it.

"She's dead..." A soldier knelt on one knee, took a careful look at the woman's face, which still had her eyes slightly open, and then turned to his companion to say.