“Friture Elmar! For bringing an immense threat to the safety of the kingdom of Biscotti, your punishment is… Death, by guillotine!”

“So they still did it, in the end…”

Friture had been brought along many other persons with similar sentence in a suffocating carriage. Held in chains and watched by a knight, nobody dared to act foolishly, even if they knew it was the last time they would see the sun in the sky. Unfortunately, it seemed even this weak wish couldn’t be granted, as the sun was hidden behind a thick veil of clouds. They would all pitifully perish under this depressing weather.

One after another, they were dragged on a muddy path, the sound of the links reverberating a macabre symphony as they were walking under the unbearable gazes of the public who came to see their body hung, decapitated or whatever was prepared for them. It was both a spectacle to amuse the dulled populace, and a warning for any ill-motivated ruffian that would think about committing the same crime.

Usually, the most aggressive ones did not hesitate to throw tomatoes or stones at the condemned. As they were already on the verge of leaving this world, they might as well please them a bit more before the executioner did his job. However, today was different. Everyone had this strange hunch that something was wrong with the batch of prisoners.

One by one, they climbed the stage where they would play their final moment in front of those people. Fellow citizens, compatriots, family members, everyone came not because they heard of a public execution, as it was not an execution like another. This time, Friture Elmar was present in the lot. Everyone have heard of him at least once, the famous mad scientist who discovered the elixir of immortality through the forbidden use of divine energy.

If it was not for jealously, then it was through faith that everyone gathered to take a look at the face of the man who had enough influence to spark a war with the kingdom of Galette. Whispers were shared among the public, but there was just too much noise for Friture to grasp anything they could be saying about him.

Finally, when every condemned was grouped and prepared, the knight in duty opened his scroll to read loudly the public declaration. Having finished announcing Friture’s sentence, it was the hangman’s turn to arrive. He forcefully grabbed the scientist by the arm, placing him in position on the guillotine for the head to be chopped. Now Friture kind of understand how it felt to have his life hanging on the edge of the cliff.

He couldn’t see anything this way but the jar in front of him that was supposed to not let his head roll around wildly.

Then, he heard a lever being pulled, then a mechanism operating itself, and finally, the blade falling on his neck.

At last, he was liberated…

…

Suddenly, his body disappeared behind smoke, then reappeared in the form of a furry ball.

Everybody stood motionlessly at this sight, until…

“Again with this bullshit?!”

“It’s the second time already!”

“Buuuuuuh! You suck!”

Tomatoes and stones were thrown from the public, an archaic expression of their frustration for this sorry display of execution.

“We did it… It’s a success, Trellia!”

After Trellia vanished, everyone felt a mysterious wave passing through them. They couldn’t precisely describe what it was, but they could tell how they felt now. There was no doubt that the goddess’s protection was upon them.

“We changed the world together… We saved everyone…”

Or so he thought… But the tomato landing on his face told him otherwise. With the world’s rule altered, came a lot of unexpected situations that they needed to solve quickly. As it was not possible to bring death anymore, it was necessary to find another high penalty to replace the common execution.

But for now, it was still too early to propose a solution everyone would approve. They still needed some time to adapt with how the world would turn now.

Meanwhile, a certain knight-in-apprentice was running in the corridor of the palace to bring an important message to his superior. Arriving at the doorstep of his destination, he first wiped the sweat on his forehead, cleared his throat, and then knocked on the door to signal his presence.

“Dragee Martinozzi reporting, sir!”

“Come in.”

The young man pushed the door, excusing himself for the intrusion before bringing the document to the First General.

“Here is the report from the front line.”

Paladron quickly read the paper, but threw it away with a kind of used resignation. Despite the goddess’s protection which prevented death, Galette did not withdrawn its declaration of war. The fortress was sieged as planned, and many soldiers were hurt during the attack. However… They all survived the assault.

Nobody died, as they were permuted into this new form whenever they lost their fight against their opponent. In the end, Galette won the battle, and captured the fortress. But even if it was a defeat for Biscotti, the fact remained that all biscottians survived the aftermath. As they were too many of them to just be thrown in prison, Galette was confused at how to handle this new situation.

In the end, it was decided that Galette would return all the survivors and send a peace offer to Biscotti. Both side were reluctant to give up on the fortress, as each ambassador argued day and night about who was their rightful owner. The winner should deserve its loot, one proclaimed, while the unjust victim should reclaim it, the other argued. As they couldn’t decide, they simply continued, until one of them couldn’t pursue this matter anymore. Unfortunately, it seemed like both side would never let it go without compensation.

“First General, if I may ask, what is your opinion about this?”

“Mmmh…”

Paladron leaned on his chair, clearly tired by all this work inappropriate for a man of war. A lot of things happened recently, and in the end, the whole world underwent the same change. Not only in Biscotti or Galette, but even Pastillage and close kingdoms received the goddess’s protection. “It must be a mess on their side too…” Paladron thought.

“The world has changed, just as Friture Elmar wished for it.

To prevent death may be the kindest request gods could have granted to us mortals, or it may be the worst scenario and we are still not seeing the tip of it.”

Feeling heavy for sitting for so long, Paladron stood from his desk and walked toward a nearby cabinet. When he opened it, Dragee could notice a light armour displayed quite proudly, with a long but elegant sword standing next to it.

“For now, all I can say is that I’m an old geezer, and I need to let the new generation take over my role.”

“F-First General?!”

Paladron adorned himself with the armour. It did not seem to offer a lot of protection, yet it looked sturdy and easy to move with.

“You felt it too. Didn’t you, Mr. Martinozzi? War has changed. Old and dusty tricks won’t work anymore in this new era.

We are just going to fumble with the newer heads if we stayed.

We need fresher blood and fresher mind to see and learn how war should be waged now.”

He took the weapon from its stool, drawing a part of the blade to check its sharpness, then returned it inside the scabbard and attached it to its belt.

“First General, where are you heading?”

“He is not… Retiring, is he?”

“All this mess made me remember an old promise I made to someone.

It’s about time I fulfil it.”

There, Dragee received two paper from Paladron. The first was a royal decree, which allowed Paladron d’Arquien to lead a new and unique squad specialized in demon subjugation. The decree was dated at yesterday, which meant Paladron had already relinquished his status of First General before they met. The second paper was a letter of recommendation, personally written by the ex-First General himself.

The first certainly was a surprise, however the second left Dragee thoughtless on the spot. With this letter, he could become almost anyone in the army. Almost. That was why he didn’t understand why the First Ge… Why Paladron would gift this to him. He still showed no prowess on the battlefield, nor did he proved he could successfully command a regiment of knights. This present was too much for him, he couldn’t possibly accept.

“I know you’ll do the right choice, Mr. Martinozzi.”

Hearing those words and having the ex-First General patting his shoulder… Dragee felt like they were equals. It felt odd, strange, but extremely satisfying. He could not allow himself to disappoint him now.

“Yes, sir!”