"Yes…. I am their leader" Leo said, with amusement evident under his voice, as Duke Victor felt his soul leave his body.
Leo saw it all happen in slow motion.
The constriction of the Duke's pupils.
The abrupt pause in his breathing.
The sudden draining of blood from the top layer of the skin, making him look a shade paler.
And the unmistakable smell of ammonia, which suggested that the Duke had just wet himself.
He was in shock, and rightfully so, as a situation that he could never have imagined in his wildest dreams now unfolded before him.
"You-you're the rebel leader?" He asked, his voice quivering as he tried to slide away from Leo, however, it was to no avail.
*Crunch*
Stomping hard on his leg, Leo crushed the Duke's bone, as he pinned him to the spot.
"AGHHHHHH—" The Duke screamed in pain, his pain filled voice propagating throughout the mansion, as his underlings were immediately alerted.
"Come on now…. Call for help! Do it! Say, somebody please save me! It's your only shot at life" Leo urged, as he encouraged the Duke to look past the pain of his broken leg and call for help, however, the Duke struggled to stop screaming.
For a good ten seconds, all he did was scream, however, then, with a determined strong inhale, he tried to piece together some words as he said "Someb—"
However, before he could ever complete his sentence, Leo used [Kill Strike] ending the Duke's life with one decisive blow, as with his new [Advanced] mastery of the move, not only did the Duke die, but the strength of the move made his entire body burst like a balloon.
*SPLAT*
Everything but his head was reduced to a blob of blood and muscle, which scattered around the manor's entire observation deck.
[System Notification :- You have killed 'East Duke Victor' and betrayed the Empire.
If your crime is discovered, you shall be now labeled as an enemy of the state]
A system notification informed Leo, however, Leo did not care for it.
It wasn't him who had made an enemy of the state, but rather the state which had made an enemy of him.
They had invited and killed his master through treachery and for that crime the Empire had to pay.
*Plop*
Picking up his pudgy, defaced head, Leo casually walked towards the observatory's only entrance/exit point from where the Duke's troops rushed towards his location.
"My Lord, what happened my Lord! I heard a scream" said a soldier as he barged into the observatory deck, only for Leo to toss him the head.
"Catch–" Leo said, tossing the man the head of his Lord, as for a second the confused man caught it unaware of what it was.
"AGHHHHHH—" he screamed a moment later, dropping the decapitated head, as he recognised who it belonged to.
"Th-thats the lord!" He said in horror, as just as he said those words, a dagger impaled his neck, ending his life.
"How dare you drop the head of your Lord, you ungrateful servant" Leo said, mocking him as he lazily began the massacre of the dozens of troops rushing towards his location.
*Stab*
*Stab*
*Stab*
With every flick of his wrist, Leo killed a couple troops with ease as he massacred his way out of the Duke's manor, leaving an open trail of blood in his wake.
It wasn't assassination, it was a one sided massacre, as instead of hiding or fearing the consequences of his actions, Leo openly killed with no care in the world.
"THE BARON HAS BETRAYED US... SOMEBODY STOP HIM! THE BARON HAS BETRAYED US!" shouted a soldier loyal to the Duke as he burst out of the manor, rushing to alert the troops. But to his horror, none of Leo's men reacted in the slightest.
They stood still, faces cold and unflinching, their contemptuous stares piercing through his panic. It was only when the soldier caught their expressions that he realized—every one of them was in on it.
With Viscount George and the Duke's main forces already scattered throughout the city to quell the rebellion, the manor was now guarded only by Leo and his 22,000 soldiers, along with a small contingent of the Duke's men.
"Is that so? Has the Baron truly betrayed the Duke?" one of Leo's soldiers, a captain, asked casually as he strode toward the panicked messenger.
"Don't—don't you dare come near me!" stammered the Duke's soldier, drawing his weapon, fear flashing in his eyes. He stood trembling, ready to defend himself. Yet, before he could react, a blur of green shot across his vision and in an instant, his head was severed from his body.
"The Duke betrayed Lord Father long before he betrayed him…. Get your facts straight, Mongrel," Dumpy remarked, his gaze fixed on the decapitated head, as in his final moments, the dead soldier's last thought was one of disbelief—wondering if a frog had really spoken to him?
"Did you see that? That frog moved like lightning!"
"Is that the lord's pet?" Leo's soldiers murmured in amazement, as just like the fallen soldier, none had expected such speed from Dumpy.
Silent and composed, Dumpy closed his eyes, patiently awaiting his Lord Father's return, as despite the soldiers' chatter, he remained unmoved.
Since Leo had instructed him to behave and show restraint during the war, to honor his wishes, Dumpy suppressed his violent urges.
As a mythical beast, he could hardly bear the presence of lesser creatures, but for his master's sake, he held himself back, battling the instinct to destroy anyone who dared to meet his glorious bearing with disrespect.
It was difficult if he kept his eyes open, however, by closing his eyes and not focusing on the background chatter, Dumpy found himself capable of killing time, until his Lord Father made his eventual return.
And return he did, as after nearly 20 minutes since the Duke first screamed, Leo walked out of the manor drenched in blood having massacred all 181 guards within, while locking up the Duke's family and non-combat servants in the storage room in the basement.
The rebellion had officially begun!