In this world, there is always a word that can tug at your nerves.
It might be a name, a place, a past event, or a call.
But the word [Rebellion] had never appeared in Nidnia’s mind before.
Yet at this moment, spoken by Willis, it felt as if it had been sealed away in her mind, only to manifest today.
“Why did it have to come to this?”
Willis pondered endlessly in her mind, while Terrence and the other two beside her wore complicated expressions.
Even though they kept their voices low, Feidi and Andy kept glancing around, wary of any Overseer or other miners eavesdropping.
But once such a thing leaked out, it would be a crime punishable by the extermination of one’s entire family!
And now, with Willis dressed in Commoner clothes and staying in this Mine, even if she claimed to be Willis, it was unlikely anyone would believe her.
Furthermore—
If she dared to reveal her identity, she would undoubtedly face frenzied retaliation from the miners.
Now, if things went awry, she could be exposed to both sides!
“Do you even know what crime Rebellion is!? What’s the outcome if you fail!? And if you succeed!?”
Nidnia grabbed Willis and led the group out of the dormitory, moving behind a low wall.
“Uncle Terrence, this is serious. You all go keep watch. If anyone comes, let us know!”
Seeing Nidnia, who had moved from fear and shock to such calmness, Terrence and the other two exchanged glances.
Though she was much younger than them, the three still obediently spread out to keep watch.
Turning back, Nidnia directly hugged Willis’s shoulders.
In those water-blue eyes, it seemed as if a calm sea lay within. Nidnia stared intensely at Willis.
The other, however, frowned, clearly holding her breath.
The moment Nidnia pressed close, Willis caught a foul smell.
It came from this girl before her.
***
Nidnia continued to ask, “No matter success or failure, both of us would be doomed forever. Have you considered the consequences?”
“Who exactly are you? Why are you doing this? What’s your connection to Ushi City and Willis!?”
Even Nidnia herself didn’t quite understand why her heart was pounding so much at this moment.
The right thing to do was to ignore Willis and persuade her to give up this idea.
If the other refused, she could even report Willis!
If she wanted to rebel, let her do it alone, not drag others into it!
But Nidnia’s abnormal reaction made a triumphant smile appear on Willis’s lips.
The bet had paid off!
Even if the other hadn’t realized it herself, Willis would make her accept it.
“Actually, Uncle Terrence didn’t tell the whole story. He took me in not just because I was pitiful…… but because, at that time.”
As she spoke, Willis began to cry.
Victoria, beside her, stared in shock—
When did Her Highness learn this skill?
How could she cry on command!?
Willis sobbed.
Her face showed a mix of anger, pain, and guilt, blended with tears.
It truly made one feel pity.
“At that time, my parents, sob… and an elder sister, our whole family escaped from Ushi City.”
“We… sob sob… our family was in the fabric business…”
“Just because… sob, just because a City Guard Officer fancied a fine piece of cloth but didn’t want to pay for it…”
“My sister stepped forward… sob, stepped forward to argue with… sob sob… to argue with him…”
“But he was attracted by her looks and wanted to snatch both her and the cloth… In the struggle, my parents accidentally killed him…”
“We had no choice… sob sob… so we fled as a family, with a squad of City Defense Army chasing us.”
“Uncle Terrence saved me… but my parents… and my sister, to protect me, they… all died!!”
“This one next to me is my Maid. To avoid suspicion, I lied to Uncle Terrence and said she was my sister.”
Willis cried as she hugged Nidnia tightly.
Her body trembled with her sobs, making Nidnia’s expression very complicated.
In the end, all she could do was hold her and comfort her softly.
Turning her head, Willis’s expression changed.
“I hate those City Defense Army… and hate even more that wicked, unfit-to-be-lord Imperial Second Princess!”
“With her around, no one in Ushi City has a good day! With her around, we keep suffering all kinds of abuse!”
“So starting a few days ago, I began thinking of revenge!”
At that moment, extreme hatred twisted Willis’s face.
If not for knowing her true identity, Victoria would have been moved.
She might have drawn her sword and charged into Ushi City to avenge her on the spot.
But precisely because she knew who she was, Victoria only felt her scalp tingle and her stomach ache.
“What’s the use of killing just that evil City Guard Officer!? Kill one, and there will be thousands more!”
“My parents’ vengeance, my sister’s vengeance! And those miners imprisoned here, it all should be counted on Willis!”
Willis clenched her fists, speaking through gritted teeth.
“These past few days, I haven’t been able to sleep or eat!”
“I want revenge! I want to save all those oppressed by Willis and Ushi City!”
“I want the heavens to never take away my happiness again!”
“I want this land to never bury my loved ones again!”
“I want everyone here to never relive my pain, and I want Willis and the Ushi City of the past to vanish completely!”
“I want to build a Ushi City that belongs only to us in the future!”
“And I understand that I can’t do it alone, so I have to unite everyone!”
“Unite all those who hate Ushi City, hate Willis!”
“Overthrow tyranny! Walk towards Dawn!”
At that moment, a ray of morning light fell from the edge of the sky.
Unknowingly, it was already dawn!
Nidnia stared blankly at Willis standing in the sunlight, like a deity!
Her voice was soft, yet it set off roaring waves in Nidnia’s mind.
At that moment, the other seemed even more like a goddess saving all people, an angel descending with blessings!
She!
Shone with dazzling light beneath the morning sun!
Nidnia stood frozen, looking at Willis, her mind in turmoil.
A trembling light flowed from her eyes, and she deeply engraved this moment of Willis into her memory.
But then, an untimely voice shattered Nidnia’s thoughts.
“Who!? Who the hell is making a racket here so early in the morning?”
An Overseer, up to use the toilet, heard the commotion as he passed by, then shouted.
“Go, go, hurry!”
Terrence and the others quickly led the three girls away from the side, while the Overseer came over suspiciously but found no one.
“Weird? Is it my ears ringing?”
After the Overseer left, Nidnia still hadn’t recovered from Willis’s words.
Family persecuted, seeking revenge, determined to overthrow the current system and bureaucracy of Ushi City.
There was nothing wrong with that.
What Nidnia couldn’t calm down about was realizing she had been waiting for this opportunity all along!
Rebellion!
Something she shouldn’t have even considered.
But hearing Willis’s words today, Nidnia realized that the seed of rebellion had been planted the day her father was buried!
That withered figure, growing weaker day by day from toiling for his family.
That deep fatherly love, growing more intense as the time he spent at home shortened.
Until one day, he never had time to come back again.
Half a month later, the news came of the collapse of No. 13 Mine Tunnel from continuous mining.
Her father was buried in that cold mine forever.
The promise to buy her new clothes could never be fulfilled.
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