As soon as the news of the attack reached their ears, all the big names of the capital directly fled from their respective homes and offices towards the secure facility underground.
This was not only to make sure they didn’t fall victim to an unexpected airstrike, but also because they weren’t sure just how deep the rotten roots of the rebellion had dug into the capital.
With the current capability of the rebel forces, they really didn’t dare bet their lives on just the few soldiers they each had on hand.
Not to mention, the loyalty of these people was also not something they dared take for granted. With even the employees and guards around them looking suspicious, these politicians and officials hurriedly fled to hide here, where they felt the safest and most assured.
No matter what someone said about the president, it was without a doubt that he had the most loyal cronies, and the highest level of access to all the resources.
As long as they could hug his thigh, they were sure they could pass through this tide unharmed!
Even in the worst case, if they were unable to wait for the rescue, they could still follow the president to escape. After all, with how cunning the man was, it was impossible for him to not have any way out.
The president naturally didn’t want to welcome them into what was supposed to be his own bunker, though, especially because of the security risk of some of them turning out to be rebels, so they unfortunately found themselves facing a closed, unresponsive door.
A few of them couldn’t believe it and tried to convince the president using words, but there was no response. Enraged, some couldn’t help but punch and kick at the entrance.
Of course, they knew it was foolish and would only hurt themselves, since even a missile wouldn’t be able to do much damage to the president’s bunker, let alone their bare fists.
”Mr. President, you can’t just leave us out here!”
”Let us in, too!”
”Bastard! Is this how you repay us for decades of loyalty?!”
Once they realized that he really had no intention of helping him, the expressions of these ‘allies’ twisted even more. “How can you leave us stranded to face all this trouble when it was caused by you in the first place?”
”I told you there was no need to declare an emergency, but you did so anyway!”
”Shouldn’t you have made better preparations to protect the capital in the first place?”
”No, if you had just killed that little bitch when she first arrived—!”
Listening to the voices coming from the speaker, the president’s face turned dark. “What’s the situation now?”
The intelligence division’s director wiped the cold sweat off his forehead as he smiled reluctantly. “I-It’s looking bad, sir. I would suggest… we persevere and wait here for rescue.”
The president’s jaw made a painful clicking sound as he grit his teeth a bit too hard, almost shattering a few. ‘I knew I should have left the moment I received news of the northern base losing their supplies!’
Unfortunately, he had been too conceited and didn’t believe that the rebels had the ability to confront the military, even with all that stolen weaponry. Never did he imagine that there would be so many rebels even among the soldiers, though, and that mistake may now end up costing him everything.
Even his staunchest of supporters were now cursing at him from the other side of the entrance as if they had no idea why this door couldn’t be opened immediately after being closed.
”M-Mr. President, although it’s against the protocol, if you want, w-we can just let them—”
The president slammed his fist on the table, immediately rejecting the man’s proposal. “Shut up!”
These people enjoyed all the glory and luxury while following him before, but now that things had come to this point, it suddenly all became his fault? What a joke!
Even if they survived this disaster and were rescued in time, he didn’t want such allies at all. Anyway, now that the people already considered him a tyrant, there was no need to pretend, was there?
Seeing his volatile mood, the others in the room didn’t even dare to breathe too loudly anymore.
The president sneered. “Once this matter is dealt with… I will not only have this rebellion crushed, but also teach that little bitch a lesson!”
In fact, if he had known earlier that things would turn out like this, he would never have been so lenient against those protesters and activists.
This scourge didn’t just need to be killed when caught in the act, but preemptively sought out and slaughtered! He had really been too softhearted before, but no more!
Unfortunately for him, though, Emilia was never going to give him another chance.
Their plans to strike the capital had already been finalized even before they made a move on this military base.
In fact, that had been their goal from the start.
The equipment they took from the northern base was used to strengthen their forces and make them ready to take over the central one closest to the capital. And their primary purpose of capturing this site was to make it impossible for anyone to flee using helicopters and jets without the fear of being shot down by the anti-aircraft equipment here.
From the beginning, their only chance had been to capture and replace the people in power, and not to defeat system as a whole. After all, they didn’t have that kind of strength yet.
Even if the White Deer Corporation was supporting them in secret, the help they could provide was mostly limited to financial aid. When it came to advanced weaponry… there wasn’t really much they had to send over.
Therefore, although they managed to secure two major, consecutive victories, Emilia was still well aware of the disparity in strength between her side and the Blue Dawn’s government.
The loss of two military bases was definitely not negligible, but it wasn’t enough to cripple the government. Not only did they have plenty more, but the equipment here had also already been sabotaged to an extent.
If it really came down to a fight where both sides had a chance to prepare, Emilia knew that her side would definitely suffer disastrous consequences.
As soon as her core team was done with their preparations, the crimson-haired girl immediately set off toward the capital.
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The officials and politicians waiting outside the president’s bunker never expected that things would turn out like this.
One moment, they were still cursing at everyone they could blame for abandoning them at such a crucial moment, and the next… drowsiness the likes of which they had never experienced before overwhelmed their minds.
They never realized that they had breathed in an almost lethal dose of sarin, a colorless and odorless chemical weapon that the government had been secretly stockpiling in the central military base to use in case of ’emergencies’.
Fortunately, since possession or production of this substance was heavily criticized and discouraged all over the world, usually only a few people at a time would be aware of exactly what it was and where it was being stored, and Emilia had dealt with these people first and foremost.
Once the last of them had fallen to the ground with his fate unknown, dozens of people in elaborate full-body hazmat suits stormed in and started administering both the antidote for Sarin and a different, non-lethal sedative.
After all, the princess told them that this rabble cannot die yet, lest they be called martyrs by some fools. No, they would be tried and punished openly, and left with no chance to redeem either their reputation or power.
Of course, it was unlikely that any of them would be able to have their full mental capacity after being exposed to sarin like that, but that was beside the point.
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The news of the Blue Dawn’s capital falling at the hands of the rebels came almost hand in hand with Emilia’s ‘coronation’.
Of course, with the situation of the country as it was, the crimson-haired girl refused to do it with too much pomp and fanfare no matter how the other ‘rebels’ tried to convince her, and only did a simple speech before getting back to restoring order.
Naturally, the president was still safe in his bunker. But like a dirty rat stuck in a sealed sewer without food and water, Emilia knew that he would have to surface sooner or later. All she had to do was have a few people guard him properly until then.
Emilia didn’t mind waiting. He would get what he deserved.
The news of her ‘coronation’ soon reached even the remotest corners of the country, but while many willingly surrendered hoping for a new ‘dawn’, there were still many who refused to acknowledge it, including the eastern and southern military bases, as well as many departments of the government.
The northern, central, and western bases were now all fully under her control, along with thousands of other minor sites.
Emilia leaned back on the president’s chair with a delicate diamond crown on her head and a gentle smile on her face. “They don’t acknowledge their mother, yet expect me to be lenient? These unruly children sure love to dream.”
Luckily, the rebel movement in Blue Dawn had a lot of support, and as their leader, Emilia naturally controlled far more than these stubborn fools expected.
Not only in terms of military power, but also public support.
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