THE SKY SWORDSMAN
Ch 26 - Nogufuji Empire
Firon then held onto Noguchi's shoulder and signaled that the person had just exhaled
his last breath.
Noguchi got up and said “Brother Firon, did you hear that guy say?.”
‘He said Mountain Devil Group!’ Firon replied while observing Noguchi who looked so enthusiastically curious.
“Then we have to tell the imperial side about all these events!” Noguchi. He growled. He wanted the Mountain Demon Group to get a proper reply. And the chance that his wish could be realized was simply to report the incident to the Empire's side.
“What empire do you mean brother Nogu?” Firon frowned. He recalled how cruel the Mojo Empire was to the people in his hometown. He also recalled that his parents were killed by one of the imperial generals who was his own uncle.
“Nogufuji Empire! Which other than the empire was the only one who controlled the Black Continent?” Noguchi later explained that he often heard a lot about Nogufuji empire from Lord Yorinaga. Noguchi also recounted that Mr. Yorinaga was a retired General from the Nogufuji empire.
“Oww.. Alright, but after this I want to continue my journey to the Yellow Continent! We don't have to go too far in this matter! Moreover, we do not know what happened exactly!”
The two then travel to the Nogufuji imperial palace in Nikoto City. After five days of unimpeded travel, the two of them finally arrived in Nikoto City.
“Wah...beautiful” Noguchi clucked in awe at the beauty of Nikoto City. The city is surrounded by beaches on three sides, namely on the west, north and south sides. And right on the east side of Nikoto City, there is a mountain filled with Cryptomeria trees that are thousands of years old.
Nikoto was the capital of the Nogufuji empire as well as the largest city in the Black Continent. The city that became the center of Nogufuji's government was located in the western part of the Black Continent and to the west was the strait that separated the Black Continent and the Yellow Continent.
Emperor Nogugato, the founder of Nogufuji Empire and the first emperor of Nogufuji, deliberately established Nikoto City in the Western Cape of the Black Continent, because the location was the most strategic place. The enemy that was about to attack had to pass through the territory. For this reason, Emperor Nogugato built a defensive fort along the coast of the West Cape of the Black Continent.
The Nogufuji Empire was ruled by the emperor Fujiwara Itamo. He was the second emperor since the founding of the Nogufuji Empire. But the system of government that he applied to the people really made many certain clans who wanted to rebel.
‘Brother Nogu! what are we going to do now?’ Firon's voice was heard in Noguchi's head, enjoying the beauty of Nikoto City.
“Emm, Sorry, I forgot our destination here” Noguchi said as he blushed in embarrassment at Firon who was looking at him sharply.
“Yoss, we're there!” Noguchi exclaimed as he raised his hand towards the Emperor Palace. He then stepped confidently without caring for Firon who was still not moving from where he stood.
Firon kept looking at his best friend who was already quite far away from him. I don't know what makes him still silent like a statue in the middle of the road.
Noguchi, who then realized that Firon was not following in his footsteps, turned to look back.
‘Brother Nogu, I can't come with you into that Palace’ Whisper Firon in Noguchi's head.
Noguchi then ran towards Firon who was still staring at him sharply.
“Sorry, I forgot. You can't go in there. They will surely notice the strangeness in your eyes” Noguchi horrified his forehead while holding his chin.
“Brother Firon, you're here! I'll be right back!” Noguchi then walked back towards the Palace Gate which was about five hundred meters away from where Firon was standing.
Arriving in front of the gate, the noguchi then approached the gatekeeper to ask for permission.
“Hey boy, what are you doing here?!” Shouted one of the guards.
“oyah, introduce, my name is Noguchi! I want to go in to see the Emperor!”
The dozens of gatekeepers laughed out loud at Noguchi's words.
“What? You want to see the Emperor?” Said the guard in a mocking tone while holding back the laughter that a few moments later his laughter came off and then accompanied by the laughter of his other colleagues.
The mood became boisterous. Noguchi was in the midst of a dozen guards, like an entertainment performer who was cheered on by the audience.
One of the burly gatekeepers, apparently the leader of the gatekeepers, approached Noguchi and grabbed Noguchi by the neck and pushed him against the wall. The guard then lifted the neck of Noguchi's shirt, so that Noguchi's legs no longer touched the ground.
The face of the guard who had looked happy, now turned into sangar. The guard was now like a tiger about to pounce on its prey.
“Hey little boy, how dare you say your name is Noguchi! Do you know what the emperor will do to the one who dares to use that name?!” The guard then threw Noguchi a few steps away.
“We better catch the boy, then we hand him over to the emperor!” Shouted the other guards.
“Don't, we don't need to prolong this issue. He is still a kid!” The guard leader called out to try to calm his subordinates. He then turned his head towards Noguchi who was still sprawled while holding his aching arm.
“Quick get out of here before I change my mind!” Snapped that burly guard.
“But sir, there is an important thing I want to convey to the emperor!” Noguchi said while grimacing in pain. He was still holding his shoulder that hit the ground.
“What?” Shouted some other guards. They then unsheathed the sword and stepped closer to Noguchi. One of them then raised a sword about to slash Noguchi's neck. When the guard's sword almost touched Noguchi's neck, the guard's body could not move at all. A moment later, the body of the guard fell to the ground in a lifeless state. His eyes glare. The guard's mouth, nostrils and earholes let out fresh blood.
“What happened?” the guards who watched one of his comrades die were wide in disbelief. The expressions on their faces, which had been very confident, had now turned to be extremely frightened.
‘Brother Nogu, you back off first!’ Firon's words were heard in Noguchi's head.
Hearing Firon's instructions, Noguchi who was still in shock from being nearly hit by the slash of one of the guards got up and stepped back away from the guards.
The guards did not react at all seeing Noguchi about to leave. They became afraid to deal with Noguchi. They did not want the thing that befell his partner to befall him either.