A swamp of primordial anger had bubbled up in the streets of Tonberg. Sour-faced commoners with too much to say for their own good poured out from their homes and workplaces to participate in the outrage that had surfaced following the undead attack on the eastern district.
Lieze, raising herself above the sea of unwashed faces, considered her words carefully while trying to avoid being jostled off the barrel. Raising both arms in the air, she spoke in an effort to rein in the crowd.
"Everyone! Listen to me!" She yelled into the chaos, "Lis- Listen, I said! Be quiet!"
Fingers went forward out of the mass to point her out. A portion of the engorged mob - those close enough to hear her plea, suppressed their rage long enough for her to say something of value.
"What're you doin' up there, lass!?" One such spectator replied, "Yer gonna hurt yerself!"
"Never mind that! I was there, in the eastern district! I saw the attack!" She shouted back, "Everything you've heard is true! Undead poured out from an alleyway and forced themselves into a tavern! I heard the screams of the patrons as they were ripped to pieces!"
"Oi! Oi! This lass knows what happened!" A voice broke out, "So it is true!"
"You daft fool! You mean to say you would've joined in even if it wasn't!?" Another replied.
"Listen to me!" Lieze regained control, "Don't let this go to your heads! This is about more than a few dead drunks! Who do you think is responsible for ensuring that this sort of thing never happens in Tonberg!?"
"His Majesty!"
"Exactly!" She couldn't be certain of who had spoken, but she was grateful all the same, "And not just the king, but the Church also! And yet, how many guards or priests did you think were in the area when those undead attacked!? I'll tell you how many - exactly zero!"
A chorus of affirmative yells washed over the crowd. The streets were filled with royal dissidents, equal parts unruly and confident in their opinions. Suddenly, the geist of patriotism had melted away under a veil of solidarity. Like any angry mob, its participants thought themselves invincible. Above the law. The royalists couldn't arrest all of them.
"Yes! While the Sovereign Cities suffer within the Order of Necromancer's cold grasp, King Ricta occupies himself with galas and the affairs of nobles without so much as a single thought directed towards the everyman!" Lieze continued, "And now undead prowl our city streets, uncontested by those sworn to protect us! How many more tragedies do you suppose Ricta will tolerate before he's forced to capitulate to the demands of the people!?"
"Too many!" A fellow from the crowd screamed back, "I've always said this - His Majesty had it wrong from day one! If he'd focused on sending good, honest men where they needed to be, we would have never lost Bascoroch, Saptra or Dolore! But now he's given 'em an inch, and they've gone and took a mile!"
Instability. Unrest. Rebellion. Why focus on taking apart Tonberg piece-by-piece with thralls when its own people could accomplish the task much more efficiently? Lieze had been approaching the situation all wrong. Her cult was consolidating power as she spoke. All she needed to do was unbalance the city's power structure to ensure that her own plans wouldn't be interrupted.
Heads turned as Lieze's spiel went on. She was saying what everyone wanted to hear - inciting violence when everyone else was too afraid of compromising their simple lives. It was precisely the kind of attention she desired. Expectantly, her eyes scanned the crowd for any sign of Helmach or the Acolytes, but it seemed like she was free to do as she pleased for the time being.
"Change cannot arrive soon enough!" She yelled, "-But this 'change' will not be delivered by the bloodstained hands of the gentry! No - it is time for the good people of this city to represent the changes they wish to see! If we remain His Majesty's servile dogs, who knows how many more attack we'll be forced to suffer through!?"
Cheers erupted. Lieze almost felt sorry for them. What else did those poor citizens have to fight for, besides their own lives? The source of their suffering was right in front of them. The cages of flesh binding them to the mortal coil, forcing them to participate in a cruel game perpetuated by their kin. She knew they desired freedom from the fervent expressions staring up at her from the street. The Order would provide them with that salvation - whether they understood its ideals or not.
"We ought to take this straight to the throne room!" A spectator declared, "What're the guards gonna do - kill us!? Their own people!? We only want what's best for the city!"
"This man speaks the truth!" Lieze began, "The power to demand change has always been in the people's hands! If a ruler cannot ensure the safety of his people, then he does not deserve the throne!"
Perhaps she could have been a politician in another life? Then again, the choking, pretentious atmosphere of Ricta's gala wasn't something she could have tolerated for much longer. Lieze was no aristocrat. She'd spent her innocent years marsh-hopping with a younger, less prideful Drayya, catching frogs and snakes to practise their flowering necromancy skills on.
To think she'd one day be inciting a riot in the world's largest city. Frankly, the last few weeks had been the most eventful of her entire life. As she wholeheartedly declared Tonberg's reigning king unfit to rule, she couldn't deny that hearing the cheers of the commoners below filled her with a certain joy.
There was no cohesion to the movement of the crowd. Entire factions seemed to form as the minutes ticked by. Fistfights erupted as pro-royalist rhetoric clashed with those eagerly seeking a reason to rebel against Ricta. That was the magical part about rioting - it couldn't be said for certain just how much of it had been Lieze's fault. Only she understood the truth of the matter.
Drayya was most likely beginning her attack on the farmsteads at that moment. Her plan couldn't have coincided better with the occasion. Guards were being redistributed from all over the city to quell the rising tensions on the streets, but they remained incapable of enforcing the law. They couldn't risk attacking the rioters, or Ricta's approval would be sent through the floor. All they could do was give the unruly crowds a stern talking to.
As Lieze hopped down from her barrel to mix with the commoners, they seemed to treat her like some kind of representative, making way for her uncertain march towards the very front of the mob. She was hoping that the rioting would become autonomous and remain disorganised, but it was seeming like she'd managed to bite off more than she could chew.
There was no backing out anymore. Everyone had seen her face and heard her criticisms. All of a sudden, she was a revolutionary. A guiding light that prevented Tonberg's insatiable public from tearing the city down overnight.
New Quest Received!
'Game Changer' - Force Ricta IV to abdicate the throne.
Reward - 5,000xp
5,000xp was a large number. A ridiculous number - one Lieze couldn't ignore.
Current Exp - 3487/3700
She was looking at 2 entire levels' worth of experience, but that growth would come at a hefty cost. Lieze's relative anonymity was her strongest tool in the undermining of Tonberg. If she took control of the crowd and led them on a quest to demand change from the city, every other citizen would recognise her by the end of the day. She didn't have to follow the scale's commands.
"If Ricta was forced to abdicate… who would replace him?" She considered the ramifications of such a change, "He doesn't have an heir… he would create a massive power vacuum - and an opportunity for the city's system of government to switch over from imperial rule to something more democratic…"
The Church would most certainly attempt to make a move on the city's leadership. That would spell disaster for her plans. Not to mention, Ricta was already wrapped around Lieze's finger. She would benefit greatly from his continued rule - and reluctant cooperation. But the commoners wouldn't tolerate such an outcome, especially after she'd just convinced the mob that Ricta wasn't fit to govern.
Then again, two entire levels was quite the tempting offer.
"Searching for a solution that pleases everyone…" Thoughts raced through her mind, "Even I know that isn't a good idea. It would be better to make a decision and stick to it."
There were too many factors to rationalise. She was already marching towards the front of the mob with the intention of taking control of the situation. Lieze wasn't interested in what was best for the city. She was interested in preserving civil unrest without arriving at a solution that would inadvertently make her life more difficult.
That was fine, wasn't it? Nobody said she had to be a good revolutionary.
Hundreds of sour faces accompanied her confident march towards the city square. It wasn't the first time she'd make that walk. Frankly, she wasn't sure whether her followers on that occasion were any more intelligent than the thralls she was commanding during the siege. At least the Gildwyrm wouldn't be making an appearance.
A blockade of armour-clad guardsmen had formed a blockade around the first waycastle, with many more threatening to surge out from the winding pathway leading up to Ricta's hilltop fortress. Confusion was rich in the air. The burning questions of commoners and royalists alike conjoined as the two forces met. Lieze spearheaded the group's trajectory, somewhat uncertain of her purpose as a handful of Ricta's personal knights waded through the sea of spears towards her - as well as a painfully familiar face.
"...Hm." Lieze didn't attempt to hide her frown, "Tagging along with the Order of Green Dragons, Helmach? I thought the Acolytes weren't sponsored by the city?"
"Hah." A humourless scoff was all the giant could manage in response. He seemed very much out of place standing next to the decorated knights in his salvaged brigandine and soot-stained cloak. The hatred in his gaze was restrained - perhaps to retain what little humanity he could without a tongue to expound his zealous beliefs.
"My lady-" Stepping between the two of them, a faceless knight wearing a grass-coloured tabard addressed Lieze with a modicum of respect, "What is the meaning of this?"
"This is the result of His Majesty's incompetence." Lieze answered, "No doubt you've heard the rumours of an undead attack within the city by now. As it turns out, innocent people tend to become quite upset when the trust they've placed in their king to protect them is betrayed."
"Tonberg's finest have already been dispatched to quell this supposed threat." The knight replied, "Naturally, a thorough investigation will be launched into the propagation of forbidden sorcery within the city. It's only natural that the citizens would be outraged. But if you'll allow me to be so candid, my lady - organising a mob to march on the castle is an affront to His Majesty."
"Let me assure you of one thing: whether the king is offended by this transgression or not isn't of any concern to me. Or to anyone, for that matter." Lieze said, "Indeed, his complete and utter humiliation would be the very least this crowd would expect in return for allowing undead to breach the walls of this city yet again."
"I must ask you to hold your tongue, my lady." With enough patience to appear positively unbearable, the knight's armour jostled as he adjusted his posture, "It is a grave crime to speak ill of His Majesty, no matter the circumstances."
Something about the professionalism in his tone ignited a fire within the swelling crowd. Before Lieze could open her mouth to reply, a tirade of criticism poured out from behind her.
"We can say whatever we like about the king!"
"If he's doin' such a piss-poor job, why shouldn't we speak ill of him!?"
"You think just 'cause you're carryin' weapons, you get to tell us what to do!?"
Lieze didn't need to say a thing. As the commotion went on, the mob only increased in size, ballooning the sensation of invincibility that accompanied an overwhelming turnout. The knight may as well have been trying to reason with the wind. There was no arguing with fury.
"-As you can plainly hear, the people have suffered enough." Lieze began, "If His Majesty won't appear to calm their hearts personally, then they'll just have to let themselves in."
"T-This is treason!" The knight slammed his spear against the ground, "His Majesty will make a public appearance as soon as he is able! Your demands are completely unreasonable!"
Again, jeers and insults flew from the crowd. Both sides of the conflict were beginning to lose their patience. It would only take a single spark to escalate the would-be rioting into a full-on rebellion. Lieze found herself stricken with apprehension. She couldn't be certain of how useful the chaos would be. Her only objective had been to direct attention away from Drayya's attack.
"Well… I knew this was never going to be easy." She sighed internally, "I'll just have to plan my words carefully. Perhaps I can steer this mess towards a more beneficial conclusion…"