Emboldened by their lord the soldiers marched towards Hannover. Maintaining an 8-wide column the soldiers kept a stable pace while behind General Rapp and Victor.
Victor's heart raced. This was a momentous step for him. Ever since Conrad took over Victor's body 6 months ago, he never imagined he would be leading a coup so suddenly. Probably the only reason Conrad rushed into a coup was because of Victor's feelings and memories.
The main reason for this coup was to help out his grandfather, Duke Cassell. If he were to go to war directly after the assassination attempt on Veronica it would cause all types of problems. The Luxenberg Dukedom would be the battleground for their war and potentially Duke Vipon would side with Duke Harold Cruyff.
Only the footsteps of the soldiers could be heard. The silence was a calming presence during the journey to Hannover. Soldiers could be left with their thoughts, mentally preparing themselves for what was about the come. Their torches illuminated the surrounding area. They were out of the forest so only the Luxen Road and the green plains next to it could be seen. Small bugs could be seen dancing around, attracted to the light.
After an hour and a half, Hannover could be seen in the distance. With the port city in sight, the soldiers began to put out half the torches to try and mask their approach. Within half an hour the column halted at that city entrance gate.
Victor approached the men stationed at the gate. Recognising that it was their lord they slowly opened the gate. The first hurdle was complete, Victor's battalion worth of soldiers was now within the city's walls.
With Victor at the head of the column, the 4-man wide column snaked its way through the streets of Hannover. They traversed as quietly as possible, alerting the people could lead to widespread panic and Duke Vipon uncovering the plot too early.
Carefully getting through the city the soldiers were now at the gates of the palace. The guards who were loyal to Victor thankfully were assigned to guard duty so as soon as they saw Victor the gates flew open. It was now time for action, failure at this point was not an option.
Before the coup, Victor had secured a map of the palace and showed it to his officers. He outlined key rooms such as the Duke and Duchess's room and both rooms the twins resided. Squads were assigned certain key targets from the Duke's family while the rest of the soldiers formed a perimeter around the palace.
Victor's soldiers began to perform their assigned tasks. The majority of soldiers started to subdue any loyalist Luxenberg soldiers within the palace compound and form a perimeter. No real opposition was raised against the soldiers. The unaware guards could not act, especially with rifles in their faces.
While the soldiers on the outside were performing their tasks the soldiers in the palace began the search for their key targets. Sweeping every room they came across, the 80 soldiers who stormed the palace were now hunting.
The first key target found was Katrina. Her room was quite lavishly decorated with the latest styles of furniture. Valuable pieces of jewellery were scattered on her dresser. 4 soldiers guarded the door while the other 6 crept towards the sound-asleep Katrina. Feeling the presence of someone in her room Katrina in a daze woke up.
Startled Katrian tried to let out a scream but 1 of the soldiers managed to cover her mouth with a cloth and began to bind her hands with rope. Once she was secured the soldiers led her to the dining room.
Next to be located was Klaus. Another squad of 10 men were sent to procure him. Using the same method 4 soldiers guarded the door while the rest entered. Klaus's room was similar to Katrina's. It was lavishly decorated with the latest furniture but was more organised and devoid of any expensive accessories laying out and about.
Klaus had heard the door open and began to get out of bed. He was met by 6 soldiers pointing their rifles at him. "Do you know who I am? I'm the heir to this territory! My father will have you hanged!" Klaus yelled arrogantly.
Laughing with each other the soldiers looked at Klaus and couldn't contain themselves. One soldier snarkily said, "I'm sorry to say this but the new Duke Luxenberg has ordered this." Shocked at his comment Klaus could not hide his distraught and desperately tried to fend off the soldiers, but to no avail. He was consequently dragged off to the dining hall like his sister.
Finally, 2 squads of 10 soldiers approached Duke Vipon's and Duchess Josephine's bedroom door. If anyone was to put up any resistance against them it was Vipon. He was a competent swordsman and marksman. Securing him was of the utmost importance. They could not allow him to resist and ignite a counter-attack.
With 8 of the soldiers guarding the door, the other 12 entered the magnificent master bedroom. Decorated by Josephine the bedroom was full of exquisite furniture. It was a safe assumption that the master bedroom was the most lavishly decorated room in the whole territory.
With muskets raised they approached the sleeping couple. Peacefully sleeping the couple was unaware as 12 soldiers spread out around the room. Loudly addressing the couple one of the soldiers said, "It is time to wake up Lord and Lady Luxenberg. The new ruler of the Luxenberg Dukedom requires your attendance in the dining hall."
Slowly waking up and realising the predicament they were in Josephine began to rant bewilderedly. To the soldiers, it just seemed like a crazy lady acting incoherent. She had no authority in this situation and began to panic.
Vipon like his usual character was quiet and cold. He complied as the soldiers bound and gagged him. He was a practical man who knew he could not get out of this situation. Subduing Vipon proved extremely easy compared to his wife. She thrashed and struggled to the bitter end until one of the shoulders smacked her in the back with the butt of his rifle.
Complying with the directions of the soldiers the couple was escorted at gunpoint to the dining room. Joining the twins in the dining room all 4 of them were all on their knees, rifle barrels pointed at the back of their head. A place where the 4 of them usually spent a lot of time was now a place where they might get executed.
After waiting a few minutes the dining room door began to open, and Victor strolled in with soldiers behind him. Grabbing a chair he dragged it along the floor and placed it right in front of the 4 of them, taking a seat.
They all displayed different reactions to Victor sitting in front of them. Vipon was just his normal self remaining composed. Josephine was going ballistic trying to shout and scream but due to the gag, she could not make a noise.
The twins looked deflated. Katrina was sobbing as she was terrified due to the rifle barrel pressed against the back of her head. Klaus could only look in disbelief. The older brother he used to torment and abuse was now sitting in front of him while Klaus and his family were on their knees.
With a chilling smirk, Victor looked down on his helpless family. His tormenters were now beneath him. In a smooth and cold tone, Victor said,
"Dear family, I am glad to see you paying your respects to the new Duke of Luxenberg"