Inside the large tent sat a man reclining in a showy, arrogant pose.
He was seated with his legs crossed on an ornate chair.
That must be the Emperor.
Surrounding him were more men posing just as arrogantly, clad in gaudy metallic armor, glaring down at me.
(What… the hell is this? Did I do something wrong?)
As I stood there confused, Uncle Athos whispered to me in a low voice.
「Gaia! No matter what happens, endure it! Bow your head and endure!」
「Eh!? Uh… okay.」
I had no idea what was going on.
More than that, my head was still pounding from the information download.
While I stood there dazed, soldiers grabbed both me and Uncle Athos, forcing us down.
They shoved us into a kneeling position, making us bow low in dogeza.
(So my life in this other world starts… with a dogeza?)
The headache wasn’t helping my mood—I was already on edge. But Uncle Athos had told me to 「endure no matter what.」
No choice… I’ll just grit my teeth and bear it…
In front of me, the Emperor looked down coldly at me as I prostrated myself on the ground.
「If you submit to our Empire, I’ll spare your life. But defy us, and I’ll slaughter you all.」
He looked about fifty, broad and muscular, radiating pure authority.
Back in Japan, I’d never met anyone emitting such an aura.
Honestly, I almost wet myself.
After going through the trouble of reincarnating, getting killed right away would be way too cruel.
Uncle Athos and I bowed low before the Emperor, pleading for mercy.
Around us stood Imperial soldiers in shining armor, looking down on us and sneering.
One of them, a young, slightly pudgy man, suddenly started yelling.
「Hmph! You damn Barbars! How dare you defy the Empire!」
I could understand the words themselves, but I had no clue what he meant.
(Barbars? What’s that supposed to mean?)
As I sat there, dumbfounded, a boot flew straight into my face.
「Ugh!」
My body was flung backward, and my mouth split open.
The pudgy young man kept yelling as he kicked me again and again.
「You impudent little barbar! All you savages need to do is bow to our Empire!」
The sudden violence left me completely stunned.
I couldn’t even think about fighting back. I just curled up, apologizing over and over.
「I’m sorry! I’m sorry! Forgive me! Please!」
The man eventually stopped kicking—probably just got tired.
「Have you learned your place? Don’t ever defy us again!」
Bruised and battered, I was carried out of the tent by Uncle Athos.
What a horrible start to an isekai reincarnation…