Chapter 197
Chapter 197
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 197
Chapter Title: Golden King 3
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The emperor was a true Yaegas divine being born after a long time. However, wielding immense power, he was an iron-blooded ruler determined to realize a madness-adjacent ideal.
The emperor began executing and purging the royal family members unworthy of the throne, employing the Herald clan for this purpose.
But when his purges went too far, the Herald clan could no longer stand it and assassinated the emperor.
*********
“…That’s the surface excuse, but there’s also a rumor that it was because the illegitimate child they had with the emperor was a Yaegas divine being. There’s an opinion that their scheme was to assassinate the emperor and enthrone his child as the new emperor.”
Azadin was shocked by Manja-Zadek’s startling words.
Was this the secret of the Yaegas divine race? And the secret behind the emperor’s assassination?
“This is why the King’s Radiance weakens, why you Heralds assassinated the emperor, and why I’m here on this Royal Throne indulging in bodily pleasures.”
Originally, Manja-Zadek, true to his name as the Golden King, was a powerful mage and warrior.
To exalt Brtuma’s glory, he waged a war of conquest against the northern Ogres, repelling the Nagas and Ogres in 100 personal expeditions without a single defeat, achieving great victories, and under his reign, Brtuma’s wealth grew even more solid.
But while delving into magic, he encountered his ancestors’ records, the Divine King Scriptures slumbering within the Quartz Royal Throne, and through connections to the Yaegas divine race, he learned the truth.
The gods had abandoned this world, leaving only their discarded children—the royals—and the natives ravaged by the ancient Kurt divine race and Nether forces.
“So I immersed myself in bodily pleasures. People claim I abandoned glory for decadence, but this is my prayer.”
The portrait’s beautiful and noble figure writhed on the throne as a grotesque mass of flesh.
“Our ancestors, Yaegas divine race. Here are bodily pleasures offered to you. When you return to rule once more, all this shall be yours, so please save us!”
Was that his prayer and aspiration?
Though Azadin was meeting Manja-Zadek for the first time, his heart ached.
It was the sight of a soul corrupted before despair too heavy to bear—that was the Golden King, Manja-Zadek, now.
“Forgive my presumption, Your Majesty. To me, it seems you are suffering.”
“Haha. What are you talking about? This much pain—look.”
At Manja-Zadek’s gesture, a concubine brought a pipe and placed it in his hand. He inhaled deeply and exhaled, a sweet fragrance dispersing into the air. It was opium.
“Pain like this vanishes soon enough, leaving only pleasure. Hahaha. How about it?”
“…….”
Presenting opium now as the answer to suffering?
But pity overrode anger.
Manja-Zadek, the Golden King. King of Brtuma, the wealthiest of the Eight Kingdoms, descendant of the Yaegas divine race revered by all.
Yet in reality, he was a man so despairing that without numbing his brain with indulgence, he couldn’t survive even a single day.
Such a man extended his hand to Azadin.
“No matter what you believe in, it’s futile. A lie. The only truth is the pleasure of this moment, so follow me, and I’ll grant you every pleasure.”
“If I serve Your Majesty, what is my mission? What do you desire from me to offer such a glorious position?”
“To protect Brtuma’s wealth. Only by safeguarding this place’s riches can we maintain bodily pleasures, and sustaining those pleasures will surely draw our ancestors’ gaze back to us someday.”
Hoping the gods would return, repeating indulgences atop the Quartz Royal Throne forever.
“Forgive my presumption.”
Azadin spoke with sorrow.
“Even if you numb your body’s pain with opium, to my eyes, Your Majesty still appears to be in torment.”
“Tch.”
Manja-Zadek clicked his tongue.
“Fine. I admit it. It hurts. I once took pride in my bloodline as a descendant of the Yaegas divine race. I subjugated Ogres to protect my people, led 100 personal expeditions without a single loss, managed internal affairs diligently to achieve prosperity. But… the gods abandoned us. This world holds no value to them, so they discarded us. Thus, all that remains is…”
Manja-Zadek inhaled the opium deeply once more. Then, like a dragon spewing fire, he exhaled smoke and groaned.
“…the pleasure left in this body. That alone is truth.”
“Then, a foolish question, but what are the Divine King Scriptures, and their copies?”
Azadin pulled out the copies of the Divine King Scriptures he had gathered so far.
“You’ve collected quite a few. The Divine King Scriptures compile how the King’s Radiance operates in this world. It’s the most powerful grimoire, the very principles by which the King’s Radiance from Yaegas’s world manifests here. If you comprehend it, rewrite it, and input it into the throne anew, the King’s Radiance’s rules will change.”
“Is that so? Then…”
“The copies appearing across the world mean something went wrong with your Herald clan and they leaked, right? But I see it differently. If the lurking Herald clan seized Korasar’s throne, your leader would have already deciphered the Divine King Scriptures and created what they desire. That’s why they endured until now and are starting to claim thrones.”
“You believe the Divine King Scriptures’ interpretation is already complete?”
“Yes. So your Herald clan will seize thrones and inscribe new Divine King Scriptures into them. That way, you can monopolize the King’s Radiance. Then, Hubris’s people, who ignored you before, will serve and fear you as new royals and nobles. That’s probably the goal.”
Manja-Zadek’s words were astonishing. He had pinpointed the Herald clan’s ambitions perfectly.
The King’s Church believes in the King’s Radiance—altering how it’s bestowed to let the Herald clan rule the entire Hubris continent?
“But now it’s meaningless. The Quartz Royal Throne’s King’s Radiance and the Divine King Scriptures’ power are potent for one person, but since the Yaegas divine race abandoned this world, it’s just embers flickering in a pile of ash. Sure, you might get a bit of warmth from it, but with darkness closing in, what use is it?”
At that moment, the bell in the royal castle’s bell tower began to ring. Not just that—other bell towers rang in unison, and soon lightning flashed outside the window.
A fierce wind began blowing in from the sea.
“Your Majesty!”
Armed warriors burst into the audience chamber.
“A storm is approaching from the sea.”
“The Naga attack will begin.”
“It’s starting now. Then, Azadin. You said you wanted to aid this city’s defense?”
“Yes.”
“Take my golden seal.”
Manja-Zadek removed the ring he wore and tossed it to Azadin. Thick enough for three fingers for an ordinary person, it was bracelet-sized even for a slender woman’s arm.
“I appoint you as the King’s Knight and Golden Seal Envoy. Devote yourself to Brtuma’s defense.”
“Your grace humbles me. I gladly accept this duty.”
Azadin accepted the Golden Seal Envoy position from Manja-Zadek and rose from his seat.
A storm was approaching.
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“Boss! How’d the audience go?”
Scott had been waiting outside the audience chamber for Azadin. Was it admiration for the Golden King? His eyes gleamed with fervor.
“It went successfully. The king granted me a knighthood and the Golden Seal Envoy position.”
“Really? You don’t look happy.”
Azadin wore a mask, so how could he tell expressions? But it was true.
Azadin was confused.
The fact that the Aragasa assassinated the emperor, and that the Aragasa had long prepared to usurp this world, tormented him.
‘Thinking back to my childhood, aside from Kazas and Aldis, no other kin treated me warmly. But if even my own kind can’t be trusted—called soulless heretics on this continent and shunned—how am I supposed to live?’
No matter how steadfast Azadin’s heart, Manja-Zadek’s words complicated his mind and soul. But there was no time for solitary anguish.
“The Naga army’s coming with the tidal wave. What now? Is the Golden Seal Envoy title useful? How will we defend?”
Shati asked Azadin. She wondered if a knighthood or empty title meant anything at this point.
“Manja-Zadek’s defenses are excellent. Honestly, befitting the Golden King. He demolished buildings strategically for clear fields of fire everywhere, troops are well-manned, and even the Qinggan Party will aid city defense. The problem is assassination.”
Assassinate key commanders or the king amid the regular army’s assault.
That was the Herald clan, the Aragasa’s way. Trained as an Aragasa, Azadin knew their methods well.
Golden King Manja-Zadek’s preparations were better than expected. Decadent tyrants steeped in pleasure slacken rule because indulgence is their end goal.
But Manja-Zadek was unusual—pleasure was his means.
To him, indulgence was prayer to draw the gods’ attention; the more he indulged, the more he suffered.
What ordinary people desperately crave, Manja-Zadek saw as agonizing throes of despair.
Thus, he still possessed insight and wisdom worthy of the Golden King.
So the Aragasa would target the king’s assassination.
Azadin decided to join the king’s guard to bolster security.
“So what’ll you do? I don’t get what Golden Seal Envoy means.”
“Let’s check first.”
Azadin turned to a page watering plants in the waiting room outside the audience chamber.
“Hey. I want to join the king’s guard—who do I talk to?”
“Gasp?”
The page startled back a step, then prostrated flat on the floor.
“Hail the Golden Seal Envoy!”
“…….”
It seemed the position Manja-Zadek granted held more value than imagined.
Sure enough, a sharp voice came from behind Azadin.
“You there, newbie. You want to join the king’s guard duty? I’m Karchen, captain of the king’s bodyguard.”
A middle-aged woman with brown skin approached. A crescent bow strapped to her thigh marked her as one of Manja-Zadek’s recruited Heralds.
“Karchen?”
“Yeah. You’re Azadin of No Grace, the famous dullard.”
“You’re…”
‘Who?’
Such a question swirled in Azadin’s throat.