Chapter 603: The King of Pride (Part 7)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 603: The King of Pride (Part 7)
"What did I forget?"
The moment Celicia spoke those words, Albert immediately went on high alert, scanning his surroundings while mentally replaying every step of his plan to find any oversight.
Though he had achieved final victory and claimed the dignity of the Emperor, he knew that the cold woman before him was actually incredibly insidious and cunning. There was no telling what kind of sickening trap she might have laid for him.
But...
No matter how hard he thought, Albert couldn't see anyone left who could possibly threaten him.
He went through every faction in his mind and crossed them off. Even the Indra King had been no match for him; everyone else was even less of a concern... Could it be that old Emperor who couldn't even stand up anymore?
The thought popped into Albert's head, and he shook it off with a mocking sneer.
Impossible. That old bastard is at death's door. It's not like he can just hop out of bed and—
Vrrrrm—
At that exact moment, a piercing hum resonated through the sky.
No, it wasn't so much a hum as it was a shriek—a sound so sharp it felt like it could tear through eardrums.
It sounded like... wailing.
A wail of pure fury.
Albert's nerves instantly pulled taut. But as he looked around, he realized with horror that the shriek was coming from the Sword of Kings in his hand.
"This..."
The Sword of Kings shrieked first, then began to vibrate violently. Albert could barely maintain his grip. Then, a bright red liquid began to flow along the golden engravings that symbolized imperial majesty.
The stench of blood hit his nose. All traces of the divine vanished, replaced by a crimson stain that quickly covered Albert's entire body.
"So... it really was like that?"
Watching this, Celicia’s expression grew increasingly sorrowful. She turned toward the direction of the Imperial Palace and bowed deeply and respectfully.
"Rest easy, Father. I will fulfill your final wish."
Her voice dissipated in the wind, seemingly stirring a faint, majestic silhouette that nodded slightly before gently patting the girl's head.
"Final wish? What do you mean? What did you do? Or was it... that old bastard? What did that old bastard do?"
Feeling the fury and agony of the living spirit within the Sword of Kings, Albert gritted his teeth, struggling to suppress the sword's violent tremors. However, because he was now almost completely linked to the weapon, he was instead swallowed by the spirit's emotions, finding it nearly impossible to suppress his own rising rage.
"Answer me! What did you do?"
"What did I do? Haven't you realized it yourself yet?"
Celicia’s eyes held a pity that was frozen to the point of absolute zero.
Hearing this, Albert’s contorting face froze.
Realized? Of course he had realized.
Since he could clearly feel the emotions of the living spirit within the Sword of Kings, he could naturally feel that the sword was currently like a living creature that had suddenly had a vital organ hacked off—bleeding profusely, no longer whole.
Furthermore, he suddenly realized that the god-like sensation he’d had just moments ago—the feeling of looking down upon the world, with all of Belland and the entire Empire beneath his gaze—had vanished.
It was as if, in a single instant, the Sword of Kings had been stripped of its right to be rooted in the Empire.
It had lost its rightful status. It had fallen from the throne.
"The Sword of Kings is no longer the 'symbol' of the Emperor. According to the law, you are no longer the legitimate Emperor."
Celicia said in a voice like ice, "Get down from there, Albert."
"No... damn it... how could you... how could you?!"
Albert clutched his head and roared in fury. Another sharp roar from the Sword of Kings overlapped with his own; it was impossible to tell whether the one screaming in rage was him or the sword in his hand.
In this frenzied wrath, Albert raised his hand again, summoning infinite golden light.
"So what if that old man used his status as Emperor to temporarily sever its position? He should be dead by now! As long as you die too, I will remain the only legal heir, the Emperor of the Empire! I can reconstruct the status of the Sword of Kings myself!"
The Golden Great Tree shook as countless brilliant golden lights flared.
Albert held the Sword of Kings high, preparing to pour out the Emperor's wrath once more, intending to decorate the foot of the throne with the blood of the defiant.
But...
In that moment, the golden light did not follow Albert's command to become a force of slaughter.
Specks of radiance suddenly drifted down from the branches, one after another, fluttering like falling leaves in an autumn forest, no longer gathering according to Albert's will.
The killing intent was gradually neutralized by this exceptionally beautiful scene.
Bathed in this rain of falling stars, Celicia suddenly looked up, staring at something.
The Golden Great Tree swayed, and infinite light extended, filling her entire field of vision and gradually constructing a phantom of the past...
*
"Holy crap, where the hell is this?"
Muen snapped his eyes open and found himself, for some reason, in a bizarre and mysterious place.
Beneath his feet was water as smooth as a mirror—clear, yet the bottom was invisible, and there were no other living things to be seen.
Pure white stretched from one horizon to the other; it seemed to be the very boundary of heaven and earth. This entire world consisted of nothing but this lake.
However...
Muen looked up and saw an extremely familiar Golden Great Tree growing at the very center of the lake.
The tree was still massive, its branches as thick as mountains and its leaves as dense as a forest. It looked as if it were condensed from pure, flawless golden radiance. In this white world of the lake where nothing else existed, it appeared even more noble and sacred.
"That tree... strange. How did I end up here? Hiss... it's not a dream."
Muen pinched his cheek, hissing in pain, which only left him more bewildered.
Logically, he should have been split up from Celicia. She was supposed to deal with Albert, while he went to the palace to rescue the ministers and stabilize the situation, preventing Albert from doing something desperate that might cause irreversible damage to the Empire.
But before he could even pull off a dashing heroic rescue of those old men... everything went white, and he was here.
"This better not be another conspiracy."
Thinking this, Muen observed his surroundings with increased vigilance.
Suddenly, his gaze sharpened. On the other side of the Golden Great Tree, he saw a silver-white figure.
"Celicia?"
Muen raised his hand and shouted, "Hey, beautiful—!"
"Stop calling her 'beautiful.'"
A languid voice rang out.
"Even though this is the same phantom, the spaces between you aren't connected. You can scream until your throat is raw and it won't do any good."
"Huh?"
Startled, Muen immediately looked down and saw a certain white-haired loli in strawberry pajamas appearing not far from him.
"Mela... wait, no! Begone, monster! How dare you disguise yourself as the old loli! Take this!"
Muen froze for a second, then immediately drew Elizabeth and unleashed a practiced cross-slash at the white-haired loli.
And then... his head predictably went flying.
"You've certainly grown some guts since I last saw you, kid."
Mela, munching on a strawberry lollipop, gave Muen a half-smile as she crooked her finger, causing his head to spin in a mid-air Thomas flare.
"What, can't wait to become a master-striking traitorous disciple so soon?"
"Misunderstanding! It's all a misunderstanding!"
Muen’s head, floating in the air, shouted frantically. "I thought you were someone disguised as Teacher Mela, so I attacked! You have to admit, in a confusing situation like this, one has to be a bit cautious!"
"And that's your excuse for attacking your teacher?"
"Teacher Mela is wise, divine, and extraordinarily powerful! You're as cute as you are cool! If it were really you, even if I attacked with everything I had, how could I possibly hurt a single hair on your head?"
"Heh... I'll assume you're being sincere, kid."
Mela gave a casual wave, and Muen’s head finally returned to its rightful place.
He quickly reached up to feel his neck carefully. Finding nothing out of the ordinary, he breathed a sigh of relief.
I still have no idea how that technique works. I guess an Origin-Tier Grand Magister is just that terrifying.
"Why is Teacher Mela here too?"
Muen blinked, then quickly realized. "Did you pull me in here?"
"I did."
"Why?"
"I felt that, as my disciple... you ought to see this too."
"This?"
Muen looked toward the Golden Great Tree.
"Do you remember the legends of the First King?"
Mela walked across the surface of the lake with her hands behind her back, yet she didn't stir a single ripple.
"The First King... the founder of the Leopold Empire?"
"Mhm."
"Celicia told me about him... I remember he was a figure from the end of the Great Chaos a thousand years ago. At that time, although there were signs that the chaos was ending, it wasn't over yet. So, the First King stepped forward and prayed to the Golden Sacred Tree in the lake for power, hoping to end the chaos once and for all. He succeeded in the end, receiving the Sword of Kings from the Sacred Tree and establishing the Empire."
Muen paused. "Is it this tree?"
"This is just a reflection from a thousand years ago. But if you want to be technical... I suppose so," Mela answered softly.
On the tranquil lake, beneath the Golden Sacred Tree, nine figures appeared at some unknown point.
They were men and women, some fat, some thin, all different in form—some even had non-human features—but Muen felt... they looked somewhat familiar.
"Are these... the Glorious Knights who once followed the First King?"
Their heavy, weathered, battle-hardened auras made their identities easy to guess. As for why they looked familiar... it was because their statues still stood in the Empire's Imperial Council hall. The long table used for the Council was the very same one where they and the First King once deliberated.
However, compared to the beautified statues, these figures—covered in blood, faces weary but still resolute—felt more real. they didn't have the flawless, haloed perfection depicted in statues and legends.
And at the head of these knights stood a silver-haired man.
Calling it silver was a stretch; it was closer to a deathly, pale white. His face was equally pale, and his armor was worn and travel-stained, yet it couldn't hide his handsome features or the natural leadership aura he seemed to be born with.
"That's... the First King?"
"Yes, that is the First King. Not just the First King of the Empire, but if you count from the era of the Great Chaos that nearly wiped out human civilization, he was the First King of humanity—the First King after the end of chaos."
"So, the rumors were true."
"Of course they were true. After all, they weren't rumors to begin with, but the truth passed down through generations of the Imperial family. It's just..."
"Just what?"
"Keep watching," Mela sighed softly, falling silent.
Muen’s attention returned to the First King.
"O venerable Sacred Tree, O most benevolent and supreme deity, O Weaver of Order within the Flawless Lake..."
The First King knelt before the Golden Sacred Tree, praying with utter sincerity.
"Please... grant me the power to stabilize this troubled world and end the chaos."
Woo—
The golden leaves swayed gently, sounding like a melodious song.
As if receiving an answer, the First King and the Glorious Knights behind him simultaneously slit their wrists, letting their blood flow into the clear lake.
【We hereby swear.】
【With our blood, we shall forge glory and order anew.】
【Through every life, for a thousand generations, for all eternity, never to fail.】
【As long as our blood remains, so shall order and glory endure!】
This was... the oath of the First King.
As the solemn oath echoed, infinite sacred radiance descended from the heavens.
A golden branch fell, light condensing and gradually transforming before their expectant eyes... until it became a sword.
The Sword of Kings.
When the First King drew the Sword of Kings, it was like the first ray of dawn breaking through the darkness.
Watching this scene, Muen couldn't help but feel a sense of solemnity.
"The First King and those knights... they were incredible."
"Of course they were. Being able to receive power from the Sacred Tree is proof enough that they were sincere, determined, and exceptional."
Mela said, "The Sacred Tree gave them a sword, but in the end, they were the ones who swung it."
"It's like... a devout believer receiving power from a god? Is the Sacred Tree a deity?"
"Yes, a deity." The corner of Mela’s mouth quirked, seemingly carrying a deeper meaning.
"It's a pity."
Muen shook his head. "My ancestors followed the First King to build the Empire, but the descendants of those Glorious Knights have now degenerated to such a pathetic state. They even seem to have distorted the oath their ancestors swore, believing that 'eternal glory' means their privileges and wealth should last forever."
"After enjoying themselves for hundreds of years, it would be stranger if they didn't turn into maggots."
"True..."
At this point, Muen frowned slightly, rubbing his chin as he asked:
"But... sorry, I still don't understand what you meant by 'just' earlier. Did you pull me in here just to see how brave and handsome Celicia’s ancestor was, so that I'd feel more justified kneeling under Celicia’s skirt in the future?"
"Tsk, you really have no patience, kid."
Mela rolled her eyes at Muen and crunched down on her lollipop. Then, she took the wooden stick and gave it a light toss.
"Besides, aren't you missing the point?"
"What po—"
Muen was about to ask when his words cut off abruptly.
As the wooden stick hit the lake and sent out ripples... the reflection in the water changed.
Above the lake, the Sacred Tree remained divine and noble.
But in the reflection within the lake, the blood that the First King and his knights had shed earlier... began to turn turbid and pitch-black, emitting a foul stench.
No, it wasn't just a few streaks of blood. At this moment, at the bottom of this clear lake, countless bloodstains appeared out of thin air, quickly turning foul and gradually... spreading toward the Sacred Tree.
"Over this millennium, it wasn't just the blood of glory that fell into corruption."
Mela’s amber eyes reflected the shadows of the past. She sighed with a complex expression.
"The Sacred Tree governs order. During that era of chaos, it was already struggling to hold on. And the First King's grand prayer ultimately..."
Mela pointed at the stick floating on the lake's surface.
"...became the straw that broke the camel's back."
Woooo—
A sharp wail rose from within the lake.
Countless skeletons swarmed forward, climbing up the roots of the Golden Great Tree. Rotting flesh wove together to form a shroud of death, draped haphazardly over the soil where it was rooted.
Souls shrieked and cried, pierced by the sacred branches and hung high, packed densely together. Their hollow, agonized eyes stared into the void, their mouths whispering curses upon the living.
The supreme radiance remained brilliant. The crystalline trunk remained sacred.
But the pollution derived from that massive prayer had triggered the darkness hidden deep beneath the lake, finally sketching out a hideous divine reflection.
Its name was—
Evil God · Fallen Evil Sacred Tree.