"Ladies and gentlemen, I am your emperor, the ruler of the Loen Kingdom and the Rorsted Archipelago, George Augustus III."
"For a long time, the Feysac Kingdom has constantly attempted to invade our homeland. Because of this, our soldiers and loved ones paid the price in blood, repelling their invasions time and again and keeping them beyond our borders."
"Last year, they once again launched a war. How many young soldiers died beneath their blades? How many families lost their most beloved relatives in the war?"
"They even secretly dispatched assassins to murder Duke Negan and sow chaos throughout Backlund. With cruel methods and despicable deeds, they have acted wantonly within our country."
"We have had enough of the suffering brought by these invasions. It is time for us to take up the weapons in our hands and fight back, to crush the claws they use to invade us and let them know that the people of the Loen Kingdom will thrust their weapons into their chests and tear apart their hearts…"
At Memorial Square in the West Borough.
Audrey stood near the raised platform with her father, mother, and elder brother, watching the king deliver his impassioned speech while dressed in solemn ceremonial attire.
Ever since learning about the God of Combat's fall, Audrey had gradually lost her reverence for gods and royal authority. The lofty halos surrounding Them were fading little by little until they disappeared entirely.
After experiencing the fall of the mind dragon in the dream, she seemed to have seen through the cycle of birth, aging, sickness, and death. The emotions, moods, and interests an ordinary young woman should possess were gradually fading from her as well.
In their place was the perspective of an outsider watching actors perform upon a stage, looking down and observing everything as if she and they existed in two completely different worlds.
Even the familial affection she felt toward her parents and relatives was becoming less and less important in her heart.
This change frightened her. She had only entered the Beyonder world a few years ago. How had she already developed the mentality of an old person who had seen through the ways of the world?
Audrey shifted her gaze away from the passionately speaking George III and glanced toward Mr. Hastur, who stood on the opposite side.
She discovered that he was listening with great interest, though there was a faint smile at the corners of his lips, as if he were enjoying an exquisite stage play.
After a while, Hastur's gaze also turned toward her. Audrey calmly met his eyes for a few seconds before naturally looking away.
Susie didn't come along. Is she still asleep?
Hastur glanced around but didn't see Susie behind Audrey. For a Spectator, what happened today would undoubtedly be very helpful for acting and digesting their potion.
While Hastur was thinking, George III, with his small mustaches and his stern, old-fashioned appearance, finished the first part of his speech and solemnly declared:
"Let us observe a moment of silence here for our heroes. Ladies and gentlemen, recite these words with me in your hearts: In the name of Emperor George III, may the souls of the fallen find peace, and may they attain eternity within the divine kingdoms of the gods they believe in."
These words carried an irresistible majesty, causing everyone listening, including Audrey, to involuntarily lower their heads and clasp their hands together. Silently, they recited along with him:
"In the name of Emperor George III, may the souls of the fallen find peace, and may they attain eternity within the divine kingdoms of the gods they believe in."
"In the name of Emperor George III…"
At the outermost edge of Memorial Square, Klein, wearing a black woolen coat and possessing an utterly ordinary face, prayed along with the people around him, displaying nothing unusual.
The three-minute-long moment of silence caused doubts to arise in Klein's heart.
George III, currently standing before the eyes of countless people and giving his speech, was right here. How was he supposed to consume the potion?
Would he find an excuse to leave after the speech ended and then enter the mausoleum to begin his advancement?
He had previously asked Will about the important details of the Black Emperor advancement ritual.
The phrase "In the name of Emperor George III" should be the core of the entire Black Emperor advancement ritual. If George III wanted to increase his chances of success, he would inevitably have to act at this moment or within two or three minutes after the moment of silence ended.
Yet the George III before him showed no intention of leaving the podium.
At that moment, Klein's palm suddenly grew warm. This was the signal Bernadette had sent to begin the operation.
That meant George III had already begun consuming the potion and preparing to advance!
Klein glanced once more at George III on the podium. He was setting an example for everyone else, solemnly observing the moment of silence without making a single unnecessary movement.
It was difficult to imagine that this fake George III had so easily deceived the attention of the members of the three Churches, secretly attempting to become a god right under their noses.
How terrifying.
Without hesitation, Klein quietly slipped away through the crowd.
He had already been standing at the outermost edge of the crowd, and with more citizens continuously arriving to join the excitement, it was easy for him to leave unnoticed. He headed toward the mausoleum he had selected beforehand and waited for a short while. Soon, Mr. Azik tore open a passage through the spirit world and appeared there.
Klein hadn't seen Mr. Azik for a long time and had originally wanted to have a long conversation and catch up with him, but time was pressing. Especially since Bernadette had already caused a huge commotion at another mausoleum in the distance.
"Mr. Azik, I'll have to trouble you." Klein bowed deeply.
If not for his invitation, Mr. Azik would have had no need to involve himself in this matter and take on unnecessary risks.
"You are my student. It is only natural for a teacher to provide whatever help he can to his student."
Azik spoke with a smile as he took the blood Klein had prepared for breaking the mausoleum's seal. He extended the index finger of his right hand and rapidly traced a symbol in the air.
As Mr. Azik's fingertip moved, droplets of blood resembling tiny shattered rubies seeped out and solidified in midair.
Soon, a complex symbol composed of layer upon layer of "doors" appeared in the air. They trembled slightly, seemingly resonating with something in an unknown location.
In the blink of an eye, the blood-colored symbol expanded into an illusory, translucent doorway. Through it, they could see an enormous mausoleum constructed from massive black stones.
"Let's go." Azik stepped through the illusory translucent doorway and entered the mausoleum.
Klein nodded and followed closely behind Mr. Azik.
Today, Mr. Azik was the main fighting force, while Klein was merely there to provide some assistance.
However, if he could infiltrate deeper into the mausoleum, he was still capable of causing considerable chaos and doing his best to destroy it.
"Heh, we've been expecting you!"
Grove Augustus, Prince of Sonia of the Loen Kingdom, sensed Azik and Klein the moment they entered the mausoleum. He quickly appeared and blocked Azik's path.
He had a square face and wore a white wig, with slightly upturned mustaches beside his mouth. This seemed to be a hereditary characteristic of the Augustus family, as George III also had an upturned mustaches.
Grove Augustus, Sequence 3 Chaos Hunter of the Justiciar pathway.
Facing such an opponent, Azik didn't seem particularly concerned. Although he had yet to fully recover his former strength, holding back a Sequence 3 was still not difficult for him.
Without waiting for Mr. Azik to speak, Klein left the battlefield first and headed deeper into the mausoleum.
The fact that they could station a Sequence 3 here meant that he was already the strongest guardian of this mausoleum. The strongest people remaining inside would, at most, be Sequence 5 or Sequence 4. Klein possessed quite a few trump cards, enough to ensure his survival.
Furthermore, Mr. Azik's voice sounded directly in his mind:
"If you encounter danger, remember to call for help. I still have strength to spare."
Elsewhere, Bernadette, who was already Sequence 2, wielded the powerful Sealed Artifact left behind by Roselle as she confronted William I, who had secretly protected the Loen Kingdom all this time, a Sequence 1 Hand of Order of the Justiciar pathway!
"I didn't expect someone like you to still be alive to this day, much less allow your younger descendants to step over you and rise to power."
Bernadette gazed at this ancestor of the Augustus family, the founder of the Loen Kingdom whose portrait was printed at the center of the 10-pound note, and sighed inwardly.
He was truly an ancient relic, someone who had been active during the Epoch of the Gods. He had once served the First Solomon Empire and later served the Tudor-Trunsoest United Empire.
During the War of the Four Emperors, after the Night Emperor fell, He obtained the Hand of Order characteristic left behind by the Night Emperor with the support of the seven gods and advanced to Sequence 1. He then destroyed the Night Emperor's Trunsoest family in one fell swoop and established the Loen Kingdom, which had endured to this day.
Rumors had long claimed that He had already fallen. Unexpectedly, He had remained alive all this time and had even specially teleported here today to stop her.
"I once met your father. He was someone skilled at creating miracles. Unfortunately, He has already fallen. One could say that the heavens were jealous of his talent." William I spoke calmly. "Bernadette, leave now, and I can pretend that nothing happened today."
"Heh, trying to pull rank just because you're old?" Bernadette merely sneered.
"You can make a wish to me. I can help you stuff this annoying old bastard into a cesspit, or make His body split apart inch by inch, rot, fester, and endure every form of torture imaginable."
The Son of Chaos's phantom emerged from the Magic Wishing Lamp. His majestic bearing and disdainful, contemptuous gaze finally caused a ripple to appear on William I's calm face, while undisguisable shock appeared in His eyes.
He actually felt an extremely obvious suppression in terms of status!
He was already a Sequence 1 Hand of Order. With no true god existing on the Justiciar pathway, there should be no other existence on the same pathway capable of suppressing Him unless it was a Great Old One from beyond the cosmos.
"The Son of Chaos who once controlled the Nation of Disorder." William I recognized the Son of Chaos's origins. He had once seen the Blasphemy Slate and knew that the Nation of Disorder had once been the Son of Chaos's sefirot.
The Son of Chaos had originally intended to maintain his profound and mysterious image for a while longer, but the moment he heard the word "once," he became so furious that he shouted for Bernadette to beat this foul-mouthed old bastard to death!
If you don't know how to speak, then shut up!
What do you mean, "once controlled the Nation of Disorder"? That sefirot belonged to Him in the first place!
And it would belong to Him again in the future. No one would ever take it from Him again!
Not only that, He would also settle accounts with the Mysteries and make Him experience what it was like to be sealed away for countless years!
He was far more suitable than the Son of Chaos to be turned into a Magic Wishing Lamp!