Under everyone's shocked and stupefied gazes, the ruler of the Loen Kingdom and the Rorsted Archipelago, Emperor George III, exploded into a mass of blood and gore.
The members of the royal guards closest to him had their silver-white armor and the parts of their faces unprotected by their helmets splattered with the blood from the explosion. They were so frightened that they collapsed to the ground.
Emperor George III was dead! He had inexplicably died just like that under everyone's watchful eyes!
Panic and disorder began to spread.
Audrey was relatively close to George III's speaking platform.
She could clearly see how George III's body had just been torn apart bit by bit and how the blood inside him had burst outward.
For some reason, at this moment of sudden upheaval and panic, when everyone's attention was focused on George III, she subconsciously looked toward Mr. Hastur on the opposite side.
He was also looking at George III, but there wasn't even the slightest trace of shock or panic on his face. She could even discern a deeply concealed hint of amusement in his eyes.
Could it be that Mr. Hastur had long known King George III would fall today, which was why he wasn't shocked at all?
Audrey didn't have time to think or look any further. Earl Hall, standing beside her with a grave expression, hurriedly instructed Hibbert and Alfred to protect her and Countess Hall and escort them away from here.
"Ah!" No one knew which noble lady let out the shrill scream of utter panic, but it instantly ignited the accumulated fear. Not only were the royal family members running around in helpless confusion like headless flies, even the royal guards stationed around the area didn't know what they were supposed to do now.
They wanted to protect George III's remains, but the explosion just now had been so thorough that not even a single intact bone remained.
Amid this fear, chaos, and panic, Audrey instead gradually calmed down. She switched to her Spectator perspective and coldly observed everything while sensing the various complex emotions coming from all directions.
Grief, sorrow, panic, fear, confusion, and even secret delight and happiness...
The various emotions erupting from the crowd at that instant filled the entire Memorial Day Square in the blink of an eye, forming an ocean of the mind.
And she, Audrey Hall, was a solitary island floating upon this ocean of the mind. No matter how the waves crashed and poured over her, she continued to observe the magnificent surging waves of this mental ocean from the perspective of a bystander, without missing even the smallest splash.
The Psychiatrist potion within her was completely digested at a visible speed. An inexplicable realization filled her mind, as though some switch had been flipped, causing the eyes with which she viewed the world before her to gain a little more clarity and detachment.
Noticing the changes within herself, Audrey couldn't help but sigh inwardly. Did this count as profiting from someone else's bloody misfortune?
Or should she say, thank you to King George III for his final gift before death?
As Audrey was being escorted away, she once again glanced toward where Mr. Hastur was standing on the opposite side.
At this moment, Mr. Hastur was likewise observing everything before him with an attitude of absolute calmness and indifference.
However, he was different from her. What she observed were the complicated emotions and hearts of the people, while what he observed were the chaotic and disorderly actions produced by the crowd.
As if sensing her gaze, Mr. Hastur looked toward her. There was encouragement in his eyes, along with a sense of companionship shared between fellow observers.
"Mr. Hastur, just what kind of true face lies beneath that mask of yours?"
Audrey murmured inwardly. Soon, she and her mother, along with the other panicked and dazed noble ladies and young misses, were escorted to a safe place under protection.
...
So chaos possesses a beauty of its own.
Hastur gazed at the panicked crowds everywhere within his field of vision, from members of the royal family down to ordinary citizens.
At this moment, they shed their respective identities and revealed the most helpless sides of their hearts in a completely naked manner.
Order had fallen out of balance at this moment, leaving behind a void.
It was like the figures within an exquisite painting. When someone approached with a torch intending to burn the painting, the figures suddenly gained lives of their own and began scrambling everywhere, abandoning the positions where they were originally supposed to remain, creating a kind of chaotic beauty.
Hastur silently experienced and savored this feast of chaos and disorder. The Mentor of Disorder potion within him was also digesting at an accelerated rate.
Only at this moment did he truly understand what kind of legacy the Ancient Sun God's fall had left behind.
Only those existences who personally witnessed and participated in the Ancient Sun God's fall could have advanced one after another into deities within such a short period of time.
Because witnessing it in itself was an enormous fortune. Even George III's fall could produce something like this, let alone the scene of the Ancient Sun God's fall.
After a brief period of chaos, the members of the royal family and the great nobles began restoring order at the scene, while the soldiers stationed at the outermost perimeter completely surrounded Memorial Day Square.
They wanted to find the possible culprit behind George III's assassination. The high-ranking members of the Churches who knew some of the inside story allowed this investigation to proceed, because both the Churches and the Loen Kingdom needed a scapegoat.
Otherwise, the people's anger and doubts could easily destroy the order that had been so painstakingly established.
Sensing the chaos fading away, Hastur gently closed his eyes and once again entered the Hall of Stars.
He wanted to confirm whether George III had truly and completely perished.
When reading the original novel, he had always felt that George III had fallen far too easily. Even if his advancement to Black Emperor had failed, George III was still a Sequence 1 who possessed three Sequence 1 Beyonder characteristics and the Uniqueness.
An existence like that was even stronger than Adam and Amon at their current stages, and was roughly comparable to Mr. Door back then.
Even Mr. Door had been able to persistently resist the corruption of the Mother Goddess of Depravity. Yet George III had completely perished merely because his advancement failed?
Moreover, this time there was also the butterfly effect caused by Hastur himself, which had made George III attempt his advancement to Black Emperor ahead of schedule. Perhaps some new unforeseen change would occur.
When Hastur's gaze turned toward the depths of the black mausoleum, George III's body had indeed exploded, but the chunks of flesh and blood were strangely suspended in midair, struggling to piece together a face belonging to George III.
Behind that face, a translucent and bizarre doorway was also beginning to form.
He isn't completely dead yet? And what is that doorway?
Just as Hastur wanted to draw his vision closer to get a clearer look, a sudden wave of trembling and terror surged through his mind.
This was a warning from his spirituality! He hurriedly stopped himself from pursuing the thought and slightly furrowed his brows.
George III couldn't be left alone in this state. Who knew where that doorway actually led?
Could it be Mr. Door?
The Mother Goddess of Depravity!
Hastur instantly became alert. An existence capable of making him feel troubled and frightened even while separated by the Hall of Stars could only be something similar to the Mother Goddess of Depravity!
Furthermore, during this period, the Mother Goddess of Depravity had constantly been having her believers operate actively in Backlund. Perhaps she really had established contact with George III!
As for the blood and conditions required for Mr. Door to break free from his seal, with George III's assistance, perhaps they could be gathered very quickly!
He absolutely could not allow George III and the Mother Goddess of Depravity to cooperate!
"George III, as a qualified emperor, it would be best if you died completely."
...
In the outskirts of Backlund, deep within Ruin No. 1, George III, whose advancement had failed, had already lost any possibility of becoming the Black Emperor.
His body was also being continuously devoured by the shadow of order due to his failed advancement.
But he was unwilling to let all his years of patience and concealment become a joke!
Thus, at the final moment of his life, he exhausted all his remaining strength to outline a doorway capable of communicating with Mr. Door.
Not long ago, someone had approached him, claiming they could help him and introducing him to Mr. Door.
He had once heard his ancestor William I mention this legendary figure. Back then, He had been known as the existence closest to becoming a deity.
Even existences such as Adam, Amon, and Medici had ranked behind Him.
But later, something happened to Him, and He suddenly disappeared. Some rumors claimed He had been preparing for the ritual to advance to godhood, while others said He had been sealed away by the Evernight Goddess together with other True Gods.
When faced with such a legendary figure, George III had remained cautious and only communicated with the other party once through the seal.
Mr. Door had indeed been sealed by the Evernight Goddess and the other True Gods. If George III helped Him break free of the seal, He could advance to become a True God.
But George III wasn't stupid enough to easily believe Mr. Door and help Him break the seal.
Mr. Door, however, hadn't cared too much. He merely mentioned it once and never brought it up again.
Instead, He told George III that his attempt to advance to Black Emperor was certain to fail, because a mysterious existence would not permit Him to become a god and would definitely send His believers to stop and sabotage him.
At first, George III didn't believe Mr. Door's words. Later, people continuously began secretly spreading information unfavorable to the Loen royal family, with their target pointing directly at him, the king. This made him vigilant and worried.
But he still didn't contact Mr. Door. Old monsters who had lived for countless years would only seize opportunities to scheme against him. There was no possibility they would sincerely help him.
It wasn't until he underwent the investigation from the Churches of the three deities that the unease in his heart grew stronger.
Even a single Bernadette had been able to accurately spread information about the date on which he intended to advance to Black Emperor.
This was enough to prove that there was already an existence who didn't want him to successfully advance and was trying to eliminate him.
Therefore, out of unease and curiosity, he contacted Mr. Door once again.
He wanted to know exactly which mysterious existence didn't want him to become a god!
"The Stars and The Fool."
That was the final answer Mr. Door gave him.