Although egghead was roaring his lungs, asking the troops to attack, none of them did. Instead, the nobles in their carriages instructed their men to stand by. Their worries were about the Runic Dome above Helios, which fought against Astra-rankers before but did not fall.
"I said kill them all!" roared Paolo again, but no one moved. "Are you a bunch of fucking deaf knights?" shouted the egghead again as he grabbed the nearest knight and shook him. "This is my command!"
"We take commanders from Duke Edward," said the knight with a cold expression. "He has given us no such command yet. Please retain your composure."
"I… I am the representative…" said Paolo with shaking hands before he turned to look around. "You all have used me to be the scapegoat… You damn hypocrite nobles! How dare you look down on my Delano Family?!"
Zonas Mantra was quiet as he realized the same thing. The cunning nobles used this naïve man as the scapegoat in case things went south. After realizing that the Runic Dome was still in Helios, they dared not attack.
"If this is all you want today, scram," said Zonas Mantra as he stabbed his sword into the ground. He cupped his hand on its hilt as he glared at the nobles. "Those who have committed injustice against the people will be brought to justice regardless of their status. Anyone who does not like this can try their luck against Her Imperial Majesty."
No one could respond until one of the nobles descended from their carriages. It was a lean man with a thick mustache and a sly smile. This was Duke Edward, a man of unimaginable wealth and resources.
"You forget your manners, Zonas Mantra. Have you forgotten how important my Garrett Dukedom is to this empire? It would not survive without my farmlands and be defeated without my ores."
ραпdα nᴏνɐ| сom Zonas Mantra frowned at the appearance of this man. Given what was at stake, he had hoped that the Garret Family would not move. However, even if Arthur Silvera or Ilios managed to crush them in an all-out war, Ilios might never recover.
It was a case of mutual destruction.
The Delano Family obtained its title through military accomplishments, but Edward Garret differed. This master of deceit and business has built an empire in the trading world. His dukedom had farmlands that provided food for half the realm.
"This does not excuse rallying your mercenaries and knights to the capital. This is a declaration of war!" rebuked Zonas with such ferocity that the duke glared at him. The mention of war was akin to accelerating mutual destruction.
"War is not what we desire, hot-headed barbarian," said Duke Edward with a frown. "If nobles are being sniped left and right, how can we rest easy and serve this empire? We might as well fight for our freedom while we can."
"No one is coming to knock on your door unless found guilty. If you fear such a scenario, maybe you are hiding something?"
"Such accusations would not deter me from guaranteeing my freedom. If given authority, anyone would abuse it. We have earned our status through our contribution to society. I will not have my reputation smeared or have my honor questioned."
"State your demands, and I will relay them to Empress Ai," said Zonas Mantra with a frown. He realized this man would make the slightest mistake in choosing his words. "If seen as reasonable, we have you as our guests in the Golden Palace."
"We want full immunity from these invasions of privacy and freedom unless given a just reason. A trial must be held if enough evidence was found, and a council should be the one to decide who to imprison."
Zonas Mantra was silent because he knew that these demands looked reasonable and just but were exploited by nobles in the times of the previous emperor. The full immunity from the invasion of privacy simply meant that no one could investigate them without their knowledge of a royal decree. This gave them time to hide whatever corruption they conducted.
"I will relay these words to Her Imperial Majesty, and you will be notified of her response. Until then, let the troops retreat. Otherwise, no wealth can protect you, even if I pleaded for your life," said Zonas Mantra before turning around and leaving.
Duke Edward looked at him triumph until he heard the threat. He glanced at the Runic Dome hovering over the capital before ordering the armies to back down. As for the egghead, he was dismissed.
Zonas returned to the palace and relayed the events. Ai looked unimpressed while Rain snickered while eating her grapes. This outcome was expected, but it was the worst among many.
"Nobles are arrogant no matter where I go," said Ai with a frown as she pondered. "I have no idea what to do."
"Of course, you wouldn't have any," said Rain as she ate the last grape. "You were nothing but an ordinary woman before this responsibility was given to you. It's a miracle that Ilios is still standing."
"The people chose me," said Ai with a sigh. "What other choice would I have other than accepting this role?"
"However, the one who asked you to take this part is Arthur, right?" asked Rain, and Ai was silent. "Although he tries to remain detached from Ilios, he is the one who freed it. I doubt he wanted to rule through a proxy."
"If he did, he would have given his orders. However, there was nothing but protection on his part. If not for his existence, Ilios would have had three civil wars by now."
"That is why he remains above Helios," said Zonas Mantra with gratitude. "If not for him, I would have been dead and so many more."
"What happened to the rest of the criminals?" asked Ai with a frown. "Have they been released?"
"Aurora is interviewing them to know who has committed any real crimes. Those who were found innocent were released. As for those that refused to cooperate, we placed them in a temporary prison."
"Does that include Princess Ivory?" asked Ai suddenly, and Zonas was confused. Nonetheless, he nodded. Ai rose from her seat under their confused eyes and headed toward the door before calling for them. "Guide me to her."
Zonas did not understand what she wanted to do but obeyed regardless. He took his new empress to the temporary prisons near the palace, which were pavilions guarded by knights and arrays. The guards were confused at the appearance of their new empress but hurried to bow down and let her pass.
As soon as they entered the pavilion, they found Princess Ivory training in the front yard. She was sweat-drenched as she wielded a giant sword twice her size. Every move was accompanied by an acrobatic jump, letting her wield the blade like a butterfly.
Even after the three arrived, Ivory was still training. She did not notice them until Zonas coughed aloud, making her pause her training before resuming it.
"Her Imperial Majesty wanted to see you, Ivory," said Zonas with a frown. "Put down the blade and sit down."
However, Ivory continued to train and ignored them. Ai stepped forward before Zonas could stop her, entering her attack range. The giant sword swung toward her head, but it stopped inches away. A burst of wind flattered her hair, throwing the crown on the ground.
"Greetings, Princess Ivory," said Ai with a smile as her golden hair unfolded and fell on her shoulders. "I have something I would like to request."
"You have guts, girl," said Ivory with a grin before she retracted her sword. "If it's a request I can grant, I see no reason to refuse. Go ahead."
"Your Ma…" Zonas wanted to step forward, but Rain held him back. She had an intrigued smile as she stared at the too. As he was about to object, Rain shushed him.
"I want you to rule Ilios instead of me."
"…"
"…"
"…"
All three were stunned by her words. However, Ai still carried the same smile as she grabbed the warrior's calloused hand with both hands and pulled her closer.
"I am a healer, not a ruler. I only know how to improve someone who is hurt, but I cannot decide. You have studied this ever since you were young."
"…are you crazy?" asked Ivory with a laugh. "No citizen would accept having me as their ruler after what my father and brother did. I chose to be here because I have nowhere else to go."
"It would take time for them to trust you, but eventually, they would. No one cares about Ilios as much as you do, and I heard about what happened on the battlefield. I knew that you were about to die."
"I died," said Ivory as she walked away. "However, when Arthur Silvera appeared with his golden flowers, they healed my wounds and brought me back to life."
"Revival is not easy," said Ai as she shook her head. "Arthur kept you alive for one reason: you did not deserve to die. The citizen has seen you attack the Fake Emperor and will know that you were always on their side."
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