The Usurper (1)

At that moment, the Quartz Throne began to shine on its own.

“No way!”

The retainers watching all recoiled in shock.

The throne glowed by itself, and a fierce, pulsing light burst forth from within.

It was the Light of the Crown.

“I’ve never seen it this powerful…”

One elderly retainer couldn’t help but mutter, and that remark became the final push. Neither the retainers nor the royal guards dared to resist the woman who had taken the throne; they simply watched the situation unfold.

“Holy Knights. Your strength must have returned. Go to the gates of the royal palace and rescue the people.”

“……”

The holy knights of the King’s Church within the retinue were visibly shaken.

“Don’t be ridiculous! You’re the king’s assassin! You—gah!”

Sir Aldoph resisted, but in that instant, his arm was cleanly severed.

“How insolent.”

When Kazas raised his hand, Sir Aldoph’s arm was suddenly in his grasp. Kazas opened his mouth and tore off a hunk of muscle from the forearm with his teeth.

“Hiiik!”

“A-An elf!”

But then Aldis rebuked Kazas.

“Do not frighten them, Kazas.”

“My apologies. This is the Emperor’s court.”

Kazas immediately apologized, spat out the contents of his mouth, and prostrated himself before Aldis.

“……”

“Wait… Kazas, you say…”

“Demon King Kazas!?”

“The Demon King who devours grimoires! He’s still alive?”

The elderly scribes among the retainers were startled upon hearing Kazas’s name.

“For now, we must prioritize survival by uniting our strength. I will use all of mine to put an end to this storm, so I ask for the Holy Knights’ aid.”

As Aldis spoke, indeed, the storm had already ceased.

The power of the Light of the Crown was unmistakable. A light of hope began to fill the hearts of those who had just moments ago been overwhelmed by an immense evil.

Only a few reacted with resistance, confusion, or distrust. Most accepted the radiant light emanating from Aldis Jedaha as proof of her rightful queenship.

“Ah…”

“And you, Imperial Messenger, 108th Rank—Azadine.”

Aldis called Azadine with her usual voice of compassion.

“Yes.”

Azadine prostrated before her. Still confused, he found Aldis impossible to defy.

She was his godmother, his idol, the one he loved—almost everything to him.

But who was she now?

“I release you from the Curse of Servitude. Furthermore, I elevate your rank—you are now of the Second Rank. And I bestow upon you the name of Jedaha.”

“……”

“You shall henceforth be known as Azadine Jedaha, the Emperor’s Second Rank.”

“I am honored beyond measure.”

It was a shocking reward and promotion.

Second Rank. Though the Messenger Clan claimed that rank held no meaning, the Second Rank was another matter entirely.

Until now, that position had always belonged to Aldis herself. But now, having proclaimed herself Empress, she was no longer a Messenger—thus she passed the title on to Azadine.

And to bestow the name Jedaha?

Azadine, once considered the most profane and lowly within the already reviled Messenger Clan, was now given the name of the revered Jedaha bloodline and the rank of Second.

The Azadine of the past would’ve wept tears from eyes that didn’t even exist.

But now, he felt no joy. Instead, he trembled. An indescribable sensation ripped through his body and mind like a storm, tearing him apart.

“And you, Sion Ethar!”

Unlike the bewildered Azadine, the next one called responded sharply and bowed with conviction.

“Yes!”

“Bring the traitor Arael and her supporters to our side. I’d prefer not to spill blood.”

“With pleasure!”

‘…He’s of the Ethar bloodline.’

Only then did Azadine understand what was happening.

As Arael’s faction had rapidly grown, it had seemed they had recruited the Ethar bloodline—but in truth, they had already allied with Aldis.

That’s how they had seized the throne at the perfect moment.

“Hahaha.”

Arael looked around at the scene unfolding before her.

“L-Lady Arael!”

The only one still beside her was Janis, disguised as a maid. To pull off the disguise, she carried only a Moon Horn Bow and a dagger, strapped tightly to her body.

Kahsan and Nefti were disoriented but seemed to be standing by to observe the situation. Dimia, tied up with rope, looked utterly stunned.

“What on earth is this…”

“Impressive, Aldis. I really shouldn’t have underestimated you. I didn’t even realize you were working with him, and I wasted my suspicion on Leader Hathir.”

“Arael. This is not the time for us to be fighting each other. I’m your godmother, too. If you agree to stand with me, I’ll overlook your past crimes and grant you the Jedaha name. I’ll pardon you for killing an elder and stealing a copy of the Heavenly King’s Book of Truth. Talents like yours will be essential for overcoming the trials to come.”

“Aldis. After this humiliation, I’ll never be your foster daughter. I’m leaving this place!”

With that, Arael cast a glance at Dimia, who was tied up next to Azadine.

At that moment, Azadine instinctively moved his hand and cut one of the ropes binding Dimia.

It was the most important rope restraining Dimia—one that kept her hands and feet close together to prevent her from using any strength.

Once that was severed, Dimia immediately broke the other bindings and began to flee, following Arael.

“Damn it!”

“Catch them!”

Some of those in the audience chamber, apparently subordinates of Sion Ethar, stepped forward to capture the fleeing Arael and her followers—but they were thrown back by a blinding flash.

“Looks like I’ll have to handle this myself.”

“Don’t.”

Aldis stopped Kazas from pursuing Arael.

“Now is not the time for us to fight each other. Protecting Coral Sahar comes first. The Light of the Crown has returned and has empowered the Holy Knights, but that alone won’t be enough. Steward! And Captain of the Palace Guard!”

“……”

“Y-you mean us?”

They were startled, having been called out so suddenly.

Was this a purge? But the area was already surrounded by members of the Messenger Clan, bows drawn.

If they didn’t comply, they’d die.

The guard captain and steward walked out toward the corpse of the palace’s former commander.

“We’ll open all the armories and deploy the reserve forces to the front lines. We’ll need your cooperation.”

“But the soldiers were just rotated out…”

“The Light of the Crown will be with them. We can and will win—if you sincerely work with me!”

Aldis’s voice was so graceful and majestic that simply hearing it inspired trust.

There wasn’t much basis to believe her, but the captain and steward knelt without hesitation before Aldis.

“Yes, ma’am!”

“Now then, I shall issue detailed orders.”

With those words, Aldis unfurled a map of the palace as though she had always ruled Coral Sahar and began to formulate a defense strategy.

All the retainers watched, mesmerized, as she carried out her planning.

The Light of the Crown had already seized their hearts, and none present doubted she was the true sovereign.

Azadine fled the royal audience chamber as though escaping.

His companions followed close behind, all with worried expressions.

“Hey, boss. You okay?”

“Urgh!”

Azadine suddenly felt a sharp pain in his chest and collapsed to the ground.

He couldn’t breathe properly. Ever since mastering the Kazas Grimoire, something like this had been extremely rare.

It was the kind of thing that only happened after brutal training or intense battle, when the breath caught in one’s throat. Yet now, despite nothing apparent, something was choking him.

“A clean usurpation. Everyone’s bewitched. The king was assassinated right in front of them, and yet no one blames her.”

Zebec mourned the swift death of Ansethus IV.

“In a way, that’s the power of a true ruler. But to think she’s really the Emperor’s granddaughter… What will you do, Azadine?”

“For now, I need to find Arael.”

Azadine spoke and called out for the voice of the Emperor.

[It has been a long time, Azadine. Have you remained safe?]

“‘Safe’ isn’t quite the word… Is it true Aldis carries the Emperor’s blood?”

[She is the daughter of one born between the Emperor and Harkonia. A true direct descendant of the imperial line.]

“Her age…”

The Emperor’s granddaughter? That didn’t make sense with the timeline. But those with strong blood of the Yaegas God tribe sometimes lived for centuries without aging.

[Why do you think the elders of Aragasa held her in such reverence?]

“You should’ve told me earlier… I need to find Arael. Can you track her?”

[She relinquished her rank as a Messenger and now uses her own artificial spirit in place of one. Magic won’t help you find her. But I suspect she’ll find you instead.]

“I think so too. And that means… these ones will as well.”

Sure enough, Sion Ethar approached Azadine.

“Second Rank Azadine Jedaha.”

“Sion Ethar.”

“First of all, congratulations on the promotion. Everyone knows how loyal you’ve been to the Elder Council, so even as the brother of the traitor Arael, this promotion has unanimous support. And your skills speak for themselves.”

“Hmph. ‘Brother of the traitor Arael.’ People call me that even here.”

“Does it matter? You’re not inheriting anything anyway. Unless, of course, you become a member of the Jedaha bloodline. Then things would change.”

“What’s to become of those who were swayed by Arael’s faction?”

“In the Ethar bloodline, we believe they should be purged—but Lady Aldis disagrees. She wants to offer them a chance to defect.”

“Defection? You think that’ll work?”

“It will. Everything Arael’s faction promised, Lady Aldis now offers as well.”

“……”

In other words, Aldis intended to continue what Arael had started—summoning beings from the Nether, ushering in the Age of Jupiter, wreaking havoc on the Hubris Continent, and killing innocents.

It was a bitter pill for Azadine to swallow.

Aldis would never support such senseless slaughter or brutal vengeance—but she loved Aragasa too deeply. The people of Aragasa, the entire Messenger Clan, yearned for it. She alone couldn’t deny them that dream.

“Lady Aldis needs help.”

“…What are you saying?”

“I mean you should help her, Azadine.”

Sion Ethar had seen through Azadine’s thoughts.

He sensed that Azadine had been shocked by the betrayal—that the Ethar bloodline had been double agents all along and were ready to plunder everything Arael had built. That was why Sion had come—to persuade him.