Free Web NovelChapter 226: The Spider and the Empress (3)
With every step the armored knights took, metallic echoes rang throughout the vast hall. These weren’t knights wearing iron armor; rather, they themselves were made of metal. They were golems created with the power of the Earth God, who governed soil and metal.
I marveled at the sight. This was most likely possible due to the Blessing of the Seven Stars that the Empress supposedly possessed. It was an absurd blessing said to allow its bearer to wield fragments of the Seven Gods’ powers.
I narrowed my eyes, glancing toward Empress Camellia, who reclined lazily on the throne.
Resting her chin in her palm, Camellia wore a languid, satisfied smile. “Heh. It is only natural to be struck speechless by my beauty... But you don’t have the luxury to admire it right now, do you?”
The armored knights drew their weapons, and platinum-colored aura burst from the edge of their blades.
Golems that can use aura, huh.
I let out a quiet scoff and lowered my stance. With a boom, I kicked off the ground, sprinting forward. Even though I had made a move without giving any signs, an armored knight reacted instantly, swinging its sword without the slightest flinch. I grabbed the sword with my bare hand. The dull crash of metal was much too heavy a sound for a strike caught without armor or gloves.
“No matter how hard you try,” I muttered.
Using Berald Combat Style: Blade Breaker, I snapped the knight’s sword in two with my hands. The armored knight staggered, thrown off balance, and pitched forward. I seized its head mid-fall and slammed it straight into the ground.
“It’s still just a pile of scrap metal,” I added.
With a heavy blast, the knight’s head shattered into fragments.
Camellia, who had a drowsy expression as though she would fall asleep at any moment, suddenly showed a glimmer of interest in her eyes. “Oh? It seems the rumors weren’t baseless after all. But the test has only just begun.”
At the flick of her finger, the remaining thirteen armored knights charged from all directions.
I inhaled slowly, drawing up the Primordial Flame. “Ignite.”
Ashen Flames surged around me, and thick gray smoke seeped out from every pore on my body. Ignition was probably enough for this fight. There was no reason to reveal anything more for a mere performance like this test.
One knight slashed down at me head-on, its sword blazing with platinum aura. At the same moment, two others rushed from my sides, lowering their bodies and thrusting spears toward me. Their formation was so perfect that it was hard to believe they were golems made from a blessing. There was no gap to escape and no room to slip through.
However, since there was no gap, I was going to make one. I executed Ashen Flame Style Third Form: Flame Lance. A concentrated point of Ashen Flame shot forward, piercing straight through the chest of the knight in front. Immediately afterward, I leaped high on the spot. Two spears from either side crossed in an X beneath me.
Balancing lightly atop the crossed spears, I reversed my grip on my sword and pointed the blade toward the floor. Ashen Flame Style Fourth Form: Rain of Fire.
Ashen Flames burst outward from my sword, spreading wide. Kicking off from the spear hafts, I jumped again, this time high enough for my back to brush the ceiling. Then, gripping the sword in a reversed grip as if it were a spear, I hurled it downward. Ashen Flames poured down like a rainstorm, piercing and melting the knights who I had left behind on the ground.
Camellia softly exclaimed, “Oh my!”
If her expression could be translated into words, it would likely be: “This is a cadet? And one ranked at the bottom of his year?”
She nodded from her reclined position. “Hm. Now, I can understand how you destroyed Marianne’s barrier.”
I finally landed on the floor. However, instead of catching my breath, I immediately sprinted forward. My target was the last armored knight left standing, or rather, the one I had purposely left standing.
The Empress had asked for a performance. There was no way she would be satisfied with me merely dealing with a handful of scrap golems.
Racing forward, I gathered the Ashen Flames into my fist. I stepped in hard and punched the remaining knight square in the abdomen. Its torso blew open, and a blast of Ashen Flame shot straight through it. At the end of that fiery trajectory was the wide throne, where sat the Empress.
Seeing the wave of Ashen Flame barreling toward her, Camellia curled her lips into a deeper smile. “Hmmm? My, my! What delightful entertainment.”
As if the flames rushing toward her didn’t even exist, she did not move an inch. Just before the blaze engulfed her, a woman in a maid uniform appeared out of nowhere, stepping in front of the Empress and swinging a mace bristling with sharp iron spikes. The Ashen Flames struck the mace and scattered into the air.
The woman, black-haired and wearing thick-rimmed glasses, glared at me with fierce, blazing eyes. “How dare you aim for Her Imperial Majesty!”
“Aim for Her Majesty? I was simply aiming for the last remaining armored knight,” I replied.
The maid stomped the ground in the frilled uniform, gripping her spiked mace. “Hah! Do you think such a pathetic excuse will work?”
In the blink of an eye, she appeared right in front of me, swinging the weapon toward my head. However, a voice interrupted her.
“Melina. That is enough,” Camellia said.
“Your Majesty! This man dared to attack—”
“I ordered you to stop.”
Melina clenched her teeth in frustration, then reluctantly lowered her mace. “If you show even one more ounce of disrespect before Her Majesty, I won’t tolerate it next time.”
After delivering her cold warning, Melina turned sharply and walked back toward Camellia.
Camellia smiled. “Heh. You’re usually so calm, yet the moment something involves me, you become far too emotional.”
“Your Majesty, you are the pillar supporting tens of millions of citizens of the Empire. I merely wish you would take better care—”
Camellia waved her hand dismissively, face twisted in annoyance. “Aaah, enough. I’ve heard that lecture so many times I’m sick of it.”
She slowly pushed herself upright from her reclining position and sat properly. “Well, anyway.”
Melina’s eyes flew wide as her jaw dropped. “Huckk!”
“Why do you look so shocked?” Camellia asked flatly.
“Y-Your Majesty! You’re sitting up straight!” Melina replied.
“Is that truly something to be so surprised about?”
“I-I simply assumed your body was so strained that your spine had shattered beyond recovery!”
“Why do I feel like you’re the one being rude now?” With a click of her tongue, Camellia frowned and turned her gaze back to me. “As expected, rumors can’t be trusted.”
She smiled, deep and pleased. “You exceed everything I heard.”
Although she hadn’t even used a quarter of the Blessing of the Seven Stars, the fact that I had swept aside golems created by the Earth God’s power so easily was sufficient to prove myself. Seeing her eyes sparkle as she studied me, I could tell she was pleased.
“So, can I finally hear why you summoned me here?” I asked.
“Hm. You speak before I’ve even given permission. Bold child.” With an amused curl of her lips, she continued in her unhurried, lazy tone, “I cannot be bothered with lengthy explanations, so I shall be direct.”
Camellia extended her hand toward me. “Will you enter the Imperial Household?”
I looked at her. “Entering the Imperial Household means...”
“It means becoming my servant,” she said firmly.
The Empress’s personal servant, huh.
“I am from the Republic, you know,” I replied.
“Hmph. Your origins do not concern me. After all...”
I finished it for her. “Because everything in the world, aside from Your Majesty, is insignificant?”
“Precisely.”
It was an offer I never expected and one coming from Empress Camellia herself. Were I to accept, I could no doubt secure a high-ranking position within the Empire. I pondered what to do. Of course, I had no intention of accepting the offer. However, if the entire reason she summoned me was to recruit me, rejecting her here and now would earn me a quick exit from this hall.
I could already imagine her words, “Then we have no further business. Leave.”
That would be a problem. I needed to remain inside the Imperial Palace to track the traces of the Church of Eternity. Getting thrown out now would ruin everything.
As I debated internally, Professor Baldwin stepped forward. “Your Majesty. Forgive my intrusion, but...”
Camellia replied, “I do not recall granting you permission to speak.”
“Dale is currently enrolled in the Hero Academy as a third-year cadet. Under the Tri-Nation Treaty, recruitment offers outside of graduation are prohibited...”
Camellia raised her hand. “You.”
Blue energy coiled around Professor Baldwin like a serpent. Professor Baldwin clutched at her throat, choking violently as her breath was stolen away.
Camellia’s platinum eyes gleamed coldly. “I said I did not permit you to speak.”
The blue aura thickened, and bubbles rose from Professor Baldwin’s mouth as though she were drowning underwater, floating into the air like shimmering soap bubbles.
Camellia turned to me. “So, your answer?”
At that moment, a fiery Ashen Flame erupted around Professor Baldwin, wrapping her in it. The blue aura constricting her neck mixed with the blaze and then disappeared. My Ashen Flames had completely devoured Camellia’s divine power.
Camellia’s eyes widened in disbelief. The Empress, who had remained calm and relaxed until now, stiffened like carved stone. “How did you...”
“I refuse,” I said.
“What?”
Leaving the speechless Camellia behind, I stepped toward Professor Baldwin. She wheezed, coughing violently as she struggled for air.
“Are you all right?” I asked.
“D-Dale...”
I gently patted her back as she caught her breath. “No need to speak.”
Camellia narrowed her eyes dangerously. “What did you just say?”
“You didn’t hear?” I turned my head toward her and clicked my tongue. “I said no. I’m not going to be your servant.”
Silence fell heavily over the wide hall.
