Chapter 1234: The Secret Chamber of Rudolph III

While the princess led the knights in flanking the enemy, Hao Ren was bringing on a storm of flames and explosions before Fort West. The shouts of battle rose at the west gate of the kingdom, but the hinterland of the ancient kingdom remained calm. But amid the calmness, there was a depressing atmosphere brewing underneath.

White City was a magnificent city on the plain. Taros I together with his followers built it nearly three centuries ago. At that time, the tide of Chaos had retreated, it was the end of the turbulent period. The Ansu Continent was as ruined like the others. The Accipitridae Empire, once ruled the south of the mainland, fell during the tide of Chaos. The remnants of the Accipitridae Empire and several kingdoms in the mountains formed into a new race with Taros I as its first leader. When he built the city, he only wanted to provide his people with a place of shelter. Never did he think that after the end of the tide of Chaos and the prosperous period on the continent would make him the founding king of a dynasty.

The former sanctum became the sacred capital of Taros after undergoing numerous rebuildings and expansions.

White City derived its name from its color. Eighty percent of the buildings in the city were white—the color of sacredness. When the tide of Chaos retreated, and sunlight reappeared and sprinkled on the land, White City was as bright as the white jewel. This unique appearance had also made it the most prestigious and magnificent city on the continent of Ansu. Even the envoys of the Theocracy from the sanctum had once lamented, “This small country in the corner of the mainland has a pearl-like capital.” Though this comment was heavily laden with the arrogance of the people of the sanctum, the people of Taros felt vindicated and was proud of their city.

The earliest cornerstone of White City was the white rock from the Tashiri Valley in the eastern plain. According to historical records, the Tasiri Valley appeared out of thin air within a month after the end of the War of Chaos. So scholars believed that the rock was a product of cleansing of the power of Chaos by the Order. In Collow, this incredible thing was part of the law of nature. It was because of the constant reshuffling of Chaos and Order that the world was able to continue circulating and surviving until the present. Today, the quarry in the Tashiri Valley had long closed down, and the primary building materials of the city had changed from stone to magic and alchemy materials. But the people of White City had not changed the color of their city. They collect white clay from the plains to use as paint and maintain the pride of White City.

Or more precisely, it was the pride of the aristocratic class in the city. The civilians could not have cared less about the color of the house they live in, but the nobles hoped that the name White Jewel in the south of Ansu could last forever. So they incorporated the ‘holy color of the city’ into law. White clay became one of the means by which these proud aristocrats amassed their wealth.

“Their pride should be thrown to the frontline before the Chaos; I would like to see if the skin of these smart alecs could stop the claws of the monsters when attached to the wall!”

A loud voice broke the quietness of the Palace of Golden Roses in the Royal City. A strong man, with a short red flame-like hair, a scar on his face, wearing a kingdom uniform holding a parchment in his hand paced back and forth in the room with anger. This rugged-looking middle-aged man had privilege in the palace; he was the most famous warrior in the kingdom, the highest commander of the Royal Knights, the Eagle General, Gloen Mordrick.

He was used to yelling in front of the king. His habit came when he and the king spent times secretly climbing the trees in the palace.

Of course, at that time, he and Rudolph III were only kids.

There were several others in the room; one of them was a middle-aged man wearing a lilac robe, with purple-haired but slight white, and a majestic face was sitting expressionless on a gorgeous chair in the middle of the room. Next to the man stood a girl who looked only 16. Having a bright lavender long hair and wearing a moon-white princess dress, the teenage girl was elegant and dignified. If Hao Ren saw her, he would be surprised; the girl looked identical to Veronica.

The last person stood was further away from the rest. He wore a dark-red thick clothe with two rows of shiny copper buttons that the nobles often wore. His body was thin, face solemn, hair light brown and curled hanging down his cheeks, making his thin and long face looked even impersonal.

“Gloen, let’s be quiet. I know that at least half of them are an abbreviated piece of nothing, but the nobility is still necessary for this country,” the middle-aged man on the chair said when General Gloen circled for the third time. His voice was calm but powerful, “including the abbreviated piece of nothing.”

“What can they do?” Gloen replied bluntly, but still, he calmed down. He was notorious for lack of etiquette before the king, but as the general of the kingdom, he knew his place.

“At least you could scold them to vent your anger,” the man on the chair, Rudolph III, quipped. “And what they said made sense. The defeat on the western front has brought shame to us in Ansu, even the entire Collow. Honor might be meaningless to the monsters of Chaos, but it is a real benefit and opportunity for politicians. If we can’t keep the last land of Order in the southern part of the continent, then others would be more than happy to ‘help’ us guard the land. The magic-guided airships of the Radiant Continent and the Matthiola Empire have begun to assemble.”

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“Those opportunists!” The scar on Gloen’s face arched with anger. “The Radiant Continent is close to sanctum where the tide of Chaos always ends the earliest. They always suffer the least damage but like to reach their claws into the house of others.”

“The thicker the darkness is, the closer it comes to recession. The power of the tide of Chaos has reached its peak, which means that the disaster is coming to an end, and the year of fertility will come soon. Every country must plan for the future. The living will eat the body of those who have died, and the survivors must become stronger to face the next war. It is the law that is set in stone in Collow since ancient times. We have been through it.”

Rudolph III spoke softly about the cruelty of reality. The final few years of the War of Chaos were the biggest test for the mortal kingdoms. Most of the kingdoms fell during this period, while the more powerful kingdoms would be waiting for the moment. When any of the weaker kingdoms fell, they would jump out to help—first a bailout, then acquisition and annexation.

It was not something despicable. Incorporating and restructuring a kingdom is always more efficient than rebuilding civilization from the ruins. The once-in-century tide of Chaos left no room for people for discussion. The task of redistribution of resources and reconstruction work after the war became the law of the jungle that the Collow people must master since ancient times. It was unity and dedication unique to this world.

Now the western front of Taros was in trouble. If the chaotic forces marched straight in, the ancient kingdom that had survived two times of War of Chaos would be in grave danger. Under such circumstances, it was natural for any surrounding countries to salivate for taking over the country in trouble. The same was true of allies. If the kingdom fell, then the Taros would not resist the takeover, and the process would be peaceful.

However, the one being taken over would be most unwilling. That was how General Gloen felt.

“The situation in the forest in the west is a mess. What has happened cannot be reversed.” The thin man who has been standing at the farthest point spoke up. “It’s a shame that Lady Veronica could not make it back. I heard she fought bravely.”

“Grand Duke Loen, you sound like it doesn’t concern you.” Gloen stared at Loen, the most powerful man in the kingdom except the king. “Her Royal Highness went to the western front, and you should take the credit for that.”

“There shall be no personal feelings when it comes to the kingdom’s military strategy.”

“Enough.” Rudolph III suddenly raised his voice to interrupt the argument. The king’s face was angry but his voice cool. “You are discussing the death of my daughter! Think about how a father would feel.”

“It’s my fault.” General Gloen immediately bowed to Rudolph III. “But I believe that the Theocracy should take the blame, including for the current situation in the western front. They must explain themselves.”

Grand Duke Loen had no animation on his face. No one knew what he was thinking.

“The Theocracy should explain themselves,” said Rudolph III. “Those people of the sanctum…”

The room was silent for a while before the girl who stood beside Rudolph III and looked like Veronica said softly, “Father, about the western front, and things happening outside the border of Chaos, the scholars have some theories.”

“Theories?” Rudolph III looked up at his daughter, who was known for her intelligence. “Ania, what did they find?”

“Some are the observations of scholars, and some are news from the border, and some are unverified,” Princess Ania whispered. “For example, new energy flows have emerged in Chaos, such as the dark side of the Sea of Carnos has expanded to entire Collow. There are strange changes in the floating island group in the south. The beasts on the islands seemed to be busy with some large-scale activities, and there is also a rumor about an alpha wolf.