Chapter 304

Chaos reigns at the Coronation.

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Chapter 304. About 1 Month (4)

The hall suddenly froze as if the crowd had been doused in cold water, but soon filled with chaos and commotion.

“Good heavens, who was that?”

“What on earth is that supposed to mean?”

Everyone looked around, searching for the source of those shocking words around the front left section of the hall, when suddenly, other voices rose from the back right.

“The Second Prince’s treason is a lie!” 

“The Third Prince is unworthy of the imperial crown!”

This time, the shout came from the back left.

“A murderer who slaughtered the people of the Empire is standing next to the Third Prince!”

“The Third Prince is the one who ordered the massacre of the people of the Empire!”

As shouts rang out from all directions, the remaining crowd turned their heads from side to side toward each speaker as if struck dumb.

"Oh my!"

“Good heavens!”

This time, a voice shouted from the front right.

“He who deceived the people of the Empire, framed the Second Prince’s death as treason to mislead the Empire’s nobility, and seeks to usurp the title of Emperor—he has no right to be the Emperor of Oceria. Lay down the Imperial Crown!”

At that, voices from all corners merged into one, causing the Grand Ceremony Hall to tremble as if on the verge of collapse.

"Lay down the Crown!"

"Lay down the Crown!"

The hall descended into complete chaos.

“Protect His Majesty!” Hans shouted.

Then he grabbed the Steward's staff from his fingers and roughly slammed it onto the floor. 

BANG! BANG! BANG!

At Hans’s command, the guards who had been spread out behind the podium simultaneously closed in around them.

While everyone gathered in the hall stood in a state of shock, Hans shouted loudly.

“Silence!”

However, instead of ceasing, the cries of “Lay down the Crown!” only grew louder. The guards who had surrounded the walls of the Ceremonial Hall all gripped their weapons tightly, on high alert.

“We cannot let those who would dare insult the Imperial Palace go free! Guards, search the crowd and immediately arrest those trying to disrupt the ceremony!”

Despite Hans's orders, the guards were unable to move. They didn't know who to arrest. Joseph, having already donned the Imperial Crown in the mayhem, sat on the throne and shouted sharply.

“Seize them all! Every last one of them!”

“Aaaargh!”

“Aaaah!”

Terrified, the distinguished guests in attendance began scrambling to flee the hall all at once.

At Joseph’s command, the guards sprang into action to try to grab the fleeing crowd. Simultaneously, the throng of nobles rushed toward the doors to evade them, but the guards blocked their path, forcing them back into the center of the hall.

Amidst the chaos, people collided with one another, and screams rang out from all directions. The room grew even more chaotic.

Hans scanned the room with a sharp gaze.

‘The Second Prince is definitely here.'

From the moment he'd heard the shout, “There was no treason,” Hans began to consider the worst-case scenario.

Hans had already anticipated this eventuality and prepared for it. He intended to settle everything today in addition to placing the Imperial Crown on the Third Prince’s head and even scouted an escape route just in case.

He actually hoped that the Second Prince would show up sooner rather than later.

‘I wonder what kind of look he’ll have on his face when he sees that fat bitch standing by my side...’

"Go quickly and bring her to my side at once!"

At his command, Taylor, who had been standing guard with his weapon drawn behind his master, moved swiftly to obey.

Cold sweat kept breaking out on Hans's neck and his mouth felt parched, but he was able to endure it. Joy surged through his entire body at the thought of watching that woman being dragged to him, and how she would struggle to feign composure while she trembled with fear.

“Your Majesty. Flee through the rear door…”

Just as Hans started to speak, a voice rang out from the crowd.

“Halt! How dare you do this knowing who is gathered here! Guards, sheathe your weapons!”

The angry and indignant voice belonged to Duke Anton. He shouted the words with an unwavering, upright composure.

When the guards hesitated, unsure of what to do next, Duke Anton shouted once again.

“This is a gathering of the Great Nobles of the Empire! Guards, stand back!”

Rage surged within Joseph. He sprang from his seat and yelled once again.

“The Emperor commands it! Anyone who disobeys will be executed on the spot! Do not delay—arrest this band of traitors!”

At that moment, another person stepped forward: Count Crimson Battenbir, who had recently ascended to the position of family head.

"You cannot treat the nobles who represent the Empire so disrespectfully! Please restrain yourself, Your Highness!"

He addressed Joseph as “Your Highness.” This implied that, despite the imperial crown on his head, he did not recognize him as Emperor.

Several young nobles who agreed with the Count swarmed behind him and shouted at Joseph, who held his ground.

“Did you not hear it yourselves? A traitor, hiding among the crowd with poisoned lies, is attempting to ruin this noble ceremony. Are you suggesting we grant absolution to those who have deceived the nobility and insulted the Emperor, the supreme ruler of the Empire?”

The Duke of Toulouse stepped forward and shouted so loudly that his voice echoed throughout the hall. As he did, nobles began to stir one by one, agreeing with him.

“Let us hear this properly! Are the words true or false?”

The owner of that voice walked toward the podium.

How shockingly unassuming.

Those watching immediately recognized the voice man who now stood next to Sir Taylor in front of the podium.

As he removed his stylish hat with a gentle yet sweeping motion, his long hair, which had been neatly coiled beneath, cascaded down in a shower of strands.

It was Andrei Pitt.

***

Andrei wore an unassuming black jacket and tie without a hint of makeup, yet his distinctive, ebullient voice and flowing long hair instantly captured the crowd’s attention.

Putting my delight at seeing him aside, the fact that Andrei was here meant that Kyle, his partner in this operation, was here as well.

From the moment the shout "There was no treason!" echoed through the ceremony hall—no, from the moment the palanquin entered—I had been unable to escape the thought that the Second Prince must be watching all of this.

I quickly scanned the crowd.

But I couldn’t spot him anywhere.

The stage was set; if Andrei had appeared, it made perfect sense that Kyle was here as well.

He wasn’t in the crowd. So, the best place where he could watch everything without arousing suspicion was...

The podium!

I immediately wanted to turn my head to look at the dais behind me, but since everyone else was focused on the centre of the hall, I couldn’t just turn my head and give it away, so I stayed still.

The only people allowed to be on the dais were the Third Prince and the Emperor seated in his palanquin. Their guards had stepped down from the dais and were now keeping watch around the perimeter.

So, was he disguised as one of the knights?

No. When the palanquin was carried in earlier, Bernard and the knights following behind had all removed their helmets and held their heads high, so their faces were clearly visible. He wasn’t among them.

Then… The attendants who had ascended the dais with him!

They were attendants who had carried the palanquin into the hall.

The eight attendants were currently kneeling beside the Emperor’s palanquin with their heads bowed.

He's one of them!

The very moment I reached that conclusion, the Third Prince's shout erupted from the platform.

“How dare you! Do you think this is some kind of safe haven where you can say whatever you want?! He did it! He’s the mastermind who ruined the ceremony! Guards, arrest him!”

At Joseph’s shout, the Imperial Guards sprang into action, and Andrei immediately raised both arms high.

“Whoa! Whoa! I am Andrei Pitt, a loyal subject of the Empire who has been granted the title of Count. I stepped forward simply because I believed that not even a shred of doubt should be left during the Coronation of His Highness the Third Prince, who will lead the Empire into the future. Is that not so, Your Imperial Majesty?”

Andrei looked up at the podium and bowed respectfully. As if immediately realizing that his bow wasn’t directed towards the Third Prince seated on the throne, but the Emperor seated inside the palanquin, all the people in the hall turned their gaze toward where Louis sat.

The hall fell silent in an instant.

“Lis…ten...I'll hear it.”

The Emperor's distinctive low voice emerged from the palanquin.

The room immediately stirred. The Third Prince's face contorted in a grimace, and Hans approached him and whispered rapidly.

"I will execute the next plan I have prepared."

“...Fine. But if we’re doing this, let’s do it properly! Make sure not a single rat escapes, understand?”

“I will heed this, Your Majesty.”

Nodding briefly at Hans’s reply, Joseph rose from the throne and spoke with a gentle voice that projected boundless magnanimity.

“You speak wisely, Your Majesty the Late Emperor. And to all our distinguished guests. Your concern is understandable; it is best to address such blemishes in my reign now for the sake of my future rule. I order the Imperial Guard to step back. As for those who have caused such a disturbance in this hall, I will give you a chance. Do not hide behind others—step forward and speak.”

“A wise decision, Your Highness.”

Joseph gritted his teeth at Andrei's cheerful tone, especially since he was trying to goad him by calling him "Highness" instead of "Majesty", but he did not let his smile falter.

Andrei bowed more deeply than ever before, then turned toward the crowd, gesturing as if to lead them—one arm stretched back, the other extended forward.

At that, three young men stepped forward from between the VIP section and the podium.

“We were members of the ‘Awakened Young Gentlemen's Club’ in the Capital. We were deceived by that scribe over there—no, by Consul Hans Button—and crossed into the Principality of Ga'an on his orders to hold a 'peaceful' demonstration.”

After the man vented his rage-filled words, one of the men next to him continued speaking.

“I believed it was simply a demonstration intended to widely publicize the superiority of pure noble bloodlines, and that through this, the club aimed to serve as a model for the Empire’s nobility and establish the proper ideology to guide this Empire for future generations.”

“But that place was hell. Hidden among the demonstrators we believed to be innocent were rioters we knew nothing about, and as if they had been waiting for this moment, soldiers appeared from somewhere and attacked the demonstrators. At first, we thought they were soldiers from the Principality, but we later learned they were Imperial knights belonging to House Toulouse. It was His Highness the Second Prince who saved us from being massacred.”

A stunned silence fell over the hall at the young nobleman's words.

I kept a close watch on the tension-filled room and checked the axe strapped to my thigh once more.

Fortunately, I always carried the axe with me, and Hans and his knights hadn’t searched me before bringing me here.

The palace maids hadn't even considered the possibility that a noble lady might be armed and had handed me the dress without searching me.

Moreover, the only advantage of this loud, voluminous dress was that it perfectly concealed the shape of my lower body where the axe was strapped to my thigh.

"Whoa..."

My heart was beating faster and faster, so I took a slow, deep breath.

I needed to pull myself together. If I wasn't careful, I would get swept up in this and die.

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