Chapter 823 – 823. A Tyrant For You
Aura surged from my sword and theirs.
I don’t know the odds. I don’t have an objective grasp of how strong I am right now. But one thing is certain: I don’t feel like I’m going to lose at all.
‘Accelerate.’
I use the skill. The Royal Knights and I simultaneously left the ground. I charged straight ahead, and the Royal Knights spread out to the sides, trying to surround me. They don’t lose their numerical advantage. The Royal Knights’ actions were cold and efficient.
Clang!
“Kuh-uh-uh!”
The Royal Knight who collided with me gritted his teeth. His sword went down. He couldn’t handle my strength. As I put more force into my sword, he screamed.
“Kaaaaaah!”
I heard the sound of his arm breaking as it couldn’t withstand the pressure.
My sword touched his body. The blue aura-infused blade easily cut through his armor. Red blood gushed from his neck and chest.
I stepped on his falling body and jumped upwards. Dozens of swords simultaneously pierced the spot where I had just been. The Royal Knights had surrounded me.
‘Lightning.’
Crackling, crackling.
My body fell to the ground with a blue lightning strike. The Royal Knights, electrocuted by the lightning, stiffened. I didn’t miss the opportunity and swung my sword widely in all directions.
Half of the Royal Knights were cut down. They fell to the floor, spewing red blood. In the face of their comrades’ deaths, they didn’t panic at all and swung their swords to kill me. Even I, in my current state, couldn’t possibly deal with them one by one.
However, the Royal Knights’ swords never touched my skin. Although their swords were imbued with aura, the durability of Stormbreaker far exceeded their imagination. To pierce my armor, they would need at least an aura blade and swordsmanship skills to match.
“What is that armor…”
“The attacks aren’t working at all…!”
“Block him! Stop the traitor!”
The Royal Knights’ morale dropped due to the armor’s toughness. I didn’t miss the opportunity and killed the Royal Knights one by one.
I walked through the sea of blood towards the Great Hall. There was no time to hesitate. Time was not on my side.
‘If time passes, the Knights and soldiers will come. No matter how much Stormbreaker I have, I can’t face them all alone.’
I punched the large, ornate door of the Great Hall open.
Clang!
The door opened as if it would break, and the numerous gazes of those enjoying the banquet focused on me. It instantly became chaotic.
Click.
According to my will, the helmet automatically opened and was stored in the armor. Today, a new emperor would ascend. I needed to show them clearly who the emperor was.
I slowly turned my head and looked around. Those who met my gaze flinched. Is it because it’s a romance fantasy world? Both men and women were, on average, exceptionally beautiful.
“Eugene Bellacarus?! Why is he here…!”
“C-calm down and look behind you. All the Royal Knights guarding the Great Hall are dead!”
“Uwaaaah!”
“Treason! It’s treason!!”
In front of the Great Hall’s door, there was a red carpet leading to the throne. I stepped onto the red carpet. My blood-soaked footprints were hidden by the red carpet. I walked slowly, focusing only on the front.
The man sitting on the throne’s face contorted. Long black hair reaching his shoulders and a beard coming down to his chest.
He had the charisma of an emperor. Or so one would think if they didn’t know the original story. The current emperor is a pathetic and greedy bastard. Normally, a vassal should be wary of the emperor’s mood, but with this guy, it was the opposite.
“Eugene! You vulgar wretch! Can’t you step back this instant!”
The emperor’s roar echoed loudly. But that didn’t stop my steps.
Bang! Bang!
The emperor slammed his fist on the throne, expressing his frustration and anger. It had an effect. Before I even reached halfway down the red carpet, a middle-aged man stood in my way. A red aura blade formed on his sword.
He was Yulhanes Lairoth, the Count and Captain of the Royal Knights. An aura master… no, one of the most accomplished Sword Masters in this world.
“Prince Eugene. You have gone too far. Drop your sword and surrender.”
Prince.
It’s the title used to address royalty in this world. But in the information in my head, few people called me Prince. Not even the nobles or the servants. Most people called me Eugene-nim. It meant they didn’t recognize me as royalty, and there were no repercussions for them calling me that. Until now.
“Captain of the Royal Knights. You’re useful. Step aside. I’ll use you later.”
“My loyalty is only to His Majesty the Emperor.”
“I see. Die honorably.”
Click.
As I took a step forward with the will to fight, the helmet automatically donned.
Unlike me, who was fully armored, Yulhanes, dressed in a banquet suit, bent his knees, lowered his upper body, and pulled his sword back. My eyes were on his sword. A mass-produced sword. Probably a sword he hastily picked up in this sudden situation.
But I couldn’t ignore it. That red aura blade was more threatening than any famous sword.
‘An aura blade, huh? …It’s worth a try.’
I shifted my gaze to the sword in my hand. The blue aura rippling like flames. I manipulated mana as my senses led me. I compressed the aura. I gave form to the formless. The blue flame turned into a liquid and coated the blade.
“That’s an excellent aura blade. You were hiding your strength.”
“Well, that’s how it would look.”
“Prince Eugene. That armor is no ordinary treasure. Where did you get it?”
“Yulhanes!!!”
The emperor’s roar erupted. He was urging him to stop the pointless chatter and cut off my head. Yulhanes sighed quietly. He was trying to buy time by talking to me until the knights and soldiers arrived, but the foolish emperor didn’t grasp his intentions.
‘A moment.’
[Using Moment. Remaining stacks: 4]
Yulhanes released his aura blade. A small explosion occurred. Using that explosion as propulsion, he approached me. Thanks to using Moment, I could clearly see his movements.
‘Using the explosion of the aura blade is Yulhanes’ unique swordsmanship. This is dangerous.’
I had become a Sword Master just now with the [Tyrant Quality] buff, but the gap between me and him was still vast. He had become a Sword Master decades ago.
‘To close that gap, there’s only one way.’
[Activating Genius Time for 10 seconds.]
My senses expanded.
[Using Moment. Remaining stacks: 3]
The blue aura blade became a little sharper, and electricity flowed through the sword.
[Using Moment. Remaining stacks: 2]
[Using Moment. Remaining stacks: 1]
I used Moment consecutively. My sword and Yulhanes’ sword overlapped. An explosion occurred. Yulhanes and I were pushed back simultaneously.
A part of the Stormbreaker armor was torn off. My body creaked.
I used discharge to buy a little time to regain my stance. Yulhanes was more damaged than me, so he wouldn’t be able to attack right away. Or so I thought, but Yulhanes broke through the discharged current and charged at me with his bloodied body. He was filled with the determination to kill me, not missing this opportunity.
Yulhanes’ sword touched my shoulder. Sparks flew as the armor and blade rubbed against each other. The armor was slowly being cut.
‘Moment.’
[Using Moment. Remaining stacks: 0]
I swung the sword in my right hand. Yulhanes, who had already prepared, reacted quickly. He twisted his body and dug deeper into my arms. He had won. He had to break away to the outside.
Using one of Stormbreaker’s functions, a clone, I created a sword in my left hand. The blade pierced his chest precisely.
Yulhanes, who spat out blood, knelt on the floor. Just before dying, he looked up at me and said.
“Your Highness… please have mercy on the Empire…”
Yulhanes died. I, having removed my helmet, looked at my left shoulder. The shoulder area was cut. If I had been a little slower, Yulhanes’ sword would have pierced my shoulder. The cut shoulder area slowly began to repair itself. Self-repair was also a function of Stormbreaker.
I walked past Yulhanes’ corpse towards the throne.
The emperor, who had been boldly expressing his anger at me just a moment ago, was trembling, looking at me with fear-filled eyes.
“D-don’t come closer. I am your father and the master of this Empire!”
“I know, Father.”
My steps didn’t stop. I walked up the stairs leading to the throne. The nobles around the emperor recoiled in horror.
“I ordered you not to come closer…!!”
The emperor stood up abruptly. But his hands couldn’t let go of the throne. It was ridiculous that he couldn’t let go of power even when facing death.
“You’ve worked hard to hold onto a position that didn’t suit you.”
The emperor sat back down on the throne. No, he slumped down, overwhelmed by my momentum.
I reached out my left hand and grabbed the emperor’s shoulder, pulling him away from the throne.
“How dare you! Let go! I said let go! Royal Knights! Capture this traitor!”
The emperor thrashed. He screamed to get away from me, but he couldn’t do anything. I raised the sword in my right hand. I had removed the aura blade. It was a waste to use an aura blade to kill this bastard.
“I, I am your father! P-put down your sword! What are you trying to do!”
“What am I trying to do? Can’t you see? I’m inheriting the throne, Father.”
I smirked. I had said all the lines I had wanted to say. There was no more reason to hesitate.
Thud.
The sword pierced the emperor’s abdomen. It didn’t stop there. I pulled out the sword and beheaded the emperor. His head rolled at my feet.
Screams were heard from the surroundings.
“Kyaaaaaaah!”
“His Majesty the Emperor has been murdered by a traitor!”
“Knights! What are the Knights doing!”
“We must inform the First Prince! No, inform the Empress Dowager first!”
The nobles were in an uproar. They couldn’t even think of attacking me with swords. If they had been truly loyal, they would have blocked my path with even a small knife. In the first place, most of the nobles gathered here were mediocre. The nobles with real power didn’t attend the 13th Prince’s coming-of-age ceremony.
‘The 13th Prince… 12th in line. Anyone outside the top 10 has no chance.’
The emperor attended because he was his son, and most of the royal family didn’t attend. I slightly turned my head. I saw a woman who was slowly running away from me. She was the 5th Empress, the mother of the 13th Prince. She boasted a beauty befitting an empress.
I turned my head back. The empress wouldn’t be able to escape this imperial palace anyway. No, she wouldn’t even think of leaving the imperial palace.
‘Just because I killed the emperor doesn’t mean I become the emperor.’
It’s not as simple as a game.
After some time, the First Prince would appear with knights and soldiers, kill me, and ascend to the throne. The legitimacy was with the First Prince.
‘There’s no one who supports me. So… I have no choice but to subjugate them all by force.’
I stood right in front of the throne.
The reason why the male lead of the original story could become emperor. It was because he had obtained the greatest power a human could have.
I raised my sword and struck the left armrest of the throne. The armrest broke, revealing a golden cup inside. I grabbed the cup. It was hard and cold.
The Holy Grail.
The first Bellacarus Emperor obtained power that transcended humanity through this Holy Grail and established the Empire.
When I opened the lid of the Holy Grail, there was a blood-red liquid inside. The holy liquid accumulated over 200 years. I opened my mouth and poured it all in at once.
Gulp. Gulp. Gulp.
I didn’t taste anything. Instead, it was hot. It felt like my throat was burning as the liquid passed through, and as soon as it reached my stomach, it was absorbed into my body, and the heat spread throughout my body.
Clang.
The Holy Grail rolled on the floor.
I felt my whole body activating and overflowing with power as I sat on the throne. I rested my elbow on the right armrest and propped up my chin.
My gaze turned to one side of the Great Hall, where the court orchestra was gathered.
“Music.”
The court orchestra flinched at my words. I understand. Even I was surprised at how much power was in my voice.
“Today is a good day. Play a lively tune.”
