Summoning the Holy Sword

Dragon Soul Ceremony.

The grand ceremony to praise the Light Dragon Soul. After two days of anxious and anticipated preparation, it was finally about to begin.

Everyone gathered in two rows in the spotlessly white palace hall with solemn expressions. The Dragon Soul Ceremony wasn’t open to the public, so the Light Dragon Soul wouldn’t step out and speak to the people like Lydia in the Midsummer Festival in the Munn Kingdom. This was also considered a small resistance from the Light Parliament as they were afraid that the Light Dragon Soul would mention ‘inappropriate’ topics that weren’t favorable to them and it would be in a huge headache if chaos broke out in the people. On the other hand, the Munn Kingdom didn’t care about such minor details and nodded in agreement. But the Munn Kingdom had bad intentions of their own. According to their conditions, in every annual Dragon Soul Ceremony, every person in the Light Mainland would be given three working days off to express their gratitude to the Creator Dragon Souls, which left the Light Parliament as disgusted as if they were forced to swallow a housefly. Rhode knew what the Munn Kingdom was plotting. This was just like how people remembered Children’s Day, Labor Day, and National Day clearly as these days more or less provided them with benefits and holidays. As for a celebratory day like the Youth Day which didn’t provide them with a holiday, most people would forget about them. The Munn Kingdom requested for the Light Mainland to provide three working days off for the people during the Dragon Soul Ceremony so the people would surely remember this ceremony in their heart. Whenever people asked about it, they would know that the three days were meant to thank the Creator Dragon Soul, which entirely destroyed the Light Parliament’s hopes of wiping out the Dragon Soul’s existence.

Rhode stood in front of the representative team with Grand Mage Amund in the first row. Marlene, Derick, and Gaya stood in a row behind them, while Anne, Lize, and the others positioned themselves at the back. Even though Lize had the right to stand at the front in terms of identity, she didn’t like standing out in the crowd and she had to look after Anne well, just in case she caused any troubles in this grand, solemn ceremony.

Even though the ceremony was closed to the public, there was still a huge number of overlords and representatives under the Light Dragon Soul protection. But even so, the spacious, bright hall was more than enough to accommodate them. The brilliance of the sun spilled through the coloured-glass on the dome in the ceiling, bringing a fantasy-like radiance to the serious atmosphere.

Even though it was a solemn occasion, Rhode’s thoughts weren’t revolving around it. Instead, he scanned the crowd curiously to find any familiar faces and as expected, he found some friends and even enemies. Overall, enemies made up the majority.

The groups in the hall had indistinctly been divided into two camps. The Anti-Parliament camp led by the Munn Kingdom massed on the left while the Light Parliament camp stood on the right. The neutral parties stood at the end to draw a distance from both camps and express their standpoints.

Rhode noticed a skinny, elderly man putting up a gloomy face at the corner of the Parliament camp while maintaining a distance away from them. He glared menacingly at Rhode and let out a snort after detecting Rhode’s gaze. Then, he turned around as though nothing had happened. But Rhode knew why this elderly man presented such an expression.

The elderly man was Walter Chelis, the patriarch of the Chelis family, and also the overlord of Barce.

Unlike Munn Kingdom, the Battle Angels mostly had their tails tucked in the Country of Light. Battle Angels seldom reveal themselves in the public of the Munn Kingdom due to Lydia’s self-discipline. After all, it would be disturbing for the people if Battle Angels were to fly around in the sky all day. But Battle Angels were still highly respected in other territories apart from the Munn Kingdom and Country of Light as they possessed powerful strength, were kind-hearted, and willing to assist the people. However, the situation was different in the Country of Light. After years of brainwashing by the Light Parliament, the Country of Light people were exceptionally vigilant against the Battle Angels, where they treated them as presences like Demons and were unwilling to accept their kind gestures. They believed that the Battle Angels had ulterior motives in their kind gestures and that was to make the people recognize the rule of the Angels. However, the people would never give up their prides as Humans!

It was due to this that Battle Angels basically wouldn’t appear before the people in the Country of Light. Rhode had even heard that almost two-thirds of the Battle Angels in the entire Battle Angel Army had been assigned to Lydia. Of course. In name, they existed to exterminate evil presences and maintain peace and harmony. But Rhode was clear that even Buddha would be furious to face such treatments. Battle Angels weren’t respected in the Country of Light so they were better off going to places where they would receive the respect that they deserved. Taking down evil presences was nothing more than an excuse. Everyone knew that the nobles of the Country of Light were the ones who were most closely linked to dark magic, curses, and Demons on the entire Light Mainland.

Rhode sensed as though the atmosphere in the entire hall had frozen, which made him feel rather uncomfortable. Shortly after, the two rows of Battle Angels raising the flags stood before the crowd and formed a barrier to keep the people away from the red carpet. Then, two Battle Angels holding white bugle horns in their hands flew into the hall and spun above everyone before quietly landing on both sides of the empty throne. Once they were in position, they blew the bugle horns.

00… Oo… Oo…

Two long notes followed by a short one.

A petite figure emerged from in between the large doors under everyone’s watchful eyes.

Lily.

I knew it.

Rhode twitched his brows and revealed a smile in his eyes for a split second.

Unlike her outfit yesterday, Lily wore an exceptionally glorious white silk robe that dragged along the carpet up to three meters. Not only that, but she also wore a wide triangular hat and held a white staff that was taller than her. Standing beside her were the three Archangels.

Lydia wore her usual luxurious dress, while the other two Archangels were dressed differently. Archangel Serene wore a baggy, judge-like white gown. She appeared to be about 30 years old. Even though she wasn’t as young as Lydia, she emanated a mature and grandeur aura. She held a thick, golden-edged, red book and had a gentle and calm look.

That should be the Book of Law in the legends.

As a devoted follower of the Light Dragon Soul, it went without saying that Archangel Serene possessed unique abilities. Rumor had it that the Book of Law recorded the treaty and rules made during the Creation War, the operations of the entire continent, as well as the development of the statutes. In the game, players heard rumors that this Book of Law could alter the laws of this continent to a certain extent. If that rumor was true, Serene’s abilities would be comparable with Lydia’s. However, what was strange to the players was that even though she held such a formidable legendary artifact, her presence had always been close to nothing. In the game, she disappeared to nowhere after the Light Dragon Soul died. Before that, she seldom emerged on the battlefield and before the public. No one knew what her true job was.

Archangel Boulder on Lydia’s right was entirely different. He was a handsome, charming man with a head full of red, fiery spiky hair and a stern look on his face. His brows were knitted tightly and thick lips sealed closely as he gazed solemnly at the crowd. One could feel like he was like a ball of flames that was unapproachable just by looking into his eyes.

But… this Archangel… in Rhode’s eyes…

Rhode shifted his gaze to the sword completely burning with flames hanging by Boulder’s waist. The scorching flames materialized into the shape of a blade from the sword hilt, emanating extreme heat. However, it didn’t set his white armor and cape on fire. Then, Rhode pondered in silence before looking away.

At this moment, Lily slowly approached the throne at the farthest end of the palace under the three Archangels’ escort. The little girl sat down with a serious expression, but Rhode could sense some emotions hidden behind that facade.

It was apparent that the shock to her earlier was a huge blow.

Rhode lifted his head at this thought. At this moment, his gaze came into contact with Lydia’s and the latter winked playfully at him. Her eyes revealed some praise. Rhode was slightly taken aback. But shortly after, he understood what was going on.

It seems that a good show is coming up soon.

At this moment, Lydia stepped forth with an alluring smile.

“Everyone. It is the sacred Dragon Soul Ceremony today. Under the Light Dragon Soul’s protection, we’ve gathered here to express our gratitude to the Dragon Soul who has been selflessly protecting us from Chaos and evil, and to offer our most sincere greetings and respects to the supreme existence on this continent…”

Lydia turned around and half-knelt to the little girl before her.

“Your Majesty. These are your people who are offering their supreme honor and respect. With your protection, your people are able to live such blissful, peaceful lives. Perhaps we may have faced difficulties, but with your protection, we will walk out from the shadows of failure and darkness and return to the holy radiance.”

Grand Mage Amund stepped out with a stern look. He held an exquisite box and stood behind Lydia, lowering his head and extending his hands respectfully. Everyone knew that this scene would happen in the Dragon Soul Ceremony. Lydia would present wealth from the Munn Kingdom and this sum of money would undoubtedly be accepted by the Light Parliament.

Shortly after, the elderly chairman tidied his clothes and stepped out in large strides from the other side. He stood before Lydia and nodded before extending his hand…

“Please, wait a moment.”

Suddenly, a childish, crisp voice broke the solemn atmosphere.

Everyone lifted their heads and gazed at the little girl in astonishment. Lydia revealed a rare look of anxiousness. But shortly after, the worry in her expression faded away.

“Serene, accept this gift on my behalf. Just as Lydia has said, I think it’s about time to present this wealth… For much more meaningful purposes.”

Everyone were rooted in their place by this bold statement!

The elderly chairman sulked instantly. Not only him, but the crowd behind him widened their eyes in disbelief. Most of them had participated in the Dragon Soul Ceremony more than twice, but they had never seen the little girl speak a word before as though she was nothing more than a decoration for the throne. But now, she actually made such a firm decision before everyone!

Everyone knew that the wealth the Munn Kingdom presented every year would be taken by the Light Parliament to fill up their financial deficits. But now, the Light Dragon Soul actually decided to take it away.

What would happen to the Light Parliament? What should the Country of Light do? No, most importantly…

Why did the Light Dragon Soul make such a statement?

Could it be that she has decided to snatch back her authority that was stripped away from the Light Parliament?!