NOVPUB
Chapter 167: I Can Help You to Finish the Sword
The entire palace trembled with the king’s shout of rage, prompting the royal guards and many of the hidden guards to attempt to enter the throne hall. However, King Douwin ordered them to remain outside, and they had no choice but to obey.
After King Douwin regained control over his emotions, he walked toward Duke Badin, grabbed his collar, and, without hesitation, slapped his face. The slap was just strong enough to jolt the duke awake, any stronger, and it might have shattered Duke Badin’s head, granting him a quick death. Feeling his head spinning, the duke opened his eyes, though he was still dazed and confused about what had happened.
"How dare—" he began to shout, but his words caught in his throat as he recognized the man standing before him and realized where he was.
"You are certainly bold for a traitor. Do you have any last words?" King Douwin asked.
"What—" He wanted to retort, but then he finally noticed Aldrian and his group.
"You! This must be your doing! You outsiders have ruined my reputation, destroyed everything my family has built!"
SLAP!
"Look at me, traitor!" King Douwin shook Duke Badin’s body. "Do you have any retort for what you did? Or are you ready for your last words?"
"No, no, Your Majesty, I am not guilty of what you accuse me of! You have been deceived by these people. Please, Your Majesty!"
"Then explain this!" King Douwin said as he played the information crystal before Duke Badin. It took only a moment for Duke Badin to realize that his life was over. The contents of the recording were the final nail in the coffin—proof of his collaboration with the devils, a betrayal that would end his family’s long and glorious history. He could already foresee that King Douwin would announce his treachery across the kingdom, making him an example for all traitors.
Duke Badin suddenly grinned maniacally, as though he had lost his mind, watching all his work crumble before his eyes. Yet, he still shouted defiantly at King Douwin and the others.
"So what if I worked with the devils?! That creature will descend upon this land, and you will all die by its hand! Nothing can stop it. I chose what was certain for my family’s survival! You ignorant fools! I’m warning you—you should bow to the devils if you want to cling to your pathetic lives in the future!"
The others watched Duke Badin’s outburst with stony expressions, and King Douwin simply looked at him and replied,
"I don’t know what you’re talking about, but what is certain is that you will be executed for your treasonous acts, and your family will be demoted from high-ranking nobility. You can enjoy your remaining days here before your execution. GUARDS!"
At the king’s command, the royal guards outside rushed into the throne hall, stunned to find Duke Badin there with a disheveled appearance. They wanted to know what had happened, but they quickly heard the king issue another order.
"Take Duke Badin to the dungeon and keep him there until I announce to the crowd what he has done and he faces judgment."
The royal guards were momentarily taken aback, but they obeyed the king’s orders, dragging the duke—whose cultivation was still sealed—toward the dungeon where the royal family housed criminals. 𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙥𝒖𝒃.𝙘𝙤𝒎
"You can’t do this to me! I’m a duke of this kingdom! I’m a noble! How dare you!" Duke Badin shouted as he was pulled from the throne hall, but the royal guards were forced to silence him using their techniques.
After Duke Badin was dragged from the hall, King Douwin sighed and turned to Aldrian, placing a hand on his shoulder. Though Aldrian was taller than the king, he did so anyway.
"Thank you for your help, Aldrian. You have performed a great service for this kingdom. You saved us and indirectly saved me from the knife at my back. You also brought Mardred back and the blueprint itself—"
"Actually, Your Majesty, I want to tell you something about the blueprint," Aldrian interjected.
The king looked puzzled but nodded for Aldrian to explain the circumstances regarding the blueprint. When Aldrian finished detailing the entire picture, King Douwin sighed heavily.
"So the blueprint is not with you?" he asked Mardred.
"How am I supposed to have something I never brought with me? The blueprint really just vanished before my eyes; it is what it is," Mardred shrugged.
King Douwin turned back to Aldrian. "So, what about the blueprint?"
"Your Majesty, I already told you that the symbol on the golden box showed me the way to create the Divine Sword, and during this journey, I uncovered a mystery: the blueprint is actually not the true method for creating the Divine Sword."
King Douwin frowning. "Not the real way to create the divine sword? What are you talking about?"
Aldrian sighed. "The blueprint is indeed a way to forge a peak divine grade sword, but you will never complete it because the true method to create this sword is contained within that symbol, which can only be activated by me."
Aldrian could sense the confusion and even anger radiating from King Douwin. Despite this, the king appeared to be holding back his fury as he addressed Aldrian.
"So, all my kingdom’s efforts over millions of years are for nothing? Are you telling me that all that effort has resulted in nothing more than an incomplete sword?" He released his aura, and the pressure in the room intensified. Anger and a sense of betrayal coursed through him. How could all the time and effort of his ancestors culminate in the creation of a mere incomplete sword?
"Why should I believe you? The sword only needs one last material to be complete. We still don’t know the end result if we don’t try!" King Douwin’s voice was sharp, his frustration evident.
Duke Valiard and Mardred felt tense in response to the sudden change in mood, realizing how the initial amiable atmosphere between the king and Aldrian had soured. Mardred understood the king’s frustration all too well; as one of the researchers involved in the creation of the Divine Sword, he felt personally affronted by Aldrian’s information.
But after witnessing Aldrian’s abilities and capabilities, he didn’t want to underestimate the young man. He also wondered why Aldrian had chosen to speak so bluntly to King Douwin. Couldn’t he have approached the matter more diplomatically to avoid offending the king? Yet, Aldrian maintained his calm expression as he continued to explain himself to King Douwin.
"You don’t have to believe me, your majesty, but I’m here to inform you about my findings. I never said that the ancestors of the Forgeheart Kingdom were for naught; in fact, I believe they were extraordinary for attempting to create the Divine Sword. I share this information with you because I want to let your majesty know that I can help you complete what the Forgeheart Kingdom has strived to accomplish all these years—finishing this sword!" Aldrian said.
King Douwin was stunned but then laughed. "Hahahaha, you are truly arrogant to say something like—" He suddenly stopped as Aldrian pulled out a huge rock from his storage ring. King Douwin widened his eyes, sensing the rock exuding numerous laws powerful enough to stir his heart and comprehension. He looked at the massive rock and examined it intently, feeling its great benefit even as he stood there without cultivating.
Mardred was also stunned by the appearance of this material, so he began to look at and examine it as well. They didn’t know what kind of material it was, but given the many laws it exuded, both King Douwin and Mardred could only guess that this material would make any artifact created from it compatible with all elemental cultivators.
"What is this?" King Douwin asked incredulously, having never seen a material like it before.
"This is the last material you need to complete the sword, the Divine Iron," Aldrian said with a smirk.
King Douwin and Mardred trembled, and Mardred shouted at Aldrian, "Is that true?! I’ve been searching for traces of this material for ages! From numerous records, I finally narrowed down the search area to the northern part of the Demon territory. Where did you get this?" Mardred’s research and investigation had almost led him to the location of the Divine Iron, but unfortunately, before he could find it, he had been possessed and forced to enter the Dragon Back Mountain by an unknown figure—one Aldrian still did not know.
"True, Sir Mardred. I found this material in the northern part of the Demon territory, stored by one of the noble families there. They gave it to me in gratitude for helping to solve their problem," Aldrian said.
King Douwin regarded Aldrian for a moment before speaking.
"You say you want to help us finish the sword. What benefit do you expect to gain once it’s complete? What do you want?"
Aldrian’s expression turned solemn.
"Your Majesty, this continent will face an unprecedented catastrophe, and we need to unite the power of all its inhabitants. Therefore, I ask you to lend me the strength of this sword. I will require the Divine Sword’s power to confront the great battles ahead. I hope you can grant my request."
