Chapter 40: Regicide |
His voice sank low,
carrying a trace of loss and obsession.
“Unfortunately, there was nothing.”
“Nothing at all!”
“So, Shan, tell me—aside from the first Solar King, Apollo…”
“Who else… has ever received the gaze of the god?”
Shan fell silent; he could not answer.
In history and legend, there had only ever been Apollo.
“Yes… none.”
“Even… he received the guidance of the god!”
“And so humanity mastered farming and animal husbandry, forever escaping hunger!”
“How great was the god’s favor toward Apollo!”
“The god even bestowed writing!”
“From then on, humanity gave birth to civilization!”
“Dynasties were established because of it! History began to be passed down! Divine Grace spread throughout the world! The people sang praises of his name!”
“This—this is true Divine Grace!”
“But I want it too!”
“I also want to receive the gaze of the god!”
“To receive the god’s guidance!”
You questioned and answered himself.
The suppressed madness in his eyes surged forth once again.
“So, I will turn the heavens and earth upside down!”
“I will set this continent ablaze with towering flames and make the very foundation of order collapse completely!”
“Only in this way, perhaps…”
“…can that god, seated high above the sea of stars and gazing down in indifference, be forced to cast its eyes upon us once more!”
You muttered like a madman.
“Even if…”
“That gaze is disgust, or wrath!”
“It is still better than this eternal silence and neglect!”
Shan stared at the seemingly deranged You in shock, as if seeing him for the first time.
“You’ve gone mad!”
The madness on You’s face gradually faded.
Returning to his usual devout expression.
There was even a faint, compassionate smile at the corner of his lips.
“No, everything I have done…”
“Is for the sake of the god!”
“To prove… that this world is still worthy of receiving even a single glance from Him.”
……
Several months later.
“If there are no other important matters,”
“Let us end here for today.”
Yula waved his hand, looking somewhat fatigued.
Recently, things within the dynasty had seemed much calmer.
Especially Duke Starshimmer and Duke Spiritwind.
They were no longer arguing endlessly as they had some time ago, granting him a rare period of peace.
“We obey Your Majesty’s command.”
The nobles and ministers below bowed,
then exited the great hall one by one.
Yula looked toward He Yi, who stood beside him in attendance,
his tone softening slightly.
“He Yi, the order in the Royal City has been well maintained during this period, and Starshimmer and Spiritwind have also behaved themselves considerably.”
“This is largely your merit. I shall reward you with a slot for a Recipient of Divine Grace, allowing you to select one junior to cultivate the Divine Grace Technique.”
Upon hearing this, He Yi immediately knelt, his voice filled with excitement.
“Thank you, Your Majesty, for the reward!”
Yula nodded slightly, somewhat comforted.
He then turned to handle the administrative reports submitted from various regions, working until nightfall before preparing to leave the study.
However, just as he stood up—
A palace attendant came scrambling in, stumbling and crawling, his face filled with terror, his voice trembling uncontrollably.
“Y-Your… Your Majesty!”
“This is terrible!”
“Duke Starshimmer and Duke Spiritwind—they have rebelled!”
“They’ve led a large force and broken through the palace gates! The guards can’t hold them back—they’re already charging this way!”
Yula was stunned for a moment, then flew into a rage.
“Absurd!”
“This is utter nonsense!”
“Do you know the severity of falsely accusing a duke?!”
He simply did not believe what the attendant said.
Although those two were not of the same lineage as him,
they were all descendants of Apollo. How could they possibly commit such treasonous acts?!
Yet before his reprimand could finish—
From outside the hall came the dense, heavy sound of footsteps, along with the shouts and screams of the guards.
In an instant, the entrance of the hall was blocked by soldiers.
At their head stood two figures—
Duke Starshimmer and Duke Spiritwind!
Meanwhile, the guards quickly formed a tight protective circle around Yula.
“Starshimmer! Spiritwind!”
Yula’s face turned ashen as he pointed at the two of them,
his voice trembling with fury.
“Have you both lost your minds?!”
“You dare lead troops into the royal palace and openly rebel?!”
“Do you have any regard for the law?! For our ancestors?!”
Duke Spiritwind let out a cold laugh.
“Yula!”
“If not for your excessive oppression and constant scheming,”
“why would we have launched this rebellion?!”
Yula was utterly bewildered, both shocked and enraged.
“My oppression? My scheming against you?”
“Spiritwind! Speak clearly! When have I ever done such things?!”
“And even now, you still try to deny it?!”
Duke Spiritwind’s face was full of disdain.
“Yula, let me tell you!”
“I saw through your schemes long ago! And now you still want to deny it?”
“Schemes?”
“What schemes?!”
“Spiritwind, you must explain yourself clearly today!”
Yula demanded sharply, completely unable to understand where these sudden accusations had come from.
Seeing Yula’s continued denial,
Duke Spiritwind spoke with smug satisfaction.
“Fine! Since you refuse to face reality until death, I’ll let you die understanding!”
“Some time ago, Starshimmer and I were in constant conflict, and our subordinates were repeatedly attacked.”
“Do you dare say this wasn’t your doing behind the scenes, trying to sow discord between us and reap the benefits?!”
Yula found it utterly ridiculous.
“When have I ever tried to divide you?”
“What do those conflicts have to do with me?!”
“Have nothing to do with you?”
Duke Spiritwind sneered.
“Yula, all the Recipients of Divine Grace in the entire Solar Dynasty come from the three lineages of Wa, Ya, and Ze.”
“If those troublemakers belonged neither to my Wa lineage nor to Starshimmer’s Ya lineage—”
“then tell me, whose people could they possibly be?”
“Other than your Ze lineage, who else could it be?!”
Yula was not a fool.
He had only been stunned by the sudden rebellion earlier.
But now, with Spiritwind’s explanation—
he instantly understood.
All suspicion pointed directly at his Ze lineage!
Yet he was absolutely certain he had never done such a thing!
“It wasn’t me! I swear it upon the stars!”
Yula urgently tried to defend himself, attempting to salvage the situation.
“There must be some misunderstanding!”
“There must be some villain—”
Before he could finish speaking—
“Whoosh!”
A sharp arrow…
shot out swiftly from within the crowd behind Spiritwind!
Then, before everyone’s horrified eyes—
it pierced straight through Yula’s heart!
Time seemed to freeze in that very moment.
Yula lowered his head in disbelief, staring at the arrow lodged in his chest as blood rapidly stained his royal robes.
His lips moved, but no sound came out. The light in his eyes quickly dimmed.
This scene—how familiar it was!
As if history were repeating itself.
Back then, Wa had also died beneath such a cold arrow!
The entire hall fell into a deathly silence.
Everyone was stunned by this act of regicide!
“It wasn’t me!”
“I didn’t fire that arrow!”
Duke Spiritwind was the first to react.
His face turned deathly pale as he shouted in panic.
He had only intended to force the palace, to make Yula compromise or abdicate.
He had never intended to commit regicide on the spot—
let alone kill him with an arrow…