kscans

Chapter 117 - Suppressing the Royal Capital Before Dawn

Cedric and Adrian knew that Darius had succeeded in taking control of the Magic Furnace when the lights of the royal capital went out.

The area outside the Royal Castle was shrouded in darkness. Some might notice the city’s lights had gone out, but the majority of those asleep would be unaware.

Still, they needed to conclude matters quickly before neighboring and major countries took notice. A prolonged magic outage alone could arouse suspicion of an abnormality.

Communication methods were cut off, and magic weapons were unusable. As a result, the security measures enveloping the Royal Castle, like magic defenses and detection, were also down.

They had provided the guards at the castle entrance with drinks laced with sleeping potions beforehand. The men, fighting off drowsiness, were no longer a threat.

Those who were asleep were simply rolled aside quietly without being restrained or making a sound. Only those who tried to resist were bound. Once it was all over, they could simply cast a memory-wiping spell on them.

That security could be breached so easily was a problem, but there was almost no noise, and the remaining guards active in other areas had no opportunity to learn what was happening. Cedric, despite staging a coup d'état himself, was surprised at how far his brother Karlwein’s influence had fallen.

Adrian, Cedric, and a few members of the Imperial Guard, wearing the Night Vision Lenses provided by Darius, advanced through the Royal Castle’s interior. They moved through the dark corridors, suppressing their breath and making as little noise as possible.

The corridor leading to the King's Chambers was pitch black due to the magic outage, but few ever approached the King. The castle's inhabitants avoided him as a dangerous person. Only the King and Queen were unaware of this perception.

"The King’s Chambers are here."

Because the corridor lights were out, the guards protecting the King's Chambers had secured a light source with a lightning-attributed battery. A few members of the Imperial Guard threw Sleep Orbs at the guards and covered their mouths. They fell quietly asleep, and the usual silence returned.

When Adrian opened the door to the King’s bedchamber, the smoke of cigars and incense hung in the air. The magic tools they had been told about, which protected against mental interference magic, activated, and a shock like a rubber band snapping against their skin ran through their bodies as the magic defense engaged.

Cedric spoke to the King, who was drooling sloppily.

"Brother, I have now seized control of this Royal Castle and all the magic in the royal capital. You understand what this means, don't you?"

The King replied with a faint smile.

"What do you want me to do? What can you do?"

"I will not take your life. You will simply come with me."

The Queen tried to scream, but she was frozen by Cedric’s intimidating presence. The Imperial Guard fitted the Queen with magic-suppressing chains and gagged her with a cloth.

"What do you think you’re doing? Where do you intend to take me?"

The King asked in a slurred voice.

"Brother, you have used your position to unjustly torment many people and drive them to their deaths. The former queen, the servants, my son, our precious soldiers, and even the captain of the Tree Sea Defense Force… I have reached my limit. I will not permit this any longer. You will step down from your position and live out the rest of your days in peace."

Adrian approached quietly and stuck a Sleep Orb to the King. As the King’s strength gave out, they restrained him along with the Queen, applied magic suppression, and shoved them into a carriage for criminals. The lock was fastened from the outside, and no one would suspect the King and Queen were inside. The carriage set off towards Duke Cedric’s territory.

The entire event took only about thirty minutes.

Outside the Royal Castle, a deep darkness still enveloped everything.

The next morning, it would be announced that the King had abdicated due to poor health. The procedures for appointing Cedric as the new king were scheduled to proceed.

But rebuilding the Royal Trust from this depleted state would not be easy. Cedric sighed.