66: Chapter 66 Solving the Goddess's Magic Array

"You have finally arrived at the palace main hall."

"A year has passed since you left this place."

"This time, you were not invited back by the King; you fought your way here leading the very 'commoners' he spoke of."

"Teacher, is this the throne?"

Lida's gaze traveled across the long red carpet and landed on the throne at the end. The throne was absurdly high; he had to tilt his head back to see the crown relief at the top of the backrest.

You looked at Lida. He was originally a poor farmer from a certain village, but because you once gave him a bowl of rice porridge, he had followed you ever since.

At first, they called you "my lord" or "noble sir," then "General," but you disliked these titles. You told them they should call you "Teacher."

There were many students following you, but only two were closest to you, and Lida was one of them.

Lida possessed unimaginable military talent, while the other student had inherited the ideology you spread: the "Long Live the People" ideology.

At this moment, Lida's eyes were burning as he looked at the throne, and you could feel his breathing quicken slightly.

You shook your head.

In truth, not many people in the army could truly understand the meaning behind the four words "Long Live the People."

This force mostly knew what they were fighting for, and that was enough. Many things still required time—a long, long time.

"Teacher, are you going to become the King?" Lida asked as he looked at you.

You shook your head, walked slowly to the throne, and rested your hand on it lightly before speaking.

"There will be no more kings in this country," you said.

Lida was somewhat confused. His eyes reflected the throne, where two giant rubies looked like two flames, the flickers dancing in his pupils.

"Why? Why won't there be a king?" Lida asked.

Fentier was the other student who was close to you.

"Because the people will lead this country. Starting from today, the protagonists of the Falun Kingdom will be all the people!" He looked at the throne, then glanced at Lida as he spoke.

He turned to look at you: "Teacher, we finally did it. In just one year, we have liberated the Falun Kingdom!"

Fentier's eyes were filled with you. You stood beside the throne, and the light shining down from the dome of the hall onto your body made you appear exceptionally bright, like a ball of fire.

"Teacher, you were right. The people are great!"

Fentier was of noble birth. His Family had operated in the south of the Falun Kingdom for three generations; their territory was not large, but not small either.

Since he was young, the steward had taught him how to ride a horse, how to hold a sword, and how to put on airs in front of a hundred tenant farmers and say, "I, the Lord." But he didn't like these things. He liked to squat on the ridges of the fields to watch the tenant farmers sow seeds, liked to lie on the window of the blacksmith shop to watch sparks fly, and liked to listen to the women weaving hum those rough yet pleasant folk songs.

He always felt that he had to do something for the commoners of the Falun Kingdom.

Until he heard your phrase, "Long Live the People."

He resolutely abandoned everything about the nobility and began to follow you.

You looked at the fire in the eyes of these two and said nothing.

To be honest, you didn't care what would happen to this country; you always felt a sense of detachment from this world.

"Teacher!" A soldier walked over and bowed respectfully to you: "We have captured the King!"

"Should we bring him up?"

You looked at him. This soldier was a fellow villager of Lida's and had also followed you because of a bowl of rice porridge. Now, he wore captured knight's armor, carried an iron sword at his waist, and his eyes were full of fanaticism. When he looked at you, it was as if he were looking at a god.

"Bring him up. What about the Kingdom's Grand Mage? Doesn't he often stay with the King?"

"That's right, Teacher. He is currently tied up with the King too!" The soldier grinned, revealing a missing front tooth, and then turned toward the entrance of the hall and shouted, "Bring those two up here!"

Before long, seven soldiers carried the two of them into the hall.

"Commoners, commoners! You bunch of commoners!"

"How dare you treat the King like this? The Goddess above will not forgive you."

"You commoners, hurry up and let us go!"

No one paid them any mind. The soldiers were expressionless, as if they were carrying two beasts.

"Still daring to shout at me!" Lida stepped forward and slapped the King: "Still calling us commoners? Now you are the commoner. Are kings and nobles born with any special seed?"

The King was slapped hard and dared not speak.

You looked at the King.

A year ago, the King was looking at you from your current position. At that time, he was sticking out his round, bulging belly, his face piled with a hypocritical smile, trying to tempt you with fiefdoms, titles, and beautiful women, certain that you couldn't stir up any trouble.

Now, you were standing beside the throne, looking at him.

You walked slowly to the King's side, your footsteps making a clacking sound on the red carpet.

The King looked up at you with a pale face, his voice trembling: "He... Hero, you... you cannot kill me. You are the Goddess's Knight, and I am the King chosen by the Goddess. You cannot kill me."

You ignored the King and looked at Lorne instead.

"Did you see the book I mentioned?" you asked the soldiers standing next to Lorne.

You touched the Goddess Magic Circle on your neck. You remembered that Lorne used a magic gemstone to control this circle, and you had seen Lorne take that magic stone out of that book.

The soldiers nearby looked at you and shook their heads in shame: "Sorry, Teacher. We have searched the entire Magic Court, but we didn't see the book you mentioned."

Before entering the palace, you had reminded the soldiers to keep an eye out for a huge magic book. Now, they felt deeply ashamed for not completing the task you gave them.

"It's fine," you said, patting the soldier on the shoulder.

The book was the size of a person and also served as Lorne's Magical Artifact. Generally speaking, Lorne let the book float beside him. Moreover, you had taken the royal city quickly, so logically, Lorne shouldn't have had any way to hide it.

You glanced at Lorne. This old man hadn't said a word until now.

"Open his mouth!" you said to the soldiers nearby.

Two soldiers immediately responded and stepped forward. One held his trembling shoulders firmly, while the other reached out to grab his tensed jaw and pried it open without mercy.

Lorne was making some noises in his throat, but you paid no attention.

You saw the magic book, shrunk countless times, hidden in Lorne's mouth.

You took the book out. As soon as it was taken out, it returned to the size of a person and landed heavily on the ground.

"Can't open it?" You tried to turn the pages, but no matter how much strength you used, you couldn't open it.

Lorne looked at you and sneered: "This book is a sacred object of our Family's Legacy, long bound to my Bloodline. Except for members of my Family, no one can use it."

"I know what you want to do. Hero, even if you beg me, I won't help you take out what you want."

You ignored Lorne and just called for Fentier: "Light a fire and burn this book!"

Lorne's expression changed drastically upon hearing this.

However, Fentier had already raised his staff: "Great Goddess, please send down flames!"

A cluster of blazing flames appeared out of thin air and landed precisely on the thick magic book. The fire immediately burned larger and larger.

"No! My book!" Lorne's eyes were splitting with rage, and he struggled even more frantically. The soldiers nearby hurriedly held him down.

The dancing flames were reflected in your eyes.

Suddenly, you felt a sensation on your neck.

You spread your palm, and a trace of spiritual power condensed in your hand without dissipating.

The Goddess Magic Circle had finally disappeared!