Heir to the Kingdom of 1.4 billion people

Chapter 136 Ekus: Can we reconcile?
Twilight City, City Square.

Countless people, immersed in their delusions, frantically punched those around them like zombies, either knocking them down or being knocked down themselves. In just a short moment, many people fell to the ground with their faces covered in blood.

On the high platform, Rosa watched the tragic scene of her people harming each other below, a trace of pain flashing across her deeply lined face.

The sun was blazing high in the sky, but she felt as if she had fallen into an ice cellar, experiencing a bone-chilling cold, and her heart was tormented as if it were being stabbed.

She now faces two choices: either kill Erkus without hesitation, or accept the deal and exchange her own life for the lives of these bewitched individuals.

If she chose the former, she would have to bear the risk of losing over 100,000 people. If that happened, every household in Twilight City would hold a funeral, and the wailing would drown out the sky. She dared not gamble.

In the latter case, it would be better for an old woman with little time left to die than for so many people to die.

Although Ekus is as greedy and insane as a devil from hell, if he were to break the oath he swore to the Creator, the blessing he had just received would likely crumble. In other words, this deal is credible.

Oh well, she was already exhausted anyway.

Since the day she lost her beloved, although she was still alive, she was already heartbroken, and she just diligently fulfilled her duties as a mother and lord.

Leo, will you wait for me in the underworld and pick a bunch of violets for me again?
rustling.

Rosa slowly closed her eyes, and the scorching purple flame Roland above her head gradually descended.

"Mrs. Rosa, you can't just kill yourself like this!"

Seeing that the raging purple flames were about to engulf the old woman below, Xia Mingyu quickly pulled her aside, thus preventing her from being burned to death.

He absolutely could not grant Erkus's wish and force Rosa, the old woman who brought peace and happiness to the entire South, to commit suicide.

“Your Highness, it is worth it to exchange my old life for the lives of so many people. Leo was willing to sacrifice his life for the Southern Territory. As his wife, I will not fear death and tarnish his honor.”

Rosa opened her eyes and looked at the anxious-looking black-haired youth in front of her, speaking calmly.

"Hey, Sage Xia Mingyu, didn't you claim to treat every living being equally?"

"Are you just going to stand by and watch so many people die because of you? Don't the lives of the civilians of Twilight City matter? Get out of the way!"

Ekus, quite dissatisfied that he did not get to see Rosa commit suicide, shouted loudly.

Looking at the businessman spouting nonsense in front of him, Xia Mingyu gritted his teeth, veins bulging on his forehead.

How disgusting and hateful that there are such repulsive people in the world!

His murderous intent surged like never before; he had never felt such rage, not even when facing Hawke at the Red Rose brothel.

If he gets the chance, I'll definitely tear that damned merchant to pieces and hang him on the city wall!
Sensing his lord's wrath, Berg silently drew his bow, ready to unleash the Death of All Things and hunt down the villainous merchant.

The hunter awaits the perfect moment and his lord's command.

Ding Ding Ding ~
Just when the situation seemed hopeless, a mournful melody suddenly rang out in the square.

The music was like a silent rain, slowly falling from the dark clouds. Each time the strings trembled, it was like a tear falling into a deep pool, creating layers of desolate ripples.

It seemed to touch people's hearts, causing everyone facing off on the high platform to pause in surprise, even the cold-blooded and ruthless Ekus was no exception.

"What a sad piece of music, it's just like Abing's 'Moon Reflected in the Second Spring'!" Xia Mingyu exclaimed in surprise.

“Damn it.” Erkus frowned deeply. The strange melody reminded him of his childhood when his parents’ shop was vandalized and went bankrupt, his father died on the spot, and his mother died of illness because they couldn’t afford a doctor.

Besides the two of them, the others on the platform, such as Bergamo and Raphael, also looked somber upon hearing the music, as if it could evoke sad memories.

For a moment, everyone temporarily set aside their hatred and looked down in unison, following the sound of the zither.

A handsome, silver-haired poet was walking across the square, playing his lyre and singing. The monkey-faced apothecary was struggling to carry the prop magic ear beside him so that his singing could be heard throughout the square.

"When I was little, my mother read me 'Franken Travels'~" the silver-haired poet sang softly.

She said reality is cruel, and we shouldn't have a Scheherazade complex.

She tried many things, but nothing changed her husband's brutality.

She said she loved me, but life is long enough to be overwhelmed by pain.

She said she was sorry and that she was going to pursue her own happiness.

She said she would come back for me, and then she turned and disappeared into the night.

"I waited for a long time, only to see my alcoholic father and the starlight in the sky; she was nowhere to be seen."

The song tells the story of a child abandoned by his mother. The poet's sorrowful voice seems to have a magical power, causing everyone who hears the music to fall into sadness.

Even those who were immersed in their fantasies and bewitched into attacking each other frantically stopped with sorrowful expressions after hearing the music, and some even had tears welling up in their eyes.

"What have I done?!"

As he listened to the song, he recalled the violence he had committed against his wife and children. Tears streamed down his face as he finally realized how wrong his choice had been.

He should have stood tall in that war, even if he died, he should have died on the battlefield. That would have been better than him becoming a spineless coward who only took his anger out on his family!

"Mother." Under the influence of the song, Ekus recalled a memory so distant that it seemed to have long since disappeared.

In the dilapidated wooden house, the boy lay on his sick mother's bed, crying loudly.

"Mother, those people smashed our shop and killed Father. I will definitely avenge you!"

The boy wiped away his tears and said angrily.

The woman, already emaciated and on the verge of death from illness, opened her mouth as if to say something, but thinking of her deceased husband, she ultimately sighed and did not reveal the truth.

“Erkus, my child, I am so sorry to have brought you into this world as a Clay.”

With her last bit of strength, the woman hugged the boy and gently kissed his forehead.

"No, as a Clay person, I am proud. We are the oldest and most intelligent people. We built the world's first great nation. We have Joshua, the King of the Stars."

The boy was about to retort when he suddenly realized that the body embracing him was gradually getting cold.

His mother died, and he had no home.

Upon realizing this fact, the boy burst into tears again, as if he wanted to cry out all the tears he would ever shed in his life.

The memory stopped abruptly.

Snapped!
Ekus slapped himself hard to break free from the influence of the song.

He realized something terrifying—the ability to influence others' emotions through song, a skill undoubtedly possessed only by bards at the third rank of singer.

This ability... Ekus glanced at the crowd below, who had stopped attacking each other and were now immersed in the sorrowful emotions of the song, and it would undoubtedly affect the bewitching disaster he had unleashed.

It's even possible that the bewitchment will be completely dispelled.

No, we can't just sit here and wait to die!
The merchant quickly took a gold sorrel from his inventory and threw it at the silver-haired poet singing in the square.

"Berg, make your move!" At the same time, Xia Mingyu, who had just escaped the influence of the song, saw that the crowd below had stopped attacking and immediately realized that this was the opportunity he had been waiting for. He activated his unity ability and shouted in his mind.

Upon receiving his lord's command, the boy immediately drew his bow and arrow, and the bowstring of the Wind Whisper Bow tightened in an instant.

Hawkeye.

Perceptual enhancement.

Cat's shadow, snake's leap.

And the Death of All Things is activated!

In an instant, the hunter's eyes turned into an incomparably magnificent blue, and the whole world turned into black and white in his eyes. He watched as lines of death intertwined on the body of the merchant Clay, eventually converging into a constantly moving dead point.

"It's now!"

The boy suddenly released the bowstring, and with a snapping sound as the bowstring rebounded, the arrow with the fine iron arrowhead spun and tore through the air, shooting towards Ekus's fatal spot with the speed of wind and thunder.

Cuckoo.

Raphael and Lorne, realizing what was happening, tried to stop the arrows, but Xia Mingyu summoned countless white doves to block their path.

At the same time, the King Sol that Ekus threw turned into a point of light and disappeared in mid-air.

Then a dark green wind blade, more than two meters long, suddenly appeared and rushed toward the silver-haired poet who was singing in the square.

At the crucial moment that would determine the outcome of the battle, the ability known as Monetary Armament actually activated normally!

Swish.

Under Ekus's horrified gaze, the arrow pierced through the air, its sharp tip striking his left chest.

boom!
However, just as the arrow was about to pierce the merchant's chest, it struck an invisible barrier with a tremendous thud.

After a brief standoff with the barrier, the arrow finally crashed to the floor, and the survivor, Ekus, staggered back several steps, panting heavily.

The Liar Merchant's ability is unjust protection—it can withstand two unjust attacks within a day.

If a knight of Duskwood or Rosa, as the lord of the South, attacks or executes Ekus, it is considered a legitimate attack and the protection cannot be invoked. However, an attack by Berg, who does not hold the status of a knight, would be considered illegitimate.

On the other side, in the square.

Faced with the dark green wind blades attacking from above, Damien seemed to give up resisting and simply sang to his heart's content.

This is his promotion ceremony; if he stops halfway through, he will never be able to be promoted to a singer again in his lifetime.

Most importantly, these misled people will also fall back into a situation of attacking each other.

Damien has decided that even if he dies, he cannot stop singing. He will use his life to finish singing this song to repay the kindness of that sage!

Hiss!

With a chilling sound of flesh being torn apart, the man's body was cleaved in two from top to bottom by the wind blade.

Blood and intestines gushed out like a spring, staining the ground red.

"I'm sorry," Harris, now only his upper body remaining, hurriedly uttered these words before collapsing to the ground, sobbing, and falling silent.

Perhaps it was a pang of conscience, or perhaps it was guilt, but this father, who had never been a good father in his life, rushed forward at the last moment when the wind blades were about to strike, using his own flesh and blood as a shield to protect his son.

After witnessing the man's tragic death for him, Damien was overwhelmed with emotion, his eyes brimming with tears, yet he still did not stop singing.

Actually, I never resented her.

"I know she loves me. I remember her kissing my forehead when I had a high fever, I remember every hug she gave me, and I remember her patiently teaching me to sing."

"Go to happiness, Mom, with my blessings!"

"Don't regret it, don't feel guilty, because we love you too!"

At the end of the song, Damien changed from the previous sadness to a cheerful tune, and the strings of his lyre tinkled like honeyed sunshine.

After the song ended, pure, silvery-white magic, as clean as snow, gushed out from Damien's body, and the text above his head changed—from emerald green bard to deep purple singer.

Meanwhile, those who had been misled suddenly awoke as if from a dream, staring blankly at their blood-stained fists and their fallen companions.

They finally awoke as the singer poured out his heart and soul into the music!

"Quick, get me out of here!"

Once Ekus on the high platform saw the bewitched crowd below regain their senses, he realized something was wrong and shouted in panic at the vampires.

Swish, swish, swish!
Raphael and his sister, along with Lorne and the others, instantly enveloped in blood-red magic power. They transformed into three streaks of red light at a terrifying speed that was beyond the reach of ordinary people, bypassing Ekus as if he were nothing and rushing out of the square.

In the blink of an eye, they vanished into the shadows and were never seen again.

"At least take me with you when you run away." Erkus's lips twitched.

Although he knew that these vampires didn't have much affection for him and were only obeying him because of Lord Simon's orders, it was still too much to just bypass him and run away, or rather, to use him as a target to draw their fire.

I did treat you to Twilight Tea, after all!
"Can we reconcile?"

"I am willing to offer up all the coins and treasures in the storeroom and swear allegiance to the Martha family from this day forward." Looking at the unfriendly faces of the crowd, Erkus forced a fawning smile.

“A person as sinful as you, even your loyalty is a disgrace to the Martha family,” Rosa said coldly.

"Berg, cut off his hands and feet first." Xia Mingyu didn't bother with any more words and gave the order directly.

"Sever his hands and feet, but leave him alive. I have other plans." He gritted his teeth and forced out these words, his voice filled with murderous intent.

We absolutely cannot let this guy die so easily; at the very least, we have to give him a 7000 minus 1000 discount package!
"Monetary weaponization!"

Faced with Berg charging at him with a sword, Ekus, who was not stingy with money, hurriedly threw down a large handful of coins.

Wind blades, falling rocks, ice spikes, earth shields—all sorts of moves temporarily halted the group's advance.

Taking this opportunity, Ekus took out the bottle of vampire blood that Simon had given him before he left, uncorked it, and drank it all in one gulp.

The next moment, his skin turned pale, and dark blue veins bulged out on his body like tree roots, while his fingernails grew wildly into sharp hooks.

The merchant's originally thin and tall body rapidly expanded, and soon he became a pale giant with bulging muscles, more than two meters tall.

His back arched, accompanied by a sickening screech of bone growth, and a pair of enormous black bat wings tore through his robes and grew out.

"You have ruined everything I had!"

As the blessing above his head gradually disappeared, Ekus, now a lower-ranking vampire, spoke with venomous resentment.

(End of this chapter)