Secret World: I Became a God Through Lies

Chapter 364 Daughter of the Lion: Roaring for the People

"Kings are not appointed by the stars. They are the voices that are determined to answer all the cries, and will not back down before dawn."

—Quoted from "The King's Admonitions: The Queen's Commentary"

The Royal Palace, West Tower, Hall with Long Windows.

At this moment, the night sky over Areston has been torn apart by an invisible hand into two completely different theaters.

Half the city burned under the blood moon, while the other half was swallowed by a mysterious mirror tide.

The capital's territory is like a lake sunk into a nightmare, one side scorched by flames, the other reflecting its image, the two eroding each other and distorting the boundary between reality and fantasy.

Liseria stood before the tower's long window, gazing at the burning city walls in the distance and the shifting reflections in the mirrors.
The city's flames are reflected in his eyes, like a child trapped at the edge of the world, gazing helplessly at his beloved kingdom as it gradually descends into chaos and darkness.

She wasn't wearing the battle robes that symbolized her status, nor was she adorned with noble regalia; she was simply dressed in the most ordinary royal gown.

The deep blue fabric was adorned with fine, star-like cursed threads, and a faint light flowed slowly, like a destiny chart hinting at her fate, yet she was powerless to stop the disaster before her.

Her fingertips rested lightly on the cold window frame, the slight trembling revealing her inner struggle and pain.

Through the long window, she could clearly see the flames leaping up on Broken Tower Street, and the clash of spells between the church and the military.
I saw thousands of civilians fleeing in panic, driven like ants by this terrible conflict.

However, standing in the royal palace at the highest point of the city, she was powerless and unable to do anything to save the city.

At that moment, she heard a voice whispering in the darkness from the depths of her heart:
"You can't stop this."

"You were never their king."

"You can't even stand the smell of blood."

Deep within her heart, the fear and self-doubt that had been buried since childhood resurfaced, piercing every nerve in her body.

The throne was too far away for her to reach; but the flames in the city were too close for her to escape.

From a young age, she was physically weak and never got involved in the struggles for royal power and political maneuvering.

While her father and brothers discussed war, alliances, royal power, and faith in the council, she always sat quietly in a corner, only able to bow her head and take notes, not daring to say a word.

She was never a candidate, nor was she truly regarded by her father as a hope for succession.

Because she was too kind, too gentle, and had too much pity for the people of the empire, she lacked the calmness and decisiveness necessary for a ruler.

Liseria slowly closed her eyes, as if trying to completely shut out the spells, screams, and cries coming from the city.

However, those voices seeped into her heart like a shadow.

The sound of a heartbeat gradually intensified in her ears, even mingling with another distant whisper, creating an eerie resonance.

Just then, the soft footsteps of the maid Marlene sounded, and she slowly approached, carrying a warm teacup and a soft blanket.

"Your Highness, the night is getting cool. Flames in the city could easily disrupt the royal destiny chart. It must not be opened lightly."

"The royal palace needs your peace. As long as you are safe, this star map will not collapse."

"As the youngest daughter of the emperor, you should not go to the bloody and chaotic front lines."

Liseria did not turn around; her gaze remained fixed on the distant city, which looked as if it had been torn open by a wound.

She gripped the window frame tightly, her knuckles turning pale. She wanted to nod, but couldn't help recalling the scenes from Broken Tower Street—

Countless civilians struggled amidst the raging fire and curses, children's hands were pulled apart.
He looked back helplessly at the towering palace, his eyes filled with deep expectation and doubt.

She finally realized that it wasn't that she shouldn't have looked, but that she was afraid to look.

What truly terrified her was not the complexity of royal power, but her own nauseating weakness and powerlessness at that moment.

She remained silent, her eyes reflecting the firelight and the mirror's image. Behind her...

The maid's whispered words of comfort faded into the distance, leaving her alone to face the truth she had always refused to confront:

—She can't do anything.

Suddenly, the chart of destiny trembled slightly.

Liseria's brows furrowed suddenly, and her body swayed slightly, as if she had been abruptly pulled back to reality from a distant and gloomy dream.

She sensed that deep within the depths of her destiny, some ancient "card structure" that had been dormant for a long time was slowly awakening.

She lowered her head, her gaze falling on the star mark engraved on her left arm—ever since her father, King Henrian, inherited the Azure Lion Card.
The mark that had never truly lit up was now slowly emitting a bronze luster.

Through bloodline and destiny chart, a deep and distant roar resounded in the depths of her heart—

That was not a sound, but an ancient call.

Deep within the forbidden palace, the stone gate slowly closed behind her, isolating her from the clamor, blood and fire, and the world of mirror tides.

All sounds around seemed to be swallowed up in an instant. There was no wind, no breath, only the Destiny Chart trembling weakly yet firmly in the air like a whisper.

Liseria stepped into the "Destiny Mark Tomb" hidden deep within the royal palace.

The air was thick with the aura of incantations, and what was inscribed on the walls was not written language.

Rather, it is the oath sworn by successive kings of Treion during times of stellar disaster and war—a manifestation of will, an inscription of destiny.

She stepped into the center of the hall, where a card was quietly floating.

Its card surface resembles flowing, burning gold, while its core is a frozen, eternal roar.
It was as if the heart of that blue lion that once conquered the twelve duchies, leveled Mirror Lake, and fought against the Star Calamity alongside Henrian had been forged into this thin piece of metal.

Her eyes reflected the image on the card, but it wasn't her own face; it was the deep, majestic eyes of a blue lion.

It gazed at her, not with a threat, but with a quiet, awe-inspiring waiting.

Waiting for her to speak the words the destiny chart had given her.

She took a deep breath, extended her left hand, and the life lines on her palm slowly appeared.

The incantation threads, like a woven tapestry, rapidly interweave and connect among the array of destiny diagrams surrounding the cards, activating the symbols, lighting up the destiny diagrams, and quickly merging together.

In an instant, the entire forbidden hall was completely filled with golden-red light.

The cards emitted a vibration that was not of this mortal realm, like the war drums of an ancient king suddenly resounding at this moment.

The whisper in her ear was not Henrian's voice, but the Azure Lion War Soul itself.

Its deep, resonant sound is like the cracking of rocks, and its powerful, majestic force is like the collapse of mountains.
"The so-called king is not just about destiny."

"They are also burdened by fate."

"If you can't get them to entrust their lives to you, then you're nothing more than a nobleman holding cards."

Liseria bit her lower lip lightly, and her outstretched palm pressed completely against the core of the card.

The incantation and the destiny chart instantly became completely connected.

The next second, the life runes blazed brightly, and a gigantic, majestic lion leaped out of the card.
He was clad in star-patterned iron armor and carried the imperial battle flag, which was not yet fully unfurled.

This is not a simple summoned beast; it is the "incarnation of a king" embodied in the will of Trelian's destiny.

A deafening roar, piercing the heavens from the dome of the forbidden palace, shattered the runic seal.
The entire palace's stone walls and windows were shaken by the lingering echo of that roar—

Countless people in the palace heard this roar, which belonged not to ordinary beasts, but to the incarnation of the king.

Marlene rushed to the palace gate, but was so shocked by what she saw that she almost knelt down.

Liseria stood upright on the back of the lion, her golden hair billowing in the wind, and her eyes blazing with an unprecedented sharpness.

Instead of wearing formal attire, she donned an old battle robe left behind by her father, King Henrian, from his past campaigns, inscribed with four words that resembled an oath:

"Glory will never die."

She gently touched the reins of the lion, and the spell passage to the forbidden palace opened automatically for her.

A sudden gust of wind swept in from the outside, as if announcing that she was about to step into a war of destiny.

She never set foot on a battlefield.

She had no combat experience whatsoever, nor had she ever mobilized any army in the name of a princess.

But at this moment, she possessed a heart she had never felt before.

And from tonight onward, this heart will no longer beat for herself.

She lowered her head, gazing calmly and resolutely at Marlene kneeling on the ground, her voice low and soft yet firm, seemingly capable of piercing through the entire stone wall of the palace:

"tell them."

“I never came here to inherit the throne.”

"I've come here—to protect it and bring it back."

The palace gates were flung open with a loud crash.

The star chart above the royal palace seemed to be awakened, suddenly lighting up, and a golden beam of destiny light shot down from the dome.

It pierced through the shroud of war and the Mirror Tide, projecting its light upon her and the Azure Lion.

At that moment, countless refugees in the streets and alleys suddenly stopped and looked up to see the golden figure that appeared in the sky like a miracle.

Someone murmured in a trembling, devout voice—

"The Azure Lion... is back."

Broken Tower Street.

In the shadows of the star map at the lowest level of the royal capital, black mist slowly spread like a ghost.

The cursed tower was shattered, the magic array was broken, and scattered embers of fate diagrams floated everywhere in the streets and alleys, while the raging fire still burned, illuminating the terrified faces of every fugitive.

The warriors of Mirror Tide Haran wield blades adorned with life runes, their blades wreathed in the "Reflection Curse," a curse that corrodes the soul.

They are not merely killing, but completely erasing people's "right to exist".

Those whose destiny is severed by it have their history erased, their memories stolen, and their language and identity stripped away, ultimately becoming a blurry reflection in the "Mirror of Sarzeras".

At this moment, the Reflection Warriors are driving away the desperate people in the streets, forcing them in batches to the West Three Curses Shrine, intending to build a new sacrificial node.

Under the firelight, Alanhewin knelt on one knee, his cloak already torn, his face pale to the point of being transparent.

The seven or eight children behind him huddled together in fear and helplessness, with only the last line of defense he had built with his life-bound markings remaining in the alley behind them.

The enemy was closing in step by step, only ten steps away.

A Haran warrior chuckled and whispered, the incantation bursting in the air like eerie bubbles:
"You can't protect them."

"You are nothing but an abandoned wailing wall."

Blood trickled from the corner of Alanhewyn's mouth, but he suddenly chuckled softly, his voice hoarse yet carrying a resolute provocation:
"is it?"

"Have you ever seen the Wailing Wall, which bites its enemies to death?"

He clenched his fists, his life lines almost burning to ashes, preparing for a desperate fight.

—At that very moment, the entire street's destiny chart suddenly trembled, and the curse lines seemed to be trampled by a giant beast, abruptly losing their balance!
The Mirror Tide warriors turned back in surprise, only to see a dazzling golden light suddenly tear through the darkness within the thick cursed mist, plummeting like a falling war star. The next instant, a deafening roar pierced the heavens and earth, and a monstrous lion clad in star-patterned armor burst through the mist.

Majestic life-giving flames burned on its claws and mane, and the life diagrams beneath its feet unfolded on their own, forming the shape of an imperial territory.

On the lion's back, a young girl in a star-patterned military robe, her golden hair billowing like drifting flames, held in her hand a long spear with life patterns, a symbol of the former imperial power.

Her gaze was intense and resolute, and though her voice was not loud, it clearly suppressed all the chaos and incantations on the battlefield:

"No one is allowed to slaughter the people in my capital!"

Before the words were even finished, the battle of curses suddenly broke out.

The Mirror Tide Warriors swiftly unleashed "Reflection Curse," attempting to disrupt the battlefield with visual illusions.

But the Azure Lion let out a furious roar and activated the [Mysterious Ability - Roar of Will], causing the spell to immediately collapse and the enemy's formation to crumble instantly.

Liseria swiftly drew her spear, activated the [Action: Constitution Resonance], and leaped into the fray with a reaction speed unmatched by humans.

Wherever the spear pointed, it pierced through the chest of a high-level Mirror Tide sorcerer in an instant. Then, it flipped over and landed, using the power of the Azure Lion to sever the ever-extending chain of reflection spells.

Alanhewin, standing behind him, watched this scene, his pupils trembling slightly, and he was speechless for a moment.

As the enemy rapidly concentrated their breakout attempt, Liseria once again leaped onto the Azure Lion and activated the Mystic Code.

In an instant, the cloak transformed into wing-like battle armor, the lion's mane coalesced like flowing steel, and the enormous light shield formed by the king's map swiftly deployed to defend the people.

She stood atop the lion's back and proclaimed loudly:

"Those who retreat behind me will all be protected by the Azure Lion!"

The command materialized into a tangible barrier, and the people cried out in unison, their indescribable hope ignited.

The Curse of Reflection could no longer penetrate the barrier; the land beneath the lion's feet was the kingdom's territory, a forbidden zone for life.

After ten minutes of fierce fighting, the Reflection Warrior finally couldn't hold on any longer and began to retreat in panic.

Under the firelight, an old craftsman with a full head of white hair knelt on the ground, his hands trembling as he held an unfinished wooden board of star map, tears blurring his vision.

He looked up at the girl before him, his voice trembling like a withered leaf in the wind:

"You...you are our queen?"

Liseria was taken aback, her gaze slowly sweeping over the weathered faces of the people.

They were neither nobles, nor royalty, nor soldiers.

They were the people of the empire, the people she was meant to protect her for the rest of her life.

She leaped lightly from the lion's back, came to the old man, and gently reached out her hand to help him up.

Her eyes shone with an unprecedented gentleness and determination, her voice soft yet like a mountain breeze piercing through the city's high walls, reaching the hearts of every citizen:

"I am not your queen."

"I am your city wall."

Wangdu, the military camp in the southwest.

Once upon a time, this was the source of the military power that Henrian the Lion relied on most, responsible for maintaining the flow of wartime destiny maps, military runes, and the linkage of frontline star maps.

However, at this moment, this vital military force has been torn apart by the cursed light and is facing an irresistible "holy judgment".

The Starlight Banner Brigade, a divinely granted knightly order under the Church of Our Lady, used incantations like hammer blows to relentlessly pound the perimeter of the military camp in the name of "devoted faith in divine punishment."

The five layers of curse barriers have collapsed, and the enemy is attempting to seize the central life-pattern tower—the Command Tower.

Meanwhile, Edel was engaged in a fierce battle with the Doomsday Rose at sea, his troops were in a state of panic, and his defenses were weak.

"The command tower is about to fall!"

"Our destiny chart has been severed!"

"The enemy says it's the prince's order!"

In the utter chaos, a young lieutenant clenched his fists, his eyes bloodshot as he roared:

"Shut up! That's not a prince! That's—"

Before he could finish speaking, the sky in front of him suddenly cracked open, as if reality had been violently torn apart by a pair of giant hands!

The chart of destiny surged, and golden-red radiance cleaved through the iron curtain of incantations. Accompanied by a lion king's roar that resounded through the heavens, the will of the king descended upon the world, like a war god stepping into the mortal realm.

The Azure Lion Armor shattered the seal of the South Gate with a resounding clang, and the cursed light beneath its iron hooves dissipated, as if opening a blood-red path for the King's map.

Liseria arrived riding a blue lion, draped in the old-fashioned imperial army commander's cloak of Lion King Henrian, her destiny map automatically coalescing on her back.

The golden feather plate that resonates with the royal map is like a lion itself becoming her life armor.

She didn't need to speak; the blazing aura of the King's Curse emanating from her body already announced her arrival.

The Knights of Divine Grace were thrown into chaos, their sacred fire incantations fluctuating wildly. A church commander stared wide-eyed, his voice trembling with terror:
"She is riding... the Azure Lion Mystery!"

"That's... the successor of the Azure Lion?!"

Liseria drew her spear, stood firmly on the lion's back, and loudly sang her declaration:

"In the name of the Azure Lion, by the oath of my people—"

"The spirit of the army shall be reforged!"

In an instant, the entire military camp resonated with the destiny map, sweeping across the battlefield like a tidal wave, and the soul of every soldier instantly became one with the imperial destiny map.

The previously disrupted military formations, magical arrays, and runes were all restarted, and the life runes flowed back, rebuilding the original impregnable defensive line.

The battle flags fluttered without wind, and the war drums roared spontaneously without being struck, echoing the war of the old king's era. The soldiers roared in unison, their voices shaking the heavens and the earth.

The mysterious array restarts, the flames return, and the cursed threads are rearranged.

The warriors of Mirror Lake could no longer withstand the pressure of the King's Curse and were utterly defeated.

Liseria did not boast of her battle achievements, but simply urged her lion forward and said coldly:

"If you insist on destroying my empire in the name of God..."

"Then I'll ask the Azure Lion—where is the message map?"

In the center of the military dependents' camp after the battle, a young officer gazed at her with eyes full of admiration and fervor, and finally couldn't help but shout out:
"She may not be a candidate for the throne—"

"But she is the heart and soul of our army!"

Corridor of a noble fiefdom.

This is the quietest and most secluded area in the entire capital. Surrounded by high walls, the Spell Garden, the Star-Patterned Pool, the Bloodline Banquet Hall, and the Secret Spell Tower are connected in layers.

For thousands of years, the kingdom's nobles have sat high above, dominating the rise and fall of the empire, resembling an "ivory tower" suspended above the mortal world.

But tonight, this tower is crumbling.

The shadow warriors of Haran infiltrated, the banner of the Mirror Tide flew high, and Sazeroth covered the area with a brief "World Disruption" domain, causing the nobles' destiny to gradually blur and collapse in the chaos.

Hundreds of noble private soldiers fled in terror, unable to distinguish friend from foe, allowing Harlan warriors to enter the Hall of Stars.

The Reflection Warriors trampled the city stones that symbolized noble glory, mocking them wantonly:

"You are nothing but maggots in cursed robes!"

"The royal plan has collapsed! The Azure Lion is dead! Your city-state has long been forgotten by the gods!"

Baron Wayne Tal, son of the Speaker of Parliament, and Marquis Simorin, the Master of Ceremonies of the Southern Territory, gathered behind the Wall of Refuge, watching in horror as the flames approached.

Lord Tal's voice trembled as he asked incredulously:
"Liseria... she wouldn't really come here, would she?"

"She just wants to win people's hearts; she would never risk her life for people like us!"

However, their doubts were instantly and mercilessly torn apart by the tremors of the destiny chart.

Just as the South Tower collapsed, a blazing golden stream of magic pierced through the thick fog, and the Lion King's roar once again echoed across the land.

The Azure Lion trampled the paving stones laid by the Mirror Tide, its golden giant claws shattering all the incantations like a pendulum, and the King's Aura completely destroyed the structural stability of the Reflection Spell.

Liseria stood firmly on the back of the lion, wearing the old battle robes of the Lion King Henrian. Without drawing her spear, she shattered the enemy's fighting spirit with the sheer pressure of her royal power.

The Harlan warrior turned and stared at her, his eyes filled with fear.

How could they forget the disastrous defeat at Mirror Lake back then?
King Henrian the Lion single-handedly shattered the Triple Spell Tower of Sazarras, forcing the Mirror Tide to recede for the first time, a shame that the Haran tribe could never erase for generations.

Now, that figure that terrified them has returned.

Liseria didn't make a move, but simply whispered coldly:
"If you dare to harm my people even in the slightest—"

"The Lion King will personally come to Mirror Tide and slaughter your clan."

The Cursed Warrior completely collapsed, and the Mysterious Cards shattered one after another.

Behind the high walls, the once arrogant, hesitant, and indifferent nobles knelt down one after another.

They were not subservient to bloodlines, but to the figure that protected the entire capital.

The lion roared, but Liseria didn't linger and rode away on its back.

-

Night had fallen, but the fighting had not yet ceased.

At the top of the West Tower, Lyseria stood on the back of the Azure Lion, overlooking the entire burning city.

She held her longsword, still sheathed, her voice soft yet as firm as a rock:
"As long as I live."

"This destiny chart will never fall."

The wind lifted the battle robes, and the chanting of the golden-red destiny chart gradually resounded throughout the entire capital.

The crowd whispered, the soldiers shouted, and the nobles submitted.

"The Cangshi Princess."

The sounds gradually converged until the entire city, as if whispering, sang her name in unison.

Not a king.

Not a candidate.

Rather, they are the guardians who never retreat atop the city walls.

"A true king does not need a crown or a throne."

All she needed to do was stand before the masses and say, "You step back, I will take over."

—Quoted from "Miscellaneous Notes on Destiny Charts: Annotations on the Descendants of the Azure Lion"

(End of this chapter)