Starting with One Piece, a Multiverse Simulation

As Julius stepped forward to swear allegiance to Anastasia, all those who had been blocking Wood's way were gone, and Wood's figure was inevitably exposed to everyone's view.

"Wood, how could you be in a place like this!"

Julius's relationship with Anastasia is more like a partnership than the relationships between other priestesses and knights.

Anastasia's interest in the so-called throne was mainly in its ability to help her expand her merchant guild, so she didn't care too much about Julius's loyalty.

However, when Anastasia saw Wood, whom she hadn't seen for a long time, in the hall, she could no longer sit still. She ran down from the platform and hugged Wood without any regard for others.

"Sister Anna, didn't I already tell you? Don't hug me all the time. I'm not a child anymore."

Wood had called Anastasia "Sister Anastasia" since childhood, and he could only look helpless at Anastasia, who was clinging to him tightly and refusing to let go.

Anastasia's protectiveness towards Wood bordered on the pathological, as if she were guarding her most precious treasure.

This is one of the reasons why Wood secretly slipped out of the Hexin Chamber of Commerce.

Wood's address to Anastasia shocked everyone present, especially Julius, who had just sworn allegiance to Anastasia and was now completely dumbfounded.

Because he never expected that Wood would be Anastasia's brother.

However, being the 'best knight,' he quickly regained his usual elegant demeanor after a brief moment of shock, and a slight smile appeared on his face.

Wood is Anastasia's brother, which is a good thing for their Anastasia faction.

After all, Wood's combat prowess is undeniable. Julius could even assert that if anyone in the entire kingdom could rival Reinhard, it would only be Wood, who is also a monster.

With Wood's assistance, Anastasia's chances of winning the royal selection ceremony would be higher, and her wish could be fulfilled more quickly.

After a farce, the royal selection ceremony resumed, and Emilia, the last Dragon Priestess, nervously stepped onto the stage and shared her ideals.

However, due to her half-elf status, Emilia's arrival was met with boos and skepticism.

Just as the girl withstood the pressure with her strong heart and finished expressing her ideals, the scene suddenly became awkward when it came time for the guardian knight to swear allegiance.

The reason is simple: unlike other dragon priestesses who have sworn allegiance to excellent knights, Emilia has no knights to swear allegiance to.

The girl, whose mind was only 14 years old, stood on the stage, enduring the doubts and insults coming from all around her. Her body trembled slightly, and her eyes were filled with tears.

Subaru Natsuki, who considers himself the protagonist, steps forward, only to be criticized for not being a knight at all, and even mistaken for a knight by Julius, who beats him up.

Looking at the trembling girl on the stage, who was holding back her tears, and then at the nobles below who were questioning and even hurling insults, Wood finally sighed silently and slowly walked out of the formation.

"My name is Wood Hessing, and I am willing to become Lady Emilia's knight and assist her in the competition for the royal selection ceremony."

Wood's rather calm voice echoed in the hall, and the previously noisy nobles were all stunned.

Puck, who was next to Emilia, and Subaru, who was pinned to the ground, laughed. Emilia on the stage stared wide-eyed at Wood with an expression of disbelief.

Priscilla opened her folding fan, revealing a meaningful smile.

Anastasia's seemingly youthful face, after showing surprise, turned into a jealous and ruthless glare as she stared at Emilia on the stage.

"What a joke! Even if some knights were to fall into depravity and pledge allegiance to the evil half-elf, allowing half-elves to participate in the royal selection ceremony is simply absurd!"

After a brief silence in the hall, some people soon questioned Emilia's identity and suggested that she be removed from the royal selection ceremony.

Chapter 356 Emilia, seen as an enemy by her brother-obsessed brother

"If I remember correctly, the selection for the royal selection ceremony was determined by that Dragon Calendar Stone."

While I personally find it absurd to think that a kingdom's fate could be decided by a single stone, it seems that you noble ministers have no right to interfere with the Dragon Priestess's choice, do you?

"The idea that half-elves are evil is itself untenable and foolish."

Throughout the history of the continent, countless villains have appeared among humankind, far surpassing even the jealous witch Satella.

You, sir, are a fellow human being with those sinners of history, so wouldn't we also be considered to have the blood of sinners?

Wood's words left the ministers and nobles present speechless. However, as a group skilled in intrigue, there were also some eloquent nobles present.

So soon someone shouted, "If this half-elf is not related to Satella, then why does she look so similar to her?"

"Does looking similar necessarily mean there's a connection? If that was originally Satella's idea."

Is the intention to package a savior as a destroyer, hoping to drive some foolish individuals to their own destruction?

Although Wood didn't use a single swear word in his words, no one present was a fool. The so-called fools were naturally those who were afraid of Emilia.

"Hmph, these are just your one-sided statements and wild guesses. Who can prove they're true?"

Wood was just making things up, so he didn't expect the nobles to believe him. Even if the Witch of Jealousy really thought that way, given the nobles' stubbornness, they probably wouldn't admit it.

"Why do we need to prove anything? According to the rules of the Dragon Kingdom, Emilia has been recognized by the Dragon Stone, so she is one of the candidates. It's that simple."

As for your concerns about its connection to the Witch of Envy, Satella, you're all just a bunch of cowardly fools who've been beaten to a pulp.

The three heroes of the past were able to defeat the Witch of Envy, so if she were to resurrect, wouldn't it be easy to just defeat her again?

Only those who live through the past fear the powerful enemies they once faced. Those who truly look to the future think about surpassing the past!

No wonder the Kingdom of Lugnica is growing weaker and weaker. Ruled by a bunch of incompetent fools like you, it's no wonder it's declining.

Many people present were deeply moved by Wood's eloquent speech.

But without a doubt, those noble ministers who had been called useless by Wood were now all showing expressions of uncontrollable rage.

If it weren't for the fact that the knights of the Royal Guard all possessed a certain level of combat prowess, they would probably have ganged up on Wood and given him a beating right now.

"Is this knight named Wood a newcomer to the Royal Guard? I must say, he speaks quite well, or rather, he's very much to my liking."

If he hadn't already sworn to be Emilia's guardian knight, I might have wanted to try my luck too.

Crusch looked at Wood on the stage with admiration in her eyes. As a noblewoman who had been raised as a knight since childhood, Crusch had to admit that what Wood had just said was what she had thought before.

The kingdom of Lugnica cannot become powerful by relying on the strength of others, not even the dragons with whom it has a close relationship.

Moreover, enemies like the Witch of Envy will certainly not be the only ones in the future.

If we remain stagnant because of fear of the past, how can we make the kingdom stronger?

Crusch has great ambitions. She not only wants to restore Lugnica to its former glory, but also wants to lead the kingdom to surpass its past under her leadership!

It was obvious that despite the clamor of the nobles, Emilia's status as a candidate for the throne was ultimately preserved.

According to Lugnica's ancestral tradition, Emilia has also gained the approval of the Dragonstone and has a guardian knight sworn allegiance, so she has the opportunity to compete for the throne.

Now the question is, there are five Dragon Maidens in this generation, and the Dragon Stone has reacted to all five Dragon Maidens, so who should inherit the throne?

The kingdom's "Sages' Council" leaders discussed the matter for a long time with Long Lishi and finally reached a conclusion.

That means the five candidates will be given a period of time, and whoever makes the greatest contribution to Lugunica during this period will become the new king of Lugunica.

Heaven knows how the old men communicated around the constantly flashing stone, but the Council of Sages was the authority in the kingdom, and even the royal family was subject to them, so no one could oppose the decision at this moment.

The royal selection ceremony has ended, or rather, the formal competition has begun!

“Mr. Wood, thank you so much for your help. I really wouldn’t know what to do without you.”

As Emilia left the palace, she immediately bowed ninety degrees to Wood to express her gratitude.

Emilia was genuinely grateful to Wood at this moment, and she was also deeply moved by what Wood had said in the hall earlier.

As a half-elf, and because she resembles Satella so closely, Emilia has always felt quite inferior. However, after hearing Wood's words, she decided to start to face her half-elf identity.

Wood is right. Satella is Satella, and she is herself. Regardless of any connection between them, she only needs to do what she wants and prove herself.

"This isn't the place to talk. I've already rented a mansion in the capital. Let's go there together."

"I'll also have Ram and Rem prepare a sumptuous meal to celebrate Lady Emilia's successful discovery of a powerful and reliable knight."

The person who suddenly appeared behind Wood and the others and spoke was a man with an unusually pale face, long blue hair, and a clown-like appearance.

The other party was Borderlands Borozwar L. Mezas, whom Wood had only heard of but never seen, and who was also a supporter of Emilia.

Wood knew a bit about Roswaal, knowing that he was the kingdom's court mage and had been granted the titles of "Red," "Green," and "Yellow" in the Kingdom of Lugnica.

It's important to know that being awarded the title of "Color" is only possible when one's mastery of a certain elemental magic reaches its peak.

Like Phoenix before, who was already a famous figure in the kingdom simply because he possessed the title of "Blue" of the water element.

Roswaal possesses three such titles, demonstrating just how formidable his strength is.

Of course, no matter how strong Roswaal was, he had no direct connection with Wood, and Wood had never made any effort to learn about him.

What truly drew Wood's attention to Roswaal was that after he killed "Mother," he discovered through her notes that the person who hired Elsa to attack Emilia was none other than Roswaal himself!

It's strange, isn't it? Roswaal is Emilia's supporter, yet he hired Erza to attack Emilia.

He was a nobleman who supported Emilia's election, yet he also sent people to prevent Emilia from going to the capital. His actions were not only strange, but completely contradictory.

Emilia was still in Roswaal's mansion. Wood could see very clearly that with Roswaal's strength, killing Emilia should not have been difficult, but instead of doing it himself, he did a series of mysterious things.

Whether Roswaal changed his mind midway or had other plans, Wood didn't know.

However, he was very clear about one thing: Roswaal was not a simple character. He was probably just as cunning as the "God of Men" in the "Mushoku Tensei" world. If possible, Wood did not want to expose himself to the other party's sight.

"Regarding the matter of the Guardian Knight, I must apologize. I only spoke up for him because we were acquaintances."

As things stand, I don't want to join any faction for the time being, so I may not be able to fulfill my duties as a 'knight'.

However, as an apology, if you need any help, please feel free to contact me. If it's within my capabilities, I will do my best to assist you.

Upon hearing Wood's words, Emilia's face showed a visible disappointment, but as an understanding girl, she quickly managed a smile to thank Wood.

He hadn't met Wood many times, but Wood had helped him more than once.