Surrounded by Black-armoured Guards, palace sentries, and Ye Chui’s security team, the new emperor Jacob I solemnly entered the Garden of Stars hand in hand with his fiancée Dany. They walked along the red carpet and slowly ascended the high platform at the centre of the garden.
The pair took their seats upon the prepared thrones. Prince Cover, the Imperial Chancellor, the Minister of War, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, and other high officials stood in attendance on either side. The Grand Scholar, trembling slightly with age, stepped forward holding a scroll with both hands in deep respect.
This shrewd and seasoned elder had served the Empire for more than fifty years. He knew every detail of the coronation procedure by heart. He began to deliver an exceedingly lengthy congratulatory remarks.
First he recounted the entire history of the Stellar Empire, then highlighted the deeds of several wise and celebrated former emperors. Next he listed major events that had taken place within the Empire before finally turning his attention to Jacob. With a string of flowery phrases he declared how both he and all the citizens of the Empire eagerly anticipated and felt profoundly fortunate to be led by Jacob’s heroic spirit.
Afterwards came the re-announcement of titles for loyal ministers and the various princes. The imperial hierarchy was clarified: which officials would be promoted, which would remain unchanged, and which would be demoted. All was revealed to the assembly.
The new regime required new retainers. The list had already been leaked long ago, so none of the officials present showed particular excitement or disappointment when their names were read. Several princes also received their princely titles and territorial grants at this moment. With the new emperor’s ascension, their previous status as imperial princes would cease.
To demonstrate the new emperor’s magnanimity and benevolence, an even lengthier roll of honours followed, rewarding nobles and royalty for their contributions to the coronation. Clan Chief Hoyn of the Anduin family was granted a ducal title, the most generous award of all. The Golden Snake, Moon Gem, and Candle families also appeared on the list, along with a long string of lesser nobles awaiting their turn to be named.
It was an extremely protracted affair. After the first few names were read, the dignitaries present no longer needed to maintain their initial solemn gravity. They were free to stroll about the gardens while waiting for this endless process to conclude.
Ye Chui stood gravely beneath a purple-leafed tree, eyes sweeping across everyone in the Garden of Stars while his earpiece constantly relayed reports from the security team.
“This is Alpaca Four. Target thirty-eight shows no unusual activity. Over.”
“This is Alpaca Forty-Nine. Thermal imaging detects an invisible figure beside the Tidal Empire envoy. Suspected to be the phantom snake Jeremy. Continuing observation. Over.”
“This is Joker Five. Guest number twenty-seven has fainted from excitement. Situation being handled. Over.”
…
From time to time Ye Chui would tilt his head to issue instructions or ask Debbie, stationed in the control room, whether anything abnormal had appeared. He then resumed his vigilant watch. At this moment he had fully assumed the role of security captain. The newly crowned emperor was his little brother; he had to treat this with utmost seriousness.
Just then, someone suddenly approached him.
“Hello, Master Ye Chui.” The voice was clear and youthful. Ye Chui looked towards the speaker and could not help raising his head slightly, not out of respect, but because the woman was genuinely tall. Ye Chui’s current body stood about 1.75 metres, yet the woman before him was nearly 1.9 metres. Among women of the Castro continent, such height was truly exceptional.
Despite her height, she did not appear sturdy. On the contrary, she seemed rather slender. It was merely an illusion created by her extraordinarily long proportions. She wore a slightly outdated evening gown that clung tightly to her frame, inevitably drawing Ye Chui’s attention to the striking outline of those exceptionally long legs.
Her features were not the breathtaking sort of beauty, yet she was still attractive and carried a gallant air. She had large, expressive eyes and wore her hair in a simple braid at the back. She could not be very old. Though her height lent her a mature aura, the lingering youthfulness on her face suggested she was no more than eighteen.
Standing before Ye Chui now, she seemed a little nervous and ill at ease.
Ye Chui first marvelled inwardly at her stature, then smiled and asked, “Princess Linda, may I ask what brings you here?”
He naturally knew who this strikingly tall woman was. Anyone who had heard her description even once would remember her identity instantly. She was the princess of the Rock Empire.
The Rock Empire lay south of the Stellar Empire. It was a rather poor nation. When the Stellar Empire declared war on the Church, Rock and Tidal were the only two countries that immediately declared their support. Despite bordering Stellar, Rock’s terrain was so rocky and barren that even the most aggressively expansionist emperors in Stellar history had never cast a covetous eye upon it.
This tall princess, Linda, was the Rock Empire’s envoy. Ye Chui had heard Jacob and Prince Cover mention her several times and had been curious, but this was his first time meeting her in person.
“Master Ye Chui, I simply wished to make your acquaintance. You are the hero I admire most,” Princess Linda said softly. She clutched a wine glass so tightly from nerves that it creaked, as though it might shatter at any moment. “Actually, I wanted to visit you several days ago, but I heard you dislike receiving guests and was too embarrassed to ask Prince Cover to introduce me. Fortunately, the opportunity arose today…”
Ye Chui studied the long-legged, no, Princess Linda with interest, thinking: so she’s one of my fangirls?
“I am delighted to meet you, Princess Linda. In truth, you need no introduction to see me,” Ye Chui said with a smile. “Stellar and Rock are now allies against the Church. We are comrades-in-arms. Perhaps one day we shall fight side by side.”
Linda’s eyes instantly hardened with resolve, radiating valour. Her tone grew excited. “Master Ye Chui, that is exactly what I wished to say. I will always stand at your side. The warriors of Rock will be your steadfast shield. Thank you for rising against the Church. The people of Rock thank you from the bottom of their hearts!”
“Er…”
Very well, the fangirl idea had been wishful thinking on Ye Chui’s part. Princess Linda’s attitude towards him stemmed far more from gratitude. Anyone familiar with Rock Empire history would understand why.
The people of Rock harboured the deepest hatred for the Church.
Over a thousand years ago, the land of Rock had not been so impoverished. Though mountainous, it had been rich in a precious mineral: crystite, a magical substance imbued with mana.
Legend held that during the Age of Gods crystite had been commonplace. Magicians of that era used it to craft all manner of wondrous items: magic scrolls anyone could use, stoves powered by burning crystite, carriages driven by crystite mana, and more. After the gods fell, crystite deposits dwindled drastically. Rock became the very last region where it could still be mined.
Back then Rock was not yet a nation. The Church stationed cultists there to excavate the crystite. Generation after generation they toiled in fervent faith. Yet when the mines were finally exhausted and not a single crystite remained among the endless rocks, the shameless Church simply abandoned the cultists who had lived there for centuries, leaving them to fend for themselves.
Those cultists called themselves the Faith-Forsaken. In the first few years countless died by suicide or perished in Rock’s harsh environment, but many more awoke from their delusion. They united and sought to establish their own realm.
The Church would not allow it.
They dispatched holy armies for bloody suppression. The fighting lasted decades. The people of Rock had long been tempered by that stony land into fierce and tenacious fighters. Under the legendary warrior Cyrus they finally routed the Church’s last crusade and founded the Rock Empire.
It was one of the rare occasions in Church history when they suffered outright defeat. With the birth of the Rock Empire, the Church was forced to recognise its existence. Yet over the following millennium those cunning schemers repeatedly tried to extend their tentacles back into the new nation. The people of Rock, once betrayed and abandoned, no longer trusted the Church’s tricks. For a thousand years the Church’s missionaries could not gain a foothold there.
Every citizen of Rock carried hatred for the Church in their blood.
Thus it was no surprise that when Stellar declared war, Rock immediately allied with them.
And Ye Chui, the man who had opposed the Church from the moment he appeared, naturally earned the profound respect of Rock’s people.
“I believe the Church will soon be destroyed,” Ye Chui said calmly, having recovered from his appreciation of long legs. He smiled at Princess Linda with confidence.
“I look forward to that day,” Princess Linda replied excitedly, extending her hand to clasp his.
The moment their hands met, Ye Chui’s expression flickered. That was no pampered princess’s hand. It was covered in rough calluses, proof that this princess was a formidable warrior. He had heard rumours that she carried the bloodline of the legendary fighter Cyrus and was extraordinarily strong.
Their brief meeting soon ended, and Ye Chui returned to his busy security duties.
Yet not long afterwards, his gaze was drawn to Linda once more.
…
“One, One, this is Two… That pretty-boy is Prince Karl of the Northern Ridge Empire, right? What an annoying fellow,” Debbie’s voice sounded in Ye Chui’s ear. “Idiot Seventh Princess is actually standing with him. Looks like my slap was too light. They’re both mocking Princess Linda right now. Ye Chui, go teach them a lesson!”
Debbie had overheard most of Ye Chui’s conversation with Linda through the magiphone. Perhaps in anger, she forgot to say “over”, but Ye Chui paid it no mind, because he too had just seen Karl, Seventh Princess Mia, and Linda standing together.
Prince Karl was an extremely handsome man. As the Northern Ridge envoy he wore luxurious robes adorned with jewellery on his head and fingers, his manner dripping with arrogance.
Seventh Princess Mia appeared to have fallen completely for him and stayed by his side. The two were now speaking to Princess Linda with faint mocking smiles, seemingly scornful of the fact that a princess would wear such an outdated and worn gown.
Ye Chui’s face darkened as he strode over.
Mia was a princess of the Stellar Empire. With the Empire now at war with the Church and Northern Ridge clearly on the Church’s side, for her to stand beside Prince Karl and jointly mock the princess of an allied nation, Ye Chui truly could not tell whether her incurable chuunibyou had reached terminal stage or whether she was simply an utter fool.
“…Princess Linda, you must be very charming in the Rock Empire, yes? I hear your land is all mountains and that carriages cannot pass. A woman of your impressive stature must be greatly admired there.” Mia covered her mouth delicately, her tone subtly barbed.
“In Northern Ridge, girls like Princess Mia are considered the ideal of beauty. Overly tall women would be seen as monsters. Haha, please do not take offence, Princess Linda. I am certain that in Rock, women of such lofty height are regarded as the standard of beauty,” Karl added with a strange laugh.
Linda lowered her head, cheeks flushed. Her fingers trembled slightly around her wine glass. It was impossible to tell whether it was from sorrow or fury.
Seeing Linda like this, Karl and Mia exchanged a glance and smiled even more brazenly.
Mia had met Prince Karl only a few days ago. The handsome, charming prince had instantly won her heart. More importantly, he treated her with perfect royal courtesy and had given her precious gifts. In her view he was a thousand times better than the crude Ye Chui. She now believed her former feelings for Ye Chui had been a momentary lapse in judgement.
As for the war between the Empire and the Church… Mia could not be bothered to think about such things. She even secretly felt that her father, the new emperor, and Prince Cover had all been bewitched by Ye Chui into making this disastrous decision. How could anyone declare war on the Church? They were courting death.
At that moment, Ye Chui suddenly appeared beside the trio.
“Ye Chui!” Mia looked at him coldly. The cheek Debbie had slapped seemed to burn again at the memory.
Karl heard the youth was Ye Chui and immediately studied him up and down. He had not expected the man who had recently turned the world upside down to be so young. After a brief pause he placed a hand on his chest, bowed gracefully, and smiled with perfect decorum. “So you are President Ye Chui. A pleasure. I am Prince Karl Dogaro of the Northern Ridge Empire. I am delighted to make your acquaintance.”
He glanced at Linda as though her “monstrous” presence was spoiling his conversation with Ye Chui, then continued, “My father is most curious about you and instructed me to befriend you during this visit. Might I invite you for a drink?”
“No need for drinks. We have already met,” Ye Chui replied coolly to Prince Karl.
He turned to Linda with genuine warmth in his voice. “Princess Linda, you truly are a beautiful and captivating princess. May I invite you over there for a drink?”
“…Huh?” Linda had been about to leave in quiet dejection after Ye Chui’s arrival. His words stunned her.
Karl and Mia were equally stunned. Then Mia gave a soft, scornful snort. Beautiful and captivating? What exactly was wrong with Ye Chui’s eyes?
Ye Chui shot Karl and Mia a look of utter disdain, then gently took Linda’s hand. “I find Princess Linda’s figure unforgettable. Forgive me, but I must steal her away.”
With that, he led Linda off to one side.
You two don’t even appreciate a Victoria’s-Secret-supermodel-level princess when she’s standing right in front of you. Are you blind or what!
