Chapter 58
◎"St. Bartholomew's Night"◎
He pressed the button on the quantum computer, and as the blue light flashed and disappeared, the entire Kundera Palace seemed like a giant beast awakening from its slumber, baring its sharp fangs.
All the banquet tables were overturned, tableware and candlesticks slid down from mid-air, and the sound of porcelain and metal shattering echoed on the ground. The panicked crowd, unaware of what was happening, screamed in terror and scattered in all directions. Those who knew quickly retreated to their designated safe spots, while others blended into the crowd, waiting for their chance to complete their tasks.
All the doors to the banquet hall were opened, but they were heavily guarded, allowing entry only and no exit. Guests who tried to break out were shot dead, while the remaining guests cowered in corners like frightened quails, trying to make themselves inconspicuous.
The open gates poured in heavily armored soldiers equipped with white mechanical exoskeletons—the elite assault force of the Emperor's Annihilation Legion, answering only to the Emperor. The Annihilation Legion was founded by Celoé in his later years and was solely loyal to the Emperor, having no connection to the Gamondon family.
All the attacks were directed at Regas. Only then did Riel truly understand what his brother meant when he said the most dangerous place was right beside him.
He wanted to help, but he knew his mediocre skills would only be a burden to his brother. So, he crawled out from under the table and ran straight towards his mother. At this moment, listening to his brother was definitely the right thing to do.
Lille protected Queen Eve, and the guards around Queen Eve were clearly not the guards previously assigned to the palace; their cold and austere demeanor was something only soldiers who had been on the battlefield possessed.
Lan Ye was still holding a small piece of steak on his fork, but before he could even take a bite, the table was overturned...
Lan Ye: "..." Attacking is one thing, but flipping the table before even attacking is really unlikable.
After taking a bite out of his steak, he threw the fork at the person who had overturned the table. The silver fork pierced both of the person's hands together, with the two protruding ends of the fork protruding from both hands being the same length.
Lan Ye smiled and silently said to the man, "Keep your hands to yourself."
After saying that, he darted behind Regas, leaning against him, and while searching for weapons in the particle space, he said, "Oh dear, there are so many people, I'm too scared to move, you have to protect me."
Regas smiled and hummed in agreement, his eyes gentle and his demeanor elegant, showing no sign that he was being attacked. The defensive devices surrounding him blocked all attacks outside the protective shield.
However, the defensive shield is not foolproof; a specially designed beam cannon can shatter it. This is why Leo VI deployed his trump card—a heavy-duty exoskeleton assault team—to attack Regas.
The defensive shield was half-lit and half-dark under the assault team's attack, looking shaky and overburdened, as if it would be broken after a few more rounds of attacks.
Before Lan Ye could even draw his weapon, his hand was gently pressed down by Regas. Lan Ye understood his meaning and stopped trying to draw his weapon.
"Does this mean you want us to die together?" At this moment, only Lan Ye was still in the mood to joke.
“Of course we’ll die together, but not now.” Regas smiled gently.
"At this point, the epicenter of the attack is still reeking of romance," Riel said sourly, hiding in a corner and feeling quite safe.
He had discovered that the attacks were primarily targeting the Crown Prince's faction and nobles at odds with the Northern Region. Those who were not the primary targets had guards protecting them and were able to barely defend themselves against the sporadic attacks from the Annihilation Assault Team.
In addition to the elite troops of the Extinction Legion directly under the emperor, soldiers from the Northern Regions kept pouring in from outside the gate. Their main targets were high-ranking officials and nobles who were usually at odds with the Northern Regions.
"That's right." A voice of agreement came from the side, accompanied by the sound of cracking sunflower seeds...
Following the sound, Lil looked over and saw, through the guards, the delegation from the Southern Region who had come to attend the wedding was squatting next to him, while the one eating melon seeds was Major General Lan Yang, the representative from the Southern Region.
Lil stretched out his hand to Lanyang and said, "Any more sunflower seeds? I'd like to have some to relieve some stress." Even though he knew he was relatively safe now, it would be a lie to say he wasn't nervous. His heart was pounding loudly, his breathing was more rapid than usual, and his voice trembled as he asked for the sunflower seeds.
After he finished speaking, he had a small bag of sunflower seeds in his hand, which were the classic Chinese five-spice flavor.
Lille said, "Thank you." Then he joined the group eating sunflower seeds.
The entire banquet hall had become a meat grinder for purging political enemies. Countless people were dragged out and executed, facing elite, heavily armed soldiers. Any resistance was futile. The agonizing screams were chilling, and blood gradually spread from the center outwards, soaking the thick handmade wool carpet.
The shield struggled for a couple of moments under the assault team's concentrated fire before disappearing completely.
The emperor looked at the unprotected Regas with a hearty smile. He stepped forward and said, "We were nominally father and son. The light of the empire, His Highness Crown Prince Regas, has unfortunately died suddenly. He should be given a grand funeral and the whole country should mourn."
He had long wanted this bastard dead, but unfortunately, he had managed to evade all the underhanded tactics he had employed. How could he possibly let the throne, which he had painstakingly plotted for, fall into the hands of his enemy's son?
Leo VI's greatest hatred was for his elder brother, Enya Gamondon. Others viewed him and his brother as light and shadow, with his brother being the light and him the shadow. He lived entirely in Enya Gamondon's shadow until he poisoned him, bringing him into the light and allowing everyone to see him for who he truly was.
How could he possibly give back everything he had painstakingly planned to the Enya lineage? He wanted his elder brother, the emperor, to be childless and without descendants.
"That's a real shame." Regas looked at the mechanical exoskeleton soldier holding the beam cannon without the slightest panic. "I'm afraid it won't be as you wish."
As Leo VI looked at the calm and composed Regas, his unease grew. He had already felt that things had gone too smoothly this time, and based on his decades of experience in the power struggles with this nominal son, such success was inherently abnormal.
Regas had originally wanted to see what other tricks Leo VI had up his sleeve, but now that even the Annihilation Legion had been mobilized, it seemed that Leo VI had no more backup plans.
"Your Highness, the outer perimeter has been cleared."
Regas grunted and said, "Come in."
Leo VI overheard the conversation and knew that Regas had taken control of the situation outside the banquet hall. All the advantages he had believed he had were now shattered by Regas.
But he was unwilling to admit defeat at this moment! Even if Regas controlled the situation, what difference would it make? Once he was dead, would those people dare to openly rebel against him, the emperor?
King Leo VI ordered the heavily armored soldiers surrounding Regas: "Attack!"
After receiving the order, the soldiers pressed the attack button on the beam cannons at Regas.
Regas and Lan Ye simultaneously grabbed each other's waists, using the same posture and angle to quickly dodge the beam cannon attack.
Lille: "..." Hahaha, the way the two of them walk side by side is so funny. How come their originally handsome posture looks so strange and awkward?
Lan Yang: "..." This is the first time I've seen the young master fail to show off, hahaha.
Regas: "..." So much for being a delicate flower...
Lan Ye: "..." Anyone who dares to mention it from now on will be killed.
Having avoided the beam cannons and the encirclement, the soldiers no longer had the chance to launch a second such attack, and Leo VI knew that his cause was lost.
Then, the sound of orderly footsteps echoed outside the door once more, and a large number of heavily armored soldiers in black mechanical exoskeletons poured in. Their equipment was far superior and more advanced than that of the Annihilation Legion's assault teams, and they outnumbered them as well.
Compared to the renowned Annihilation Legion, which relied on Cyloe for its fame, Regas's Legion was extremely low-key, but in terms of both combat strength and equipment, it was superior to the Annihilation Legion, which relied on its past glory.
The heavily armored black soldiers swiftly wiped out the Annihilation Legion assault team in the banquet hall. The commander leading the team walked up to Regas, saluted, and reported, "I have fulfilled my mission."
Regas nodded: "Very good."
"I am the emperor! Killing me is treason!" he said, his words a blustering but ultimately weak threat. He knew that even if Regas really took his life now, no one outside would know the truth.
Leo VI was deathly pale, sweat pouring down his forehead. After his initial madness, he realized he didn't want to die.
“How could I want you dead?” Regas released his arm from Lan Ye’s waist and smiled. “His Majesty was just so angry about Osei’s rebellion that he fell ill.”
"You!" Before Leo VI could finish speaking, he was dragged away by the soldiers.
"Take everyone away," Regas said to the commander. "Release those who have no problems, and lock up the rest for now."
Lan Hua originally wanted to stay, but a series of events occurred, and he had to return to the Palga Palace to deal with the follow-up matters related to the Southern Region. This matter could not be delayed.
The soldiers of the Extreme Legion cleared the entire banquet hall, but there was one person they could not get close to: the Third Prince, Osei.
Gani, who had been trembling like a leaf beside him, was also taken away from the scene by the soldiers. He leaned against a pillar, quietly watching all of this, seemingly isolated from the blood-stained and blood-smelling hall.
"Seal off the banquet hall. No one is allowed to enter without my order," Regas said.
The banquet hall was empty again, with only "Osei" and Regas remaining.
"Should I call you Ose... or Serloe?" Regas smiled.
"It's fine, a name is just a code name." "Osei" chuckled. "I didn't expect the Annihilation Legion to have become so corrupt that even its most elite assault team is so incompetent."
The Annihilation Legion was founded by him to fight against the old men of the Elder Council who were still alive and often hindered him. Back then, it was invincible and had almost no rivals, but now its fighting power is so vulnerable. However, considering that it is led by a useless person like Leo VI, this result seems to be inevitable.
Although he spoke of the Extinction Legion in this way, his expression showed no sign of regret.
“You don’t belong here,” Regas said bluntly. “The dead should stay where the dead belong.”
Regas shed his gentle exterior, his tone turning cold and his expression stern.
“If it weren’t for your ambition, how could I have awakened from the abyss?” Compared to Regas’s coldness, “Ose”’s eyes were tender and affectionate, but the underlying tone was also cold and deep. “There are gains and losses. Power and love can never be had at the same time.”
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