Chapter 241: Honor Him as Deity

Chapter 241: Honor Him as Deity

Falu Kekingdom's Royal Capital had fallen into an unusual state of frenzy by early morning.

City guards pounded on doors across the commoner districts, delivering the royal family's decree:

All residents must line the Main Road at midday to kneel and welcome the arriving honored guest.

Anyone resisting would face severe punishment—minimally, exile to the frontier.

In a cramped workshop, blacksmith Thomas had just received this notice, his face twisted with indignant disbelief.

A man in his mid-fifties, his thick beard streaked with gray, his arms hardened by decades at the forge, he spat bitterly, "What damned noble now, that we must halt our labor to grovel?"

He slammed his hammer against the anvil, the metallic clang echoing his fury. "They treat us like weeds to trample! Last year they came once—now again?"

His apprentice, a wiry teenager, peeked outside for guards before whispering, "Master, they say this one's a mage. A friend of the Thirteenth Prince."

Thomas scoffed, his voice dripping disdain. "Mages? Charlatans peddling colored water and mumbo-jumbo. Did that astrologer mage not boast of 'celestial visions' before lightning struck him dead?"

The apprentice flinched. "But this one's different—people say he's truly..."

"Truly what?" Thomas snarled. "A real sorcerer? A madman? Or just another fraud?"

His words faltered as a guardsman's icy glare pierced through the workshop window. Once the armored figure passed, Thomas's trembling hands betrayed not fear, but suppressed rage.

Near the bakery, owner Sienna slammed her flour-dusted fists against the counter. "Business is ashes from curfews! Now we kneel for some mage? Even a god wouldn't repay these losses!"

A thin customer hushed her. "Palace's tighter than ever. Guards everywhere. Even breathing feels watched."

Whispers spread among the kneeling crowd. "Black Mist Jungle mage—they say monsters birth there."

"Poison air! My cousin's neighbor's son barely escaped madness—"

An elderly woman trembled, "Quiet! Old Tom vanished after mocking mages last week!"

Thomas's knees ached as he knelt near the City Gate. Beside him, an old man murmured, "Hear this one sees minds. Reads hearts."

Thomas's face paled, sweat beading his brow.

Guards Captain barked, "Gate opens! Bow heads—silence! Defiance dies!"

The massive gate groaned upward.

In the shadows, Second Prince Alec tightened his grip on his sword. His escape team lay ready.

"Once chaos breaks, we flee", he whispered. "Reconvene at Northern Woods at dusk."

His eyes flickered—haunted by nightmares of Andie's golden, serpentine gaze, cold as death.

Several trusted men nodded in understanding, hands already resting on their weapons, ready for action.

Each face bore a look of grim determination — they knew failure would mean excruciating torture worse than death itself.

Meanwhile, outside the City Gate, hushed murmurs of alarm spread among the guards.

Thomas barely lifted his eyelids and looked out, his heart nearly stopping at the sight.

A Four-Wheeled Carriage pulled by some monstrous creature was slowly approaching the City Gate.

At first glance, the "beast" seemed vaguely humanoid, but closer inspection sent chills down the spine.

Its skin bristled with peculiar scales that shimmered like cold metal under sunlight.

More unsettling were its eyes — those emerald green compound eyes resembled those of an ancient reptile, radiating an aura of sinister menace.

The entire scene felt like a nightmare made real — a sinister monster dragging a carriage etched with complex rune patterns, as if whispering an ominous precognition.

"Deity in the heavens..."

Thomas whispered a prayer, cold sweat streaming down his brow like rain.

Once, he'd scoffed at the very notion of "Mages."

But now, facing this creature from the darkest nightmares, his disbelief had vanished, replaced by pure terror.

As the carriage neared the City Gate, Alec and his men suddenly burst from the shadows, desperate to flee.

"Halt them!" the City Gate captain roared, but it was too late.

Alec's group had already reached the gates, nearly colliding with the carriage.

Thomas could see the Second Prince's face — a twisted mask of fear and desperate hope, the final struggle of a cornered man.

He held his breath, watching helplessly as the prince and his men nearly passed the carriage.

Yet, at the moment Alec seemed poised to escape, a faint energy fluctuation rippled from within the carriage.

No sound. No movement. No visible spellcasting.

Even Thomas, the closest observer, saw no Mage inside uttering incantations or gesturing.

It was as if a mere thought — or no thought at all — sufficed. The mere presence of the honored guest triggered catastrophe.

In the next breath, Alec and his five men froze mid-step...

No, their bodies stiffened as though bound by invisible ropes.

A brief silence, then a soundless horror spread.

Alec's eyes, nostrils, ears, and mouth erupted with blood, gushing like water from an open faucet.

The blood was impossibly vivid, almost surreal in daylight.

That crimson seared itself into Thomas's vision, haunting even with his eyes shut.

Then the Second Prince's head exploded like an overripe melon before a stunned crowd, splattering viscera in all directions.

His five men followed — their skulls bursting in unison.

Blood rained across several meters, drenching the ground in metallic stench, transforming the street into a waking nightmare.

The six headless corpses swayed, then collapsed with a chilling crash, echoing through the square.

The City Gate plaza fell into deathly silence.

Thomas felt vertigo, his stomach churning, bile rising.

He couldn't believe what he'd witnessed — a Mage he'd never even seen, hidden inside a carriage with no motion, no spell.

Just... seemingly... thinking, and an invisible fluctuation shattered six skulls.

This terror defied comprehension, like ants grasping the sun's heat.

"This..."

"Deity above..."

"Heavens..."

The faint-hearted fainted.

Others trembled violently, faces pressed to the ground, terrified of attracting the Mage's notice.

Thomas was no different, his forehead buried into the Soil, feeling its icy chill.

He prayed to vanish — a speck of dust unnoticed by the carriage's occupant.

The proud guards now wobbled on weak knees, barely upright.

They'd never seen such horror — a single thought from a carriage annihilating six lives.

Before such absolute power, human dignity seemed laughably insignificant.

The carriage continued forward, halting at the Main Road.

A man in ornate armor — the Captain of the Palace Guard — stepped forth, pale but maintaining composure.

He bowed deeply, voice steady yet trembling faintly:

"Revered Luo Ensir, the Andie Prince sent me to greet you. Regarding this regrettable disturbance, the Prince sincerely apologizes and has ordered the road cleared. Please proceed unimpeded."

His tone dripped with reverence — not mere courtesy to nobility, but the submission owed to absolute power.

No reply came. The carriage merely swayed slightly, as if granting silent approval.

The captain rose, turning to the kneeling crowd:

"Clear the road! Honor this noble guest — any offense shall be punished by death!"

His voice echoed through the square. Heads pressed lower, desperate to avoid the carriage's notice.

Guided by the captain, the mysterious carriage rolled into the City Gate, advancing toward the Palace along the Main Road.

The monstrous steed's sinister green eyes swept the prostrate crowd, triggering fresh waves of dread.

Tens of thousands lined the Main Road, foreheads pressed to stone, voices stifled in fear.

Those who once harbored resentment now felt only raw reverence and terror.

"Deity in the heavens..."

"This is the power of a Mage..."

"What being dwells in that carriage? How can it be so monstrous?"

Whispers spread, yet none dared lift their gaze.

Thomas's worldview had shattered.

Once, he'd mocked believers in supernatural power, scoffed at Mages and Magic.

Today, he knew — this world held forces beyond comprehension.

To wield such power was to walk as a deity among men, to snuff lives like gnats.

"He's no man..."

Thomas murmured, terror consuming him. "He's a devil. A deity. An existence beyond our grasp..."

Later, whispers spread deliberately:

The Second Prince's escape plan had been known to the Andie Prince all along.

That shocking display? A calculated demonstration of power.

A warning to the entire Royal Capital — the Thirteenth Prince had allied with a Mage whose mere thought could shatter skulls.

To commoners of the Falu Kingdom, the Andie Prince now boasted a Mage ally — a force more terrifying than any army.

Who dares oppose one who kills with a thought?

Who challenges a Mage who slays without appearing?

Thus, the mysterious carriage advanced slowly, leaving not just carnage, but a permanent imprint of fear and reverence upon every soul.

That day seared itself into the memories of all witnesses.

Even in old age, they'd awaken screaming from dreams,

Recalling the Mage hidden in that carriage — a being that could end lives with a single thought.

From that day forth, Thomas never again questioned a Mage's existence or power.

Whenever Mages were mentioned, he'd fall silent, eyes flashing with unmistakable terror.

For him, that memory was an imprint — forever uneraseable.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end