The Kingdom of Viremont was a jewel of the eastern seas — a land of golden palaces, rose-colored streets, and a royal court draped in opulence. But beneath the silk and splendor, Raizen had learned of a rot that ran deep: whispers of influence, decisions too easily made, wars started over shadows.
And every clue pointed to one thing — the cult of the Crown had embedded itself not just in the shadows of the world government… but at the heart of global power.
—
Disguised in formal garb procured by their smuggler ally Ryx, Raizen, Zuri, and Kaidan infiltrated the Grand Jubilee — a masquerade held by the Viremontian king to celebrate a century of peace. Irony dripped from every chandelier.
Masked nobles sipped crimson wines and spun tales of diplomacy and control, but Raizen wasn't here for politics. He was hunting the puppeteer.
The invitation they used bore the seal of a dead noble — one who'd vanished mysteriously days after trying to break trade ties with the World Government. The crew had found his body stuffed in a crypt beneath the port city of Caldriss.
He had been flayed. Silenced.
Raizen had no doubt who was responsible.
—
Inside the palace, Kaidan used his spirit-sensing talents to scan for echoes of unnatural will — and what he found chilled them all.
"The entire court…" Kaidan whispered, voice shaking. "They're... bound. Not by law or duty — but by something older. Magic, or worse."
Their investigation led them deep into the royal archives, where they discovered a hidden elevator disguised as a wine vault. At its end: a spiral staircase carved into obsidian, descending into darkness beneath the palace.
There, they found it — a chamber of thrones. Thirteen ornate seats. Each occupied by a waxen statue resembling a world leader Raizen had seen before: monarchs, presidents, admirals. And behind each statue was a thin gold wire, spiraling up through the ceiling — into the palace above.
"They're not just bribed," Zuri muttered. "They're controlled. Possessed."
—
In the center of the room stood a single mask, suspended in a field of energy.
The Mask of Aegros — a relic once rumored to belong to the first high priest of the Crown cult.
As Raizen approached, the mask spoke.
"You are not welcome here, son of rebellion," it rasped. "This world requires order. Its rulers... were weak. So we strengthened them."
"By stealing their will?" Raizen shot back.
"By giving them purpose," the mask replied. "We offered them freedom from fear — the burden of thought. You will never understand."
Raizen clenched his fists. "Maybe not. But I know puppets when I see them."
—
Alarms blared above. The cult had sensed the intrusion. Guards — no, constructs — began pouring into the throne chamber, their eyes glowing gold, movements jerky and inhuman.
Zuri held the line with her twin blades, slicing through their ranks as Raizen and Kaidan disabled the wire network. One by one, the golden cords snapped, and far above, nobles began collapsing at the masquerade — freed from decades of mental control.
Raizen retrieved the mask and crushed it beneath his heel.
"No more lies," he growled.
—
They barely escaped the palace before it began to implode, collapsing under the weight of centuries of puppeteering and stolen minds.
Outside, nobles staggered out into the dawn — dazed, confused, free. And across the seas, word began to spread: Raizen had severed the invisible strings that bound one of the oldest kingdoms to the Crown's will.
But this was only one kingdom.
And thirteen thrones still sat in that chamber.
Raizen realized then — this wasn't just a cult.
It was a conspiracy of kings.
And their war for the world was only just beginning.
END OF THE CHAPTER10