A silence like death.
Many officials exchanged anxious glances, their bodies trembling.
Even the Little Emperor sat frozen on the imperial throne.
Da! Da! Da!
At that moment, the sound of orderly footsteps echoed from afar.
Ranks of guards were already pouring in from every direction.
"Master, the palace guards should all be in position."
Esdeath stepped forward, her long, elegant legs carrying her to Arlen's side.
"Perfect timing."
Arlen allowed himself a faint smile. "If we're going to make an example… Minister Honest alone isn't enough."
Only by showing the nobles that the tide had already turned—completely and irreversibly— could he force them to choose a side when escape was no longer possible.
Under his gaze, countless guards had already surrounded the palace in a tight formation.
At their forefront stood a towering, broad-shouldered man with blond hair and full armor.
Great General Budo—one of the Empire's most powerful warriors.
At this moment, his expression was filled with unrestrained fury.
He normally held nothing but contempt for the constant political squabbling in the imperial court, which was why he rarely bothered attending its sessions.
But who could have imagined…
that something like this would happen today?
"Those who dare commit treason—come out and surrender at once. If you do, you might still keep your lives."
Budo's voice boomed across the palace grounds.
He hesitated to act rashly; with His Majesty the Emperor under the enemy's control, he couldn't risk making a fatal mistake.
"The Empire's so-called strongest… doesn't seem all that impressive."
Arlen shook his head as he looked at Budo, then gave his order:
"Esdeath. Clear out the trash first."
"Understood, Master."
Esdeath stepped forward, her expression cold and emotionless as she lifted her hand toward the sky.
Buzz!
A wave of freezing cold swept across the entire sky.
In the next moment, the heavens dimmed noticeably.
Under everyone's stunned gaze,an enormous sphere of ice—like a falling meteor—plummeted toward the palace.
"Wh-what… what is that?!"
"Run—run!"
The guards still rushing in from every direction looked up at the descending mass of ice, terror spreading across their faces.
"Is that… Esdeath's Teigu?"
The only one who remained composed was Budo.
But even he couldn't hide the darkness gathering in his expression.
Esdeath being involved in the rebellion made the situation far worse than he had expected.
Yet he didn't have the luxury to dwell on it.
He immediately activated his Teigu: Adramelech.
Crackle!
Dazzling lightning rose from Budo's body, and terrifying thunder spread in all directions.
Immediately after!
The lightning condensed on his armor, seeming to turn into lightning armor visible to the naked eye.
Facing Esdeath, even Budo had to strike with full force.
Bang!
The next moment, a large crater exploded beneath his feet.
His whole person shot out like lightning, carrying a terrifying momentum as he met the falling block of ice.
Boom!
The instant the two collided, the air rippled visibly.
Countless shards of ice seemed to turn into cannonballs, scattering in all directions.
"Ahhh...."
Countless screams rose and fell; it was unknown how many guards had been smashed into meat paste.
At the same time.
The smoke and dust filling the sky were torn apart, and a dazzling bolt of lightning shot out.
Boom!
Arlen casually slapped with his hand, directly shattering the lightning.
The scattered lightning raged, easily piercing through the surrounding ground.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
A hurricane blew.
The smoke and dust gradually dispersed.
Budo, bathed in lightning from head to toe, stepped over the ground full of corpses and walked out unharmed.
"To actually be able to block a strike from Adramelech, it seems you are not a nameless nobody."
Budo stared at Arlen, a trace of apprehension flashing through his eyes.
One Esdeath was already tricky enough.
The man in front of him was also a rare powerhouse.
"Esdeath, keep an eye on these people."
Leaving an order, Arlen stepped forward and walked out.
Seeing this, Budo frowned and commanded, "The rest of you, begin the charge."
The guards who were lucky enough not to die prepared to execute the order almost instinctively.
However!
Esdeath raised her palm once again.
"Master said the trash is for me to resolve."
The instant her voice fell, a terrifying chill rippled from Esdeath's palm.
"Absolute Zero."
Buzz!
Invisible coldness instantly filled the entire venue.
Every guard felt only that their blood had turned ice-cold, and their entire person stiffened on the spot.
"Ahhh....."
They began to struggle frantically, but it was meaningless.
Crack! Crack! Crack!
Thick, heavy ice covered their bodies.
In just a few breaths, the remaining guards had all been frozen in place.
"..."
Budo, standing tall in his original spot, subconsciously swallowed a mouthful of saliva.
Esdeath looked at Arlen's back, her eyes full of worship and love.
This was the power bestowed by Master.
If it were before.
She absolutely could not have achieved this—freezing everyone so precisely without affecting Budo.
At this moment!
Arlen had already arrived in front of Budo.
Watching Arlen getting closer and closer, Budo took a deep breath.
He had originally wanted to use those guards to test Arlen's Teigu.
But now it seemed that wouldn't work.
Since that was the case...
He could only fight quickly and decide the outcome.
Only then could he free up his hands to deal with Esdeath.
Crackle rattle!
The power of the Teigu [Adramelech] erupted fully. Countless thunderbolts shone on Budo's body, as if the Thunder God had descended.
Boom!
The ground around him exploded into a large crater, turning pitch-black in an instant.
"Good stuff. I want it."
Arlen glanced at [Adramelech], his eyes brightening slightly.
It allowed a human to burst forth with power comparable to a High-Class Devil.
If he researched it and could mass-produce it, that would be quite good.
Buzz!
Arlen raised one hand, and a [Devil Gun] emerged out of thin air.
"Is this his Teigu?"
"It seems he is a long-range Teigu User."
In the split second his thoughts turned, lightning flashed on Budo's body, and he had already turned into a bolt of lightning, pouncing out to kill.
Rumble!
Wherever Budo's figure passed, the earth collapsed, the destruction spreading toward Arlen's direction.
"The momentum is not bad, but the speed is too slow."
Arlen watched the approaching Budo with a cold expression and gently pulled the trigger.
The dazzling light of magical power entered Budo's view.
A magic beam, condensed to the extreme, left a visible ripple in the air.
In just an instant.
The magic beam had already pierced through the lightning armor, flashing past Budo's body.
----
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