"Let me introduce you all; this is the king of The Trench, The Trench King."
Hearing Darian's words, everyone in the hall cast their gazes over, sizing up the member of The Trench before them.
This member of The Trench was tall and gaunt, with a hideous and terrifying appearance, yet its eyes radiated a glimmer of wisdom. Its aura was low-key and reserved, the type that would be impossible to identify if it were mixed in with its own kind.
"This… isn't this just a regular member of The Trench!?" Orm's mouth twitched slightly.
The so-called Trench King before them had nothing special about it from head to toe; it was exactly the same as any other member of The Trench.
"Who says?" Darian snapped his fingers crisply.
A Shadow soldier standing beside the member of The Trench immediately stepped forward, pulled a golden crown from behind its back, crookedly placed it on The Trench King's head, and then produced a holy trident, shoving it into that withered claw.
However, one only needed to look closely for a moment to realize that the craftsmanship of both the crown and the holy trident was quite crude, obviously made in a rush.
Darian nodded with satisfaction. "Doesn't that look much better now?"
Everyone: "..." Better my foot! Just because it wears a crown and holds a holy trident, that makes it a king!?
Orm gritted his teeth and said, "This is just a Beast, not the king of The Trench at all!"
"Roar!!" The Trench King suddenly let out a roar.
The next second, a chaotic commotion came from outside the meeting hall doors, and dozens of members of The Trench filed in.
The already crowded meeting hall was now packed like a tin of sardines, with almost nowhere to stand.
King Ricou: "..." This wasn't a public bathhouse anymore; it was a public restroom.
Darian scolded, "King Orm, you've angered The Trench King; shouldn't you apologize quickly?"
Orm felt a sense of shock. It was well known that members of The Trench were Beasts that had devolved from the people of Atlantis; they could not communicate, lacked rationality, and possessed only the most primitive predatory instincts.
For countless years, no one had ever been able to tame them, let alone make them follow instructions. Yet now, this group of The Trench was actually squeezing into the hall obediently, showing no signs of aggression, which was completely different from their usual frenzied image.
Could it be that there really was such a thing as a Trench King? Of course, they wouldn't know that these members of The Trench were actually being controlled by Arthur in secret.
He possessed the innate ability to communicate with and control marine life, and after obtaining the holy trident, this ability had been significantly amplified. Now, even an extremely unique species like The Trench could be brought under his control.
Orm still refused to believe it, staring intently at The Trench King.
"Are you the king of The Trench?"
The Trench King: "Roar!"
Orm: "?"
Darian coughed lightly and explained with a straight face, "The language system of The Trench is a bit different from ours, but I know a little of their language. Let me translate for everyone: The Trench King just said, 'Yes, that is correct, I am the king of The Trench.'"
Orm was skeptical and pressed, "How can you prove it?"
The Trench King: "Roar!"
Darian immediately provided a synchronized translation: "The Trench King says that the entire military force of the Fisherman Kingdom has already been completely controlled by their warriors from The Trench. Proving it is simple: as long as he gives the order, all the warriors from The Trench will act immediately, and the entire Fisherman Kingdom will cease to exist."
King Ricou's vision went black, his body swayed, and he nearly fainted. He finally understood why the meeting hall could be entered so easily; the defensive towers outside had long since been taken out, leaving only this last bare crystal.
Supported by his wife and daughter, King Ricou said with a trembling voice, "Calm down, Trench King, I completely believe that you are the king of The Trench."
Darian turned his gaze to Nereus, who was still playing dead.
"Nereus, what about you?"
"I believe it too." Nereus felt helpless and had to follow suit.
Whether the member of The Trench before them was a real king or not was no longer important; just the fact that they could control The Trench meant that even if it wasn't, it had to be.
Orm understood this logic as well; his face was gloomy to the extreme, and he felt the situation becoming increasingly unfavorable for him.
Seeing that no one else raised any objections, Darian clapped his hands happily. "Since everyone has no objections, as the king of The Trench, The Trench King also has the right to vote. Trench King, what is your decision?"
The Trench King: "Roar!"
Darian listened closely, then nodded solemnly. "I see, you vote in favor as well."
Orm finally lost it.
"Nonsense! It sounds exactly the same every time it roars, not even the tone has changed! I strongly suspect there is some shady dealing going on here!"
The other two kings remained silent; no one responded.
Obviously, anyone could see the shady dealings! But now that the meeting hall was filled with the other side's people both inside and out, it was useless to say anything.
Darian chuckled. "King Orm, that's two votes in favor and one against. According to the laws of Atlantis, a majority vote passes. From now on, Arthur is the new king of Atlantis, and whether you accept it or not, you have to."
"I don't accept this!"
Seeing that the tide had turned, Orm abandoned the dignity befitting a king and shouted at Arthur, "This half-breed bastard, by what right can he become the new king of Atlantis?"
Arthur was getting a bit angry at being called a bastard to his face by Orm repeatedly. He walked up to Orm, looked down his nose at him, and said with an arrogant attitude, "Orm, in the past, you called me a bastard, and I didn't hold it against you. But now, you should call me King."
Hearing this, Orm completely broke down. He violently raised the trident in his hand, roared at Arthur, "If that's the case, then let's follow the old rules: a duel! Whoever wins will be the king of Atlantis!"
Although those weren't Orm's exact words, the meaning was about the same. He had received the strictest combat training since childhood, and with his pure Atlantean bloodline, he was confident he would never lose to an Arthur who had spent his life bumming around on land.
"Good, you've got guts." Darian nodded and casually tossed a ball of Hellfire and several enhancement magic spells toward Arthur. "Arthur, you've been buffed. Go ahead and send your brother packing."
Under the enhancement of the Hellfire and magic, Arthur's various abilities soared instantly, and the holy trident in his hand ignited with raging flames, looking like the weapon of a demon from hell.
He couldn't help but swing the holy trident, and a violent Impact was blasted out immediately, tearing a huge hole in the wall of the meeting hall.
Orm: "..." I report this! Someone is cheating!
Arthur didn't attack, attempting to persuade him instead.
"Orm, believe me, you cannot handle the position of king; you'd better leave it to me."
He admitted that Orm was indeed more suited to be king than he was. But the problem was, The Seven would not agree to let an extreme warmonger sit in that position.
Once Orm took the throne, it wouldn't just be him coming next time; Darian and Clark would both come in person. Perhaps Bruce would even come for a stroll on the ocean floor wearing his anti-Superman armor, using his fists to treat Orm's mental illness.
What, you say Orm doesn't have a mental illness? Then we'll just beat him until he has one, then treat him.
Orm did not know of Arthur's good intentions; his eyes were bloodshot as he said bitterly, "And my Atlantean army, does that have to be handed over to you too?"
"Yes." Arthur didn't evade the question and nodded directly.
If Orm didn't hand over the military power, that severe paranoid Bruce would probably invent a deep-sea monitor to watch Orm's every move 24 hours a day; even if Orm secretly peed into the seawater, he wouldn't be able to hide it from Bruce.
"What about my trusted ministers?"
"To tell you the truth, that's my mentor. His position won't change in the future; he will remain the royal advisor of Atlantis."
"What about my fiancée?"
"Of course she is my… *cough cough*, I will respect Mera's own choice on this; on the surface, we value freedom of marriage." Arthur put on a serious face.
It wasn't that he wanted to snatch Orm's things; it was just that his sister-in-law was too alluring. Mera stood to the side, rolling her eyes.
If she could choose, she wouldn't marry either of them. One was a warmonger, the other an idiot; she felt that marrying either would affect the genes of the next generation.
"Everything is yours, so what about me? What do I have left!" Orm roared with red eyes. He felt this guy Arthur was too shameless, wanting to snatch everything away.
Just then, a gentle voice came from the side. "You still have me, my child."
Queen Atlanna stepped forward, opened her arms, and hugged Orm tightly. Her eyes were red, and she held her younger son closely, her voice choked with sobs.
"You and Arthur are both my children. I love you both, but you have been misled by what your father instilled in you. He told you that the ocean and the land are two completely different Worlds that cannot coexist."
"But he was wrong; the ocean and the land are one and the same, never separate." Queen Atlanna released Orm, lifted her hand to gently cup his face, her eyes filled with heartache.
In truth, Orm's nature wasn't bad; he had just been instilled with all sorts of extreme ideas by his biological father from a young age, which led him slowly down the wrong path.
"Mother…" Orm looked at his mother's expression and truly couldn't bring himself to be cruel; the tip of the trident lowered slightly.
Darian sat on the throne, watching this scene, and sighed. "This kind of 'dumpling wrapping' plot is truly touching." He squeezed his eyes hard, but couldn't squeeze out any tears, so he had to give up.
Under Queen Atlanna's comforting, Orm finally gave up his resistance and dropped the trident that belonged to the king.
"You win, Arthur." For his mother, Orm chose to compromise.
Darian stood up, looked around, and announced, "Then, from now on, Arthur Curry is the king of Atlantis."
"Who approves, who opposes?"
Crack!
As the words fell, the ceiling of the entire meeting hall was suddenly ripped open. A massive monster's head peered down from above, almost obscuring the entire body of water above the Fisherman Kingdom.
That face looked down at everyone in the hall, surrounded by dense swarms of The Trench, layered around the outside. The soldiers of the Fisherman Kingdom had all discarded their weapons, curling up in corners one by one.
Karathen: Are you moved? Soldiers: We dare not move!
Never mind the soldiers, even the three kings present dared not move a muscle. As kings, they naturally recognized the origin of this monster. The deep-sea behemoth as famous as the holy trident, Karathen!
If you had told us earlier that you had Karathen, what else would there be to say? The throne of Atlantis is yours.
"As the king of the Fisherman Kingdom, I, King Ricou, on behalf of the Fisherman Kingdom and all its people, agree to Arthur Curry serving as the king of Atlantis, and the Fisherman Kingdom is willing to submit to Atlantis from now on, obeying the new king's orders."
King Ricou was the first to state his position on the spot, without a hint of hesitation, leaving the others dumbfounded. No one expected that King Ricou, who had always claimed absolute neutrality, would defect so quickly, being the first to jump out and pick a side.
King Ricou felt the gazes directed at him, his heart filled with bitterness. There was no help for it; his entire kingdom was under the other side's control. With one word from them, the Fisherman Kingdom would become the second The Deserter Kingdom. Once the kingdom was gone, what was the point of talking about neutrality?
"I, Nereus, also represent the Kingdom of Xebel, and agree to Arthur Curry serving as the king of Atlantis. From this day forward, the Kingdom of Xebel will follow Atlantis, reshaping the greatness of Atlantis."
Seeing that Arthur and Orm had already decided the outcome, Nereus knew the situation was settled and similarly did not hesitate.
Only Orm remained standing in place, not saying a word. He did not speak to acknowledge Arthur's status, and didn't even really look at Arthur.
Darian didn't mind. Orm had suffered so many blows today; if he were forced to personally admit his opponent's victory, it would be too cruel. Even the strongest person couldn't withstand such humiliation, and it might even lead to mutual destruction.
On this joyous day, there was no need to turn a happy event into a funeral, although one could eat a banquet at either.
Darian directly ignored Orm's existence and made the final decision. "Since it is a unanimous vote, I announce that Arthur is the new king of Atlantis. Everyone, applause!"
Clap clap clap!
The applause rang out sparsely, sounding perfunctory, and dissipated in a few seconds.
Arthur stood in the center of the hall, clutching the holy trident, his expression somewhat depressed.
In his imagination, he should have been surrounded by people, with cheers shaking the heavens, Mera standing by his side casting affectionate glances at him, and then he would raise the holy trident high, accepting the throne amidst the gaze of all.
Laughter, tears, and growth, it could be called the best in cinema, the kind that would surely be a blockbuster if made into a movie.
But the scene before him was a hundred and eight thousand miles away from the image in his imagination; it was just like going through the motions.
Darian patted Arthur on the shoulder and comforted him. "Maybe everyone is just tired; don't take it to heart."
"It's fine; my throne didn't exactly come in a legitimate way, so this reaction is normal." Arthur still lived with a clear understanding of things.
He had taken all the benefits; if he complained, he would just be purely wicked.
"As long as you understand." Darian nodded with satisfaction.
Then he turned around, raised the spear of longinus high, and announced loudly, "I declare that to celebrate the birth of the new king, the nation of Atlantis will host a banquet for three consecutive days! The main course is roasted Karathen, and any undersea citizen can participate!"
"Woohoo!"
"Long live King Darian!"
"I've never tasted roasted Karathen; is it edible?"
"Of course it's edible, and it's absolutely delicious!"
"Then I'm looking forward to it."
The atmosphere on the scene instantly turned around; laughter and discussions rose one after another, completely devoid of the lifeless appearance from just a moment ago.
Arthur: "..."
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