Chapter 190: Twenty-first Episode: Chapter 9 (1/2)

Chapter 190: Twenty-first Episode: Chapter 9

Translator: EndlessFantasy TranslationEditor: EndlessFantasy Translation

It was the 16th of the ninth month in the Church's Calendar. The sky was clear, seemingly stretching out through thousands of miles, and the morning breeze was absolutely relaxing. While there had been a drizzle the night before, the surface of the road had dried up completely when the morning had come. Nevertheless, traces of autumn still lingered in the air.

At seven o'clock sharp, the thick gates of the Hamilton Palace were opened. His Grand Eminence the Pope Radriere VI, who resided within in, gradually moved out of the palace along with this massive troop of Guards of Honor. These Guards of Honor had rendezvoused with the Cavalry Guards at the town square in front of the palace and gone on their way, accompanied by the band's orchestra performance and the choir's singing.

The commander-in-chief of the cavalries was a tall and handsome paladin, donned in the special ancient armor of the Narcissus Knights. He leaped down from the back of the horse and kneeled down at the highest Servant of God of the secular world who was hidden in the carriage. His Grand Eminence the Pope's lips seemed to have moved a little. The old man, who was gravely ill, no longer had any voice and required support from the priests of the inner court wherever he went.

”His Majesty means that we can now depart…”

The Martial Arts Division Commander of the Narcissus Knights' Red Tiger Cavalry Corp, Major General Kamille Rayen, then stood up. He presented his military salute toward His Grand Eminence the Pope and then got on the horse.

The God-chosen warriors lined up in rows, each with a thousand men. Their armors shone with dazzling colors under the illumination of sunlight, the image of the Narcissus symbol on the shields and helmets glimmered with life beneath the sunlight, while the Brave Tiger Flag of Narcissus waved along with the morning breeze. There was no one better suited than the God-chosen warriors to act as the Guards of Honor of the highest Servant of God.

Along with the crisp shouts of their superior, the first row of the troop began advancing, followed by the entire formation.

The pope's colorful and dazzling Guards of Honor traversed out of the Road of Kings gradually. They had first circled the Tower of Heroes for a round. After that, they had run in the direction of the South, passing by Titan's Gate of Light.

Suddenly, a loud noise sounded from out of the Titan's Gate of Light. The Dulin citizens and the civilians had come all the way from different areas of the Titan to spectate the worshipping cheered at the pope! The volume was comparable to the sea, and the civilians who had kowtowed one after another were like the waves. On the other hand, the golden ribbons hanging on the buildings on each side of the street and the colorful papers flying about were just like the gulls flying above the surface of the sea. At this moment, the inner court priests of the Holy City of Rome had finally opened the hood of the open carriage. This single act seemed to have invoked a strong force. Instantly, the falling ribbons, flowers, and colorful papers had stopped flying about, and the joyful people who had been cheering had also halted their bustles.

The entire Victory Square was ridiculously silent. Every single person had knelt on the floor and prayed in silence at His Grand Eminence the Pope, whose face had appeared. The murmurs of countless pairs of lips had formed a dull and buzzing echo in the air above the town square.

It was half-past seven, and the sunlight was intense. Starting with the huge clock of Dulin Scott Cathedral, the clocks of each church and monastery of the Titan's capital started sounding. The ringing of the clocks was announcing the arrival of the highest Servant of God. The Dulin citizens responded to the sounds and moved accordingly, while the soldiers of the Guards stationed at each of the street entrances considered the sounds as the signal to remove the barriers, allowing the humongous crowd to move once more.

The number of people gathering at the entrances had increased. Just when the Guards of Honor were about to pass by an entrance, there would always be a knight who would arrive at the spot earlier than the rest of the troop. He lightly waved the yellow command flag in his hand, and the gathering of people on the streets immediately kneeled on the ground.

The majestic carriage of His Grand Eminence the Pope traversed past the crowd like a small boat. The highest, elderly Servant of God lifted his head, brought together his skinny, pale palms and sustained his worshipping posture at God. How much further would this journey take? Radirere VI was not sure either. His mission in the human realm was about to be accomplished, and the God he had been serving was summoning him to the heavens. Just treat the crowning ceremony of the Titan's Empress as the final mass! The pope thought so.

The Guards of Honor had finally reached the Dulin Scott Cathedral. The worshipping spot of the Titan royalties appeared to be brand new. While the old outer wall of the cathedral still looked as worn, the sky-blue flag loved by the Morisette royalties had blocked the view of the cathedral. As a result, the people outside could no longer have a clear look at the cathedral's appearance.

In front of the waving blue flag, there was the troop of flag-bearers of the Guards. Every single soldier was lifting a Golden Lion Flag which differed from each other in designs. The leading flag-bearer was the newly-appointed Commander of the Home Base Capital. Looking at his armored body from the outside, his facial features were not visible, save for a pair of firm and unwavering eyes.

The Commander of the Home Base Capital lifted the Golden Lion Flag of Alanis I Her Majesty. According to the dynasty's traditions, the new royal flag which had just made its appearance was slightly different from any other flag of Titan's ruler in the history. For the previous generation, Alfa III His Majesty's flag had a sword on the left and a shield on the right, a flying creature at the top and a land animal at the bottom, while the golden lion was at the center with its head facing left; as for this generation, the flag of Alanis I Her Majesty was a shield on the left, a sword on the right, a mermaid amidst the waves of paddies at the top, flower vines surrounded by narcissuses at the bottom, and the golden lion at the center, with the masculine furs now added with a touch of a female's warmth. There were thirty-nine gun firings for the salute, symbolizing the welcoming of the highest Servant of God's arrival by the thirty-nine Emperors of two dynasties which ruled Titan Empire. Smoke flowed from Dulin Scott Cathedral and the weapons and armors of the soldiers were occasionally visible amidst the bright white smoke. The Sergeant Major gave his command only after the shivering His Grand Eminence the Pope had been helped out of the carriage by the inner court's priests.

The soldiers of the Guards on each side of the carpet of white goat fur immediately drew the weapons tugged at their waist. They fixed the shining metal shields in front of their chests and raised their swords toward the sky.

”Salute!”

The soldiers of the Guards lifted the steel swords upward, and the hilts were instantly pressed close to their faces.

The colors exploding from the countless longswords had dizzied the Grand Eminence the Pope with dark, sunken eyes. The old man instantly lowered his head and inched toward the gates like a surrendered slave. In the process, he had also let out several moans, as if he was dying.

The doors to the church had opened, and the divine radiation from the candle lights and the newly-made God statue leaked out from within explosively. These colors reflected onto the old face of His Grand Eminence the Pope. The elderly man seemed to have obtained some energy from this and inched upward step by step. Just when his entire body had been showered in those colors, a miracle seemed to have occurred. The sickly old man actually straightened his chest, while his bones and muscles seemed to have instantly expanded.

The Dulin's bells have yet to cease ringing. According to the traditions, His Grand Eminence the Pope would have to arrive at the church earlier than the Emperor to set up the mass. On the other hand, the to-be-crowned Emperor would be worshipped by the privileged classes and all civil and military officers at Hamilton Palace, this being a symbol of the royal powers of the Emperor. Moreover, he would have to take over the Emperor's royal scepter and crown, as well as to accept the proper inheritance of the powers and glories.

Unlike the boisterous surrounding outside, it was utterly silent in the inner halls of Hamilton Palace. Right here, there were only some close ministers of the royalties and the guards of the palace who were guarding a large living room bantering in secrecy. There was a nanmu door with two hues in the direction where the living room was leading to the main walkway. In the two directions in the living room, there were each two corner doors leading to the side hall.

The people looked around at the two corner doors while chatting with each other with soft volumes. At that moment, the corner door on the right side opened all of a sudden. Next, His Imperial Highness Prince O'Neil Andrew Morisette, who was donned in formal armors, walked out in big steps. The young Marshal of the Guards had marched a lap around the people there, who seemingly just stood there in a daze.

”Look at me! How am I?” The Prince spread his hands so that the people there could ”appreciate” this view of him better.

The Empress' husband wore red huge, red goose feathers, and his inner wear was the Guards' royal blue Marshal military uniform matched with golden buttons. A sparkling cross-shaped button carved with the insignia of the Fierce Tigers of Narcissus was pinned to the collar of the uniform. Then, it would be the left chest of his military top. The Empire Warrior Medal and Honorary Knight Medal had been worn in a row, followed by the golden ribbon hanging from the right shoulder to the left waist. The ribbon was fastened around his waist, with a Marshal Sword shining with a dazzling color of gem hanging on the ribbon…

”How is this? Hey, say something!” Oscar was a little displeased. He stared at his own attire. Could it be that he had made some mistakes somewhere? Leather boots with agate buttons, black military pants sewn with golden linings, diamond collar buttons on the dress shirt… nothing seemed to be out of place. Again, he subconsciously touched the triangular military cap and the silver-white insignia of the Narcissus Knights on the cap on his head, everything seemed fine as well.

”What on earth do you want? My temper is flaring!”

”Whose temper is flaring?”

Princess Alanis I, with the surname of Alfa of the Morisette ruling, walked out from the door. Plastering a warm smile, she held her husband with her pair of arms which were donned in a laced attire.

”Are they all mute?” Oscar pecked softly on his wife's cheek. To be frank, he wanted to tell his wife that life was truly amazing! Who would have thought that the little princess, who had been frightened by him to the point of peeing in public years ago, would become the empire's Empress today?

”Oh… let me have a look at you!” Alanis gazed at her husband in a rush. All of a sudden, she squatted down. While Oscar's eyes widened, she felt his wife pulling on his pants at the same time.

The royalties and soldiers around them demonstrated despicable expressions that they were trying really hard to control their laughter. Oscar blushed. He stared at his wife, panicked. Rather, to be more precise, he was staring at how the Titan's Empress was fastening the buttons on his pants one by one. It seemed that he had shown himself with an unzipped fly.

”Oh… I can only say…” Oscar helped his wife up. ”I've been so busy that I've made a mistake!”

Alanis giggled at her husband, ”Alright! Now it's your turn!”

The Prince immediately pushed his wife slightly away from him and proceeded to look at her intensely, leaving out no details.

His wife was donned in a yellow silk scarf, while her golden hair had been tied up in a complicated, royal fashion with scattered diamonds connected together in a silver string. The earrings, necklace, bracelet and diamond ring; this set of jewelry were considered to be precious goods that had just been brought in by a Southern businessman. Alanis had been completely marveled by the 457 diamonds. Not only were these the most expensive jewelry in the world, but it also symbolized Morisette Dynasty's ruling of Titan Empire for 457 years.

Through the opening of the yellow cape, Oscar noticed a part of the snow-white flesh of his wife's chest. He loved this spot, but this spot was currently being tightly concealed by a piece of white laced chest binder. With no other option, Oscar could only direct his gaze downward. His wife's waist was still as slim, and he was certain that her thighs, which were being covered by a broad garnet skirt with countless embroideries of flowers, were still as firm as the previous night.

”Oh damn…” Oscar moaned. The most primal instincts of a man had actually been aroused within him after looking at Her Majesty the Empress who was all dressed up. It seemed that their romantic affairs the previous night had been rushed, and it was not as agitating as they expected it to be.

The Empress giggled. She pulled her cloak to the front, and the servants, who had been on standby behind the door, immediately rushed out. They each pulled out a lace dress which was almost as long as ten meters. Countless embroideries of little lions had been sewn onto the huge dresses.

”Actually… I still prefer you not wearing any clothes!” Oscar mumbled with a low voice by his wife's ear. As a result, he was responded with the Empress' wink and a huge blow of her fist.

The newly appointed Court Chief Marquis Jevonah Wesarcia and his wife Lady Cameron stepped forward together. The Marquis led his wife and kneeled on the ground on one knee. They first kissed the back of the Empress' palm and then kissed the Empress' husband with equal devotion.

Oscar seemed to not be moved even the slightest by the beauty of Marquise Cameron Wesarcia and had only touched spouses' shoulders like how the Empress did with the Marshal Sword. According to the investigations of the Military Intelligence Bureau, it had been shown that Marquis Wesarcia's spousal activities in Engels had been receiving support from the Head of Secret Service. Oscar had communicated with Count Rudolf Hoss through letters and had received news that the Head of Secret Service had been able to prove that the two had no suspicious traces. However, Oscar still reserved some opinions of his regarding this perspective, as he believed that the fewer suspicious trails there were, the more suspicious there could be, in fact.

”Your Majesty…” The Marquis spouses stood up, and the Palace chief flipped open the ceremony's schedule book. ”You're late! But only for one minute!”

Alanis looked behind her. The servants had already fixed the massive dresses around her waist.

”Inform the palace, I'm coming!”

”Alright…” the Palace Chief led his wife and retreated with courtesy.

A huge door with numerous golden flower carvings opened in the hallway of Hamilton Palace, leading all the way to the palace's main living room. The government officers who had been waiting to meet the Empress immediately retracted their joyful facial expressions and replaced them with a sincere demeanor. Segregated by their divisions and ranks, they stood on both left and right sides of the main hall. Nevertheless, the several hundred officers had still crowded the place to the extent that it was so hard to move around. With no other options available, some royalties who were lower in ranks had been brought out to the palace gate by the servants of the Guards in a polite tone. Even though the nobles were ranting here and there, they did not dare to offend the Empress' dignity during this moment.

O'Neil Andrew Morisette brought Alanis I Her Majesty with him and slowly walked past the layers of gates. The people who had been waiting for a long time at each side of the gates all kneeled down, and said softly, ”All hail Her Majesty the Empress!” Alanis then reciprocated with a reserved yet friendly gaze.

Finally, the Empress had reached the royal seat at the main hall. Along with the capital officers' cheers of 'hails', she proceeded to sit on the throne made of gold. After that, it would be her husband's turn. O'Neil was seated to the Empress' left, but his throne was positioned slightly away from the center axis of the main hall. Thus, the spot of his throne could only be considered as at the side.

Similarly being appointed not too long ago, Titan Empire's new Spokesman of the House of Lords, Duke Modia Sirte stepped out from the crowd with an extremely stern expression. He had presented Titan Empire's Supreme Governor Her Highness Princes Alanis Alfa Morisette with a public letter which had been signed by all members of the House of Lords.

”To the most respected Her Highness the Princess, concurrently the Supreme Governor, the Titan civilians have been completely awakened in the face of the royal crisis and the impending attacks of the international oppositions – any conspiracies intending to offend Her Highness the Princess will be conspiracies intending to offend Titan's national structures. Other than that, anyone doubting Her Highness the Princess' orthodoxies and the authorities of the Crown Princess will be seen as enemies who are planning to overturn our country's politics!”

”Before the melodies of the mass of has sounded from Dulin Scott Cathedral, resuming my country's traditions, I hereby represent all members of the empire's House of Lords as well as the royalties from all societal ranks praying for peace and harmony, to request for our most respected Her Highness Princess Alanis Alfa Morisette to accept the inheritance of Titan's imperial system, and effectively sit as the hereditary Emperor of Titan Empire! Bestowing us a great brand new era, just as how the God of Light is protecting the tens of thousands of civilians and the majestic four-hundred-kilometer-square rivers and mountains of the holy Titan!”

”I accept!” Alanis raised her head fiercely, and a ball of dazzling divine light exploded from her eyes. Oscar glanced at his arm which had been grasped tight by his wife. He felt that his wife was so elated to the extent that her entire being was shivering.

Only after this moment had the empire's Empress truly become a ruler. A servant carrying a golden scepter and another holding the crown of Alfa III walked up the steps in front of the throne one after another.

Just as rehearsed, Oscar stood up first. Duke Modia Sirte, the Spokesman of the House of Lords had also cleared his throat, ”The empire's Crown Princess who is about to be named as Alanis I Her Highness with the surname of Alfa, please rise to swear your oath!”

After hearing that, Alanis instantly stood up. Her husband had also taken the crown of Emperor Alfa III from the golden tray held by the servant.

Looking at the crown which Oscar had lifted high up in the air, Alanis was extremely agitated. Not knowing what she should do with her hands and feet, Alanis stood there, calculating the time which she hoped it would pass soon. The sparkling golden crown in front of her had accompanied her father throughout his entire life. Now, she would be inheriting it. Once she had worn it – it would mean that she had officially taken over the ruling of Titan Empire according to the traditions, and would have become the high and mighty Empress of the holy Titan.

Oscar had not let his wife waited for long, and placed the crown on his wife's head.

At this moment, we could really address Alanis as Her Majesty the Empress. Our Majesty the Empress clenched her fists, immersed in the sensations of the sparkling golden light on her head, experiencing the unexplained pressure and weight of the crown.

”With the shaper of the universe, the great God of Light above us, Empress Alanis I of the holy Titan Empire hereby vow that... I'll take the improvement of the country's welfare as my source of happiness. I'll contribute to the glories of Titan royalties and the harmony of the lives of Titan civilians until the end of my life!”

Once the Empress had finished her words, the hundreds of officers present instantly roared with deafening cheers according to the traditions of the ceremony.

”With the most courteous etiquettes and the firmest convictions and loyalty, we'll obey the actions of Her Majesty Empress Alanis and trust in her vows till the end of our days!”

After the loud echoes in the palace had subsided, Oscar took the golden scepter from the other servant's tray. Then, he proceeded to pass the symbol of an Emperor into the hands of his wife.

Alanis vowed again, ”I will rule over the empire with this scepter I'm holding, it's my responsibility to treat my people well, rule the country with diligence and love my citizens! Under the land of Titan, with the God of Light as the witness, I shall consider the monarch and all the citizens as my number one priority!”

Cheers immediately erupted among the royalties and colleagues!

”With my most genuine spirits, the sharpest blade, and along with the Titan royalties' glories and loyalty, I will take on the royal system established by Her Majesty the Empress, and preserve my duties as Her Majesty the Empress till the end of my days!”

”All hail the empire! All hail Titan!” Alanis raised the golden scepter. Her voice had lost its usual clarity due to her nervousness and agitation, while her face and chest were covered with an alluring layer of fade red color due to blood circulation.

”All hail Her Majesty the Empress!” Your glories will be passed on for another thousand years along with the royal systems of the empire – to eternity!” the crisp shouts passed through the entire interior of the palace as if it was echoing throughout the heaven and the earth.

It was the 800th year of the Church's Calendar, on the sixteenth day of the ninth month at ten in the morning. Right at this time on the day before, the Western Army Group of the Guards had gotten their ultimate confirmation. The Anti-Titan Alliance had completely retreated from the actual control areas of the Titan, which signified that the Titan people had finally accomplished their historical mission of driving the enemies out of the nation's borders for the great Alanis I Her Majesty.