Pledging Loyalty

The sun slowly rose from below the horizon, its light dispelling all darkness, signaling the arrival of a new day.

But for Crusch and her army, they had already seen daylight after using night-dispelling magic, and now they had returned to the royal capital.

Crusch initially sent nearly three hundred people, but by the time they returned to the royal capital, only a hundred remained. Even in their memories, the initial number of troops never exceeded two hundred.

The troops moved through the streets of the royal capital, and in the middle of the formation, the large head of the White Whale was placed on a trailer. There was no vitality in its dim eyes, but it seemed there was panic in them, as if it had seen some terrifying presence before death.

The White Whale had been successfully slain. This was an enormous achievement. Naturally, some trophies needed to be brought back. Since the White Whale's body was enormous, it was impossible to bring it back whole, so Ayanokouji ordered them to cut off the White Whale's head and bring it back to the royal capital alone.

As the large force slowly advanced, the citizens of the royal capital saw the scene before them and began to talk.

"Is that... the White Whale?"

"Did Crusch-sama succeed in defeating the White Whale?"

"Look, who is that person?"

After a certain voice rang out, everyone's eyes couldn't help but focus on Ayanokouji.

Ayanokouji and Beatrice were riding an earth dragon in the middle of the formation—typically, as the leader, there was only one person, and even Crusch only appeared beside him, following like a guard.

The camera shifted, and two figures slowly arrived at the place where the White Whale had fallen.

"Nothing to eat, nothing to eat, nothing to eat! To be able to exterminate our pet, the White Whale that has lived for four hundred years, I thought it would make a good meal! But it ran away!"

A short, hunched, and thin man with long, unkempt hair that nearly touched the ground and dark brown, almost black skin, like a dying corpse, was also wearing very tattered clothing.

"You really left before I could arrive? What a rude act. This violates my rights!"

Beside the previous man, there was another tall and slender figure, dressed in white clothing and with lifeless white skin, but his overall demeanor was very ordinary, making him unmemorable in a crowd.

"Really, I must know who dares to offend me!"

The man in white took out a Gospel from his clothing.

The camera changed again. In the Lugnica palace, Ayanokouji, Crusch, and others had arrived, displaying the large head of the White Whale before everyone.

"This... the White Whale?"

Julius and the others were shocked when they saw the head of the White Whale.

The mabeast that had caused damage for hundreds of years was finally slain one day.

Just one head occupied a large area in the palace hall. One could imagine how large the entire body was.

And Reinhard's blue eyes showed a complex expression directed at the White Whale.

With his power, it would be easy to kill the White Whale. Ironically, even a creature like the White Whale, which was almost invincible to ordinary people, even to the very powerful Crusch and Wilhelm, and the hundreds of soldiers led by Crusch, was not its match. If it weren't for Ayanokouji's actions, they might have been buried in the mist, and the world would have forgotten their existence.

But for those truly powerful in this world, the White Whale was insignificant and could be killed instantly.

Reinhard had the power to kill the White Whale instantly, but because its presence was unpredictable and difficult to detect, he couldn't kill it.

Ayanokouji could have naturally informed Reinhard of the time and place where the White Whale would appear beforehand, but his main goal wasn't to kill the White Whale, but to use this opportunity to defeat the White Whale and bring Crusch to his side.

Reinhard's gaze shifted from the White Whale to Wilhelm, the man who had a blood relationship with him and should be called grandfather.

And Wilhelm never looked in Reinhard's direction from start to finish.

It was precisely because, fourteen years ago, when Wilhelm's wife, the then Sword Saint Theresia Van Astrea, defeated the White Whale, the Divine Protection of the Sword Saint was suddenly transferred to the five-year-old Reinhard, causing her to lose her Sword Saint power and eventually die in battle.

Although this wasn't Reinhard's own wish, in Wilhelm's eyes, he indirectly killed his wife, creating an insurmountable barrier between grandfather and grandson.

The members of the Council of Wise seated on the high platform looked at each other. Although the killing of the White Whale was undoubtedly a good thing for the kingdom, it happened so suddenly that it felt unreal, like a dream.

"Crusch-sama, did you succeed in killing the White Whale?" Miklotov, one of the Council of Wise, looked at Crusch incredulously.

"Yes, we succeeded in killing the monster that has plagued the kingdom for hundreds of years. Many soldiers died in this battle, and many couldn't even maintain their reputations."

Crusch felt heartbroken as she spoke, knowing that besides the dead whom she knew well, many others were wiped out by the White Whale, erased from memory.

"Then Crusch-sama has achieved another great feat! I'm sure you will surely be able to take the lead in the competition for the throne!"

The Karsten family is currently the most noble in the land. It can be said that she is almost in the lead among the throne candidates and is popular among the people. Miklotov tried to flatter her to gain favor with the Karsten family; once Crusch was officially crowned, his career would surely soar.

But Crusch shook her head: "This operation was actually organized by Ayanokouji-sama. The reason we were able to defeat the White Whale was entirely due to the wisdom and orders of Ayanokouji-sama."

Everyone's eyes turned to Ayanokouji.

At the meeting of throne candidates not long ago, everyone remembered this boy who looked so ordinary.

"Mm, you are indeed Ayanokouji-sama!"

The bald member of the Council of Wise, who had previously been threatened by Ayanokouji and forced to join the Emilia camp, was the first to praise him, and his words were echoed by many nobles below, who had also been drawn into his camp through various means.

Ayanokouji had them spread rumors about himself and the Emilia camp within the palace to expand his influence and gain more supporters.

"Besides..." Crusch's expression gradually became serious, "Starting today, I will relinquish my qualifications as a king."

"What?!"

Everyone present was almost stunned. They hadn't expected Crusch to say such words.

Crusch now had a significant advantage among the throne candidates, and she herself had a strong desire to be king. It was highly unlikely for her to relinquish her qualifications as a candidate. She was someone who would never give up.

Crusch's expression was serious. Behind her, Wilhelm bowed his head and remained silent, while Felix bit his lip tightly, with a hint of reluctance on his face.

Of course, Felix didn't want Crusch to relinquish her qualifications as a throne candidate. In Felix's eyes, the terms of the agreement proposed by Ayanokouji undoubtedly took advantage of the situation.

But at that moment, Crusch had no choice but to agree to the request. After all, it was an undeniable fact that Ayanokouji saved everyone's lives. For Felix, nothing in this world was more important than Crusch's life.

Felix harbored a frightening suspicion in his mind—could it be that everything, from providing the information to coming to the rescue, was planned by the other party?

He turned and looked to the side. There was no change in Ayanokouji's expression, as if he didn't care about anything.

Felix felt very confused in his heart. He had always been very accurate in reading people, but he couldn't sense anything from the other party.

But this was just a fleeting thought. After all, Ayanokouji did indeed save Crusch's life and comforted her from a chaotic state. Now Felix had nothing to do with it.

And since Crusch had pledged loyalty, Felix, who was fully devoted to Crusch, would naturally follow her.

"From now on, I, Crusch Karsten, and the Karsten family will be fully loyal to Ayanokouji-sama and contribute to the Emilia camp."

Crusch was a person who kept her promises and made a vow to herself.

Ayanokouji looked at the eyes of everyone in the palace who were stunned and nodded slightly.

He had resolved the Crusch camp's obsession with the White Whale and deliberately released the information, letting them go in deeper alone, while he stood aside to gather information.

If Crusch hadn't agreed to his conditions at that time, then letting her be killed by the White Whale would have only meant one less tool for him to use.

After all, he had thoroughly understood Crusch's character. She was honest and trustworthy.

Even if she broke her promise, Ayanokouji would find various ways to eliminate her in the future.

Moreover, while helping Crusch deal with the White Whale, he had taken many photos and videos with his phone. Whether it was Crusch's lost appearance or the way she pledged loyalty, he kept them as insurance.

Everything that happened was under his calculation. In just a few days, Ayanokouji transformed the Emilia faction from being in the most disadvantageous position among the royal candidates to completely absorbing Crusch's forces.

❀❀❀

"This man really took advantage of Crusch-sama, nyaa! Such a hateful man!"

Watching the scene in the sky, Felix clenched his fists, his usually cute face filled with anger.

"Calm down, Felix, this is all just an illusion."

Crusch appeared very calm.

However, in reality, after seeing Ayanokouji slowly push her troops into the abyss step by step, she naturally felt very uncomfortable.

She never expected that someone as ruthless and immoral as Ayanokouji could exist in this world.

Even though the video showed them defeating the White Whale, Crusch couldn't feel any joy from it.

Beside the two of them, Wilhelm's eyes were completely wet. Seeing himself in the image finally end the White Whale's life with his own hands and avenge his wife, the tragic desire in his heart was finally fulfilled.

Revenge against the White Whale had almost become the meaning of his life at this point.

However, the person in the image was not his real self. At this moment, Wilhelm could only long for the day in that image to arrive as quickly as possible so that he could personally slay the White Whale.

❰❱SKY SCREEN❰❱

The camera shifted, and Crusch, Ayanokouji, and the others had left the palace.

The news that the White Whale had been slain spread throughout the entire capital in an instant.

But the level of concern over this news was quickly overshadowed by the fact that "Crusch renounced her candidacy and pledged allegiance to the Emilia faction."

On the streets of the royal capital, only three out of the four posters of royal candidates remained.