Alien world

Chapter 1821, Section 454: The Palace Garden Surrounding the Mountain
Annam had visited the small hill palace gardens that the Kingdom of Rikaner had built in imitation of. The magnificence there might have impressed many people, but Annam, who had seen many wonders, thought it was nothing special.

It was the imperial palaces and gardens surrounding the mountains that truly made him feel like he had entered a divine realm.

The gray marble ring seemed to float in the air as if weightless, disappearing into the clouds and mist. Deer were seen in the lush garden, and a smooth statue would occasionally appear along the path.

The palace gardens surrounding the mountain were neither as primitive and simple as the elven forest, nor as purely constructed as human city-states. Instead, they were a combination and fusion of the two, which gave Annam a sense of the elven style—not surprising at all.

The palace gardens surrounding the mountain were built in the early years of the Saint Laurent calendar, when humans were still deeply influenced by the aesthetics of the elves.

To Annan's surprise, he had assumed that the imperial holy site would be similar to the outside world, with mounds of skulls everywhere, wooden stakes with headless corpses stuck in them, and heads boiling in pots, where blood and bones were considered a delicacy...

As a result, even the carvings on the marble pillars were of deer and natural patterns.

Upon entering the palace, which had a dozen or so massive stone pillars standing outside the porch, Oulin left Anan there while she pushed the ancestor forward.

With nothing to do, Annam glanced around the empty palace, which wasn't even guarded, and started playing a game of "finding the mound of corpses".

Despite his close relationship with the old emperor, Annam did not understand the emperor's attitude.

This is quite normal; the empire is so vast that when the Montreal Mountains, acting as its brain, issue an order, the extremities (hands and feet) may not react for ten days to two weeks.

After circling the palace and returning to the front, a shout suddenly rang out: "Unauthorized persons, stop immediately!"

Annan looked at the golden-armored guards standing in front of the steps, pointed to himself, and said, "Me, an outsider...?"

The guards remained silent, which was an expression of their resistance.

Annan remained silent, but rolled up his sleeves to reveal the golden skull bracelet.

I didn't mind you calling me a nobody earlier, but what should you call me now?
"Your Highness, please wait here."

The guards lowered their rifles, their attitude changing drastically.

There wasn't a soul around, and Annan, who was about to go to the grass to tease the deer, approached and asked, "What's your name?"

"Clark, Your Highness...!"

"I've never heard of you. What's your last name?"

"Horm...mus".

"Are there any other relatives or collateral relatives?"

Annan followed the guard's family lineage closely, seemingly intent on capturing them all.

“You look frail and weak. Did you get in through connections?” Annan sized you up.

The guards said that the Imperials considered it an honor to be part of the Garden Guard, and that only the most loyal and elite soldiers were qualified to stand here after rigorous selection.

I saw that Annan was loyal, and that he was elite... well, I shouldn't judge a book by its cover. Mr. Schwarzlo also likes to wear children's pajamas.

"Is your armor made of gold? It must be so heavy. Why don't you take it off and rest for a bit?" What bad intentions could Annan possibly have? He was just concerned about the guard.

There was a lot of moisture in the palace gardens surrounding the mountain, and dewdrops would quickly condense on the surfaces of objects, and even the guards' armor would be covered with a layer of frosted mist.

The guards remained silent, simply standing guard.

He didn't appreciate it, so Annan had no choice but to chat about other topics.

As time passed, the mist surrounding the palace gardens and mountains gradually thinned, and hazy light began to pierce through the mist, shining into the palace where Annam was located. The palace, covered with dewdrops, reflected countless sparkling lights, like a temple.

Annan crossed his arms, leaned against a marble pillar, and admired the beautiful scenery before him, saying, "Who do you think designed this mountain palace garden?"

“Alia Stargazer.” “An elf? No wonder.”

Annan then mentioned that Free City was also built by dwarves with elven blood, so it possessed both the agility of elves and the solidity of dwarves.

"I haven `t been there."

“I understand, you can’t leave the palace gardens surrounding the mountain, right?” Annan said with emotion. “What you gain, you will also lose something in return.”

"Then aren't you out of touch with the world?"

"No, there are many newspapers to read, such as The Empire, Critical Moment, and Voice of Freedom..."

"So you know me?"

The guard nodded.

Annan recalled the phrase "irrelevant people"... Never mind, there's no need to argue with a guard.

“Newspapers are too one-sided. You only receive the news that the newspaper provides, not what you learn yourself… But it’s enough for ordinary people.” As if remembering that he invented newspapers, Annan came back to his point.

"The Voice of Freedom keeps saying how many ratmen you kill in the North every week. Are you going to join the war?"

"My plans..."

Annan thought for a moment: "My plans are not important. Free City is clearly not qualified to be the leader of a major battle. Even if I wanted to fight the forces of Chaos to the last Imperial, it would be useless."

"I'll be the first to negotiate. If it comes to fighting, I'll be the first to run. I'll turn the tables and stop at nothing to achieve my goals. That's how small forces operate."

"But what are you thinking?" Annan retorted. "You've resorted to all sorts of self-inflicted suffering and sending spies, but in the end, you can't just make a lot of noise and then watch the show with nothing to show for it."

"The Empire disdains petty squabbles. The longer this drags on, the more opposition will arise within its borders." The guard's tone was resolute: "The Empire awaits the moment to strike with lightning speed."

"Your idea is dangerous."

Annan nudged the guard from a distance, "Do you mean there are bad people in the empire?"

However, it's not necessarily a bad thing.

This at least shows that there may be disagreements within the empire, but the Palace Gardens are aware of this, and the pro-war faction remains the loudest voice.

The guard extended an invitation: "You can also bring Liberty City into the glorious final battle."

"Are you teaching me what to do?"

The guard tensed instantly, and then Annan patted him on the shoulder with the hand that wore the golden skull bracelet.

"Don't be nervous, I'm just kidding. I'll definitely join, it's just a matter of in which form."

Joining isn't just about sending troops to suppress the chaotic forces; whether it involves clearing out the periphery or providing aid depends on the situation at the time.

"By the way, do you know about the attack on the emperor?"

"I know, the assassin was subdued before he even entered the Huan Shan Palace Garden."

"pity."

The guard glanced sideways. What are you regretting?
"If the assassin wounds the Emperor, the Imperial princes and ministers will gather in the Hillside Palace Gardens and unanimously pass a resolution to punish the Chaos forces in the North. If the assassin appears before the Emperor, the enraged Emperor will immediately dispatch the eight legions to teach the Chaos forces in the North a lesson they will never forget. If the assassin breaks into the Hillside Palace Gardens, the pro-war faction on Montreal Hill will clamor for an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth."

"But now, at this moment, we haven't even been able to get into the Huanshan Palace Garden..."

(End of this chapter)