Imperial Crown.

Chapter 533 The Challenge at the Wedding
"Under the light of dawn, with the stars as witnesses and the gods as hearing."

Today, at the crossroads woven by fate, we welcome two trees of the soul to join together in immortality!

The dawn crowns you, and our vows intertwine like vines:
You shall be each other’s shield against the whispers of the shadows;

You should be each other's swords, cutting through the thorns of fate;

Woes, let your songs for one another awaken the dawn in the long night;

You should be each other's wings, traversing the sudden rain to find the rainbow bridge;
Be lamps to each other’s hearts, so that warmth may never fade!

May the wind guide your steps, may the water wash away your sorrows, may the fire temper your vows, and may the earth sustain your lives.

May Melissa's courage forever illuminate Vesdon's journey!
Gods bear witness: This covenant is etched on the sun and inscribed in the stars!
Until the lunar sea dried up, the sacred temple atop the clouds transformed into a rainbow—

The glory must never be extinguished, the joy must never cease!

Accompanied by grand and resounding music, the soft, melodious "ah ah ah" harmonies of nearly a hundred maidens filled the air, while the solemn voice of Cardinal Morenzo Rosenville of the Holy See slowly resounded, cleansing everyone's souls like a sacred spring. The once spacious hall was now packed with people. Although everyone's emotions and thoughts differed, at this moment, they all wore smiles and looked at the newlyweds on the stage with envy. Indeed, apart from Melissa's own extremely noble status and background, how many people could hold their wedding ceremony in the Royal Court? The opulence and extravagance of the Royal Court need no further explanation.

The entire hall was adorned with a profusion of colorful flowers, creating a vibrant and dreamlike scene. There were the second-tier magical plants, the Peaceful Chrysanthemum (symbolizing peace and tranquility), the Southern Moon Spike (symbolizing harvest), the Bright Sun Grass (representing new life and hope), the Yellow Ginger Ball (symbolizing beauty and blessings), and the shimmering Star Velvet Grass and Spirit Light Vine. These were all rare magical plants of second tier or higher. There were also the Red Eucalyptus Fruit and the Multi-Headed Windmill Flower (representing fertility and good fortune), as well as the Black Nanmu Branch and Lantern Fruit (symbolizing warding off evil and disaster). Countless magical crystals and gemstones of various colors were also present. Even more striking were the numerous Blue-banded Butterflies fluttering in the air, scattering waves of golden dust.

It must be said that Vesdon's wedding was grand, luxurious, perfect, and impeccable. Everyone present will never forget this wedding. However, the most eye-catching element wasn't the jewels or magical plants… but the person standing beside Vesdon—Melissa Hainholz!

She wore a magical wedding dress by the brand Clarissa, making her look like a radiant elf. Combined with her aloof, cold, and exquisitely beautiful features, and those wavy eyes, she was simply breathtaking! So beautiful it was mind-numbing, even stifling. Any man present who glanced at her would be instantly captivated. Of course, effeminate men and homosexuals were exceptions.

"No! I object! I do not agree to this marriage!"

After the priests witnessed the ceremony, it was time for the exchange of rings. After this, Vesdon and Melissa would be officially married. However, at this final and crucial moment, a rough and abrupt voice of opposition suddenly rang out from the hall, causing everyone to turn and look.

Prime Minister Hamilton's expression changed drastically, and he immediately shouted sternly, "Jeffrey! His Majesty the King is enjoying his time; this is not a place for your antics! Go back!" It was exactly what he feared. To prevent any untoward incidents, Hamilton had specifically imprisoned his grandson in the castle, but Jeffrey had still managed to escape. When he looked up at the King again, Habsburg's previously benevolent smile had vanished, replaced by a slightly sinister gaze fixed on Jeffrey. This made Hamilton's heart skip a beat, and his sense of foreboding intensified.

As the crowd whispered among themselves, they gradually understood what had happened. It was the age-old love triangle: Jeffrey had always loved Melissa, and Melissa reciprocated his feelings. Furthermore, they had grown up together, sharing a childhood sweetheart relationship. However, Melissa then married Veston, a man she didn't love.

"No one can stop me today! Even the Lord of Light can't stop him! I said it!!" When Jeffrey saw Melissa, dressed in a magical wedding gown and breathtakingly beautiful, especially since Melissa didn't show much resistance and even shyly placed the ring on Vesdon's left hand, Jeffrey was so jealous that his insides seemed to burst. He roared and howled, acting like a madman, pointing a distorted finger at Vesdon, "Vesdon! I challenge you! If you're a man, accept my challenge! If I win, you can't marry Melissa!"

"Really?"

A flippant voice rang out, and Habs slowly rose from his throne, speaking each word clearly.

Strangely enough, Habs didn't use any battle aura or magic, and even his voice was softer than usual. But the moment he stood up, it was like a dragon awakening and opening its eyes. His supreme majesty roared and echoed throughout the hall, and everyone clearly and truly felt the extremely strong and powerful aura! Instantly, hundreds of people in the entire hall knelt down, trembling with fear and shouting, "Please calm your anger, Your Majesty."

Veston, Melissa, and Jeffrey were among the few still standing. Even Cardinal Morenzo, who had long since joined the Holy See and whose status was a hundred times higher than that of Cardinal Thomas, obediently knelt and prostrated himself on the ground.

The more people know about Habsburg, the more they will realize that Habsburg is extremely angry at this moment.

It is said that when an ordinary person is angry, blood will be spilled within five steps. But when an emperor is angry, the whole world will be draped in mourning.

Needless to say, Veston and Melissa felt almost no pressure. They stood still, with Habs standing not far between them. The only one feeling immense pressure was Jeffrey, who was still standing there, gritting his teeth. He could kneel, but not in front of Veston. He could kneel, but not lose his right to challenge Veston. So Jeffrey still wanted to fight back, but when he looked up and saw Habs's eyes, he immediately shuddered and knelt down with a thud. Sweat poured down his forehead like rain, and he said in a trembling voice, "Your Majesty, this...this is between me and my classmate Veston. Please allow me to challenge Veston. Melissa doesn't like Veston at all; she loves me!"

"Oh? Is that so?" Habs repeated his words without a trace of emotion, looking at Melissa.

Feeling the Emperor's gaze, Melissa's graceful body trembled, and she hurriedly said, "Nonsense! I... I like Vesdon." As she spoke, she had Vesdon put the ring on her finger, completing the final step. Then, in front of everyone, she took the initiative and lightly kissed Vesdon's lips.

“Sasa, you…” Jeffrey’s heart was breaking. At that moment, it felt as if thousands of steel needles were piercing his heart, churning and churning inside, making him gasp for breath in pain.

"I do not agree to your challenge to Vesdon. Get out of here; the High Court does not welcome you." Today is Vesdon's joyous day, and Habskoy, having restrained his temper, said coldly.

Under normal circumstances, Jeffrey would never have left the palace alive.

“Your Majesty, I am willing to accept Jeffrey’s challenge.” However, Vesdon said something surprising.

"Hmm?" Habs was slightly surprised. "He's a third-tier, nine-star transcendent." Although he knew that Vesdon had consumed five bottles of Burning Potions in the palace over the past month and had broken through to become a third-tier transcendent, there was still a significant gap between him and Jeffrey.

"Please calm your anger, Your Majesty. This was part of a plan I discussed with Jeffrey." Viston clenched his left fist, placed it diagonally beside his right shoulder, and bowed respectfully. "The reason I didn't inform Your Majesty beforehand was to give you a surprise, and also as a token of my gratitude for Your Majesty's preparations for my wedding and for the nobles' attendance." Hearing this, Jeffrey was overjoyed. He had secretly taken a potion within the past month, breaking through to the fourth rank and awakening his Martial Soul. If Viston agreed to the duel, he could use that as an excuse to accidentally kill Viston! That way, Melissa would ultimately be his!
“Alright.” “In that case, you two can have a friendly spar, neither to determine who is better nor to fight to the death.” “This will liven up the wedding atmosphere.” Seeing that Vesdon was persistent, Habs didn’t say anything more and slowly sat down again.

The music started again, and everyone scrambled to their feet, letting out a long sigh of relief, their faces beaming with the joy of surviving a close call. Then, Pierre directed his men to remove the decorations and long tables from the hall, and everyone stepped aside, creating a large enough circular space.

"Thank you all again for attending my wedding with Melissa," Vesdon said with a beaming smile. "Before we begin our sparring, I'd like to ask you all a question. Do you all know what's most important in this world?"

Everyone was stunned when they heard this.

"Honesty!" Murphy Qutherland shouted.

“Brave!” Judd Vandoria patted his muscular chest and shouted.

“Kindness,” Susanna Melodian murmured. She was the daughter of Okolius, a new noble family from one of the eight great families. Although she was in the same academy as Vesdon and the others, they weren't the same age, as she was too young, only 16 this year. Moreover, she was almost the opposite of Melissa. Melissa was aloof and arrogant, while Susanna was clingy and prone to tears. So, despite her beauty, she didn't receive much attention at the academy.

“Everyone’s right, but also wrong.” With an aura of confidence and arrogance, Vesdon spoke eloquently: “Well, everyone, you must remember, what’s the most important thing when you’re out here?” “It’s getting out.”

As soon as he finished speaking, the entire hall erupted in laughter. Even Habs couldn't help but smile. The tense atmosphere, which Jeffrey had disrupted, instantly became lively and relaxed again. Everyone's faces broke into hearty laughter.

This was originally a joke that Raven, the elder brother, told them when they were marching through heavy snow and were in dire straits during the attack on Bloody Heights. Now, Vesdon copied it and used it, and it worked wonders.

Then Viston walked into the circle, where Jeffrey had been waiting for some time. Neither of them wore armor or drew their weapons, but the killing intent in their eyes was still quite evident. Neither of them was a fool; they naturally understood that Viston's words to the Emperor earlier were merely a face-saving gesture, giving Jeffrey a way out. After all, what fool would arrange something like this at their own wedding?!

"Viston, if you lose, I hope you're a man and keep your promise." Jeffrey was still using clumsy reverse psychology.

Veston didn't speak, but instead, his body radiated a dazzling aura as he calmly stared at Jeffrey.

"Third rank?" Jeffrey was slightly surprised, then laughed heartily. "I thought you had a death wish, daring to accept the challenge in front of His Majesty! So you're just using me as a stepping stone to your fame because you've broken through to the third rank?" "Well, sorry! I! Jeffrey Gustav! The only young genius in the entire capital! I've broken through to the fourth rank!"

As Jeffrey spoke, his body also shone with battle aura, and his martial spirit manifested behind him—a square chessboard! On it were ivory-like pieces—King, Queen, Bishop, Knight, Rook, Pawn…

The crowd gasped in astonishment. Jeffrey was only 32 years old, yet he had already broken through to the fourth rank! Not only in the capital, but even across the entire Middles Continent, this was a truly astonishing achievement! This almost meant that Jeffrey could very well become a sixth-rank powerhouse by the time he turned 60! Sixth rank! That was practically the ceiling of combat power on the Middles Continent!
“Visdon, if you beg for mercy and admit defeat now, and break off your engagement with Melissa, I might spare your life and give you some dignity,” Jeffrey said arrogantly.

"Whether I lose or not, we'll only know after we fight." "Besides, you only said that if I lose, we'll break off the engagement, but you didn't say that if you lose, what will happen?" Vesdon remained very calm.

"Ha!" Jeffrey scoffed as if he'd heard the funniest joke. "I won't lose." "And it's impossible for you to lose."

“That’s not fair.” “Then I won’t compete with you.” Vesdon took a step back.

Jeffrey's expression changed, and the ferocity on his face grew even more violent. "Then you tell me."

"I want you to be my squire for a day, just stand guard outside the door," Vesdon said with a smile.

puff
Upon hearing this, suppressed chuckles rose from the surrounding crowd. Although Vesdon didn't explicitly say which door was outside, even a fool would know that this was a veiled attack, a way of making Jeffrey keep watch outside the bridal chamber.

“You…” Jeffrey’s effeminate face twisted and turned black. “You’re asking for it! How dare you humiliate me?!”

“Sigh, if you’re not willing, then forget it.” Vesdon smiled. “I think it’s time to end this farce.”

Vesdon's indifferent attitude infuriated Jeffrey! But he truly loved Melissa, and for her, he was willing to give up everything! "This isn't a farce!" Jeffrey roared furiously, "We'll do as you say!"

"Scattered Stars, King!"

Jeffrey could no longer contain himself and immediately activated his combat skill! Since both the chessboard and pieces belonged to the wood element, Jeffrey's combat skill was a natural one! With Jeffrey's shout, his martial spirit suddenly emitted a dazzling emerald light, vibrating and spinning rapidly. A chess piece representing the king suddenly flew out, spun in the air, and exploded with a bang, transforming into a majestic figure wearing a crown and royal robes. With a thunderous roar, he shouted, "Kneel!" He pointed, and a thick wooden spear materialized, carrying immense pressure, and thrust towards Viston's head!
Logically speaking, a fourth-tier expert's martial spirit cannot be separated from their body for combat; it can only enhance their strength and power! Yet Jeffrey, having just broken through to the fourth tier, can actually mobilize his martial spirit for combat! This demonstrates the profound foundation he has inherited as a descendant of one of the eight great ducal families of the capital, as well as the high level of his combat skills!

"Armor!"

Viston stood motionless, then roared just as fiercely. The hallmark of a third-tier transcendent being was the ability to condense battle aura armor, so Viston didn't hesitate, summoning his own battle aura armor. Simultaneously, he lightly raised his right arm, and a third-tier magic crystal within silently turned to dust, providing an overwhelming and unstoppable surge of energy! The next moment! The clothes on Viston's right arm and the white glove on his hand suddenly exploded, turning into countless shreds. The entire metal prosthetic limb emitted a brilliant blue light, and the mechanisms in the upper arm area clicked open, unleashing countless fine steel needles that shot directly towards Jeffrey!
……

(End of this chapter)