Throne of the North.

Chapter 750 The Flames of Imperial Revenge

The nobles had already planned ahead and set three goals at different levels.

Their aim was to avenge the emperor, to instill reverence for the empire in the world, to curb the arrogance of the Dawn Church, to promote the faith of light, and also…

Considering that the Lord of Dawn is gradually awakening, they must ensure that the Church of Light becomes the richest place of faith on the continent of Norris, overshadowing the Church of Dawn, before the Lord awakens.

The three targets were Pope Solarion and four cardinals. The reason there were four cardinals was that the nobles had considered that they might not be able to kill Pope Solarion. However, killing the four cardinals and the large number of clergy killed in the process would be enough to quell the empire's erupting volcano, so as not to lose face.

Without the four cardinals and the cardinals who died in recent years, even the Papacy would decline for many years, and the Church of Light would naturally rise to prominence.

The empire is a huge ship, and now the nobles are discussing the overall interests of the empire. Surprisingly, not many nobles are mixing their own interests with the discussion.

“We cannot use the army, and killing the cardinal would require a powerful superhuman team.”

“Every one of them in red possesses legendary power. Under the blessing of the gods, they may unleash divine magic that surpasses that of mortals.”

"We need the power of magic, we need to form a mage corps to participate in the hunt for the Red Robes."

"We will not start a war, but we need to prevent the Dawn Church from undermining the Treaty of Nantes in a desperate attempt to destroy it."

"The extraordinary legion of the Grand Duke Freming's family is in the south. The empire still needs a sharp blade."

“Aatrox can become His Majesty’s sharpest weapon to slay the priests of Dawn.”

The last sentence comes from the Earl of Clayton.

"The Black Swan assassins dared to assassinate Princess Hilde in the province of Calais. This is a provocation against the Empire and also against the Clayton family. The Clayton family will absolutely not allow the Dawn Church to escape without paying a price."

Lord Clayton looked up and continued:

“Aatrox killed two candidates for the Holy Son of Dawn, and His Majesty Columbus III granted him his freedom. He has every reason to be the vanguard of revenge and to crush Dawn’s hegemony for the Empire.”

Lord Clayton hoped that Aatrox would become the leader of this extraordinary revenge. The nobles thought about it and agreed. They couldn't think of any other suitable candidate. Aatrox Clayton, that killer, was indeed the most suitable for this war belonging to the extraordinary.

However, the emperor did not agree.

"We have given Grand Duke Freming orders for the Imperial Army in the south to assemble in the province of Carlos to deter the Dawn Church. At the same time, Brutus, the successor of Grand Duke Rodrigo, will become the leader of the Imperial Mage Corps and lead the mages to provide support at any time."

"I also need knights to form a cavalry force that can traverse the southern lands, making it impossible for the Dawn Church to pursue or surround them. They will become the main force for revenge."

“Every nobleman must send knights to avenge the emperor of the empire and to avenge Hilder; it is their honor.”

“I hope that Grand Duke Meyers’ Nightmare Knight will become the leader of this cavalry.”

Volvo looked at Archduke Meyers, then his gaze fell on Archduke Russell.

"The Black Swan assassins have instilled panic in the nobility of the Empire. I do not wish to hear any news of the Black Swan assassins entering the Empire. At the same time, I once again deeply mourn the passing of the previous Grand Duke Russell. The Empire has never forgotten his merits, nor has it forgotten his contributions to the Empire and the hatred he carried."

"Grand Duke Russell, I grant your followers the authority to enter and exit the Empire and to hunt down the Black Swan assassins at any cost. I entrust this matter to you for the safety of all the nobles of the Empire."

"Finally, as you gentlemen have said, we need a powerful superhuman team. Earl Clayton, Aatrox will become the empire's sharpest blade. I hope this blade will pierce the heart of the Dawn Church, making them bear the empire's wrath and letting the whole world see what the price of opposing the empire is."

“But… this is revenge, revenge for His Majesty the Emperor. Therefore, I will issue an order to make Freud Columbus the leader of the revenge for His Majesty Columbus III.”

“I am sorry, but as the emperor, I cannot personally plunge a blade into the heart of the Pope of Dawn. However, as the son of His Majesty Columbus III, Freud is qualified to do this in my place. I also believe that the most valiant member of the royal family is capable of avenging our father and His Majesty Emperor Columbus III of the Empire.”

The dukes exchanged glances, and Meyers stepped forward, bowed, and said:

"As you wish, Your Majesty."

All three Grand Dukes stepped forward. The Emperor's order was perfectly justified. The four Grand Dukes were the leaders in four directions, each responsible for one aspect. The key was in the end.

Revenge requires powerful and sharp forces, and avenging the emperor is a matter for the entire empire, or rather, a matter for the royal family. It is understandable that the emperor would involve Freud.

The crucial point is that Floyd could not refuse.

This was both an order from the emperor and a responsibility for him, as a member of the royal family, to lead the nobility in avenging his emperor father.

The nobles all understood why Volvo did this.

During this time, Freud remained in the capital city, causing the emperor a lot of trouble. With him staying in the capital, many people secretly supported him, using Freud to challenge the emperor.

Now, the emperor's goal is simple: to get Freud out of the capital.

Deep down, Emperor Volvo did not believe that the Empire could take revenge to the point of killing Pope Dawn. If they tried to kill the Pope and failed, Freud's prestige would naturally decline once again.

Volvo was already adept at political power struggles, and now that he had become the emperor, the monarch to whom the nobles were loyal, his advantage was enormous. No matter how unwilling Freud was, he could only accept the order.

In this meeting, dubbed Revenge, the Empire determined its next political direction.

Mages were dispatched, and large numbers of combat mages headed south. After enjoying the benefits that wealth and logistical resources brought to the war, Grand Duke Freming was also actively sending the resources gathered by the empire to the south to prepare for the counterattack of the Dawn Church.

Within the empire, almost every fifth-rank noble dispatched their bloodline knights to assemble in the imperial capital.

Each knight represents a noble family. There are no commoners in this special cavalry. They will represent their fathers and their lords, and go south to avenge the esteemed Emperor Flor, the High Pope of Light, and His Majesty Columbus III. This is how nobles demonstrate their loyalty to the emperor. A cavalry composed purely of nobles cannot be called an army.

After all, there's no reason for direct descendants of nobles to become ordinary soldiers. The reason why not all nobles sent knights is also simple: many nobles in the empire have children who haven't grown up yet, or don't have children at all. They can only send their nephews. If they don't even have nephews, then they don't need to send men, but rather provide manpower.

For example, in the Northwind Province, after receiving the Emperor's order, Ryan subtly expressed his regret over the death of Emperor Columbus III and his anger towards the Dawn Church. He concluded by stating that his offspring had not yet been born, and that there was no one in the Ryan Baron family who could represent the family in battle, hoping to gain the Emperor's understanding.

Meanwhile, Ryan responded that he would be responsible for the weapons and equipment of a large portion of the Avengers' noble cavalry. Northwind Province had no shortage of iron ore, and the Frozen Territory had stored up a considerable number of longswords in recent times, so forging knight's longswords would not take much time.

Armor is different, so Ryan didn't mention much armor. For ordinary knights, having it is enough, and it doesn't matter if it doesn't fit. But for knights who are either sons or nephews of nobles, knight armor is more often custom-made.

They either provided manpower or resources, and Baron Ryan provided a large amount of weaponry, making him impeccable in this regard.

In less than half a month, the empire's most magnificent army was born. The snow-white banners seemed to be mourning the dead emperor, while the golden lines woven into the flowers of heaven on the banners highlighted the empire's glory and nobility.

Hermione Meyers, one of the sons of Grand Duke Meyers, was originally at the peak of the Saint Realm. However, in order to seek revenge, Grand Duke Meyers used the Divine Bone Potion to elevate her to the Legendary Realm. Only a Legendary Realm member is qualified to lead this noble cavalry.

Each noble knight wore a white and gold silk scarf tied around his shoulder, representing his status and this lofty goal. The emperor promised them that if they returned alive, they would be given a good position in the imperial army.

On the other hand, amidst the flames of this revenge, the only one who was dissatisfied was Freud.

As the most powerful and important force in the flames of imperial revenge, Freud was accompanied by only twenty-three people.

Of the twenty-three, five were legendary figures, and the remaining eighteen were all Saints.

The five legends are Marquis Carlos Floyd Columbus, the eldest son of the dragon knight Aatrox Clayton, the legendary mage worshipper Stuart the Lightherd, the follower of Grand Duke Meyers, the Witcher Rosalind, and Thor Hewitt, son of Count Hewitt from the Volga province.

The eighteen Saints came from four Grand Dukes and numerous nobles. It could be said that the names of these people in this group represented the names of the most powerful nobles in the empire.

Compared to other teams, these 23 people had a high degree of freedom, with everything coordinated by Floyd.

However, this Marquis Carlos had no such intentions.

Looking back at the capital city with resentment, Freud didn't want to leave, but he had no choice.

"We will head south for revenge, to kill the Pope and the Cardinal of the Dawn Church. What are your thoughts?"

Even Freud did not have absolute authority or dominion over the remaining twenty-two people. They were of very high status, and some of them, if they inherited the title, would be no less powerful than he was now the Marquis of Carlos.

"This is a very simple matter."

Aatrox's eyes held a dark red, malevolent glint.

"Find them, kill them."

"That's easy to say, but the Dawn Church should already know about the Empire's revenge. They won't sit idly by. The cardinals are all on the Holy Mountain. We can't possibly reach the Holy Mountain."

Saul Hewitt began, saying that he wasn't the eldest son, but his legendary strength meant he didn't really need that status to be on equal footing with others.

"We won't have a chance to make a move in the short term."

Stuart began, saying that as a 'Shepherd of Light,' he was a long-time nemesis of the Dawn Church and was very familiar with its methods.

"Now we just need to wait, wait for that Meyers to lead the noble cavalry to slaughter the clergy of the Papacy and force the cardinals on the Holy Mountain out, then we will have a chance."

"So, Your Excellency, all we need to do now is find a place and wait."

Freud snorted coldly; he disliked the title. He flicked his sleeve and headed toward the Kingdom of Nantes.

Located in the heart of the southern lands, it boasts excellent transportation links. Most importantly, the King of Nantes has a good relationship with the Empire and is an ally against the Dawn Church. During the Northern War, the Kingdom of Nantes even managed to send some supplies to the Empire, although the Emperor and nobles looked down on it. This, however, represented the King's attitude.

The group consisted of at least twenty-three members of the Holy Land, who moved very quickly and silently. This team was capable of wiping out the royal cities of any kingdom except the Empire and the Papacy.

However, just as Thor said, their movements wouldn't be too noticeable, and no one would be able to detect them.

The real commotion came from the noble cavalry force that numbered over three thousand.

They were so magnificent that their warhorses galloping across the land were a beautiful sight to behold. Hermione Meyers led this most prestigious army on the continent of Norris, traversing noble territories and approaching the Kingdom of Nantes.

This team was the only one that the Dawn Church could capture.

On the holy mountain, the highest church had already been discussing countermeasures on the very day that imperial cavalry marched south.

"The Flor Empire shamelessly violated the Treaty of the Kingdom of Nantes, which was signed by the public. This is the beginning of a war, and they started it!"

"Your Holiness, start a war! The Empire has violated the Treaty of the Kingdom of Nantes."

The bishops and archbishops were indignant and furious, believing that imperial priority had broken the rules.

"That army has no soldiers, only nobles, so it cannot be considered an army. However, it is inevitable that the empire will seek revenge on us, and we don't need to try to make them give up in this regard."

"What I care about more is..."

Pope Solarion looked at the clergy before him.

"Which one of you actually killed Hilde Enrique?!"

(End of this chapter)