Witch, Fireball and Steam Evil God

Chapter 269 The Mystery of the Golden King

At noon, a bird's cry pierced the sky above Riverwood. The townspeople came out into the street with joy. Some of them had prepared fruit baskets and some dried meat products, which they spread out on the ground, waiting for the golden bird in the sky to descend.

The energy-storing crystal sound-emitting device in the town square is broadcasting today's announcement.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I'm your good friend Rowena, welcome to today's Voice of the Empire..."

This is a new change brought about by the outbreak of the disaster. Almost every border city of the empire has installed such energy-storing crystal sound-emitting devices, and broadcasts from the capital can be heard every day at noon. There are three resident announcers: Princess Sophia of the empire, scholar Rowena, and Imperial Knight Commander Beyond. Among them, Rowena, due to her lively personality, has become the most popular announcer among the residents of the empire.

The Voice of the Empire broadcast news from the Eastern Front and the Western Continent.

In a meeting earlier today, the Deep Sea Council reached a consensus, and Diplomat Richard delivered a public speech expressing a firm stance in the alliance with the Empire.

Although the voices of the Empire and Ophira have become niche now, the residents of the Empire feel much more at ease when they hear that someone is fighting alongside them in a place they don't know.

As the mythical bird gently landed in the center square of Riverwood, the townspeople came forward to greet it, affectionately stroking Miss Chloe's feathers.

"Brother Ethan!"

The loud, energetic greeting made way for the owner of the voice. A man in black armor, carrying an electromagnetic crossbow on his back, strode through the crowd to meet Ethan and gave him a warm hug.

"How's it going?"

“They’ve quieted down a lot lately, but I think they’re brewing something big in Sivarantin.”

Hagrid said.

In fact, after the failed general offensive two months ago, the Golden King's army has not crossed the border again. Everything has become quiet, but no one dares to let their guard down. Everyone knows that this is the calm before the storm. Neither the Empire nor the Western Continent is in a good situation. Their range of activities has become quite limited. Even when traveling between cities in the Empire, they often need to rely on the teleportation arrays set up by the Astronomical Guild.

Once exposed to gold radiation for an extended period, one will be assimilated by the consciousness of the King of Gold.

Radiation is also a concept mentioned in the Voice of the Empire radio program; it is through this method that he subjugates everyone to his will.

"That princess of the fallen kingdom mentioned something the Sivarantin people called a 'Hunter,' saying it was three or four stories tall and made entirely of a special material, and that no known weapon could penetrate its defenses."

Captain Hagrid expressed his slight concern.

The entire squad responsible for escorting the princess to safety was wiped out. Among them were many followers of the Father of War. They were all handpicked suicide squad members who had successfully completed their mission in Sivarantin, but were pursued by the "Jackals" during their retreat.

They couldn't hold on for very long.

Perhaps when the next war comes, Riverwood will no longer be greeted by humans wearing golden masks, but by monsters made entirely of gold.

They are produced in astonishing numbers, continuously on the assembly line in the Sivarantin factory.

Perhaps it's time for them to upgrade their equipment.

"Where is the princess now?"

"I'm resting at the Baron's house. I ate something earlier and then slept until now."

Hagrid had to admit that the princess of the fallen kingdom was surprisingly strong. He had thought that a girl of this age would be depressed after such a tragedy, but the child ate and drank as usual, had an unusually good appetite, and fell asleep as soon as she finished eating, as if she had made the baron’s manor her own home.

"Come on, Baron Gretchen has been waiting for you for a long time. We haven't seen each other in so long, let's find a place to have a few drinks tonight!"

Upon hearing this, Ethan told Miss Chloe to stay there. The little hen had been waiting for Ethan to speak, and before he finished speaking, she plunged her head into the fruit basket brought by the townspeople, making a contented "clucking" sound.

Compared to the enthusiastic townspeople, Baron Gretchen was anxiously waiting on the path leading to the manor, and Ethan and Hagrid greeted him the moment they arrived.

The pressure from the "Jackal" was much greater than that from Hagrid.

According to the princess, there are at least a hundred "hunters" in the border city of Sivarandin alone. In addition to these enormous creatures that look like spiders, the scholars sent by the Golden King are studying a flying dragon that can drop golden masks to the ground.

A moment later, the Baron led Ethan upstairs and knocked on the door of a guest room.

The princess was already awake. She was wrapped in a blanket and lying in bed, with only her bare feet showing. The first thing she did upon waking was to ask the manor's maid to make her a cup of lemon tea, and she also asked for a plate of fruit and snacks. When the group entered, she was enjoying the food with her eyes half-closed.

Baron Gretchen's face stiffened, and he shook his head helplessly. He found it hard to believe that this was a refugee.

The girl's gaze swept over the familiar faces of Gladys and Hagrid, finally settling on Ethan. After looking him up and down for a moment, she asked in a suspicious tone, "You're the Ethan they're talking about?"

A neatly dressed young man made a good first impression, but that was all. He was nothing like the legendary Ethan!
She had heard many rumors about Ethan back in Sivarantin.

Legend has it that he is bathed in eternal light and has a thousand faces, always appearing as you imagine. However, his true form is as majestic as the sun, making him an equal to the ancient gods. Even the followers of evil gods hold him in high regard.

This includes the followers of the Father of War who escorted her from Sivarantin, who had always been optimistic about the war.

—Everything will be fine as long as Ethan launches an attack.

They always have this phrase on their lips.

But the young man in front of him looked far too "thin and weak," and the mercenaries in the adventurers' guild all seemed much stronger than him.

"I am Ethan."

“I am Vivian Garlog, Princess of Sivarandin.”

She rolled out of bed, gently lifting her skirt with both hands, and gave Ethan a standard courtly etiquette. She didn't notice the light cream smeared on the corner of her mouth, which gave Ethan and the others a rather strange feeling.

“I heard from the Baron that you have something to give me.”

"right here."

A wand inlaid with silver patterns slid into her palm. She held the wand in her hand and tapped it lightly towards the bedside table. The scattered magical dust condensed into a letter, which slowly floated towards Ethan.

This is a letter written by Rattlesnake himself.

A group of followers of Caesaros and Sincaros has infiltrated the capital of Sivarandin. Due to the presence of the Golden Radiation, only followers of the Old Gods are qualified to undertake the task of infiltrating and investigating.

The letter mentioned that the Golden King had never appeared in Sivarantin, and it was possible that he had never personally descended from the Golden Kingdom. The Council of Six was responsible for maintaining the Golden King's rule. The Council originally had seven members, but after Cynthia's "defection," only six remained.

Sivarantin is their strategic center. They are building some kind of unknown energy-generating device in the capital. Rattlesnake speculates in a letter that once the device is completed, it will be the day that Sivarantin launches a general offensive against the Empire. They have already deployed a large number of war weapons in various towns, things that they have never seen before.

They called the developers of these weapons "scholars," who were composed of the original inhabitants of the Golden Kingdom and many artisans from Sivarantin.

This escape team was composed of a small group of "scholars".

Furthermore, the experiment with the shadow lamp is progressing smoothly, just as Ethan had guessed, the energy of the Old Gods has a natural inhibitory effect on the will of the Golden King.

This letter confirmed many of Ethan's suspicions.

It now appears that the Golden King played a crucial role in the Dark War. Cynthia speculates that the echoes of the "ancestors" that Mekka-Delin heard in the magic network, as well as the guidance of the "future" that Kadra observed, may all be the work of the guild.

For some unknown purpose, they hoped to isolate the Old Gods from this world.

In addition to the above, Rattlesnake also hand-drew a map of the capital city of Sivarantin for Ethan.

If he's plotting an assassination or something similar, this map might be helpful. An assassination plot...

Ethan glanced out the window; he had considered the plan.

The golden curtain surrounding Riverwood became an obstacle to his visit to Sivarantin.

"World Jammer".

This is the name provided by Cynthia.

The Golden King has conquered many planes and possesses many artifacts that defy common sense, among which the World Disruptor is one.

The golden curtain is the result of the plane being altered; those shrouded within it will never be able to reach the places they wish to go.

Now these golden curtains, like birdcages, enclose the entire empire.

Ethan tried to move forward through the golden curtain, but no matter how long he went, the distance between him and his destination would not shorten.

This belongs to a certain level of power, and the bell that resounded through the sky when the Golden King descended was one of his many divine artifacts. That bell would spread the Golden King's will. Generally speaking, the conquest wars experienced by the Golden Kingdom would not last more than three days. After three days, even the most determined individuals would eventually succumb to his will.

Cynthia was also unable to predict the course of this war, as it touched upon a blind spot in her knowledge.

Never before in past wars has a situation required the deployment of a six-member council and the construction of a strategic center on the surface.

In the past three months, the King of Gold has never appeared.

After leaving the manor, Ethan once again arrived on the outskirts of Riverwood. As he walked out of the cemetery, a golden curtain blocked his way.

He only needed to look up to see the distant, faintly visible aerial fortress through the curtain.

He reached out and touched the illusory curtain.

Returning to Riverwood after three months, Ethan had not come away empty-handed during his long training.

He is confronting one of the world's underlying mechanisms, and many others.

Fire element corresponds to purification, ice element to reconstruction, electric element to perception, and wind element with formatting capabilities...

Theoretically speaking, these are all fundamental mechanisms of this world, which is probably why the Golden King is unwilling to come to the surface and confront him directly.

The more power one possesses, the more afraid one becomes of being cut by the wind element.

"Are you thinking about me?"

A lively voice came from Ethan's feet.

The Wind Elemental is always the most unconventional one. She is used to being carefree and doesn't seem to feel any tension even after the Golden King descends. Being with the Wind Elemental always makes Ethan feel much happier. The only problem is that this blue-haired girl always appears in unexpected ways.

Just like now.

Suddenly, a head popped out of the ground beneath our feet, its head and neck buried in the mud, its long, green hair resembling an oversized potato.

The green potato tilted its head back, gazing up at Ethan with its expressionless face.

"What are you doing again?"

Is this girl an air element or an earth element?

"I'm playing the role of a gopher, I'm gopher number one."

"I am Groundhog Number Two."

Another yellow potato sprouted from the soil. She looked even younger than the Wind Elemental, and her voice was full of energy. She reported to Ethan in a very friendly manner, "Sir, the Gopher Squad is exploring for treasure in Riverwood!"

"Treasure? What treasure is here?"

"do not know!"

The little yellow potato was eager to try, thinking, "It's precisely because we don't know what it is that it's more interesting!"

This must be the friend that Wind Element mentioned. Since returning to the academy, Wind Element has often gone out to play with friends. Sometimes she can't be seen for several days in a row unless she is summoned by elemental magic.

Those who are associated with the wind element must also be associated with the natural element, right?

"Are you an earth elemental?"

Ethan asked curiously.

"Please call me Groundhog Number Two!"

Yellow Potato corrected, "When you're out and about, you should use your official title!"

"Okay, Gopher Two, have fun."

"Thank you!"

The little yellow potato said boldly, "According to the laws of nature, if you find a gopher in the field, you will have good luck."

"But this isn't farmland."

Ethan looked around.

It wasn't farmland at all; behind it was a cemetery, which was hardly an auspicious place.

"None of that matters. What matters is that I've been observing you for several days now, and it seems like you've walked into a dead end."

"dead end?"

"You are too focused on your identity as an 'Elemental Shaper' and have overlooked the truth right in front of you."

"Tell me more about it."

Ethan's intuition told him that the little yellow potato was conveying an important message.

"Why should I tell you?"

"Because I can bury a treasure in the town for you to dig up. I can assure you that the treasure I bury is unique and there is no other like it in the whole world."

The little yellow potato fell into deep thought, and after a moment, she felt that this was a good deal.

"Then... it's a deal!"

She paused, then said, "If I were you, I would think carefully about the process of becoming an element. Did the natural elements grant you power, or did you grant the elements power?"

(End of this chapter)