Final Lord

Chapter 318 Charlie's Ambition

The Crimson Flame Sword Saint's body trembled violently, as if struck by an invisible bolt of lightning. His pupils, clouded by the scorching flames, suddenly contracted, reflecting King Charles's cold and stern face. The burning greatsword crackled and popped on his back, sparks flying and leaving scorch marks on the carpet in the study.

"The destruction of the Dawn Empire?!"

These six words struck like five thunderbolts, leaving the Crimson Flame Sword Saint's ears ringing. He staggered back two steps, his burning heavy sword dragging a charred trail across the ground, sulfurous wisps of smoke rising from his burned footprints. The old man's battle-scarred hands gripped the stag emblem on his chest tightly, his knuckles turning bluish-white from the force.

"Your Majesty!" The Crimson Flame Sword Saint's voice was hoarse, like sandpaper scraping. "Do you know what you're saying?" His Adam's apple bobbed laboredly, the swallowing motion pulling at the scorched skin on his neck. "I'd rather believe I'm plotting a rebellion than believe you intend to destroy the Dawn Empire!"

The old man suddenly knelt on one knee, his knee slamming onto the marble floor with a dull thud. His trembling finger pointed out the window, where the flag of the Dawn Empire was fluttering above the palace.

"Our Stag Duchy is merely one of two duchies under the Eagle Kingdom!" The Crimson Flame Sword Saint's voice was like a dull knife scraping bone, each word trembling with deep pain. "And the Eagle Kingdom is simply one of the lower-ranking of the sixteen kingdoms under the Dawn Empire!"

His fingertips traced across the void, as if drawing a map of despair: "Beyond the sixteen kingdoms, there lies the Imperial Territory, a vast territory larger than all sixteen kingdoms combined! There stands the Dawn Lord's Royal Guard, every soldier an elite handpicked from the kingdoms!"

As an epic warrior, I am a pillar of the Stag Kingdom. But in the Dawn Empire, I am merely an ordinary member of the epic legion!

Suddenly, the Crimson Flame Sword Saint grabbed the hem of Charlie's cloak, his burned throat squeezing out broken words: "Your Majesty, your words are as absurd as an ant proclaiming it will kill a lion! The Dawn Empire could easily wipe out our Stag Duchy with a single border troop!"
We barely escaped the siege of three duchies, only managing to break through after a near-death experience.

The air in the study seemed to freeze, with only the crackling sound of the Crimson Flame Heavy Sword piercing the silence. The old man's scalded face flickered in the firelight, his cloudy eyes filled with disbelief and deep worry.

"Have you...have you been bewitched by those cultists?" The Crimson Flame Sword Saint's voice suddenly became as soft as a sigh. "This old minister prefers to believe that's the reason."

"No, it wasn't those idiots from the evil cult who bewitched me; I went to them on my own initiative."

King Charlie of the Bucks slowly bent down, the beaded curtain of his gilded crown swaying gently in the candlelight. His slender fingers lightly rested on the back of the Crimson Flame Sword Saint's hand, which was covered with burns and calluses, the touch from his fingertips like stroking the bark of a thousand-year-old tree.

"Crimson Flame," Charlie's voice suddenly softened, like a night breeze rustling the wind chimes on the eaves of a palace, "hadn't you already reached the legendary level?"

The Crimson Flame Sword Saint's body stiffened abruptly, sparks flying from his burning greatsword on his back. He slowly raised his head, his cloudy pupils reflecting Charlie's enigmatic smile: "That's not true, Your Majesty."

Charlie suddenly chuckled, a sound like the cracking of ice. He tightened his grip on the old man's battle-wounded hand slightly: "Don't try to fool me. With your talent, you should have crossed the threshold of legend twenty years ago."

The air in the study seemed to freeze, with only the crackling sound of the Crimson Flame Heavy Sword burning particularly jarring in the silence.

Charlie stood up, his icy blue cloak drawing a chilling arc behind him. He walked to the window, gazing at the flock of crows circling above the capital. "Although the Crimson Flame Sword Saint class doesn't have a legendary path," Charlie's voice suddenly became ethereal, "creating one yourself is by no means difficult. I remember during the Northern Expedition, you already conceived the prototype of the 'Burning Flame Sword Path,' which is definitely capable of touching legendary power."

As he turned, the moonlight bathed his sharply defined profile in a silvery glow. "You're holding back your level, unwilling to break through, isn't it because of the Dawn Empire's suppression?"

The Crimson Flame Sword Saint's breathing suddenly became heavy, and the flames on his back surged. Charlie's words were like sharp swords, precisely piercing the deepest hidden pain in his heart.

"No duchy may have legends, no kingdom may have demigods." Charlie repeated the ironclad rule of the Dawn Empire, each word like a heavy hammer blow to Crimson Flame's heart.
"The rules of the Dawn Empire are absolute rules, showing no mercy." He tapped his fingertips lightly on the window frame. "They possess the most precise man-made wonder, the [Clear Sky Mirror], and no powerful figure within the Dawn Empire can escape their sight."

Charlie suddenly turned around, his gilded boots clicking crisply on the ground: "No strong person can hide under their noses! Once you break through, you'll have to leave the Stag and serve in the Dawn Empire." His voice rose abruptly, "That's the reason the Dawn Empire supports small countries like ours!"

The Crimson Flame Sword Saint's knuckles turned white from the force, and drops of blood seeped from his palms fell onto the gilded floor tiles with a soft "hiss." The old man's scalded face flickered in and out of the firelight, and his cloudy eyes were filled with complex emotions.

"Chiyan Qing," Charlie's voice suddenly softened. He knelt on one knee, looking the old man in the eye. "You should know that after our several reforms, the strength of our Stag Kingdom is vastly different from what it once was."

Charlie's fingertips traced across the air, as if sketching a grand blueprint. "Besides you, Albert is also on the verge of advancement. Howard's 'Iron Wall Battle Technique' is complete, and Vladimir has secretly trained an entire generation of magical artisans who can already manufacture extraordinary tier 6 war armor."

Charlie suddenly grabbed Chi Yan's shoulder, his grip so tight it almost crushed bones: "In terms of the number of legendary figures, we're not much worse off than the Eagle Kingdom! But in terms of army morale and combat effectiveness, we are absolutely superior!"

His eyes burned with the flames of ambition. "The Eagle Kingdom is no longer what it once was. Powerful forces like the Ice Barrier Group and the Griffin Knights have been wiped out, and even the Eagle King's Guard was severely damaged a few years ago!"

A sudden clap of thunder boomed outside the window, and the flash of lightning illuminated Charlie's fanatical face in every detail: "Their sun is setting, ours is rising! We've long had the power to challenge the Eagle Kingdom!"

His voice suddenly shifted, abruptly dropping to a low pitch, like frozen ice: "But we can't move, we can't even reveal our ambitions..."

Charlie abruptly stood up, his gilded cloak fluttering behind him: "Because the order within the Dawn Empire is established by the Dawn Empire itself, and no one can disobey it!"

His voice suddenly choked with emotion, "Is this fair to our Buck Principality?"

The last sentence struck the silent study like a hammer blow, making the crystal chandelier jingle.

The Crimson Flame Sword Saint's pupils contracted sharply as he saw wisps of dark mist rising from the strands of hair beneath Charles's gilded crown.
“I know my idea is crazy. No one in the entire duchy would agree with me or dare to cooperate with me to overthrow Dawn. That’s why I approached them. Only they have the same courage as me!”

(End of this chapter)