Chapter 423

Leon watched him silently, waiting for his chance to strike.

"My dear subjects, it is once again the annual Festival of a Thousand Lanterns. On behalf of the Empire's Royal Family, I would like to express my gratitude for your outstanding contributions to the Empire over the past year!"

Outstanding contribution refers to:

Paying taxes you shouldn't have paid, joining the army you shouldn't have joined, doing jobs you shouldn't have done...

Even those who weren't members of the Lionheart Society were well aware of the empire's dark side.

But who dares to tear off this veneer of hypocrisy?

When that high and mighty monarch utters these hypocritical words, regardless of whether they have seen through the true face of the empire, all they can do is echo and applaud.

After a few brief words of thanks, King Cantor was immersed in the cheers of the people.

He only spoke after the applause had gradually subsided.

"Alright, don't let Elizabeth and I disrupt the traditions of the Festival of a Thousand Lanterns. Everyone can continue releasing paper lanterns now!"

Call--

Finally.

Everyone on the street secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

This is the opportunity that Leon and Lionheart Society been waiting for.

At midnight, all five districts of the empire released paper lanterns together. At the same time, members of the Lionheart Society seized the moment and activated the Imprint Stone hidden in the paper lanterns.

Just as the master once told Leon, the world is a huge and precise machine, and you only need to be a good cog in the machine.

But tonight, Leon is unwilling to be a cog in the machine that can be manipulated by others any longer.

He wanted to operate the machine himself, making it run the way he wanted.

Just as the people and King Cantor were admiring the paper lanterns, countless rays of light flickered within them.

The light, like a spark, stretched from the farthest slums all the way to the Upper City, and even the Imperial City.

Even those who are not magicians can tell that the light is not the light from the paper lamp, but some kind of magical light.

This unique and spectacular sight immediately attracted everyone's attention.

"What is that...?"

"Mom ~ Mom ~ It's so beautiful! Look, there are more in places even further away!"

"Is it... the light from the Imprint Stone? But who would put so many Imprint Stone inside a paper lantern?"

"No... Instead of asking 'who can,' it's better to ask 'who can do it.' The newspapers say that these paper lanterns were specially made for the royal family. If this isn't a new activity that the royal family came up with, then whoever did this... is really quite bold."

King Cantor looked up at the paper lanterns twinkling in the sky, his brow furrowed, and asked in a low voice,

"Who made that arrangement? Why didn't they ask me beforehand?"

The guard beside him quickly bowed his head, "Your Majesty, this... this is not the procedure we arranged..."

Cantor paused slightly, "Are those glowing things inside Imprint Stone?"

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Since it wasn't arranged by the royal family themselves, then someone must have deliberately sabotaged it.

Moreover, with so many Imprint Stones... if they are meant to convey a message or display some kind of image, then the entire country will be able to see them.

As the ruler of a nation, Cantor naturally wouldn't allow something that could threaten his monarchical position to happen, and immediately issued an order.

"Pass down the order: smash all the paper lanterns in the sky!"

"Yes, Your Majesty!"

Before the guards could go down to relay the order, Cantor saw a black figure slowly walk in front of Lu Xingzhou.

The Imperial Guard raised their spears and muskets and aimed them at the man.

Cantor stared at the figure, narrowing his eyes. "And who is that...?"

"Stop!"

The captain of the Imperial Guard held a longsword, its blade pointed directly at the man in black.

"Take one more step forward, and you will be killed without mercy!"

The person wearing a black hooded cloak indeed stood still.

But it wasn't because of the captain's threat.

He calmly took out a paper lantern from under his cloak, and amidst the slightly astonished gazes of all the Imperial Guard, slowly turned it on.

Just then, a gentle breeze blew by and knocked off the hood of the cloak.

Black hair swayed in the wind, and a face bearing some scars appeared before everyone.

Someone recognized him immediately.

"Leon... Leon Casmod!! It's Leon!!"

"All units prepare for battle!"

Their tension was to be expected, after all, in some ways, the sense of crisis Leon posed to them was no less than that of any dragon king.

Even when faced with dozens of muskets and hundreds of swords, Leon remained calm and composed.

He held the paper lantern, which held the hopes of Teacher Caroline and the entire Casmod Orphanage, in his hand, and snapped his fingers toward the fuel nozzle.

A faint flash of electricity ignited the alcohol block in the fuel nozzle, and the paper lantern slowly floated into the air.

"Before taking action."

The man who had returned without warning finally spoke.

These few words alone were enough to intimidate the Imperial Guard at the front.

They tightened their grip on their weapons. Although their opponent was the empire's most wanted criminal, and he was now standing unarmed in front of them, none of them dared to be the first to attack.

Because that's... Leon.

"I hope you can read what's coming next carefully, and then decide whether you want to block my way."

His voice was not quiet; King Cantor and Queen Elizabeth, who were on the deck of the landship, could hear it.

The two exchanged a glance. Putting aside how Leon returned to the Empire, let's talk about what exactly was inside that Imprint Stone...

Queen Elizabeth gritted her teeth, paused for a moment, then immediately spoke.

"Move! Seize Leon, that traitor!"

However, even with the Queen's order, the Imperial Guard showed no sign of taking action.

They knew Leon's abilities better than anyone else, after all, they used to be colleagues.

"You!--"

Buzz—

The resonant sound of the Imprint Stone interrupted Elizabeth's words.

Above the empire, tens of thousands of paper lanterns flickered with a faint green light, their lights interacting and drawing each other together.

However, no images or sounds came out of it.

Elizabeth frowned slightly. "Playing coy... Hmph, hurry up and capture him! Don't forget who you're working for!"

However, when the paper lantern that Leon had just released had completely risen into the sky, it was as if a puzzle piece had been completed, and the entire Imprint Stone resonance array began to operate.

The next moment, a huge image appeared in the sky above the empire.

In the picture, there are none other than the King and Queen standing on the landship at this very moment!

"What... what exactly is this guy trying to do..." Cantor gritted his teeth.

Soon, sound came from the screen as well:

"Sharp Blade Plan is going very smoothly. Even without Leon, we can still cooperate with the Dragon Kings as before and easily control this war."

"The Queen is wise."

"All of this is thanks to you, Scott. I heard you were the one who assembled the Knife Trio. You've done the Empire a huge favor."

"Your Queen flatters me. I merely did what I was supposed to do."

"Very good. You have this awareness, which makes you a hundred times better than Casmod. That guy never understood his place, otherwise he wouldn't have ended up being hunted down by my empire."

"Furthermore, many people have protested against the newly issued tax system. Should we make some adjustments?"

"No need. If you want to make a living in this empire, you have to obediently follow the empire's orders and go with those people."

"Cantor is right. As long as we occasionally release some fake dirt on bureaucrats going to jail, those idiots will believe it and think we're on their side. In reality—ha..."

"..."

In places unnoticed by anyone, they vividly portray the ugly faces of those in power.

If Martin hadn't risked recording it...

If Leon hadn't exposed this conspiracy,

If it weren't for the Lionheart Society's meticulous preparations,

These dark and corrupt truths will continue to seep in as the war goes on, until the nation is completely corrupted, becoming like withered branches and rotten wood.

After all the footage finished playing, Leon stood quietly in place.

If he's right, then next—

"Cantor! You incompetent and tyrannical dog emperor!"

"My son joined the Dragon Slayer Army, thinking it would protect his country, and even sacrificed his life on the battlefield. But this war was just a game you planned! Cantor, you owe me my son's life!"

"So in your eyes, we ordinary people are just a bunch of idiots who pay taxes and provide conscripts, right?"

"This country doesn't belong to you Cantor! We won't allow you to trample on this land like this!"

"..."

All the pent-up anger and discontent burst forth at this moment;

The shouts and cries overwhelmed Cantor like a tidal wave;

Those he had once despised, hated, and scorned rebelled against him at this moment.

The crowd surged toward the magnificent and luxurious land-based aircraft.

The lower- Imperial Guard also wavered.

Holding their weapons, they were torn between turning their weapons on their own people and abandoning their already ravaged ruler.

All of this happened so fast and so suddenly that Cantor was somewhat dazed, his mouth agape, unsure of what to say or do.

"Damn it! How dare you sow discord among the people! Leon Casmod, you damned traitor! How dare you spread falsehoods during the Festival of a Thousand Lanterns! Guards, seize him!"

As soon as he finished speaking, three figures landed in front of Leon with a 'whoosh'.

The three had a very solid presence, but one of them had a missing arm.

"We meet again, Casmod."

"I didn't expect it to happen in a place like this," said Gini, the leader of the Knife Trio, coldly.

Leon glanced at the man indifferently, "So, even after learning about Cantor's conspiracy, you still choose to pledge allegiance to him?"

"It doesn't matter to us three brothers who we are loyal to. We just want to kill more Dragon Kings and make the whole world remember our names."

Gini said, "And the Empire just happens to be able to give us that opportunity. So we don't care if it's a planned game or not, we'll do anything as long as it gets us blood."

Leon snorted coldly.

"That's perfect. If you turn back now, I won't be able to avenge my master with a clear conscience."

"So, that old guy really did die after all?" Ginny said dismissively.

"My master is fine, but you three... are about to die."

As Leon spoke these words, an endless killing intent erupted from his body.

Even the Knife Trio, who had slaughtered several dragon kings, couldn't help but feel fear.