Chapter 239

Chen Ce only needed to give him a glance.

"Now we can have a proper talk, Your Majesty."

Chen Ce continued forward, slowly walking down the luxurious stairs.

Jarvan III felt a deep unease, but he maintained the dignity befitting a king—even though the concern in his eyes as he looked at Xin Zhao was palpable.

"What do you want to talk to me about?" He tapped the emerald scepter in his hand lightly, his restrained aura failing to make his hunched figure appear any taller.

Chen Ce walked up to him.

"I want to make a deal with you, Your Majesty."

"What deal?" Jarvan III began to break out in a cold sweat.

"If you're interested, let me tell you what I want." Chen Ce placed his hand on the other person's scepter and crushed the emerald embedded in it into powder with a light press.

The symbols of the king, the symbols of power... all vanished in that instant.

"First, I demand that you lift the ban on magic, and from now on, Demacia will no longer ban magic—if you are worried about Black Mage harming the kingdom, you can enact other laws."

"Second..." Chen Ce paused slightly.

Then he slowly said:

"I demand your submission to me; from this day forward, Demacia shall be entirely mine."

"..." Jarvan III stared wide-eyed in disbelief.

This is impossible... How can a king submit to another? How can he hand over his country to someone else?

His lips trembled, and he asked, half fear and half anger, "Since it's a deal... then I want to know what you can give me..."

Upon hearing this, Chen Ce smiled again.

"The condition is that I can let you remain king."

These words silenced Jarvan III once again.

He even wondered... if he had misheard.

After a long while, he put down the scepter with the crushed emeralds and silently leaned back on the throne.

"You are a powerful assassin... You have succeeded. Kill me now."

"So you'd rather die than abolish the ban on magic?" Chen Ce sneered. "How many people have you killed with your so-called righteousness? Leaving aside the innocent magicians, do you know how many ordinary people who weren't magicians at all have been wrongly accused and killed because of your ban on magic? Do you know how much harm the Mageseeker Order has caused to the people of this country by abusing your power?"

"I don't know..." Jarvan III simply closed his eyes.

The death of his friend Barrett flashed through his mind once again... He had to persevere.

Seeing this, Chen Ce didn't bother arguing with him anymore. "Fine, since you insist... I won't kill you. I'll make you accept my conditions—unless you want to watch this country be razed to the ground."

The armies of the three kingdoms are still gathering, so killing the king now would be of little use... This stubborn old man will only choose to compromise when the army is pressing in.

"Hold on to your throne until the final moment arrives."

Chen Ce took three steps back, smiled, and gave a gesture of respect with his hand on his chest.

"If you knew what the Void was... I think you wouldn't blame me. But since you don't, I have no choice but to use some harsh and despicable means to seize your country."

"I know you won't believe me anymore, but I still have to say it—"

"Everything I do is to prevent this world from being destroyed."

Jarvan III kept his eyes tightly shut, looking as if he were free to do as he pleased—he would never submit now.

How could a king yield to an assassin?

Kill me if you want.

Demacia cannot do without its king.

Jarvan III thought to himself.

But how could he have imagined that Chen Ce could destroy not only his decaying body, but also...

The whole of Demacia.

Assassins and generals are not always at odds.

"I have conveyed what I needed to say to you. I hope you are prepared." Chen Ce bowed again, then slowly withdrew from the main hall. "I will remind you today, but next time... I won't."

Jarvan III has still not responded.

Chen Ce closed the main hall door, preparing to go home first...

Let's sleep with Sona for a couple of days first.

Just as he was humming a little tune and about to leave the palace, a violent explosion suddenly rang out.

Immediately afterwards, he glimpsed some chaotic scene through the Raven's Eyes—

Ragged mages swaggered down the street, unleashing their powerful magic on those who had imprisoned and humiliated them.

The magicians' rebellion... has begun?

So fast?

While Chen Ce was surprised, he also caught a glimpse of a strange scene—

Instead of joining the other soldiers to suppress the rebellion, several knights clad in armor strode quickly toward the palace.

They wore no badges that could identify them, and their steps were as light as a group of thieves...

"Oh, here comes the interesting part."

Upon seeing these scenes, Chen Ce couldn't help but laugh out loud.

There seem to be quite a few people who want to kill the king.

Chapter 95 Sylas: K my head?

An unprecedented riot broke out in Great City of Demacia.

All the magician prisons were destroyed... Thousands of "Black Mage" broke free from their cages, and their pent-up anger turned into a barrage of fierce magical attacks.

Their goal was clear--

Royal Palace.

They want to vent their anger on this country and take revenge on those who once oppressed them; their most direct target is only one.

That is the king.

Only by killing the high and mighty king in his palace could these rebellious magicians truly be "redeemed".

The once neat and clean streets have become chaotic, the aura of magic is everywhere, and rows and rows of soldiers have been defeated... Without restrictions, the mages are united, and this force is almost comparable to a well-trained army.

With Great City completely unprepared, no one could stop them.

Just seconds before the rebellion broke out, Grand Marshal Tianna was at home tending to her wounds.

Such a sudden situation... even if she immediately summoned soldiers and donned their armor, it would be difficult to save the emperor in time—her army was on the outskirts of Great City, while the magicians' rebellion originated from within.

She didn't have time to get there in time.

But of course, she would still do her best and get to the palace as quickly as possible.

The hundreds of elite Dauntless Vanguard currently in Great City are now obeying her orders and heading to Great City with her garrison troops.

In just half an hour, she led her troops to recapture several city blocks.

But speaking of the royal palace...

"His Majesty the King is in trouble..."

Tianna looked at the few isolated mages her men had captured and knew that her easy victory was entirely due to the enemy's main force not being there.

The most critical issue is that the number of guards at the royal palace is far less than the number on her side.

The king's main force was fighting scattered mages on the outskirts, while the mages' main force surrounded the palace, which was only defended by scattered guards... This is bad, utterly bad.

Tianna took a deep breath and continued riding her warhorse.

Along the way, she not only commanded the battles but also observed the situation in Great City —and she discovered something else very bad.

The speeches and marches against the Mageseekers did not stop even at this time—in fact, there were more than in the previous days.

These people had already emerged some time ago... like bamboo shoots after a spring rain, appearing without warning and rapidly, giving speeches and marches throughout the Great City and even the entire Demacia, using the sharpest language to criticize the evil of the Mageseekers.

They even said that all the bad things that had happened recently were related to the Mageseekers —and that it was His Majesty the King who gave the Mageseekers their power.

As a result, more and more reactionaries believed that Jarvan III was responsible for all of this—that the high and mighty king had made all of Demacia suspicious of each other and the people miserable.

People lost trust in the Mageseekers, which greatly diminished the king's credibility.

Those who gave speeches and marched...

Tianna withdrew her gaze, feeling a surge of irritation.

She still feels pain from the time Chen Ce threw her not long ago.

She shook her head, then began to worry about the situation at the palace.

Although she is ambitious, given the current situation... both publicly and privately, she does not want the royal family to be overthrown by the Black Mage.

Once the rebellion is quelled, the Mageseekers will definitely be brought to court for their incompetence and causing the riots, which will greatly reduce the Mageseeker Order's power... which is equivalent to weakening her power.

Even more critically, as the Grand Marshal, she was also culpable—why did she allow the magicians to so easily instigate a riot? Why did she fail to protect the palace in time? Why was her efficiency so low?

Her political enemies might even use this opportunity to impeach her... What a hassle.

"Nothing can happen at the royal palace..."

Whether for her own ambition or for the sake of the entire nation, Tianna cannot let the Black Mage succeed.

She kept her eyes glued to those damn speakers across the street.

She was filled with conflicting thoughts and extremely agitated.

But suddenly, she seemed to have thought of something.

A terrible idea that was starting to "rebound" flashed through her mind.

She quickly shook her head, trying to shake the thought out of her mind.

She certainly wouldn't benefit from anything happening at the palace... unless...

Unless...

Those Black Mage...

Really... wearing a crown on one's own head...

"Today's speeches and marches were also just normal incitement."

In the dimly lit study, a high-ranking Mageseekers knelt on one knee and respectfully reported the news to the man at the desk.

After a brief pause, he asked in a low voice, sounding puzzled, "But I don't understand... why would we do something that harms our own interests, Commander?"

"Hmm..." The captain—who was naturally Eldred —gave a perfunctory reply. "You wouldn't understand the ins and outs of this."

"Yes..." The Mageseekers was filled with doubt, but dared not ask any further questions.

Eldred continued writing something. After a moment, he looked up, as if suddenly struck by some newfound interest.

"Alright, Thor... You have to understand, the more chaotic Great City, the more our achievements in suppressing Mageseekers will be highlighted."

"But what does this have to do with protests and demonstrations?" The Mageseekers still didn't understand—he had already considered the simple truth. "The magicians' rebellion can demonstrate our effectiveness, but the public's resentment... it seems that this will only make us unable to stand firm in Great City?"

"Yes, but who gave us this power?"

"Naturally, it's His Majesty the King..."

"If the public is dissatisfied with us, any person with a modicum of intelligence would think about whose fault it is?"

"... and His Majesty the King." The Mageseekers's voice was very low, as if he was afraid that such "outrageous remarks" would bring him death.

"So..." Eldred chuckled, "The magicians rebelled because the Mageseeker Order was too oppressive, but the magicians did indeed threaten the interests of ordinary people, so the Mageseeker Order had to exist... So, who broke the balance?"

"Your Majesty... Your Majesty..." The Mageseekers was already sweating profusely.

"Very good, it seems you've figured it out." Eldred nodded in satisfaction. "After this matter is over, our Mageseeker Order will probably have some powers revoked—returning to its previous routine of demon-hunting."