Hero of Darkness

Chapter 1270: Visiting Imperial Palace

3 Days Later… Valius Nox Luvian was enthroned as the new Emperor of the Imperial Faction.

A grand coronation ceremony was held, but to many, it vastly paled in comparison to that of Kahn since no one saw any surprising elements, and neither was it as emotional as the funeral of Emperor Oedipus, where people felt genuine loss.

A lot of it stemmed from the fact that Valius had notoriously ousted and killed even those heirs who had officially given up on the succession war. On top of it, his name was fairly unknown to people who had no direct ties to the Imperial Faction.

And 4 days later, after his coronation… an envoy of the Cult of Darkborne visited the Imperial Palace.

This was a delegation force where Kahn himself appeared.

The delegation was properly escorted with respect, following the traditional etiquette.

And finally, in the presence of all the important key figures of the Imperial Faction, a meeting was arranged in the Imperial Palace, where the future relationship between the Cult of Darkborne and the Imperial Faction, as well as matters regarding the Great War, were to be discussed.

Kahn and his group, without the presence of Ronin, Vildred, Argos, Lucian, Morrigan, and Jeoseung Saja, had come to handle this important event, to simply not put any unnecessary pressure on their future allies out of common courtesy.

Inside the perimeters of the Imperial Palace that spanned over 3 kilometers, all of them were heavily nerfed.

Due to various contingencies and legendary rank formations, even saints had their powers restricted to Semi-Saint rank no matter how strong their original strength was.

It was to both protect the royal family and also prevent the destruction of the imperial palace during in battle our a coup de tat to preserve their historical monuments, such as statues and portraits of the previous emperors.

Among the Imperial forces, were two 7th-stage saints present here, including Valius, who was a beginner 7th-stage saint and the other one was an intermediate 7th-stage saint who served as the captain of the royal guards.

This man was absent when Valius killed Oedipus in cold blood. But now, he acted as the defensive shield for their faction.

But both of them knew that even if they banded against Kahn, whether they were restricted to the Semi-Saint rank or not… they’d still lose after everything they witnessed themselves during his coronation.

Kahn and his group was then offered seats right along with the members of the royal family in the imperial thone hall.

Here, Kahn was also introduced to the other two princes and the 2 princesses.

Out of the 13 children, only 5 now lived after the succession war ended.

And the noble families who previously supported the deceased heirs, now had sworn their alligence to the surviving ones.

The new emperor obviously had the most support but the other princes also had big noble families as backers just to keep the emperor’s faction in check.

This was a standard practice in their history. However, there was one more survivor who shared the royal blood but did not have direct lineage of Oedipus.

The daughter of the former Crown Prince, Lady Alcina Deux Luvian.

Valius then soon discussing various things about future collaborations with the cult and imperial faction.

But as soon as the topic shifted to the Great War… his tone would change.

“I apologize to be blunt but as the leader of the Imperial Faction, I have a great responsibility towards the well being and the future prosperity of my subjects.

If we are to partake in the war, the loss of lives will be too much for us to even recover in coming decades.” spoke Valius as if indicating that he wanted some sort of assurance.

“Then what do you wish to ask in return?

Is it resources or money just for you to enter the alliance properly?” asked Kahn with a straight but judgmental face.

War was a bottomless hole where no matter how much money and resources you put in, it would only have any worth until you win and acquire immense wealth and resources in return, primarily from your fallen enemies.

And Kahn, too, had no idealistic expectations from the imperial faction either.

Armies did not feed themselves on emotions or ideals alone. The equipment was not made out of thin air, and the loss of lives incurred would impact the fate of the families left behind.

[These cunts already agreed to join hands with us under my leadership in front of the whole empire but as soon as we entered closed quarters, they’re demanding profits in return just for joining the war.

I’ll listen to him for now.] thought Kahn.

[You will have a make a decisive decision right at the moment, kid.

I know that look. It reeks of insatiable greed and yearns for dominance. Because I too have witnessed it among my vassals, fellow emperors and even my descendants.

No matter what you do… these kind of people will never stop leeching off stuff from you.

So if you cave in to their demands even once, it will enter a repeating cycle again and again.] spoke Rathnaar as he imparted his wisdom based on his experience as the first emperor of the Rakos Empire.

Kahn kept on listening to the new emperor’s reasoning and then their demands.

It involved asking for share of the loot from the battlefield based on contribution, aid for fallen soldiers and their families and various benefits for the people of the Imperial Factions based on their military achievements.

On paper, it felt a reasonable and fair deal as the people of the imperial faction would be risking their lives on the battlefield too.

It was until that point… Kahn held out an understanding stance for the emperor’s demands. And he could forsee that their meeting would take an unpleasant turn soon.

And just as he thought… everything changed after the topic of the conversation diverted in a different direction.

“There is one final request that we all hope you could grant us.” spoke Valius as his tone turned heavy.

“Speak your mind, your majesty.” said Kahn.

“How about entangling the relationship between the Cult of Darkborne and the Imperial Family not just by mutual benefits but also…” said Valius as he took a long pause and spoke his mind.

“Through Blood Ties.”