Tower of Heaven

The coronation was already scheduled.

The Dark Cult only wanted the Empire of Ataraxia for the Sacred Chains, sure, but they still had to take care of the nation. The Third Prince had to ascend to the throne to give the people peace of mind.

When they had peace of mind, they would be less curious about what was happening under their noses. In the peace, they would be unaware that they were only days away from becoming sacrifices to the Great Demon God.

In three days, the Third Prince would rise to the throne and become the Emperor. The Second Prince would be executed, and the empire would regain its majesty.

That was the narrative they pushed, but how could it be true?

With the empire under their total control, they could take all the time they needed to torture the Emperor and learn the location of the Sacred Chains. Everything else could progress from there.

'However, this nation cannot be ruined until we have taken the Sacred Chains.'

There wasn't space for even the smallest variable.

"Kuran, is everything progressing smoothly?"

The Khan that Atlas saw was a debaucherous man with no morals or mind. That was indeed a part of his personality, but if that was all he was, he could have never risen to become a leader of the Dark Cult.

"Yes, Lord, everything is progressing according to plan. The Emperor is more stubborn than we expected, but we have sent someone to retrieve the Soul-Searching Leech. We will find the treasure soon."

The Khan nodded, pleased with the answer.

"Good. Leave the Emperor alone and allow him to lose his mind before you return. If you are too heavy, he will become numb before he says anything."

The man who gave the report bowed on one knee.

"We will follow your orders."

As he stood up to spread his Lord's orders to those involved, the Khan stopped him.

"By the way… I heard there was a resistance force?"

The man turned around with a grin on his face.

"There 'was' a resistance force. Someone spread news of the Third Prince's corruption and some people decided to act against us, but that is the extent of it. They will be herded and quelled today alone."

The Khan grinned as well.

"Hahaha…"

This was the fun thing about mortals.

'No matter how weak they are, they love to struggle.'

And those struggles only served as fuel. Their negative energy perfectly prepared the environment for the Demon God's descent.

'Rebel more. Rebel and then die, have your heads hung from the square for your families to see. Breed resentment and breed hatred. When the Demon God arrives, you will all enter his embrace and become free of any and all things.'

If not, then they could just die.

Regardless of what anyone thought, the Empire of Ataraxia already belonged to the Dark Cult.

There wasn't a single soul who could escape from their grasp.

***

It happened just as the Khan said.

There was a rebellion. Countless commoners came together, understanding that the new regime was going to destroy the country.

They did everything they possibly could to acquire weapons and charge the palace, but they could not touch a single hair on a knight's head. Fifty people were slaughtered. Their blood was left to dry on the street, and their heads were hung all around the capital as a warning to anyone who dared to follow in their footsteps.

In fact, they were part of a larger resistance force, but even they could not move.

Even if they got past the knights…

'There. Done.'

Klyde Von Ataraxia grinned to himself as he wiped his hands clean.

'That should be everyone, but what's the point of all of this? They would have listened to me even without it.'

He didn't quite understand, but he was just following the Dark Cult's orders.

Everything started to go right for him once he met them. He was finally reaching the goals he set for himself.

'The goals…I set for myself?'

Did he have a goal to take the throne?

Well, it wasn't as if it mattered.

At this moment, he had successfully corrupted the Knight King. He was the most difficult of them to take under control and the strongest. The rest of the nobles, vassals, and other high authorities were all under the influence of the seed of darkness already.

'Even the knights were hit. I wonder how they did that…'

The Dark Cult truly had a broad reach and strong power. They were a backer that could take the Empire of Ataraxia to new heights.

It only took three days for the entire kingdom to come under their control. In total, from the time the Third Prince was first corrupted, it had been only two weeks.

Such grand power was what led to the current situation. The Third Prince's unconscious mind questioned whether he was moving in the right direction, but it was already too late for such thoughts.

The Third Prince was gone. The version of him that remained could not see the Dark Cult negatively.

No, for even he wished for the Dark God's descent. Even he saw it as salvation rather than catastrophe.

"Is everything prepared?"

Three days had passed. The Third Prince's new attendant bowed his head and responded.

"Yes, Your Majesty. Everybody is waiting for you."

The Third Prince nodded. The man's response made his body tingle.

'An Emperor? Me?'

He couldn't believe it. But, when he left the palace and saw the stage that had been prepared for him, when he saw all the ministers and vassals there smiling at him and all of the citizens of the capital below, it settled in.

This was going to be his nation.

Those ministers, those citizens, this land…

'...all of it will be my property.'

He smiled widely as he walked onto the stage. Despite being constructed on short notice, it was made from pure marble and shimmered in the sunlight.

"Today, we introduce you to our new Emperor, Klyde Von Ataraxia!"

The High Priest's voice attracted everyone's attention. The Empire did have its own religion, but it had already been destroyed and replaced by the doctrine of the Dark Cult. Even the High Priest was no more than a pawn.

He called Klyde over, having him stand in front of the people.

"Klyde Von Ataraxia, stand before our God and vow that you will do everything in your power to better the empire, never betraying its people!"

As the Emperor, he was required to take several vows that put him in service to the nation. Klyde answered them all the same way.

"I solemnly swear to uphold the beliefs of our Empire!"

He wasn't lying, was he?

No matter what happened, it would be to the Empire's benefit. That was the kind of belief in his own mind.

The vows ended in a round of cheers from the crowd as the Royal Scepter was brought forth. Klyde took a knee and outstretched his hands as he was granted the staff that represented royalty.

And, amidst the gazes of thousands, he lowered his head as the crown was brought out.

Beneath the kind smiles of every single person on that stage hid deep and dark expressions of twisted pleasure as they watched the unaware citizens willingly give their lives away to the Demon God.

The fate of this Empire would be sealed the moment the crown touched the Third Prince's head.

So, if anyone wanted to save this land from ruin…

'...then now is the only time to act!'