The Crown Of The Nine Continents
Chapter 152: Getting Back to the Main Problem

"Agrghhh .. towhong amhvuni .. ahuu!!"

A faint scream of pain sounded in the ears. The groan filled with despair came from Lorei being exposed by her own poison. Normally, Lorei would instantly die once the poison exploded in her stomach which would rot all the internal organs, all the way to the outer body.

But that condition was too easy for Lorei's death. For a man who has destroyed the life of the forest, and the survival of nature, and threatened the life of an innocent living being, a short death is more like forgiveness to him.

Ren then provides a solution so that the criminal is not given easy forgiveness. The condition given to Lorei is quite simple, namely experiencing pain due to decay slowly, with a definite end goal in the form of death.

Well, there is no denying that what he did was a form of torture. A torture that was no different from when he used the Blood Ruler to control the blood in the opponent's body. Then, why would he bother using poison to torture Lorei?

Simply put, there was a limit that Blood Ruler could place in controlling the will of others. The stronger the enemy, the more difficult it is to control. That power is not only measured by how great the destructive power is, but in the form of any force including mental strength and desire.

So, if there was someone who thought Ren could easily win against the enemy using Blood Ruler then that was the wrong thought. There was nothing too easy in this harsh world, all the obstacles that Ren passed through were quite easy because there was a great effort behind it.

"Aish .. what a pity," Ren lamented as he scratched his head.

This complaint was caused by Lorei getting closer to death. The healing magic accompanied by Ren's antidote did slow down the rotting effect it caused, but it seemed like Lorei herself was trying hard to die.

"That's it, because of my emotions I even forgot to dig up information from him."

Ren created wings then flew into the air, leaving behind Lorei who had now lived the name. The moment he noticed the decaying forest, the area affected by the poison was vast and it was a little frustrating.

"Shhh, totally a destroyer of nature. If it's like this then all I can hope for is Arystina, hopefully she can fix it."

Carrying that hope, Ren flew to Aulzania City.

When the city had already entered the view, he saw the situation of the city being hit by an uproar, many people were running around and even the soldiers had already evacuated some of the residents to safety. While at the main gate, it looked as if some knights were already lined up neatly as if a great battle was about to happen.

Ren could only understand him because the battle that happened was quite devastating. Perhaps the sighting of dozens of sky-splitting meteors can be seen from the city of Aulzania? Or did his land magic make such a great vibration that it could be felt by them? Who knows?

And the thing he had to do was-

"Don't panic everyone!"

As everyone was in an overwhelming panic, the sound of statements echoed above the sky. Those outside the room looked up, and watched one figure floating in the air.

"Once again I say. Fear not! All threats have been eliminated!"

Those who ran in panic now stopped to stare at the figure floating above the sky. Some people who are hiding out from their hiding place, curious where the source of the sound came from.

As soon as they clearly saw the figure, they realized that the figure was the Hero of Aulzania.

"W-Wouldn't anything really happen, Mr Hero?" shouted one of the women who was on the street.

"Really! Everything was handled well," the hero replied.

Those who heard the statement heaved a sigh of relief. The reason, some of the meteors that fell were very terrible in their eyes. At that time, there were even those who wondered if the world would end soon?

"Thank God, we survived. Thank you Hero Aulzania!"

"Thank you, Hero!"

"Hero of Aulzania, I love you!!"

Seeing the residents who were beginning to calm down, the hero behind the mask nodded then went towards the palace accompanied by the cheers of people who gave praise.

Without realizing that a person who does not intend to be a hero is even more known as a hero when there is no good thing whatever he does. Instead, all this uproar was actually caused by the actions of the hero himself.

If a real hero saw this, they would cry in envy after seeing how easily Ren gained a reputation.

...___________________...

Ren's arrival was welcomed by several people. Those who welcomed were made up of King Esdagius, emissaries of Armilein, Derrian, Nivania, and some unknown others.

There was a kind of difference in reaction when they saw Ren coming back. Like King Esdagius, he had a complex expression that blended smiles and worries.

"Mr Dirvaren, what really happened?!" ask King Esdagius to panic.

Judging from King Esdagius' behavior, the uproar caused by the battle seemed to have reached the palace. While this welcome was done probably because they heard Ren's statement above the city.

"So, where are you asking? Falling meteors, or the great vibrations that occur?"

Ren responded casually which invited astonished expressions from everyone. They wonder, shouldn't even casual behavior have its limits?

"B-Both, what exactly happened?"

The most reasonable answer was due to the "Battle" between Lorei and herself. However, that brief explanation will not be well received so they will definitely ask for an explanation again and again.

"I see, I understand, how about we go in first? We're talking about everything inside."

King Esdagius thought.

The remaining envoys should be considered. It is not wise for a king to let guests overheat outdoors out of sheer curiosity

"Alright, let's go back to the meeting room. Some knights keep patrolling as usual, we must remain vigilant against some parties who might use this opportunity to attack."

The knights gathered around them dispersed to carry out the direct orders of King Esdagius. Now all that was left of the knights was Derrian along with the other two knights under his guidance.

King Esdagius then led them to enter the palace and go to the meeting room. Arriving at the meeting room, everyone returned to their respective positions with Lorei's place filled by Ren and Nivania.

A tense expression emanated from King Esdagius upon realizing that Lorei's whereabouts did not return. As for Armilein the messenger, he looked with eyes that examined Ren continuously. Even Nivania who was standing next to Ren looked quite distracted.

"Mr Dirvaren, is that person dead?"

Following King Esdagius' carefully asked questions, Armilein gave additional sentences explaining some of the consequences if the messenger had indeed been killed.

"Respectable ... Mr Dirvaren, right? You need to know even though the Lodysna Empire has declared the Kingdom of Aulzania as an enemy, but the rules forbid unilateral killing. All disputes between one region and another can be resolved by official warfare."

Ren chuckled at hearing it.

"Any, hahaha! So naive was that thought!"

Rules? Armilein had Ren obey the rules while Lorei herself had broken the rules several times? It doesn't make any sense. If the slightly strong Lorei could break the rules, why couldn't she?

"So your mouth! This was a rule that had been set by the entire kingdoms and empires on this continent. On what basis would an uneducated man like you criticize the great rule that the previous kings and emperors have made?!"

The atmosphere started to stiffen around those who felt afraid to provoke the biggest empire in the continent. Among all the people, the most burdened King Esdagius was because he thought of the salvation of the entire population.

"Hey, you have a good reason to provoke him, don't you?" whisky Nivania.

Ren glanced at Nivania while smiling cheerfully. Forget about a good reason, he had no intention of provoking Armilein, it was just that the person himself was overreacting.

"Of course, I'm doing this because I think he's stupid."

That is an unacceptable response. Already provoked a messenger, moreover the reason it insulted the envoy? Nivania fell silent for a moment.

"Please calm down, Miss Armilein. Mr. Dirvaren must have had a good reason behind it" King Esdagius interjected.

Nivania immediately smiled bitterly. A good reason? What if they heard that Ren thought the envoy was stupid, so he said the rule was naive?

"No, no, His Majesty King Esdagius. This man couldn't possibly have a good reason. At first I thought what kind of figure would appear, it turns out that only a shameless man would immediately say our ancestral rules are naive!"

Ren yawned bored upon hearing Armilein speak. He felt that fighting with Lorei was better than talking about something in this narrow meeting room.

"Naif is naive. Tell me, if the rules are broken, who will punish?"

Armilein replied half-heartedly, "Of course by the person responsible for giving the punishment!"

"Then, what if the person in charge is unable to deliver the punishment?"

"Tch, make the question go round and round. What do you mean?"

"Hey, it's hard to talk to people like you. I mean, I've broken the rules, and who's gonna punish me?"

"Of course we are!"

"Who do you mean by us?"

"Everyone, everyone who obeys the rules!"

"However, what if you can't punish me?"

"Then the gods will!"

"Haha! I told you, didn't I? You're too naive. After all, this rule was made by you, not the gods. God has no reason to punish me, you know?"

Armilein gritted her teeth in annoyance. After all, what Ren said made perfect sense since it was not the god who made the rules.

"Indeed ... Why if the gods have no reason to punish you? We've had more than enough!"

Ren smiled triumphantly. He felt it was better to upset the envoy than to speak in formal language and give an explanation that made him look like a hypocrite.

"Miss messengers don't need to be angry, I'm just kidding. Please if you want to give me punishment, but if it has a major impact on my life then I will gladly refuse, even if I have to flee to the ends of the world."

What is with this drastically changed situation? Everyone was astonished. Didn't the words spoken by Ren look very serious, then why did he now say that it was just a joke?

"This is what Mr. Dirvaren looks like. Always haughty and arrogant but sometimes a kind person," said Derrian in his heart.

King Esdagius who witnessed the change in expression in Armilein immediately took action as a mediator. If he did not take a step now then it was feared that Armilein would be completely enraged.

"Miss Armilein, I hope those three questions are raised soon. For the sake of my kingdom, and for my honor, can Miss Armilein forget what Mr. Dirvaren said just now?"

Armilein clucked in annoyance, then with a professional she calmed herself down and returned to her original calm and authoritative expression.

"I understand, sorry to have shown you something so shameful to His Majesty the King."

Ren shook his head. After that he used the Blood Art to create two seats that were devoted to himself and Nivania. Some were alarmed by the shocking phenomenon, but King Esdagius quickly calmed them down.

"Nivania, sit down."

"No way, this is clearly disrespectful."

"Don't mind that, I'll represent you to accept the punishment," Ren replied casually while looking at Armilein who was holding her calm expression.

"Well, Your Majesty. I will ask you three things, Your Majesty, or the man there may answer them depending on Your Majesty's decision."

Armilein's shoulders trembled, some of the veins on her forehead stiffening even though she was calm.

"Thank you, Miss Armilein. Please start with the first question."

"The Reign of His Majesty the Emperor. Does the Kingdom of Aulzania really have anything to do with the destruction of the Sancteral Holy Kingdom?"

King Esdagius moved his eyes and looked at Ren with hope. Armilein thought this question would be answered by Ren so she turned her attention to Ren.

"No. The Kingdom of Aulzania had nothing to do with the destruction of the Sancteral Holy Kingdom. I am the cause of the destruction of the kingdom on my own will, and have no connection whatsoever or with anyone who comes from this Kingdom of Aulzania."

Armilein noticed everything, from the expression, tone of voice, and which waves Ren emitted and came to the conclusion that the person was telling the truth.

"The Reign of His Majesty the Emperor. Why did you destroy the Sancteral Holy Kingdom and make people suffer?"

Ren closed his eyes and countered confidently, "I have no intention of destroying the kingdom completely. It's just that the leader of the kingdom was looking for trouble by kidnapping his subordinate friend so that fighting was inevitable. Whether you believe it or not, but destroying Zarimas City and killing innocent people is my enemy."

Once again Armilein checked whether Ren was lying or not. But the result is still the same, namely Ren said everything honestly and there is no sign of lying at all.

"The Reign of His Majesty the Emperor. The Great Empire of Exousillia wants to negotiate with the Kingdom of Aulzania regarding access to the Loudeas Forest. Since the Kingdom of Efidoxia was still in turmoil, and it was not possible for us to request access from elsewhere, then we chose the Kingdom of Aulzania. Does His Majesty the King approve?"

Ren was slightly jolted by this one question. It was only a while ago that he obtained information regarding the Lodysna Empire that was expediting the Loudeas Forest, but now the other empires wanted to do the same?

"Does this have anything to do with the power spoken of by Devils? But, I should have realized the existence of that power first, right?" thought Ren in the heart.

King Esdagius thought deeply.

Armilein continued, "Your Majesty does not need to give a reply at this time to the third question. In any case, it takes a definite deal between the two parties so that His Majesty the Emperor decides to invite you to meet him."