The next morning, in the heart of the Great Shaw Empire, inside the Golden Throne Hall of the imperial palace.
This grand building had stood for hundreds of years. Now, it was covered by the first light of dawn, reflecting a bright golden glow that inspired awe.
High above the hall, near the hundred-ter-high do, the faint phantom of a massive golden dragon, thousands of ters long, could be seen circling through the clouds.
It was the foundation of the Great Shaw Empire—the Golden Dragon of National Destiny.
Inside the Golden Throne Hall, civil and military officials stood in two rows on either side. A solemn, heavy pressure filled the air.
Everyone slowed their breathing without realizing it. Their eyes turned with respect toward the pure golden dragon throne high above them.
Empress Eira of the Great Shaw Empire was seated on the dragon throne.
She wore an imperial robe embroidered with nine golden dragons and a crown with twelve hanging bead curtains. Her stunning face was cold and majestic, carrying an authority that no one dared to challenge.
Even though she was only sitting there in silence, the supre presence of an emperor pressed down on the entire hall like a solid force.
"Summon Aiden to court!"
The eunuch’s sharp, drawn-out voice echoed through the hall like a blade cutting across a calm lake.
From outside the hall ca the sound of steady, powerful footsteps.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
Each step seed to land on everyone’s heart, carrying a strange, dominant rhythm.
Aiden wore a dark, high-level Reclasser coat. His posture was straight like a sword as he strode into the court, the place that represented the highest power of the Great Shaw Empire.
His face was calm, like still water. In his deep black eyes, there was no fear of imperial authority at all. There was only the absolute calm of soone who had walked through mountains of corpses and seas of blood.
For a mont, all the officials turned to look at him.Countless complicated gazes fell on this young man who was not even twenty years old.
So eyes were filled with passionate respect. So flashed with deep jealousy. Others hid cold, venomous hostility, like snakes waiting in the dark.
The mont Aiden stepped into the hall, a faint trace of approval and softness passed through Eira’s majestic eyes, so subtle that almost no one noticed it.
"Aiden, I am fully aware of what you have done for the empire."
Eira’s voice was clear and majestic, carrying the unquestionable will of an empress.
"You killed Ethan, a level 90 Demon Duke of the Abyss, and brought glory to our empire. This is a feat worthy of history."
"Bring him a seat."
The mont she finished speaking, the entire Golden Throne Hall fell into a deathly silence.
Two imperial guards quickly carried in a large chair carved from thousand-year-old red sandalwood and placed it firmly at the very front of the civil and military officials.
Aiden did not refuse.He did not act nervous or give any humble words of thanks. He only nodded slightly, then calmly lifted the hem of his coat and sat down as if it were perfectly natural.
That single action instantly lit the fuse of the tense court.
Among the conservatives, Felix, the First Minister standing at the head of the civil officials, imdiately frowned deeply.
Prince Henry, who stood near the front of the imperial clan mbers, let out a sharp, cold snort without trying to hide it.
"Your Majesty!"
Felix suddenly stepped out of line. He raised the jade tablet in his hands and bowed heavily, his voice loud and clear like a bell.
"Although Aiden has indeed earned rit by killing a Demon, he is still very young and has little experience in court!"
"The Golden Throne Hall is the most important place for discussing imperial affairs. Apart from the highest ministers, no one has the right to be granted a seat here!"
Felix suddenly turned his head and shot a sharp look at Aiden."Your Majesty, I fear this action goes against court rules and will not convince the officials!"
As soon as he said this, the conservative officials began speaking up one after another. A low buzz of agreent quickly filled the hall.
Eira looked down at Felix from above. There was no emotion on her beautiful face.
"Little experience?"
Eira gave a cold laugh. Her voice carried a chilling edge.
"Aiden fought alone and killed a level 90 Mythic Rank Reclasser from the Demon race of the Abyss. He also achieved the first kill of a national-class red-flagged BOSS!"
"His contribution is great enough to stand beside the empire’s God of War!"
Eira’s gaze swept across the officials who had spoken up, sharp as a real blade.
"If any of you can bring the head of a Demon Duke, I will let him sit on half of this dragon throne!"
"I gave him nothing more than a wooden chair. What is wrong with that?"
Felix’s face turned slightly pale under the force of her imperial authority. But as the leader of the conservative faction, he still tried to argue.
"But, Your Majesty, the rules cannot be—"
"Enough!"
Eira cut him off without rcy. A suffocating pressure suddenly burst out from her body.
Above the do, the Golden Dragon of National Destiny let out a deafening low roar, and the entire Golden Throne Hall began to tremble faintly.
"My decision is final. There is no need to discuss this further!"
Felix’s face turned dark with anger. He clenched his teeth hard, but in the end, he could only step back into the line with resentnt.
But this storm had clearly only just begun.
No sooner had Felix stepped back than Prince Henry ca forward like a mad wolf.
"Your Majesty!"
Henry dropped to his knees with a thud. He raised both hands high, his voice filled with grief and anger.
"I have sothing to report. I beg Your Majesty to seek justice for !"
"My poor son, Logan, made a final exam wager with Aiden at The White City First High School. But after that, he sohow beca an unconscious vegetable!"
Henry suddenly turned his head. His eyes were bloodshot with extre hatred as he stared hard at Aiden, who was sitting calmly in his chair.
"There is definitely sothing suspicious about this!"
"My son was a genius with a hidden class. How could he beco crippled from a simple exam?"
Henry pointed a trembling finger at Aiden and roared in a near-hysterical rage.
"Aiden, it had to be you!"
"You must have used so dirty, shaful trick to harm my son!"
"Today, in front of Her Majesty and all the officials of the court, you must give an explanation! You must give the royal family of the Great Shaw Empire an explanation!"
Faced with Henry’s almost insane accusation, the air in the hall seed to freeze.
Everyone’s eyes once again fell on Aiden.They all wanted to see how this rising star, the number one genius of the Great Shaw Empire, would deal with such a serious charge—harming a mber of the royal family.
But there was not even the slightest trace of panic on Aiden’s face.
He did not even change the way he was sitting. He only slowly raised his eyes and looked down at Henry, who was kneeling on the floor, with the cold indifference of soone watching a clown make a fool of himself.
"You want an explanation?"
Aiden’s voice was not loud, but it clearly reached everyone’s ears. It carried a chill that seed to pierce straight into the soul.
"Fine. Today, I’ll be generous and give you an explanation you can be satisfied with."
Aiden raised his long fingers and lightly tapped the air.
Buzz!
A blue light from a system storage space blood in midair.
The next mont, a thick stack of docunts flew out like falling snow and landed perfectly on the stone floor in the center of the hall.
Along with them ca a mory crystal carved with complex magic patterns.
"These are all the exam records from The White City First High School over the past three years, as well as your son Logan’s miserable report cards."
A faint trace of magic gathered at Aiden’s fingertip, and he directly activated the mory crystal.
Whoosh!
A huge holographic projection suddenly appeared in the air above the Golden Throne Hall.
In the image, it was the day of the Class Change ceremony at The White City First High School.Logan’s arrogant, overbearing face appeared clearly before everyone.
"Aiden, do you dare make a bet with ...?"
Logan’s provocative words and his arrogant attitude as he took the lead in making the wager were shown from every angle in front of all the officials in the court.
The footage then changed to the final exam.Everyone saw Logan’s ugly expression as he used a banned item to force himself beyond his level, all so he could win the bet.
In the end, the backlash hit him. His soul was damaged, and he beca a living corpse.
The whole process was clear from beginning to end.
The evidence was undeniable.
Aiden slowly stood up and looked down at Henry, whose face had turned as pale as ash.
"Your Majesty can judge this clearly, and everyone here has eyes of their own."
"Logan used his status to bully others. He was the one who challenged to the bet. Every teacher and student in the school can testify to that."
"The reason he ended up as a vegetable is simply because he had bad intentions. He was greedy for victory, pushed too far, and suffered the backlash."
Aiden’s lips curved into a deeply mocking smile.
"What does any of that have to do with ?"
After Eira finished watching the solid evidence, the frost on her face had completely turned into sharp killing intent.
"Henry!"
The Empress slamd her hand down on the armrest of the dragon throne, creating a thunderous sound.
"Your son was weaker than others and brought this disaster on himself. Yet you dare stand in court and use this to slander a ritorious hero of the Great Shaw Empire?"
"As a prince, you have truly grown more foolish with age!"
Henry trembled violently under the Empress’s pressure. Cold sweat poured down his body, soaking through his court robes.
"I... I..."
He stamred, but in the face of absolute proof, he could not say even half a word in his own defense.
Just when everyone thought this matter would end with Henry losing all face...
But at that mont, Aiden suddenly took one step forward.
A terrifying wave of soul power at the peak of Great Venerable gathered wildly in his eyes.
"However, regarding Prince Henry, I do have sothing important to report to Your Majesty. It concerns the survival of the empire."
Aiden’s voice sounded like a death sentence rising from the Nether Abyss.Henry’s heart seed to skip a beat.
"When I was carrying out my mission in the Abyss, I happened to discover sothing..."
Aiden’s gaze locked onto Henry as if he were already looking at a dead man.
"Henry has long since betrayed the human side in secret. He has been working with the Evil Demons Guild and selling the Great Shaw Empire’s intelligence to them!"
Boom!
Those words exploded inside the Golden Throne Hall like a massive bomb.
The entire court fell into chaos.
Every minister’s expression changed in shock.
Working with the Evil Demons Guild was an unforgivable cri in the Great Shaw Empire.It was a cri worthy of wiping out nine generations of one’s family.
"Aiden! You’re slandering !"
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