Chapter 84: Chapter 84 - The Princess of the Astral Federation
Chapter 84 — The Princess of the Astral Federation
The entire city remained kneeling before Kaiser.
Thousands of civilians filled the destroyed streets while blue synchronization particles drifted through the air around them like glowing snow.
Some people cried openly.
Others stared at Kaiser like they were looking at a legend standing in front of them.
Honestly?
After everything he just did, fair reaction.
Kaiser stood awkwardly in the middle of the massive crater while everyone bowed toward him.
"...This is uncomfortable."
Elena immediately covered her mouth to stop herself from laughing.
Commander Lyra slowly stood up before looking toward Kaiser seriously.
"You defeated an Assimilation General alone."
Kaiser blinked once.
"...That thing had a title?"
Lyra looked genuinely confused.
"You didn’t know?"
"No."
Honestly Kaiser mostly punched first and learned information later lately.
Fair strategy though.
The surviving soldiers nearby stared at him with even more disbelief now.
One whispered quietly—
"He fought an Assimilation General without knowing what it was..."
Another looked traumatized.
"That makes it worse somehow."
Elena crossed her arms slightly.
"You really should listen during explanations more."
Kaiser looked completely unapologetic.
"It worked."
Again—
fair.
Commander Lyra suddenly smiled slightly for the first time.
Honestly?
She looked much younger when smiling.
"Please follow us to the central district."
Her expression quickly became serious again.
"There’s something important we need to discuss."
Astra’s voice echoed through Kaiser’s synchronization pathways immediately.
"Recommendation accepted. Information regarding hostile civilization designated ’Assimilation’ required."
Kaiser nodded once.
"Fine."
The surviving civilians immediately moved aside respectfully while Kaiser and Elena followed Lyra through the destroyed city.
The damage was enormous.
Entire districts had collapsed.
Synchronization towers burned throughout the streets while emergency rescue teams desperately searched through debris for survivors.
But strangely—
hope had returned.
People no longer looked desperate.
Just exhausted.
Everywhere Kaiser walked, civilians stared at him with shining eyes.
Children followed behind him excitedly.
One little boy suddenly shouted—
"Synchronization King!"
The nearby crowd immediately erupted loudly.
"Synchronization King!"
"Hero!"
"World Savior!"
Kaiser’s expression slowly became more tired.
"...They’re getting louder."
Elena smiled beside him.
"You’re famous now."
"That sounds terrible."
Honestly?
He genuinely meant that.
The little children surrounding him looked disappointed immediately.
"You don’t like being a hero?"
Kaiser paused slightly after hearing that.
Then looked toward the ruined city around him.
People were alive.
Families reunited.
Children smiling again.
A small sigh escaped him.
"...I just like protecting people."
The children immediately looked amazed.
Honestly that answer sounded way cooler than Kaiser intended.
Elena looked away slightly.
Unfair again.
Commander Lyra secretly smiled while walking ahead.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
Nearly an hour later—
they finally reached the central district.
Unlike the destroyed outer city, this area remained mostly intact thanks to massive synchronization barriers surrounding enormous silver towers.
The architecture looked incredible.
Crystal bridges floated between skyscrapers while giant synchronization rings rotated slowly high above the city.
Honestly futuristic fantasy cities really loved dramatic designs.
Kaiser approved.
Several heavily armed guards immediately saluted after seeing Lyra.
"Commander!"
Lyra nodded once before pointing toward Kaiser.
"Open the path."
The guards looked toward Kaiser nervously.
Honestly understandable.
The synchronization pressure around him still leaked slightly even while relaxed.
The massive silver gates slowly opened afterward.
Beyond them—
an enormous palace stood at the center of the city.
Blue crystal towers stretched into the sky while synchronization waterfalls flowed around the structure beautifully.
Elena stared slightly.
"...Okay, this place is gorgeous."
Kaiser nodded calmly.
"Better than Sanctuary Zero."
Elena immediately looked offended.
"Traitor."
Fair.
As they walked toward the palace entrance, Lyra finally spoke again.
"You still haven’t introduced yourselves properly."
Kaiser looked toward her.
"Kaiser."
Elena sighed softly.
"You’re terrible at introductions."
She stepped forward slightly.
"I’m Elena."
Lyra’s golden eyes widened immediately.
"The Saintess Elena?"
Elena blinked once.
"...You know me too?"
Lyra looked surprised.
"The Human Network is famous across nearby systems."
She looked between Kaiser and Elena carefully.
"The Hero King and the Silver Saintess."
Kaiser immediately frowned slightly.
"...Hero King?"
Elena immediately started laughing.
Kaiser looked betrayed.
"That sounds ridiculous."
Honestly?
It absolutely sounded cool.
The palace doors opened a few moments later.
Dozens of soldiers and officials waited inside nervously.
The moment Kaiser entered—
everyone froze.
Whispers immediately spread through the room.
"That’s him?"
"He defeated the Assimilation General..."
"Alone..."
"The synchronization pressure around him is insane..."
Honestly the rumors were already spreading fast.
One old official slowly stepped forward before bowing respectfully.
"Welcome to Astral Prime."
Kaiser nodded once.
Then suddenly paused.
"...Wait."
Everyone looked confused.
Kaiser stared at Lyra calmly.
"You’re not just a commander."
Lyra froze slightly.
Interesting reaction.
Elena immediately noticed too.
The officials around them suddenly looked nervous.
Kaiser narrowed his eyes slightly.
"You’re important."
Lyra sighed softly afterward.
"...You noticed fast."
Honestly Kaiser usually noticed combat things first.
But still.
The old official quickly bowed again.
"Allow me to introduce properly."
He gestured respectfully toward Lyra.
"Her Highness Lyra Astrava."
Silence filled the hall.
"The First Princess of the Astral Federation."
Kaiser blinked once.
Elena stared.
Then both of them slowly looked toward Lyra together.
Lyra awkwardly looked away slightly.
"...Surprise."
Honestly?
Very effective surprise.
Kaiser finally spoke.
"You’re royalty?"
Lyra crossed her arms immediately.
"I’m still a commander first."
Fair answer honestly.
Elena suddenly smiled slightly.
"Oh no."
Kaiser looked confused.
"...What."
Elena looked way too amused suddenly.
"You saved a princess."
Kaiser immediately realized where this conversation was going.
"...Stop."
Too late.
Elena already looked victorious.
"This is exactly how romance stories start."
Lyra instantly turned red.
"W-WHAT?!"
Kaiser looked exhausted immediately.
Honestly fighting monsters felt easier than women lately.
Before the situation could become worse—
BOOOOOOOM!
A massive explosion suddenly shook the palace.
Everyone’s expressions changed instantly.
Emergency alarms spread through the entire city again.
A soldier immediately rushed into the hall desperately.
"Princess!"
He looked terrified.
"The northern synchronization barrier collapsed!"
Lyra’s expression sharpened instantly.
"How?"
The soldier swallowed nervously.
"...Another Assimilation signal appeared."
Silence filled the room.
Elena frowned immediately.
"That’s impossible."
The general Kaiser defeated should have controlled the corruption army.
Astra’s voice suddenly echoed through the pathways.
"Warning. Multiple hostile synchronization signatures detected."
A massive holographic map appeared above the palace hall.
Everyone stared upward silently.
Then their faces turned pale.
Purple synchronization corruption spread across the planet rapidly.
But this time—
it wasn’t just one army.
It was an invasion.
Dozens of giant corruption fleets slowly appeared in orbit above the world.
The civilians throughout the city immediately panicked.
"That’s impossible..."
"There are too many..."
Lyra stared upward with clenched fists.
"...We’re too late."
Kaiser narrowed his eyes slightly.
The corruption fleets looked enormous.
Thousands of monsters.
Gigantic warships made from corrupted synchronization metal.
And in the center of the invasion—
three massive purple eyes slowly opened in space itself.
The pressure alone shook the planet.
Even Elena’s expression became serious.
"...Three generals."
Honestly?
That was annoying.
One of the giant purple eyes suddenly focused directly onto Kaiser.
Then—
a voice spread across the entire world.
Deep.
Cold.
Distorted.
"Synchronization King."
The atmosphere became heavy instantly.
"We finally found you."
Purple corruption spread across the sky while the three giant eyes slowly opened wider.
The voice echoed again.
"You destroyed one of our vessels."
Kaiser looked completely calm.
"Correct."
The voice became quieter afterward.
Dangerously quiet.
"Good."
Silence spread briefly.
Then—
"Now we know your location."
BOOOOOOOOOOM!
The entire sky exploded purple.
Massive synchronization storms spread across orbit while corrupted warships descended toward the planet endlessly.
The civilians throughout Astral Prime panicked immediately.
"We’re surrounded!"
"There are too many!"
"We can’t survive this!"
Lyra immediately activated her synchronization blade while shouting commands toward nearby soldiers.
"Evacuate the civilians!"
"Prepare all planetary defenses!"
The palace instantly became chaotic.
But in the middle of all that panic—
Kaiser remained calm.
Very calm.
Honestly?
That made Elena nervous every single time.
Blue synchronization lightning slowly moved around Kaiser’s body while he stared upward toward the invasion fleets.
One of the giant eyes suddenly laughed.
"Will you protect this world too, King?"
Purple corruption spread further across the sky.
"How many worlds can one man save?"
Silence followed briefly.
Then Kaiser smiled slightly.
Honestly?
That smile never meant anything good for enemies.
Blue synchronization energy exploded around his body violently.
The palace shook.
The nearby officials immediately stepped backward from the overwhelming pressure.
Kaiser slowly looked upward toward the invasion fleets.
"...Guess I’ll test it."
The giant eyes narrowed slightly.
"What."
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
A gigantic synchronization pillar erupted from Kaiser’s body and pierced through the sky itself.
The entire planet shook violently.
Every corruption fleet in orbit paused.
Even the Assimilation Generals suddenly became silent.
Because for the first time—
Kaiser stopped suppressing his full synchronization output.
The pressure spreading from him felt monstrous.
Infinite.
Like an entire civilization standing against the stars themselves.
The nearby soldiers could barely breathe.
One official collapsed instantly.
Elena stared at Kaiser with wide eyes.
"...He got stronger again."
Honestly she stopped understanding his growth months ago.
Kaiser slowly floated upward surrounded by endless blue lightning.
His combat coat moved violently while synchronization rings appeared behind him one after another.
The giant eyes in orbit watched silently now.
No arrogance left.
Only caution.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
Kaiser raised one hand calmly toward the sky.
Then pointed directly at the corruption fleets.
"Listen carefully."
Blue synchronization lightning exploded across the heavens.
The atmosphere itself cracked.
"You came to the wrong planet."
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
The invasion war began.
