Chapter 205: Chapter 137: A Flash of the Blade, a Head Falls
As Baron’s blade flashed and Ferdinand’s head hit the ground...
...in the West City District of Fude City, sunlight bathed the Mechanical Plaza. Just as the first rays illuminated the statue of the Emperor of Fear, City Lord Lewis gave the order. He announced the public execution of the nobles and officials who, at a banquet in the City Lord’s Mansion, had been identified by Kazela as Undead Cultists. Their beheading would serve as a warning to all.
Blood stained the ground at the feet of the Statue of the First Emperor, making the figure that lingered between reality and illusion within the Stone Pusher’s Crevice all the more indistinct.
Lewis and Victor stood side by side at the edge of the plaza, watching as guards loaded the headless corpses onto carts. "I never imagined the Immortal Church had infiltrated Fude City so deeply," Lewis remarked.
"And yet, I suspect you knew beforehand," Victor said. "The City Lord is chosen by the council. You were elected with a two-thirds majority, and every council member executed today was one who voted for you."
"Furthermore, while you have no authority over the Guard Post, the City Lord *can* command the army garrisoned at the city walls. And the army doesn’t typically overstep its bounds to interfere without a direct order..."
Lewis’s eyes narrowed. "Are you suggesting I have ulterior motives?"
"I’m certain of it," Victor said frankly.
Lewis watched Victor quietly for a moment, then chuckled. "But what I’m doing is for the good of Fude City."
"That, I believe," Victor said with a nod. Then his brow furrowed. "Isn’t riding at a gallop forbidden within the city?"
Lewis tapped some tobacco into his pipe, lighting it with a newly installed lighter on his mechanical limb. "He’s a guest of mine. A Wizard from Palmer."
The CLIPPETY-CLOP of hooves sounded in the distance. A party of six iron-clad riders approached, all clad in black armor with black masks. Leading them, however, was a Wizard in a simple green robe.
"That’s Silver Wizard Fei, a student of Kuman, the White-robed Mage and Master of the Wizard Tower."
Lewis took a drag from his pipe. "They say he came to Fude City looking for a woman. No one knows who."
"I made a deal with him. In exchange for him tutoring Remedios in Astrology for a while at the City Lord’s Mansion, I offered to provide lodging for his entourage and help him find that red-haired woman."
Victor’s gaze sharpened. "Are those the riders with him? The Palmer Witch Riders? Rumor has it they can hold their own even against the White Bear Army of the King of Far North Suluka."
"They’re not of the Knight Profession, but they’re more knightly than even the Law Enforcers who are. A single suit of their Iron Armor—forged from Dwarven metal, blessed by Elves, and inscribed with an internal Alchemy Array Pattern—is said to be worth an entire village.
That armor can supposedly withstand a full-force blow from a Bronze Knight. Add to that the unrivaled destructive power of the Wizard profession...
In fact, one of the Prole Emperors, after accepting an invitation to Palmer and seeing the Witch Riders, said something, didn’t he...?"
Victor finished the thought for him. "Give me one hundred Palmer Witch Riders, and I could take any town in the Prole Empire.
Give me one thousand, and I could sweep through any city.
Give me ten thousand, and I could level any nation on earth. Even reconquering the Fear Plateau, with its countless Demons and Demon Beasts, would be a trivial matter."
Victor added, "His Majesty Richard himself once said that if you were to divide the knights of today into three tiers, the Palmer Witch Riders would undoubtedly rank among the top three of the first."
"Top three? And the other two?"
"The Golden Lion Knight Order, which serves the Emperor of Prole, and the Round Table Knight Order."
’The Round Table Knight Order... The Knight King’s newest order, established in his bid to become the Emperor of Prole.’
’Only twelve members, chosen from thousands upon thousands of Knight Law Enforcers... Gawain was even invited to join.’
Hearing this, Lewis tapped his fingers on his own metal limb, his gaze on the Palmer Witch Riders growing thoughtful.
’I’ve heard that in the Capital Steel City, Alchemy Masters from the Mechanical School are already refitting Demon Hunters, replacing their limbs and even torsos with mechanical prosthetics forged from Alchemy Metal. Maybe I could try forming a Fude City Hunting Group made up of these Prosthetic Hunters.’
’After all, besides their endurance—which is just a matter of how much money you spend—the greatest advantages of prosthetics are their durability and the fact that a mechanical limb feels no pain...’
Victor watched the Palmer Witch Riders, who had now drawn the eyes of the crowd away from the beheadings. "Why is he parading so many Witch Riders through the city?" he mused aloud.
At the exact moment Victor voiced the question, the figure of Wizard Fei appeared beside them.
Victor flinched in shock. He looked up and saw another Wizard Fei still sitting on his horse in the distance.
’So this is a Silver Tier Wizard’s spellcasting? Casting without a Magic Staff?’
While Victor was still reeling from the sight, the duplicate of Wizard Fei before them spoke—not to him, but to the City Lord.
"An Azure Fire Dragon has appeared six miles southeast of Fude City’s south gate. I suspect ’she’ is involved. A party of six or more requires a written permit to leave the city..."
Without a word, Lewis handed Wizard Fei the permit. Victor, still trying to process the news of an Azure Fire Dragon near Fude City, was startled by the City Lord’s swiftness.
Wizard Fei accepted the permit, offered a word of thanks, and vanished. Victor then saw the permit appear in the hand of the Wizard Fei still on horseback in the distance.
"An Azure Fire Dragon near Fude City... Aren’t you going to send someone to investigate?"
"The Palmer Witch Riders are on their way. With a Silver Wizard among them, the Azure Fire Dragon won’t stand a chance."
"The Guard Commander has his men blockading the north and south gates. Will he let them pass?"
