Chapter 85: The King's New Clothes

At this moment,

On the Ginestra Plains,

Everyone looked up, gazing at the colossal sword of light, piercing the sky and entwined with threads of destiny, slowly manifesting. A look of terror appeared on all their faces.

And Suya was desperately pouring magical energy into his heart, maintaining this false 'miracle.'

Yes, the Sword of Damocles was, of course, fake.

What appeared incredibly terrifying to outsiders was merely the result of Suya combining the visual representation of the Sword of Damocles from an anime he had watched called K with the magical power of the Noble Phantasm [Miracle of Divine Performance], exaggerating its effects.

[Miracle of Divine Performance (C+)].

This Noble Phantasm originated from Suya's excess completion of the ritual when he advanced from the Fraudster pathway to the Instigator pathway, granting him this Anti-Unit Noble Phantasm.

The Noble Phantasm's effect was simple:

To forge a miracle with divinity using [Faith], and to allow everyone who cast their gaze upon it to see this miracle in their own vision.

Because it was a Noble Phantasm activated directly based on [Faith] or divine power, those without divinity could not discern its true nature, making it the highest tier of illusion.

Coupled with a Noble Phantasm release incantation matched from the Sea of Imaginary Numbers with Imaginary Number magical energy, Suya immediately began his deception.

Apart from the moment he genuinely lost his temper while beating Callisthenes, everything else was an act. In fact, Suya himself couldn't even see the scene others were witnessing.

But what else could he do?

After all, Suya was truly just a high-level swordsman. Even counting his true form after the Faux Understanding, he was nothing more than a weak, ignorant, but gluttonous hungry dragon.

As Merlin had said, he couldn't even defeat a single armpit hair of Seleucus.

To escape with everyone's lives in front of the Conquering King, a legendary powerhouse, he had to perform the best acting of his life immediately!

At this moment,

After a quick glance at the faces of both allies and enemies, which seemed genuinely awestruck by his 'fake' display, Suya finally let out a sigh of relief. Then, he continued to maintain a solemn expression with his fraudster ability, as if it were all real.

How to describe it?

It felt a bit like the awkwardness of transforming into a Masked Rider without special effects, clutching a belt—but the effect seemed to be quite good.

However, was everything causing this scene truly as Suya imagined?

Divine Construct: [Sword of Damocles].

This King's Sword, rather than originating from ancient Greek mythology, was more accurately derived from an anecdote about Dionysius II, the tyrant of Syracuse.

In the 4th century BC, Dionysius II swapped roles for a day with Damocles, a courtier who often flattered him. Damocles, upon becoming king, was supremely satisfied and even repeatedly acted presumptuously. But after the banquet, when he looked up, he noticed a sharp sword hanging above the throne, suspended by only a single horsehair.

This legend was initially meant to make people understand that possessing great power should come with corresponding responsibilities.

But later, this legend gradually extended into a myth, and the Sword of Damocles' meaning also changed, ultimately evolving to symbolize the ultimate explanation of all power and privilege for a king:

Divine authority.

But more than its legend, what astonished and then silenced the several retainers beside the Conquering King was—

This sword was actually the personal sword forged for Princess Alexia fifteen years ago, when Philip II, then King of Macedon, made a deal with the Magus King. It was also the Conquering King's ultimate trump card.

Alexia never carried a sword because her sword always hung in the sky, ready to be drawn at any moment.

This had been the highest level of secret within the Macedonian Empire.

But now...

This Divine Construct was unexpectedly 'forged' by Suya.

Thinking of the inconsistencies present,

Feeling the gaze from within the Britannian capital now peering at this place,

And calculating the benefits Suya's action could bring,

For a moment, Aristotle, who knew the truth, exchanged glances with a few other seasoned hero-class magus-officials beside the royal carriage.

They then looked up, their faces filled with shock, at the 'fake giant sword.'

And behind the royal carriage,

Seleucus, as the son of the Sun God Apollo, naturally possessed divinity, which directly exempted him from Suya's Noble Phantasm effect. He strangely watched everyone else looking up at the sky in shock, yet he saw nothing at all. There was clearly nothing in the sky everyone was looking up at.

In his eyes, Suya, posing as if drawing a sword towards the sky, was even more embarrassingly holding one hand up in place, with no idea what he intended to do.

Realizing something was amiss, Seleucus initially wanted to alert the King.

However, when he saw the King's face—a mix of surprise, bewilderment, a hint of nostalgia, and then growing delight—

Seleucus then looked up, his face filled with shock, at the sky where there was clearly nothing.

And so,

A performance akin to 'The Emperor's New Clothes' was completed with the tacit cooperation of everyone present.

Meanwhile,

In the capital, Winchester, within the Silver Crown Royal Court.

A group of Britannian mid to high-ranking figures, upon seeing Suya draw that Divine Construct, collectively showed expressions of shock, then exchanged whispered conversations amongst themselves.

At this time,

Edward II, as the Duke of Cornwall, couldn't help but glare at the Archbishop of Canterbury beside him, asking in a hushed voice:

"Why didn't you tell me King Uther left his son such a terrifying thing!?"

"Where did he get so much money?"

The Archbishop of Canterbury was also frowning hard at this moment, thinking to himself that this thing was far more formidable than the Sword in the Stone. After thinking for a long time, he could only give Edward II a complex look, shaking his head and replying in a low voice:

"It seems we'll have to let him in."

"The Conquering King won't fight him to a mutual destruction."

"But, he absolutely cannot participate in the sword-pulling ceremony—we can't let him actually pull out the Sword in the Stone."

"How are your preparations for Chelos? Also, Princess Morgan le Fay, she's Arthur's mortal enemy; we can use that woman."

Edward II nodded, revealing a chilling smile.

However, their conversation was completely overheard by the Church Saintess 'Elizabeth' nearby,

Or rather, the two did not avoid the Saintess.

And the Saintess, named 'Elizabeth' but actually Morgan le Fay, smiled faintly, her gaze lingering ominously on Suya in the center of the hall, who seemed to be debating something with the Conquering King.

She stared ominously at Suya's crimson eyes,

And the curve of her lips couldn't help but deepen.

And in the corner of the entire Obsidian Hall,

A black-haired boy, about 12 years old, coldly surveyed the expressions of the various factions in the hall. Finally, his gaze fixed on the blond young knight in the center of the image. His face darkened, revealing an expression of utter disappointment as he murmured to himself:

"Another fake."

"This world, this country is beyond saving."

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