Chapter 4: A Giant Foot
On that deep night when the Yulan calendar years 9999 and 10000 intersected, snowflakes danced wildly, and the temperature had plummeted to an astonishing low. Inside the cold, secret chamber of the Radiant Temple, Linley leaned against the icy stone wall.
He felt no cold at all.
"Knowing I'm about to be executed, yet having no ability to resist," Linley sighed softly, shaking his head.
He had tried, he had attempted.
But this secret chamber was indeed as the senior deacon had said—its defenses were terrifyingly strong. Even when Linley transformed into his dragon form, he couldn't break the chains, nor could he damage the chamber in the slightest. All he could do was wait quietly here for his impending execution.
******
The night passed quickly, and the sky-blanketing heavy snow finally stopped. Whether noble families or ordinary commoners, on this morning, everyone celebrated the arrival of the Millennial Yulan Festival in their own ways, especially the Radiant Temple.
Above the Radiant Temple, from this morning onward, all sorts of fantastical and beautiful scenes formed by magic appeared in the sky.
The holy capital, Fenlai City, became an ocean of joy that day. The vast square in front of the Radiant Temple was packed with people from all over, all cheering for this Millennial Yulan Festival. The Radiant Temple also held one lively event after another.
Yale, Reynolds, and George were on the third floor of a tavern, looking from afar at the Radiant Temple square. The square was densely packed with people, a veritable sea of humanity.
"Big brother Yale, are we going to the wedding banquet of the Debs family?" George inquired.
The wedding banquet of Kalan of the Debs family was on this very Yulan Festival day. This was an auspicious day; many people throughout Fenlai City were likely holding weddings today. The wedding banquet would start at noon and last until evening.
"We're going, of course we're going." Yale's expression was very grim.
The matter of Linley had kept Yale, Reynolds, and George in low spirits.
"Hmph. Third brother was soft-hearted toward that wretched woman and that punk Kalan. But now Third Brother is about to be executed, while that punk Kalan and that wretched woman are comfortable, even holding their wedding." Yale felt a strong resentment in his heart.
He had always disliked that Kalan and Alice.
Especially now that Linley was about to be executed, and Yale wanted to save him but couldn't. This anxious frustration had no outlet, which only made him dislike Kalan and Alice even more.
"Right, wanting the wedding to go smoothly? Dream on." Reynolds also ground his teeth.
Even George felt a strong urge to disrupt the other's wedding.
Whether it was Yale, George, or Reynolds, they had been worrying about Linley these past days. But when they learned Linley was to be executed and they couldn't save him, they involuntarily recalled the days they had spent with Linley. Their hatred for their own powerlessness grew deeper.
And at this moment, Alice, who had abandoned Linley back then, was now about to marry Kalan.
How could the three of them stand to watch this?
******
Fenlai City, Green Leaf Road, Debs Family Mansion.
At noon, one noble after another, one wealthy merchant after another, stepped through the threshold of the Debs family. Although after the case of smuggling aquamarine ore, the Debs family had declined from being a top-tier family in the Fenlai Kingdom, even in decline, the Debs family was still a family with some influence. At least it could rank within the top twenty in the Fenlai Kingdom.
"Count Juno has arrived—"
"Baroness Pulei has arrived—"
……
One noble, one noblewoman, one young lady after another entered the Debs family. The patriarch of the Debs family, Bernard, warmly welcomed each and every noble. Now that the Debs family's power had shrunk sharply, they were at least still holding their ground in the Fenlai Kingdom.
"Duke Bona has arrived—"
Hearing it was Duke Bona, many nobles looked toward the entrance. Even Bernard immediately went to greet him. At this Debs family wedding, the highest-ranking guest was probably Duke Bona. At the previous engagement ceremony, His Majesty King Clay had come. But for this wedding, the king did not come.
Everyone knew the reason.
"Duke, your arrival is an honor for the entire Debs family." Bernard was very humble.
Duke Bona nodded.
After the assassination case at Linley's mansion, the Right Premier, Merritt, had died. Although His Majesty King Clay had promoted a new minister to be Right Premier, in terms of influence, he still couldn't compare to Merritt, who had held the position for decades.
And with the death of the Finance Minister, Duke Paderson, the most powerful minister in the entire Fenlai Kingdom was now probably the Left Premier, Duke Bona.
"Kalan, come quickly and pay your respects to Duke Bona." Bernard immediately called out.
Today, Kalan was dressed very handsomely. A pure black formal suit made Kalan the most dazzling young man at the entire wedding banquet. Kalan very humbly bowed before Duke Bona: "Duke Bona, welcome to my wedding."
"Blessings to you, Kalan." Duke Bona casually said with a smile.
And at that moment—
"Young Master Yale of the Dawson Chamber of Commerce has arrived!"
The sound of this announcement immediately made Bernard's eyes light up. Even Duke Bona, who was beside him, followed him as he walked outside. The nobles of the Fenlai Kingdom naturally couldn't compare to the Dawson family. The Dawson family of the Dawson Chamber of Commerce was one of the few powerful families in the entire Yulan continent.
Yale, wearing a sharply pressed black formal suit.
Reynolds, wearing a handsome blue formal suit.
George, wearing a white formal suit with faint plaid patterns.
The three walked in side by side, immediately making many surrounding nobles' eyes light up. Generally, mages have a unique temperament. This is because mages often meditate, have a very high degree of integration with natural elements, and have strong mental strength, naturally giving them a special aura.
Yale, Reynolds, and George were all scions of ancient, powerful families, and on top of that, they were mages. Their temperament was clearly not something the children of ordinary Fenlai Kingdom families could compare to.
"Young Master Yale, welcome. And these two are?" Bernard immediately identified that the two beside him were definitely not from ordinary families.
Yale said with a faint smile, "These two are my good brothers from the Ernst Institute of Magic."
Reynolds said politely, "Mr. Bernard, I am from the Dunstan family of the O'Brien Empire. You may call me Reynolds!"
"The Dunstan family?"
Bernard and Duke Bona were both startled. Some knowledgeable people around had heard of the great name of the Dunstan family. The Dunstan family was the most powerful family in the O'Brien Empire, a family that controlled a powerful legion.
"Young Master Reynolds, the Debs family warmly welcomes your arrival!" Bernard said excitedly.
The arrival of a young master from the Dunstan family naturally gave Bernard a lot of face. Kalan beside him also bowed very respectfully. The gap between him, a so-called scion of a major family, and them was not small at all.
"And this one?" Bernard looked at George.
George smiled and said, "Mr. Bernard, I am from the Walsh family of the Yulan Empire."
"The Walsh family?"
The hearts of the surrounding nobles twitched violently again. The Walsh family was an ancient family with a history of several thousand years. It also had powerful influence in the Yulan Empire, on the same level as the Rhine family of Dixie and Delia.
"Welcome, Young Master George. The Debs family is exceptionally honored." Bernard's attitude was very humble.
Whether it was the Walsh family or the Dunstan family, they were super-large families of the Four Great Empires, large families that could influence the internal decisions of an empire. Even without its decline, the Debs family couldn't compare to them, let alone the Debs family of today.
……
The wedding banquet of the Debs family was very lively. Many nobles, even noble ladies, wanted to chat with Yale, George, and Reynolds. In the eyes of those noble ladies, not to mention becoming Yale's main wife, even if they could become a concubine to any one of them, their families would benefit endlessly from it.
As for the original protagonist, Kalan, fewer people paid attention to him.
But three people were always watching him—Yale, Reynolds, and George.
"Look, Miss Lorine and Miss Alice are here." Suddenly, a voice came from the hall. The two heroines of the occasion, wearing magnificent wedding dresses, walked in together from a side door. Kalan immediately went to greet them. Alice and Lorine naturally hooked their arms around Kalan's elbows.
And at this moment, Yale, Reynolds, and George finally moved.
"Haha, Kalan, these are your two wives, right? Truly beautiful and charming." Reynolds was the first to walk over with a smile.
Seeing that it was the three young masters, Yale, Reynolds, and George, Kalan immediately brought his two wives to receive them.
"Lorine, Alice, pay your respects to these three young masters. This is Young Master Reynolds of the Dunstan family, and this is—" But just as he started to speak, George let out a cry of surprise and shouted loudly, "Alice? You actually married this Kalan?"
George's voice was very loud, and this sentence immediately silenced the entire hall.
Saying such a thing at someone's wedding was extremely rude.
"That's right, Alice, weren't you together with our third brother?" Reynolds also said.
Only then did Yale speak: "Second brother, fourth brother, you don't know. This Alice has already broken up with third brother, and now she's marrying this Kalan."
"Broke up with third brother?"
Reynolds and George both shook their heads and sighed.
Reynolds then followed up, "Alice, you abandoned third brother to be with this Kalan. You must be Kalan's main wife, right?"
"No, the main wife is this Miss Lorine. It was already announced at the engagement ceremony last time." Yale said directly.
These two sentences made Alice's face flush bright red. Kalan's expression was even more awkward. But no one in the entire hall dared to say that Yale, Reynolds, and George were being rude. Their status was what it was; who would dare to say anything?
"Young masters, we still have to go toast the guests. Please excuse us." Kalan suppressed the anger in his heart and said humbly.
"Alright." Reynolds nodded.
Kalan immediately led Alice and Lorine toward other tables, while Reynolds, George, and Yale coldly watched them. The moment they thought that Linley might have already been executed, the injustice in their hearts grew even stronger.
Suddenly—
"Boom!" "Boom!" "Boom!" ...
A terrifying sound rang out from outside. The sound was deep and low, and even the earth trembled. Tiles from the roof of the hall fell down with the vibrations.
"What's happening outside?" The nobles in the hall were all shocked.
"Lorine, Alice, don't run around." Kalan immediately followed his father and ran out of the hall. Many nobles also ran outside, wanting to see what was happening that could cause such a huge noise.
Reynolds, Yale, and George also walked outside in confusion.
But at that moment—
"Boom!"
A giant foot fell from the sky, directly stamping onto the front courtyard of the Debs family. That giant foot landed squarely on Bernard and Kalan, father and son, who had just walked into the front courtyard. The sound of bones shattering was heard. Bernard and Kalan, father and son, were crushed into a pulp of flesh and blood, staining the ground red.
That foot was three to four meters long, covered in golden fur.
"Ah!" Many people looked up and saw the true form of this monster.
It was a giant golden-furred ape, nearly twenty to thirty meters tall, as high as an eight-story building. This giant golden-furred ape's eyes were like two huge purple wheels. Especially the energy faintly swirling around the surface of this golden-furred ape's body, causing the air to tremble.
"Violet-Eyed Golden-Furred Ape! A Saint-level magical beast, a Violet-Eyed Golden-Furred Ape!!!" Yale saw this magical beast and was dumbfounded.
That Violet-Eyed Golden-Furred Ape raised its head and shouted excitedly, but what came out of its mouth was human speech: "Haha, kill, kill for me, kill them all, slaughter them all. Whoever kills the most, the King will surely give you more rewards, haha, kill!!!"
"Boom~~~" ...
Yale, Reynolds, and George all heard from all directions, as if from every corner of the world, the roars of various magical beasts. Suddenly, Yale, Reynolds, and George saw the sky filled with an endless, sky-covering swarm of flying magical beasts.
"Pterosaur, it's a pterosaur, this..." Reynolds was also dumbfounded.
A group of pterosaurs flew in from afar, blotting out the sky and covering the earth, densely packed, their numbers so great they couldn't be counted at a glance.
Instantly, everyone felt as if the end of the world had arrived. At this moment, no one had any pity left for Kalan and Bernard, who had been crushed into pulp by the Violet-Eyed Golden-Furred Ape.