Ascenders Rift

It appears they were waiting on someone or something to get started. However, for some reason, there appeared to have been a slight delay in today"s proceedings. At various corners of this grand hall, one would see a few familiar faces, some being the heads of the large corporations, the Imperial Council, and the royal military"s upper chain of command. 

The faces of Fredrick Valentine and Butler Kain were also visible amongst the crowds, as they stood in central locations while staring at the scene with indifference.

Fredrick"s eyes seemed to be more focus onto a pendant, one in which the image of a beauty with long red hair was prevalent.

Kain looked at this in silence, not ushering a word as if he was a shadow.

Soon, the doors at the summit of the stairs opened, as a bright light shone down into the grand hall, bathing him in its radiance. If one looked at the scene more clearly, they would realize that someone had appeared. It was a handsome blue-haired youth with his eyes covered by his hair that hung down his forehead, being more than 1.8 meters tall with sharp and cunning features.

Today, he wore a royal blue robe, with the patterns of stars intricately woven in its cloth, this robe covered a found pair of trousers and a white s.h.i.+rt that was of exquisite design, both of which were embellished with the marking of "Erickson IV" on its surface.

The moment the crowd saw this young man, the activities had ceased as all noises faded, even the various cameramen started to recover more professionally.

They made sure to clearly capture the scene of everyone who suddenly made a bow towards the young man as they spoke in unison, "We greet the Crown Prince Elumar!"

Elumar looked at everyone from his high point angle with eyes filled with satire, but as no one could see below his hair, it seemed as if he was giving everyone a dignified look.

With a wave of his hand, Elumar then spoke in a loud voice, "Let us commence the ceremony,"

Following his voice, a few individuals garbed in ancient uniforms had begun to climb the stairs towards him, as they moved, they place a piece of the star-like gem at the corners of the stairs while humming in a traditional tune.

The crowd watching this scene each began to salute, as the tune being hummed was the nation"s anthem—their eyes which faced Elumar s.h.i.+ning as they eagerly antic.i.p.ated the results.

Eventually, they had each arrived before Elumar were the made a bow. After doing this, the other steppe to the side, leaving only two persons. One was an old man dressed in holy white robes with a cross in one hand, as the other was a middle-aged man that had a brilliant s.h.i.+ny crown resting on top of a red cus.h.i.+on in his arms.

Elumar"s eyes shone as he stared at the crown in the man"s arm, remaining silent as the old man began to speak.

"I, Weizman, Archbishop of the Grand Church, am here to offer my blessings and to coronate the successor to the late King Herbert Erickson III. As stipulated by the royal doctrine, in the event of an unlikely pa.s.sing of the empire"s ruler. The throne will be pa.s.sed onto the direct inline successor; as such, the firstborn prince Elumar who was crowned since birth is the rightful heir. If at this time, the Crowned Prince would like to reject his right to govern, he may do so now, or forever accept this degree and its accompanying duties," Upon saying the mouthful, Weizman stared at Elumar with an in-depth look, as he held the cross before him.

The audience remained silent, as did those who watched this event from afar from behind their TV screens, or various electronic devices.

Soon, Elumar, who had been silent, spoke his answer, "I will accept my rightful duty, as it is the price for being born as the heir."

A few from the audience smiled while others hid their discontent, being from different n.o.ble houses. When Archbishop Weizman heard those words, his eyes flashed before he made a polite bow and replied, "Then let us begin the coronation."

Following his words, Archbishop Weizman then began to draw a symbol with the cross in his hand as he spoke for each time, he finished one movement.

"The first blessing is for the hope that when you a.s.sume your t.i.tle as king and monarch of these lands, you will strive for the betterhood of our nation"s people."

After finis.h.i.+ng his previous words, Archbishop Weizman waved his hand again as his sharp voice sounded into the minds of all observers near and far.

"The second blessing is for the everlasting health and success of the honored heir upon his acceptance of the throne, may your life be a long-lived one and with it, the prosperity of our nation."

After his second set of words, everyone had started to show weighty expressions, some even beginning to feel pride as they stared at the holy scene occurring at the summits of the stairs.

Archbishop Weizman then raised his hand for the last time, lifting the crown from the person who held it by his side. The lights shone from the room behind Elumar shone upon it, causing it to send a bright ray of light across the Grand Hall.

He then spoke once more, "The final blessing, is the hope that you can accomplish the fallen king"s duties, striving to outdo his past efforts and ensuring a brighter path of the nation"s development. With this said, then I Archbishop Weizman of the Grand Church, with the powers invested in myself hereby crown Elumar, as the Fourth Generation King of the Morning Star Empire, formally imbuing onto you the surname Erickson IV."

After finis.h.i.+ng his words, Archbishop Weizman then placed the crown onto Elumar"s head. The moment this happened, the crowds both near and far went wild as their cheers sounded across the empire.

"Long live the king!" The n.o.bles shouted as they made a formal salute adopted by royalty.

A few other major influential group leaders also did the same, as they showed solemn looks on their faces. 

Fredrick Valentine had a lost look on his face as he was still distracted by his previous thoughts, Kain looked at him with a calm look, his mind seeming to be closed off from the world.

At this moment, Elumar smiled as he lifted his head, staring at the world below him as if it was his backyard. He stared at the heavens as he thought to himself, "This is the first step forward, the very first step towards my path to supreme rule, and like all great men with ambitions, what better to prove one"s worth than to show it directly. Huhu… with the time I delayed previously, it should just about be time for all to fall into place…" 

As if he was antic.i.p.ating something, the sky around the entire world had suddenly changed, perfectly transitioning from a scene of daytime to darkness. Looking in the sky, one would notice that it wasn"t that the day had turned into night, but rather an immensely large Horde Carrier had eclipsed the view for the entirety of the empire.

Around this Horde Carrier, were numerous small ones that were roughly the size of the ones that had devastated the Earth World previously, during their initiation. Countless flying type Flesh Eaters with larger frames that wore armored gear floated above the void as their wings repeatedly flapped as they gaze down towards the Earth Sector with cruel looks.

"Kreeeeeh!" The savage and brutal cry of numerous Flesh Eaters now sounding from above, sending a wave of power about that began to vibrate the very world itself.

Still, despite the force behind their battle cry, their power was mostly resisted as once the ripples encountered the barrier protecting the Earth Sector. They vanished into nothingness, giving those who saw the scene from far below a slight feeling of ease.

Yet, regardless of the barrier protecting them, those who saw the scene above couldn"t help but feel dread, as some had begun to make exclamations.

"Good heavens, how could this happen?" One n.o.bleman exclaimed in horror as he turned and faced the now darkened sky.

"Are those b.a.s.t.a.r.ds attacking again? Didn"t we have an intermission period?" Another person said.

"We cannot sit back idly, who knows if what that voice said was true, we must hurry and take combat measures!" A strong looking man said, dressed in a stylish red military uniform with a knight emblem on his chest.

"Belmon, what are you saying? Even with your Royal Knight Brigade there is nothing we can do against that type of squad, I have already done the inspection, and just the bare troops hovering around are at Level 7, none of our finest soldiers or mechs is their match!" A bald man with sharp eyes, thin mustache, and a formal suit from the side of the Imperial Council said to the man in a red military uniform.

"Minister Orwell is correct, the barrier is still protecting us, which means that we can at least buy the words of the being for now. The most important thing we can do at this moment is to begin planning some type of countermeasure," Someone else from the council added.

The n.o.bles who had forced themselves to calm down also began to speak out loud, adding various opinions as they shared their views on the situation.

Fredrick looked at this scene in calmness, though he was the RADA leader, he was partic.i.p.ating as the Chief of the Val Corps in this coronation. Hence, he didn"t make any moves but stared at Elumar deeply.

Kain didn"t move either, as he silently stood by Fredrick"s side with a calm expression on his face.

At this time, Elumar, who had a strange smile on his face, lowered his head as he gazed at everyone around the room and spoke, "Let there be silence..."

The crowd hearing this soon came to their senses, as they bowed silently. Elumar nodded at this change before he spoke again, "It"s true, this was rather unexpected, but as Minster Orwell has noted, the barrier protection formed by G.o.d"s Will is more than able to keep us safe until the intermission period has ended. You need not fear their onslaught."

The minsters hearing this felt a tinge of relief, but at this moment, one person spoke in a hesitant tone, "King Elumar, it"s true that the barrier will protect us, but what will happen if they keep at that position until the intermission ends. How would we deal with them, if they keep piling up on their numbers during the rest of these months?"

A few others also shared his thoughts, but as if he was expecting it. Elumar"s smile rose even further as if this was what he was waiting for all along. He raised his hand, showing his arm that was wearing a royal blue glove.

The crowd looked at him in surprise, watching as he slowly began to unveil his left arm. Soon, the back of his palm was revealed, showing a very unusual marking, one that glowed in bright golden lights with holy inscriptions at its center.

As everyone opened their eyes in shock, Elumar spoke with a confident expression, "Fear not, for I have the solution. This marking was a blessing given to me since early childhood; it has followed me for years, teaching me the ways of the universe and preparing me for times such as these. It was only later than I knew what this marking was, and the duty it ent.i.tled me to bear."

The audience looked on in silence as they heard his words, watching him without even so much as blinking.

 Elumar then raised his hand to the sky as a beam of bright golden lights shot towards the heavens. In moments, the barrier that surrounded earth began to expand at a rapid rate, quickly enveloping all of the Flesh Eaters in their range.

The once cl.u.s.tered sky filled with Horde Carriers, and Flesh Mutators now one of clearness, as if G.o.d had momentary unleashed his fury.

Everyone, no matter who they were, looked at this scene in shock and dread, even Fredrick Valentine and Kain narrowed their eyes as they looked at Elumar.

Fredrick thought to himself, "So that"s how it is, that"s why that fellow wants to work with him..."

As Elumar looked at everyone, the lights from his hand faded. Soon, he spoke in a resonant voice, "It has bestowed on me the duty to protect all life within Earth"s Domain, a blessing to forever guide and lead humanity towards the right path. A duty only accomplished by G.o.d"s Chosen..." 

A dignified power filled the air, even being transmitted towards the areas of those who watched from behind devices. Now Elumar seemed no different from a being of divine origin, one who was destined to save the world.