Chapter 187: The King

However, just at this moment.

A burst of rapid hoofbeats came from the end of the plaza.

A team of knights wearing the standard armor of the Royal Capital, holding high a flag representing the royal family, charged through the crowd and came straight to the trial platform.

The knight in the lead dismounted, his expression stubborn and arrogant; he didn't even look at the people around him as he walked straight onto the trial platform.

He took a golden scroll from his bosom.

"His Majesty the King has an order!"

The sharp voice resounded throughout the entire plaza.

Everyone was stunned.

People from the Royal Capital?

And they came with an order from His Majesty the King?

Roko's brows furrowed slightly.

He looked at the stubborn-looking messenger, and a bad premonition flashed in his heart.

Now that the Royal Capital is in chaos and the King is under house arrest, only two people can issue orders.

The First Prince or—the Third Prince.

Whose person could this be?

He slowly walked down the trial platform and knelt on one knee toward the scroll.

"Roko Raymond, receives the decree."

No matter who came, the superficial etiquette still had to be done.

The messenger glanced at Roko kneeling on the ground, a look of contempt curling the corners of his mouth.

He slowly unfolded the scroll in his hand and read it aloud in a strange, mocking tone.

"By the grace of heaven, the King decrees!"

"It has been heard that the Governor of the western border, Marquis Archibald, has unfortunately died suddenly, leaving the province without a master, which causes me great worry."

"Specially ordering the Governor of the Silver Moon Province, Marquis William, to temporarily act as the Governor of the Sunset Province, to take office today and stabilize the situation in the west."

"Baron Roko of the Raymond Family is rewarded for exposing the rebellion, his loyalty and courage are commendable, specially granting—one hundred taels of gold, ten bolts of brocade, to show commendation."

"Additionally, he is ordered to lead his troops back to the Xin Feng Province to garrison his territory immediately, without error."

"Respect this!"

The order was read.

The entire plaza was dead silent.

The imperial decree was read, and the entire Sunset Plaza was deathly silent.

That sharp voice, carrying a bit of smugness, still echoed in everyone's ears.

The citizens who had just been shouting Roko's name like a mountain-shaking sea were all stunned at this moment. They opened their mouths, the fanaticism and excitement on their faces frozen, turning into confusion and bewilderment.

What is the situation?

They had just hanged the traitorous Governor Archibald, so why did the Royal Capital suddenly send a new Governor?

And they wanted their hero, Master Roko, to roll back to his own small territory?

This was completely different from what they had imagined!

General Vittel's face turned black instantly, the veins on his hand gripping the sword hilt bulging. The City Guard generals behind him also had ugly expressions, their eyes filled with anger and unwillingness.

They had just defected to a new master and were just about to show their skills and make contributions, and a single order from the Royal Capital was going to pull out their backbone? What did that make them? Had they become stray dogs just after defecting?

Silas's expression also changed, a haze flashing in his shrewd eyes. He had placed a heavy bet on behalf of the Commercial Alliance, not to watch Roko be sent away in disgrace. This order was not only a slap in Roko's face, but also a slap in the face of his Commercial Alliance!

Everyone's eyes subconsciously gathered in the center of the plaza, on the figure kneeling on one knee.

Roko Raymond.

This young man who had just controlled the entire city with thunderous means and was regarded by everyone as the "Savior of the West."

What would he do?

Would he humiliatingly accept this ridiculous "reward" and leave this land he had fought for with his own hands with his troops?

Or—

Roko kept his head down, and no one could see his expression.

In his heart, anger was erupting like a volcano.

What a Third Prince! What a "King decrees"!

What a good calculation!

He had been working hard here, exposing Archibald's conspiracy, stabilizing the situation in the entire province, and even publicly executing the traitor.

And the result?

The Third Prince sat comfortably in the Royal Capital, moving his lips, and wanted to send one of his own people to swallow this huge Sunset Province, along with the huge wealth he had seized from Archibald's treasury, in one bite?

As for himself, this "meritorious official"?

One hundred taels of gold, ten bolts of brocade?

This is fucking dismissing a beggar!

Did he calculate that he had just taken Sunset City, his foundation was unstable, and he dared not openly defy the "Royal Order"?

He wanted to use the name of righteousness to crush him to death!

The messenger who read the decree looked at Roko kneeling on the ground, and the contempt in the corners of his mouth grew stronger.

In his view, this little Baron of the Raymond family was just lucky and had picked up a big bargain. In the face of the absolute authority of the royal family, he was ultimately just a local noble who couldn't be brought to the table.

He cleared his throat and said in a condescending tone: "Baron Roko Raymond, why haven't you received the decree and thanked the grace? Marquis William's vanguard troops will arrive in a few days. You should prepare early, finish the handover of defense, and return to your Xin Feng Province as soon as possible."

"Heh—"

A low laugh suddenly came from Roko's throat.

He slowly raised his head.

In those black eyes, there was no anger or unwillingness as everyone imagined, only a bottomless coldness, and a trace of—indifference like looking at a dead person.

"I ask you a question." Roko's voice was very calm, but it made the messenger shiver for no reason.

"Whose decree is this?" Roko stood up and patted the dust off his knees, his movements calm and unhurried, "Is it His Majesty the King's, or that of the Third Prince, the traitor who put the King under house arrest and colluded with the Poison Scorpion Society and the Castilla Principality?"

As soon as this was said, the whole place was in an uproar!

The messenger's face turned pale instantly, and his hand pointing at Roko began to tremble: "You—you are talking nonsense! You dare to slander His Highness the Third Prince! This is His Majesty the King's decree, if you dare to question it, it is treason!"

"Treason?" Roko smiled, and he pointed to Archibald's corpse still swaying in the wind on the gallows.

"See that? That is the traitor! A shameless scoundrel who colluded with the Poison Scorpion Society, colluded with the Third Prince, and attempted to sell out the entire western border!"

"Now, his master behind the scenes, the Third Prince who also wants to sell the country, sent you with a piece of broken paper of unknown authenticity, and wants to come and pick the peaches?"

Roko's voice suddenly rose, exploding over the plaza like a thunderclap.

"I tell you! This so-called 'imperial decree' was forged by the traitorous Third Prince! He wants to support a new puppet,"

"to continue the treasonous business that Archibald did not finish!"

"He wants to sell our entire Sunset Province to the Castilla Principality!"

The citizens completely exploded!

So that's how it was!

They said so, Master Roko is a hero, how could His Majesty the King treat him like this! So this decree was the work of that villain, the Third Prince!

"Beat him to death! This running dog of a traitor!"

"Burn that fake decree!"

The crowd was incensed, and the anger that had just been suppressed burned again with a hundred times the intensity.

The messenger panicked completely; he did not expect Roko to reverse the entire situation in just a few words. He screamed with a fierce look: "Presumptuous! Roko Raymond, you dare to defy the decree! You are seeking your own death!"

"Noisy!"

A cold light flashed in Roko's eyes, and he took a step forward, instantly appearing in front of the messenger.

In the other party's terrified gaze, he snatched the golden scroll.

"You—what do you want to do!" The messenger retreated in fear.

Roko didn't even look at the scroll, his hands exerting force suddenly.

"Rip!"

A crisp tearing sound rang out.

That scroll, which symbolized royal authority and was embroidered with intricate patterns with gold thread, was torn into two halves by Roko in front of everyone!

Then, into four, eight—

He tore the "imperial decree" into a pile of fragments in the blink of an eye, as if tearing a piece of waste paper, and scattered them into the air.

The golden debris fluttered down like an absurd snow.

The whole world seemed to have stopped at this moment.

Everyone was shocked out of their wits by Roko's earth-shattering move.

He—he tore the imperial decree?!

Crazy!

This young man is truly crazy!

"I, Roko Raymond, hereby announce!" Roko looked around the audience, his voice not loud, but clearly entering everyone's ears, "

This Sunset Province was taken back from the hands of the traitor! Every inch of land here belongs to the great Black Kingdom, and belongs to the hundreds of thousands of people of the Sunset Province!"

"From today on, any conspirator who wants to touch this land, no matter who they are, will be my enemy!"

"In this Sunset Province, what I say is the rule!"

He turned his head suddenly, his cold gaze locking onto the messenger who had already collapsed on the ground.

"General Vittel!"

Vittel jumped, straightened his chest, and shouted: "The subordinate is here!"

"Arrest this spy who colluded with the traitorous Third Prince to forge an imperial decree and attempted to subvert the province! Along with his accomplices, leave none, throw them all into the dungeon, and interrogate them strictly!"

"Yes! Master Governor!"

Vittel no longer had any hesitation in his heart, only endless fanaticism remained.

Afraid of what? If the sky falls, the Governor will hold it up!

He waved his hand, and two wolf-like City Guard soldiers immediately rushed onto the trial platform and dragged the messenger down like a dead dog.

"You can't treat me like this! I am from the Royal Capital! Marquis William will not let you go! His Highness the Third Prince will not let you go!"

The messenger's shrill screams soon disappeared into the roar of the crowd.

Roko looked at the boiling crowd below, looking at those eyes full of worship and trust in him, he knew that from the moment he tore up the imperial decree, he had no way back.

But this was exactly what he wanted!

He wanted everyone to know that he, Roko Raymond, was not a soft persimmon that could be pinched!

If you want to grab food from his mouth, you have to be prepared to break all your teeth!

Night fell, and the Governor's mansion was brightly lit.

The noise and fanaticism of the day gradually dissipated, replaced by a gravity before the storm.

In the council hall, Roko sat high on the Governor's throne, with his core followers in Sunset City standing below.

General Vittel, Commander-in-Chief of the City Guard, Silas, representative of the Commercial Alliance, and more than a dozen local nobles who had just sworn allegiance during the day, their faces still carrying a bit of excitement.

Everyone was silent; the impact of tearing up the imperial decree in the plaza during the day was only now truly fermenting in their hearts.

What was torn was not a piece of paper, but a declaration of open break with the Royal Capital and the Third Prince's faction.

"Master Governor, you—you were really—" a noble hesitated for a long time before finding a word, "really too inspiring today in the plaza!"

Another person also hurriedly echoed: "Yes! That messenger from the Royal Capital had his nose almost pointing to the sky, that's how he should be treated! Let him know that our Sunset Province is not to be bullied!"

Their words carried the excitement of surviving a disaster, and also a trace of worry that could not be concealed.

Silas did not speak; he just looked at Roko with complex eyes. As a businessman, he was best at assessing risks and benefits. Roko's move today undoubtedly pushed the risk to the highest, but at the same time, once successful, the benefits would be unimaginable.

He took a deep breath, broke the discussion of the crowd, and said in a deep voice: "Master Governor, you have thrown a war letter to the Third Prince and the ruling faction of the entire Royal Capital. Just as you said, we have no way back."

His voice made the hall quiet instantly.

"That Marquis William is not a straw bag like Archibald." Silas continued to analyze, "The William family is an old Marquis of the Kingdom, operating in the Silver Moon Province for hundreds of years, with deep roots. He himself is also a veteran with great military achievements, and the Silver Moon Legion under his command is a famous elite in the western border. He came here this time by 'Royal Order', and it is justified, I am afraid he will not give up easily."

General Vittel also nodded with a heavy expression: "Master Silas is right. The subordinate has had several joint exercises with the Silver Moon Legion, and their military appearance and combat power are far above the City Guard of Sunset City. If their army presses the border, we—I am afraid there will be a fierce battle."

The atmosphere in the hall became oppressive again.

Roko looked at the worry on everyone's faces, but his expression remained calm.

"William will come, I have no doubt about this." He spoke, his voice steady and powerful, instantly soothing everyone's emotions, "But he won't come immediately. He is an old general, not a reckless man. Without figuring out our reality, he will not rashly advance. He needs time to gather troops and prepare logistics. And this period of time is our only chance."

He stood up from the throne and walked to the huge sand table, on which was the map of the entire Sunset Province.

His gaze was as sharp as an eagle's.

"What we need to do now is not to be afraid of when he comes, but to make full preparations before he comes. Let him come, and don't even think about going back!"

He slammed his fist on the sand table, making a muffled sound, and also hitting everyone's heart.

"General Vittel!"

"The subordinate is here!"

"From now on, I give you the highest authority and enough money!" Roko looked at him with burning eyes, "Archibald's treasury is open to you! I don't want you to save, I want you to expand the army for me at the fastest speed!"

"Break up the three hundred Storm Knights I brought, and integrate them into the City Guard as the backbone! I want you to use them as instructors,"

"and use the most ruthless methods to train me a strong army that dares to fight and can fight in the shortest time!"

"All young and strong men in the city between the ages of sixteen and forty are to be registered and undergo preliminary military training! I don't care what method you use, within half a month, I want to see a city defense force of at least thirty thousand people! Can you do it?" ===== CHAPTER 188 =====