Chapter 10: That day, Lei Ming City welcomed its King

Lei Ming City in the Duke Campbell territory of the Laine Kingdom was as peaceful and busy as ever today.

Steam-breathing ships came and went at the port, shirtless laborers moved boxes and bundles of goods from the decks to the markets or workshops, and every stall under the colorful dyed cloth was packed with strange little gadgets.

And all this prosperity and the glory equivalent to it were all thanks to the man riding a tall warhorse, leading the soldiers of the Knights, walking on the main road decorated with lanterns and colored banners.

His name was Aaron Campbell, and it wasn't hard to guess from the name that he was the lord here.

Not only that.

Besides his status as a vassal of the Laine King, he was also the Chosen One canonized by Saint Xisi... which people commonly call a hero.

And just a short while ago, the Demon King who was stirring up trouble outside Lei Ming City died under his sword.

Although he was already at the advanced age of 70, his heroism was still not inferior to his younger days.

Many people speculated that this noble Grand Duke Campbell might have already broken through the bottleneck of the Diamond-tier and stepped into the realm of Amethyst or even Grandmaster! "Praise Saint Xisi! Praise the Holy Light!"

"Long live Grand Duke Campbell!"

"Long live the Grand Duchy!"

"Long live the Laine Kingdom!"

Cheers, applause, and whistles!

Looking at the triumphant heroes, the young boys and girls standing on both sides of the street threw flowers into the air, and the old farmers and citizens with red faces and thick necks cheered with all their might.

Facing the enthusiasm of the citizens, Grand Duke Campbell nodded slightly, a proper smile on his angular face, just like a strict father, majestic yet kind.

The citizens of Lei Ming City liked him quite a bit.

Especially the devout believers of Saint Xisi, who couldn't wait to pounce up and kiss his shoes.

However—

Not everyone was willing to attribute everything Lei Ming City possessed to Grand Duke Campbell and his Knights.

The corridor of the City Hall.

The pot-bellied Mayor lit a cigarette, his gaze crossing the half-covered curtains, casting a jealous look at that old and handsome Duke.

"Look at the disgusting appearance of this group of idiots... as if the sun was called out by a rooster crowing; there was no sun in the First Epoch."

Not daring to stare at that lord for too long, he reached out and pulled the curtains completely shut, feeling guilty like a thief.

Looking at Mayor Miller who was cursing in a low voice, the gentleman wearing a top hat smiled and said in a chatty tone.

"I think you're just sour."

His name was Yan Andi, a famous wealthy merchant in Lei Ming City.

Just an hour ago, the City Council had just solicited opinions on the controversial "Commercial Tax Increase Draft"... mainly soliciting opinions on punctuation marks and wording.

His old friend Miller had finally brushed off those protesting shopkeepers, farm owners, and captains, while he was the one being brushed off.

"Sour? Are you kidding!"

Expressing dissatisfaction with his old friend's teasing, Mayor Miller cursed and said.

"I'm not sour, but Lei Ming City has been like this since the Isaac era! Even more interesting than now! But back then, we wouldn't thank the lord for rewarding us with food, but were fighting Lizardmen in the swamps, digging one huge manor after another from between their teeth! And then Lei Ming City had today!"

"But no one has experienced it, right?" Yan comforted him and stopped his words, "Alright, let's not talk about this, you don't want to be accidentally overheard by passersby and accidentally treated as a 'traitor who believes in foreign gods', right?"

Foreign gods.

Usually refers to all gods except Saint Xisi, whether it's the ancient gods of the First Epoch or Isaac, whose name cannot even be mentioned.

"Tsk."

Miller shrank his neck.

This sentence really hit his sore spot.

Regardless of whether he believed in that damn Saint Xisi, he had to pretend to be incomparably devout.

Actually, it wasn't entirely pretending.

He would still do things like praying and donating money.

Looking at his old friend who had calmed down, Yan said in a slow and deliberate voice.

"At least he did defeat the Demon King, I think he has no problem as a ruler."

"The problem is huge," Miller shook his head, sighed, and continued, "The Demon King is dead, the Demon King territory will soon disappear, and then the adventurers of the whole city will lose their jobs, and then the taverns and blacksmith shops. My accountant calculated that we will lose at least a quarter of our income... maybe more."

The Laine Kingdom is the home of knights, but no city can make money by relying on knights who don't produce anything.

Compared to the saber-rattling Trident Knights, the "Labyrinth" is the specialty of Lei Ming City, and only the "Labyrinth" can lure sixteen-year-old boys from the countryside here, and it's continuous, thousands of them.

They either bring back valuable treasures from the labyrinth, or blame their bad luck for being kept inside by monsters.

Hell's invasion? Who cares about that kind of thing! This isn't the Os Empire next to the front line! Rather, if there's a chance, he really wants to raise a succubus to try! However, now the Demon King is dead, adventurers with money and strength will soon head non-stop to the next city with a labyrinth, and adventurers who can't afford a boat ticket will become unstable factors disrupting public order.

"They have to learn to adapt to a new life." Yan said in a very light voice, "No one can live in the past forever... even you and me."

"I hope so."

The Mayor sighed, looking at the ceiling and talking to himself.

"You say... if there were that kind of Demon King who followed the rules, how good would that be? For example, honestly staying underground, we go down on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, they come up on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday."

Or just don't come up at all.

Anyway, even if you take down Lei Ming City, you can't hold it, right? "Everyone rests together on the seventh day, right?"

Yan laughed out loud upon hearing this. "Is that still called a Demon King?"

Adventurers chase the labyrinth for faith, for glory, for ascension, for the chance to be favored by Saint Xisi.

Rationally analyzing, the Demon King should also have his own demands. Putting so much effort into invading the surface couldn't possibly be just for fun.

Mayor Miller obviously also felt that he was stupid for saying such things, and sighed at the ceiling.

"That's true."

Sometimes he couldn't help but think, if the Isaac Dynasty hadn't perished, but continued until today, what would the Lei Ming City he lived in look like.

But that kind of thing can only be left to imagination.

After all, the history he knows might not be the closest to the truth...

On the other side, the Knights' formation had already crossed the street, followed by the conscripted army carrying large-caliber rifles.

Unlike the soldiers under the lord.

They mostly came from fields, mines, or docks, and would only gather when the lord needed them.

Although the cheers and applause of the people were all gathered around the lord and the knights, being able to advance on the flower petals that had once fallen on the shoulders of the Chosen One was not a kind of honor for them as mortals.

At least.

That proud expression wasn't faked.

Some are happy, some are sad.

Just when the square formation carrying fire sticks was walking across the street with neat steps, the tavern across the street was bustling with noise, the chattering noise just like sparrows on a branch.

The name of this tavern is "Pavilion of Swords and Broken Swords", the origin of the name seems to be because the owner of this shop hung a sword at the door before.

Later the sword was stolen, but the thief didn't take it for free, but hung a broken one up.

People were guessing that maybe it wasn't stealing but borrowing, as for why it wasn't returned, it was because the owner of the broken sword unfortunately died in the labyrinth.

Although the name wasn't auspicious, because this was the tavern closest to the Adventurers' Guild, and it was opened behind the Adventurers' Guild, many adventurers waiting for work would gather here to kill time.

Over time, this became a veritable "Quality Square" and "Matchmaking Hall".

Occasionally someone would entrust the bartender sitting behind the bar to release some work that couldn't be registered at the Adventurers' Guild, but didn't have to go to the Thieves' Guild to find, work in the gray area between black and white.

The time now was just past noon, logically speaking, it was far from the time to drink.

However, as it happened, because the Demon King died, the number of commissions regarding the labyrinth dropped sharply, and a large group of adventurers with no work could only run here to drink away their sorrows.

Some guys who didn't know how to keep their mouths shut would shout loudly when drunk.

Perhaps this is what Professor Enuosi said—

Sometimes even if you leave humans alone, they will sell their souls to demons themselves.

When they have no self-awareness.

"Dog-X Campbell family! Why did that idiot kill the Demon King! He doesn't know at all, what a hard-working and useless Demon King means to Lei Ming City!"

The oak beer mug knocked heavily on the table, a man carrying a battle axe was shouting rudely, and the flying saliva sprayed several meters away.

The person carrying the bow and arrow next to him was probably his companion, hurriedly comforting this guy who had drunk too much.

"But that guy already attacked... if the lord's army left him alone, wouldn't the citizens' taxes be paid in vain?"

"The problem is right here!" The man carrying the battle axe stared with wide eyes, shouting with a red face and thick neck, "If that idiot really cared about his subjects, he should have cut off the Demon King's claws and teeth, and then put that Demon King back—"

The teammate sitting next to him quickly pressed down on this guy who didn't know how to keep his mouth shut, and cursed in terror.

"You don't want your life!"

Saying to spare the Demon King's life on the land illuminated by the Holy Light, if those fanatical believers heard it, they would definitely shout in the name of God and rush up to execute justice immediately.

But fortunately, everyone sitting here was an adventurer, and everyone pretended not to hear it when they heard it, and even felt that this silly guy was right.

Isn't it? The labyrinth can produce shiny magic crystals, and all kinds of good things that the surface doesn't have and can only be found underground or even in the depths of Hell... just like a huge gold mine.

No.

A gold mine can't be compared to this thing at all.

The former is the private property of noble lords and landlord lords, while the latter belongs to everyone who harbors dreams.

Of course.

Many adventurers also admitted in their hearts that they were actually just jealous.

If there really was a chance to behead the Demon King, they wouldn't consider these things, they would definitely rush up to execute justice faster than anyone else.

After all, that is a chance to gain God's favor!

Grand Duke Campbell, who is already a Chosen One, might not care, but for them who have stayed at their own bottlenecks for too long, this is almost their only way to progress.

They want to progress too much!

Dream about it!

Just when everyone was shouting, almost no one noticed a handsome young man walk in from the door and sit in the seat near the door.

They would never dream of it.

The "special merit" they were thinking about was sitting right next to them...

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 11 =====