Chapter 654
Isabel: “This is outrageous!”
Morning, March 1st.
Avalon, Glass Island, Silver and Tin Hall.
Queen Isabel finished her breakfast early and sat intently in her study, engrossed in reading. However, she wasn’t looking at official documents; she was secretly reading a novel. It was a “forbidden book” that had recently become quietly popular in Avalon—it depicted the political struggle and office romance between Minister Elves and Queen Isabel.
This was mainly because both Elves and Isabel were young, with striking appearances and early success. Coupled with the previous scandal between Elves and Miss Alistair, this young Minister of Affairs, appointed exceptionally by the former Queen, had, in the eyes of the people, developed a complex relationship with the young Queen, a blend of rivals and allies.
Normally, anything involving the royal family would be discovered and dealt with immediately. The author would most likely end up as a dried, mummified corpse hanging in the Hanging Square.
But after purchasing and collecting the book with bated breath and the feeling of “Finally, I’m catching up with the legendary, out-of-print forbidden book that’s being released!”, they unexpectedly found that it hadn’t been banned. Not only was it not banned, but it was still being serialized!
This led people to recall the news of “Miss Alistair being expelled from Avalon” and they immediately understood—oh, so this was Her Majesty the Queen’s intention. So, this was a legitimate cause that the royal family tacitly approved, or even supported!
In an instant, similar stories and novels began to sprout like mushrooms after rain. Some were printed and sold independently, others were serialized in newspapers, and some artists even received commissions to draw similar illustrations.
It was only because people still maintained some reason that they hadn’t yet written operas on related themes—the aforementioned could still be considered the personal actions of the public, but operas required approval from the Inspection Department. Now that the young minister was not in Avalon, if he were to discover this upon his return and become angry, seeking retribution, things could escalate into major trouble.
—And so, Isabel decided to take matters into her own hands.
She gave herself a pseudonym: “Rose Kelly.” She planned to write an opera herself, from script to composition, and then secretly get it approved. Once people saw it performed, they would likely understand the royal family’s stance on the matter.
But this was just an idea. Isabel had no writing experience—so, to gather material, she decided to first see how the novels on the market were written and if there were any plot points she could borrow.
Therefore, she had her royal guards discreetly purchase a few books from the black market. As Elves was occupied with other matters these past few days and unable to meet her in the evenings, Isabel had even stayed up reading novels until past 4 AM last night—to maintain her energy, she usually slept by midnight.
Exhausted beyond measure, Isabel made a firm decision: It was already so late, and she wouldn’t get enough sleep anyway, so why not just stay awake?
Thus, Isabel drank a clarity potion, and then used the harp Elves had given her to perform a self-treatment, forcefully removing the potion’s negative effects.
After an early breakfast and having practiced her singing and playing, Isabel sat in her study, intending to continue reading. When she read the names of the heroines in those books last night, she initially felt her face flush—but later, she slowly felt a peculiar sensation. It was as if she had personally experienced a mysterious adventure and spent wonderful times with Elves.
Last night’s sleeplessness had been meaningful: Isabel felt a resonance with the Path of Beauty. This peculiar experience of viewing herself as a “character in a novel” and even creating new fictional art had visibly increased her Power.
…But this current book was somewhat different. It was said to be the hottest-selling, highest-rated, and lowest-stock book on the black market. Isabel’s personal guards had gone to great lengths to acquire it. Isabel always had the habit of “saving the best for last,” so she planned to read this book at the end, lest her palate become too discerning to enjoy anything else.
However, it made Isabel’s face flush. Partly from shame, and partly from anger. This was because the book contained a large number of “adult” and discordant descriptions. But what angered Isabel the most was that these stories were not about her at all—they were about Elves and “Miss Alistair,” even sentimental stories about Elves and Star Antinomy female agents, and Elves and Iris Flower female spies.
The story of Elves and Isabel was reduced to a thrilling tale of how they “conspired together to confront their common enemies, while also fighting each other for their own power and interests”—a narrative of mutual cooperation and backstabbing. The author of this book strove to create an atmosphere where “Elves and Miss Alistair were lovers, while Queen Isabel was a mutually recognized nemesis locked in a love-hate relationship,” attempting to rationalize why there were no scenes involving Her Majesty the Queen. But Isabel knew the real reason was that the author dared not write them.
This was indeed reasonable. If this author dared to write stories that blasphemed the monarch, Isabel would immediately contact the Arbitration Hall and have him arrested. Conversely, although the author was now cautious and hadn’t written anything outlandish, Isabel still intended to have him arrested—she didn’t dislike reading it herself, but others definitely shouldn’t be allowed to.
—But what you wrote has angered me!
Regardless of whether the author was male or female, or their background, judging by the rather detailed political descriptions, they likely had access to people in the Round Table Hall. At least their depiction of the atmosphere in the Round Table Hall was accurate.
“—Your Majesty.”
At that moment, there was a knock on the study door. It was a familiar voice that Isabel hadn’t heard in a while—it was Grand Guardian George’s solemn voice.
Isabel scrambled in a panic, wrapping the slim booklet in a copy of “Elven Diplomatic Etiquette: Dining, Customs, and Culture” lying at the corner of the desk. Noticing a crease in the book, she reached out to flatten it but failed. So, she simply picked up the vase on the table, placed it on top of the book, and pushed it back to the corner of the desk.
She breathed a sigh of relief and signaled the guard to open the door. To her surprise, as the door opened, a large group of people walked in.
Except for the Grand Judge, who was on leave—Grand Judge Arrius, Grand Arbitrator Lixia, and Grand Guardian George, the three highest-ranking Extraordinary beings in Avalon, were all present. This immediately put Isabel on alert. Because even Lixia was unusually solemn; she hadn’t been drinking!
Since Lixia had become familiar on Glass Island, she had been visiting the bars she frequented as “Meg” without reservation, resuming her usual comfortable, leisurely life of drinking beer and eating fried chicken. Especially after the arrival of the royal guards, she even had time to go fishing in Shepherd’s Bay Country, and after fishing, she would return home, stew the fish, and share it with Isabel.
“…Lord Barton, aren’t you supposed to be in Star Antinomy?” Isabel looked at the solemn, even guilt-ridden Grand Guardian with some strangeness and worry. “Could it be… an ambush among the Gryphon Legion?”
—But why would the Grand Guardian bring his son along?
“No, the situation on the front lines is proceeding smoothly, Your Majesty the Queen,” the Grand Guardian shook his head. “I have just rushed back—the Gryphon Legion is still stationed in Star Antinomy. I have ordered them to remain in encampment status; they will not proceed with military operations until I return…”
He finished speaking, knelt on one knee, and bowed his head to confess his guilt. “I have come to beg Your Majesty’s forgiveness.”
“…What?” Isabel was taken aback. She looked at the solemn expressions of the Grand Judge and Lixia, and her heart grew heavy. “Why?”
“Because my son, David Barton—he abandoned the Path of Authority last night.” The Grand Guardian said earnestly, “This is undoubtedly a betrayal to Your Majesty, so I brought David here immediately to beg for your forgiveness.”
“…Wait, abandoned the Path? What happened?” Isabel hadn’t grasped the situation yet. —Can one abandon a Path?
“Is the child alright?” She asked subconsciously.
The Grand Guardian patted David’s shoulder, signaling him to speak for himself. David’s expression appeared somewhat timid, but not regretful—his gaze was quite resolute.
“It’s like this, Your Majesty the Queen…” David quickly recounted the dream he had last night.
“He suddenly burst into flames last night,” the Grand Guardian added. “Nadia was terrified—but she quickly realized it was influenced by some mysterious power and dared not interfere. So, she immediately contacted me… I was in Star Antinomy at the time, and the call wouldn’t go through. It was only through a supernatural item that she sent me a warning—it was something I had left behind for her and David to use when they encountered danger. I immediately rushed back with Philip, who flew very fast. So, I arrived in less than half an hour. And when I arrived, we simultaneously detected the Path Power within David disintegrating… but his body was reshaped into another form.”
The Grand Guardian said solemnly, “We quickly woke David up—after confirming, we discovered that he had actually acquired the new profession of ‘Warrior’ that adapts to the path! And the power from his original Path of Authority had been lost…”
“You should still remember where the power of ‘Warrior’ comes from, Your Majesty,” the taciturn Grand Judge reminded her.
(End of Chapter)
