Defying the Fate of Beheading

Chapter 680 358: We Are Married_2

Tch!And who told you I'm an honest person?

Do you think an honest person could make it to the upper echelons of the church?

"They must be very conflicted internally now." Louis recalled what Grace had told him when he was in the Lokeshi Empire.

He slowly closed his eyes.

Back then, our family's saintess had informed him that the Church of Glory and Justice had received a divine prophecy.

The Pope told her that Grace would be a candidate for the saintess of the God of Glory and Justice, starting her journey to spread its doctrines.

From a logical standpoint, the church wouldn't go out of their way to make life difficult for their saintess.

Among this generation's saintess candidates, Grace stood unchallenged; it seemed like she was a candidate, but in reality, she was already in the ranks.

How could the appointed saintess be assigned an impossible task?

Louis pondered for a moment.

This matter concerned Grace's secrets, and although Louis had some suspicions, he didn't feel it was right to share this information with the Emperor.

After all, she could be considered a familiar acquaintance in this world to him, and Louis could cut down demons effortlessly, but betraying friends was something he couldn't bring himself to do.

Even if the Emperor was unlikely to harm Grace.

The Emperor didn't catch on to Louis's thoughts and continued, "It seems a number of people in Lokeshi are starting to want to compromise. After so many years, it's the first time they've allowed so many high-ranking church officials to gather within Lokeshi."

Louis said, "It looks like the various churches are discussing the division of beliefs to avoid conflicts."

Even without Grace's information, the emperor and other forces could see the problem.

The tendency of the Lokeshi, known for their atheism, to compromise with the divinities is increasing, which led to the gathering of the churches.

Their mutual disdain is one thing, but the fact that the Lokeshi Empire actively invited them changes everything.

Did they really think that the Church of the True God had no needs for the development of followers?

If you don't step up, others will.

When others occupy the high ground of followers, they'll just stand around dumbfounded by the side, and they can't accept that.

Perhaps because he talked a lot with the Emperor today, the emperor showed signs of fatigue.

"Help them give a hand if you can; they're willing to pay generously for it," the Emperor said nonchalantly. "If you find you can't help, then just run. I suspect that the condition of the Lokeshi Empire is somewhat driven, intentionally or not, by certain churches."

Louis nodded.

The next moment, the world in front of him flipped again.

He found himself back in the Emperor's chamber. On the throne, the Emperor closed his eyes once more and had already fallen into sleep.

"To help the people of Lokeshi, huh?"

Louis stood up and left the chamber.

He still had many things to do next.

...

Time passed by.

The day of Beatrice's enthronement arrived in the blink of an eye.

The palace was bustling with activity.

Upper and middle-tier nobles from all over the country gathered around the outer circle of the Imperial Palace.

The already bustling Tino City had unknowingly become crowded with people.

The empire's territory was vast, and there were plenty of upper and middle-tier nobles.

Even the expansive Imperial Palace could not accommodate everyone during the succession ceremony.

So eventually, they only selected a relatively small number of upper and middle-tier nobles and some lower-tier nobles of special status identified by Louis and Beatrice to attend the event.

During the daytime, there was an external inspection segment.

Under the eyes of countless citizens, they saw the great emperor again after so many years.

It was an extremely sophisticated doppelganger technique.

If Louis didn't possess true-seeing magic eyes, he wouldn't have realized it was a doppelganger.

—In fact, Beatrice had whispered to him that her magic eyes couldn't tell the difference and truly believed her father stood up.

The Emperor on this day embodied all that the citizens imagined.

Even though it was just a doppelganger, he had a majestic appearance, with golden hair and eyes that attracted others like a black hole.

Just by standing there, his tall figure exuded an indescribable sense of power.

The crowd at the coronation ceremony all beamed with excitement.

It was a heartfelt joy upon seeing the true guardian of the empire.

And the man held a crown, his gaze directed towards Beatrice and Louis.

The voice of the ceremonial marquis, Marquis York, resounded across the square. This old noble used the finest, most elegant tone he could muster in his life to summon the engaged couple on behalf of the Emperor.

Beatrice turned to look at Louis and blinked, asking, "Dear, are you ready?"

Louis didn't speak, just took the girl's hand and accompanied her forward, kneeling on one knee before the leaders of the empire.

"Beatrice, Regent of the Ense Empire and Eldest Princess, as of today, you will be relieved of regency and lose the title of Princess."

The Emperor's voice was loud and firmly captured the crowd's attention.

He took the splendid crown from his head and gently placed it upon his daughter's head:

"From this day forth, you shall assume the role of Emperor Ense, shouldering the burden of protecting the empire."

"I shall always remain true to my first intention and not fail my mission," Beatrice solemnly declared, stepping forward to sit on the throne.

The crowd below couldn't help but start cheering in waves like a tidal surge.

The Emperor didn't leave but turned his gaze towards Louis.

In the shadows, a maid wearing a face-covering veil, holding a tray, stepped forward.

In one glance, Louis recognized this person as Princess Consort Diana.

He was surprised but quickly came to his senses.

This was ultimately one of the most crucial moments of Beatrice's life; despite his mother-in-law always claiming she was just a projection, her memories were real, and so were her feelings.

She couldn't hold back and bore witness to Beatrice's growth in another form… and her joining hands with him.

The Emperor's gaze softened a bit as he took another crown from Diana's tray:

"Louis Charles Julius, as of today, you will fully assume the duties of Prince of the Empire, joining with Empress Beatrice in creating a bright future for the empire."

The cheers from below were no less than when Beatrice assumed the role of Emperor.

Louis's gaze wavered slightly, and he spoke:

"The will of Her Majesty Beatrice shall be my will, and where the point of my sword aims, none shall defy."

He rose to sit next to Beatrice on another throne.

In the front row of the guard's seat, Olivia watched the two above with full enthusiasm.

Her eyes shimmered, nearly shedding tears.

It no longer resembled the desolate scene before the mountains and rivers shattered in her memory.

Everything was so vibrant, and the nightmares of the previous life, the fear of losing her sister, the agony of her father falling into the abyss, the wrenchingly helpless grief seemed to blow away with the wind and rain at this moment.

It was the ending she only dared to yearn for in her dreams.

And now, not yesterday, not tomorrow, but today, she finally seemed to see the road ahead.

This scene persisted until the closing of the ceremonial proceedings.

Among the roaring cheers, Louis and Beatrice stood.

Beatrice beamed with happiness, raising her scepter, proclaiming:

"From this moment on, I, Beatrice, alongside Prince Louis, formally become husband and wife. Cheer, my citizens, to welcome the second governor of the empire!"

At that moment, the scene turned into a sea of joy.

Olivia clapped with a smile.

But for some reason, she suddenly felt a bit distracted.

That rascal Louis finally became Sister Wang's husband.

She just wondered how long her tangled relationship with him would last?

And… whether there might be a chance to see the dawn again?

She laughed softly, not understanding why such ridiculous thoughts popped into her mind.

From the start, her goal was to save Beatrice, to save her father.

Everything else, including herself, was something she could sacrifice.

But…why…?!

Why indeed?

Yet the overwhelming sense of sourness in her heart felt so unaware, causing a tinge of sadness to surface.

But she still mustered her strength to show the brightest smile she could in this life.

This should be the most blissful moment of her sister's life, and she ought to offer her blessings.

When she raised her head again, she saw Beatrice and Louis waving warmly around to express goodwill.

Suddenly, Louis's gaze met with hers.

The smile of politeness bore a touch of softness, silently gazing in her direction and waving gently.

Then he flashed a somewhat mischievous smile.

A bit cheeky.

Olivia's blurred eyes suddenly burst into laughter.

The sourness in her heart diminished significantly.

Beatrice, and you rascal, you must safeguard the hard-earned happiness.