CHAPTER 171: CHAPTER 171 | MEREKRYX

*Gong...! *Gong...! *Gong...!

As the gongs of powerful bells continued to ring throughout the entire city, their echoes rolled across the sky in rhythmic waves... the convoy pressed forward in a steady march along with the subtle groan of vehicles. It moved past sprawling estates and towering halls that belonged only to royalty, structures carved with ancient craftsmanship and reinforced with layers of Kritonium that had another dense layer of potent eidra that shimmered faintly along their walls.

For a brief moment, Jinn thought that it had the very same structure he had observed from the walls of House Nythrael...

No, these ones were more dense in both Kritonium and ancient eidra... truly created to last thousands of years. Even from a distance, Jinn could feel the pressure radiating from the structures, like the air itself was constricting around with eidric pressure, reminding him that this place...

is a place of power.

Up ahead, just beyond the final stretch that led toward the grand gates of the royal palace, Jinn saw several figures waiting. They stood tall and unmoving, their silhouettes flanked by armored royal guards whose very presence emitted authority and strength.

Even from afar, their outlines were impossible to mistake—at least not for Jinn.

Royalty awaited them.

*Drrrrrrrrrrr...!

As the convoy approached the palace entrance, the distant figures were now clearer in form. Due to Jinn and his squad being positioned near the front of the procession, it gave him a more unobstructed view of the individuals standing before the gates.

The first figure he truly noticed was a man of immense stature—broad shouldered as if built like a seasoned warrior and clad in ornate armor that seemed to hum with condensed powerful eidra. The armor flickered with power, tiny veins of energy running through the armor like a living thread.

But it wasn’t the armor that stole Jinn’s attention.

The most striking feature was the crown resting upon the man’s head. It radiated with a force so overwhelming that Jinn felt something tighten deeply in his chest.

It wasn’t just power—it was authority made real, ancient and immeasurable.

For a brief second, he felt as if the very air around the crown bent to its existence.

There was no mistaking it.

No doubt within Jinn’s mind, not even for a moment.

This man was the emperor—the current ruler of the Empire of Zerafhon, the very emperor he had heard countless stories about despite not meeting him personally.

The very pinnacle of Zerafhon’s power.

"WE GREET HIS MAJESTY, MERAKRYX!"

Gaius’s voice thundered heavily through the air, powerful enough to even shake the air itself. His armored knees struck the ground with a heavy and prominent thud, echoing like a signal.

And the moment his knee touched the stone, every soldier, noble officer—every living soul within the massive convoy, followed suit.

In a matter of seconds, the entire procession knelt as one, a single unified gesture of loyalty directed toward the emperor of Zerafhon.

Jinn lowered himself as well, feeling the cold stone bite into his knee...but his eye stayed fixed forward.

He stared at Merekryx, studying every detail he could from where he knelt. He wasn’t simply showing respect—he was evaluating him, testing each subtle breath, each flicker of expression.

Was this man truly the tyrant many whispered about in the dark corners of barracks? Or was he the strong yet fair monarch the empire’s loyalists praised with unwavering devotion?

For a moment, silence swallowed the courtyard.

.

.

.

Snow drifted lazily through the air, each flake glimmering faintly as it fell past the towering gates. Even the wind seemed to hold its breath, waiting—anticipating—what the emperor would do.

.

.

.

Then Merekryx moved.

He lifted his right hand, slow and deliberate, as though reaching toward the very people kneeling before him. A subtle flash reflected off the ornate bracer encasing his forearm, the glint catching Jinn’s lone eye, though he did not blink.

"My sons... my daughters... my friends..."

His voice rolled across the courtyard, impossibly soft yet carrying enough weight to reach every person present. There was no strain, no forced authority. It was as if the words were carried by the atmosphere itself—strengthened and projected by pure eidra woven through every syllable.

And the moment those words touched the crowd, something changed.

Across the kneeling lines of soldiers and nobles, breaths hitched. Eyes widened. A wave of warmth spread through their bodies, not physical heat but something deeper—an emotional surge, a fierce and uplifting energy that made their chests tighten with pride.

For many, this was the proof of every story they’d ever been told about Merekryx’s presence.

Veterans felt the familiar rise of spirit they had experienced many times before during their visits to the Royal District, their expressions steady and respectful.

But for the young conscripts—the newly recruited infantrymen witnessing the emperor in person for the first time—this moment was overwhelming.

To them, he was a figure from holoscreens, a distant symbol of power and authority.

Now he stood before them, real, alive, and radiating strength so enormous it felt like a force pressing against their very bones.

This was the emperor.

This was Merakryx.

"S-So that’s the emperor..." Gerahl whispered low, his voice subtly trembling in awe even though he tried to hide it. His silver hair caught the falling snow, the strands glimmering faintly as he kept his head bowed in respect.

"Do you guys... do you guys feel it? Like his eidra wrapped around all of us in huge waves... as if there was a storm of warmth rolling over our backs...!"

Jinn didn’t answer, but he didn’t need to.

He felt the same thing—no, he felt it even sharper. The emperor’s eidra wasn’t just strong, it pressed against his skin like warm air after stepping out from cold, an invisible force that swept around his limbs and sunk straight into his chest.

His heart beat slightly faster, reacting before his mind could even think.

That alone told him the truth.

This man wasn’t simply powerful.

He was the strongest person Jinn had ever laid eyes on.

"I have heard of your victories across different galaxies and systems," the emperor declared, voice filled with pride that did not feel fake or forced.

"Come now! We feast in your honor. Let us speak more inside!"

"BY YOUR WILL!" Gaius thundered in reply, slamming his fist into his chest plate so hard that the impact echoed through the entire procession.

The moment Gaius stood, the rest followed. Officers barked orders down the formation, engines rumbled to life, and the massive gates before them began to open with a deep and ancient groan. Snow swirled around the rising slabs of reinforced kritonium, revealing the enormous courtyard beyond.

Jinn stepped forward with the rest, his gaze drifting toward the people standing close to the emperor—two familiar silhouettes that pulled his attention immediately.

Just to the right stood a woman dressed in an ornate gown of deep blacks, bright gold, and blood-red jewels, the colors shimmering faintly under the falling snow. Dark hair framed her figure in a way Jinn would never forget.

Akavi.

Then Jinn’s gaze slid to the opposite side of the emperor.

Another woman.

Another princess.

But this one shone like a torch against the snowy backdrop.

Golden hair flowed behind her shoulders, catching the light with every small breeze.

He recognized her immediately.

Princess Ezrena.

The same woman who had once handed him the obsidian stone that later became the blade imbued with prime eidra—the very weapon that saved his life when Malgareth kidnapped him. He had thought about that moment many times since.

Why had she given it to him?

Out of curiosity?

Interest?

Pity?

Or was it a calculated gesture—something meant to bind him to her through debt, in the same way Akavi chained him through her own methods?

He still didn’t know.

What he did know was that Ezrena had not spoken to him, contacted him, or even tried to see him ever since he survived the slave rituals and was taken in by Venedix. She had given him a weapon of immeasurable power... then simply vanished from his story as if the entire encounter meant little to her.

And now, suddenly, she was standing only a few meters away from him again—radiant, composed, and impossible to ignore.

There would no doubt come a moment—somewhere inside the royal palace—where he and Ezrena would cross paths again. Whether that meeting would finally give him the answers he wanted, or only raise even more questions... he couldn’t tell yet. All he knew was that sooner or later, something between them would happen. Time would reveal the rest.

Jinn kept walking, his steps steady as he followed the convoy deeper through the grand gates.

A deep, echoing bang rolled through the courtyard the instant the final soldier passed through.

The massive doors of the royal palace swung shut behind them, sealing off the outside world with the sound of kritonium, eidra, and ancient mechanisms locking into place—cutting off the cold winds, the crowds, and everything else beyond the walls.