Damn, I Have to Marry the Strongest Antagonist at the Start? - Chapter 103

Chapter 103: Chapter103-Brighter than Ever!
Three minutes earlier…

At the Council of Elders’ main hall, when King Aldric and the royal family members finally arrived, the Council of Elders had summoned all its members from their various locations.

On one hand, this was to support King Aldric.

Since its establishment, the Council of Elders had sworn loyalty to the king and to serve him.

Now, with the king displaced and facing internal rebellion within the empire, they had to gather quickly to follow his orders and restore the kingdom.

Additionally, the news had already spread as King Aldric made his way there.

The king had brought the royal treasure to arm the Council of Elders, intending to crush Owen, Leslie, and their rebellious followers.

Thus, the Council of Elders’ members were highly enthusiastic.

They all knew the immense value of the royal treasure, which had been kept secret for a long time.

Even the slightest leak of this treasure would reveal items of extraordinary worth!

When all the elders gathered, it was indeed as they had expected.

Precious mana stones, various staffs, weapons, and magical artifacts were piled up in the Council of Elders’ hall like small mountains, dazzling and exuding a fatal allure!

Even though they were members of the Council of Elders and had seen many rare treasures, they had never dreamed of seeing such a vast array of valuable items.

They were mesmerized, their mouths watering, and their eyes dazzled.

Any one of these items could fetch millions of gold coins in the outside world!

“With the support of the royal treasure, no matter who might be backing Owen and Leslie, we will surely present their heads to His Majesty!”

“Long live the King! With the blessings of the royal ancestors, we won’t even need to lift a finger. The Chief Elder and the General can easily take their heads and bring them before His Majesty!”

All the elders of the Council of Elders were lost in the treasure, showering King Aldric with endless compliments.

After all, receiving even a single item as a reward would be immensely beneficial to them.

With the elders’ flattery and the presence of such abundant treasure, King Aldric’s heart was considerably soothed.

Despite the many hardships along the way, the outcome was favorable.

He had safely reached the Council of Elders, bringing the royal treasure with him.

“Your Majesty, what is that? Why does it look so unfamiliar?!”

Suddenly, the second elder, with furrowed brows, pointed at a silver cross among the treasures.

He recognized almost all the other items, as they were all well-known and prestigious.

However, the cross puzzled him, even after observing it for a while.

Other elders, hearing his question, also looked toward the cross.

Amid the other treasures, the silver cross appeared neither remarkable nor unique and should not have been there.

Initially, King Aldric thought the second elder was merely ignorant.

However, upon seeing the cross himself, he too frowned. He realized he didn’t recognize it either.

“It must be from a very ancient era, with its related legends and records lost over time,” King Aldric casually explained.

The other elders nodded, agreeing with his reasoning.

“Let’s not dwell on this. Owen and Leslie’s sudden rebellion is a grave offense. I need all of you to give your utmost effort. If any of you need something from the treasure, feel free to select an item.”

King Aldric waved his hand, not dwelling further on the matter. Compared to the Azure Kingdom, these treasures were inconsequential.

With King Aldric’s permission, the Council of Elders erupted in fervent gratitude, bowing enthusiastically before him.

“We swear our undying loyalty to Your Majesty!”

Their collective voices echoed to the heavens. The aura of every Council of Elders member surged with excitement.

At that moment, some elders noticed that the seemingly ordinary silver cross suddenly began to shine brightly, becoming extraordinarily radiant.

Their curiosity deepened, wondering if the cross was reacting to the atmosphere and emotions in the room, indicating it was some unique treasure.

The second elder also frowned slightly, feeling that something was amiss.

He quickly reviewed recent events in his mind.

Then, his heart skipped a beat!

Since His Majesty had fled the imperial capital, aside from being pursued by Kyrik and the Nether Kingdom, Leslie and Owen had not chased after Emperor Titan.

This was very strange!

With Leslie’s cunning and calculation, she wouldn’t overlook this detail!

Yet, His Majesty had smoothly reached the Council of Elders and retrieved the treasure!

The second elder’s face turned pale as he realized something.

Could it be that Owen and Leslie had deliberately let King Aldric enter the Council of Elders?

With all his might, he shouted:

“If you don’t want to die, run!”

…

At that moment, Owen held the ruby button in his hand and pressed it down hard!

The red light of the nuclear bomb activation device flashed.

At that instant, time seemed to stand still.

Many keenly perceptive mages couldn’t help but shiver, as if swept by an invisible cold wind.

But moments later, everything between Owen and Otto was calm, as if nothing had happened.

“Boy, what trick are you playing?!”

Otto, who had distanced himself from Owen, had felt a strong sense of danger from him.

But it seemed Owen had just taken out a button embedded with a ruby and then… nothing happened.

What was that eerie feeling just now?

Why did Owen now have a look of satisfaction on his face?!

Otto felt as if he was being toyed with by Owen, but didn’t know why.

Facing Otto’s questioning, Owen put the ruby button back into his storage ring and smiled slightly:

“Old man, your home is gone!”

…

As the scalp-tingling voice of the Second Elder rang out, the other elders, who were surrounded by numerous treasures and preparing to select their desired items, all turned their heads towards him in astonishment.

When the Great Elder went to the imperial capital to take the heads of Owen and Leslie, this Second Elder was the most powerful and highest-ranking member of the Council of Elders.

However, they did not understand what the Second Elder meant by his words.

King Aldric and other members of the royal family also looked towards the Second Elder at this time.

Seeing his face pale as a sheet, they couldn’t help but feel a chill in their hearts.

The next moment.

While everyone was still in a daze, the Second Elder had already pushed the mana in his body to the extreme.

Countless blue winds swirled around him, making him as light as a swallow.

In the blink of an eye, he had already escaped outside the hall.

Then, the people in the hall saw the silver cross, which was flickering with silver light, suddenly tremble violently and then explode with a bang.

In an instant, everyone in the hall felt a blinding white light before their eyes.

Everything in that white light was evaporated, vaporized, and eventually vanished.

They didn’t even feel any pain. Their bodies were vaporized into molecules under the terrifying high-temperature wave!

King Aldric, members of the royal family, and many elders of the Council of Elders…

Together with the entire hall, they disappeared in an instant, enveloped by the pale white light.

As for the Second Elder who had already escaped the hall, at the moment the silver cross exploded, he felt as if his body was pierced by countless sharp blades.

That pale white light was like the most terrifying existence in the world.

His expanded consciousness, personal armor, and abundant mana were all easily penetrated by it!

It showed that all his efforts were in vain.

Despair!

Indescribable despair filled the Second Elder’s heart.

He turned his head one last time to look at the scene behind him.

The once magnificent and grand hall had vaporized into a mist.

The towering mountain peaks were reduced to nothingness in the exploding white light, as if the world had been recreated from chaos!

Then, his body, like a wisp of smoke, dissipated and vanished as the white light shone upon him.

After easily evaporating the Second Elder, the explosion of the nuclear bomb had just begun.

The surrounding mountains trembled and shattered in the white light, flattened in an instant.

The ground constantly heaved and sank, crumbling inch by inch under the sweeping shockwave.

The rocks and soil deep underground were churned up and thrown high into the air.

From a distance, the mountains stretching for dozens of miles were completely destroyed.

No plants or creatures remained. Countless clouds of dust rose and swirled in the sky, like a mourning lament.

This place had become a lifeless dead zone and forbidden area!

…

??

Otto looked confused, wondering if Owen had gone mad.

At the very moment this thought crossed his mind, an unimaginable shockwave suddenly surged forth, shaking the entire world!

Otto’s heart skipped a beat, and he quickly looked towards the distant horizon.

There, on the horizon, endless dust rose like ocean waves, leveling houses, cities, buildings, and even the ground in an instant!

The source of the shockwave was the mountain range where the Council of Elders was located!

Otto’s heart filled with terror as he suddenly understood the origin of his previous sense of unease.

The Council of Elders!

Something must have gone wrong with the Council of Elders!

As Otto realized this, the shockwave had already spread from the distant horizon, accompanied by a deafening roar that filled the air.

Every mage present was captivated by the sound and force of the shockwave.

From a distance, the shockwave seemed to engulf the world, rendering them insignificant like ants.

Even the mere sound of the wave made their heads ring, almost to the point of bursting.

Outside the imperial capital, the mages who first encountered the shockwave were struck as if by a heavy hammer, their bodies flung into the air, chests caved in, spitting blood, and tossed around in the overwhelming force like grains of sand.

“Glow Shield!”

“Star Protection!”

“Tree Spirit Descend!”

“…”

Desperate, the mages activated various protective spells, colorful lights flashing as they barely managed to fend off the oncoming shockwave.

However, the city walls of the capital began to collapse in large sections under the force of the wave, unable to withstand it any longer. Many mages were buried in the rubble.

“What happened?!”

“That wave seemed to come from a great distance. How can it still be so powerful from so far away?!”

Everyone stared in terror towards the direction of the wave, mana flickering in their eyes as if penetrating the vast dust clouds to see a huge, gray-yellow mushroom cloud rising in the distance.

“That looks like… the mountain range where the Council of Elders is located!”

Seeing the colossal mushroom cloud rising, supporting the sky, countless mages gasped in shock.

The Council of Elders headquarters was far from the imperial capital, situated in a secluded mountain range.

Yet the shockwave from there had reached the capital and caused such a terrifying disturbance.

It was unimaginable what earth-shattering event had occurred at the Council of Elders!