After giving up on entering the Raya Lucaria Academy Grand Library, Xiao ordered Smarag to accept the surrendering mages.
Meanwhile, he found the most luxurious room and temporarily settled in, deciding to rest first and explore the mysteries of magic tomorrow.
However, just as night fell, at the instant the new day replaced the old, accompanied by strange fluctuations reverberating throughout Raya Lucaria Academy,
countless Academy faction mages emerged from the Golden Grace, reappearing at their resurrection points.
Xiao was still deep in slumber when a powerful force suddenly began reviving within his room. Xiao was immediately startled awake by the sudden change
and abruptly opened his eyes, only to see an old mage clad in luxurious blue robes and wearing a glintstone crown.
"Hmm~~ Can little monsters still respawn?"
Xiao looked at the scene before him, rubbed his eyes, and muttered in disbelief.
Then, Xiao's divine sense swept across the entire Raya Lucaria Academy, discovering that the old mage before him was not an exception.
Of the mages who had died in battle during the day, only a few had failed to revive; all the others, without exception, had been resurrected by the Golden Order.
This was the first time Xiao truly felt the terror of the Golden Order~
Is this eternal torment?
He could not help but recall the countless lunatics throughout the history of the Lands Between.
Those were people who had gone mad because they could no longer endure eternal suffering.
Xiao realized that for the common people at the bottom of the Lands Between, eternal life and the Golden Grace were their true hell.
They were like wild monsters in a game; the strong casually slaughtered them for Runes, and then they were resurrected once more by the Golden Order.
Yet they could only repeatedly endure the torment of death and pain again and again.
They were endlessly exploited for all their value, and only after losing every shred of worth could they return to the Erdtree and find peace.
The reason dragonflame could kill those blessed by the Golden Lineage was precisely because dragonflame could completely extract the value of commoners in one go, maximizing their conversion into Runes.
No wonder lunatics like the Formless Mother, who treated pain and wounds as blessings, had such a massive following in the Lands Between.
Mohg, in particular, had used his identity as a high priest to establish the Mohgwyn Dynasty, gathering countless followers and believers.
After all, simply being able to transform pain into pleasure, no longer needing to endure endless suffering through death, was enough to earn the faith of the downtrodden masses.
For followers of the Formless Mother, death transformed from agony into enjoyment, to the point that many addicted believers would frantically mutilate themselves.
In the end, they became the blood-soaked corpses of Mohgwyn Palace, appearing flayed alive yet still living.
"Y-Your Majesty, you must be joking, right? What little monsters? I truly don't understand at all! I'll move out immediately. I absolutely won't disturb your rest again!"
Although the other party wore a glintstone crown, Xiao could still sense his panic. The mage was truly afraid that Xiao would casually kill him off like a mere monster.
"Hmm, go on. As for your matters, we'll discuss them tomorrow!"
Xiao yawned and casually waved his hand, indicating that the other party could leave.
"Thank you, Your Majesty, thank you, Your Majesty~"
The old glintstone mage repeatedly bowed in gratitude.
He was not naturally timid. It was simply that only those who had truly experienced being killed by the Destruction Emperor Wave could understand its terror.
The overwhelming power that shattered every cell in the body with golden lightning and reduced them to atomic dust was even more unbearable than being cut into a thousand pieces.
Early the next morning, Xiao slept until nearly noon before finally getting up and washing himself. He leisurely enjoyed the breakfast prepared by the mages while basking in the warm morning sunlight of the Erdtree.
After washing up, he slowly walked toward the main hall, where the mages were already standing neatly in formation.
All the mages within the Academy had gathered there, both Academy faction mages and Carian faction mages alike.
They looked at Xiao nervously, uncertain of what would happen next.
Xiao stood before them expressionlessly, his gaze cold and resolute.
Without hesitation, he gave them two choices: either be beheaded or stay and become dogs.
The conditions were excessive, treating them as less than human.
However, among these Academy faction mages, there were no so-called "hard bones" at all.
Faced with the fear of death, almost all of them chose without hesitation to stay and become dogs.
After all, the truly capable mages had either wandered off elsewhere or transformed themselves into Glintstone Crowns, waiting for the day when the Law of the Stars would replace the Golden Order and ascend to the stars alongside Ranni.
The mages remaining within the Academy were mostly moderates with some talent, but not much.
They lacked decisive strength and lofty ambitions; they were merely ordinary people fortunate enough to become mages.
It was only under the endless lifespan granted by the Golden Lineage that they had managed to achieve their current accomplishments.
Their talent and aptitude were no longer sufficient to support further progress in personal strength, nor did they possess enough courage to become Glintstone Crowns and await the arrival of the Law of the Stars.
Therefore, they naturally spent their excess time indulging in power and pleasure instead.
Eternal life brought endless boredom and emptiness. If they could not find entertainment for themselves, time itself would eventually drive them insane.
From the fact that they had directly occupied Raya Lucaria Academy after the Carian royal family lost power, it was obvious that
the Academy faction mages standing before Xiao were not pure scholars at all, but rather a group of politicians long corrupted by their lust for power.
Power possessed an extremely corrosive nature. It could easily twist and distort human nature.
All former pride, backbone, lofty ideals, and noble sentiments became incredibly fragile beneath the corrosion of power, eventually rotting away until only filth remained.
Thus, it was not surprising that the Academy faction mages chose without hesitation to remain behind and willingly become lackeys.
Especially after learning that Xiao's true identity was a god of the former law, one who had once fiercely contended with Marika, the mastermind behind the Night of the Black Knives and the being most qualified to become a deity,
these politicians who had long been immersed in the whirlpool of power struggles immediately rushed to place their bets, eagerly displaying every ounce of loyalty they possessed.
Their purpose was nothing more than to secure the "merit of following the dragon," so that when the new era arrived, they could become the highly anticipated "Golden Nobles" of that new age.
In contrast, the Carian faction mages possessed an extremely high degree of loyalty toward the Carian royal family. Despite being trapped within the Grand Library, they still firmly maintained their opposition to the Academy faction and resolutely refused to surrender.
⭐ Enjoying the story?
You can read ahead and support the translations by joining my Patreon! Your support helps me update faster and take on more projects. Thank you for reading!
Read up to 50 chapters ahead!
patreon.com/AminaSim