Chapter 103: Loyalty
"The long-awaited dawn has finally arrived.
It’s time to discover the reason behind the decline of the Elves’ bloodline!"
"What do you mean by the decline of our bloodline?"
Elena listened to Rios’s words and was surprised by what he had said.
"You’ll find out soon enough. But for now... why don’t we go welcome our beloved people?"
Rios smiled, wrapped an arm around Elena’s waist, and headed back toward the palace.
Outside the Royal Palace
"When will the Awakening Ceremony begin? We’ve been waiting here for hours."
Some of the Elves whispered anxiously among themselves.
This event meant everything to them...
It was an opportunity to rise in status, strength, and authority.
Unlike before, when they had looked like starving beggars, they now appeared healthy and full of vitality.
During the past week, they had eaten until they were full like never before in their lives.
At that moment, the people heard the voices of the royal guards and saw King Rios and Queen Elena walking side by side through the palace gates.
"Long live His Majesty the King!"
"Long live Her Majesty the Queen!"
"May God bless your reign, your strength, and your lives!"
"May God bless your descendants, your health, and your prosperity!"
One Elf after another knelt down and began offering blessings to both Rios and Elena.
Rios looked over the enormous square before him, filled with tens of thousands of Elves.
Most of them were children who had not yet reached adulthood, followed by the women, and finally the men.
The condition of the men in the City of Light was especially miserable.
Because of the countless wars the city had fought over the past decades, the number of male Elves had fallen to far less than half.
But all of that will change soon.
Rios nodded with a smile as the thought crossed his mind.
"Everything is ready, Your Majesty. Just give the order, and we’ll carry it out immediately."
Adviser Etham stepped forward from the side and bowed to Rios.
"Well done, Etham."
Rios nodded before stepping forward.
"It is my duty to serve you, Your Majesty."
Etham bowed once again before retreating a few steps.
Rios stopped at the top of the royal palace stairs and looked toward the crowd of Elves before him.
"The City of Light has gone through countless crises and disasters recently. If there is one reason for all of them..."
His cold voice echoed throughout the square as everyone fell silent.
"...then I would say it is your weakness, just as I have told you many times before."
"Because of your weakness, you lost your spouses, your children, your families, and many of your friends and loved ones.
But that is something I will never allow in my kingdom."
Rios allowed his words to sink in before continuing.
"However...
The opportunity I’m about to give you will not be granted to everyone."
He paused briefly, watching the confusion spread across their faces, then continued before doubt could take root in their hearts.
"Only those who swear absolute and eternal loyalty to me will receive it.
And whoever does...
I promise that within one month at most, they will reach the third Level."
Rios’s words exploded in everyone’s minds like thunder.
Even Etham and Thandria were no exception.
But after Thandria remembered everything Rios had brought with him, she simply shook her head and smiled mockingly.
Etham, on the other hand, stood frozen with his eyes wide open, unable to believe what Rios had just said.
Did he just say that he can mass-produce third-Level cultivators in no more than a month?!
The thought repeated itself over and over inside Etham’s mind.
An involuntary sense of doubt crept into his heart because no one understood better than he did just how difficult it was to reach the third Level.
Meanwhile, Elena looked at Rios’s back and smiled gently.
At this point...
She trusted Rios completely.
She had given him her body and her soul...
And in return, he had given her something far more precious.
What reason could there possibly be for doubt between them?
Or for disbelief?
The ordinary Elves looked at one another and immediately believed the dream.
*His Majesty healed the blind, the mute, the paralyzed, and even those who had lost their limbs.
What could possibly be impossible for him?*
Those were the thoughts shared by the majority of those present.
"We swear absolute and eternal loyalty to His Majesty King Rios!"
"We swear absolute and eternal loyalty to His Majesty King Rios!"
"We swear absolute and eternal loyalty to His Majesty King Rios!"
The oath echoed throughout the crowd.
Some of them knelt, while others remained frozen in place, too nervous to do anything.
"Enough!"
Rios raised his hand high and gave the order.
Everyone immediately fell silent, stood straight, and listened to every word he spoke.
"That isn’t the kind of oath I’m talking about.
I’m talking about a Soul Oath."
Rios spoke coldly as his gaze swept across the Elves.
"This kind of oath will bind your souls and your lives to me.
Anyone who dares violate its conditions...
Even if I’m nowhere near them...
Even if no one else is around...
Even if they flee to the ends of the earth...
They will die without exception."
Rios’s words struck them like bolts of lightning.
Didn’t that mean they would literally become slaves?
"Those who are willing to swear the oath, step forward.
Those who do not wish to, may leave.
I will not stop anyone from leaving, nor will I force anyone to stay.
But this is your only chance.
Whoever lets it pass today...
Will never be offered it again."
The Elves became even more nervous than before.
They looked at one another repeatedly before finally making their decisions.
Most of them stepped forward...
While a small portion retreated.
Rios waited until everyone had truly made their choice before nodding.
Tens of thousands remained.
Only around a thousand had chosen to withdraw.
Most of those who left were weak-willed cowards.
The rest were most likely traitors.
As for those who stayed, many of them were weak-willed as well...
But their desire for power had surpassed their fear and cowardice.
There were traitors among them too...
But those would be dealt with shortly.
"Etham... distribute the oath."