567 I Am the Country

In the silence, only the face in the crystal was singing softly.

The singing, which seemed to linger in the air, spread in the rain towards all directions. As a result, the pitch black ocean let out a piercing reply. The seawater boiling as rivers of darkness emerged from the depths of the ocean. Countless vile spawn of the sea were responding loudly.

They were coming.

The sea and the sky roared.

"Your Majesty," Lancelot went down on one knee and implored, "please return to the throne."

"Is it time already?" Elizabeth smiled, holding the singing crystal in both hands, and observed the face in it. "Do you think so as well?"

No one responded.

But in the silence, the eyes on the face, which was previously sunk in deep slumber, opened. The eyes that seemed to contain the abyss in them gazed at the empress in front of him, as if suddenly enlightened, but they were empty. Only the bestiality of catastrophes was surging and flowing in them, the evil seemingly materializing, like an endless deep sea.

It was a glimpse cast by Leviathan in its sleep, looking at the turbulent world.

Elizabeth smiled. "No worries, Prince Thames, I'll be with the bloodline of sin."

She held the crystal prism carefully in both hands and walked up the steps slowly. Then she sat on her throne in a dignified manner, staring at the pitch black ocean and the sky, murmuring softly, "This time, I will definitely bring an end to you and this ominous bloodline."

Bang! The crisp sound of steel scraping against each other sounded from under the throne.

The earth quaked.

No, it came from somewhere deeper, not the prison-like palace by itself located at the highest point, nor the splendid and majestic uptown, but Avalon.

The depths of Avalon quaked. The machines that had been buried in the darkness since the construction of Avalon were activated. Under the extraction by aether furnaces, huge amounts of energy were drawn from the leylines of aether. The energy spewed out like a waterfall, propelling the rotation of the incredibly heavy gears.

Steel banged. The earth was torn apart, flames ignited, hurricanes stirred up, blocking the downpour. In the roars that seemed as if they had been passed down from the ancient times, the floor of the throne room cracked and shattered, numerous steel parts and gears emerging from the steel frame beneath. Fragments of the floor broke, fell, and got stuck in the gaps, but could not stop the operation of the gears and were crushed into dust.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Harsh, piercing sounds burst forth from the throne. Nails popped out of it one after another, wedging deeply into Elizabeth's spine, connecting themselves to her nerve center. Layers of steel rose and covered her, integrating with her body. In the end, she was completely fixed on the throne, and could not even move her little finger.

At the moment, she had become connected to the huge machine, as well as numerous facilities all over Avalon. The earth was her body, countless huge steel machinery her internal organs, and the aether leylines flowing beneath the ocean her blood...

"It is the long-cherished wish of the ancestors of past generations…" In the intense pain, Elizabeth's blood seeped out of her pores, Firebird spewed and swept like fire, covering the entire Avalon, giving her control over everything.

Her pale face put on a faint smile difficultly, and she murmured softly, "Now, I am Avalon, I am Anglo." The empress had taken her seat on the throne, abandoning her mortal body. With Firebird, she took over the body made of steel and merged into one with her country...

Anglo had started preparing for the war since a hundred years ago. Even the empress herself must play her role as a chip on the table, in the gamble of life…

At the moment, the destructive Firebird had been strengthened by thousands of times, emerging from the depths of the earth like a flood. In only an instant, the scarlet red renge bloomed on the ocean.

Just seeing it would sting one's eyes.

Just by existing, it would devour everything.

Just touching it would cause one to be swept up in destruction…

The essence that was thousands of times purer than that of Mary's revealed itself in the Firebird. In an instant, it tore several rivers of darkness apart and exterminated countless vile spawn of the sea.

For so many years, Elizabeth had struggled to keep the monster within her in check, but when the war started finally, she no longer had to suppress it, and the hungry beast was let out from its cage.

The power and its host existed as two facets of the same being, like the city of Avalon and its shadow.

The human bloodline bore the consciousness of the host as a human, whereas the dragon bloodline bore the negative elements born out of one's own personality, pure darkness and madness.

Such was the essence of the curse—the parasitic scarlet red dragon in the host's body that would devour everything and would never be satiated. Now, the legendary elements in the bloodline had been released. With Avalon as its body, it wanted to swallow the entire ocean of darkness into its stomach.

Such was the true form of the ruler of Anglo!

In just an instant, countless vile spawn of the sea turned into ashes in the blooming renge. The torrential rain was shredded by Firebird. Like water being boiled, it vaporized into a ghastly white fog, ascending into the sky…

The sky and the earth shook. In the depths of the ocean, the behemoth that was about to reawaken seemed to have felt a stabbing pain and jerked furiously. Leviathan, which is about to wake up from its long dream, fought back with rage.

The war between mankind and catastrophes had finally begun.

…

In the dancing white mist, someone passed through layers and layers of defense, entering into the throne room belatedly.

"Your Majesty." The old man, who has aged quite a bit, bowed in reverence.

"Maxwell, you have come late." On the throne, Elizabeth opened her eyes, her pupils scarlet, and spoke in a hoarse voice, "You seemed to have disappeared recently, where did you go? Do you have any interesting stories to share with me?"

"My apologies, Your Majesty, I have gotten into the bad habit of drinking alcohol recently. Not only did I not do anything, but I was often drunk and lost track of time." Maxwell took off his hat and poncho, and combed his fingers through his wet unruly hair, smiling resignedly. "Fortunately, I didn't wake up too late."

"I see." Elizabeth nodded, not minding his negligence, nor angered by that his dejection. She just looked at him, her eyes full of empathy. "Did you have a sweet dream?"

"Yep." Maxwell got up and stepped forward, setting foot on the steps, causing Lancelot to frown and stop him. "Maxwell, you are in the throne room. Mind your etiquette in front of Her Majesty."

From the moment Elizabeth sat upon the throne, she had become one with Avalon. From then on, until the end of the war, she would not separate from it, even though it was burning away her life. The Knights of the Round Table, who had guarded the royal family for centuries, was her final line of defense.

In the past, he would have let it go, as it wasn't exactly rare for Maxwell to commit a breach of etiquette. But the current situation was different, and Lancelot would not allow anyone to approach the throne, even Maxwell.

Moreover, the stench of alcohol on this guy was so strong that it could suffocate someone ten meters away to death, Lancelot grumbled mentally.

"Oh, Lancelot." Maxwell drunkenly opened his eyes and finally recognized the person in front of him. He gave a smile of sudden realization, then... took out a half-empty bottle of rum from his pocket and waved it in front of Lancelot.

"Want some?"

The stench of poor-quality alcohol intensified, stinging Lancelot's wounded lungs, turning his face crimson with anger.

Right at that very moment, Maxwell let go, and the bottle of rum fell from his hand, shattering as it smashed on the ground. His hand, now empty, balled into a fist, the knuckle of his index finger protruding, and hammered down. From the other side of the round table armor which was not activated, his fingers pressed against the wound from many years ago, which had yet to properly heal.

Snap! The brief exchange ended in an instant before anyone could see clearly. Lancelot lost all his strength, half-kneeling on the ground. Maxwell easily took away the iron case beside Lancelot and put it in his arms.

The steel in the case shook as if it had been angered, but it was forcibly suppressed in the next moment.

"Sorry," Maxwell whispered softly in Lancelot's ear, as he stepped forward!

To the throne.

The drunkenness in his eyes was ignited, morphing into an indescribable coldness and... a murderous intent!

Lancelot drew his sword.

Bang! Summoned by Maxwell, a quaint and majestic long sword penetrated the curtain of rain, answering his call. It brushed past Lancelot's cheek, and the fierce impact left a wound on his face. Then, the sword hit the steps that lead up to the throne.

Scepter·the Kingdom of Heaven on Earth!

In a flash, the kingdom of heaven descended here, erecting an unbreakable iron wall and separating the room into two domains. It locked Maxwell and the Queen inside together.

"Maxwell..." Outside the iron wall, Lancelot coughed up dark blood. Not even having time to gasp for breath, he turned back in shock. "What are you trying to do!!!"

"Isn't it obvious?" Maxwell said as he advanced on the steps, not even bothering to turn his head.

The iron case originally kept safe by Lancelot laid opened in his hands. The meteorite metal that was slumbering in it was taken out and awakened, It drew the aether in the air and quickly proliferated...

In a flash, in the hands of Maxwell laid a heavy lance more than two meters in length. A massive amount of aether gathered on it, forming a scarlet glow that seemed to be flowing, as if the lance was entangled in silk...

It was the dragon-killing lance that had the name of a saint bestowed upon it!

Maxwell set foot on the last step, with his back towards Lancelot. He held the scorching hot lance tight, despite it burning his hands until they were charred. He went down on one knee and bowed at his empress for the last time.

"Your Majesty, pardon my offense."

"I see that the need to make a choice has finally arrived, Maxwell..." Elizabeth looked at him and seemed to understand what was going on. After a good while, she sighed softly but did not resist. Instead, she chose to obey the arrangement of fate and closed her eyes.

"Maxwell!!!" Lancelot roared in rage.

The next moment, Avalon let out a dying whine of sorrow.

-

"From that day onwards, Leviathan broke through the second seal and entered the resurrection stage," said Lancelot.

In the dim light, he kept his eyes down. "The uptown fell at the same time, covered by the dark fog. If not for Master Haydn's timely return to seal the entire palace, then all of Avalon would fall under the power of Leviathan.

"Her Majesty is dead, and the princess is missing. All our preparations have gone to the dogs because of Maxwell's betrayal. The war between Anglo and the catastrophe has yet to begin, but we have already failed. "

The dead silence lasted for a long time until Ye Qingxuan spoke in a hoarse voice, "It is absolutely impossible!"

Lancelot only smiled indifferently. He lifted the teacup, did not explain further and just said, "If you don't believe it, open the window and take a look for yourself."

Ye Qingxuan got up, and after hesitating for a long time, he pushed the sealed shutters open. In an instant, the whistling wind gushed into the dining room, bringing a faint whine of sorrow with it.

In the biting cold wind, Ye Qingxuan raised his head and looked up at the direction of the uptown. In the seal of the enchantment of Avalon, the abyss-like darkness that engulfed everything finally revealed its tracks, dancing like a living thing.

As dawn arrived, the city did not usher in the morning sun but remained in a deep slumber in the illusion-like singing. Somber tolls of bells sounded from the depths of the darkness, booming and reverberating in the skies of the city, as if the behemoth in the sea was laughing.

Leviathan would eventually arrive.