Chapter 117 Long Awaited Coronation Day

The nobles in the capital are oblivious to the impending threat approaching them. As they enjoy the banquet late at night, the Naharog army has finished replenishing most of their man and lost their supply as well as recovered their motivation.

After a sudden assault by Nicholas I, Naharog retreated several kilometres from their original position. They set up a new camp and waited for Mezorin to send them supplies.

The only problem is ammunition which needs time to arrive from Bideford. There's so little left. Definitely not enough to launch an attack.

However, Count Naharog received news from Bideford about the funeral held in Napuna and the coronation that would follow.

He immediately changed his plan and marched to the capital without waiting for a resupply of ammunition.

The current security and alertness of soldiers in Napuna are at their lowest. Everybody there had their mind full with the funeral and coronation of the new king. The count sees this as an opportunity to set up a siege and trap all the nobles inside the city.

He wouldn't let them slip away. This is a perfect chance to cripple Bagyarosia once and for all.

As such, they move out toward Napuna openly. It doesn't pose any problem for them as there are sparse people on the road. Those they encounter along the way are all killed to prevent any news spreads.

After tirelessly moving through the forest, the 9,300-strong army finally sees the Napuna wall.

"Prepare to siege the city."

....

Inside the city, the sadness washed away and the happiness took place. The sunny day added vibrancy to the city. Unlike on funeral day, shops and establishments were open. Many business owners give a discount on their products.

Flags are hung almost all over the place to celebrate the auspicious day for Prince Niall.

Today is his coronation day. The day he has been dreaming of his entire life.

He had to admit that his coronation ceremony may not be as glorious as his predecessor's. Despite all the preparation he made since early this year, he still felt it was a bit lacking. Not to mention there are fewer visitors coming today.

However, he's not the one who should be complaining as he is responsible for rushing it and giving no time for peasants to travel here. For Niall, as long as the nobles attend, he's already satisfied.

Looking down through the window in the hallway, he sees people flocking into the palace grounds which he had ordered to open to the public on this specific day.

They all come earlier to secure a good spot for themselves. And not want to miss the opportunity to witness a historic ceremony of the Kingdom of Bagyarosia. Not to mention, Prince Niall is going to make his first appearance as a king on that balcony.

"Your highness, I need you to return to your room. The maids have brought your ceremonial dress." said the butler.

"Uhm..." He nods at the sleepless butler. This old man looks like he's going to drop to the floor anytime soon which is understandable. He handles two big events in a short frame of time. Niall already planned to retire him with a substantial amount of money once he was crowned.

Niall enters his room. He sees the yellowish-golden-coloured attire decorated with gemstones in his room, a colour of the royal family. Besides the attire is a coronation robe made up of thousands of white rabbit fur embroidered in golden thread.

He is supposed to wear them together.

It took him almost half an hour and several maids' hands to help him put on the attire.

Sometime after, a woman in a beautiful golden yellow dress encrusted with jewels appeared at the door.

She is Queen Catherina Caberia, the soon-to-be 'Queen Dowager' in a few hours. Catherina walked into the room and scanned her son's appearance.

"The attire looks good on you, Niall. You resemble your father. Though I wonder when you commissioned it to be made." She bitterly said in an attempt to probe him.

"I'm not quite sure. It has been a long time, probably the day after Niel's death." Niall replied to her question, not wanting to disappoint her.

Catherina's eyes twitched. Her heart still aches every time she hears the name of her dead son. She knows it must have something to do with Niall. And the death of her husband might as well be his doing too.

Niall chuckled in response to his mother's irritation. His mother might have a suspicion about him but nothing she could do. She has no supporters left to her.

The Duchess of Baroks is dead. The same goes for the Countess of Vofors. The Countess of Caushilbo has become insane because of her son's death. There's no news about the Countess of Hajdu either. The Countess of Tetherswest distanced herself from the queen.

All she is left with is a low-ranking noble ladies who tried to build connections.

The conversation between them stops when the butler shows up, "Are you ready, Your Majesty? Your Highness?"

"Yes, both of us are ready. What's the current situation?"

"For starters, all the noble has taken place in a ceremonial hall. On the outside, there are lots of people flooding into the palace grounds. I had arranged for soldiers to maintain the order and prevent them from breaching the restricted area. Also, a group of soldiers will do a patrolling in the castle during the ceremony. Your Highness can rest assured as we are making sure the ceremony runs smoothly."

He nods and praises the butler for his excellent job, "Good. Let us move to the ceremonial hall."

The butler leads the way for them to the hall but each of them enters through a different door. "This way, Your Majesty."

Catherina entered the hall from the back. According to Napuna's tradition, the new king will be crowned by the previous generation of Napuna royalty. The priority sequence starts with the previous king, the previous queen, paternal uncles and aunties, older brothers and older sisters. It is a sign of the older generation passing power to the younger generation.

Since Nicholas I is dead, the responsibility falls on the previous queen's shoulder, Catherina.

Niall enters the hall.

A golden carpet was laid in the middle as a pathway for him to walk toward the altar. His mother was waiting there. Besides her is a crown and ornamented sword.

On the left and right are the lord and lady of a noble family sitting in the front row while their family members are at the back. Like him, they too are wearing exquisite and lavish garbs.

Before long, Niall arrived at the altar.

Catherina smoothly does her part. With her shooting voice, she eloquently speaks her script.

"My dear son, Prince Niall Napuna Bagyarosia. I, Queen Catherina Caberia hereby crowned you as the next king of this glorious kingdom. May you use the power entrusted to you by your late father, your late grandfather and your forefather for the goodness of your people. May you rule over this kingdom with wisdom and just."

After finishing her speech, Catherina gently places the jewelled crown on her son's head. Then, she tied the ceremonial sword to her son's waist.

The new king, King Niall II turned around and stood proudly in front of the nobles. He was greeted with the hand clapped from the members of nobility.

After that, Niall walks to the balcony where he'll show himself in front of the crowds. Once again, he received cheers from peasants below him.

Just when he was about to give a speech, they all heard the sound of the bell vibrating through every corner of the city. It causes happiness on the newly crowned king's face turned sour. His hands trembled. He knows what this bell means.

They're under attack.