BXBX NOVEL Chapter 96 - 96 The Beginning of the Dispute
A gentleman in a neat suit with a meticulous expression and a mustache walked onto the stage. It first bowed to the audience before saying, “Respected audience, respected guests, welcome to the Fanatic Theater. I’m the butler, Reason, who serves our theater manager, Mr. Valk. While the backstage staff is preparing, please allow me to introduce to you the great tragedy that will happen tonight. This happened…”
“Hey!”
Valk, who was sitting beside William, interrupted Reason’s introduction. His hands expanded into a loudspeaker as He shouted at the gentleman on the stage, “Get on with the show! We ain’t got all the time in the world. Skip your long background introduction that can make that person with bipolar disorder! Hurry, hurry, hurry. Start the part where blood flows like a river. The audience loves that!”
The spectators beside Him cooperated and booed. They pointed at the stage, and some of them even took out paper balls from somewhere and threw them onto the stage.
“But Master… There are dragons. Dragons!”
Reason, who was constantly dodging the balls of paper, opened its mouth and whispered to Valk.
It was also at this moment that the entire theater’s ground shook. A long roar sounded from behind the curtain, and a long fiery pillar emitted, illuminating the surrounding pitch-black curtain and reflecting the shadows of the busy staff behind.
As well as the silhouette of a dragon.
Many members of the staff in charge of the lighting and other stage equipment were ignited by the breath. They screamed and jumped down from the platform, hugging their burning heads as they ran around. A few burly men holding buckets rushed out from below the stage and hurriedly stopped them. Then, they lifted them and doused their heads in the buckets.
Valk laughed maniacally. As He laughed, He said, “Hahahaha, that’s right, that’s right. A good show always happens unexpectedly. Where’s the circus? Get the circus over quickly! Let’s have a horse show to warm up the audience!”
Accompanying His voice, a few beast tamers holding rings and whips below the stage ran out. They passed under the curtain one after another. Then, the loud cracks of the whip constantly echoed. After the dragon on the stage spat out a few last breaths, it wailed and finally fell silent.
“Ah, right… Don’t worry if there are members of the Dragon Protection Association here. The dragons in the theater are all bred by the Moon Realm. No wild dragon was injured during the performance.”
After laughing maniacally, Valk turned around and spoke to the audience behind Him.
With that said, He looked at William and repeated Himself.
“Mm…”
William didn’t know what else he could reply with other than an “Mm.”
When peace was restored to the stage, the suited Reason wiped the sweat from its forehead and picked up the prompter card in its hand.
“Then, ladies and gentlemen, please enjoy the Fanatic Theater’s most popular tragedy in the Moon Realm for the past 500 years, ‘The Destruction of Judgment.’ The prelude will soon begin—the beginning of the dispute. To ensure the best viewing experience, please take good care of your children and prevent them from crying when the performance begins. Friends with magical mediums, please don’t use spells that cause too much light during the performance. Otherwise, our staff will invite you out…”
Slap!
A dirty dog was smashed into Reason’s face, knocking it to the ground onto its back.
William turned to look at Valk, who was sitting beside him. Valk maintained the posture of throwing something out and said, “Cut the crap~ Begin quickly! Begin!”
A few staff members scrambled up the stage and helped Reason down. As for the dog that Valk had thrown out, it was safe and sound. It ran under the feet of the staff members and pounced and hugged them before being kicked into the audience by an impatient staff member.
After this farce-like preparation ended, a crisp bell sounded, followed by the melodious and soothing sound of a harp. The velvet curtain slowly lifted with the music.
The stage was decorated into a gorgeous hall, and an obsidian round table was placed in the middle of the hall.
There were a total of 13 seats at the round table. Other than the seat facing the main door being empty, every other seat was filled.
Of course, not all of them were humans.
Half of the round table was occupied by a golden dragon. Other than the dragon, there was a crow, an elf, a humanoid shadow, a Lich, and seven people in different clothes and very obvious characteristics sitting at the round table.
William could recognize their identities based on their clothes.
Without a doubt, this scene was a reenactment of the Twilight Fortress’s round table.
But why pull a real dragon onto the stage? Dowa King usually took his human form.
“This is because plays need such exaggerated manifestations. If everyone present is humanoid and doesn’t have any special characteristics, the audience will quickly be unable to tell who’s who.”
Valk saw William’s gaze drift to the dragon from time to time and explained patiently.
At this moment, the originally soothing harp music suddenly turned into a few jarring tunes that were in no way harmonious, as if it was hinting at something.
After the ear-piercing tune ended, a man wearing a breastplate with a lion-patterned badge stood up. He picked up a piece of parchment and looked around before saying,
“Although I think the outcome will be the same this time, let’s begin voting…”
Byron Lionheart was the fifth Judge of Judgment and the overall leader of the three knightages under the Doomsday Watchers.
Before he joined Judgment, he was the Knight King of the Baroque Kingdom. His title was abolished by the Territory King, Fox III, and he was exiled to the Cold Source in the north as he was suspected of treason. Later on, he was recruited by William to join Judgment. He led the secular troops of the Salvation Coalition among the Doomsday Watchers and was in charge of communication and coordination with the seven kingdoms.
Byron took a deep breath and said, “Then, those who agree to the Judgment and Doomsday Watchers’ disbandment, please raise your hands.”
Including the golden dragon and the elf, a total of six people present raised their hands.
The man looked at the people raising their hands and sighed helplessly. Then, he continued, “Then, please raise your hand if you wish for Judgment and Doomsday Watchers to continue.”
With that said, he raised his hand.
A total of six people raised their hands.
Byron lowered his hand and asked in confusion, “Another six-to-six. I don’t understand how long we have to repeat this meaningless game. What reason is it that makes you so anxious to give up the order we’ve built after all our ordeals?”
For a moment, no one at the round table spoke.
A few seconds later, Black Swordsman Blake—who was wearing half armor and had a door-like sword on his right—said, “There’s only one reason. That person’s last order before he left was to disband Judgment, so we should respect his wishes.”
After Blake finished speaking, the slender elven girl with golden hair said, “Moreover, the connection between the Moon Realm and Currere has been severed, and the era of myths and heroes is about to end. What follows shouldn’t be guided by us, but for those mortals to choose their destiny. We shouldn’t interfere with this devastated world that has just been saved…”
Byron solemnly interrupted the other party.
“Remides, keep in mind that this is the world we saved.”