CHAPTER 60: TALK WITH THE EMPEROR (2)

"What?"

Every time Luke listened to Alfred speak, he knew that no such law existed. After all, he had to follow the law book very closely. He was a prince and also a crown prince.

"We are Hiera, Luke. We have many secrets, and as you can understand from the law I mentioned, these laws can only be learned by the emperor or empress at that time. That’s why they are secret, because the Hiera have a different education, training, and legal system than other empires." Alfred said, then reached into the magic bag at his waist and pulled out a book.

It was an incredibly thick book. Perhaps it had a thousand five hundred, or even two thousand pages.

The book was titled [Andromeda’s Laws].

Alfred pushed the book across the table, and it slid across the large table until it reached Luke.

"The person who wrote this law book was Andromeda Ariadne Hiera herself. If you could have been emperor, you would have seen it," said Alfred.

"Lady Andromeda may no longer be in this world, but we live by her rules, Luke. Thanks to her laws, this empire has managed to survive for so long. Open the first page of the book and read it aloud, let your sisters hear it," added the great emperor to his own words.

When Luke heard these words, he opened the cover of the horseback law book [Andromeda’s Laws], turned to the first page, and began to read aloud:

"Emperor or empress holding this book, listen to my words. From this day forward, you must rule the empire from top to bottom according to the laws contained within this book. Everyone is under your protection. You will enforce these laws without regard to race, age, or gender. You will become the monster that everyone thinks you are, and even if your heart is the strongest heart and your soul is the brightest soul, you will continue to enforce the laws. If you accept these rules, turn to the next page of the book and begin your duty as a Hiera, the master of all Hieras."

When Luke read this long paragraph written in the middle of the page, he realised that his voice had echoed throughout the palace and the entire city.

This was normal for the Hieras, but the servants outside the room had already fainted.

Even the knights with strong willpower, Zoey, Kevin, and even Callum himself, were feeling dizzy.

Even before the book was opened, Alfred had used the Ancient Dragon Language to say everything he had said.

And now, Luke had done the same, which had undoubtedly put a heavy burden on everyone. Moreover, the fact that every word written was not written with such a desire but directly in the dialect of [command] had managed to explain what was happening.

"As I said, Lady Andromeda may no longer be in this world, but she is the reason why we, your sisters, and the five mothers of yours can live so happily, why the entire empire is at peace, and why even the farmers can sleep with full stomachs. This means we must follow her rules, Lady Andromeda’s rules, to the letter." Alfred said suddenly, reaching out his hand toward the book.

Luke pushed the book back on the table, and Alfred took it and put it in his magic bag.

"So you never wanted to put me in this situation, did you?" Luke asked with great curiosity. He didn’t hate his father, but he spoke as if he wanted a reason to hate him.

"You’re my only son, Luke. You have seven sisters. Being a boy doesn’t make you more or less valuable than them, but they’re your sisters and you’re their baby brother. Since your biological mother, Lily Moneta, one of the six loves of my life, has passed away, you’ve always had five mothers who loved you. You’re their baby boy," Alfred said suddenly.

Then he smiled and added, "You are all my family. Maybe this will make you hate me, but maybe I chose to be harsh to avoid hurting myself. I thought it would be better for you to suffer than for me to suffer, and that’s why I said every word I said."

"How could a father do that?" Penelope asked suddenly, slamming her hands on the table and jumping to her feet.

Alfred looked at Luke, unable to say anything, and perhaps for the first time ever, bowed his head sadly in front of all his children.

"A human father...Humans lose themselves in order to protect their own feelings after all." Luke had said.

As soon as Alfred heard these words, he raised his head and stared at Luke with wide eyes.

Luke smiled and said, "Perhaps we will never be father and son again like we were in the past, Your Majesty," and without hesitation added, "Still, at least knowing the truth makes me happy."

Penelope looked at her younger brother Luke in surprise and asked, "Aren’t you angry?"

Penelope and her other sisters were busy being angry on Luke’s behalf.

"I’ve been angry at my father for a long time, sister. Six months have passed since then. This was just a village of forty-one people, covered in wounds and cold scars, with broken and shattered houses, ruined and decayed. Then the elves came, and everything grew, and this place managed to become a city. Believe me, I had to work very hard with my gift; I hadn’t worked this hard even when I was working for the empire." Luke said.

Then he laughed until his eyes filled with tears, perhaps for the first time since he left the palace.

"Come on! The King of the Sea People works under my command. Over a thousand Dark Elves, who can hunt better than even the assassins of the Typhoon family, are under my command. I have over three thousand normal elves who would already be willing to die for me. The Empire’s most powerful mage, Kevin, and the most powerful swordsman, Callum, are my right and left hands. Half-humans, half-demons, and even over three hundred fairies living in this palace." Luke suddenly said.

"Even though I don’t want to admit it, my father expelling me from the palace was the best thing that ever happened to me!" he added, his face covered in a big smile.

No one had any idea what to say. Luke... Perhaps for the first time, he had poured out everything in his heart.

They could do nothing but smile.