Only God

After the peace talks, the Royal City of Nuo Lang held a grand triumphal ceremony for the Golan army. The ceremony was nominally for the King, however, as Maxwell rode through the streets on a tall horse, the people erupted in intense cheers, surrounded by flowers and crowds.

As for Hudson II, people naturally cheered for him, but their cheers were much lower and seemed obligatory.

The people of Golan had come to see Maxwell as the hero of all Golan. In every street and alley, songs about the Earl were widespread, and many hoped he would continue to maintain his position as regent.

When rumors reached the Palace that Maxwell had seized power and posed a threat, the Queen's face turned pale. Anxious to see her husband, she rushed to ensure Hudson had not been poisoned in his meals.

When Hudson II returned to the Palace, the Queen, seeing that he was merely gaunt but otherwise in good health, could not help but breathe a sigh of relief. Yet, she soon became worried about Maxwell again.

Who knew... this brazen usurper, Maxwell, what kind of conspiracy or scheme might he be brewing?

The Queen was nearly driven mad with worry, but when she confided in Hudson, he rebuked her instead.

The Queen was extremely shocked; it was rare for Hudson to treat her that way.

Hudson exclaimed loudly,

"I swear by the arm of Scatty, you do not understand my Earl!"

When the Queen calmed down and tried to ask for details, Hudson no longer answered. The King was vague, filled with a sense of inferiority and shame.

Soon after, the Queen understood what was going on.

A month after the triumphal ceremony, Maxwell stepped into the Palace. In front of the King and Queen, he reaffirmed the oath he had made to the former King. He then told them that the mission given to him by Scatty was accomplished, and he would return the regency power and retire to his own territory to spend his remaining years.

The Queen was stunned. She could not imagine that someone who had tasted power could so easily cast it aside.

For the first time, she realized that such people did not only exist in myths or epic songs but were truly real. A person could lift an entire kingdom out of peril and, the very next moment, turn away, leaving a powerful throne within easy reach.

She understood why her husband, King Hudson II, felt so inferior and embarrassed. Thinking this, she, too, could not help but blush.

Maxwell's resignation was quickly approved. Afterwards, he returned to his ancestral lands, brought back his wife and young son, and went back to the Helong Mountain Range. Though a third of the land had been lost, he was still welcomed as a hero. He accepted all the praises and cheers with a smile and, after burying his eldest son in the family tomb, spent his remaining years with his remaining family and lovers.

After this, there were no more stories about the old Earl.

.........

.........

The Gods witnessed the failure of Kafu the Sixth.

"To be honest, even though we anticipated it, it is really disappointing that Golan stopped there," said Wine God Sibos, swirling his cup of sweet wine.

The Divine beings had originally imagined that Kafu the Sixth, the Dwarf king, would go further. He would not only conquer Golan but also conquer more lands and eventually unite the Dwarf nations to forge a vast empire.

The greater Kafu VI's achievements and conquests, the greater the internal conflicts within his country, be it racial, clan-based, or among the conquered... all akin to multiple barrels of oil. The empire might seem splendid in its establishment, but once these conflicts erupted simultaneously, the backlash would be as great as its previous glory.

At that point, the Divine beings would intervene, igniting one fuse after another, letting this painstakingly built empire fall in a single generation.

And the Path of Divine Creation explored by Belvan would also be lost in destructive chaos, disappearing in the streams of history.

Once this faction of Divine beings succeeded, they would use this as a model to persuade other factions to accept their ideas.

The plan, however, encountered some mishaps; Kafu the Sixth had not conquered Golan, and the seemingly unstoppable Dwarf army faltered after "Maxwell's Miracle."

"So what's next? I believe we won't just fail like this," said Sibos, sipping his fine wine, looking towards Dream God Laren.

After breaching Xilan's dreams, Laren had been somewhat cautious, harboring many thoughts but not daring to act due to fears, forced to watch Kafu VI's defeat powerless.

However, Laren could no longer afford such caution. The Dwarf army had retreated from Golan, and their grandiose war had only gained a third of the Helong Mountain Range. The Divine plans had hit a significant obstacle, and if no action was taken now, there would never be another chance.

"Fortunately, we still have a backup plan," Dream God Laren slowly said.

Ever since choosing Nelson as the Priest, he had been working on infiltrating the Gold Silver Clan of Kaelonde Dwarves. Other members of this faction of Divine beings had also provided various degrees of support for his infiltration plan.