Only God
Chapter 285 - 245 Expelling the True Believers

Chapter 285: Chapter 245 Expelling the True Believers

The defeat of the Three-eyed Ape People sent shockwaves through the entire Royal City.

In the raucous Palace, King Anuket sat atop the throne, glaring intently at General Bek in front of him.

"Damn it, damn it!"

General Bek and the other generals knelt before the throne, shaking violently as King Anuket’s rage poured down on the hall.

Within the Palace, the Ministers were either anxious, resentful, mournful, or panicked. They said nothing, their gazes shifting between the King and the generals.

King Anuket stared hard at the generals, his hands shaking wildly.

An entire army of thirty thousand!

Over thirty thousand Nobles and free citizens had faced such a humiliating defeat, with many dead or injured.

King Anuket surveyed the Ministers around him, realizing he must execute those three generals quickly, chopping through the chaos to seize the initiative.

After all, he was also responsible for this failure.

"May the Gods curse you, may Kagawus curse you, I send you to the Netherworld in the name of the King to face the Judges’ trial!"

King Anuket used his anger to cover the turmoil in his heart.

The three generals under the throne trembled uncontrollably, unable to utter a single word in defense.

As King Anuket was about to have the three men taken away,

Suddenly, a Minister stepped forward,

"Your Majesty! Why did we go to war?!"

The questioning tone echoed, causing King Anuket’s mind to rumble.

"Your Majesty, my youngest son died on the battlefield, tell me, why did we go to war!"

The Minister, his face full of anger, shouted questions at King Anuket on the throne.

"Silence!"

King Anuket roared:

"Are you questioning your King?! Traitorous official!"

King Anuket tried to crush the Minister with his own imposing manner.

In the past, this is how he had time and again intimidated the Ministers.

However, this time he did not achieve the desired effect.

The death of loved ones had made the Minister’s anger eclipse his own weakness.

"Your Majesty, where is the land and wealth you promised? Still in the hands of those barbaric Beastmen?

If so, please tell me, why did we go to war?!"

King Anuket was furious, his authority had always forced the Ministers to kneel, and now someone dared to question his will.

Just as King Anuket was about to have the Minister taken away.

Prime Minister Ibia stood up,

"Your Majesty! Why did we go to war?!"

King Anuket trembled, never expecting the ever-opportunistic Prime Minister Ibia to stand up and question him at this moment.

Maybe...

It was because he was so opportunistic that he could sense the Ministers’ and Nobles’ rage.

With Prime Minister Ibia taking the lead in questioning, other Ministers got goosebumps.

"Your Majesty! Why did we go to war?!"

The Ministers were impassioned, standing up one after another, questioning King Anuket on the throne loudly.

They had enough of King Anuket’s cruel reign, and almost every Minister had seeds of resentment harbored in their hearts.

Now was the time for them to erupt.

King Anuket felt weak all over, nearly collapsing, and even the Priests, who had always defended the King, were too intimidated to speak.

"Your Majesty! Why did we go to war?!"

King Aluokete’s scalp tingled, his face turning pale. He never imagined that one day these Ministers would band together against him.

He roared in defense.

"It’s not my fault! It’s not my fault! I am the one blessed by Kagawus!"

Then, King Anuket turned to the trembling generals below the throne,

"It is their incompetence!"

The Ministers’ rebuttals greatly diminished King Anuket’s arrogance. At that moment, one of the defeated generals raised his head and countered:

"Your Majesty! It is not our incompetence. It’s the Stone Slaves who betrayed us!

It was those Stone Slaves who rebelled. Unwilling to follow the Three-eyed Ape People’s orders, they attacked us in the night. It’s all because of them that we failed in the war!"

This general’s rebuttal echoed in the midst of fear, desperately emphasizing these words, seeking a sliver of hope.

King Anuket listened to General Bek quivering.

He suddenly grasped at a lifesaver, a scapegoat.

The Ministers’ and Nobles’ rage could not be poured entirely onto himself; it had to shed onto those Stone Slaves and the True Believers.

Only then could he secure his throne, buying precious time to calm the Kingdom’s anger.

"Have you heard? The Stone Slaves! Those despicable Stone Slaves have rebelled!"

King Anuket, while channeling the ministers’ fury toward the Stone Slaves, also assumed a humble posture,

"My subjects, I had previously misjudged the situation, and for that, I am to blame.

But I am still your King, and the sins committed by the despicable Stone Slaves are greater!"

At the precise moment, Hetep, the High Priest favored by King Anuket, stepped forward to defend the King:

"It must have been the True Believers who instigated this rebellion!

They have initiated countless uprisings like this before.

Our King is the one blessed by Kagawus, and Kagawus is using this defeat to warn us—we must eliminate that Church!"

With King Anuket’s acquiescence and the High Priest’s resounding proclamation,

the ministers’ anger was redirected, and they began to loudly denounce the treacherous actions of the True Believers.

King Anuket slowly straightened up, his eyes flashing with rage,

How could his decisions possibly be wrong; he was the King of Ajia, the one protected by Kagawus.

And how could the army of the Three-eyed Ape People so suddenly be defeated by the barbaric Beastmen?

All of it, as the High Priest had pronounced, must have been the Stone Slaves inciting a riot, and Kagawus using this defeat to punish them!

Those were the vile True Believers, worshipers of other gods, deserving of death!

"Expel them!"

"Kill the rebels!"

"Crush their Church!"

"Let those vile persons roll out of Ajia!"

The ministers railed against the villainy of the True Believers, shouting loud calls for the expulsion of all True Believers. Any voice defending the True Believers now ceased to exist and could not be tolerated.

Atop the palace, the Nobles and Ministers’ loathing for the True Believers outweighed their resentment towards King Anuket.

The reason being that King Anuket held power.

And the True Believers did not.

King Anuket sat upon the throne, slowly issuing a decree about the True Religion.

"That is a despicable Church, a faith that seeks to destroy and ruin countries.

My subjects, the fault is not mine! It lies with those True Believers!

We will execute those rebels and then completely expel the True Religion from Ajia Land!"

............

Under the cover of night, Daniel nervously watched as one Stone Slave after another climbed down using ropes and ladders,

and the True Believers who came with him stepped forward to assist those climbing down the city wall’s breaches with ladders and ropes.

Daniel scanned the surroundings; the dim night made everything blur, and none dared to pick up a torch for fear that during this curfew, they would attract the attention of the patrolling guards.

Watching one Stone Slave after another enter Ajia Royal City, Daniel’s heart hung suspended, feeling both relieved and fearful.

They were all rebels, the guilty ones of the entire Kingdom.

Daniel was acutely aware of this, but it was too late to turn back.

And in his eyes, they were innocent, persecuted, and also believers in God, how could he possibly refuse to extend a helping hand?

"Hurry up, faster, how many more are left?"

Daniel asked urgently.

Mo’er also clutched the last of his hands nervously and said:

"I don’t know, it’s too dark, I can’t count how many are left, probably... about half."

Upon hearing this, Daniel roared with urgency:

"Hurry the hell up, for God’s sake! Damn it, move faster!"

Perhaps Daniel’s urging had an effect, as the remaining Stone Slaves quickened their pace, though not by much; they were doing their utmost.

As the number of Stone Slaves yet to climb into the city dwindled, the anxiety in Daniel’s heart began to subside.

"This time... it was a close call."

Daniel bowed his head, about to give thanks for God’s protection when suddenly,

a series of torchlights rushed toward them from behind.

Daniel’s eyes widened with realization.

"There, over there! Who are you?"

The Guard Captain called out loudly.

At that moment, Stone Slaves still on the wall, those climbing down, all froze in place, staring dumbfoundedly at the fully armed guards.

Daniel reacted the fastest, organizing his words, ready to bluster his way through,

when suddenly, a Stone Slave, driven by past fears, broke away, sending the dominoes of fear tumbling as other Stone Slaves exploded into action, scattering in fleeing panic.

They were nothing but a disorganized mob, and their little remaining spirit had been ground down by days of wandering.

The guards were stunned by this turn of events, and they quickly turned back, running to inform their superiors.

Daniel was overwhelmed by a wave of despair, and after a long moment, he could only curse loudly:

"Damn it! You really deserve to die!"