Inside the palace.
A deathly silence.
Many ministers looked at each other, their bodies trembling constantly.
Even the young Emperor had collapsed onto the imperial chair.
Thump! Thump! Thump!
But just then, orderly footsteps came from afar.
Dense crowds of people were already rushing from all directions.
"Master, all the palace guards should be here."
Esdeath, with her long, beautiful legs, came to Linde's side.
"Perfect timing."
Linde smiled slightly, "Killing the chicken to warn the monkeys, Minister Honest alone isn't enough."
Only by making those ministers and nobles understand the overwhelming situation.
Could he force people to make a choice when they had no other options.
Under his gaze, countless guards had already surrounded the palace.
A burly, blond man in full armor stood at the very front of all the guards.
General Bude, one of the Empire's strongest.
At this moment, his face was filled with immense anger.
He disdained the political infighting of the court, so he never attended court meetings.
But who could have imagined.
That such a thing would happen today?
"Those who rebel, come out and surrender quickly, and perhaps your lives may be spared."
Bude spoke loudly.
He was also hesitant, fearing to act rashly.
With His Majesty the Emperor in their hands, he dared not act impetuously.
"The Empire's strongest, he doesn't seem like much, does he?"
Looking at Bude, Linde shook his head and ordered, "Esdeath, clear out the fodder first."
"Yes, Master."
Esdeath looked ahead with a cold expression, her hand slightly clutched towards the sky.
Buzz!
An extreme chill rapidly spread across the firmament.
The next moment.
The entire sky had already turned dim.
Under everyone's gaze.
They only saw an enormous ice sphere, like a meteor, rapidly falling.
"This... what is this?"
"Quick, run!"
The guards, who had been gathering, looked at the falling giant ice mass, all revealing expressions of terror.
"This is... Esdeath's Imperial Arms?"
The only one who could remain calm was Bude.
But seeing all of this, his face had already turned ashen.
Esdeath had also participated in the rebellion; the situation was worse than he had imagined.
However, at this moment, he had no time to think further and directly activated his Imperial Arms, Adrammelech.
Crack!
Dazzling lightning surged from Bude's body, and terrifying thunder spread in all directions.
Immediately after!
The lightning condensed on his armor, seemingly transforming into a visible armor of thunder.
Facing Esdeath, even Bude had to go all out.
Bang!
The next moment, a large pit exploded beneath his feet.
He shot out like lightning, carrying a terrifying momentum, to meet the falling ice mass.
Rumble!
The moment the two collided, visible ripples spread through the air.
Countless shards of ice, like cannonballs, scattered in all directions.
"Ah ah ah..."
Countless screams rose and fell, and who knows how many guards had been smashed into pulp.
At the same time.
The sky-filled dust was torn apart, and a dazzling bolt of lightning shot out.
Boom!
Linde casually slapped, directly shattering the lightning.
The scattered lightning raged, easily piercing through the surrounding ground.
Whoosh whoosh!
The hurricane blew.
The dust gradually dispersed.
Bude, bathed in lightning from head to toe, walked out unharmed, stepping over a ground covered in corpses.
"To be able to block a blow from Adrammelech, it seems you are not an unknown nobody."
Bude stared at Linde, a hint of apprehension flashing in his eyes.
One Esdeath was already troublesome enough.
This man before him was also a rare powerhouse.
"Esdeath, keep an eye on these people."
After giving the order, Linde stepped out.
Seeing this, Bude frowned and commanded, "The rest of you, charge!"
The guards who had miraculously survived instinctively prepared to obey the order.
However!
Esdeath raised her palm again.
"Master said the fodder is for me to deal with."
The moment her voice fell, a terrifying coldness emanated from Esdeath's palm.
"Absolute Zero."
Buzz!
An invisible chill instantly permeated the entire area.
Every guard felt their blood turn icy cold, and their entire bodies stiffened in place.
"Ah ah ah..."
They began to struggle wildly, but it was meaningless.
Crack! Crack! Crack!
Thick ice covered their bodies.
In just a few breaths, all the remaining guards were frozen in place.
"..."
Bude, standing still, instinctively swallowed.
Esdeath looked at Linde's back, her eyes filled with adoration and love.
This was the power bestowed by her Master.
If it had been before.
She absolutely could not have frozen everyone so precisely without affecting Bude.
At this very moment!
Linde had already arrived in front of Bude.
Looking at Linde, who was getting closer, Bude took a deep breath.
He had originally wanted to use those guards to test Linde's Imperial Arms.
But now it seemed that wouldn't work.
In that case... he could only end the fight quickly.
So he could free up his hands to deal with Esdeath.
Crackling!
The power of the Imperial Arms, Adrammelech, erupted fully, countless bolts of lightning flashed around Bude, as if the God of Thunder had descended.
Boom!
The ground around him exploded into a large pit, instantly turning pitch black.
"Good stuff, I'll take it."
Linde glanced at Adrammelech, his eyes slightly brightening.
It allowed one to unleash power comparable to an Upper-level Demon.
If he could research it and mass-produce it, that would also be good.
Buzz!
Linde raised one hand, and a demon gun materialized out of thin air.
"Is this his Imperial Arms?"
"It seems he's a long-range Imperial Arms user."
As thoughts raced through his mind, a flash of lightning on Bude's body transformed him into a bolt of lightning, charging out.
Rumble!
Wherever Bude's figure passed, the earth collapsed, spreading towards Linde's direction.
"Good momentum, but too slow."
Linde looked coldly at the approaching Bude and gently pulled the trigger.
Brilliant magical light reflected in Bude's eyes.
The extremely condensed magical beam left a visible ripple in the air.
In just an instant.
The magical beam had already pierced through the thunder armor and flashed through Bude's body.