Chapter 1847 - 173: Victory and Defeat (8k)

"Mother."

After Elizabeth recited the spell recorded in her memory, Moli’s limbs suddenly began to tremble uncontrollably, perhaps because her emotions were too tense. However, when she snapped out of her daze, she found that her collar was already soaked with cold sweat.

"Ha..."

She took a deep breath, and at that moment, in the distance, Alagina had already used the Cardinal to transport the cold-bodied Xuan Can back.

Elizabeth knew it was time.

Elizabeth glanced at the silent women in front of her, who were frowning and staring at her. These women, who had a deep connection with Fisher, stood together, seemingly united and determined to bring her down, just like the fate she had always fought against—appearing insurmountable.

Her pupils were hollow, and in the silence, she lowered her head, her hands slowly raising to approach her eyes.

"..."

Yet the closer her hands got to her eyes, the more they trembled, the more fearful she felt.

It was not Pandora’s Artificial Eye that was conveying a sense of resistance; the resistance came from herself.

Even though that eye could only be removed with her own consent, why was she so afraid of Fisher’s hands approaching her eyes, even when Fisher was present?

Perhaps she was simply afraid, afraid of returning to the moment she lost her eye.

In immense fear, her hands trembled uncontrollably, like two pieces of iron, even finding it difficult to touch her face.

But...

She knew it...

She had always known it.

She had already lost, hadn’t she?

She had always understood the principle of victory or defeat: as long as she won, as long as she achieved victory, she would gain everything; losing meant rightfully losing it all. She had always believed this.

At this moment, since she had already lost, shouldn’t she calmly accept it?

"Your Majesty! Sob sob..."

But at that moment, from outside the scene, a mournful voice was heard, and Elizabeth was slightly startled, while Moli and Valentina also turned to look outside.

There they saw a solitary old man kneeling on the ground, tears in his eyes uncontrollable,

"Your Majesty... you restored my son’s martyr status... he died on the battlefield of Schwali... only you remembered him! Everyone else has forgotten..."

Elizabeth opened her eyes and turned to look at the woman wearing a wool sweater and scarf, who covered her face, tears streaming down from the wrinkles.

"We sent our children to the battlefield, even the meager pensions after their deaths were so little... The former King used them up and discarded them, not even leaving a name behind. In my neighborhood, one of my children, Lady Martha’s two children, Mrs. Donaldson’s three children... our children died, and we can only rely on our meager pensions to continue living difficult lives, even being forced to rent out our homes... It was you who restored their status, who gave us subsidies again..."

"Me too, Your Majesty... In the past, only those from the Royal College could enter government work, while poor kids like us from the countryside, from outside Saint Nali, had no opportunity to enter Saint Nali, forced to stay on our land and farm for a lifetime... Now there are academies everywhere, even places like my hometown can produce Mages..."

"Your Majesty, if it weren’t for the Cardinal Factory you established, middle-aged people like me would have long been kicked out by the mine for being unable to handle heavy work... cough cough... I’m... very grateful that Your Majesty amended the law to protect us from exploitation by exploration companies..."

"Wow!"

Outside the Troll Species, wave after wave of Nali people knelt down, hands reaching through the sturdy Troll Species arms and through the sharp feathers of the Grey Bird Species, extending towards Elizabeth, seemingly trying to grasp her, but it was too far and there were too many people to reach her.

Elizabeth looked at the surrounding people, some crying, some kneeling, as breath stuck in her chest unable to escape.

All this was evidently just responsibility...

All this was just the spoils of war I seized from my father and brother...

All this was just the stage for me to prove I was more excellent and more suitable than my brother...

But why...

But why...

Elizabeth looked perplexed at the hands incessantly reaching towards her, yet at this moment, no matter how much she used Pandora’s Artificial Eye to try to see through their desires, it was all in vain.

Perhaps they were simply still worried that after her death they would be settled by these other forces, which is why they wanted to grab her as a lifeline...

But what kept coming back from the prosthetic eye was sincere emotion, which Elizabeth could not comprehend...

She opened her mouth, finally releasing a breath from her chest, but it was like crying, each breath more rapid and brittle than the last...

"Demi-humans, Your Majesty’s actions have entirely been for us, the benefits Your Majesty gained allowed us to enjoy them... Therefore, no matter what you demand Your Majesty to bear, please let us share in it... not let her shoulder it alone..."

Moli and Valentina had never encountered such a scene before, and faced with those cloaked in tears, the kneeling Nali people’s approach, even the coldest, hardest weapon couldn’t be lifted at this moment.

They turned to look at Valentina, while Valentina and Moli just looked at Elizabeth in front of them, watched as her calm eyes of defeat slowly developed cracks, her body began to tremble uncontrollably, and the golden pupils lowered, turning red.