The Evil Emperor's Fragile Heart

"But what if Raven was chosen to be the king of the Pearl Kingdom as well?" Mana asked. "Didn't you say that the previous master of the Holy Sceptre was both?"

Head Sage Yue sighed. "I don't know," he murmured. "I can only hope that the ancestral spirits will remain dormant."

"It's worth a try, I think," Raven said to Mana. "If I am not even standing among the pool of candidates for the position of the monarch, it is better, isn't it?"

Mana couldn't disagree with that. Well, it's not like they could control this anyway. If Raven did get chosen, they would figure out a solution later.

"All right," she said. "So Father will arrange for the ritual for choosing his successor first?" she asked, looking up at Head Sage Yue.

Head Sage Yue nodded. "I will make the arrangements," he said. He bowed his head suddenly. "Raven, Mana – thank you for this. And I am terribly sorry that you had to face this on your first visit to the Pearl Kingdom, especially when we are supposed to have your engagement banquet tonight…" he murmured, his ears flushed with embarrassment.

Mana and Raven looked at each other, not knowing what to say to the man. It wasn't entirely his fault, after all, that things with King Min had turned out like this – but it was also a lapse on his part that he had been completely oblivious to the situation in the Pearl Kingdom which must have been brewing for at least a few years to reach to the current levels.

In the end, Mana and Raven said some polite words to Head Sage Yue to overcome the awkward situation.

Head Sage Yue kept his word. He made a formal announcement that King Min had been dethroned for betraying their country and colluding with foreign enemies. Although he didn't mention the Amber Kingdom, but from the pale faces of several top officials in the Pearl Kingdom, it was clear that the matter was as big as they had originally feared. Head Sage Yue had also managed to obtain a detailed confession from King Min, and all the traitors who had been working with him were swiftly arrested and thrown into the dungeons. It was quite a shock to the people of the Pearl Kingdom, but they were also quite angry with King Min and the others for betraying them.

After that, Head Sage Yue announced that the ritual for choosing his heir who would be the next head sage of the Moon Temple as well as the ceremony for choosing the new monarch of the Pearl Kingdom would take place in the afternoon, and in the evening, they would have the banquet that had been arranged to celebrate the betrothal of his son Prince Raven of the Obsidian Kingdom and Princess Mana of the Emerald Kingdom.

The arrangements were swiftly made, and Mana and Raven quickly explained to their family members about the discussion they had with Head Sage Yue.

None of them were happy about it, but they all agreed that this was the best solution they had at the moment. No one wanted Raven to be put on the throne of the Pearl Kingdom when it was in such an unstable condition. If it were the Obsidian Kingdom, which was both powerful and stable – no one would have objected. But the situation with the Pearl Kingdom was rather difficult at the moment, and there would be a mountain of things to deal with for the new king. Helping them was fine, but no one wanted to put their child in the middle of it, not even Head Sage Yue himself.

So, the group found themselves in the Moon Temple just after an early lunch, with all the disciples and members of the Moon Temple lining up for the selection ritual.

It was a large open area, built like a stadium, with a podium in the centre where Head Sage Yue stood in his formal robes of his position. Around him, all the disciples and members of the Moon Temple who were eligible to participate in the selection ritual had gathered, and all the onlookers – the people of the Pearl Kingdom as well as the guests – were seated in the stands.

Mana watched nervously, her eyes fixed on Raven who was standing with the other candidates. He had chosen an inconspicuous position and no one paid any attention to him. He was also wearing a cloak with a hood pulled over his face, so his face was not clearly visible.

The crowd wasn't very enthusiastic about this ritual, actually – most of them were waiting for the next one – the selection of their new monarch. After all, no one had been chosen as the heir by the Moon Deity for quite a few years, and they didn't expect much this time, either.

However, what happened next took everyone by surprise. Almost as soon as soon Head Sage Yue started the ritual, a bright blue beam of light shot down from the skies, enveloping Raven – just like the spotlight on a stage. The Holy Sceptre appeared in Raven's hand by itself, without any warning, and his entire form glowed brightly. The hood of his cloak fell off, revealing his beautiful face. Then he was magically lifted up in the air and brought to the podium where Head Sage Yue was standing with an impassive face, but his light eyes glowed with pride.

Murmurs broke out amidst the crowd immediately.

"Is that the Holy Sceptre?!" someone cried.

"It is! I saw pictures of it in the library!" someone else said.

"Prince Raven is the master of the Holy Sceptre?! How is that possible?!" a third person cried.

"Of course it is possible! Did you forget that Prince Raven is the biological son of our Head Sage Yue, who is of the purest and most direct bloodline of the ancient sage? Is there anyone else who would be able to inherit the Holy Sceptre?" another person pointed out.

The chatter continued for quite some time until Head Sage Yue held up his hand and everyone fell silent.

"The Moon Deity has chosen my successor and the next head sage of the Moon Temple – my son, Prince Raven of the Obsidian Kingdom!" Head Sage Yue announced. He took Raven's hand and performed a complicated magic spell, and an ornate bracelet appeared in the air. Head Sage Yue put the bracelet around Raven's wrist and then instructed him to tap the ground with the Holy Sceptre.

Raven followed his instructions wordlessly. He was not too surprised. After all, they had more or less expected this outcome, and Head Sage Yue had already promised that he would not hinder Raven from staying in the Emerald Kingdom and the Obsidian Kingdom.

"Head Sage Yue, is that really the Holy Sceptre?" an attendant asked nervously.

"Yes, it is," Head Sage Yue replied simply. "Raven has been the master of the Holy Sceptre for quite some time now."

Shocked and elated murmurs broke through the crowd once again, and then Mana stood up and clapped, and soon enough, everyone was clapping and cheering for Raven.

"Since the Holy Sceptre has appeared, Prince Raven must be our saviour!" someone shouted.

"The heavens have finally taken pity on us and sent Prince Raven to us with the authority of the Holy Sceptre!" another person yelled.

Many voices joined them, echoing their thoughts.  Of course, there were voices full of envy and scepticism as well – but overall, the mood was happy.

The appearance of the Holy Sceptre was a monumental event, after all.

Raven, standing on the podium with his biological father, looked rather embarrassed at the enthusiasm of the people and thought silently that he would have been happier if the heavens had chosen someone else.

Head Sage Yue held up his hand again. He quickly announced that as per their rules, since Raven was already chosen to be the successor to the Moon Temple, he would be automatically disqualified from the candidature of the next monarch of the Pearl Kingdom.

Unexpectedly, however, a number of people protested immediately, especially the commoners.

"But Prince Raven is the master of the Holy Sceptre! He can be both the Head Sage of the Moon Temple and the King of the Pearl Kingdom!" one person said.

"Didn't the original owner of the Holy Sceptre hold both positions?" another person commented. "It is all there in the history books!"

"But the Moon Deity chose Prince Raven for the Moon Temple, and the ancestral spirits will choose the next monarch – let's wait and see what happens!" someone else remarked.

Head Sage Yue held up his hand once again to silence the clamouring and noisy crowd.

"We shall let the ancestral spirits make the decision, as always," Head Sage Yue announced, hoping fervently in his heart that the ancestral spirits remained dormant like they had been for many years now.

Unfortunately, that was not destined to be the case!