Chapter 760:I Refuse

Chapter 760: 760:I Refuse

The Emperors stared at Ethan in complete shock. For a few moments, none of them seemed to understand what had just happened. They had expected hesitation, negotiation, or perhaps even a demand for a larger share of the territory.

They had never expected a straight rejection.

Ethan looked at their stunned faces and gave a small sigh before speaking.

"Thanks for considering me to hand over the Empire, but sorry, I refuse."

He leaned back slightly and continued in a calm voice, "I don’t want that shit. You see, I like to avoid troublesome matters. I already have my hands full with other things, and I don’t have time to take over all this, so I refuse. You can divide the territory as you wish."

A deep silence prevailed for a moment.

The Emperors looked at one another with their jaws slightly open. Even Queen Ophelia seemed unable to respond immediately. The atmosphere inside the room became strangely awkward as everyone tried to process Ethan’s words.

They had spent so much time discussing who would control Arcadia. They had carefully considered the balance of power and the possible consequences. They had even prepared themselves for Ethan demanding something in return.

Yet the person at the center of everything had simply refused.

A question slowly formed in everyone’s mind.

Is this man even sane?

Did he possibly lose his mind?

Ethan noticed their strange expressions and felt a little offended.

"Aren’t you all overacting too much? Not everyone wants to be an Emperor. Stop acting as if being Emperor is the most sane thing a person would decide."

He looked around at them and frowned slightly.

"You might enjoy sitting there, but not others. I value my freedom more than the throne, so stop giving me those weird looks."

The four Emperors remained silent for a moment.

Emperor Caelus finally recovered and looked at Ethan with a complicated expression.

"So now?"

They really had not expected Ethan to reject the throne.

Ethan raised his eyebrows.

"Now what? You can go and divide however..."

His tone suddenly changed.

The relaxed expression on his face disappeared as he looked at the Emperors more seriously.

"But for the sins of the past, you can’t exploit the common people. I am warning you all. Don’t turn them into slaves and destroy the people’s livelihood. Even if I am not the Emperor, I won’t be sitting and watching people’s lives getting destroyed."

His words were calm, but there was a firmness behind them that made the room quiet again.

Everyone understood that this was not a request.It was a warning.

Emperor Alderic slowly nodded.

"We assure you that we won’t be doing anything like that."

Ethan studied his face for a moment before giving a small nod.

"As for me..."

His gaze shifted toward Queen Ophelia.

Ophelia noticed his eyes falling on her and became slightly flustered. She quickly straightened herself and tried to maintain her usual calm expression.

"I don’t want to change my place if possible, and I would like to go under Queen Ophelia."

The moment those words left Ethan’s mouth, everyone turned toward Ophelia.

The expressions of the other Emperors became strangely complicated.

There was even a faint trace of jealousy in their eyes.

Ophelia herself froze for a moment under everyone’s gaze before her cheeks slowly turned red.

Seeing her expression,Ethan felt weird.

’Why is she blushing?I didn’t say anything flirty did I?’

Ethan gave them a final glance before getting up from his seat. He adjusted his clothes and gave a small nod toward the four Emperors.

"I have nothing else to discuss, so I will leave the rest to you."

Without waiting for their reply, he turned around and walked toward the door. The guards outside immediately stepped aside as Ethan left the room, leaving the four Emperors behind to continue their discussion.

For a few moments, nobody spoke.

Emperor Caelus finally looked toward Queen Ophelia with a faint smile.

"Congratulations, Ophelia."

Ophelia raised her brows slightly. "For what?"

"You managed to get Ethan under you," Caelus said, and there was a clear hint of jealousy in his voice. "With someone like him under your banner, your position has become much stronger."

Emperor Alderic nodded with a sigh.

"I have to admit, I am jealous as well. If I had someone like Ethan standing beside me, I would probably sleep much better at night."

Ophelia glanced toward the door through which Ethan had disappeared. Her expression remained calm, but a slight change could be seen in her eyes.

"You two are making it sound much more impressive than it is."

"How can it not be impressive?" Caelus asked with a small laugh. "A person who can summon a future version of himself that is powerful enough to crush an existence like Agros. Anyone would want such a person on their side."

Aldren, who had remained silent until then, suddenly looked at them.

"Having him under you isn’t as good as you are talking about."His words immediately made the others turn toward him.

Aldren’s expression remained serious as he continued.

"It’s like a double-edged sword. With this strength, it’s difficult to feel safe."

The room fell silent.

Aldren slowly turned his gaze toward Queen Ophelia.

"It might be different for Queen Ophelia as she is only an Empress and might need a Prince sooner."

Ophelia’s expression changed slightly.She understood the meaning behind his words immediately.Her eyes became cold as she stared directly at him.

"We don’t have such relationships."

Aldren did not back away from her gaze.

"It might not be now, but who can tell about the future."

The atmosphere instantly became tense.

Ophelia narrowed her eyes but did not reply. She knew that saying more would only make the situation worse, so she simply shut her lips and continued staring at Aldren.

Caelus noticed the growing tension and quickly stood up.

"Let’s leave all this and talk about the partition. Alongside that, we need to prepare the mourning ceremony for the lives lost in it."

The others slowly turned their attention toward him.

Emperor Alderic nodded.

"We also need to call upon the Church of Light to take care of their bodies."

"Yes," Caelus agreed with a tired sigh. "Let’s go back to work and finish things quickly."

The four Emperors gathered around the table once again. The discussion about Arcadia’s territory, the resources that had been lost and the lives that had been sacrificed was far from over.

They thought Ethan’s arrival had changed their plans completely but thankfully their worst fear didn’t come true.