Netori SSS-Emperor: All Queens Shall Be Mine!-Chapter 30: Meeting The Participants - Part 2

After the debacle from the last participant, it was William's turn to step forward. And to the surprise of the sane public, many of their neighbors, the elites, and a handful of other minorities stood up as he took centre stage. The crowd–at least one-half of it, cheered his name and clapped like maniacs, all so they wouldn't have to face his wrath in case he became king.

The competition still being fixed in their minds, a grand majority of them expected the late king's son to take over the kingdom. His odds against Wolf might've been dull in a fight, but William was still leading the charts with Wolf considered an underdog bet. Nobody, absolutely nobody, thought that the prince could defeat his brother, but even then, if the event was rigged, it only made sense that Wolf was paid off and would lose intentionally.

Unaware of it all, Wolf was in utter shock at how much support William had. Having heard from Renee about the woes of those poor women from last night, he expected at least the commoners to stand behind him.

'They're scared to show direct support, I bet.' Although he tried not to let it affect him, the fact that he'd helped them countless times as an adventurer made it difficult to accept the current reality. 'What other choice do they have, you idiot? Just focus on the task at hand!'

Reprimanding himself, he looked at William's back as he readied himself to address the public.

"William De' Didact, son of Grimgor De' Didact," lifting his gaze, the prince glanced around to take in the faces of his supporters. Committing some of them to memory, he swore within himself to handle the rest of them later. "My father brought us this far, he brought us out of poverty and turned Aestonia into one of the five prominent nations on Helmaria!"

Opening his arms, William let down the cloak and revealed to the public his father's robe and cape draped on his shoulders, along with his wand gripped in his hand. Stunned at the sight, jaws dropped left and right. Too baffled to speak, not a word or a chime echoed in the arena. Not even Astoria had expected him to do something like this, but as the initial subsided, the crowd erupted with cheers and the howling of William's name.

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Having won his supporter's hearts even further by playing at their emotions, William flashes a smile.

"Our king may be gone, but his legacy! His blood! His strengths live through me!" Turning around with a smirk, William looked through the candidates and at the very last glared into Wolf's eyes. "I am the righteous successor, through blood and might I'll prove it, that I swear on my father's soul!"

As he walked back towards the line, William was sent off with the support of the public more than anyone who'd gone before him. Pressured by their surroundings, even those who'd remained quiet before, reluctantly clapped, knowing full well what his victory would mean for them otherwise.

"Next participant! Step up this instant!" Frustrated by William's successful play at being a demagogue, Astoria pushed the event forward.

Allowing the cheers to die down, Wolf tried to step forward but then heard Kukei cursing William's name under her breath beside him. As he looked at her frustrated expression, she noticed his gaze and glanced back at him.

"What are you looking at?!" She growled, however, unbothered by her screech, Wolf shook his head and continued forward.

'Everyone's upset, but nobody's allowed to speak their mind.' Looking at William while walking to the centre stage, Wolf couldn't help but allot him credit for being a master manipulator. 'You're gonna lose still, I'm gonna bet my life on that...'

Arriving at the middle of the coliseum after William's declarations, Wolf was met with a deafening silence. Nobody wanted to support the underdog anymore, for the seeds of doubts had already been sowed. And those who still support him dared not oust themselves while being surrounded by a mob of people supporting the rival candidate.

"Here goes," taking a deep breath, Wolf readied himself.

Looking up and around at the common folks, he grabbed his violet coat's collar.

"I do not know how many of you remember, but this coat, I did not buy it like the other royals!" Letting go of the collar, he then lifted his leather boots and tugged at their edge. "And these boots are the same, in fact, everything on my body is from a monster I've hunted in my adventuring days for the sake of the people!"

Silence, nothing, no emotion at all, not a single soul said a thing. Clicking his tongue, Wolf decided to continue despite getting no response.

"Instead of sitting on my ass in a fancy castle, I worked myself to the bone slaughtering goblins! Caving in those salamander caves to get rid of them in our forests! Gathering herbs for the sick children and the elderly!" Nothing, not a single peep of a word. It was discouraging, and yet Wolf couldn't stop now. "Even now–"

However, all of a sudden, something changed mid-sentence. His mouth felt heavy, and so did his heart. Lowering his head, Wolf stared at the ground, wondering what the hell he was doing. Praising himself? Trying to show off his strength? Is that what the people wanted? A brawny leader fanning his own flame?

"Naahhh, fuck this..." As those words left his lips, a ripple of shocked gasps could be heard throughout the coliseum. Smiling, the prince lifted his head and, with a spin around to look at every concerned face, he grabbed the axe from his back and raised it high. "Who the fuck are we kidding? None of you wants to see me in that damned chair as a commoner! You'd rather have a man who lashes your kids in the streets, won't you? You'd rather have a man in charge of commerce who's been faking documents since he was a scrawny kid!"

Instead of talking himself up for the people who already knew his accomplishment, he tried to show them a mirror after they'd clapped for a man who couldn't care about their interests.

"You'd rather have a man on the king's throne who's hated by the commoners because fuck them! Now the elite, ohhh, they love him, and that's why you should support him! Same for this fucker..." Pointing his axe at Rostei, Wolf decided to grill him as well. "This guy, this middleman that eats up your profit and feeds the elites, nahhh, you'd rather have him than grow a spine and oppose tyranny for once!"

Slamming his axe on the ground, Wolf opened his arms and addressed the cowards directly.

"Or you can choose me, Wolf De' Didact and I'll hunt these bastards down, every single one of them that makes life hell for the people of Aestonia!" Finally done, Wolf stood before the crowd in silence. Quiet even now, none of them dared to speak. But then he uttered the words, the words that came from the very bottom of his soul. "Fucking cowards, if you won't stand for yourself, then why am I even fighting for you?"

And with those words, he grabbed the handle of his axe and turned around. Feeling defeated, he dragged the axe blade through the sand while making his way back in line. Noticing William smirking in his peripherals, his anger only grew.

"You bast–" But before he could cuss him out, the voice of a woman cheering him on echoed from behind him.

"Prince Wolf! We're here!" As Wolf turned around, the women grew in numbers and yet his eyes focused on the one who'd voiced her support first. "We want you to be king! We want you to get rid of these leeches sucking us dry every day at the bay!"

Alta Greggot, the woman who'd lost her husband and had nothing else to lose. Her courage lifted others, and before a minute could pass, the common folk, nearly all of them, rose from their seats with cheers. It only takes one person to stand against tyranny, having witnessed it firsthand, Wolf smiled at the people and raised his axe once more.

"FOR AESTORIA! FOR OUR CHILDREN AND THEIR FUTURE!" Adopting his chants, the coliseum quaked to the common folk's power. And while William's smirk degraded to the chants, the queen's pearly lips stretched into a smile. She'd never seen her subject united in such a way, and although it ached her heart that it was in opposition to her son, she held onto hope that he would come to accept a benevolent king's path.

"Next participant! Step up this instant!" As much as she'd enjoyed the sight, it was time to move on since three more participants had yet to present themselves.