"A kingdom that shares our very blood," Nwadiebeube continued, his voice dripping with calculated bitterness. "A kingdom we once viewed as a worthy rival, a people we held in great respect. But it seems they do not share our honor, nor do they hold any respect for us."

The chanting stopped instantly. The furious crowds fell dead silent, every single citizen and hidden spy holding their breath as the declaration of an unforgivable blood feud settled over the land.

Could the words they were hearing truly be real? Did King Osita really stoop so low as to kidnap their pregnant Queen?

Whispers and rumors had indeed been sweeping through the realm recently regarding Osita’s sudden, uncharacteristic shift in behavior, bizarre actions that had ultimately led to his sudden dismissal, his ties being completely severed from the Osita Kingdom, and his exile into the unknown.

It was a fresh, shocking scandal that the common folk were still trying to wrap their minds around. Up until this moment, most had dismissed the stories as mere political gossip or fabricated rumors. But now, seeing the shattered ruins of their own palace and hearing Nwadiebeube name Osita directly, the pieces of the puzzle began to fall into place with a terrifying weight. The rumors, it seemed, were deadly true.

Sensing the wave of doubt and confusion rippling through the massive, unseen crowds, Nwadiebeube spoke up again, his voice dropping into a calm, controlled rhythm that commanded absolute silence.

"I know that you all have many questions about this," the king said, his gaze piercing through the glowing projections. "You are wondering if Osita could truly be capable of taking such heinous action against our Queen, against our blood."

Nwadiebeube leaned in closer to the light of the projection, his towering image seeming to loom over every village square and city street in the kingdom.

"To help you understand the depth of his betrayal, I will now reveal something to you all, a heavily guarded secret that, until this very moment, has never left the royal chambers."

With a practiced tone, Nwadiebeube began to pull at the threads of his people’s memories, dragging them back to a time of widespread terror, the dark days before the official rise of the kingdom’s Paragons, when Osita was first unmasked as an entity with a paragon status.

He reminded them of Osita’s mysterious, cataclysmic battle against an unknown enemy. It was a conflict that had sent shockwaves across the globe, tearing through spaces and leaving countless homes and neighboring kingdoms in absolute ruin.

Naturally, Nwadiebeube did not speak the objective truth. He couldn’t, even if he wanted to, as he himself lacked a clear picture of what had actually transpired during that clash. He only knew a single thread, whatever had happened back then was deeply tied to his secret dealings with the entity Murmur. But the common people didn’t need to know about the shadows moving in the background. They only needed a villain.

"During that catastrophic incident, a great misfortune befell the house of Osita," Nwadiebeube announced, "A tragedy centered entirely around his own wife. It is a dark, tightly kept secret, one that he has desperately hidden from the eyes of the world, and from his very own people, for far too long."

"Along with that terrible misfortune came a prophecy," Nwadiebeube announced, his voice vibrating with slight reverance. "A prophecy that explicitly foretold the absolute end of the Osita Kingdom."

Another collective, horrified gasp rippled through the gathered crowds, but Nwadiebeube didn’t give them a moment to process the shock. He pressed on, weaponizing their fear.

"In a mad, desperate attempt to resurrect his wife and disrupt his predicted doom, Osita committed an unforgivable sin against the Omadi Kingdom and its people," the king declared, his eyes flashing with righteous fury. "He took away the queen’s right to journey to the land of the dead and tethered the soul of his wife directly to our own Queen!"

Slowly, deliberately, Nwadiebeube stood up from his shattered throne, a towering, imposing movement witnessed by millions across every glowing projection in the realm.

"Recently, a new faith has been quietly spreading and taking root among our people," the king said, his tone shifting from outrage to a profound reverence. "Whispers of a new deity. A god destined to guide us through the dark."

Turning his body to face the projections directly, locking eyes with his entire kingdom, Nwadiebeube delivered his ultimate decree.

"I am standing before you today to tell you all that this faith is real. The grand divinity spoken of in this rising religion is none other than the God of the Absolute Standard."

"I know this to be true because I am the chosen proxy of this great god."

As the words left his lips, a collective breath caught in the throats of millions. Through the glowing projections spanning the realm, everyone watched in absolute awe as Nwadiebeube’s physical form began to drastically mutate. A brilliant, blinding radiance erupted from his skin, reshaping his silhouette until he was completely clad in pure, glistening gold. He stood before them no longer looking like a mortal king, but a living idol of divinity.

"The prophecy surrounding our kingdom is directly tied to this magnificent deity," the king’s voice boomed, now carrying a resonant, metallic undertone "A god who has uniquely chosen our Omadi Kingdom to manifest His absolute law into the mortal world!"

He raised his gilded hand, casting a warm, deceptive light over the silent crowds.

"Osita and the cowards aligned with him foresaw this divine ascension," Nwadiebeube spat, his tone hardening into righteous indignation. "Terrified that the Omadi Kingdom would become the unyielding center of power on this continent, the enemy struck at the Queen. They committed that sacrilege for one reason only, to halt the birth of the "Standard" itself."

The golden king let his gaze sweep across the vast, invisible audience, his expression a mask of profound, sacrificial humility.

"This form you see is not born of my own meager power. It is merely the shadow of the Standard passing over me, a testament to His grace. I am nothing more than His humble proxy, holding up the weight of this kingdom on my back while our enemies exhaust their every resource trying to bring about our utter ruin."

"The abduction of our Queen is a desperate attempt by the enemy to ensure this great god never truly descends upon our kingdom," Nwadiebeube’s booming voice echoed, filled with unwavering resolve. "But that is a dark future that will never, ever come to pass under my watch."

He paused, letting the brilliant golden light of his form wash over the entranced crowds hearing of their kingdom greatness.

"And it is a fate I know the citizens of this great kingdom would never allow, for its realization would spell the absolute end for us all. This is the moment where we must stand as one. We must bind our hearts in absolute belief and unyielding fealty to pave the way for the birth of the Standard!"

Suddenly, the fierce energy in his voice softened, replaced by a heavy, sorrowful cadence.

"I wish with all my soul that I could pick up arms today," he said, his golden shoulders sinking slightly with simulated grief. "I wish I could ride at the head of my vanguard directly into the heart of the Osita Kingdom to demand the return of our Queen. But our enemy has played a clever hand. Osita is no longer a part of the kingdom that bears his name. They have cut all ties with him, casting him out so we would have no army to march against, no clear kingdom to hold accountable."

He lifted his head, his golden eyes flashing with renewed, fanatical purpose.

"But we are far from out of options. The only way left to save our Queen and the unborn royal child is to hasten the divine arrival of the God of the Absolute Standard. And that, my people, is a monumental task that will require the soul, the prayers, and the absolute devotion of every single one of us."

As the final resonance of those words hung in the air, Nwadiebeube took a slow, deliberate step down from his throne. With every eye in the realm locked onto his glowing, golden figure, he reached up with both hands and grasped the heavy crown resting upon his brow, the symbol of his absolute authority as king.

"To prove my devotion to you all," he spoke, his voice dropping into a solemn, heavy cadence that filled the silent kingdom. "To truly protect our Queen, our unborn heir, and every single citizen walking this earth, I must completely shed my mortal identity. I can no longer remain your King. To fight this war, I must become something greater. I must become the Shield of our God."

With a gentle release of his hand, the crowd watched in breathless silence as the royal crown floated through the air, settling perfectly onto the empty seat of the throne he had just abandoned.