Utopian System

Chapter 173: Chapter 173: System's Chaos

Lucien observed from his hiding spot as people congregated in the open space behind the library.

Lucien Lythorien's Statistics

Skills:

Life Rock

Familiars:

Rock Elephant (+25 MD)

Level 5

Mana: 50/50

Superior Mana Sword / Attack 5

Superior Mana Dagger x10 / Attack 5

Superior Elemental Resistance Cloak / Magic Defense 5

System's Armor / (Defense 5) (Magic Defense 5) (Magic Damage 5) (Resistance(500/500))

His small elephant familiar hovered beside him, its trunk swaying anxiously. At his side, Selene remained silent, her expression tense, her own elephant mirroring her concern.

The crowd grew by the minute, a sea of anxious and confused faces stretching as far as the eye could see.

From strategic points around the multitude, Zara, Kriz, Brok, and Micah watched the scene with mounting worry. The murmur of voices rose like a constant buzz, punctuated by occasional shouts and exclamations.

"Elio thinks it's enough to know she'll act today," Lucien muttered, more to himself than to Selene. "But we can't predict exactly how she'll use this opportunity."

Selene nodded, her eyes never leaving the scene unfolding below. "She'll likely try to discredit Elio as much as possible while he's supposedly not here to defend himself. The barrier failures give her the perfect excuse."

"True," Lucien agreed, his elephant trumpeting softly in agreement. "But she must have something more, a trump card. She wouldn't make such a fuss without a solid plan."

'What's Cassandra's real game?' Lucien wondered, his eyes narrowed as he scrutinized the scene. News of a supposed urgent situation had spread through the city like wildfire, drawing more and more people to the central plaza.

Elio had decided that by providing information to Cassandra, they could anticipate her moves and act quickly to thwart any plans she might have. However, the current wall situation complicated matters.

The barrier failures, occurring every two or three days, didn't allow them to allocate too much personnel to this task.

Lucien sighed, running a hand over his face. On one hand, the army was larger than ever, thanks to Elio's policies. But that very advantage became a challenge: the number of people capable of effectively controlling this huge number of new recruits was limited.

As he continued his reflection, Lucien couldn't help but notice how the crowd kept growing. People from all corners of the city converged on the plaza, drawn by the promise of important revelations. discover-NovelFire-novels

'Everything seems to indicate that Cassandra indeed wants to discredit Elio,' Lucien thought. 'A simple strategy, but potentially effective given the current situation.'

Elio, being young and having adopted a more relaxed management style, didn't exert iron-fisted control over the population. In many ways, he had become more of a symbol than a traditional ruler, and his government was largely sustained by the will and support of the people.

Lucien was painfully aware that any blow to Elio's reputation could have serious consequences. Lately, he had already noticed that certain sectors of the population were becoming more difficult to manage, questioning decisions and demanding more autonomy.

Time passed, and Cassandra's strategy began to reveal itself. Lucien saw her climb onto an improvised platform, holding what appeared to be the Book of Genesis. 'There it was… But it's already public information,' Lucien thought. 'Nothing new there.'

But then, Cassandra pulled out another book, one that Lucien didn't recognize. His elephant perked up, sensing something important was about to happen.

Cassandra played her ace: copies of a supposed passage from the Creator's Book, distributed among the crowd.

What followed left Lucien stunned. Cassandra presented what she called "irrefutable evidence" that Elio was, in fact, an agent of the Goddess.

The accusation was absurd, bordering on the ridiculous, but Lucien observed with growing concern how part of the crowd seemed to accept these words as truth.

The "evidence" Cassandra presented was clearly fabricated, her arguments full of logical fallacies that under normal circumstances would be easily refutable. But in the heat of the moment, caught in the collective emotion, many seemed willing to believe anything.

Lucien noticed with disgust that there were agitators strategically planted among the public, fanning the flames of discord with shouts of support for Cassandra and accusations against Elio.

The situation unfolding before his eyes was something completely new in the hundred-year history of their world. Never before had they faced anything like this, such blatant manipulation of public opinion, such a direct attempt to undermine established authority.

Lucien realized, with horror and fascination, that he had grossly underestimated Cassandra. He never expected her to be capable of orchestrating something like this, nor that people's reaction could be so violent and irrational.

'This is a disaster,' he thought. 'Never in our city's history have we faced anything like this. How could Cassandra provoke this so easily?'

Indeed, the crowd grew increasingly agitated, the tension palpable in the air. Shouts of indignation and fear mingled with demands for explanations and accusations against Elio.

Lucien watched with growing alarm as small groups began to form, their voices rising above the general clamor. His elephant trumpeted softly, as if warning of impending danger.

Suddenly, as if a spark had fallen on a powder keg, chaos erupted. A push turned into a blow, and in a matter of seconds, the plaza became a battlefield.

Selene urged, her voice tight with tension, "Lucien, give the signal to the others. This is getting out of hand." Her elephant nodded vigorously, agreeing with its master.

Lucien took a second to react, still stunned by the scene unfolding before his eyes.

Cassandra's strategy, in its simplicity, was proving devastatingly effective. She had appealed to people's most basic fears, to their desire to have someone to blame for the problems they faced.

As he watched the crowd, Lucien couldn't help but marvel at the fragility of the peace they had taken for granted. It had only taken a few well-placed words, a handful of planted agitators, and the seed of doubt to turn neighbor against neighbor.

"We've been complacent," Lucien muttered, his elephant nudging him as if urging action. "We thought giving people power would make them more reasonable, more united. But it seems it's also made them more susceptible."

Selene nodded grimly. "Power without wisdom is a dangerous thing. We should have seen this coming."

"May Elio forgive us," he whispered, his elephant trumpeting softly as if in prayer.