Nick looked at the people gathered in front of Aegis' headquarters.
"The Left Arm was our commander," the Champion of Light spoke loudly.
There were two coffins lying in front of Aegis' entrance, and there were 33 more coffins lying behind them.
"The Left Arm has led Aegis for 1,654 years," the Champion continued. "She commanded all the Shields, and under her leadership, we managed to reach our current heights."
"The Left Arm's sacrifice will never be forgotten. Glory to humanity!"
"Glory to humanity!" the gathered Protectors and Heroes echoed.
Then, the Champion looked at the other coffin.
"The Knife was our weapon against the Specters. Her existence deterred the Corruptors and the Trio of Destruction."
"She hid in the shadows, and every strike she unleashed was devastating."
"Her power relied on self-sacrifice. She had the power to sacrifice herself for the good of humanity, and she used that power wisely."
"When others would have hesitated, she didn't. She immediately struck Death as soon as she arrived, and she was willing to sacrifice herself so that we could survive."
"Without her sacrifice, we wouldn't be here anymore."
"Glory to humanity!"
"Glory to humanity!" everyone echoed.
Nick just watched the procession.
He hadn't expected that his actions would lead to the deaths of two Shields and so many Protectors.
"Our Protectors arrived as quickly as they could, and despite Pestilence's rampage, they attacked until the very end."
"They kept attacking despite the looming threat, fully knowing that they would die."
"Merlina Waterbright, Harriot Sunskin…"
The Champion listed the names of all of the dead Protectors.
"Their sacrifices will never be forgotten. Glory to humanity!"
"Glory to humanity!" everyone echoed again.
Then, a minute of silence passed.
"We have lost a lot during this battle, but we have also gained a lot," the Champion spoke. "Gluttony and Famine died. The Trio of Destruction is now the Duo of Destruction, and the Seven Corruptors had long since stopped being the Seven Corruptors." ȑÁꞐоΒ̧
"Humanity is growing."
"We are finally managing to fight back."
"The future might be uncertain, but that is a good thing. In the past, our future was certain, and that future was not one everyone wished to see."
"Now, we can finally taste the sweet taste of hope."
"New Shields will be born."
"Humanity will recover."
"While Gluttony can be replaced, Famine can't be replaced."
"It takes forever for a Fallen to become an Adversary, and when a new Adversary rises, humanity's power will have already reached incomparable heights!"
"Time is on our side."
"Specters grow slowly."
"Humans grow quickly."
"Death to all Specters and glory to humanity!" the Champion shouted.
"Death to all Specters and glory to humanity!" everyone echoed.
"Never forget this day," the Champion said. "Today marks the beginning of our future!"
"The procession is over."
Immediately, all the Protectors shot in different directions.
It was risky enough to gather like this.
The Specters certainly wouldn't give them the luxury of mourning in peace.
Luckily, they didn't need to spread all over the continent anymore.
The reason for that was simple.
Half of their strongholds had been destroyed.
While the four Adversaries had attacked Aegis' headquarters, the remaining members of the Corruptors decimated the strongholds.
All the Protectors had traveled to Aegis' headquarters, leaving the strongholds undefended.
Six strongholds were destroyed.
Wrath destroyed both strongholds in the War Continent.
Sloth destroyed the three strongholds in the middle and the east of the Grand Continent.
And Envy destroyed the only stronghold in the Long Continent.
The Corruptors had freed their respective territories from Aegis' influence.
There were only five strongholds left in the world.
One was the stronghold near Crimson City.
Another one was in the northwest of the Great Triangle.
One was in the middle of Gluttony's former territory.
One was on the border between War's and Sloth's territory.
And the last one was in the Southern Continent.
Six Fallen had escaped when the strongholds were destroyed, which was another devastating loss.
The cities in the Corruptor's territories lost all connection with Aegis.
The Strongholds had been connected to the cities, and with the strongholds gone, the cities could no longer contact Aegis.
If a powerful Specter attacked them, Aegis wouldn't be able to help.
Humanity's top priority was to get two new Shields, but directly after that, they needed to secure the cities again.
Envy, Wrath, and Sloth would have it much easier without Aegis' intervention.
As all the Protectors left, Nick walked back into Aegis' headquarters.
He walked towards the research and development department and saw the Technician happily tinkering with something.
Nick made sure that nobody was listening.
"Everything okay?" he asked.
"Yep," the Technician answered with a smile. "We finally managed to kill one of the Trio of Destruction! That makes things much easier."
"What about the Left Arm?" Nick asked.
"She knew that her time was coming to an end," the Technician said. "Her ability drains too much of her longevity. Even if she managed to survive the battle, she wouldn't have more than a couple of years left."
"The Left Arm was old. She was the oldest among all Shields."
"I'm happy that she could sacrifice herself in the battle. I'm sure she preferred such a death over dying to old age in her office."
Nick nodded.
"I think you're right."
Silence.
"Who's going to replace her?" Nick asked.
"Most likely the Politician," the Technician said. "I'm not the biggest fan of his methods, but I know that he values humanity above all else, just like the Left Arm."
"The Politician is more willing to sacrifice others for the good of mankind. If throwing millions of humans into the abyss will strengthen Aegis, he is willing to do just that."
The Technician sighed.
"Aegis will change a lot."
Then, he looked at Nick with a smile.
"But as long as you stay the same, nothing will really change."
"Aegis represents the past."
"You represent the future."
Nick nodded.
"I'm not going to disappoint you."
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