The response in the council was silence. However… that was a response in and of itself.
The internal conflict had been bubbling up for a while, and this was the first time it was suddenly thrust out into the open. And yet, the result wasn't the carnage everyone was expecting—that spoke volumes…
Because it meant none of them were yet as desperate as the Imperial Wind Lineage.
The Imperial Wind Lineage Patriarch couldn't help but laugh when he heard the silence. He laughed so uproariously that the winds howled and the pillars that held up the ceiling in the depths of darkness shook as though they might collapse at any moment.
His laughter was entirely without amusement, but it lacked despair as well. It was more filled with madness—the madness of a man who could only watch the empire his Ancestors had built slowly collapse within his own hands.
It was the worst sort of fate.
When you were so powerful, everything in the world was within your grasp… including the amount of time you had left to live.
How strong did one's mind have to be to withstand that countdown clock, that looming guillotine that hung over your head? How much worse was it when you had access to almost everything the world had to offer, and yet still had no ability to slow that guillotine any more than you already had?
Mortals were fragile, but they had hope in ways Gods could never hope to fathom.
"Gerland. I can understand how you feel right now, but I'm sure you would make the same decision if you were in any one of our seats."
"Don't speak to me of your logic. It makes me sick," Gerland of the Imperial Wind snarled, his chippy words akin to hurricanes and slapping tornadoes hovering through the air. He was so powerful that a single thought would be enough to engulf an entire continent in his wrathful winds. "I'm not such a fool. Do you really think that once my Lineage is gone you'll be just fine? The Lurkers will infiltrate through our territory, and then you will be fighting a war on two fronts."
"They'll be diluted, scattered. They have no focus, and they'll have to face off against not just one of us, but the seven that remain. We will hold on easily until a solution is found."
"How nice," Gerland of the Imperial Wind sneered. "Is that your logic? How vast is our corner of the universe? The two that will carry the brunt of our collapse will be the Imperial Fire and the Imperial Earth Lineage. Do you think the Lurkers will be so kind as to spread themselves out evenly? They'll attack what comes first. And then they'll attack the vulnerable. Do you think me to be a fool?"
"We will send them support, of course."
"Just like you sent me support?"
"That is different, Gerland, and you know it. Without an SSS-Class elite, your Imperial Wind Lineage isn't worth the resources right now. The Imperial Fire and Imperial Earth Clans both have the ability to protect themselves. The situation will not be the same."
Gerland clapped for them, standing to his feet and then turning to leave.
"What are you doing, Gerland?"
Feroush of the Imperial Fire stood to his feet. He was old as well, but the scent of death didn't hang around him nearly as heavily as it did for Gerland… especially among the top two Demons—one just so happened to be the Imperial Fire Lineage Demon, Tarakus.
"Oh? I cannot leave now? Do you think I've grown so frail?"
Gerland's voice boomed, his aura rocketing out in towering waves that spilled over.
Feroush of the Imperial Fire stood tall, his gaze blazing. His stature was far taller than that of Gerland, though the latter stood on thundering clouds, his robes flickering wildly in the air.
"If you plan to target the youth, I cannot allow that."
"Target him? I wouldn't do that." Gerland suddenly began laughing instead. "Why would I do that before I watch him kill all of your little heirs first? Did I say we should kill him? I take it back. I'd prefer if you all suffered first. I want to see that look on your face first. Then I'll wait for all of you from beyond the grave."
Feroush's face hardly changed.
None of them were in as bad a position as the Imperial Wind. Even if this generation didn't work out for them, the earlier ones had shown potential—and in some cases even better potential than the current Demons.
If they were in as bad a position as the Imperial Wind Lineage, they would have taken out the Hero Badges to be used this time as well. It was because Thalion's Clan needed a huge win that they would use something so valuable to guarantee success.
At the same time… not a single one of them actually believed that such a thing would happen.
There were others that agreed they should kill Zarek, it just wasn't time to have such a public falling out amongst their alliance. The fact that the Imperial Wind Lineage would collapse soon meant that they needed to be even more united now than usual.
If any deaths were going to be ordered, it would have to be covert. Gerland bringing it up so publicly was just trying to force the issue. But all of them were old, wily foxes. They wouldn't fall into such an obvious scheme.
That was all to say that Zarek would definitely face attempts on his life…
It was just a matter of how, when, and how.
The only thing that was certain was that it wouldn't be coming from Gerland—not just yet… and it certainly wouldn't be out in the open where it could all be seen.
Feroush stepped aside and Gerland brushed by him, vanishing in what looked like an [Angel Wing Flash] countless times more powerful than anything Zarek had ever formed.
His laughter continued to echo in the air. But they dismissed him as a madman.
Zarek had disappeared for months and seemed to have come back more powerful. But what they knew for sure about where he had gone was the fact that there were no resources to partake in at all…
While their geniuses had already made great headway. The first A-Class kills had already happened.
Zarek? Killing them? It was nothing more than a joke. In fact, he would do well to protect himself because there were many with grudges against him already.
The most ironic part of all of this was that even Gerland didn't believe these words. They were truly the ravings of a madman who had nothing left to lose.
What else could he say at this point?
He left with his eyes red.This chapter was made possible by the MV_LEMPYR community.
No matter what, he couldn't allow his Imperial Wind Lineage to fall so easily. He didn't know what he would do to try and reverse things, but he had to do something.
**
Zarek didn't know about the talks happening right now, but after his talk with the Hero, he had his own guesses—and they weren't too far off from the truth.
It wasn't hard to guess by the use of the badge that the Imperial Wind Lineage were in dire straits. After that, extrapolating everything else with his experience was a simple matter.
Internal conflict was as common as air amongst large organizations—especially ones that put their kids in a death trap like this one to be pitted against one another.
Well, the other reason it was so obvious was because if they were all of one mind, it wasn't as though they couldn't smite him down from above right now.
Sure, there were probably protections on this world right now. But Zarek would be a fool to believe they were ironclad if the entire reason he was in the mess was a badge quite literally designed to break the rules of engagement.
That was to say they certainly weren't of one mind—and that was something he could take advantage of.
And he had a feeling that once this concluded, the system would toss him back to Earth so he wouldn't have to deal with them for the time being either…
Until they found Earth, that is.
And that was exactly why he needed to use this chance not just to claim victory and all the rewards he could, but use this badge in the most effective way possible.
Which was why…
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Zarek exhaled a breath as he came to a stop.
—
Name: [Zarek Ashborn]Role: [Ashborn Demon]Profession: [Mnemonic Anato Scribe]
Core Stats:
[Strength: E] <SSS+>
[Dexterity: E] <SSS+>
[Intelligence: EE] <SSS+>
[Endurance: EEE] <SSS+>
[Charisma: SSS] <SSS+>
Talents:…
—
'In just a single day… well, that's a little crazy, now isn't it?' he laughed to himself, power booming through his veins as he looked ahead toward his target.
You see, the beautiful thing about having SSS Charisma and an S-Class Scouting Skill was that…
There wasn't a single place on a planet you could possibly hide from him.
A head snapped back toward Zarek, their eyes wide in shock.
"Oh. Did you just notice me? Your senses are pretty dull, don't you think? Come on. It's about time for round two. You'll be the first since you happened to be the closest."
Eliz's shock faded into rage, her pretty features twisting. "It's you!"
Her body radiated a powerful aura that sent the earth collapsing around them.
"DIE!"
"Well, that's not a very nice thing to say…"