Chapter 1043 The Battle 1
Much like the time when the Godking had made his address after his incredible performance in the center of the continent, the Order now stood at a standstill, as dead silence dominated it all as the echoes of the words that had just been uttered by the prestigious high seat of the Eskilon family still seemed to dominate the room in all over the multiple places in which it had been broadcast.
The broadcast had begun quite abruptly - the Head had simply said that it was an urgent transmission that everyone must watch, and at first, many had even doubted its authenticity.
This was to be expected, as it had started from the point where the five sovereigns and Mark had been making their way into the mansion.
Everything had changed, though, at that moment when the figure of the Saint had become visible in the room.
Everyone knew that messaging orbs always contained the sigil of the force that had sent them, and the image of the Saint was pretty well-known. But as they didn't know the plan of the sovereigns, they assumed that the Head had somehow gotten a spy into this room filled with traitors.
More than these five, the attention soon shifted to the Eskilon family. The reveal that they had all sworn themselves over to the Church had been met with gasps of shock, but after that, people had begun to put two and two together.
Invariably, this discussion led to the fate of Mark's brother, who had actually been a very charismatic member of the Order. His close friends had always known that something had been off about his death, and now, it was the simplest thing to make the conclusion that he had found out the truth, somehow, and had been silenced before he could make it public.
Compared to all the blows that had struck the Order in these past few months, this one did not seem that bad, but that, too, changed with the beginning of the explanation of the reason due to which the family had gone over.
No congregation had been called for, so the Peak Heroes were mixed in with the Champions and other members of the Order.
Hence, when they were called out in this manner for their unwillingness to work together and increase the overall strength of the continent, they felt the eyes of all of their fellow members on them, which led shame to appear in the minds of many of them.
Some even felt fury erupt in their minds due to the shame. This was especially the case in the matter of the Heroes who had been made to faint as they had not been ready to bow. These 50 or so individuals expressed their rage in different ways - some smashed everything around them until they were able to control themselves, others directly screamed out loud, but most of them were so powerful that they were supposed to be well past the point where they cared about what others thought about them.
So, when one thought about it, it became clear that these screams were because they knew that what they heard was true, but they had not been willing to accept it until now.
Watching all this, the Head was reminded of a saying that he had heard from his own master - the Chief of the Fortress.
"The mocking words of an enemy are often more powerful than the advice of a friend."
In those who prided themselves on their pride, this was all the more true, so seeing the change coming over many of the members of the Order, he could not help but applaud these five followers of the kid who had proven their mettle once again, even though the Head knew that they had it in them due to the very fact that they had been chosen to be his closest confidants and friends in the first place.
It was not certain, yet, whether this would directly lead to the decision by all of the top Heroes to begin working on formations that would let them combine their powers to great effect, but at the moment, it seemed that they had at least taken the first step on that path.
One day. That was the time that he decided he would give them - if they had not made the decision even after that, then the Head would have no option but to resort to force.
Telling himself that he would have to thank all five of them personally the next time he met them, the Head focused back on the image of the family under the sea, which was not visible to the rest of the Order as it was not needed for them to see it.
It might even be detrimental, as he knew that these five, who were also supposed to be background-less individuals from common kingdoms, would soon be displaying power with the help of the vast formation that the kid had activated on the day of his coronation. Hence, if the Heroes whose ego had already been severely damaged saw this, they might just completely lose it.
In many ways, it could be said that there was a retardation of one's personality when they reached this ultimate level, where they could stand undefeated among their kin. At such heights, Heroes were wont to forget everything they had been taught, before entering a bubble of superiority which had actually been well-deserved until recently.
This wasn't true for all Heroes, but for a majority, that was how it was, and looking to the image of the Endless Sea which only he could see, the Head hoped that the rest of the plan would go smoothly.
He had no idea that his thoughts were being echoed by Eloise, who stood under the stormy sky while looking at the frothing blood that had just become visible in the patch of the sea beneath them.
A few seconds later, massive bodies of the monsters of the sea began to float to the surface, and soon, the entire area became covered with them.
Beside her, the four sovereigns were also watching intently, while trying to use their senses to find out just what the combination formation of the family was.