"It was me."

The words hung in the air, adding another weight to the already heavy tension and drawing every gaze toward the speaker. The elders, upon recognizing Nova, showed little more than mild surprise, some even faint amusement, expecting a nice show. But the geniuses reacted very differently. They shot to their feet as if compelled, their faces pale.

Andretas and Maelor also rose, though not from fear. They stood straight out of respect for Nova, though a trace of unease still lingered in Andretas' posture.

Their sudden collective reaction puzzled the elders, who turned toward their young ones with questioning looks, their expressions asking plainly: What is wrong with you? Why do you look so pale?

Some of the geniuses stammered out answers, while others, more timid by natur, kept their mouths shut. In that instant, the group of elders split in two: those who now knew the truth, and those who remained in the dark. The moment the first half learned what had truly happened, their faces shifted dramatically, splitting the assembly into two camps with starkly different expressions.

The bearded man, blinded by fury and with no one to restrain him, turned toward Nova. If eyes could kill Nova would've already died ten times over Heavy footsteps echoed as he closed the distance, his voice low and cold.

"Why? Do you even understand the consequences of what you just said?"

"I'm tired of repeating myself," Nova replied flatly. "You should have submitted. That girl, and the other three, would still be alive. If you want revenge, then attack me. Otherwise, I'll leave. I have no time to waste on the likes of you."

"Courting death!" the elder snarled. His hand snapped to the sword at his waist, and without hesitation, he lunged at Nova.

But Nova did not move. He simply watched the elder's charge, then calmly raised a finger and muttered.

"First Sword."

In an instant, a blade of pure Aura shot forth. It was so fast that not even its shadow could be seen. The strike reached the elder immediately and passed straight through him, as though it had slipped beyond space itself and reappeared on the other side.

'This Aura skill is quite useful against weaklings,' Nova thought as he lowered his finger.

Both the elders and the geniuses waited for the real fight to begin. But when the bearded elder stood frozen for more than a second, confusion spread across their faces. A second stretched into two… then three.

Finally, one of the two elders beside him stepped forward and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"I'll take c—"

His words cut off abruptly. The bearded man's body shuddered, then split cleanly in two. Both halves toppled to the ground, yet not a single drop of blood spilled.

"AHHHHHH!"

"What happened?!"

Cries of horror erupted from the geniuses, while the elders stared in disbelief. None of them had seen anything, nothing that explained how the man had been cleaved apart. Hidden from their eyes, however, a razor-thin line carved into the earth stretched forward for a dozen meters, concealed by the grass.

Then, before they could deal with the shock, a sudden clap cracked through the air, sharp enough to make their heads ring. Too stunned to talk, silence fell instantly. Every gaze locked onto Nova.

The eyes of the elders now mirrored the fear and horror the young geniuses had shown from the start.

The Areza elder shot a look at Maelor, and only now did he understand why his nephew had been spared. If not for the agreement he'd made, the boy would be dead, just the thought sent a chill down his spine.

"There are a few things I need to tell you," Nova said calmly. "Those of you who agreed to my request: return to Lotra and inform your family heads that you are now my subordinates. From this moment on you will follow my orders without question. If any of you break your word, I will personally visit your family residence and settle the debt with you."

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

Gulps filled the air. Most had agreed on impulse. None had expected a time where they had to confess to their family they had turned the entire household into a vassal to one person. Several elders' chest tightened, their breathing grew shallow, but no one spared them a glance.

"Next, use every connection you have to pull key figures away from supporting the emperor," Nova continued. "Preferably those in the military, I don't want to act personally and weaken an already fragile army. Do not try to wiggle out of this with wordplay or excuses. My patience is short, and so are your people."

"Lastly," Nova said, "whether it's me or someone else, if I order you to follow their orders, you will obey. Should you rebel, the same consequences apply."

His gaze swept across those gathered. The young ones looked puzzled, while the elders' faces grew increasingly grim. Nova, however, only gave them a bright smile. "Follow the rules and you will prosper. So, let's get along well."

Feeling that his role here had come to an end, he gave a casual wave of his hand at the group, took a single step forward, and vanished from their sight.

Maelor exhaled softly, muttering, "That's how the strong should act… unbothered by ants."

"Right…" Andretas replied, his voice low, his mind elsewhere.

///////

'I only need to replace the royal family and Lotra will be conquered, but this can be done in passing later.' Nova thought as he sped to the east. 'Right now I must bring Blackridge and Westhaven under my control. Once that's done I can take my time to drink the bone tempering liquid and strengthen myself further before meeting with Senna.'

The quickest way would be to keep the kings alive and make them Lotra's puppets, but that carried the greatest of risks. If Lotra failed to become the next empire, resentment would fester, in months or years it could turn into open revolt.

He sighed. 'No time to reorganize two kingdoms and then an empire. I'll let that guy deal with this mess when I won't be here anymore, it's also for his own good.'

Decision made, he planted his foot so hard the earth cracked. His figure blurred and shot toward Blackridge's capital.

//////

Avaro sat in the royal palace's study, a book open in front of him. Despite his eyes staring at the page for minutes, he never turned it, his mind elsewhere.

Why did the Empire order me to surrender my army? I've never opposed the emperor, and I certainly haven't offended any of the high-ranking nobles. Besides, the Empire has enough soldiers to crush all three kingdoms combined. The request is just too bizarre.

He unconsciously tapped his fingers against the book.

If it's not a problem with the kingdoms, then it must be with the beasts. But even then, the Empire is strong enough to handle any threat on its own.

Avaro muttered, "It just doesn't make any sense…"

"What doesn't?"

At that moment, a voice rang out in the study.

Avaro shot to his feet and hastily looked around while shouting, "WHO?!"

From the back the king felt a tap on his shoulder that made him shiver. He slowly turned his head, and that was when he saw a face he never thought he'd see again.

But now that he realized the person wasn't anyone special, all the shame and fear he'd felt turned into anger. In an attempt to sound dignified, he said, "How dare you enter my study without permission? Give me a good reason, or I'll throw you in jail once more."

Nova stood relaxed and asked, "You're smart, right?"

"So what?" Avaro stared at him.

Not minding the king's tone, Nova suddenly produced the Mask of Three Faces and put it on, while Avaro frowned at the strange serie of actions.

Slowly, under the king's widening eyes, Nova's features shifted into Tairo's.

Avaro stammered, "Y-You're Tairo?" All his earlier dignified posture immediately evaporated along with his threats.

'Maybe not so smart,' Nova thought, before saying, "It doesn't matter who I am. I came here to tell you that this kingdom will become a vassal to Lotra. You can remain king as long as you don't try to overstep your boundaries. So tell me now, will you try to riot?"

His cold blue eyes bored into Avaro's, trying to determine whether this wolf would pounce on its prey the moment it had the chance.

Still reeling from the newfound information, Avaro asked what could be considered the most important question he could form at that moment. "What about the Empire?"

"You don't have to worry about it. Give me your final answer, will you cooperate and be a good vassal kingdom, or not?"

Nova's Aura revealed itself, making Avaro's knees tremble as a look of panic crossed his face.

The king took only a moment to think before eventually agreeing. "I'll cooperate… but I want to know what happened to Rollyet."

Nova's lips curled into a sly grin. "Let's trade. Tell me where Melissa is, and I'll tell you about Rollyet."

Avaro didn't think twice about it, he nodded slightly and began, "She said she'd go to the Empire's Magic Tower to try and become a rank eight mage as soon as possible. If nothing changed, she must be there."

'Magic Tower, that's perfect.' Nova patted Avaro on the shoulder and solemnly said, "Rollyet is still fighting the Empire's army on the battlefield."

So he's still alive. That's good. Avaro let out a small sigh of relief.

Nova noticed and thought, 'It's best if he starts hating the Empire, especially when Rollyet will never come back.' He moved toward the door and said, "Follow whatever the new king of Lotra commands, and you'll live for as long as you can."

With one final glance at the king, Nova left the room, thinking, 'Onto the next one.'

The new king?

Left alone, Avaro slumped back into his chair and whispered, "Should I believe him or not?"

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