"So I take control of the legions through force." Liam's tone suggested he'd already run those calculations. "Break House Kraz'gul's command structure. Install new leadership loyal to me directly."

"Not necessarily."

Lilith moved closer, her bare feet silent on the stone surrounding the pool.

She'd removed her crown, let her snow-white hair fall loose. In the dim light, she looked perfect.

Less like a queen and more like the woman who'd inherited an impossible situation.

"Just because some members of the Houses don't believe and have unshakable loyalty to their bloodlines doesn't mean the legionaries are the same," she explained. "House nobles command through hereditary right and political maneuvering. But the soldiers themselves? They follow strength. Results. Leadership that keeps them alive and gives them victories."

She gestured to the chamber entrance where Valorix had departed.

"Valorix is loyal to his House because that's where his power comes from. But the ten thousand legionaries under his nominal command? Many of them have no such attachment. Some might already worship you after hearing about Ashard. Others are just waiting for a reason to transfer their loyalty to something that actually delivers on promises."

Understanding crystallized in Liam's expression.

"Why use House Kraz'gul to make the legions loyal to me when I can go to them directly."

"Exactly." Lilith's smile was sharp. "The Houses control the legions through institutional inertia. Through tradition and structure that's existed for centuries. But you've already proven you don't care about tradition. You execute prisoners. You make Grand Commanders disappear."

She moved to the pool's edge, trailing fingers through the glowing water.

"Show the legionaries that following you is more rewarding than following House nobles who use them as political capital. Give them victories. Give them purpose beyond just dying for someone else's glory. And watch how quickly institutional inertia becomes institutional revolution."

"That might work," Liam admitted.

The plan was elegant. Dangerous. The kind of political maneuvering that could backfire catastrophically if executed poorly. But the alternative was fighting both the Radiant Empire and internal House opposition simultaneously.

Better to neutralize one threat before confronting the other.

Lilith studied him in the blue light, her violet eyes searching for something in his expression.

"There's something else you should know." Her voice carried careful weight. "The Nameless Litany seeks your presence. Their belief is at an all-time high after hearing about your victory at Vor'esh. They're requesting—demanding, really—that you come grace them with your presence."

She paused.

"They've grown. Not just the acolytes you met before. Word has spread. More faithful have joined. Women who cut their horns and pledge themselves to serving their god. Their faith is..." She searched for the right word. "Intense. Overwhelming. The kind of devotion that expects reciprocation."

"How many?"

"Last count? Three hundred and forty-seven, before you left for Ashard." Lilith's voice was soft. "Almost all of them claim they've felt your presence in their prayers. That they've experienced visions of the Primordial walking among demons. That they believe - truly, absolutely believe - you are what you claim to be."

[Potential Essence Gain: Significant]

[Warning: High-intensity faith requires high-intensity engagement]

"They'll demand more from you now," Lilith said, echoing the System's warning. "Before, you were the myth they wanted to believe in. Now you're the god who's proven himself. They'll expect miracles. Guidance. Answers about faith and purpose and what it means to serve something primordial."

She looked at him directly.

"You don't need to go if you don't want to. I can make excuses. Say you're preparing for war. That divine attention is focused elsewhere. They'll accept it because they have to accept it."

Her unspoken addition hung heavy: But they'll be disappointed. And disappointed faith is dangerous faith.

Liam was quiet for a long moment. Staring at the water. At his reflection distorted by movement and light. At the face that still looked like Liam Cross but wasn't.

The Nameless Litany believed absolutely.

Their faith was pure in ways that terrified and sustained him. They didn't follow him for pragmatic reasons like Valorix. Didn't serve him from calculated necessity like most of the empire.

They worshipped.

Really, truly worshipped.

And worship demanded presence. Demanded the god show himself. Demanded that faith be rewarded with divine attention.

"I know," he said finally.

Lilith waited. She'd learned not to push. That Liam—or whatever remained of him—needed space to reach conclusions that trying to force would only sabotage.

"I'll go." His voice was that ancient one. The voice of something that had consumed an actor and worn his face. "I have to go."

"Why?"

The question was gentle. Genuinely curious rather than challenging.

Liam looked at his hands beneath the glowing water. At the physical manifestation of transformation that went deeper than flesh.

"Because gods don't hide from their worshippers. Don't delegate divine attention to intermediaries. Don't perform faith at arm's length." His grey eyes met Lilith's violet ones. "Because if I'm going to lead this empire into suicide against the Radiant Empire, I need absolute faith behind me. Not pragmatic loyalty. Not calculated support. Absolute faith."

He stood, water streaming from his body, the blue glow making him seem otherworldly.

"The Nameless Litany believes I'm their god. The performance demands I act like their god. Meet their expectations. Provide the divine presence they've sacrificed everything to serve."

His expression was unreadable.

"So I'll go. I'll answer their prayers. I'll be what they need me to be."

'Even if it costs the last pieces of who I was.'

The unspoken addition hung between them like a ghost.

Lilith studied him for a long moment. Saw the determination. Saw the resignation.

Saw the terrible understanding that the role had consumed the actor so completely that refusing to perform was no longer possible.

"When?" she asked quietly.

"Tomorrow. After I've rested."

He stepped from the pool, water evaporating from his skin faster than it should, demonic heat burning away moisture like it had never existed.

He left without a response.

[Humanity Index: 2%]

[Warning: Point of No Return Approaching]

[Note: Tomorrow you meet the faithful]

[Prepare accordingly]

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