"...You're rewarding for attacking the Marshal?!"
Robin honestly did not know whether he should laugh or cry. If anyone were told they would be placed in charge of a war against the Plague, they would consider it a death sentence-yet this creature was treating it as a reward.
But when Robin recalled what he had witnessed inside Leosar's soul domain, the reaction suddenly made sense. That slow, relentless tornt inflicted upon demon souls granted Leosar a disturbing sense of satisfaction, even comfort. He wanted to throw more of them into that hell.
There was no doubt about it anymore.
This thing had been born to exterminate the other Plague strains.
A plague ant to hunt the Plague.
But why? Why was it born from the Crimson Plague in particular? And why within the Virillion colony of all places? Had the planet's spirit interfered sohow?
...Unlikely. If planetary spirits possessed such power, they would have
manipulated the Plague the mont it appeared and produced a creature like this at will.
Or perhaps... this did happen occasionally, but such beings died before they could grow? Sakaar had already ntioned that simply keeping Leosar alive was a struggle.
In any case, it was a matter worth investigating later. For now, Leosar was the perfect solution to Morgana's request for establishing an army to combat the Plague.
Still... he would not be enough on his own.
Indeed, Leosar versus the Plague was a one-sided massacre. His ability to directly interfere with the unique souls of demon-kind allowed him to kill any Plague at his own level with ease, and even higher-level Plague with only moderate effort.
His clash with Sakaar did not count.
Sakaar, Amon, and several of the highest-ranking commanders of the Second Army-such as Helga and Sayer- were equipped with soul borrowings provided by Morgana and embedded within their helts. Any direct soul assault against them would have been a complete waste of ti.
Without those soul borrowings, however, the battle would have taken a very different turn. Sakaar would have been forced to unleash the Sea of Blood, annihilating everything within dozens of miles just to push Leosar away, before attacking him from afar with the underworld daises!
Such a reaction would not have rely destroyed the demon city-it would have wiped out all of Virillion, a planet contested by multiple Behemoths.
As Robin reflected on this, his expression twisted slightly.
"...So what exactly should I do with you?" he muttered. "You'll need an army at your side-but you're a filthy little creature who can't be trusted."
Even if Leosar possessed a low-level Nexus State, even if the Plague were weak against him, their sheer numbers were far too overwhelming to allow him to roam freely alone.
During the ti it would take him to cleanse a single planet, Plague outbreaks elsewhere would erupt at a horrifying pace.
"What? No-no!" Leosar lunged forward and grabbed Robin's thigh. "I'm good! I can be trusted! I'm just bad with demons! Put with any other race and I'll behave I swear!!"
Bam!
The guards seized his arm and brutally twisted it behind his back.
"Ugh-let go! I'm under the protection of the Savior Lord! Let go!!"
Robin rubbed the bridge of his nose again.
"Then listen carefully, Leosar," he said calmly. "I currently have a serious Plague problem in the Mid Sector 99. Their numbers have grown out of control, and there's no one left actively fighting them. So I'm sending you!"
"Understood!!" Leosar replied instantly, his voice filled with urgency.
"But-" Robin continued, "you will not be alone. I will assign an army to accompany you. You will not be their commander-but you will be their shield. They will have their own leaders issuing orders, and you will step in to protect them when the battle reaches its peak. Understood?"
"...Can't I just cleanse the area by myself?" Leosar asked quietly, a hint of disappointnt creeping into his voice. "I really can..."
"Don't worry," Robin said calmly, a faint laugh escaping his lips. "There are plenty of them. You'll eat until you're full, and there will still be leftovers." His tone hardened slightly as his gaze sharpened. "What matters is that you rember to protect my n who will accompany you. Do not allow large numbers of them to be killed, or you will have failed. And if that happens, I will send Sakaar himself to drag you back here in chains. Understood?" "Understood-absolutely understood! There's no need to summon the King!" Leosar's single eye flooded with pure terror, his body stiffening at the re ntion of Sakaar's na.
"Good. Then we understand each other." Robin displayed a clearly forced smile. "I'll also assign soone to you-soone who will teach you the history of the universe and explain what is currently happening. You must understand this: no matter how great your power becos, you are still nothing more than a speck of dust on the greater scale." His voice dropped lower. "It is only under my protection that you are allowed to eat as you please and live comfortably. And if I ever grow displeased with you..."
Robin leaned closer, his words heavy with nace. "...Sakaar will not be the only one you need to worry about."
He grabbed Leosar by the neck and slowly pulled him closer. Robin's golden eyes flared brightly, completely overwhelming Leosar's wide pupil. "Even if you devour all the Plague. Even if you reach a level of power no one before you or after you- has ever reached. You must always, always rember this..." His voice beca cold and absolute. "I can send soone to crush your head with a single word. If you hide in the farthest reaches of the universe, I will drag you before with a single word. And no matter how clever you think you beco, I can shatter your arrogance with a single word." Robin tilted his head slightly. "Do we have an understanding, Leosar?" "....." Leosar squeezed his eye shut with effort, grinding his teeth as his entire body trembled. "I... understand!!"
"Good" Robin clapped once, the golden glow fading as the Eye of Truth deactivated. "Now, let's test sothing within that unique soul domain of
yours."
He pointed at Leosar. Whoosh.
A torrent of soul force surged from Robin's fingertip, condensing into the form of a thick, heavy book. Its pages flipped rapidly on their own until they stopped at a completely blank page. Robin's voice followed, calm and absolute: "Channel your soul sense here and swear eternal loyalty to -that you will
never act against my interests."
"...Understood," Leosar replied quietly. He had often heard that the Savior Lord did not force powerful close subordinates to swear oaths. Hearing those words now filled him with a strange mixture of disappointnt and bitterness.
His clenched teeth tightened further. His gaze toward the ground shifted, tinged with stubbornness and defiance. Then he raised his head, forced a hollow smile, and guided the spiritual sense he had learned to control since childhood toward the book, focusing his thoughts on the required oath.
Clank, Clank.
"Ah!"
In an instant, Leosar felt crushing shackles materialize around his heart and soul domain, binding him with overwhelming force.
"Hmmm," Robin closed his eyes briefly, then opened them again with a satisfied
smile. "The process is complete."
A bound manifestation of Leosar had appeared within his own soul domain- one that could be used to destroy his soul at any mont... assuming it did not vanish over ti, as usually happened with other demons.
"May I stand now?" Leosar lowered his gaze again and spoke in a subdued,
serious tone.
"Of course!" Robin laughed lightly, then gestured to the imperial guards. "Remove the sealing nails. He's one of us now."
"At once, Your Majesty!" The guards imdiately stepped forward, restraining him as they began removing the sealing nails using their specialized device.
But for so reason -ba-dum- Robin's smile vanished in an instant.
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