anwhile.
Inside the War Room.
Garius leaned back in his chair, his expression stern and serious, his right eye glowing faintly as he watched the holographic display.
Rolland, Captain Bhujar, and the other Mathrias officers sat in stunned silence, their faces a mix of shock, awe, and fear.
The holographic display still flickered softly above the table, showing the aftermath of the precision strikes Garius had just authorized.
Rolland swallowed hard, not daring to lift his head fully.
I still can’t believe what I just saw.
My own forr soldiers... the rebel army that was marching with those new weapons toward River Elsin and Timberland Pass... were blown apart by several precise strikes from sothing I couldn’t even see.
And I could hear their faint screams through the hologram after the explosions.
Their weapons, their numbers... reduced to scattered wreckage and fleeing survivors in monts.
I... I’d better stay on the good side of Garius. Always.
"Rolland?"
Rolland snapped from his thoughts when he heard Garius call his na.
"Y... yes, Your Majesty?"
Garius’s voice was calm, but his eyes were sharp. "I despise betrayal. What those forr Mathrias soldiers did, turning against their lord, their people, their oath, is not just rebellion. It’s a betrayal of the trust placed in them as soldiers, as protectors. Loyalty is not a convenience. It is a foundation. When that foundation cracks, everything built upon it collapses. And those who abandon it..." He paused, his eyes narrowing slightly. "...deserve no rcy."
Garius reached for the wine glass Erinette had just poured for him, her movents fluid and silent. He lifted it slowly, the deep red liquid catching the light of the hologram still hovering above the table. His right eye glowed faintly as he fixed his gaze on Rolland and the others.
"What you just witnessed was the consequence of betrayal. Your forr soldiers turned their blades on the people they swore to protect. They chose greed, ambition, and treachery over loyalty. I will not stand by and watch loyalty be trampled by opportunists and traitors."
He took a slow, deliberate sip before setting the glass down, the click of crystal against wood echoing softly in the tense silence. He crossed his arms, his posture rigid, his aura sharp and unyielding.
"I’m sure you know the history of Armand, Rolland. It was docunted in the royal archives, though few understand its weight. My late father was a good man, a kind, just ruler. He never oppressed his people, and they loved him for it. But because of greed, his own soldiers betrayed him. Not once, but twice. In the end... my entire family was slaughtered by the Klimbert Household, all because of that second, unforgivable betrayal."
Garius’s eyes turned deadly serious, his aura flaring with a cold, heavy pressure that filled the room.
"That is why I will never forgive betrayal like this. There are no second chances when it cos to loyalty broken by greed. My family trusted, and they were repaid with blood. I will not make the sa mistake."
He leaned forward, his voice dropping lower, each word carefully asured.
"Call cruel. Call rciless. Call whatever you wish. I don’t care. Because to , loyalty is not just a virtue, it is the foundation of everything. It is the only currency I accept. And those who spend it frivolously... will pay in full."
He leaned back and looked at them, his expression unreadable.
"This precision strike has already reduced a significant number of the enemy forces. And as the Sky Eyes live feed shows, they were carrying weapons the Human Kingdom currently producing, the sa type used by Garka and Turka in their invasion of Tybalt. You may not have heard yet, Rolland, but Tybalt is now under Armand’s protection. The sa strike was used to bring down the entire ten-thousand-strong Turka army, reducing them to scattered survivors and smoldering wreckage."
He paused, letting the gravity of his words settle before continuing.
"This ans your forr soldiers are likely receiving support from neighboring noble regions. Either High Baron Blaszen of Haghrab or Viscount Dasn of Bardigas. They are the closest, and both have historically been opportunistic. We do not yet know which, but we will. Soon."
He turned his gaze to Bhujar, his voice sharp and commanding.
"Hear clearly. None of the forr Mathrias soldiers are allowed to surrender or be forgiven. Not one will be taken back into the Mathrias army. Anyone captured will be punished publicly, executed by beheading in the town square, as a warning to all who would consider betrayal."
Bhujar swallowed, his voice strained.
"Y... yes, Your Majesty."
"Do not underestimate Armand’s capabilities," Garius continued, his right eye glowing faintly. "Our counter-intelligence, intelligence networks, and surveillance are beyond anything you have witnessed. We will know if even one of these traitors is pardoned or absorbed back into your ranks."
He paused, his glare hardening as it moved between Rolland and Bhujar.
"If I discover such a breach of trust... I will make sure your current army is dealt with just as thoroughly. Do not mistake my assistance for leniency. I am helping you secure your land, Rolland, but I will not tolerate weakness in its defense, or in its judgnt."
Rolland nodded stiffly, his face pale.
"Y... yes... Your Majesty."
"Mm." Garius glanced at Bhujar and each of the Mathrias officers in turn. "I expect a complete list of nas from your current Mathrias army. Do not misunderstand, my intelligence unit has already compiled a record of every soldier who has defended your lands against these traitors, including those who have fallen. Your list will be cross-referenced with ours."
He let that hang in the air, his gaze unwavering.
"You may, if you wish, visit the two areas struck by the precision attacks. Bring as many of your soldiers as you deem necessary. Let them see with their own eyes what remains of those who chose betrayal. Let them witness the consequences, not as a threat, but as a lesson."
He leaned back in his chair, hands clasped loosely in front of him.
"So your current soldiers will understand the price of disloyalty. And the cost of breaking it."
Garius shook his head slowly, a faint, unreadable expression on his face.
"They are lucky that I was the one who decided the attack. Most of the forr soldiers who managed to flee, were spared."
He leaned forward, placing his elbows on the table and clasping his hands together, his lips resting against his knuckles as he spoke.
"If my youngest son had been the one to decide... I am certain everything would have been reduced to ashes. He would have shown no rcy, spared no one. Not a single traitor would have been left standing, Just like Turka."
( End Of Chapter )
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