(Execution Livestream Continuation, The Pit, Leo’s POV)
The universe watched with bated breath as Raymond confronted Leo, the Demi God having a cocky expression on his face as he tried his best to humiliate Leo in front of his followers.
"I don’t have all day here, Skyshard. My offer expires in 30 seconds, so decide fast.
What will it be?
Will you kneel and save your men?
Or will you stand and fight like your mentor Charles before you?"
Raymond asked, as his expression turned from one of contempt to one of exhilaration.
"Oh yeah, I remember Charles.
What a terrific guy.
What a terrific fighter.
I’m sure you loved him dearly....."
Raymond continued, as he began to casually stroll with his hands pulled behind his back.
"In my opinion, he was one of the best fighters the Cult has produced over the past few centuries.
A true pillar of your resistance."
Raymond added, as he made a fist with his free hand and looked towards the sky, as if genuinely trying to sound respectful as he made these comments, however, the slight laughter in his voice still gave him away.
"It’s a shame that he had to die. I mean, if only he kneeled like I had asked him to.
Maybe I could have spared him as well.
And maybe Planet Juxta would still be around...."
"Do you know how many had to die that day just because of one selfish decision that Charles made?
Tch, tch, tch.
What happened back then was undoubtedly a true tragedy.
If given a choice, I would never want to do something so cruel.
However, Commander Charles forced me into a corner."
Raymond said, as he stared straight into Leo’s eyes and smiled.
"He chose to defy me, and so, I cut him piece by piece like the dog he was and gave him a horrifying death."
Raymond said, his voice rising now, as his eyes widened with glee.
"I gave him a horrifying death and then I destroyed the entire planet his remains rested on just for good measure, just so that not even a memory remained of the once defiant Commander Charles!"
He boasted, as he widened his chest with pride.
"Charles was a veteran Commander. A survivor of many wars.
So just imagine.....
If I can do that to him.
Just how badly can I hurt you?"
Raymond asked, as it was at this moment that Leo snapped.
With rage fuelling his movements, he rushed towards Raymond in what looked like reckless abandon.
However, the moment he did so, Raymond unleashed two more attacks—
One aimed towards Veyr
While the other was aimed towards the Cult Army, as he forced Leo to make a choice yet again.
Save Veyr
Save the Army
Or pursue his revenge.
However, he could do only one of the three.
—--------------
(Meanwhile Su Pei)
While Raymond mocked Leo, Su Pei looked at the devastation left behind by a single one of Raymond’s slashes and felt his gut clench in revolt.
’T—that was my legion....’
He thought, breath catching in his throat as his eyes traced the ruin carved across the battlefield, where evacuation lines had ceased to exist and disciplined formations had been reduced to broken geometry and scattered remains.
’Most of these men and women were under my protection.’
The realization hit harder than any physical blow, as the screams still echoed faintly in the air, cut short too abruptly, too cleanly, leaving behind a silence that felt obscene in its finality, as bodies lay where they had been running moments ago, expressions frozen between fear and despair.
*Shake*
Su Pei’s hands trembled.
Not from fear.
From shame.
He had trained these soldiers. He had drilled them. He had promised them that as long as they followed orders, as long as they trusted the Cult’s command structure, someone would always be there to shield them from the worst horrors of war.
And yet—
A single slash.
One careless gesture from a Demi-God drunk on power.
And twelve million were gone.
*Gulp*
Su Pei swallowed hard, his chest tightening as bile rose in his throat, his eyes burning with hatred as he refused to look away, as he understood that if he did.....If he allowed himself to turn aside even once, then this moment would rot inside him forever.
’I was supposed to protect you....’
He thought, nails digging into his palms hard enough to draw blood, as fragments of armor and torn banners fluttered weakly in the disturbed air, mocking the ideals they had marched under.
Around him, surviving soldiers stumbled in shock, some screaming names that would never be answered, others standing frozen with hollow eyes, weapons hanging uselessly at their sides as their minds struggled to comprehend a loss of that scale.
And behind it all—
Raymond laughed.
A shrill laughter that made one’s bones vibrate with anger, as that sound alone snapped something inside Su Pei.
’Fuck. You.’
He thought, as anger surged upward like a flood breaking through a dam, drowning out grief, suffocating hesitation, and burning away fear until only a single, searing resolve remained.
’No.....’
He thought fiercely.
’Never again.....’
As long as he lived, as long as his heart still beat and his blood still flowed, he would never allow something like this to happen without resistance, without consequence, without defiance.
’I am Su Pei.’
The name steadied him.
’I have divine blood flowing through my veins as well.’
His jaw clenched, spine straightening as something ancient stirred within him, pride inherited from a lineage that had dominated the universe for aeons as well.
’If Raymond is a descendant of a God....’
His gaze locked onto the Demi-God standing amid the carnage.
’Then so am I.’
The realization did not make him stronger.
It did not erase the gap between them.
But it gave him something far more important.
A reason to stand.
’The least I can do,’ he thought grimly, ’is ensure this never happens again.... At least not on my watch’
He swore, as moments later, the air distorted once more and divine essence surged violently from Raymond’s blade.
*SLASH*
Su Pei felt it before he saw it, the pressure alone enough to make his bones ache and his instincts scream for him to run.
A second slash.
Another arc of annihilation.
This one aimed straight for another section of the Cult Army.
As in that moment, Su Pei knew instantly and with brutal clarity, that this attack was beyond him—
That its weight surpassed anything his body or current tier could possibly endure, yet his feet moved anyway.
As pride overrode survival.
As duty crushed fear.
As the will of a Su Clan descendant surged through his veins.
*Step* *Step*
He stepped forward, planting himself between the oncoming destruction and the soldiers still scrambling behind him, shoulders squaring as he raised his shield with shaking hands, divine blood roaring in protest and defiance alike.
’Even if I can’t stop it....’
He thought, breath steadying despite the terror clawing at his chest.
’I will not stand aside.’
He decided, as taking in a deep breath, he shouted at the top of his lungs.
"DONT WORRY MEN.
AS LONG AS I’M ALIVE.
YOU WILL ALL BE SAFE BEHIND ME."