"Is he…really out? It can"t be, right?"
As Eloise hesitantly spoke out this thought in the channel which they had been using to communicate with each other until now, she didn"t get any answer, but that exposed the fact that she probably wasn"t the only one who had gotten this question.
"He hasn"t used his powers over the World, yet…so maybe it"s not true?"
"By pus.h.i.+ng the weakest forward against their will, Vohler kept the best for last. All of those are the strongest of the Peak Heroes on the continent- against any one of them, he might have been able to hold his own, incredibly, even though he is just a Peak Champion, but against them all…it"s impossible."
Faxul spelled out the harsh truth in a flat voice after Kellor was the first to answer in a doubtful tone, almost as if he, himself, wasn"t sure about what he was saying.
The rest stayed silent, as they had come to this conclusion, too.
Until now, they hadn"t spoken much, as their minds had been filled with all sorts of conflicting emotions.
Chief among them was frustration due to the fact that they had had to be taken out of the fight so that their King could go forward with his plan freely. Even though this wasn"t the first time he had done something like this, it still stung, and it was those like Faxul and Elanev among the sovereigns who took it the hardest, as they had continuously been pus.h.i.+ng themselves just so that something like this wouldn"t happen.
After that, it had been worry which had filled their thoughts the most. The King had achieved many, many incredible and unbelievable things until now, but a fight against a force this overwhelmingly strong…just made it seem as if the Heavens had sent down an insurmountable challenge just to see him fail, for once.
And failure did seem to be close, as they all witnessed as the King tapped into the Bloodline of the first creature he had obtained- the Divine c.o.c.kroach.
His arm rapidly began to grow back, and as his body began to transform into the unique figure of the creature which had survived more than any of them could ever fathom, the Windlord sent out another blade.
Almost all of them flinched on seeing this, but thankfully, the King managed to move out of its way, this time.
At the same time, he began to build up the ultimate sh.e.l.l of the c.o.c.kroach which he had used before to defend himself. Layers after layers started to form while he moved, and peculiarly, Vohler did not move to attack.
Yet, seeing his expression, the reason behind this became clear.
"He wasn"t even exerting himself to send those attacks. He"s… humiliating him."
"The worst part is that he"s not even doing it intentionally - he simply wants to move only after all of the attempts of his opponent are made, but to the world, it looks as if he is taunting the King to make his move."
Luther"s response to Robert"s exclamation of realization was delivered in a firm tone, but that, in itself, showed just how angry the old commander was - if even he, who was known for his legendary control of his emotions was angry, then it could be imagined just how much the blood of the other sovereigns must be boiling.
"He must have something up his sleeve. He must. He always does, so this should be nothing different. Yes...there"s definitely something. There has to be!"
This statement, which almost sounded like a prayer, was uttered in a murmur by Eloise, and it sounded like she was saying it under her breath, but had forgotten to disable the channel of communication to stop it from being heard by everyone.
Her eyes were too fixated on the battlefield to care about such minor things.
Similarly, the rest of the sovereigns also ceased to speak, as the battlefield had changed, once again.
By now, the King had finished forming the sh.e.l.l of the Divine c.o.c.kroach which was supposed to be able to repel attacks even if they were sent by those far above its power level.
It seemed that he had made a modification to the sh.e.l.l, too: it was originally supposed to be entrenched in the ground, so as to take support, but he had made a mobile version, both to be able to move so that he could try to dodge the attacks, and because there was no ground beneath him to use to fortify his position.
Below him, the unification had reached the final stage. The official writ that was supposed to be signed by all the representatives of the Angarians who had gathered had been produced by one of the ministers who had been with Daneel and Eloise since the very beginning of his reign, and all the representatives were in the air above the respective groups they were speaking for.
A lot of care had gone into choosing the representatives. The whole objective was to have a meaningful union where the opinions of the majority were being respected, and thus, in each Kingdom, the King"s officials had checked whether those that had been chosen enjoyed overwhelming support.
For the Hidden Kill Sect, Daneel"s old reptile friends who had helped him take control were waiting with stern expressions on their faces. They had done well over all these years, and the sect had flourished with the direct patronage of the King. Hence, being those who had sided with him first, they had gained the most respect from the rest of the members of the sect, and had been chosen to stand for them, now.
For Arafell, the Queen"s image was present. There was nothing that needed to be said about her irrefutable position as the G.o.ddess of all the people of her Kingdom.
For the Black Raven Kingdom, the lady who was the head of the council that had given Faxul a cold welcome after his ascension had arrived.