Chaos' Heir Chapter 1002: Soft

Chapter 1002: Soft

Khan had a hard time accepting what he had just heard. According to Lord Rsi's words, only the Emperor and his Royal Guards could live on Zedekiel. That was still okay, but everything changed when Khan added the blind Thilku's statement to the equation.

'Does it mean Zedekiel only has five citizens?' Khan wondered, amazed by that conclusion.

Sure, the Empire's domain was gargantuan, but appointing a whole, ma.s.sive planet to five people sounded too much, even for that unreasonable species. Moreover, that was just the first of the shocking details.

Lord Rsi had told Khan that soldiers came to train in Zedekiel every year. The already accomplished ones probably underwent a selection for the Royal Court, hoping to become Royal Guards. Still, only four of them had been chosen after an unknown amount of time. Khan's thoughts ran wildly, quickly reaching two possible conclusions. The first saw the selection as an incredibly harsh ordeal, only allowing elites among elites to overcome it. Instead, the other was far more unreasonable since it limited the total number of evolved Thilku across the Empire to five.

Admittedly, that second conclusion was unreasonable. An overbearing force like the Empire couldn't possibly have just five evolved soldiers. Otherwise, it wouldn't have been allowed to expand so freely for so long.

However, Khan didn't know how the Thilku evolution worked. Their innately great physical prowess could very well make the procedure nigh impossible, leading to that small number of powerful soldiers.

The blind Thilku seemed able to "see" through Khan once again, addressing his silent thoughts. "[The Empire has more evolved warriors, but only a few chosen ones can have the honor to protect the Emperor]."

"[Who are you talking to]?" The huge Thilku asked.

"[I'm clarifying the Blue Shaman's doubts]," The blind Thilku revealed. "[Not that there is any point in explaining these things to you]."

"[Lord Blind Sword is correct]," The machine-like Thilku added. It felt impossible, but Khan believed the alien was teasing his companion.

"[I think Lord Enforcer has a soft spot for me]," The huge Thilku announced, grinning proudly once again.

"[Why do I even bother]?" The blind Thilku sighed.

"[Because Lord Blind Sword respects Lord Idiot Muscles]," The machine-like Thilku replied.

"[Ah]!" The huge Thilku cried. "[I'm indeed the favorite Royal Guard]."

"[Lord Envoy is the favorite Royal Guard]," The machine-like Thilku corrected.

"[To my great honor]," Lord Envoy stated, climbing a few steps under the throne before turning to face Khan.

"[Seniority is a scam]," The huge Thilku snorted. "[Strength should be-]."

The huge Thilku suddenly interrupted his line since the figure on the throne moved for the first time. The gesture claimed the Royal Guards' attention, and even the blind Thilku turned in that direction as if he could see.

The Emperor merely leaned forward, placing his arms on his knees, but the symphony showed a different scene. That short, simple movement pushed a ma.s.sive amount of mana without resorting to techniques or spells. The event didn't cause gales, but Khan saw those through his unique eyes.

'What was that?' Khan thought, shocked. Interacting with the symphony was as easy as breathing for him, but the previous event was something entirely different.

It almost seemed the symphony couldn't oppose the Emperor's mere presence. The latter deeply affected it by simply existing, creating more disturbing questions. If the Emperor could cause such reactions by adjusting his position, what could he do when he released his mana?

Silence unfolded as everyone's focus remained on the Emperor, and Khan was no exception. That mighty existence was the only one donning a red cape and an unusual crown, but Khan barely recorded those details. His aura had enough to study to keep him busy for weeks, and the thought of a conversation with him was enough to fill Khan's mind with tension.

"[Blue Shaman]," The Emperor finally spoke, and his hoa.r.s.e but powerful voice made the air tremble. Those two simple words. .h.i.t Khan's eardrums like hammers, almost making the process painful.

At once, everything fell into place. The Emperor's motionless behavior and Zedekiel's emptiness suddenly made sense. The planet probably needed to be an exclusive location because the Emperor was too powerful to be in the presence of ordinary citizens.

"[I reviewed the footage from your battle on Gadus R]," The Emperor continued. "[Why did you spare your enemies]?"

The second round of words was easier to endure. Khan wasn't sure whether he had grown used to them or the Emperor had held himself back, but that was beside the point. The Emperor had asked a specific question, and Khan could only think of honesty as the sole possible approach.

"[Because I saw no point of killing those weak lives]," Khan answered.

"[Ah]!" The huge Thilku cried. "[The weak can't do anything but die]."

The comment earned the huge Thilku cold glares from the other three Royal Guards. The gesture was so evident that the strip of cloth on the blind Thilku's eyes couldn't do anything to hide his scolding expression.

"[Is that it]?" The Emperor questioned, ignoring the interruption.

"[I don't enjoy killing]," Khan explained, "[Especially when it's pointless]."

"[I thought you believed in revenge]," The Emperor commented. "[Rebels don't change their minds. Death is the only solution]."

"[I'm not part of the Global Army anymore]," Khan announced. "[Those soldiers have

nothing to rebel against]."

That wasn't factually true. People from the Global Army could still cause countless problems for Khan. They were already, but Khan didn't have a reasonable justification for his actions. He simply hadn't felt like spreading more meaningless death after deciding to leave humankind.

"[That may be true]," The Emperor said, "[Or maybe you have grown soft on your enemies]."

Khan suddenly realized what the issue was about. Brigadier General Meadrey had attacked Khan's s.h.i.+p, but the Empire protected those goods. The Emperor probably saw it as a direct insult to his authority, which Khan accepted by sparing the human battalion.

"[I believe the footage has nothing soft in it]," Khan declared. "[And where would be the honor in squas.h.i.+ng lives I can end with a thought]?"

The Emperor silently stared at Khan. Nothing in his expression or mana betrayed his thoughts. He didn't look convinced, either, but changed the topic anyway.

"[You aggressively chased political fame in the recent years]," The Emperor announced. " [You didn't mind completing dangerous missions to achieve that, so why did you decide to

leave the Global Army]?"

The Emperor was perfectly on point. Khan had killed himself with work to secure countless benefits from the Empire and Global Army. He had done all that to make himself impossible to oppose, and leaving humankind would probably make him lose that valuable progress. However, Khan remained certain about his decision.

"[Because I don't belong there]," Khan explained, "[And forcing my presence on humankind can only lead to one conclusion. Sooner or later, I would have had to conquer it]."

"[Why is that a problem]?" The Emperor asked.

"[I won't lead soldiers who don't want to follow me]," Khan revealed. "[I respect the Empire's idea of conquest, but I follow my own rules]."

"[He's hiding something, My Emperor]," The blind Thilku commented.

"[The Blue Shaman's political actions reveal a greater scheme, My Emperor]," The machine- like Thilku added. "[Some are emotional, but others have a calculative mind behind them]."

"[Your deduction, Lord Enforcer]," The Emperor ordered.

"[Based on the available data]," The machine-like Thilku exclaimed, "[The Blue Shaman's decisions must be connected to the Nak]."