"My king, you're incredible!"
Erica's voice trembled with excitement as she declared her admiration for Rei Ao.
Leaning against a reef, Liliana listened to Erica's hushed words of devotion and felt a chill run through her.
The death of Marquis Voban was no ending—it was the cruel beginning of something new.
When a stronger King appears, followers like her turn to dust with the old one.
A sea-shell rolled to her feet. Its jagged edge looked just like her worldview—splintered beyond repair.
Rei Ao's eyes rested on her.
Liliana's reply quavered—not from fear, but from the shock of seeing her faith collapse.
In those rainbow-hued eyes she read no victor's arrogance, only an almost detached calm—and that unsettled her even more.
Rei Ao stepped closer—unhurried steps, an aura so dense the air itself seemed to thicken.
His voice reached her clearly:
"Voban is dead. The master you served is gone.
Now I ask: will you swear fealty to me—become my sword, my shield, my knight?"
The question cracked in Liliana's mind like thunder.
To the enemy who slew the king she should have followed?
She jerked her head up—humiliation, anger, confusion flashing in her eyes.
I—I was your enemy. Why would you choose me?"
To her, the man before her was so powerful he had no need for a failed subordinate's loyalty.
Rei Ao only gave an indifferent shrug, a barely noticeable curve at the corner of his lips.
Because I want a knight with a pleasant face—and you seem to fit. As for 'enemies'…"
He paused; confidence blazed in those prismatic pupils.
"There are no eternal enemies—only people worth my attention.
I'm strong enough to control everything—your loyalty included.
So answer: yes, or no."
Blunt to the point of tyranny—yet the deep steadiness behind the words slammed into Liliana's heart.
She held his gaze, felt the power that seemed able to crush the world, and was shaken to the core.
Voban had been strong and domineering—but his rule was laced with destruction.
Rei Ao's dominance rode on absolute strength and an ease that suggested mastery over all creation.
That strength—that self-assurance—drew her with an almost irresistible pull.
The Bronze-Black Cross faced a foggy future.
The man before her stood like an unshakable mountain, offering a new and surer anchor.
Liliana drew a deep breath; the confusion on her face melted into resolve.
She gripped her sword, stepped forward, and dropped to one knee, proud head bowed.
"I, Liliana Kranjčar, hereby swear: from this day on, with my sword, my heart, my very being, I shall serve the King.
I will follow your will and guard your glory until the end of my life.
Heaven and earth bear witness!"
The solemn pledge made everyone present pause.
Erica's eyes flashed.
A flicker of possessiveness stirred, but she simply stepped to Rei Ao's side.
Her gaze on Liliana held a subtle warning, though her tone remained polite:
"Liliana, welcome under the King's banner.
But listen well—the King is mine…is all of ours.
If you betray him, even to the world's end I'll hunt you down and show you the price of treachery."
Liliana met her stare, expression earnest.
"My oath is weightier than Mount Everest.
Even if the Bronze-Black Cross should betray the King, I, Liliana, would take my life first in atonement."
Her iron resolve surprised Julis, Tohka, Ai Hayasaka, and Kaguya alike—especially Kaguya, long accustomed to seeing loyalty traded for advantage.
Rei Ao nodded, satisfied.
Dispensing with flowery words, he extended a hand.
From now on, this is your new starting point."
Then he turned to Erica and the other chat-group members, speaking casually:
"All right—nothing more to do here.
Feel free to look around and get your bearings; I have a matter to attend to."
"Understood, my king," Erica answered at once.
Julis and Tohka exchanged a glance and nodded.
Ai Hayasaka responded crisply, "As you wish, Rei Ao-sama."
Liliana rose and waited for instructions.
"You stay with Erica," Rei Ao told her. "She'll show you what to do."
With his orders given, Rei Ao lingered no longer.
His figure shimmered—and vanished into the air, as though he had never been there at all.
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