Chapter 79: Volume 2, Chapter 24 – I Am Announcing

High vaulted ceilings decorated with gold trim certainly didn’t fit the overall aesthetic of this palace, and neither did the ornately embroidered upholstery of the armchairs lining the borders of a long, rectangular wooden table finished with a marble surface.

Delicate silver and gold filigree lined the walls, and rows of embossed wooden panels had been affixed to their previously naked surfaces. If there was an image that could represent the definition of opulence and overextravagance, it would be this very room that I stood in.

I raised a hand to my forehead and sighed, thoroughly unimpressed by the excessive redecoration that King Borea had chosen to do without anyone’s input.

The other occupants of the room stirred nervously as my sigh vocalized my displeasure. I could tell that they found the prospect of being held inside this disgustingly fancy room just as distasteful as I did, but I could tell that the room and its decorations were the least of their worries right now.

Right, let’s begin...

I rose from my seat at the head of the table, sweeping my gaze through all the occupants one last time before addressing them. Honestly, it was a pretty amusing sight, all things considered.

The massively built and muscular representatives of various tribes and clans were all crammed around the table, some of them so big that their armchairs barely managed to contain their impressive frame. Not to mention the fact that they looked completely out of place in this room that was more appropriate to be a dainty noble lady’s private tea room.

After all, these proud individuals were once leaders of their own tribes and clans before I took that title from them. They belonged on the battlefield and relished the adrenaline that came only from fighting. Now, I was going to return that right to them.

“Good afternoon, everyone. You’re all probably wondering why I’ve called you all here. Some of you may think this is shady as hell, and some of you may even be downright pissed. It doesn’t matter. I’ve been there. Now, I’m pretty sure that none of you wanna be sittin’ here and listenin’ to my spiel, but if you’re gonna hear one thing today, then let it be this: As of this moment, I, Ryuuko of the Zaltsel clan, am returning your authorities as chieftains.”

The moment I finished speaking, the entire room fell silent. Not even the sound of breathing could be heard, but that was to be expected. After all, everyone aside from me was holding their breath and waiting for me to declare that this was all a joke.

I stared at each of them in the eyes, my eyes completely devoid of humor. They stared back, their eyes filled with disbelief. We held this silent standoff for a good minute or two before someone finally broke the silence.

“You’re... serious about this, aren’t you? May I ask why?” One of the chieftains asked.

I directed my gaze to her. Although she was dwarfed by the other chieftains that sat next to her, she still possessed an impressive physique. Her shoulders were broad and muscular, and her thick forearms were probably as incredibly strong as they looked. 

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It seemed that her tribe’s traditional garment was a simple loincloth adorned with a few steel parts to affix it to her belt coupled with a leather brassiere that shared the same aesthetic, allowing her to display her thoroughly trained abdomen in all its glory.

I recalled her name as Nemea of the Trauzn tribe, a medium-sized nomadic faction that wandered the lands of the eastern half of the continent seeking great beasts to hunt and fight. During my duel with her, she’d exhibited incredible mastery over the [Demonic Enhancement] skill. Although our skill levels had been equivalent, she was capable of manipulating the properties of the enhancement to a much finer degree, confirming my suspicions that there was more to how the world worked than just numbers.

I nodded before answering. “I am human. There is no hiding that fact. Because of that, the only way that I could be acknowledged by all of you was strength. I needed to show you all that I wasn’t simply strong. I needed you all to understand that I was so strong, none of you would stand a chance against me.

“But something like that...” I paused and my gaze swept toward King Eurace who was seated near the opposite end of the table. “Something like that would only be oppression, no different than the one who I wish to defeat. My goal was to unify the tribes under a single banner, but all I was doing was conquering them and becoming a tyrant. It was not the dream I sought.”

A murmur of conversation rippled throughout the room, but the chieftains returned to silence once more as King Eurace drew breath.

“Then what is the dream that you seek, Ryuuko?”

It was partly thanks to King Eurace’s efforts that I actually managed to gather all the chieftains in this room. After our duel, King Eurace had publicly announced to the eastern tribes that he and his people intended to follow me. With the Briach clan and the Zaltsel clan under my wing along with a smattering of smaller, but still sizable tribes, the rest of the eastern tribes rapidly followed suit in the face of a growing and unified force.

The question he had just asked was precisely timed in order to generate as much social momentum as possible. It had been asked without prior preparation, but that much was to be expected from someone who was used to the burden of command and had an innate sense of how to stir the hearts of an audience.

Now, it was my responsibility to make use of the opportunity he had created for me.

I nodded my thanks to him before looking at the chieftains. All of their eyes were on me. I felt something stir in the center of my chest, like a rousing flame that tickled my heart with its burgeoning heat. It wasn’t nervousness. It was excitement.

There was no need for me to hesitate anymore.

“The dream that I seek... is the destruction of God.”

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