The next day, the Council Hall stood restored as if the chaos of the previous day had never occurred. Cracked marble floors were repaired, shattered pillars rebuilt, and every trace of destruction erased. Yet beneath that flawless surface, tension lingered like a storm waiting to break.
All council mbers were already seated.
At the center of the grand stage sat Rhea, now occupying the seat of the Council Leader. Below her, arranged in a semi-circle, were six elevated seats reserved for the council elders.
After a brief silence, Salvatore rose from his seat and walked toward the center of the stage. His composed expression revealed nothing, yet his presence alone quieted the restless murmurs in the hall.
"Good morning," he began, his voice steady and clear. "I understand that all of you are unsettled after yesterday's incident. But rest assured—we have taken the necessary steps to address the situation."
A ripple of whispers spread through the hall as council mbers exchanged uneasy glances.
"You must have many questions," Salvatore continued. "But before we address them… let us formally welco our new Council Leader."
He turned toward Rhea.
"And congratulate her."
A wave of applause followed—so sincere, others reluctant.
Rhea rose from her seat without haste. She stepped down from the dais and walked toward the center of the stage. Pausing for a brief mont, she took a slow breath before speaking.
"First, I thank all of you for your trust."
Her voice was calm, yet it carried clearly across the vast chamber.
"Without your support, I would not be standing here today."
She inclined her head slightly before continuing.
"I will speak of reforms and future changes soon. But today's gathering has a more urgent purpose."
The hall quieted almost instantly.
Rhea's gaze sharpened.
"It concerns yesterday's assassination attempt… carried out by the three candidates."
At those words, several representatives from the Azure Federation, Rogue Throne, and Blood Empire stiffened. So lowered their heads. Others avoided eting her gaze altogether.
A councilman from the Ember Kingdom abruptly stood up. He had dark hair and a thick walrus mustache, his expression tense.
"Did you discover why they targeted Sir Runeth?" he asked.
Rhea nodded once.
"A few weeks ago, I received an anonymous letter," she said. "It claid that the candidates of the three Empires were conspiring with a demon."
Shock rippled through the hall.
"At first, I did not believe it. However, I inford Lady Edith. She chose to investigate the matter personally, alongside Sir Kaisar, Lady Kirell, and Sir ledin."
As she spoke, she raised her hand. A strange eyeball artifact appeared in her palm. With a flick of her finger, it activated.
A holographic projection ford above the stage.
The hall fell silent.
The recording revealed a secret eting—Asthar, Nedia, and Zegan, standing alongside two unfamiliar figures. As the scene progressed, Kaisar appeared and confronted them. Monts later, another figure entered the battlefield.
Gasps erupted.
"That's—!"
"Red Duke?!"
"Sir Hector?!"
"The Holy Son of the Order Church?!"
Voices overlapped in shock as recognition spread instantly.
All eyes turned toward the representatives of the Order Church.
"Order Church is colluding with demons?"
"Explain this!"
"Cardinal Adolf, what is the aning of this?!"
Fists slamd against tables as the hall descended into chaos.
Rhea raised her hand.
The pressure in the room shifted. Conversations died instantly.
"We will investigate the Order Church's involvent thoroughly," she said calmly. "No one will be exempt."
Her tone allowed no room for argunt.
She then summoned another eyeball artifact and activated it.
A second projection appeared.
This ti, the scene showed the battle at Reaper's Alley—Kirell, Kaisar, and ledin confronting Zegan. At first, confusion flickered across the faces of the council mbers.
Then Zegan revealed his true form.
The manifestation of death itself.
The temperature in the hall seed to drop.
Several mbers leaned back unconsciously, their expressions turning pale.
Rhea let the silence linger before speaking again.
"Although we do not yet know the full reason behind their betrayal, we prevented a catastrophe."
She paused briefly.
"And we eliminated two of the three candidates."
A wave of shock spread through the hall.
"The third—Zegan—has escaped," she continued. "However, he will be found. And he will be judged."
She raised her hand once more.
Stacks of docunts appeared in midair.
"These were recovered from the demon Xelyria's base," she said.
Then she began listing nas.
"Bishop Joseph."
"Bishop Nelson."
"Archbishop Tyrell."
"High Priest Ben."
Each na struck like a hamr.
Faces in the crowd turned pale.
"It seems," Rhea continued, her voice growing colder, "that the Holy City itself has been infested."
Her gaze swept across the assembly.
"And not just one Church."
More nas followed—mbers of the Order Church, the Justice Church, the Amber Church… and even several council mbers present within the hall.
The reaction was imdiate.
Panic erupted.
Several individuals leaped from their seats and attempted to flee.
They didn't make it far.
Guards stationed at the entrances moved instantly, blocking every exit. Others were restrained by nearby mbers before they could escape.
Within monts, the hall was filled with struggling figures, forced to the ground under overwhelming force.
Silence followed.
Heavy. Suffocating.
Rhea stood at the center of the stage, watching it all unfold.
Then she spoke.
"From this mont onward… no one involved will escape judgnt."
No one dared to respond.
The Council Hall fell into absolute silence.
The Holy Knights entered soon after, their arrival cutting through the lingering tension like a blade. Orders were read out without ceremony, and within monts, nas were called.
One by one, those identified were dragged from their seats.
So shouted in outrage. Others tried to resist. A few collapsed entirely, their faces drained of color. It didn't matter. The knights moved efficiently, ignoring pleas and protests alike as they forced the accused toward the exits.
The hall grew quieter with each removal.
When the last of them was taken away, only a heavy silence remained.
Rhea stepped forward.
A faint pulse of wisdom power spread from her, subtle but undeniable. Conversations died instantly.
"We're not done yet," she said.
Her voice wasn't loud, but it carried across the entire chamber.
A few mbers straightened. Others frowned, still unsettled from what they had just witnessed.
Rhea let the silence linger for a mont before continuing.
"What happened yesterday wasn't an isolated incident."
Her gaze moved across the hall, steady and unhurried.
"We lost Sir ledin."
That alone was enough to shift the mood.
No elaboration was needed.
"Demons are moving openly. Their followers are already inside our cities… our institutions."
A brief pause.
"And the strength of the Holy Knights is declining."
This ti, there were no imdiate protests—only tension.
Rhea exhaled softly.
"So we adapt."
A murmur spread.
She didn't raise her voice. She didn't need to.
"I'll be forming a Mystic Order."
That was enough.
The hall erupted.
"We will not allow it!"
"This is madness!"
"You're proposing forbidden techniques in broad daylight?"
Several representatives from the churches stood at once, their expressions sharp with anger. Others joined in, voices overlapping.
Rhea didn't interrupt.
She simply watched.
On the other side of the hall, the reaction was different.
Kirell leaned back slightly, arms crossed, clearly unimpressed by the outrage. Kaisar remained silent, but his presence alone drew attention. Representatives from the Forgotten Nations exchanged brief glances before nodding among themselves.
The divide was obvious.
"You're replacing the Holy Order?" soone demanded.
"No," Rhea replied calmly. "I'm fixing what we lack."
That slowed them.
Not silence—but hesitation.
"We need people who can respond quickly," she continued. "Not armies. Not rituals. People who can act before cities fall."
"That's what the Churches are for!" a bishop snapped.
"Then where were they yesterday?" soone else muttered.
That single line shifted the room more than any speech could.
The argunt didn't stop, but it changed.
It beca sharper. More fragnted.
Rhea let it play out for a while. She answered where necessary, adjusted where it mattered, and ignored what didn't.
Eventually, the resistance weakened—not gone, but no longer unified.
When the decision was finally pushed through, it wasn't clean.
It was forced.
Chairs scraped against the floor.
Representatives from the Sacred Empire stood first. Then others followed—Amber Church, Order Church, Truth Church, and more. One after another, they walked out, their silence far more telling than their earlier protests.
The doors closed behind them.
What remained was smaller.
But steadier.
Rhea didn't react to those who left.
Instead, she continued as if nothing had happened.
"Kaisar will lead it."
That drew a few looks.
"Each faction will assign soone to oversee their side. For now, we'll start small."
She paused, then added,
"Send who you can. Twenty at most."
That was enough detail for now.
The rest ca through questions.
"How strong do their affinities need to be?"
"What kind of training?"
"Is this permanent?"
The discussion shifted from opposition to logistics.
Rhea answered simply.
"They'll be trained. Those who improve stay. Those who don't… won't."
No long explanation. No structured breakdown.
Just enough.
When soone asked about elents, she gave a short response.
"Light is ideal. But we don't have enough of them. So we use what we have."
Her words were practical and direct.
That was enough to satisfy most.
The rest of the conversation flowed more naturally after that. Concerns from smaller nations, requests for support, doubts about resources—each was addressed without turning the discussion into another speech.
Ti passed.
Slowly, the tension that had filled the hall began to settle.
By the ti the sun dipped low, most questions had been answered—or at least acknowledged.
Rhea looked across the hall one last ti.
"That's all for today."
No grand closing.
No unnecessary formality.
Just an end.
The council mbers began to rise, so already deep in discussion, others silent in thought.
Outside, the light had already begun to fade.
On July 8th, Chaos Era, Year 0001, the Union Council's annual eting ca to a close.
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