Elio absorbed Fathoran's cores and mana, his eyes fixed on the balances skyrocketing to unimaginable figures.
As he processed the magnitude of the newly acquired resources, he noticed a subtle change:
His armor lit up, recovering one point out of 500.
A quick deduction made him realize that the necessary minutes had passed... 500 points a day ant a regeneration of about 20 points per hour.
Suddenly, sothing beside him broke his concentration.
With a start, Elio turned his head to see sothing that chilled the blood in his veins: Fathoran's armor began to regenerate, its light igniting with a nacing glow.
The effect on the soldiers was instantaneous.
Cries of terror and surprise filled the air as they retreated en masse, fear palpable on their faces. So stumbled in their haste to get away.
Elio, his heart pounding in his chest, found himself paralyzed for a mont. Was it possible that Fathoran, sohow, was still alive? The idea of facing the Patriarch again, especially in his current state of exhaustion, sent a wave of panic through him.
However, as he watched the armor regenerating, a part of his mind began to analyze the situation coldly.
It was impossible…
Right?
Elio was startled by another groan of pain from Selene.
Suddenly, an idea illuminated his mind: the armor, like other mana armors, would regenerate completely each day, regardless of whether its user was alive or not.
He had absorbed Fathoran's cores, which ant he was dead.
Right?
RIGHT?
Selene's suffering prompted Elio to make an unconventional decision. He began to remove the armor from the Patriarch's inert body.
The soldiers observed the scene with varied emotions, including amazent, confusion, even revulsion.
So muttered among themselves, questioning their new leader's actions.
"What is he doing?"
"Is he... stripping the Patriarch?"
"Seems our new leader has no qualms about doing what's necessary..."
"Only our leader could do sothing like this, how interesting..."
Elio ignored the looks and comnts, focusing on his task.
Once he had Fathoran's armor in his hands, he quickly returned to Selene and Lucien. Without wasting ti, he began to remove Selene's armor.
The soldiers, once again, showed a VERY wide range of reactions.
So looked away, uncomfortable with the apparent lack of decorum. Others watched with curiosity, intrigued by Elio's actions.
"Is he really...?"
"I've never seen a leader act like this..."
"What does he intend to do with... In front of everyone?"
"Our leader is a man of culture, how interesting..."
Carefully, Elio began to put Fathoran's armor on Selene.
Out of curiosity and fear of irreversible damage, he decided to take Selene's arm and place it with its corresponding section of the armor, earning even more reactions from the spectators.
The effect was imdiate: the armor's light went out, and Selene let out a sigh of relief. Apparently, the accelerated regeneration managed to heal her most serious wounds and stop the blood loss.
Then, Elio proceeded to do the sa with Lucien, putting his own armor on him. As with Selene, the armor went out, transferring its resistance and aiding in the healing process.
Within a few minutes, they should be out of danger, and in just over an hour, completely healed.
Now without armor and visibly exhausted, Elio stood up in front of the crowd.
Without the armor, Elio looked thin and younger. The soldiers soon felt closer to him, seeing him as a normal boy... Despite the intense battle they had witnessed.
Elio took a deep breath and raised his voice, addressing everyone present:
"Listen, everyone! The reign of the previous leaders has co to an end. From this mont, we begin a new era. An era in which power will not be concentrated in the hands of a few, but will be shared by all of us."
A murmur ran through the crowd. So nodded in approval, while others exchanged looks of uncertainty.
Elio continued. "I know you have questions, fears, and concerns. What Fathoran said about the population limit... seems to be true."
Gasps and exclamations of surprise were heard. Elio raised a hand to calm the crowd.
"But that doesn't an we're dood to sacrifice our people. In the book that God left, it's ntioned that we can expand beyond the city walls. And that's exactly what we're going to do. I'll discover how to achieve it, so that no one has to be sacrificed."
Elio's words resonated in the room. So soldiers and civilians began to mutter among themselves, discussing the implications of what they had just heard.
"Expand outside the city?"
"Is that even possible?"
"How will we survive out there?"
"I'll follow him to the end..."
Elio, perceiving the growing unrest, continued:
"I know it sounds scary. For generations, these walls have been our only security. But they've also been our prison. It's ti we dare to dream of sothing bigger."
He paused, allowing his words to sink into the audience. His action, curiously similar to that of a certain summoner to whom he lent his armor for a while.
"It won't be easy... But if we work together, if we share our knowledge and resources, we can achieve it."
Elio looked around observing the people's reactions. He saw fear on so faces, hope on others, and a mixture of both on most.
"From today, each of you will have a voice in the decisions that affect our future. We will no longer be governed by fear and secrets. Together, we will build a society where everyone has the opportunity to grow, to learn, to reach their full potential."
A soldier in the crowd raised his voice: "What about the levels? The invocations?"
Elio nodded. "My intention is for everyone to have access to information. I'll share what I know, and together we'll discover the secrets that still await us."
"What will happen to the privileged families? To those who supported the founder?"
The founder's soldiers, who were taken as hostages, didn't feel a great attachnt to their forr contractor, but they felt nervous about the question.
Elio took a mont to consider his answer. "I understand there are wounds and resentnts. But if we want to move forward, we must do it united. Those who are willing to work for the common good will be welco, regardless of their past."
Reactions to these words were mixed. So nodded in approval, while others seed skeptical.
"I know you have more questions, more doubts. And we'll address them all, together. For now, I ask you to carry this ssage to every corner of the city. The era of fear has ended. The era of shared progress begins."
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