Chapter 83: What say you?! (1/2)
”Listen up, everyone!” Standing atop a small, wooden stage specially prepared for the occasion, Ation did his best to hype the entrance of the star of the show. ”Regarding our situation, I think everyone is already aware. While it's not certain yet, all the evidence proves that we were forced against the natural flow of time!”
Shouting to the gathering of the entire Gener clan that was affected by the fissure in the world's structure, Ation tightened clenched his jaws. Even for him, it wasn't easy to openly confirm everyone's greatest worry.
”As such, we are back in the world where great spirits have yet to regain their freedom!” Plunging the mood of the entire crowd to the lowest it could get, Ation pursed his lips again. Only after the murmur of whispers and small shouts of shock died down, did the high officer of the clan offer some hope.
”That's why, our great leader and commander, will now address the current direction of our clan.” Even though Al could handle doing the entire thing by himself, by splitting the bad and good messages and using different people to convey it, the crowd already reacted in a different way as to what Ation initially expected.
'It's hard to admit, but their methods are actually quite smart…' Casting a quick glance at the duo observing the events from the back, Ation shook his head. Walking down the stage, he noticed Al's movement… just a bit too late to react.
”You did a good job.” Smacking his loyal friend in the back, Al smiled when he saw air escaping from Ation's mouth. As brutal as this expression of friendly skinship was, there was a reason behind this aggressive affirmation. ”Now let me do the rest.”
Jumping on top of the stage, Al looked down at the massive crowd gathered below. 'To think that so many went through those fissures,' not even attempting to count the heads of his people, Al took a breath before staring right ahead.
”Brothers, sisters. I'm not here to talk about what happened. That I don't really know yet.” Hiding the vengeful spirit of annoyance deep in his soul, Al focused on the words he was supposed to say. 'Acting like a marionette feels awful, but I guess that's the best solution for now.' Despite all the doubts the leader of the Gener clan had about this entire situation, he knew just how important it was to keep the unity of the clan right now.
Even if he was about to break the news that would shock all his brethren.
”What I know though, is that whining and complaining about our situation won't change a thing. There is one thing that might do just that thought.” Releasing an exhausted sigh, Al gestured at two of his personal guards.
With a little bit of struggling, two of the burly men carried the leader of the enemy clan to the stage. 'He fought fiercely, but when he realized what was going on around…' Looking at the man, Al involuntarily squinted his eyes. 'Damn those guys, if they didn't ask about him…' Tightening his lips a bit, Al swallowed all his grief along with his saliva.
”Right now, we are back to the world where we are oppressed. What might be even worse, we might be in times before our clan appeared, before even the oldest of our legends came to be.” Shaking his head for a moment, Al lowered it down. Pressured by the responsibility of his decision, even such a great man could waver.
”Brothers, sisters…” Supporting his forehead with his hand, Al attempted to break free from his burden. ”Right now, those guys are our closest family in the entire world. I believe we can no longer afford to naively slaughter each other for some scraps of land… Especially when all the land around is no longer ours for grab.”
Pulling out his knife, Al raised his head. Turning to the side, he approached the man bound with thick ropes. Somewhere in his middle twenties, the leader of the enemy clan didn't have the aura of a seasoned warrior… Because a different type of air surrounded him.
Then, AL cut the man's ropes, setting him free.
”This man is not even an officer. He just happened to assume that role right before we appeared in this world.” As little as everyone knew about this specific guy, just the exploit of raising in the ranks through honest effort and dedication was enough to win a bit of sympathy in the eyes of Al's clansmen.
”Right now, he is of the highest rank among all our enemies that survived the battle. He is also the one who helped us to bring an end to that pointless hostility.” Speaking only the facts about the man's action, Al distanced himself a bit to give the man some space. Being just as clueless about the entire scene as everybody watching from below, his clear eyes constantly followed each of Al's movements.
”I'm not asking anyone to forget about all the blood our clans spilled against each other.” Stepping forward, Al's tone changed a bit. ”I'm not asking anyone to love them as your kin either. We don't need to even like each other.” Lowering his head, Al took a breath to calm himself down.