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CHAPTER 293 Defiance and Consequences
297 AC
POV THIRD PERSON
Ulf gripped his axe tightly and readied for a final strike to end Toruin's life. He charged at him, fueled by adrenaline and the heat of battle. As he raised his axe for the final, fatal blow, a sudden crackling of energy filled the air.
With a deafening roar, a bolt of lightning streaked down from the heavens, striking the ground between the two combatants with blinding intensity. The force of the lightning strike stopped Ulf on his track. Toruin, still recovering from his defeat, covered his eyes in bewilderment as the bolt of lightning illuminated the camp.
Standing amidst the crackling energy, his presence commanding and authoritative, was Aermir, the Druid of the Old Gods. His eyes blazed with power as he surveyed the scene before him, his expression stern. His wooden old man mask shows an angry face.
"Enough!" he boomed, his voice bellowing like the very thunder that struck the ground. "What is this madness?!"
Ulf lowered his axe and kneeled before him. Toruin, still on the ground, eyed the Druid warily, his expression a mixture of fear, resignation, and a little bit of defiance.
Aermir's gaze swept over the two warriors, his expression stern as he addressed them both. "You are both warriors of great skill and strength. What is the reason you desire each other's life?"
While kneeling, Ulf said, "Oh, Druid! He broke his vow and disobeyed your orders to wait for you. He and some other chiefs were going to attack the Strongsong castle without your orders. I was just trying to keep the army together by eliminating dissident elements among us."
After some explanation, Aermir understood what was happening. Before he was gone, he had told them they wouldn't be discovered if they stayed in the designated area, and Aermir meant this. The Vale was searching for them in the wrong place.
The thousand men he had detached before coming here was the best thing he did. That thousand-man force kept a 30-40 thousand-men army busy by pulling them on a wild goose chase on the other side of the Vale.
As Aermir surveyed the scene before him, he realized that a swift and decisive punishment was necessary to maintain order within the ranks of the mountain clans. However, he also understood the delicate balance that needed to be maintained in order to prevent further discord among the warriors.
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He had to punish Toruin for disobeying him, but he didn't want to kill the chief of a clan and create friction in the middle of a campaign. After deliberating for a moment, Aermir decided on a punishment that would serve as a stern reminder of the consequences of disobedience without causing permanent harm to Toruin or exacerbating tensions within the clans.
With a solemn expression, Aermir addressed the assembled warriors, his voice carrying the weight of authority. "Toruin, you will be punished as an oathbreaker for your defiance and reckless behavior. I have the right to take your life as the holder of this oath. But I am going to give you a chance. You have three options: face me in a battle, don't worry, I will not use magic. The second option is to take three punches from me, or you can go on a pilgrimage to the Temple of Old Gods and ask for their forgiveness as an oathbreaker. If you choose the first two options and fail, you will be stripped of your title as chief and demoted to the rank of a common warrior. You will serve under Ulf, following his commands and obeying his every order without question."
Toruin looked shocked, "You... You cannot do this! I am not your servant. You cannot punish me like a king." Aermir buffed himself and used the transmorpation spell to boost his body. He dashed like a shadowcat, grabbed Toruin by his neck, and then lifted him into the air. "My dear chiefs, it looks like some of you are in a grave mistake. I might not be your king, but in this war, you all gave your words in front of the Old Gods; breaking this promise means spitting on the face of the Old Gods. I have every right to take your lives or punish you as I see fit."
He released the suffocating Toruin and continued, "The only reason I am not killing you is to show respect to your clans. Even though you do not show me any respect, I will be showing respect to your ranks as the chief and let you choose your punishment. "
...
For an hour or more, the chiefs who took Toriun's side pleaded for a lenient punishment for him. Aermir just sat there and listened to their self-absorbed reasons and excuses. As he listened to them, he was shocked about the mountain clans that took that oath to follow him and just how arrogant they had become after accomplishing only one victory over Vale's leftover army.
Toruin knew he couldn't take three hits from this monster, let alone beat him. He looked toward the other clans and looked for any kind of help, "Do you think I will be the last one being punished like this and humiliated? In time, he is going to turn every last one of you into his servants as he did to the Moon Brothers. When did a mortal's words become the words of the Old Gods?"
His transformation had ended, and his magic had returned, so Aermir summoned tree roots from the ground and started to wrap Toruin in a tight squeeze. "The moment they bestowed me with those powers and gave me the mission to save this planet. Do you think you can comprehend their thinking with your tiny brain?" His voice started to fill with more mana; the chiefs and the warriors around them started to feel this power even in their bones. They felt like they were being crushed by an invisible tsunami.
"Who are you to question my legitimacy? I am the one who pulled you all from the mud you call life! I am the one who provided you with the first real victory you had against the Vale in thousands of years! I AM THE ONE WHO WILL GIVE YOU A REAL LIFE!" As Aermir spoke, they could hear lightning strikes around the camp; it was as if nature itself was raging with the Druid.
Aermir waved his hand, and the powerful winds uprooted the tent and caused it to fly away. Now, all the chiefs and warriors were in front of the army out in the open. Aermir raised his voice to its limit and continued, "I am the one who will provide you with a real homeland where you can live without feeling the boot of the Vale hover on top of your head. What did you provide to your clans that is worth so much other than empty pride that you dare to stand in front of me and question me!"
As Aermir raged the army, the chiefs started to bow down in front of him. The chiefs that stood with Toruin in defiance of Druid's order in their foolish arrogance realized who they were messing with once again. Because Aermir was showing them respect and taking their opinion into consideration, those idiots thought they had some real importance in front of Aermir.
This was a good lesson to Aermir that too much benevolence was a thing; he had to put people in their place once in a while, or their ego and self-importance would know no bonds in growing.