Located upon one of topmost floors of the Royal Palace, the observation deck could easily accommodate upwards of a hundred people. Under the present circumstances, it was considered the safest place for the royal family to be. To reach it, an assassin would have get past the multitude of knights guarding the floors below.

Youji stood at the edge of the observation deck, gazing upon General Hyperion's awe-inspiring army. Behind him were the royal family, Raizen, and half a dozen nobles. The army was comprised of tens of thousands of silver knights, organized in rows. Knights armed with long pikes and tall shields occupied the front rows. They held their shields edge-to-edge, forming a metal wall. Behind them were the archers, equipped with longbows. Further back were the cavalrymen, who were mounted on powerful war horses. The remaining infantry stood at the back of the army.

He couldn’t shake off a feeling of uneasiness in his chest. The logical part of his brain was telling him that the royal family was perfectly safe up here. There was no way for Hupo to reach them. To do so, Hupo would have to defeat General Hyperion’s army. No man could possibly do such a thing. Even the strongest of warriors would succumb to exhaustion, when up against such overwhelming numbers. But his emotions were warning him of impending danger.

Raizen approached Youji's side. "What a magnificent sight, seeing all those people lined up neatly in rows. Almost makes me want to shed a tear."

"What are you getting at?"

"It's a sight almost worthy of applause. That is, if I didn't know they were all gathered to murder one man."

"That man wants to take the prince's life."

"You can hardly fault him for seeking justice for himself and his workers."

Youji’s brows drew together. "Is that what this is about?"

"What kind of a king would the prince become, if he gets away with this?

"A living one."

"If living is all that is required of a ruler these days, then sign me up." Raizen raised his hand.

"Choose your words carefully. What you're saying is tantamount to treason."

"I was thinking, since we're all going to die today anyway, why not?" Raizen shrugged his shoulders.

"What are you talking about?"

"Well, do you think Hupo is stupid?"

“Of course not.”

"Do you think he's crazy?"

"Not at all."

Raizen sighed. "Then we're screwed."

"What?"

Raizen crossed his arms. "Say, if you and I were to fight that army down there together, how many knights do you think we could take out?"

"That'll never happen."

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

Raizen smiled. "Humor me."

Youji held up three fingers.

"Three thousand? Yes, that sounds about right." Raizen nodded. "What if we were to fight separately?"

After having fought many battles together, Youji knew full well how lethal Raizen's magic was. Raizen could incinerate dozens of men at once with his [Lightning Barrage] spell. But the number of times he could cast it was limited to the amount of mana he had.

"At most, a thousand each."

"Why the much lower number?"

"Our combined strength is much greater than the sum of our individual strength. By fighting together, we can make up for each other's weaknesses and watch each other's backs."

"Precisely. Now let us consider Hupo's case. His companion is an extremely powerful mage. Wouldn't it make the most sense for him to bring her along?"

"Yes, it would."

"Then why didn't he? According to General Hyperion’s messenger, Hupo came alone.”

"I don't know."

"I think you do."

Youji's eyes widened. "No... it cannot be... that's impossible."

Raizen leaned toward him. "Is it?"

"He doesn't need her."

"Exactly. Like I said, we're screwed."

***

His whole body glowed a bright white, as if he had become pure energy. None of the knights could take their eyes from what appeared to be the embodiment of absolute purity. They temporarily forgot where they were, lost in the white glow's celestial beauty. If one were to imagine what god would look like if he revealed himself to mortals, Hupo’s appearance would approach that image - a perfect being, so pure that any mortal would be drawn to its magnificence.

And then, from his sword, a colossal beam of erratic red energy exploded into the sky. It was as if all the anger in the world had been gathered and given physical form. The red blade of energy had a serrated, volatile appearance. It produced a screeching noise, as if the air itself was screaming in agony from being torn asunder. Continuing to grow in size, it shot ever further into the sky.

Screams and cries of despair broke out among the knights. They wondered what they had done to incur the wrath of god. Anything the blade touched would surely be destroyed.

General Hyperion shouted orders to release arrows. His desperate voice brought many of the knights back to their senses. The archers did as they were told, hoping that, somehow, their leader would lead them to salvation. They released enough arrows to blanket the sky.

***

Hupo tightened his grip around his katana. Intense heat emanated from its massive blade of red energy. Without his armor, he wouldn’t have been able to endure it. Shaking violently, his katana was becoming increasingly difficult to control. It felt like it could thrash out of his sore hands at any moment. Since coming to this world, this was the first time he’d felt physically tired. At last, he had found his body’s limit.

The army unleashed a torrent of arrows toward him. As the arrows closed in, his breathing and heartbeat remained steady. Most people would be panicking in his situation. But Hupo was not ‘most people.’ He maintained his stance even as thousands of arrows rained down on him. They clanged against his armor and bounced off harmlessly. Even arrows that hit the openings in his mask were deflected. He had buffed his defensive stats with [Armored Body] beforehand, so his defense was so high that low level attacks had no effect on him.

When the arrows stopped falling, he found himself in a field of sticks. He heard galloping in the distance and saw the army's cavalry charging toward him. But they were too late. His skill’s thirty second activation time had passed. He stepped forward, clenched his teeth, and prepared to swing his katana. Then he paused.

[Blade of God], the attack he was about to use, was a Divine Skill. Divine Skills were incomparably more powerful than conventional ones and could only be used once every thirty hours. They were weapons of mass destruction. With a single move, he could wipe out the entire army of knights in front of him. But he was reluctant to do so.

Is the price of justice too high? If I strike them down, then I’ll soil my hands with the blood of tens of thousands of lives. I’ll also ruin countless families, turning wives into widows and children into orphans. Can I possibly bear such a burden?

The ground trembled and the galloping became louder, as the cavalry approached him. They’d reach him in less than ten seconds.

When he closed his eyes, a vivid image of Easton’s mutilated face flashed in his mind.

I made a promise. There will be justice.

He took a deep breath, opened his eyes, and swung his katana with all his might.