Dark Warlock in the Apocalypse-Chapter 224 : Minor incident

"There was a minor incident, but let's resume the meeting," Damian said calmly.

The alliance members, however, could only lower their heads in silence. The bloodstain on the floor, left by the man who had been their comrade just moments ago, was still fresh. Despite the chilling scene, no one dared to speak.

Adrian couldn't help but chuckle bitterly at the sight.

'Has there ever been a meeting this quiet before?' he thought to himself.

Normally, the alliance members were like bickering roosters, constantly taunting each other, playing mind games, and spouting nonsense. But today, they sat in total silence, subdued like lambs. Of course, it wasn't surprising—if they didn't behave, someone else's head might get smashed in, just like their former comrade.

'Disgusting cowards,' Adrian thought with disdain. They had rebelled against a leader who had abandoned his authority to approach them sincerely, but now, they were quick to submit to an outsider who threatened them with violence and bloodshed. Even though part of him felt they deserved it, Adrian couldn't help but feel a wave of exhaustion. What was the point of all the effort he had put into building the alliance?

His thoughts were interrupted by Damian's voice.

"Adrian, it's time to continue the meeting," Damian said, his voice calm but firm.

"Oh, right," Adrian muttered, realizing that he was supposed to be leading the session.

As he pulled himself together and prepared to proceed with the meeting as usual, a thought suddenly crossed his mind.

'Wait a minute… these guys can't say anything no matter what I say now, can they?'

A grin spread across Adrian's face. He relaxed his posture and spoke in a more casual, almost mocking tone.

"Alright, the first item on the agenda is deciding the order for reclaiming your territories. You all seemed so eager just a few days ago. I assume none of you have already made a decision, right?"

The alliance members exchanged nervous glances but avoided making eye contact. A few days ago, they had been eager to reclaim their territories and assert their rights. But now, with Justin sitting right next to them, things were different.

'If I volunteer now, that monster will follow me for sure. Who'd be crazy enough to do that?'

'And what will he do when he gets there? For all I know, I could be the first sacrifice.'

'I'll just wait. Let someone else go first.'

The second-wave migrants were known to be weak and disorganized. If the alliance members marched out right now, they could easily retake their territories. Damian and Adrian knew this as well. But excuses could always be made, and the alliance members had no intention of taking the risk.

'No matter how terrifying Justin is, old habits die hard. They can't force us out of here.'

'We'll stall as long as possible and figure things out later.'

Having decided on this course of action, the alliance members sat back and prepared to avoid any responsibility. Each of them had a set of excuses ready if their name was called.

'Idiots. I know exactly what you're thinking,' Adrian thought, clicking his tongue in disgust.

He realized that no matter who he called first, the response would be the same. So, instead of playing into their expectations, he decided to throw a curveball.

"No one seems ready, huh? What should we do then? At this rate, we'll be waiting forever," Adrian said, keeping his tone neutral.

At that moment, Justin, who had been sitting quietly up until now, stood up from his chair.

"Wait? Why would I wait?" he asked, his expression cold and amused.

"If I say we're going, we're going. Just decide the order," he said, his tone leaving no room for negotiation.

The room fell into stunned silence.

"Good. Looks like we've got the order sorted," Justin said, smiling with satisfaction.

The alliance members, however, were far from pleased. Despite all their attempts to avoid responsibility, the order for the expeditions had been decided in the simplest way possible—by drawing lots.

'Damn it, I thought they'd at least ask for our input.'

'They just wrote our names down and drew lines however they wanted!'

None of the alliance members had participated in the process. Their names had been written down, the lots drawn, and the decision made—all without their involvement. And once it was done, there was no room for objections. The order had been decided, and Justin had made it clear that they had better be prepared when their time came.

'If they were going to do this, they might as well have had us draw lots ourselves!'

'At least then I wouldn't feel so cheated!'

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The sound of someone grinding their teeth echoed through the room, causing Justin to turn his sharp gaze toward the group.

"Sounds like someone's unhappy. If you've got a problem, speak up. I'll personally kill you myself," Justin said, his tone ice-cold.

"N-No, there's no problem!"

"None at all!"

"Are you sure? Go ahead, speak up. I'm not like your leader. I'll make it quick and painless," Justin added, smiling wickedly as he pointed his finger at the alliance members.

Derek and Ethan, who had been standing behind Justin, began to toy with their weapons, making it clear they were ready for action. Meanwhile, Fafnir's glowing eyes continued to watch them from outside the window, adding to the tension.

Surrounded by pressure from all sides, the alliance members frantically shook their heads, their faces pale with fear.

"I-I swear, we have no complaints!"

"Please, believe us! We mean it!"

"Really? That's too bad. I was hoping to make an example out of someone," Justin said, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

Even Adrian, who had been silently mocking the alliance members, was momentarily speechless. Was Justin really so blunt and bold? Shouldn't he at least sugarcoat things a little?

But Justin didn't care about the shocked looks around him.

"Alright then, get lost. Oh, and whoever's first on the list better be ready within the next hour. If you're not, I'll kill you on the spot," he said casually, his eyes gleaming with deadly intent.

Despite Justin's tyrannical behavior, the alliance members trembled as they left the meeting room, retreating backwards as if following the etiquette of a historical drama. They clearly didn't want to expose their backs to him.

"Well, then…" Justin's cold demeanor faded once the alliance members had gone, replaced by a faint smile. He turned to Damian, who had been silent throughout the ordeal.

"Are you satisfied now, you kind-hearted fool?" Justin asked with a smirk.

Everyone left in the room blinked at Justin's words, except for Damian. Even Adrian, Damian's loyal aide, looked confused. As for Damian himself, he gave a bitter smile in response.

"People might misunderstand if they hear you. I didn't orchestrate this situation," Damian said, his voice calm.

"Half of it was intentional, wasn't it? You set things up so that no one would get killed, but it was still a deliberate show of force," Justin retorted with a knowing look.

Adrian's eyes widened in shock, turning to Damian for confirmation. Seeing his aide's questioning gaze, Damian sighed and looked away.

"You're not entirely wrong. The original plan was quite different from what we have now. This situation was a result of improvisation after you arrived," Damian explained, his voice still level.

Justin smirked. "I figured as much. I only realized it after talking to Grayson."

"You figured all that out from such limited information? Grayson didn't seem to have any idea what my intentions were," Damian responded, raising an eyebrow.

"Once you know your personality and the nature of pioneers, it's easy to guess," Justin replied, meeting Damian's gaze.

Realizing there was no point in hiding his true intentions, Damian remained silent as Justin asked directly,

"You were planning to let them all go independent, weren't you?"

"Yes, every single one of them," Damian admitted without hesitation.

"What!?"

"Huh..."

Damian's calm response sent shockwaves through the room. Not only were his closest aides stunned, but Derek and Ethan were equally shocked. It was understandable—after all, it was as if the leader himself was openly supporting rebellion.

Derek, unable to contain his curiosity, asked,

"I can't understand your reasoning at all. Why would you do something like that? It's like you're tightening the noose around your own neck."

"It's the opposite. If I had tried to hold on to them, it would have led to bloodshed. Letting them go was the best course of action to prevent that," Damian explained calmly.

"Were there signs of rebellion?" Derek asked again.

"It wouldn't have gone that far. They don't like taking big risks. It would've been more like a violent protest than an actual rebellion," Damian clarified with a bitter laugh.

Justin observed silently, analyzing Damian's responses. He could see that Damian had lost control of the situation a long time ago, even if the man was trying to save face now.

"As you can see, I've lost my leadership," Damian continued, glancing around at the others. "Even if I switched to a strict, authoritarian approach, it wouldn't change the way they see me. And honestly, I didn't want to be that kind of leader anyway."

"So, even if they kept pushing for independence, if you kept refusing, things would escalate until someone got hurt, is that it?" Justin asked, leaning back, his expression neutral but his words sharp.

"Yes. They'd think they could get away with that when it comes to me," Damian admitted.

Justin knew all too well the power of perception. People often tolerated violence from someone stronger, but they couldn't stand being disrespected by someone weaker. When people thought someone was weak, they pushed their limits, often ending in bloodshed.

"If I wanted to change the way they saw me, I would have had to shed blood," Damian explained, "but I decided that letting them go was the better option. At least that way, there wouldn't be any internal betrayals."

Derek still seemed unsure.

"Doesn't it make more sense to keep them under control, even if it means dealing with their schemes? Once they're independent, they might become outright enemies and start a war."

"That might have been true... if it weren't for this," Damian said, pulling a scroll from his inventory.

Ethan recognized it immediately.

"A Guardian Summoning Scroll!"

"Yes, it's the one Justin gave me. Everyone knew I had it, but I've kept it unused and safely stored," Damian replied.

"Why didn't you use it earlier? There's nowhere else in your territory to invest in besides here," Ethan asked, perplexed.

"If I had used it earlier, they wouldn't have been satisfied with independence. They would have tried to take over the entire territory. The chances of defeating them would've been slim," Damian explained.

"But by holding onto it, it makes it harder for them to betray you. If the owner of the scroll dies, the items in their inventory disappear with them," Justin pointed out with a grin.

Damian nodded, acknowledging the truth in Justin's words.

"Exactly. I was hoping they would give up on independence entirely. But once the second great migration occurred, their ambitions became impossible to hide."

"Well, you can't blame them for that. The faction grew larger, and suddenly civilians fell into their laps. Of course they'd want more power," Justin said, his eyes gleaming with understanding.

If it had been Justin in Damian's position, they wouldn't have dared to make such a move. But Damian, having been perceived as a soft target, had no choice but to let it happen. Justin didn't say it out loud, but it was clear to him that Damian's position was much weaker than he had originally thought.

"You're right. This is all because of my mistakes. But that's why I had to avoid bloodshed," Damian said, his voice heavy with regret. "Since I caused the division, any violence that results from it is ultimately my responsibility."

With the alliance fractured, Justin knew there was only one way to prevent war: divide the factions into groups with roughly equal power, ensuring that none could overpower the others. And before that balance was broken, they needed to be reunited—without a single drop of blood spilled.

"No matter how evenly you divide the forces, it's only a temporary solution. Eventually, someone will make a mistake or get lucky, and the balance will be broken. Especially with quests out there that have such a massive impact," Damian said, sighing.

Justin remained silent, understanding the gravity of the situation. He knew that before the balance could be shattered, someone needed to reunite the factions—not through battle, but by overwhelming them with such power that they wouldn't dare challenge it.

It wasn't something Damian could do himself, but fortunately for him, Justin was there, and Justin was more than capable of showing that kind of power.