Chapter 1437: Decision

One of the most shocking stories Khan had ever heard reached his ears, confusing him so much that he was unsure how to feel about it.

Khan had picked up clues during the previous short interactions, but the whole truth turned out to be far more surprising than he could have ever predicted.

To make things worse, Khan didn’t know what he found more shocking. Rodney hadn’t only saved George’s life twice. He also seemed to be serious about Monica.

Normally, Khan would dismiss that as Rodney’s plotting. He was that kind of asset in the end, capable but extremely annoying, which Khan would usually straighten out with one of his threats.

However, the details George disclosed went against that bias. For all the loud, annoying words, Rodney truly seemed to value George’s life more than his own and did indeed harbor genuine feelings for Monica.

Those revelations forced Khan to consider the topic seriously. Theoretically, Monica was her own woman, and Khan couldn’t have anything to say in her life anymore. Yet, she remained one of the closest people to his heart, so he wanted what was best for her.

“Did he really say that you have more to lose?” Khan couldn’t help but ask.

“I’m as shocked as you are,” George nodded.

“And what about that spell with Monica’s face?” Khan questioned. “Are you sure you weren’t drunk?”

“I wish I were drunk now,” George sighed. “It would be easier to process all this.”

Khan mimicked George’s sigh as memories inevitably rose through his brain.

Rodney’s sins boiled down to his actions on Nitis and Milia 222. He had betrayed the Niqols during the worst crisis they had ever faced, attempting to kill Khan in the process, only to try to do the same in the lawless zone.

Still, the problem with Nitis wasn’t really about Rodney’s actions but with his reactions. Falling prey to that monster’s hypnotic ability hadn’t been his fault. That lay with how he had tried to cover his tracks to salvage his reputation.

Yet, Nitis was over ten years ago. The human training camp there only had elite recruits, but recruits nonetheless. Almost everyone was a clueless kid with no real experience in crises. What had happened remained bad, but people made all kinds of mistakes when they panicked.

As for the attempted murder on Milia 222, it was undoubtedly bad, but who hadn’t tried that? Khan’s own family had plotted to remove him from the picture, only to become the greatest sponsor behind his current position. It honestly was something Khan could look past quite easily, especially since proper changes in character seemed to have happened.

At the end of the day, if Raymond Cobsend could become an ally, anyone could.

“I really don’t want to think about this,” Khan groaned, pushing those thoughts aside. “It’s Monica’s decision to make, if my wife doesn’t kill either of them first.”

“My wife,” George repeated, wanting to mock Khan, only to find him smirking proudly at him, appearing barely able to contain his happiness.

“Could you be more obvious?” George ended up cursing. “What am I even saying? You were ready to tie the knot as a kid already.”

“You still got married before me,” Khan pointed out.

“But I have the decency to complain about it,” George snorted, spreading his arms to highlight his torn shirt. “Look at how heroic I have to act to get some proper under-the-sheets action and drink in peace.”

Khan’s glowing eyes darted up and down, inspecting George’s white shirt, but his gaze obviously went far deeper than that.

Rodney had been the most shocking detail in George’s story, but Khan didn’t ignore the additional data about the Scarlet Eyes’ army’s structure and prowess.

George’s conclusions aligned with Khan’s, creating quite the complete picture, but something else stood out, too. George had been able to fight the True Chaos’ warriors on equal footing while being on the fifth level. His great potential was evident for everyone to see.

“Have you looked into your evolution yet?” Khan wondered, moving to more serious topics. “With me and Liiza here, yours should be quite smooth.”

Khan felt quite confident in that. George already was an elite among elites, so he would probably be able to step into the evolved realm on his own, without needing external help.

However, Khan was now a different kind of entity, something far superior to what he had once been. He knew he could affect other people’s evolutions to some extent, removing certain dangers.

Still, what would elate most soldiers had the opposite effect on George. He diverted his gaze, looking at the white sand under him, a mixture of shame, internal conflict, and resolve invading his expression.

“If the sword becomes my whole life,” George muttered, “If I become a sword, what will happen to my family?”

Khan didn’t need additional questions to understand George. He was at a crossroads, the same crossroads almost every warrior had to face before considering the evolution.

That very crossroads was what had forced Monica to break up with Khan. It was what had made the ten-year separation between Khan and Liiza necessary, and George hesitated to pay the price it demanded.

Actually, the hesitation was long gone. Khan could read on George’s face how he had already made up his mind.

“Okay,” Khan said, glancing at the horizon. “No need to evolve. I’ll take care of things.”

“I’m sorry, Khan,” George sighed. “I’m not like you. I have a choice.”

“It’s not like you were a crucial part of my battle strategy anyway,” Khan reassured, shrugging his shoulders. “I mean, you are good, but you are more of a family man than a swordsman now.”

“Ouch,” George complained. “I know you are jealous I picked Anita over you, but that was low.”

Both Khan and George ended up chuckling, shaking their heads, restoring their vague inspection of the mess in the distance and the horizon past it. Still, Khan felt the need to add something while the serious mood had yet to wane.

“I would have chosen this even if my life were different,” Khan revealed, raising a hand to release a tinge of purple-red mana. “I enjoy this too much not to pursue it.”

George spotted details he hadn’t seen on Khan’s face since his first flights with Snow while he inspected his own mana. The scene deepened George’s earlier conclusion, broadening a genuine smile.

“Took you long enough,” George jokingly scolded.

“What?” Khan frowned, dismissing his mana and spreading his arms. “Did everyone but me know about this?”

“You have always been quite expressive,” George commented.

“I was not!” Khan scoffed, throwing his head back to look at the sky. “I used to be such a good liar.”

“Even Martha disagrees with that,” George teased.

“What is she even doing these days?” Khan wondered. “Please, tell me that at least she remained normal.”

“I guess training with Scalqa, Ef’i, and Thilku is normal for your standards,” George responded, leading to more stories Khan had missed out on while he had been busy with his crazy life.