Chapter 521: The Last Warning ( 521 )
As the ruins of the town came into view, Javier narrowed his eyes.
He raised a hand calmly.
âBuddy, stop.â
Cuquawked.
Buddy halted mid-step.
Ahead lay the broken gate of the halfling-occupied dwarven town, now a half-burning shell soaked in ash, blood, and silence.
âAdvance. Surround. No escape.â
The five thousand puppet knights moved instantly.
With synchronized precision, they surged forward, splitting into formations.
Left flank. Right flank. Rear intercept.
Armor clanked.
Weapons drawn.
Shields up.
The sound of their march was thunder on stone.
In less than a minute, the entire town was surrounded.
Not a single exit left unguarded.
From above, it looked like a white ring of death closing around the heart of a defeated town.
Javier remained at the center, mounted calmly on Buddy.
His cloak fluttered behind him, his expression cold.
Buddy began to move again, slow and steady.
Several puppet knights marched around him, shields raised, weapons at the ready.
At the center of them all,
Javier sat tall, cloak swaying behind him.
Dignified.
Commanding.
From the far side of the town, the dwarven boy from before peered out behind a crumbling wall, his hands still supporting his injured mother.
He saw the knights.
The banner.
The strange bird mount.
His heart jumped.
âHumansâŠ?â he whispered.
He instinctively started pulling his mother back toward the shadows, trying to hide her from the approaching danger.
But thenâ
He froze.
His body tensed as heavy footsteps echoed behind him, the ground trembling softly under the weight of whoever was coming closer.
Big boots ground on the stone.
He slowly turned his head, heart pounding with fear.
Standing right behind him was a huge knight in shining white armor that gleamed like a mirror in the broken sunlight. His helmet was perfectly polished, reflecting the boyâs trembling face. A sword was stuck into the ground beside him, tall and silent.
The boy couldnât speak.
Couldnât run.
He just stared.
Frozen with fear.
Javier didnât say anything.
He simply looked straight at the boyâthe silence hanging heavy and cold between them.
Then, without a sound, Javier climbed down from Buddyâs back, moving quietly and carefully.
His boots touched the cracked road gently but with purpose.
Surrounded by his puppet knights, Javier stood stillâcalm and steady, his cloak fluttering gently in the cold wind blowing through the ruined street.
His face stayed serious and emotionless.
But his presence was overwhelming.
He reached into his magic storage,holding a portable magic speaker designed to project his voice far and wide.
He brought it close to his lips.
Breathe in.
Thenâ
His voice rang out loud, clear, and firm, cutting through the silence like a sharp blade.
âThis is Javier De Armand from the Armand Region.â
âYour city is surrounded.â
âEveryone hidingâcome out now.
Or you will receive no mercy.â
His words echoed through the broken remains of the town, bouncing off broken walls and burnt-out buildings.
Javier held the speaker close again, his voice spreading over every cracked window, cellar, and shattered wall.
âThis is your last warning.â
His tone turned colder and heavier.
The wind carried his chilling words to every corner of the town.
âAnyone who refuses to come out after this warningâand is found by my armyâwill be killed.â
No stutter.
No hesitation.
âAnyone who comes outâŠ
will be given food.â
He slowly lowered the speaker.
Around him, five thousand knights stood ready.
The wind blew softly across the scorched stones.
The towering knight in shining white armor behind the boy remained still, but the tension in the air didnât fade.
The dwarven boy sobbed quietly.
He clutched his motherâs hand tightly.
His small legs trembling.
His shoulders shaking.
He looked at the army surrounding himâat the black banner with the golden emblem, at the huge bird mount.
And finallyâhe looked at the one who stood at the center of it all.
Javier.
The boy wiped his face, gathering what little courage he had left.
Slowly, he started walking.
Step by step across the open, ruined street.
Past the still-burning wreckage.
Past the fallen bodies of halfling soldiers.
Until he stood before the man who had ended everything.
Then, without a word, he knelt.
Bowed low, forehead touching the ground.
His voice cracked.
âPlease⊠spare us.â
Javier stared down at him.
Unmoving.
Then he spokeâhis voice calm but loud enough to be heard.
âDo I look like a bad person to you?â
The boy froze.
âOr have you never heard of Armand?â
Javier looked down at the boy, his eyes sharp, his tone edged with steel.
âOr do you think Iâm the same as these trash?â
He motioned lightly toward the burning corpses of the halfling soldiers.
The boy shook his head franticallyâ
but no words came out.
Javier stepped forward, casting a long shadow over the kneeling child.
âNow tell me, boy,â
his tone dropping lower.
âWhere are the others hiding?
The ones still watching from the dark?
The ones who heard my voice and still didnât come out?â
The boy opened his mouth.
Then closed it again.
He couldnât answer.
Tears welled in his eyes.
Javierâs gaze didnât waver.
âLet me warn you, boy,â
his voice sharpening like a blade.
âI have tracking magic.
Iâm just too lazy to use it.â
âBut if I do use itâŠâ
He uttered each word slowly.
âAnd I find them hidingâ
no mercy will be given.â
The boy trembled, overwhelmed by the weight of the threat.
âNowâŠ
bring your mother here.â
The boyâs eyes widened with fear, panic filling his face.
âP-PleaseâŠâ
he begged desperately, tears falling down his cheeks.
His hands trembled as he pleaded, voice cracking with worry.
âDonât hurt herâplease, Iâll do anything⊠just donât hurt her!â
He sounded like he was about to break apart from stress and fear.
âPlease⊠Iâm begging youâŠâ
But that only made Javierâs face darken instantly.
A sudden burst of magic surrounded himâ
and in the next secondâ
His aura exploded outward like a loud explosion.
The ground beneath them shook wildly.
The air felt thick and heavy, like it was hard to breathe.
An invisible force swept through the whole town, like a huge wave crushing everything in its path.
His face turned very seriousâno smile, no anger, just pure fury.
âI saidâŠâ
he growled in a low, steady voice, full of anger.
âBring your mother here.â
Suddenly, gravity itself seemed to pull everything downward.
Stones cracked and broke apart.
Beams and debris snapped with a loud noise under the intense pressure.
Everyone hidingâthose inside cellars, behind walls, or under floorsâfelt it all.
They couldnât breathe.
They couldnât move.
They couldnât even lift a finger.
Their bodies pressed down into the ground, helpless under how angry Javier was.
Slowly, Javier released his aura.
The heavy pressure disappeared just as suddenly as it had come.
And the heavy weight that held all the hidden people to the ground was gone.
The boy fell to his knees, gasping for air, shaking wildly.
Behind him, not far off, his mother shuddered and finally moved again.
She struggled to stand, legs trembling, with a look of fear on her face.
She slowly came toward Javier, weak and afraid.
âPlease⊠donât hurt my child,â she begged shakily.
âIâm sorry for what he did. Iâll do anything you want. Just⊠donât hurt him.â
Javier stayed silent.
He didnât say a word.
His face was cold and unreadable, like a statue.
He raised his hand slowly.
Pointing his palm at them.
A flash of green light burst out in an instant.
Both the mother and the boy were glowing brightly.
Cuts and bruises disappeared.
Exhaustion vanished.
They looked stronger and healthier.
The woman straightened up, her strength back.
The boy looked up in surprise, able to breathe freely again.
Then Javier calmly grabbed his magic speaker and lifted it to his lips.
âCome out,â he said coldly.
âOr I will kill anyone hiding with just my magic power.â
His voice echoed through the ruined town like a loud hammer.
There would be no second warning.
( End Of Chapter )
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