"…Are you crazy? What more evidence do we need?" Sovereign Micheal Caron of Jupiter clutched his forehead.
Everyone could see that his eyes were full of despair and like always, his pessimism was overwhelming him.
"She can call her people anytime and we're doomed. You're asking for Evidence? We don't know if she contacted them yet or not. But we shouldn't give her a chance. We should find her now! And you stupid woman, you are helping her escape."
"…" Albert squinted his eyes at Irene and tapped the table.
"I initially proposed to contact her and establish diplomatic ties with her species." Sovereign Kevin, the head of Adventure Guild and leader of Saturn, looked at Julius in helplessness. "You just had to go for the kill."
"Hmph." Julius snorted. "You are one naive fool, Kevin. This isn't a fairy tale we're living in. You either kill or be killed. If we helped Enigma contact her species and if they want our resources, we'd be digging our own graves."
"…Looking at Enigma's past record, she was always with us." Kevin sighed.
"Exactly." Irene nodded, bringing the attention of Sovereigns back to her.
"For heaven's sake!" Sovereign Vianne hissed. "Do we even know her? Who she is? Where did she come from? Why did she come here? Saving a few people doesn't mean she can't harm a lot more!"
"You're just defending your decision." Irene shrugged.
"Of course, she will. So will I." Sovereign Julius said in a majestic tone. "I agree that she had done a lot of good for us. But she is a potential threat that can cause the extinction of humanity and you helping her is equivalent to aiding the human extinction!"
The hall fell silent and the Sovereigns' felt a weight on their chest.
"Let's follow Kevin's words and say she won't be against us and with 99% probability, she and her people will help us." Julius stretched his arms and said.
Slowly lowering them, he leaned forward and glared into Irene's eyes. His voice was so cold that the listeners felt a jolt down their spine. "But the case of 1%…just 1%, they are hostile to us and want us exterminated. You are betting that it won't be the 1%."
Irene's body stiffened and she wanted to reveal about the 'Blocker'. But recalling Dreamer's words, she gritted her teeth.
"We don't know the full story to make the best decision." She spat, hoping they could understand.
Julius covered his face and shook his head. "Full story? We can't afford to wait until we know it all.
As the guardians of humanity, we should decisions based on what we know and it must be based on protecting humanity at any cost.
So, even if Enigma is with us or against us, she has the capacity to end us. So, she must die.
Any further knowledge won't change this."
"I agree."
"Yes, me too."
"…Very cold-blooded, but it's better to be safe than sorry."
Vianne, Kreo, and Micheal Caron nodded in approval.
"…" Sovereign Ares looked at Irene's complicated expression and sighed inwardly.
'Ares, please give Dreamer a few days and he'll show that Enigma's threat is merely a conspiracy. If he can't, then I'll personally chase him down. This is the only thing I ask of you. Please.'
When he was chasing ghostship, it was these words that led him to let them escape.
It was also these words that caused him to fight the Thunder King and save the ghostship.
He and Irene had a special bond of trust and respect. So, despite the danger, he trusted her. He believed she wouldn't make decisions that would endanger humanity.
"Even if you had a problem with how Enigma's case was handled, your actions are clearly against the rules. We had a voting session and decided how to deal with her." Albert spoke in a long, deep voice.
Irene's eyebrows knit together.
"While on any other event, I would've let it off with a slight warning, it pains me to say this, Irene. What you did could potentially lead to our destruction. And letting you off now sets a dangerous precedent."
"And what? Kill me? Imprison me?" She sneered in anger.
"…" Feeling the rage in her tone, Albert fell silent and let out a melancholic sigh.
He could understand her and even empathize with her. He too supported Shadow Guardians and welcomed Enigma's help.
He too knew that they didn't have the full knowledge of the situation. But as Julius said, they can't afford to gamble.
Regardless of Enigma's decision, they should be able to neutralize her.
But Irene's actions were spoiling the plan.
"Think about yo—" Albert's words were cut off by Julius's cold voice.
"Your family."
"What did you just say?" Irene's eyes flashed with killing intent as she walked to Julius.
Julius stared back without losing his dominance. "Your family won't be killed, you might go mad if we do that. But your grandson Han Nial, he'll be in my hands until Enigma dies."
"Julius, you dare?!" Irene grabbed at his collar, but her hands passed through him.
Julius rose to his feet and said to her in a commanding tone. "If you want him alive, behave. If you want him dead, then continue your treacherous actions."
Irene quickly checked her comm and saw that a message arrived from Han's comm—"He's with us."
Irene's chest heaved up and down as she glared at Julius with killing intent. "So, this is the guardian of Earth? Kidnapping a boy who isn't even a high awakener? And you have your people on my planet? Is the Xander family too eager?"
Albert coughed lightly and glanced at Julius. "She has…weird reasoning, but she isn't a traitor. She risked her life to protect Neptune and Uranus. Your methods are too harsh. "
"Harsh?" Julius shrugged and pointed to Irene whose eyes turned bloodshot. "You think she'll listen with soft methods? Her actions are selfish and she will do anything for her family."
Crack!
The sound of wood breaking into pieces sounded and Sovereign Ares snapped his fingers displaying images of Shadow Guardians' destruction.
Every Sovereign in the room, except for Julius felt a sense of discomfort and repulsion at the pictures.
"Julius, do you dare to admit that their destruction got nothing to do with your second son's death?"
Julius stiffened for a moment and snorted. "Even if Narcis was alive, I'd have taken the same decision. Just, I wouldn't have gone there personally."
"What a fucking hypocrite you are." Sovereign Ares shook his head and turned his head in disgust.
"Hypocrite? Better be a hypocrite than a traitor." Julius pointed at Irene. "So, lady Irene, when are you joining abyssals and killing your own people?"
Irene clenched her fist so hard that her fingers dug into her flesh and blood dripped on the ground. She wanted to spill out everything about the Pluto event, but Dreamer's words stopped her at the last moment.
'Enigma's reputation will be cleared and Xanders will take the blame. Just sit back and relax. I promise to do it in a few days.'
"A few days…"
"Huh?" Julius raised a brow.
"I hope you can still keep laughing in a few days," Irene said and her hologram exploded into colorful light, leaving the hall silent.
Blankly staring at where Irene previously stood, Julius had an ominous premonition.
Her words were surely a bluff. He knew it . She knew it. Everyone knew it.
But then…why was he scared?
*** ***
A/N: End of Arc