Everyone thought about it for a while, but no one stood up. Finally, his father got up. He looked at Silva and spoke.
“Son, is this what you really want to do? You might be making the whole of humanity your enemy and going into a life of war if you do this,” he said.
“I’m not the one doing anything, Father. They are the ones that did it—the moment they decided to attack us.
There is no way that I’ll allow the lives that have worked for me to be in vain. They died in my lands, under my watch.
If anything, my conscience would not allow me to live without revenge for them and for me. A life of war? I accept that. After all, I’m supposed to be a demon king.
Get all your affairs in place. If there are no questions, we move out tomorrow. I’ll be heading out to do something,” Silva said and got up. He walked out without turning back.
He left the castle and walked through the city. He could see that the place was generally quieter. Everyone had heard about what happened, and they didn’t know how to react.
Silva could feel the tension in the air. After all, their brothers and sisters had died in large numbers, and Silva was yet to do anything.
“Master, it would be best if we hold a mass burial, and it will serve as the opportunity for you to speak to them.
You need to address them. They need their king to explain all that happened and ensure them that actions would be taken,” Drake said as he got behind Silva.
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“That’s true. Prepare a mass burial and announce it to all. Wherever they are in the town, they should stop what they are doing and watch the burial,” Silva said.
Drake moved away immediately to start preparing. That evening, Silva would have to talk to all of them.
—
That evening, everything was set up. The bodies of the people that had died were laid down on the floor, covered with cloth.
Silva stood on a raised platform with a large crowd gathered around, everyone eager for answers. The only person that could give them those answers was Silva.
Silva looked at all of them, and the feeling he got was weird. All these people, all of them were looking up to him for answers.
He was the one in charge of them, and whatever he said now could break or build them.
“Thank you all for coming here,” Silva started.
“And to those watching from their homes and jobs, thank you as well.
Yesterday, our kingdom was attacked, and many people lost their lives. Many brothers and many sisters. They left their houses with the belief that they would work and go home.
But someone—someone who was not happy with the beautiful life that they had found—attacked and killed them.
Now they lie here as corpses, lifeless, and their story has come to an end.
I know many of you want me to give you apologies, and many of you want me to hold myself accountable. You all want me to say it was my negligence that caused this.
That’s what a king should do. That is the character of a king—he takes the blame, and he carries the weight of everything on his shoulders.
Sadly, I am not that type of king. I am a vastly new and different type of king, so I will not apologize. I will not say sorry, and I will not say it was my fault.
My pride as a dragon refuses it because if I apologize, I take it that I have accepted a loss, and I don’t lose. So, therefore, I’ll tell you all this:
I’ll take revenge for all of the people that have died, and I’ll burn down the people that caused this and everything that belongs to them.
I’ll make sure that I burn them all to the ground. We will take the war that they started to them and make sure that they feel our wrath in the rawest form possible.
I might not be able to replace those that you have lost, but know this: I’ll keep my word and bring them all to their graves.”
“That’s bullshit.”
A voice suddenly sounded from the crowd. Then a man slowly started pushing his way to the front so that he could speak.
“Why should we believe what you have to say? You refuse to apologize to us. You put your pride before us. What sort of king are you?
You should be on your knees begging us. You should bury your head in ashes, and then we will believe that you want to change something.
Now you want to wave it off and refuse to give us an apology? We refuse that,” the man said.
“Huh? Apologize to you? Why? For what? Because of what? I gave you all a life. I gave you all a place to be. Why would I apologize to you?” Silva asked, his aura surging and choking the man.
“Why the hell would I apologize to you? Answer me. Did you ever have the guts to go up to your former king when he did something wrong?
Did you have the guts to go up to him when people died? Did you? Tell me. Answer me. No, you stayed in your small house, scared and hungry.
But now you have the mouth to speak? What do you think you will gain from making the people hate me? What would any of them gain?
I am a demon king. Have you forgotten that fact? I could have chosen to be a dictator, but I didn’t, so don’t question me when I make my decisions,” Silva yelled, and the man was already shivering.
“You know what? This man will be part of the forefront army that will take our revenge. But if he dares to refuse, he will be publicly executed for refusing to serve the kingdom,” Silva said and looked at the man, who looked like his ghost had left him.