CHAPTER 154: OATH UNDER FIRE!

"Is he... is he really going to kill them?" one spectator gasped.

"They’re just children!" another said, desperate and weak.

"No... this isn’t judgment. It’s punishment," someone whispered harshly. "Punishment for the runes!"

"But look at their fathers—" another murmured, "if this happens, they’ll never forgive him."

Eyes darted to Elysia’s father, who could no longer stay silent. His face was drenched with sweat, not only from the unbearable heat but from the terror clawing at his heart.

"Your Majesty! I beg of you—stop this madness! Whatever suspicions you carry, whatever doubts you hold, give us the chance to prove their innocence! Do not stain this hall with such cruelty!"

The plea trembled in the air, heavy with desperation.

The Celestial Royal turned his head slowly.

When he spoke, his voice was thunder wrapped in venom.

"Silence!"

All around the arena, the participants who had witnessed everything began to stir.

Their faces were pale, their hands clenched. The sight of the flaming serpents circling Edwin and Elysia, the cries of their fathers, and the merciless glare of the Celestial Royal—it was too much to remain silent.

Murmurs broke out, hesitant at first, like small sparks in the silence.

"We... we should help them," one voice whispered, trembling with both fear and resolve.

Another participant spoke, his eyes fixed on the two of them trapped within the ring of fire. "We can’t just stand here. This isn’t justice... It’s cruel."

Others nodded, glancing at each other, their courage building little by little.

Even Martis, who had once been Edwin’s rival, clenched his fists tightly. His voice, low but firm, cut through the whispers.

"We should stand with them. Rivalry is one thing... but this? This is wrong."

Jenner, still bruised from his own defeat, exhaled sharply. His usual arrogance was gone, replaced by a grim determination.

"Agreed. If we stay silent now, we’re nothing more than cowards."

The murmurs grew louder, spreading through the participants like ripples across water. Some exchanged worried looks, others began to edge forward, uncertain but unwilling to ignore what was unfolding.

For the first time, the unity of the gathering began to shift—not toward obedience, but toward defiance.

The fire-serpents writhed around Edwin and Elysia. The heat pressed down on them until every breath seared their lungs.

Their fathers remained kneeling, foreheads touching the scorched stone, their voices hoarse from desperate pleas.

The Celestial Royal stood stillFor a long moment, he let the silence drag on, savoring the fear that weighed upon the arena like a suffocating veil.

Then, with a slow curl of his lips, he spoke.

"Do you think your pitiful courage amuses me?" His voice rang out, sharp and thunderous, yet disturbingly calm.

"I care nothing for the runes we’ve lost. They are but scraps of power easily replaced."

The flames hissed louder as though echoing his words. He lifted his hand, and the serpents froze mid-slither, their fiery bodies coiling just a breath away from Elysia and Edwin.

"What I desire," he continued, his gaze piercing into the two trembling youths, "is loyalty. Obedience. When you graduate from your academy, you will join the Royal Guard. You will kneel, you will serve, and you will shed blood in my name."

The crowd gasped. Murmurs broke out again, some horrified, some stunned into silence.

Elysia’s jaw tightened. She gripped her sword, but she dared not raise it. Her father looked back at her with pleading eyes, silently begging her not to resist.

The Celestial Royal’s voice dropped lower, crueler.

"But if you refuse... then put aside your fathers. I will not stop with them." His eyes narrowed. "I will eliminate all of your family. Every branch. Every bloodline. Until your names are spoken only in whispers of extinction."

Edwin staggered to his feet, his body still trembling from the earlier blast. Blood dripped down his cheek as he glared upward.

"You... you would slaughter innocents just to chain us like dogs?" His voice cracked with fury, but it did not tremble with fear.

The Celestial Royal chuckled, the sound soft and terrifying. "Innocence is an illusion. Power alone writes truth. Refuse me, and your loved ones will vanish like smoke in the wind."

"Edwin—" his father’s voice rasped, raw with desperation. "No more! Please, my son... for our family... agree!"

Elysia bit her lip until she tasted blood. Her eyes blazed with hatred, but she could not move.

She looked at her father, his body trembling from heat and exhaustion, yet still kneeling for her sake. She whispered hoarsely, "Father... I—"

Her father shook his head frantically, sweat dripping down his face.

"Do not speak. Just agree. Live first... resist later."

The Celestial Royal leaned forward slightly, his eyes flicking between the two.

"Your answer."

Edwin’s fists clenched so tightly his nails drew blood from his palms.

He wanted to shout, to spit in the tyrant’s face, but the image of his mother, his siblings, and his wounded father flashed in his mind. His voice came out heavy, filled with venom he could not swallow.

"...I will join after I graduate."

Elysia closed her eyes, her breath shuddering. Every fiber of her being rebelled, but she forced the words out through clenched teeth.

"...I will obey."

The Celestial Royal’s cruel smile widened. He spread his arms, and instantly the serpents dissolved into ash, fading into the air.

The suffocating heat lifted, though the air remained heavy with dread.

"Good," he said simply. "You have chosen the right path. That is wise."

He turned, his robes trailing like a flowing river of stars, and began to ascend the steps back toward his seat.

His twelve bodyguards fell into formation, their expressions cold and unreadable, each one radiating killing intent.

At the foot of the dais, he stopped and cast a final glance over his shoulder. "Remember this moment. You are bound now—not by chains, but by your fear. Break your vow, and watch your families burn."

With that, the Celestial Royal departed, his presence fading like a storm pulling away, but leaving the ruins of its devastation behind.

The hall arena is silent, broken only by the labored breaths of the fathers and the distant crackling of scorched stone.

And yet... one figure lingered.

Calvane, the ever-loyal subordinate of the Celestial Royal, did not follow his master. Instead, he remained at the top of the arena.

His eyes rested on Edwin and Elysia, sharp and calculating.

The crowd whispered nervously. Why had he stayed? Was it mercy... or was it something far more dangerous?

Elysia’s hand clenched around her sword again, her gaze flicking to Calvane. Edwin straightened, his body aching, but his spirit burning.

The real trial, it seemed, was only beginning.