"From this moment on, you're no longer a princess—you're my servant."
As Rei Ao spoke, an immaterial yet vast and pristine psychic force—like countless tendrils finer than hair—pierced at once into Princess Renner's unguarded inner world.
It did not crudely shatter or erase her will—that would be far too low-grade. It was more like a master craftsman at the peak of his art, deftly guiding and amplifying fissures that already existed deep in her heart: the emptiness toward the ordinary, the craving for extreme stimulation, and the latent yearning for an absolute power capable of wholly dominating her and making her submit.
It grafted the ideas of "loyal to Rei Ao" and "serve Rei Ao" perfectly onto those most primal, overpowering desires within her—not by ramming in a command, but by diverting the target of her existing feelings and wants, turning "obey Rei Ao" into the only path to fulfill every deep psychological need, the ultimate source of her soul's "wholeness" and "pleasure."
The brand sank so deep it touched the root of her being—beyond reason, it became a near-instinctive truth.
Renner's body jolted as if shocked by current. The chest that had been heaving with grief abruptly calmed. The extreme pain on her face ebbed away like the tide. The focus in her pupils first went hazy, as if her soul had slipped free, then re-formed in a wholly new way. When her gaze fell on Rei Ao again, the meaning in those once-clear, gemlike eyes had utterly changed.
Fear? Gone.
Sorrow? Transmuted.
In their place burned a near-fanatical worship and infatuation—the very look Albedo and Shalltear wore when their fervor for Rei Ao overflowed, the look of the devout gazing up at a god.
Two abnormal flushes rose on her pale, porcelain cheeks—not shyness, but a warped ecstasy born of a mind "satisfied" and "sublimated," the bliss of surrender that comes from abandoning the self and belonging completely to a stronger existence.
"Haa…"
She breathed faintly. In a syrupy, utterly gentle tone Renner answered as if chanting a sacred vow: "Yes… my master. Renner… is your most faithful servant."
As she spoke, her cold cheek pressed more tightly into the hand still stroking her neck, seeking favor, like a tame cat that has finally found its home, greedily chasing the owner's touch and approval.
Below the dais, the hall was deathly still.
Gazef Stronoff, the kingdom's strongest warrior, clenched his fists until his nails bit into his palms and drew blood. He had watched the deaths of those he served and Climb's sacrifice for nothing—and now a change in Princess Renner more chilling than death itself.
Rage and helplessness churned together, swallowing him whole; yet the terror saturating the air, and that unfathomable figure upon the high platform, were like invisible shackles locking down his every move. He knew any rash action would only trigger another meaningless massacre.
The surviving ministers and nobles were even paler, shaking like leaves. They could not make sense of what they saw.
The "Golden Princess," famed for her wisdom and hailed as the kingdom's last hope, had in an instant become the enemy's most zealous servant? This was beyond their understanding of power struggles—or even of magical control.
Mind control? The thought chilled them to the bone more than death. It meant that before the being called Rei Ao, not only were their lives as worthless as grass, even their wills and souls were mere playthings to be kneaded at whim.
Rei Ao savored the obedient warmth of Renner's cheek beneath his palm. Nearby, Albedo and Shalltear bared expressions that said they would happily tear Renner to pieces.
After a moment, Rei Ao slowly withdrew his hand and looked down again at the flock of startled birds below—his gaze, a cold searchlight, sweeping over the cowering crowd until it fixed on the only man still barely standing, muscles drawn taut as iron: Gazef Stronoff, the kingdom's Warrior Captain.
"Gazef Stronoff, Warrior Captain of the Kingdom—submit, or die."
Rei Ao's voice was flat, devoid of any hint of recruitment—more like a casual confirmation, a final chance granted to an ant to choose the manner of being crushed.
Silence congealed into something solid, pressing on every chest. Every surviving gaze—despairing, pleading, numb—settled on Gazef's broad, suddenly solitary back. He was the kingdom's last bulwark, the lone emblem of their remaining faith—and their lives might well hang on his answer.
Gazef drew a long breath. The tang of blood filled his lungs and gave him the last of his strength. He lifted his head to meet Rei Ao's bottomless eyes. There was no fear on his face, only a resolve bordering on the devout. He tightened his grip on the greatsword that had followed him through so many battles—now so feeble—his knuckles blanching.
"I, Gazef Stronoff—living, am the kingdom's shield; dead, the kingdom's soul.
"If the kingdom stands, I stand.
"If the kingdom falls…"
He paused, let his gaze pass over the princess on the throne who had become a stranger, and returned to Rei Ao's face. "Then I fall."
His voice was not loud, yet it beat like a heavy war drum in the dead hall.
The final note of "fall" was still trembling in the air when—
Without warning, without buildup—there was only the faintest ripple in space, brushing across Gazef's neck like a wave. His steadfast eyes didn't even have time to change. The weathered head, inscribed with loyalty and steel, slipped soundlessly from his shoulders. The cut was as smooth as a mirror; no blood sprayed at once, as if time itself had stalled for a heartbeat.
~~~
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