1020 The Sovereign In Retreat

The Sovereigns of Mercury, Venus, Jupiter and Neptune fell in a single day. Half of all the guardians dead, in a span of few hours.

The special news channel, open only to high awakeners, was flashing with one bad news after another.

'With me in retreat, there are only three active.' Julius mused.

He was in a secret realm that he privately owned. No one, not even the highest members of Xander family had any idea that such a secret realm existed. Being the Sovereign of Earth had its benefits.

"Come." Julius, seated crosslegged, floated into the sky without the use of any aura. The six artifacts floated around him. Right from Mercury's Gauntlets to Neptune's Sword, all of them were here.

The mysterious force enveloped him and connected him with the artifacts. One by one, the artifacts lit up and a golden light flowed from them into Julius.

"Yes." Julius closed his eyes in euphoria as a high after high hit him, the increasing strength more addictive than anything he'd ever known.

Julius felt his strength being pulled forward by this mysterious force, towards the ceiling he was yet to cross and if this worked out properly, this mysterious force would also break the ceiling for him and push him to the Celestial Rank.

The Xander family head too a deep breath as the world around him changed. It was brighter, more vibrant, more cheerful, intricate. It was as if he had taken off some dusty glasses he had his entire life, the world suddenly seemed so much better. And so did every other sensation.

Something was changing in him at a fundamental level. Julius noticed his origin was being drawn towards his divine path. They were going to merge and then—

"And then there will be final peace." Julius smiled confidently.

No matter what happened, he clung to his dream he had as a child. It was what his father, grandfather and even great-grandfather wished. They all tried and couldn't do it. But he would. And he'd also be the greatest Xander head.

'And I'll create a stronger civilization. We're too weak. I will lead us to glory.' Julius smiled as the future he always dreamed of was finally within his reach.

The ceremony continued without a hitch and the Sovereign realized there wasn't much for him to do.

In a few hours or maybe a few days, he'd be reach that power level of his dreams. Until then, it wasn't best to interrupt whatever was being done. If he did, there's no telling if he'd get this chance agan.

So, Julius meditated for a while and then just blankly stared around. As a result, he noticed something he had forgotten on the ground.

"The slate." Julius narrowed his eyes at the green slate on the ground. It was the thing that gave him the knowledge of these 'artifacts' and in a way, paved the way for his current state.

Since it's so important, he expected it to be boost him like other artifacts, and placed it with them. But that's not happening. The slate remained dead on the ground, as if this whole ritual got nothing to do with it.

He kept it with him since he found it in the Earth ruins that day.

'Maybe the slate doesn't have that function. It's the carrier of information, not an artifact.' Julius told himself but for some reason, maybe because of his increasing perception and intuition, an unease crept in his heart.

Shaking his head to dispel those thoughts, he motioned his hand and the comm on the ground lit up.

Multiple screens popped up in front of him and just to kill time, Julius scrolled through them.

The first news was the death of Sovereign Albert. It was a horrifying event that shook Mercury to the core.

"A fine old man. He could've been the perfect general." Julius smacked his lips and snorted. "Just too rigid. If I asked, he'd rather die than give me the artifact. So, I killed him."

There was no guilt in his tone even though Julius once trained under Albert and leaned a lot from the old man.

Then came the news of Sovereign Vianne. Half of her body was eaten up by the Zombie Sovereign. It was a gruesome death for someone so honorable.

Julius stared at her deceased form for a moment before waving it off. "A pity we lost a good businesswoman."

Even though he said it was a pity, Julius' tone wasn't really pitying. It was weird since she was a friend of his. At least, she was a few years ago. But they drifted apart, for reasons he didn't really think about. Not just her, all the people he considered friends drifted apart from him in this decade.

Julius expected to feel bad for her death. But he felt…nothing.

It was as if his heart had a void, unable to produce those emotions that one felt when they saw death of a close one.

He felt perfectly normal as if he was watching some random advertisement  but that's precisely why he he found the rational part of his brain found it so odd.

'Why am I so casual about her horrific death?' Julius tried to question his emotions, but no answers came up.

With another swipe, the death of Micheal Caron, ruler of Jupiter, was announced. He was smiling.

"Did he go crazy before death?" Julius muttered and checked the death of Ares.

Except for a couple of burnt flesh and bones, nothing was left of this man who tried to rival Julius.

Julius sighed. Ares was the disciple of his father and always competed with him, even though Julius left him in dust. They were close even though they both disliked each other.

And then Julius raised his hand to sweep for the next item.

"Was that it?" Julius' hand paused midway. "No sadness, nothing?"

Julius felt his reactions were completely fine and normal. Everyone would die. They died today. And as Sovereigns, they died protecting their planets. This was nothing to be sad about. It's a glory.

But shouldn't a person feel sad when someone they've known for so long die, even if they had some fights? And it's not like he and Ares were life and death enemies. They were once friends. Even comrades-in-arms.

'Something is wrong.'

His increasing intuition and perception was making it harder for Julius to ignore his own distinction.

When he was a normal Sovereign, he didn't notice this difference. It had always hidden from his thoughts, like the dark sport in the corner of his mind's room.

Julius was aware that the path he was taking was cruel and ruthless. But it always felt right. In the long run, it's for the best. He's doing it for the greater good after all. It's for the ultimate peace.

Even now, Julius fully supported his approach. He did what's right. And it felt soo right.

But the lack of his emotional response to these tragedies made him wonder if his emotions were to be trusted.  He felt fine but his rational logic dictated that he wasn't.

"Maybe because I'm under a ritual?" Julius titled his head as he noticed the golden light around him glow more intense.

And then he swiped the last file.

If there's anything that could test his emotions, it'd be this one.

He opened the 'Massacre of Neptune'.