Chapter 2410

2410 - The Confrontation

The reactions to Arkail's actions and his unofficial declaration of allegiance to Lord Robin varied greatly among all the powers of the Universe, between supporters, opponents, and those deeply bewildered.

But there was one particular individual who had to do more than just voice an opinion... Grafour, the Behemoth of Gravity residing in Middle Sector 92.

For all the Syndicate support forces fleeing from Arkail had taken refuge in his sector.

And he could not simply claim that he had nothing to do with it, for just three years before their clash with Arkail, they had passed through his sector—their leaders had gone and paid their respects to Grafour and "borrowed" provisions and a number of fleets from him... So claiming he had no connection to the matter was no longer viable.

Grafour found himself in a very bad position...

Previously, the Syndicate had been the clearly winning side.

Why should he intervene in a war between the Syndicate and the new Grave Empire?

You want to curb the Shadow Swords? Fine, that new organization has no place in my sector.

You want to go support Zargul? Go ahead, and take some symbolic support as well.

Anything simple he could do to avoid incurring the wrath of one of the Four Greats was the right and smart choice, and anything else was sheer nonsense and hollow slogans that no one cared about.

But after the recent rapid events... it became clear that the Syndicate did not want to erase just any random new power, but a Fifth Power that rivals the Syndicate in standing and seeks expansion.

He had thrown himself into a war between two great powers without caring or even knowing!!

But what happened had happened...

Arkail remained standing with his sons at the Buffer Zone in Middle Sector 93, guarding what had become the eastern borders of Lord Robin's territories, refusing to budge or allow the Syndicate's forces or Grafour's forces to return, while at the same time helping the Shadow Swords and Aro's envoys subdue the local powers.

This continued until 3 full fleets of Arkail's forces entered Middle Sector 93 from Sector 94, and then Grafour realized these were not support and field-control forces... they were an offensive force, an invasion force.

Immediately, Grafour took all his forces, and all the Syndicate forces that had sought refuge with him, and headed to Middle Sector 93 at once in a massive army with the intent of stopping Arkail in his tracks before he could come to him.

And here they are today...

In front of the Buffer Zone that leads into Middle Sector 92, the beginnings of a massive battle were taking shape.

Arkail truly intended to invade... and Grafour would not allow that.

"You say those who threatened you with death before me were defeated?" Grafour raised his voice, "Wake up from your foolishness, Arkail. Do you take me for one of those ordinary Law Dominators? Has old age eaten your brain?" Then he pointed at him, "I have always respected you, Arkail, even when I decided to establish my galaxy here in Middle Sector 92, I asked your permission first, but that doesn't mean I'll let you do as you please!!"

"Nothing personal here, Grafour." Arkail furrowed his brows slightly at the turn of the conversation, "Lord Robin wants to expand and you're blocking the way, that's all."

"....!!" Grafour's eyes flew wide open in disbelief at what he was hearing, then he shouted at the top of his voice, "What has happened to you?" He took a step forward and continued in a somehow even louder voice, "You were always the wise one among us, always the enigmatic one no one could figure out what you wanted. Since when did you become nothing but a follower of such triviality?!"

"..." Those words made Arkail's expression tremble... He had struck him where it hurt most.

Arkail had indeed been hiding his power and preparing for the day he had foreseen, keeping himself out of any conflicts. That had somewhat given him an aura of mystery and caution... All of that crumbled once he began serving Lord Robin.

"…I have heard things." Arkail spoke, "Unbelievable things." He began replaying the tape of his last meeting with Robin, every scene and every word, "But I believed them later when I saw."

"Even while working for someone else, you still try to act mysterious?!" Grafour shouted angrily, "You just—"

*Replay*

The orange vehicle jumped from its simple orbit and moved swiftly to Grafour's side without warning, and its doors opened, and from it descended a person placing his hands behind his back.

Clearly, he was not human—his skin leaned toward yellow, and his nose had three openings. Aside from that, his oval face and flowing hair gave him a handsome impression.

That person advanced until he stood slightly before Grafour, giving him his back, and spoke to Arkail: "Come to your senses, you temporal. We do not wish to report your foolishness to the Archon yet—you still have hope."

"…I have chosen my team, and the matter is settled." Arkail spoke with confidence.

This was the first time he spoke firmly with one of the Syndicate's Leaders and one of the Butcher's direct followers… That person is a user of a Fundamental Law derived directly from Causality!!

His presence here means the Syndicate is taking this situation very seriously.

"This is unfortunate." The yellow-skinned figure took a long-bladed spear, "If words are useless, then let us try weapons instead." Then he tilted his head slightly, "In any case, the expansion of the True Beginning Empire will stop here."

The atmosphere grew heavy and breaths were held. Arkail and even Grafour himself found their brows twitching.

This battle would be devastating. If no one backed down today, at least half of the forces they had amassed over millions of years would perish in the blink of an eye, and who knows how many first-rank sons would fall from both sides!

*Ssshhh*

Another vehicle advanced, but this time it came from behind Arkail, and its doors opened.

Then a figure stepped out and spoke immediately, "Gentlemen, this is a shame. How can respected leaders resort to fists and weapons?"

That figure had blue skin and wore a crown of ice upon his head.

"Glacion..." The Behemoth of Gravity muttered, furrowing his brows slightly.

"What are you trying to do here, you icy one?" The Syndicate Representative chuckled, "Take Arkail and leave if you can. Otherwise, return to your place in the back."

"I cannot do this, but I have a simple proposal to end this situation amicably and rationally." Glacion gestured toward Grafour, "Let me sit here with Mister Grafour and explain our point of view to him," then he gestured toward the Syndicate Representative, "And you, sir, sit with Lord Arkail and take your time explaining your offers, your threats, and your perspective... And afterward, we let them decide what will happen."

Then he smiled, "If they choose war after that, then it is war. And if one of them decides to switch sides... then the day will end happily for one of the two parties with no losses whatsoever. What do you think? People's lives are not a game, folks!"

"........."