Chapter 184: Trouble Again (3)
"Father, can you hear me?" she pleaded, her hands hovering over the smoking hole in his tunic, afraid to touch it.
Barou’s eyes fluttered open. He coughed again, another trickle of blood appearing at the corner of his mouth. "Lila..." he rasped, his voice weak. "I’m... fine. Just a scratch."
He tried to push himself up, his face a mask of stubborn pride. "Get back... inside. It’s not safe." He grunted with pain and fell back, his body refusing to obey.
Lord Falco laughed. It was a cold, cruel sound that held no humor. "That is what happens when insects speak to their betters."
He pointed a finger at the village. "I am Lord Falco of the Northern Empire. And you are harboring criminals."
His gaze fell on Riku and Sherry. He did not recognize them without their disguises, but his rage needed a target.
"The thieves who infiltrated my home! The cowards who made a fool of my house and kidnapped my attendant!"
His voice rose to a furious roar that echoed off the surrounding mountains.
"Surrender them to me now, and I may consider leaving a few of your hovels standing. Refuse," he snarled, a sphere of dark energy beginning to form in his open palm, "and I will burn this entire valley to the ground."
The threat hung in the cold, heavy air. The villagers, watching from their windows, trembled. Lila knelt by her father’s side, her body shaking with grief and rage.
Riku watched it all. His previously surprised face was now surprisingly calm, and his expression placid. But inside, a cold, quiet fury was beginning to build.
He took a single step forward. The small movement drew every eye.