Lord of the Truth

Chapter 2119 Wrong direction ”Oh? We eliminate the Shadow Swords and attack Mid Sector 99?” Arkail showed a faint, almost amused smile, his tone carrying a light hint of curiosity rather than excitement. ”And what else?” ”I am not one of your sons, Arkail. Treat me with seriousness and respect, or I will treat you the same.” Zargulʼs eyes narrowed slightly as he clearly caught the trace of mockery hidden beneath Arkailʼs calm demeanor. ”It is a genuine and reasonable question, in my opinion.” Arkail replied slowly, his voice steady and measured. ”What happens after I destroy the Shadow Swords and help you dismantle Robinʼs foundations in Mid Sector 99?” ”Peace will return once again!” Zargul raised both hands as if presenting an undeniable truth. ”Everything will go back to how it was before that wretched, despicable bastard appeared and disrupted the balance!” ”And what exactly is it that will ʼreturn”?” Arkail asked, his gaze sharpening slightly. ”Do you mean the time when you controlled both Mid Sectors 97 and 99 through empires loyal to you, ruling from the shadows without resistance?” ”And what is the problem if that is true? Do the same if you have the ability.” Zargul waved his hand dismissively, clearly unwilling to entertain the criticism. ”Will you hold me accountable for using my mind to secure my own interests?” ”Oh, I have not even held you accountable yet for choosing Mid Sector 98 to build your galaxy.” Arkailʼs smile slowly faded, replaced by a colder, more serious expression. ”That was... insolent, to say the least.” ”...?” Zargulʼs brows furrowed deeply, his expression tightening. ”Is this some kind of personal revenge you are hinting at?!”

When Zargul established his galaxy, Arkail had already been a Behemoth for many years, a figure whose authority in the region was unquestioned.

Yet Zargul arrived with overwhelming momentum, immense wealth, and strong backing from influential figures. He established his galaxy in an astonishingly short time, without attempting to seek Arkailʼs approval or even show him the most basic courtesy... and Arkail, notably, did not attempt to stop him either.

At that time, the universe had been far too calm for a Behemoth to rise and punish a Monarch who merely sought to establish his own galaxy in an otherwise empty sector. Had Arkail acted then, he would have appeared as a singular enemy to all Monarchs and Guardians across the universe.

It was insolence from Zargul, yes... but not a transgression worthy of punishment. It was something Arkail had been forced to swallow, to avoid placing himself in a disadvantageous position before the Cosmic Elder... and before the universe itself. ”Personal revenge? Perhaps.” Arkail spoke with quiet seriousness. ”You were never a good neighbor during all those years.” Then he slowly shook his head, as if dismissing the past. ”But let us set aside our poor neighborly history and focus on the present... what do I gain from opposing Robin Burton for your sake?” ”What do you gain from obeying him like a loyal dog against me?!” Zargulʼs voice rose sharply, irritation clearly surfacing. ”That approach will not work with me, Zargul. We are beyond such childish provocations.” Arkail continued calmly, his tone unshaken. ”Yes, dealing with Robin Burton will benefit me. At the very least, I will gain Mid Sector 97, and secure a strong position within it.” ”... Are you dreaming, or have you truly lost your senses?” Zargul frowned deeply, disbelief written across his face. ”Do you actually think I will allow you to occupy the sector adjacent to me and let you stand at my doorstep?!” ”Oh, you should not look at it that way.” Arkail sighed lightly, as if correcting a misunderstanding. ”Mid Sector 97 will not be adjacent to you.” Then he tilted his head slightly and added, ”Because you will not have a sector of your own left to be adjacent to.” ”...I thought I told you to stop your ridiculous jokes, Arkail.” The Sorcerer Behemothʼs expression darkened, showing clear displeasure. ”Then stop wasting my time.” Arkailʼs gaze lingered on his rival, long and unwavering. ”I will not deny it. I have a temporary partnership with Robin Burton concerning you, and its purpose will not please you in the slightest.” Then, after a brief pause, he continued, ”Give me an offer compelling enough to make me consider abandoning that partnership. Otherwise, this conversation serves no purpose.”

Zargul hesitated for a few moments, clearly weighing his options, his expression shifting between calculation and restraint. ”... What do you gain from that partnership? Tell me, so I can offer you something better, something that truly outweighs it.” ”Mid Sector 97, of course.” Arkail replied without hesitation, his tone direct and unambiguous. ”And several side agreements, concessions, and facilitations that you neither need to know nor would be able to interfere with even if you did.”

He paused briefly, then added with a faint, knowing look, ”So... what can you possibly offer me that would surpass all of that?” ”Do you truly believe that someone who seeks my destruction would grant you a sector on top of your own?” Zargul showed a faint, restrained half-smile, his eyes narrowing with a mixture of suspicion and scorn. ”Can you not see that you have stepped into a swamp, just like every single one who got involved in the Mid Sector 101 war? How can you not see what Robin Burton is trying to do? How can you fail to realize that he intends to weaken everyone, one by one, until nothing remains standing before he claims everything for himself?” ”Make me an offer, Zargul.” Arkailʼs smile widened ever so slightly, calm and unshaken, as if he were listening to nothing more than idle noise. ”I owe Robin Burton nothing at all. Give me an offer worthy of consideration, and I may think about what you are saying... otherwise, keep your lectures to yourself.” ”...” Zargulʼs brows tightened deeply, the tension in his face becoming more pronounced. ”You want Mid Sector 97? Then take it.” He pointed directly at Arkail. ”But in exchange, you will help me subdue Mid Sector 99 completely.” Aro the Mad was rampaging across every force in Mid Sector 99 with sheer brutality and reckless aggression, striking without restraint, yet despite that chaotic approach, he had not neglected strategy entirely. Nearly half of his army had been stationed firmly at the borders of Mid Sector 98.

There were close to four hundred Note-4 class fleets positioned there at all times, forming a massive and ever-present threat. Because of their existence alone, Zargul had been forced to leave behind more than a thousand fleets within his own galaxy before he could depart!

The presence of those fleets, combined with Aroʼs arrogant and domineering conduct within the sector, made one thing unmistakably clear... Robin Burton would, without question, become openly hostile toward him in the long run.

Zargul would quite literally prefer to have Arkail sitting on his lap, within his control... rather than have Robin Burton emerge as the neighboring power beside him! ”I will not openly oppose Robin Burton for your sake.” Arkail shook his head slowly, his voice steady. ”I may choose to withdraw, but I will not fight him.” Then he added with clear seriousness, ”In the end, he has provided significant benefit to my affairs.” ”Then what exactly do you want?!” Zargul shouted, frustration spilling over. ”I hand you Mid Sector 97 on a silver platter, and you refuse to assist me in any meaningful way? What do I gain from that? At least if the war continues, I might still manage to secure a portion of the sector through my own efforts!” ”You will gain the opportunity to redirect your attention.” Arkail replied with a subtle, meaningful tone. ”Our old grudges, the matter of control over Mid Sector 98... all of that is secondary for you now.” Then he pointed toward him with quiet emphasis. ”You should be thinking about survival, not anything else.” ”You should be thinking about what is happening elsewhere.” Arkail continued, shifting his gaze toward a distant direction before pointing. ”Instead of summoning fifteen more of your sons and nearly a thousand additional fleets as you do now, you should have left them behind to defend your galaxy.” ”Defend against whom?” Zargulʼs expression shifted into surprise, almost disbelief. ”You mean that horned brute? What could he possibly accomplish?”

He waved dismissively. ”That fool has only just come out of a massive war, and yet he rushed to threaten the Millennial Empire of Endless Chaos not long ago, then moved on to threaten the Millennial Vast Ice Empire, and has already declared war on them simply because they refused his absurd demand for submission.” His frustration flared further. ”I cannot believe I am entangled in conflicts with enemies this foolish... and worse, I cannot believe I am struggling to resolve such a situation.” Then he pointed sharply at Arkail. ”All of this is because of you, because you chose to support some insignificant brat who was born yesterday and polish him for the cosmic stage. You are the cause of all this!” ”...” The Temporal Behemoth slowly shook his head, his expression turning slightly more serious. ”You are underestimating the horned oneʼs capacity for deception and long-term planning far too much... and that is a mistake.” Then he locked eyes with Zargul, his gaze unwavering. ”...a mistake you will pay for very soon.”

Zargulʼs brows furrowed sharply, confusion and irritation mixing together. ”What are you-”

Whoosh

One of the Sorcerer Behemothʼs sons descended swiftly beside him, his expression grave and urgent. Without delay, he leaned in and began whispering something into his ear.

In an instant, Zargulʼs expression transformed, shifting from irritation to shock, then to rising fury, his voice bursting out as he shouted, ”What?! An entire Note-4 armada has moved toward Mid Sector 98?!”