Lord of the Truth

Chapter 1884 The peacekeeping forces

”Lady Morgana, everyone gathered here is fully aware of what the Academy offers to the new generation. No one present can deny that you truly deserve every single Pearl you charge. In fact, when compared to the Dawn light Stellar Academy --which demands Pearls merely for access to its library and a simple graduation certificate, then proceeds to extract even more Pearls for each instructor separately- I would say that your requirements are not only fair, but extremely modest by any reasonable standard.”

One of the elders spoke slowly, his voice heavy with age, his eyes almost completely shut as if weighed down by countless years.

He opened them slightly, letting a sharp glint escape. ”However... there is absolutely no doubt that the Sacred Covenant Academy has grown extraordinarily wealthy in recent times. The Sky Opening Hall alone is enough to make you richer than all of us combined. Beyond that, you possess formidable peacekeeping forces, embodied by those white-armored troops, and you also command the service of numerous powerful instructors whose reputations are well known.”

He pointed his cane toward her and continued in a measured tone, ”And you yourself are a peerless genius of absolute soul force, the likes of whom this sector has never seen before. As someone who has already reached her fifth star in such a short span of time, everyone knows it is merely a matter of time before you press the seventh star if you continue advancing at this pace... so why not save precious time and begin shouldering your responsibilities right now? Or do you intend to evade them, just as the other two did?”

”Watch your words.” Morgana fixed the old man with a firm, unwavering stare. ”You speak to me as though you have some inherent right over me. That is not how one makes a request.”

She then slowly swept her gaze across everyone present. ”I truly do not understand you. Ninety percent of the stellar academies throughout the universe have already ceased fulfilling their duties, yet you expect us -an ordinary academy that has not even existed for a full century- to take their place and compensate for their absence?!”

She gestured openly toward them. ”And what about you? Every single one of you commands armies and followers of your own. Why donʼt you bear the burden of protecting the sector yourselves? Why do you wait for an academy -a place meant for teaching and nurturing- to do this work on your behalf?” ”Lady Headmistress, there is something crucial you must understand,” said a man with thick mustaches and perpetually drowsy features. ”Our armies and followers exist primarily to protect us, because we are constantly exposed to daily raids. Each of us has enemies lying in ambush, if not an active war already raging. Mobilizing our armies to fight the Plague would mean leaving our backs completely exposed to anyone who might seize the opportunity.”

”Only stellar academies possess the privilege of moving their armies and experts freely and without fear, precisely because they safeguard the sector- and in return, the sector itself safeguards them. If any force were to attempt an attack on a stellar academy, all other major powers would immediately intervene to defend it!”

He paused briefly, then inclined his head toward the head of the ordinary academy. ”As for the other academies... even this gentleman here is currently embroiled in three separate wars and relies on a mercenary army just to protect himself and his students.”

”...” Morgana tilted her head slightly, her expression cool and controlled. ”Is that meant to be a threat? If I refuse to participate and decline to shoulder the workload of two stellar academies on my own, will you then turn your forces against me?”

”No one said such a thing, my lady. I am merely responding to your own statements.” The man offered a smile filled with unspoken implications, then fell silent.

”Oh?” another person frowned deeply, his brows knitting together. ”You hesitate far too much, Lady Morgana. Could it be that the Academy lacks peacekeeping forces altogether?”

”...” Morgana struggled to maintain her calm.

What those people were asking for was by no means an ordinary request. It was not something Morgana could accomplish during a few idle holidays to earn herself a better reputation, nor was it a task that could be handled by simply mobilizing the limited number of Light Swords stationed within the academy grounds.

They were demanding that she oversee, monitor, and cleanse millions upon millions of planets.

This was not a responsibility personally borne by Monarch Althera. That lady - who almost never left her office at all-was not the one who ventured into the void to battle the savage Red Plague or the repulsive Black Plague. Instead, an entire army moved in her name to shoulder those burdens, accompanied by her deputy-a Guardian- who was absent most of the time precisely because he was leading those wars on the front lines.

So then, what was the true scale of an academyʼs forces, the forces commonly referred to as peacekeeping forces?

Tens of millions of ground troops, dozens of Nexus States, hundreds of fleets, hundreds of World Cataclysms, and perhaps one or two Guardians tasked specifically with hunting down the Blue Plague or confronting space beasts should any of them emerge...

Fighting anti-life was no game-no matter how one looked at it!!

And such overwhelming power had to exist independently for every single academy.

That was exactly why all the major powers tolerated the academiesʼ negligence when it came to genuine education, and why they continued to send academic funding to support them regardless. They understood all too well the staggering cost required simply to maintain such forces.

When it was said that the academies could stand toe-to-toe with the Behemoth galaxies, it was never meant to refer solely to their leaders. Rather, it referred to the peacekeeping forces themselves-forces which, if gathered together from all academies, would be capable of confronting the Behemothsʼ vast and terrifying armies head-on!

Now...

His Majesty Robin planned for the Sacred Covenant Academy to become a stellar academy within roughly three hundred years. By that time, he would certainly supply it with all the soldiers, fleets, and resources necessary to officially begin its duties... so why, then, was she expected to start now?!

If she were to tell them that she refused to participate, the academyʼs reputation would most likely be shattered forever. It would not even be surprising if attacks soon followed, aimed at seizing the academyʼs library and the countless rare resources it housed. And if that happened, then even if the academy managed to defend itself, the major figures of Medium Sector 99 would no longer feel safe entrusting their children to it, and they would inevitably withdraw them.

Yet if she agreed, that would mean she would be forced to deploy peacekeeping forces she simply did not possess. Where, exactly, was such an army supposed to come from?!

And if she told them outright that she had no peacekeeping forces-that she lacked the strength to bear such responsibility, that she was, in truth, merely an academy without fangs-wouldnʼt that be just as much of an open invitation to every ambitious and greedy power to attack the academy?

She had tried time and again to make them leave, to stall for time until the three hundred years His Majesty had spoken of finally passed. But today, they were pressing down on her with relentless determination... most likely because of that hotspot which had been ignored for too long, until it recently developed into a Blue Plague.

Everyone was gripped by agitation and fear, terrified of another Abyss of Destruction appearing. And now, they were trying to pour all their frustration -and place all their fragile hope- onto her alone!

Morgana lowered her gaze toward the ground.

She had no choice. She had to speak with His Majesty and request a peacekeeping army as soon as possible-otherwise, his entire plan would inevitably crumble.