Valentina stared at him, her pupils contracting as the full, terrifying scope of his ambition crystallized in her mind. It wasn't just a conquest; it was an erasure.
The realization settled in her gut like molten lead. Aethelgard wasn't the endgame; it was merely the opening gambit.
The world she had spent her entire life protecting, the fragile balance of nations she had helped maintain through decades of diplomacy and magical scholarship, was nothing more than prey waiting to be hunted.
"You don't want submission," Valentina whispered, her voice cracking with raw disbelief. "You intend to conquer all of Erosyne."
"Every kingdom, every sovereign border, every sacred grove... You want to extinguish the sun itself."
Xerollion didn't blink.
"I've already conquered Aethelgard," he answered, his tone as casual as if he were discussing the weather or mundane lunch plans. "Why would I stop when the horizon is still so full of potential?"
