Chapter 177: Funeral

"Take that back now." Bishop Vernette glared at Sebastian, with obvious fury. "If this is a joke, it's taken too far."

"Why? You cannot believe that your 'living god' is dying?" Sebastian smirked. "Whether or not you accept the information is not up for me to decide. I have delivered the information."

"That's impossible." Baron Cain retorted. "Such a big event would be made known immediately to me!"

"Really? So you can do what? Plan a revolt once you know that the Yual Dominion might very well shatter in the next three years?" Sebastian chuckled. "Why would the nobility in Tryas want every single Baron under them to be aware of such a cataclysmic event?"

Baron Cain immediately understood why the news would not spread. The Yual Dominion will be embroiled in a succession war."Then why does a no-name leader of a small gang in Raktor know this?"

"That's a trade secret. You're going to have to re-negotiate if you really want to know."

The information was a big shock for the three of them. Bishop Vernette was clearly refusing to believe the rumour, her faith vigilant. "It is impossible for the Emperor to die. He is immortal!"

However, Kyle was starting to put the pieces together. That's the reason why the capital and the Duke is not responding to the civil war in Raktor. Everyone is conserving their strength as much as possible.

Kyle could tell that Count Leon did not know about this news, seeing as he and the two other Counts launched an attack on Versia. But something doesn't add up. The Duke would want to conserve his troops, so he should have stopped Count Leon.

However, the feudal contract signed between the Count and the Duke was not fully restrictive - Counts were still allowed to wage war unilaterally against foreign nations. It was for this lax agreement that the Yual Dominion even managed to achieve this scale, spanning nearly half of the known continent. Has Count Leon fallen out of favor from the Duke? Is that why the Duke is willing to weaken him so as to renegotiate the feudal contract?

"I don't have time to fight over faith." Sebastian sighed, rubbing his hands together as he leaned back. "Our main focus should be on ensuring our South Sector is not encroached upon by the others. I am already under attack by the Violet Demons, and I'm sure Kyle will begin to see probing attacks by the Tu'Da'Li and Baron Namor in the coming weeks."

Kyle didn't reply, but understood what Sebastian meant. Now is our weakest period - we'll need to have a demonstration to really showcase our strength and capabilities. He needed to convince the East Sector that starting a war right now with them would be pyrrhic at best.

The meeting was over, with a tenuous alliance formed between the various parties. Bishop Vernette was infuriated, leaving the meeting in a rage, while Baron Cain and Kyle remained behind.

"Sebastian's information does not explain why the Duke has not intervened. It is in his best interest to maintain Raktor's power and economic strength as he gathers tribute and levies from it." Baron Cain scratched his chin, pondering. "Any weakening of the Count also represents a weakening of the Duke."

"That all depends on whether the Duke and the Count are aligned. My current suspicions are that Baron Namor has the Duke's Favour and is poised to replace Count Leon." Kyle explained. The two of them were now allies, and Kyle needed Baron Cain to be on the same page as him in order to ensure success.

"Then our plan to take over Raktor and make a case for ourselves is in jeopardy. Baron Namor in power will mean that he will suppress the both of us terribly."

"Not necessarily. If I were Baron Namor, the offer that I would have made to the Duke is both higher tribute and higher levies. What we need to do to prevent complete suppression is to bolster our strength and wealth so much that they can hardly ignore us. Any attempts at starting a war with us will put his offer to the Duke at risk."

Both of them knew that they were simply making assumptions here, as neither of them had the Duke's personality pinned down completely. Baron Cain had only seen the Duke a few times himself, only speaking to him once after he had taken over his father's role, and never again, clearly not interested in making connections.

"This is a stretch on my part, but I believe the information was leaked by the Duke to the major gangs."

"What?!" Baron Cain was startled. "That doesn't make any sense. The Duke is fomenting uprisings in his own Count's territory?"

"That is one way to get rid of a disloyal or unaligned subordinate, or to replace it with a better underling in the form of Baron Namor." It was simply an unfounded theory, but Kyle found it to be one of the better explanations for what was happening in the city. He wouldn't put it past the Duke to know exactly what was going on.

So the Duke has calculated that eliminating Count Leon is far better than the current status quo. "So if Count Leon captures Ocra..." Baron Cain spoke slowly.

"The Duke may very well eliminate him and his family with assassins even before he returns to Raktor, allowing Baron Namor to replace him." Kyle completed the sentence.

They were now in a dilemma. Should I then save Count Leon and kill Baron Namor? Or would killing Count Leon be the better option? Kyle realized that this plan has already long been in motion, and he may not have a chance to intervene any longer.

He did have the ADCON forces fighting in Ocra right now against Count Leon's troops, but protecting Count Leon was another question all together. Saving Count Leon will still result in a kill order for me. If he returns to Raktor, he would focus on eliminating the Seven Snakes first for the betrayal at Tenar.

Baron Cain too wanted a chance at becoming a new Count - with Count Leon still alive and his family in line for succession, he would have no shot at climbing up the noble ranks. While Baron Namor becoming the new Count would hardly be considered ideal, it is far better than Count Leon coming back to suppress all of them once again.

With this consideration in mind, the two of them knew both of them had come to the same conclusion. "It is interesting that every side is out to kill him." Baron Cain laughed at the tragedy. "Originally poised to become one of the larger Counts in the region if he captured Tenar, yet now he loses everything he has."

Kyle nodded, wondering if it had been the same scenario for him at his betrayal. Perhaps at that point, the entire organisation had already turned against me. Just like how even the Duke has turned against the Count.

It was all still mere speculation - Kyle did not have enough information to verify his assumptions, only making the best of what he knew on hand: he was not omnipotent after all, and for all his experience in the Galactic Era, human politics remained a diverse and fresh area for him, no two situations being exactly the same.

"The next step for us is to rebuild and develop. It is now a race between us and the East Sector to see who can rebuild the fastest and achieve economic dominance over Raktor." Baron Cain pointed out. "They have a headstart due to them achieving peace earlier, so we will need to double our efforts and dissuade them from attacking all together."

"I'll have my men figure out what to do next." Kyle nodded in agreement, the two of them leaving the Magda separately. Kyle rejoined Keith and Damian outside, walking back through the streets.

The districts were a complete mess, but the locals remaining were stubborn, some semblance of life returning to the demolished streets. However, the vast majority had no work to do, and business owners had long fled to the Central Sector or to other counties.

"Well done, Damian and Keith, for holding out this long." Kyle recognized that he did not play a part in the two-month long defence, meaning that the Seven Snakes had somehow held on without him. It was a testimonial to the prowess and determination of the men that he had gathered around him.

"I won't give up what I've built that easily. Not after we have come so far." Damian grinned, with Ketih nodding his head as well. The two of them were there from the start, having witnessed Kyle grow the Seven Snakes from a small time gang of twenty members to an organization able to go toe to toe with major gangs. If they were counting ADCON and the amount of economic influence Kyle now had in Versia due to his black market supply routes, it nearly rivaled an entire county. Perhaps a Count Kyle in the future?

Neither of them could have believed that they made it this far. Damian recalled languishing in mediocrity under Ulon for what seemed like ages. It was Kyle that motivated him to do better, pushing him to his limits along with increased responsibility. He may not be as strong, but as the underboss of the Seven Snakes in Raktor, he was not going to give up without a fight.

Keith too cherished the wealth they had accumulated from themselves, building a kingdom out of nothing. He was nowhere as strong as the other members of the Seven Snakes, not even being able to fight properly with his young body. Yet he played an essential role in managing the day-to-day operations. All of the Seven Snakes members did, and it was invigorating to be part of a growing organization that only showed more and more promise day by day.

"First things first. We honor the fallen." Kyle ordered, focusing on remembering the fallen. They headed straight for the site of the battle, where Kyle himself rolled up his sleeves and carried dead bodies, his fallen men shot to hell or missing limbs and placing them into makeshift coffins.

The losses were tremendous - Kyle had lost half of the Seven Snakes' men since the war began two months ago, a terrible death rate. They had won, and for a brief day, the men were overjoyed. Yet now, as they saw all their comrades lined up in their various coffins, with their wives and daughters crying over in a cacophony of wails, they began to wonder whether it was all worth it.

Kyle worked tirelessly, using his strength to clear the debris and retrieve the bodies under exploded buildings or fallen rubble. As he cleared the building, he noticed a familiar face, his heart clenching slightly as he saw the corpse. He... he shouldn't have followed me in the charge. Kyle had not kept track of the fighting during his duel with Ares, not knowing who had died and who had survived.

Damian was right next to Kyle, his face saddened at the ghastly sight of Alex's corpse. "He was a good man. A good father. Damn good fighter too. Fought harder than any of us."

"How many kids?"

"Two daughters. Wife was killed by the Ilysian Punks."

Kyle's heart clenched even more, his body emotional as he thought about how would his family be affected by his death in his former life. Probably hunted down to prevent succession. The thought gripped him tighter than ever, something he never felt when he neutered his emotions. In my pursuit for power, my men has always suffered. I never once felt anything for them. Is this what it is supposed to be like?

"Make sure they are treated well. All of them." Kyle spoke softly, with Damian nodding.

Suddenly, they heard a shuffle below Alex's corpse. Kyle quickly lifted Alex's corpses, revealing a nearly dead Ollie below, the kid's left arm completely crushed and severed under the rubble, his lips chapped from the dehydration.

Necklace of Healing! "Get water now!" Kyle urged Damian, prompting a nearby rescue team to quickly come over with potions and bandages while Kyle pulled Ollie out slowly, the healing aura mending his body but not his missing left arm.

Ollie's head lolled back unconsciously as Kyle placed him on the stretcher to be brought back to the hypermall for treatment.

The rescue work continued for a day, with the workers taking shifts while Kyle worked non-stop, not taking a break. The sight of their leader on the ground personally saving them was a sight to them, especially the newer Seven Snakes who had joined during the war and after Kyle left for Versia.

"Have all the bodies brought back to the mall for a funeral. The families can decide where they want them to be buried. Those with no families will be buried in the Culdao Peaks. Give me a list of all the names of those who died in battle." Kyle ordered.

A few hours later, The coffins lined up at the square in front of the hypermall, the defense fortifications shifted slightly to make way for the procession. Every Seven Snake member attended the funeral, a sombre tone holding them as they remembered the comrades they had fought with and the people they had lost along the way.

"Nature has life and death. The universe is a cycle of it. Each and every sapient living organism has to contest with the fact that one day, it might die." Kyle began his speech, standing in the midst of the coffins, their families standing next to them.

"When one signs up to be a Seven Snakes associate, the life was never going to be easy. Death was always around the corner - one crime away from failure. One mistake away from never being able to see your loved ones again. It was a risk, that everyone who joined understood."

"Still, this does not cheapen nor simplify the meaning of their deaths. For them and for all of us, battles and wars are never senseless. The difference between a human and an animal, is that we can choose when to die ourselves. That we can willingly choose to risk death in the hopes of something greater."

"Their deaths are a shout, a roar of defiance to the rest of society that common folk like you and me shall not be ignored. That we shall not be subjugated and treated like cattle under those better off than us, waiting to be slaughtered like animals. No, for these men here who have passed on, they died heroes."

"They fought to rise up against a brutal society, to fight against the chains that shackled both themselves and their loved ones. If given a choice to languish in the slums or to seek greater fortune and wealth, who would blame them for chasing their ambition? Do not begrudge them for their deaths, but be proud!"

"For unlike animals, they chose to fight for a better tomorrow. A better future! Not one where you will be forever a slave, unable to seek your own destiny. They fought for freedom and a better life, for all of us. They shall forever be immortalised as heroes of the Seven Snakes who had made the bravest choice to fight for their successors, their future generation. For it is the greatest who plant trees, knowing that they may never sit under its shade."

"And I, as leader of the Seven Snakes, vow to always remember their dedication and efforts. Their loved ones shall forever be taken care of by us, never forgotten nor thrown to the side."

Kyle then personally spoke each and every name of those who had fallen, bowing to their families. While it was clear that he had memorised the list, the direct effort he had put into doing so made the families much more appreciative.

Not every family was happy with Kyle, some even lashing out the moment he got close. "It's your fault! It's your fault that my son is dead! All the words you've spouted are mere gibberish, slander to my son's death! He died for nothing! Only for your gang's sickening ambition and greed for power." A crying mother shouted in anger.

Kyle did not respond, not arguing with the mother but instead bowing his head in apology. The crying mother eventually lost steam, turning into a sobbing mess as she hugged her son's coffin, tears streaming down the makeshift wooden cover.

The funeral was long - nearly two hours as Kyle took the time to express his sincerity for each and every coffin, even those with no families left such as orphans who had joined. The moment he was done, he returned to his original position.

"Their deaths only serve as a stark reminder that without power, anyone and everyone outside can and will suppress us. Only through bolstering ourselves can we prevent such a tragedy again. The peace that we now have was one that they have sacrificed for - and I plan to make it count."

Kyle nodded to Damian, who hollered out. "SQUAD, PRESENT ARMS!"

A funeral firing squad that had been hastily assembled lined up with their arctech guns Kyle noticed a girl in the line-up, tears streaming down her face as she could hardly break away her gaze from Alex's coffin. Still she gripped her rifle tightly, her arms outstretched.

Their practice was clearly lacking, but the sincerity could be felt, the squad made up of all the people who knew those who had fallen personally. Even Roca, the hobgoblin of Alex's squad was in there was well, a tear streaking from the corner of his eyes.

"LOAD!" Damian roared again, prompting the guards to shakily load a single pellet into the rifle.

"AIM!" The multitude of rifles aimed up at the sky.

"FIRE!"

A barrage rang out clear and true, as many of the families broke down once more, sobbing even harder than ever.

The firing squad fired three times, the number of pellets fired representing each soul that had passed on. "Today, we mourn our losses - but those who had given their lives for us would not want us to remain stationary forever. The better future that they believed in for all of us would not exist if we stood by idly!" Kyle began to speak once more, motivating the men. "Think of everything we have achieved so far - think of where you have come from to get to this point, to stand on top of everything else despite all the hardships we have endured!"

"The Seven Snakes has now risen to be a major gang: the dominant force in the South Sector! And by hook or crook, I swear on my name that we will rise even further, even greater, and burn even brighter than any gang that has come before us! Our name will spread all over the continent and even beyond, and no one will dare stand in our way! WHO ARE WE?!" Kyle shot his hand into the air.

"SEVEN SNAKES!" The firing squad roared back with Damian in the lead.

"WHO ARE WE?" Kyle shouted again.

"SEVEN SNAKES!" The other members chanted back as well with force, shouting with all their might.

"I CAN'T HEAR YOU! WHO ARE WE?!"

"SEVEN SNAKES!"