Chapter 1228. I Am Not Here to Be Their King. I Am Here to Be Their God

Chapter 1228: 1228. I Am Not Here to Be Their King. I Am Here to Be Their God

Valentina lay in the wreckage of her own life, her mind a shattered mirror reflecting only corpses and blood. The temporal visions Rex had forced upon her acted like acid, eating away at her sanity.

She could still feel the phantom sensation of Helena’s bones snapping; she could still hear the wet gurgle of Lily’s final breath. The trauma was so profound that her body began to reject itself, her muscles seizing in involuntary spasms.

’Please,’ her mind whispered, a broken, pathetic thing. ’Please, not them. Anything but them.’

"Please..." The word finally broke free from her lips, not as a command or a curse, but as a wet, desperate plea.

She dragged herself toward Rex’s boots, her fingernails leaving crimson streaks on the marble as she prostrated herself before him. "Stop... please stop showing me those things."

She looked up at him, her face a mask of agony, tears mixing with the blood streaming from her nose. "I’ll do it."

"I’ll give you... everything."

"My body, my dignity, my soul. Just... promise me."

"Promise me you won’t destroy Aethelgard."

"Promise you’ll spare them... Spare Helena... Spare the children..."

"I will be your slave, your toy; whatever you need, just keep your promise... Leave the city in peace."

She was bargaining with her own humanity, offering up her flesh as a sacrifice to appease a demon. She thought she had found the leverage.

She thought she had found the one thing a predator would respect: a transaction.

Rex stared down at her for a long moment. Then, the silence was broken by a sound that made Valentina’s blood run colder than any spell: laughter.

It wasn’t a villainous cackle; it was a genuine, amused chuckle, the kind a man might give when watching a child make an absurdly naive mistake.

"Oh, Valentina," Rex said, shaking his head as he looked down at her broken form. "You really are as naive as they said you were."

"Do you truly believe I need to bargain with you?"

The laughter died down, replaced by a smile that was sharp enough to draw blood. "You think I’m threatening Aethelgard to get what I want?"

"Valentina, you misunderstand my entire design."

"Aethelgard isn’t a target I’m trying to spare... Aethelgard is my first kingdom."

Valentina froze. The hope that had briefly flickered in her chest died instantly, replaced by a void of pure terror.

"What... what do you mean?"

"The Underlayer was merely a proving ground... A testing site for my power, a way to gather resources and test my methods," Rex said, stepping closer until his boot pressed against her wounded ribs.

He applied pressure just enough to make her gasp and retch blood onto the floor.

’Urrgh, huck.’

"But this city? This academy? This is where I will establish my throne... This is where my reign begins."

He knelt beside her, his fingers tracing the line of her jaw with terrifying tenderness. "I have no intention of destroying Aethelgard."

"I intend to rule it... I will bring order... I will bring peace..."

"But it will be a peace built on absolute submission. And you will be the foundation of that submission."

His eyes darkened with a hungry, predatory intent. "First, I break you."

"I use you until there is nothing left of the headmaster but a shell that exists only to serve my pleasure."

"Once you are properly broken, once you have learned to love the leash... then I will move on to Helena."

"And then Evelyn... I want them both."

"I want to see if their screams taste as sweet as yours."

Valentina’s heart hammered against her ribs like a trapped bird. "You’re... you’re insane."

"I am inevitable," Rex corrected. "And once I have claimed everything precious to you, once I have broken every pillar of resistance in this city, I will make Aethelgard the most stable kingdom in Erosyne."

"I will force the Underlayer to retreat... I will cleanse the corruption."

"I will be the savior this world deserves, but first, I will be the monster that owns it."

He grabbed her by the hair again, yanking her upright so she had to face the reality of her new existence. "Now, stand up..."

"We’re going to the Starlight household."

"We have work to do, and I find myself feeling... impatient."

As he dragged her toward the door, Valentina’s mind spiraled into darkness. She wasn’t saving her city; she was merely feeding the beast that was about to devour it.

She was the first offering in a ritual of conquest that would leave the entire world screaming her name.

The walk toward the exit felt like a march to the gallows. Valentina stumbled behind Rex, her legs shaking so violently she could barely maintain her balance.

Every step was agony; every breath felt like swallowing broken glass as her bruised ribs scraped against her lungs.

"Rex... please," she whimpered, her voice cracking. "Not like this... Not in front of the students... especially not in front of the guards."

"If you... if you truly intend to rule this city, you cannot show them this."

"They will see your cruelty... They will see you dragging their headmaster like common filth."

"Please, let us go privately... Let me dress; let me compose myself so you can maintain your image as their king."

It was a desperate gambit, an attempt to appeal to the cold logic of a conqueror. She hoped that by preserving his dignity, she might salvage a shred of her own.

Rex stopped abruptly. He didn’t turn around.

"You think I care about their perception?" His voice was hollow, amused. "I am not here to be their king, Valentina."

"I am here to be their god... And gods do not explain their movements to mortals."

Without warning, he grabbed her arm. His grip was like iron manacles. "But I appreciate your concern for my reputation."

"Very well. We shall avoid the eyes of the common rabble."

The world suddenly twisted. The air turned viscous, like water, and the space around them folded inward with a nauseating WHOOMP.

Valentina felt her stomach drop as if she were falling from a great height. Her vision blurred into streaks of violet and black as Rex’s teleportation magic tore through the fabric of reality, dragging them across the city in the blink of an eye.

When the world solidified again, the familiar, warm opulence of the Starlight household rushed back. But it felt wrong.

The air was too still, too heavy with an unnatural tension.

"Wait," Rex murmured, his eyes narrowing. "I want to ensure our... privacy is absolute."

Valentina’s heart froze. "Rex, no... Don’t—"

But he was already moving, dragging her toward the private wing of the mansion. Valentina watched through tear-blurred eyes as they crossed the threshold, her mind screaming.

’Not them. Please, not the children.’

They reached the inner sanctum, the door swinging open to reveal a scene that shattered Valentina’s remaining sanity more effectively than any temporal vision ever could.

Lily and Diana were there. But they weren’t frightened.

They weren’t screaming.

They were kneeling.

The two young girls, whose innocence Valentina had spent years protecting, were positioned at Rex’s feet like devoted acolytes.

Their eyes were glazed, pupils dilated in a way that spoke of a deep, chemical obsession. They looked up at Rex not with fear, but with a terrifying, hungry adoration.

"Rex..." Lily whispered, her voice unnaturally sweet, almost melodic. "You’re back."

"We waited for you," Diana added, her hands trembling with excitement as she reached out to touch the hem of his cloak.

Valentina felt the world tilt. "Lily? Diana?"

"What... what have you done to them?" she gasped, her voice breaking into a sob. "Run! Get away from him!"

But the girls didn’t move. Instead, they rose with fluid, practiced grace.

They moved toward Rex like moths to a flame. Valentina watched in horrified fascination as Lily leaned in, pressing a soft, reverent kiss to Rex’s cheek, while Diana took his other hand, pressing her lips to his knuckles.

’This is impossible,’ Valentina thought, her mind fracturing. ’This isn’t corruption. This is... devotion.’

’They love him. They love the monster.’

"We’ll leave you to your business, Rex," Lily said, casting a sidelong glance at Valentina.

There was no sympathy in her eyes, only a cold, unsettling pity. "We’ll be in the gardens, waiting for your next command."

"Don’t be too hard on Grandmother," Diana giggled, a sound that sent shivers of pure revulsion down Valentina’s spine. "She just needs to learn how to serve you properly, like we did."

With a synchronized bow that looked almost ritualistic, the two girls turned and walked away, their movements light and carefree, leaving behind a trail of shattered hope.

Valentina sank to her knees, her legs finally giving out. She watched them leave, knowing that the girls she loved were already lost to the abyss Rex had created.

They weren’t victims; they were converts. They had seen the power and tasted the inevitability, and they had chosen to kneel.

Rex turned his attention back to Valentina. The door clicked shut behind them, sealing them in the opulent silence of the Starlight household.

The last shred of Valentina’s resistance evaporated, leaving only the raw, exposed nerve of her terror.

"Now," Rex said, his voice dropping to that intimate, deadly purr as he loomed over her. "Finally... Just us."