Timeless Assassin

Chapter 1142: Ideological Clash

(Planet Drexel, Leo’s POV)

The moment Leo’s craft descended onto Planet Drexel and entered the military hangar zone, he immediately sensed that the atmosphere below was far too tense.

Commander Micky James stood outside personally waiting to receive him, while tens of thousands of soldiers crowded the surrounding bay area despite strict security restrictions already being in place.

It almost looked less like a military reception and more like an army waiting for judgment from its ruler after committing some unforgivable crime.

The first thing Leo noticed after stepping out of the craft was the state Commander James was currently in.

Bandages wrapped around his forearms.

His shoulder.

Part of his neck.

Even one side of his ribs appeared restrained beneath reinforced combat wrappings, clearly indicating that the earlier reports regarding Mairon’s resistance had not been exaggerated.

And immediately, Leo could already picture how the fight must have unfolded.

Commander James likely restrained himself throughout most of the battle, trying to subdue Mairon without inflicting serious damage upon the Cult Master’s son.

Meanwhile, Mairon would have shown no such hesitation whatsoever.

To him, it would have been a real fight.

A clash between conviction and opposition.

Which was why, in Leo’s eyes, the entire situation resembled less of a duel and more of a responsible adult struggling against an enraged spoiled child.

Still, despite noticing the injuries immediately, Leo did not comment on them at all.

"Commander," Leo acknowledged simply, as he gave Micky James a small nod while continuing to walk forward without slowing his pace whatsoever.

Commander James bowed his head respectfully.

"My Lord."

He muttered, however, before anything else could be said, the surrounding soldiers suddenly erupted into noise from every direction simultaneously.

"It’s not Lieutenant Mairon’s fault, Cult Master!"

"Please free the Lieutenant!"

"He only stood up for us!"

"The Lieutenant did nothing wrong!"

"He was protecting the honor of our fallen brothers!"

The voices echoed endlessly across the hangar area, as more and more soldiers started shouting over one another while emotions rapidly spiraled out of control.

Leo stopped walking.

Then slowly, he turned his head slightly toward the crowd.

*FWOOSH*

A suffocating wave of aura spread outward from his body instantly, crushing across the hangar bay like invisible gravity while the air itself became difficult to breathe under the pressure.

As immediately, silence gripped the bay area as a whole.

"Need I remind all of you....." Leo said coldly, his voice carrying across the entire hangar despite not being raised even slightly.

"That every single soldier standing here has sworn loyalty to Commander James first and foremost while serving beneath his command?"

His eyes swept slowly across the gathered troops afterward.

"He is standing right beside me..."

"And yet all of you openly challenge his authority without shame."

The pressure in the atmosphere deepened further.

"I do not remember raising the Cult Army to become this undisciplined."

Nobody dared respond.

"Or perhaps," Leo continued quietly.

"I should suspend this entire legion and replace every commanding officer stationed on Drexel altogether?"

Several soldiers visibly paled hearing that possibility.

Leo clicked his tongue afterward before continuing forward again without sparing another glance toward the crowd surrounding him.

Meanwhile behind him, nobody dared speak anymore.

—----------

The military prison beneath Drexel’s central command facility was unnaturally quiet by comparison, as only the sounds of boots striking steel corridors echoed through the underground halls.

*Step* *Step* *Step*

As Leo walked deeper into the prison alongside Commander James, more and more imprisoned soldiers slowly stood upright within their cells after noticing his arrival.

Then one after another, they saluted.

"Cult Master."

"Cult Master!"

"CULT MASTER!"

The voices gradually spread throughout the prison block as every imprisoned soldier straightened themselves proudly despite their current conditions.

And yet, Leo acknowledged none of them.

Not a single one.

His gaze remained fixed forward the entire time while he continued walking deeper into the prison until finally reaching the final reinforced containment chamber.

The cell where Mairon was currently being held.

*SLAM*

Leo kicked the prison door open violently before stepping inside without hesitation, as the heavy reinforced steel gate slammed against the surrounding walls from sheer force.

Inside the chamber—

Mairon was suspended in the air by four massive steel chains attached tightly around his limbs and torso, forcing his body into a restrained spread position without allowing meaningful movement whatsoever.

The moment Leo entered, however, Mairon raised his chin slightly, then smiled.

"Old man," Mairon greeted casually, as though he were not currently chained inside a military prison after assaulting one of the Cult’s highest ranking Commanders.

"Sorry for interrupting your usually busy schedule... I know it must have been an inconvenience for you to travel all the way here."

His smile widened slightly afterward.

"If I was just a bit stronger, I probably could have resolved this situation myself already.

But rest assured, that mistake will never be repeated."

He said, as...

*Clench*

Leo’s fists tightened instantly hearing those words, as it took genuine restraint from him to not walk forward and smack the stupidity straight out of his son’s face.

"You..."

Leo muttered slowly.

"Do you even realize where you went wrong here, Mairon?"

He questioned, as he secretly hoped that having spent a few hours in captivity had given Mairon a chance to repent.

However, unfortunately, it did not seem like it, as Mairon simply lowered his gaze at the question.

"My only mistake was not being strong enough, Father," he answered calmly.

"That is genuinely the only mistake I made here."

Leo’s expression darkened immediately.

"If there is anything else I regret..."

Mairon continued afterward.

"It is the injuries I caused Commander James during our fight."

His eyes shifted briefly toward the Commander standing outside the cell.

"Believe me, those injuries were never intentional."

"But once the fight escalated beyond a certain point..."

"...holding back stopped becoming possible."

Leo stared at him in disbelief afterward before shaking his head slowly.

"No... no, NOOO..."

"You learned absolutely nothing from this entire ordeal."

His voice sharpened further.

"Fighting is not the solution to every single problem you encounter."

"Being strong means absolutely nothing if you lack the brains necessary to use that strength responsibly."

Mairon listened quietly before eventually letting out a deep sigh.

"I can act rationally when necessary, Father."

"But this situation was never going to be one of those moments."

His eyes slowly lifted afterward until they met Leo’s directly.

"Let me ask you something honestly..."

He began, as the atmosphere inside the prison cell grew heavier immediately.

"Suppose it was me who died during that ambush instead of some random patrol soldier."

Mairon’s gaze never wavered.

"What would your response have been then?"

Leo remained silent.

"What would Commander James have done?"

"Would either of you truly respond with calm restraint and measured retaliation?"

Mairon’s voice lowered further afterward.

"Or would Drexel already be burning?"

The question struck harder than Leo expected.

Because deep down—

He already knew the answer.

If Mairon had died on this planet.... Leo probably would not have cared who was responsible individually.

The entire world itself would have paid the price.

"You see?" Mairon continued quietly after noticing Leo’s silence.

"What you would have done..."

"What Commander James might secretly want to do..."

"And what I wanted to do..."

"...are not actually that different."

Leo’s eyes narrowed sharply.

"The only real difference between us is that your emotions extend only toward your own blood..."

"While mine extend toward every single soldier serving beneath my command."

The chains around Mairon rattled slightly as he shifted position.

"My sense of justice is not wrong here, Father."

"And if Commander James disagrees with it..."

"...that still does not automatically make him correct."

For several long seconds, nobody inside the room spoke.

"I have no further reflection to make regarding this matter," Mairon finished calmly.

"Other than acknowledging that I am still too weak."

His eyes sharpened afterward.

"And that I need to become stronger soon."

He declared, as Leo shook his head in disapproval, clearly unhappy with his son’s mentality regarding this issue.