Yago pulled out a dagger and, under the terrified gaze of the Marleyan officer, mercilessly sliced through the rope binding him.
The Marleyan officer suddenly felt his whole body relax, but he shuddered in fear, not understanding what Yago was doing.
Looking at the snot and tears on the Marleyan officer's face, Yago first sneered inwardly, then beckoned with his hand. A Restoration Army soldier beside him immediately cooperated, pulling out the pistol from his waist and handing it to Yago.
Click! Yago cocked the pistol and, under the shocked gaze of the Marleyan officer, stuffed it into his hands.
Swish! At the same time, the Restoration Army soldiers around Yago raised their rifles and aimed at the Marleyan officer.
"Ah! Sir, what are you doing? I—I don't want to die! Don't kill me! Don't kill me!" Terrified of death, the Marleyan officer hurriedly threw away the gun and clutched his head, begging in panic.
But Yago frowned and shouted, "Pick up the gun! I said pick it up!"
The Marleyan officer could only tremble as he picked up the pistol from the ground.
Then Yago pointed at Josef, who was tied up, and said,
"This guy is a disgrace to us Eldians. He wholeheartedly acts as a tool for you Marleyans. His loyalty to you is truly touching. We Eldians don't need such scum, so he must die!"
As soon as Yago finished speaking, the Eldians gathered behind Josef were so frightened that they retreated one after another. Was this young man really this brutal?
Hearing Yago's words, the nearby Restoration Army soldiers also cooperated by raising their weapons. At that moment, some of the Eldians who had been shouting earlier had their legs go weak from fear.
Yago turned his head again and looked at the Marleyan officer.
"But now, you have two choices. Considering how loyal Josef is to you, I've decided to let you make the choice."
Yago pointed at the gun in the Marleyan officer's hand, then at Josef.
"If you shoot Josef in the arm right now, I'll spare him. I'll lock him up together with you Marleyans—after all, such deep master-servant affection, right? But!"
Yago's tone suddenly turned cold.
"If you shoot him in the head, then I'll let you go, thanking you for helping us Eldians get rid of this scum. Of course, if you don't shoot, then you and your 'servant' can meet underground. Now, make your choice."
Yago threw the choice in front of the Marleyan officer, then mockingly said to Josef,
"Your life and death are now in this Marleyan's hands. What? Not going to say anything? Weren't you so loyal to Marley? Go on, move him. Talk about your peace theories."
Josef's body was trembling as well. He hadn't expected this young man to actually kill someone. But looking at the equally trembling Marleyan officer, a trace of hope still rose in his heart. At least—at least one thing was true—he really was loyal to Marley!
So Josef cried out to the Marleyan officer, "Officer! Save me! I am truly loyal to Marley! I never wanted to associate with these devils! Both my sons joined the army and fought for Marley. My eldest died on the battlefield, and my second was left crippled. Our whole family has shed blood for Marley. Please save me!"
Ignoring Josef's wailing, the Marleyan officer stared fearfully at the gun in his hand. He was thinking about whether Yago's words were true. Would he really be let go? Could he trust this young Eldian?
The Marleyan officer thought about what had happened that night. These Eldian soldiers had not slaughtered them as expected. They had even brought in doctors to treat some severely injured Marleyan prisoners. Maybe… maybe they really might let him go!
With that thought, the Marleyan officer stopped trembling and raised the pistol in front of the many Eldians.
Opposite him, Josef struggled desperately, shouting all kinds of declarations of loyalty to Marley. But the Marleyan officer didn't listen at all. His mind was filled with one thing—freedom! He thought of his family back home. Compared to them, what was a worthless Eldian that even his own people didn't care about?
Loyal to Marley? What the hell did that have to do with him? The Marleyan officer didn't care about Josef's life at all. Since he was so loyal to Marley, wasn't it perfect to trade his life for the freedom of a Marleyan officer like himself?
The Marleyan officer turned his head and asked Yago ingratiatingly,
"Sir, if I kill him, will you really let me go?"
Yago said coldly, "Of course!"
Bang! Without any hesitation, the Marleyan officer aimed at Josef's head and fired.
The surrounding Eldians cried out in shock. In the end, even these Eldians who shouted about peaceful coexistence with Marley feared death. When Yago made the Marleyan officer choose, a trace of luck had existed in their hearts. They naively held onto hope, hoping that the Marleyans would recognize their loyalty and wash away their label as devils.
The Marleyan officer being able to decide Josef's life and death gave them hope. To them, it proved that Marleyans could be moved by them. After all, the officer wouldn't lose anything—he could just shoot Josef in the arm and save both their lives.
But that shot to Josef's head shattered all their illusions.
Smoke rose from the muzzle. The Marleyan officer stood dumbfounded. At less than five meters, there was no way he could have missed. But the scene of brains splattering that he had imagined did not appear.
Josef only felt a sharp pain in his forehead, and a red mark appeared there.
The bullet in the gun was a blank. The paper casing had merely struck Josef's head heavily. Yago took the gun from the Marleyan officer, who was still stunned, and the Restoration Army dragged him away again.
Yago walked up to Josef and mockingly pointed at his forehead.
"Your loyalty is truly touching. Does your head hurt? How does it feel? Are the Marleyans moved? Didn't you say both your sons shed blood for Marley? Why does it seem like they don't appreciate it at all?"
Josef's face was pale, trembling as he didn't know what to say. Yago smiled and said,
"Don't worry. If you're not convinced, we'll try a few more times. Let's see if any Marleyan will actually be moved."
Next, one Marleyan officer after another was brought over by the Restoration Army soldiers, repeating the same choice again and again.
Gunshots rang out one after another. More than thirty Marleyan officers, along with some ordinary Marleyan soldiers—without exception, all of them fired at Josef's head. Most didn't hesitate at all. Only one young Marleyan soldier hesitated a bit longer, but under the temptation of freedom, he still pulled the trigger.
Josef's entire face was red—not from shame, but from being struck repeatedly by the paper casings of blank rounds. But the pain on his face was nothing compared to the coldness in his heart. From begging and struggling at the beginning, he gradually became numb.
Under the gaze of thousands upon thousands of Eldians around him, his loyalty to Marley had been trampled over and over again, like a ridiculous joke.
The Eldians who had once followed Josef in berating the Restoration Army gradually fell silent. Some of them looked at the armbands on their arms and suddenly felt that the multi-pointed star symbol on them was unbearably glaring.
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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