I Rule Rome with a God-Tier AI-Chapter 97: The Council of War at Garni

The great hall of the fortress at Garni was thick with a silence born of pure, unadulterated terror. The herald's final, chilling threat—the promise of utter, historical annihilation—hung in the air like a foul miasma, poisoning the very stones with fear. Prince Tiridates sat frozen on his throne, his knuckles white where he gripped the carved wood, his royal bravado shattered. His captains and guards shuffled their feet, their eyes wide, avoiding each other's gaze as if ashamed of the collective fear that held them in its grip. They were warriors, but they were being asked to fight a shadow that could unmake the world. 𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

Even Alex's own men were shaken to their core. Maximus stood like a granite statue, but his jaw was clenched so tight a muscle jumped in his cheek. Cassius, ever the stoic, had a hand resting on the hilt of his gladius, a reflexive gesture of a man facing a threat for which a sword was useless. The psychological attack had been a masterpiece. The Silent King had not drawn a single blade, yet he had routed the morale of the entire fortress.

They all looked to Alex. The humble scribe 'Decius' was now the undeniable center of gravity in the room, the focal point of all their fear and wavering hope. He stood in the center of the hall, on the very spot where the glass bird had dissolved into dust, his expression unreadable.

In the silent chamber of his mind, Lyra's voice was a cool, insistent stream of pure logic in his ear. Re-evaluating mission parameters. The enemy has demonstrated capabilities consistent with Class-4 material manipulation. Probability of direct confrontation resulting in mission failure is now 92.8%. The herald's offer of safe passage is a statistically viable outcome. Tactical retreat is the only logical course of action.

Logic. For a fleeting moment, Alex was tempted to embrace it. The offer was a lifeline. He could take his men, leave this cursed land, and return to his manageable war with Parthia. He could go back to a world of steel and flesh he understood.

But then he looked at the faces around him. He saw the terror in the eyes of the young Armenian prince, a terror that was quickly curdling into despair. He saw the grim uncertainty on the face of Maximus, his most loyal friend. He knew that if he, their leader, showed even a hint of fear or hesitation, all would be lost. Their fragile alliance would shatter, and their spirits would break. Logic would not win this battle. Only defiance could. Only Rome could.

He took a deep, steadying breath and slammed the butt of a guard's nearby spear onto the stone floor. The sharp, resonant CRACK echoed through the hall, a gunshot of sound that shattered the spell of fear. Every head snapped towards him.

"He offers us a choice," Alex's voice rang out, strong and clear, filled with a certainty he did not feel. "To run back to our 'petty struggles' of flesh and iron, or to be 'unmade.'" He let out a short, sharp bark of a laugh, a sound of pure, contemptuous disbelief that shocked the onlookers.

"He thinks because we are creatures of blood and bone, we are weak," Alex declared, his voice rising, taking on the commanding cadence of an orator. "He thinks because his power is strange and new, it is supreme. He looks at us and sees only dust. He does not see the fire that forges it!"

He began to pace the hall, his simple scribe's cloak swirling around him, his presence seeming to grow until he filled the room. He pointed a finger at the trembling prince. "I look at Prince Tiridates, and I do not see a man considering retreat! I see the righteous anger of a king whose sacred homeland has been invaded by a foreign power! A king who will not bow to a shadow in his own halls!"

He turned his gaze on his own men. "I look at General Maximus, and I do not see fear! I see the man who held the line on the Danube against a hundred thousand screaming Germans! A man whose shield is the living border of our world!" He swung towards Cassius. "I look at Centurion Cassius and his cohort, and I do not see doubt! I see the men who faced these 'unfallen' demons in the canyon and shattered them like cheap pottery! Their magic armor broke against our Roman steel! Their silent terror was met with a warrior's rage!"

He was weaving a new narrative, replacing their fear with a litany of their own courage, reminding them of who they were. He was using the classic tools of a Roman leader: an appeal to honor, a recitation of past glories, a stoking of righteous anger.

He strode towards the Armenian nobles, his voice softening but losing none of its intensity. "The herald speaks of rewriting history. He calls your heritage insignificant. But this fortress of Garni was built by your ancestors to defy the mountains themselves! These stones have stood for a thousand years. They have seen the passing of Persian kings and Greek phalanxes. They have endured. They will endure this Silent King as well. His name is a whisper. The name of Armenia is carved in rock!"

The fear in the hall was beginning to recede, replaced by a slow-burning, defiant anger. The Armenians were standing straighter, their hands moving from their sword-hilts to their clenched fists. Alex knew he needed one final, powerful gesture to galvanize them, to irrevocably bind their cause to his.

He walked directly to the throne where the astounded Prince Tiridates sat. In a move that made every Roman and Armenian in the hall gasp, Alex unbuckled his own sword belt. He held out his personal gladius—the priceless, perfect blade of Ignis Steel—and offered it to the prince, hilt first.

"Rome does not ask its allies to fight and die for a promise," Alex said, his voice now resonating with profound sincerity. "We fight alongside them. We bleed with them." He pushed the hilt into the prince's unresisting hand. "Prince Tiridates, rightful King of Armenia, accept this blade. It was forged in what we call the Fire of Vulcan, the heart of our Empire's might. Let it be a symbol of our unbreakable alliance. Let it be the sword that carves your new kingdom. From this moment on, your enemies are Rome's enemies. Your land is Rome's land to defend."

He lowered his voice so only the prince could hear. "And Rome... does not retreat."

The gesture was a masterstroke of political theater and genuine commitment. In offering his own, unique weapon, he was offering a piece of his own power, his own soul. He was showing a level of trust and respect that was unheard of from a Roman leader to a foreign client.

Prince Tiridates stared at the sword in his hand. He could feel its perfect balance, see the unearthly sheen of its steel. It felt like he was holding a sliver of a god's power. His fear, which had so recently threatened to consume him, was burned away in a surge of overwhelming pride and fierce, unwavering resolve. He was no longer a frightened pretender. He was the chosen ally of this new, terrifying, and magnificent Rome.

He rose from his throne, the Ignis Steel gladius held firmly in his hand, and raised it high for all to see.

"My throne, my life, and the swords of every man in this fortress are yours, Lord Decius!" he declared, his voice ringing with a new, kingly authority. "We will show this Silent King the meaning of Armenian iron and Roman steel!"

A deafening roar of approval shook the hall. The fear was gone, replaced by the grim, defiant purpose of men who had been pushed to the brink and had chosen to fight back. Maximus and Cassius stared at Alex, their faces filled with a new and profound awe. He had faced down a supernatural, psychological attack not with a secret weapon or a hidden power, but with a speech, a gesture, and an appeal to the warrior's soul. He had not just managed a crisis; he had forged an army from the ashes of their fear.

From the small earpiece, unheard by anyone else, Lyra's voice spoke, a cool, clinical observation in the midst of the passionate uproar.

Reassessment complete. Probability of mission success has just increased by 12.8%. The human psychological factors of 'morale' and 'shared purpose' are proving to be significant variables. I am continuing to analyze their impact on combat effectiveness.