As though my stamping boot was a judge's gavel and his exiled breath was a sternful decree, the surrounding orchestral sea of murmurs and disquiet of expectantly amused and curious nobility and their servants, became a purged wasteland of held tongues and captive breaths, as everyone stared wide eyed at the scene before them.

Yet I cared little for all of that, as my Palace Guard, in their glinting golden armour stormed forward with the ferocity of charging wolves, as they surrounded the hundred or so men and women who stood in support of the one below me.

Shrieks of fear and dread erupted from a few of them then, as their knees and minds gave just as their non-existent courage did, while a few snivels of desperate pleading rang out with cries of mercy, begging for their unearned pardon, with conveniently woven claims of coercion and blackmail against their wholly innocent selves; as all the rest of them remained frozen in place, utterly unresponsive to my guard surrounding them with drawn weapons, as their eyes still fixated upon the severed arm before them, their brains still reeling from the image of such unexpected violence and barbarism, and in the Banquet of Concordia no less.

"What happened?" My voice, low and dark, rang out across the open space, as I turned to ask my brother and champion.

An eerie feeling of unnatural cold, like shards of ice abruptly forming in their veins, suddenly gripped the two as they met my inhuman eyes, finally beholding and understanding that infamous sensation they have heard countless others whisperingly describe through wavering words in the night casted halls of the imperial palace of Eklepsus, uttered through quivering lips and in between bouts of cold sweat, the rumoured creature wholly beyond morality or even humanity, that occasionally peered through the abyssal eyes of the Black Throne's Holder, when all but rage had consumed his mind.

Cyrus was still stupefied with all that had just happened with the addition of my haunting glare, so Leonid, who broke free of his stupor first, took the mantle of answering, as he coolly said "These people wished to steal his highness' and I's harvest, my emperor."

Awakening upon hearing his voice, Cyrus quickly jumped in as well, aiding his words "That's right brother! We were just returning from our hunt in the mountain, when these highwaymen blocked our path!"

"What harvest?" I asked, turning to once again look upon the now shivering shells of ejected bravado and hollow nobility, that was now the forms of those nearly one hundred fools.

"These." Cyrus and Leonid then pulled out two crowns, one a circlet of the brightest silver, that shone almost pure white in the setting sun, with pale sapphires adorning it's surface with a clear sigil of a white tree and stars etched upon it's centre, as another etching of number one was intricately carved through the twisting of it's branches; while the other was off slimmer design, and of a golden make, with rose quartz circling it's delicate surface, with the mark of a proud peacock unfurling it's chromatic tail feathers in a grand display, that masterfully hid not a number but the image of an immaculate crown within the midst of the bird's pinions.

Without much need for thought, these two were clearly the crowns meant for the first princess of the Boreas Empire, Elisabetta, and the heiress of the Omorfia Isles, lady Amara, respectively.

Hearing this, I turn back to the man beneath my boots, and recognize upon the features of his emaciated face, despite being now as pale as parchment from the loss of blood, that his earlier actions, were not a product of a lack of intelligence or an excess of courage, but due to blind addiction, causing him to lose all sense of rationality and consequence, if it meant he could sate the ever increasing desire for further stimulation from the one whose beauty was so divine, it had all but twisted his fragile mind.

Even the bags underneath his eyes were a product of this, as he most definitely lost many a nights of sleep, being haunted by the beautiful memories of his encounter with the women of the house of beauty, sex and love.

And upon realizing this, my anger only furthered in it's voracity, as how dare this filth approach my darling little brother with such hostility for such a solicitous and pathetic reason, as he only wished to present the object of his compulsion with this petty prize, in the hopes of further fuelling his own dependence.

So without hesitation I raised my weapon yet again, my bleached bone aura sticking like an eerie coating to Fallen Nemesis, adding an air of almost ghostly chills to the already pure white halberd, as I readied to bring to it down upon the scum dirtying the very world in which I reside in.

Yet before I could pass my judgement, a shout loud enough to vibrate the wind like thunder, swept past the clearing "Stop!"

Turning to the would be interrupter, I beheld King Aegaeon rushing to the scene, with the Frozen King, Mikael and a few others, who I didn't recognize, a step behind.

"My lord Alexander I beseech you to stay your hand!" One of the men I didn't recognize instantly yelled out with a pale face, as soon as he stopped running.

Though I still hadn't recognized the man, the power he used to arrive before me was undoubtedly of a divine nature, and now that I looked upon him more closely, I noticed that he shared a few similarities with the man still crushed beneath my heal, making me realize that they are of royal lineage, though the fool beneath me was still a mortal who hadn't even unlocked his first gate yet.

"And why should I?" I dismissively replied, as I returned my attention to extract due punishment, yet instantly afterward, Aegaeon, with his fourth gated divine aura rumbling like a disastrous storm, said.

"Ruinous Dragon, though I hold no ill will nor any desire to fight you, but as the host of the two hundred and nineteenth Banquet of Concordia, I can not allow you to reap life within these hallowed times with such impunity."

As though emboldened by his words and actions, the man who spoke up earlier along with a few others who seemed to be the relatives or masters of the other dozen or so who were surrounded by my guards, also unleashed their power.

Though most of them did not possess a strength worth mentioning, with the highest among them only being in the second gate.

There was a few amongst them as well, that I noticed were injecting themselves into the affair not due to personal involvement, but for the gratification of watching me being knocked down a peg by the impromptu coalition.

Yet despite all their attempts to pressure me, I stood unperturbed before their deluge of power, as my face twisted into the portrait of sheer insanity, as a blast of ear piercing laughter erupted from my throat.

And then in mocking defiance to their display, my own divine aura exploded out with a horrifying intensity, as my eyes took on their hellish shades and my hair grew past my shoulder, while my skin became a canvas of black carved symbols pulsing with power, before my foot that still rested upon the man's chest, effortlessly pushed deeper into his fractured chest; awakening him with a start and a mouthful of blood and coughs, as everyone then horrifically realized that the bones of his own ribcage had undoubtedly pierced his lungs.

"SON!" The man yelled out in fright, but his feet remained frozen in place, not daring to move as he saw my demonically grinning face, that was still splattered with his own child's blood, as I clearly goaded him to presume action upon his paternal instincts, so that I may extinguish their bloodline in one fell swoop.

"Is that all?" I sadistically said as I looked upon them, my tone the hight of jeering arrogance that to some bordered on true madness, since only the truly deranged can stand where I do now and laugh in such a skin prickling manner.

But what they didn't understand, is that why would I even be concerned when I knew that I had three nineth ranked soldiers with me this instant, all of them ready to attack at a moment's notice, and if I willed it, I could unleash extinction upon a third of the world's royalty before any could stop me.

"That's about enough." The oldest of the four reigning emperors, the overlord of the northern giant, then stepped forth between us, his own fourth rank aura heralding a chill that froze all in it's path, even managing of affecting the temperature around me, when my own divine abilities were on full display.

"This farce is unbecoming of neither our divine lineage, nor of our ancestor's wish for the centennial Banquet to remain a bloodless event!" He yelled out in a rebuking voice, as his eyes then swept past us all.

"So you wish for me to permit this insult to pass unpunished then, Frozen King?" I darkly asked.

"No." He instantly answered with his trademark frigid voice "An offence committed against the ruling family, is a crime committed against the entire nation and it's subjects. It can never be simply forgiven or forgotten, but a life stolen within the sanctions of the Banquet is impermissible."

A silent, imperceptible nod then passed between Aegaeon and Mikael, clearly marking the two as co-conspirators, who planned for this very moment; which also helped to explain why Aegaeon took so long to arrive to the scene, as he most likely went first to secure the northern master's aid.

"Then I can claim proper compensation from the offending party, correct?" My bloody smile did not diminish as I asked then, all the while volatile visions of insanity twirled delightedly within my eyes.

"...Indeed." Mikael had an odd feeling as he heard my words, but he could not fault with them to try and argue otherwise, so that he can further aid the Storm King.

"Very well then." I said with my bloody smile still unflinching, before I then turned to my Palace Guard Commander and call out. "Abraham."

"Sire." He answered.

I finally step off the man's chest, as I jubilantly proclaim "All these men and women have volunteered their arms in compensation of their sins. See it done."

"Understood, my liege." He unhesitatingly acknowledged my command, as a barely seen smile graced his features, before he then swung his glaive, expertly cleaving off one woman's arm with such speed that she hadn't noticed her own amputation until her a few seconds later, when she noticed the blood now splattered across her cheek was indeed her own.

"You said you would show mercy?!" Another man of those who followed Aegaeon here, shouted over the interlocking cries of horror and revulsion, from the both the spectators and the perpetrators, as a hundred throats cried out in a soul stirring screech at the loss of their arms.

"I have shown mercy." I coldly replied, my smile now a distant memory as a granite mask of malignant insanity and indifferent cruelty rested comfortably upon my features "I only claimed one of their limbs after all."

Silence.

That was what had followed my words, as none, not even those wallowing in mind numbing agony, could bear the weight of sound afterward, as even though everyone had heard of the stories, and knew of the titles, this was the first time for many of them to fully understand them, and how they came to describe a boy of eighteen.

Following what would come to be remembered as one of the bloodiest incidents in living memory occurring within a Banquet of Concordia, we all once again dispersed, with the banquet that night even being cancelled, for none found it within them to muster forth even a lick of jubilation.

And so ended the banquet on that sour note, with all those who participated in it, leaving that very night, heading back to their homeland.

Not that I was particularly worried or displeased by this turn of events, as I very much doubted that we would ever see the two hundredth and twentieth Banquet, for the world order was doomed to fall within a few decades at the latest, with the beginning of the final war to determine this world's very fate.

Besides it just allowed me to turn my attention to other matters of more concern, such as planned trip to Sophentia, a trek I was very looking forward to, as it would officially complete all the tasks I had wished accomplished when I first left the empire.

Yet as I was readying myself and Eve for the secret journey the next day, which we would depart on under the protection of Leonid, a letter arrived from the south in the hands of another member of the Hecatomb Cohort.

***End of Volume 3***

Hey guys, look I want to preference this part by saying I'm sorry, I know I said there would be more action on the southern front this volume, which at the time I truly meant, but unfortunately the Banquet Arc ballooned way beyond my expectations, which is completely on me, and now it has grown to the size of a full book on it's own, and I don't want to continue jamming in more stuff into this one, so I've decided to just continue what I originally planned to happen in the second half of this book in the fourth volume.

I hope you can forgive me for this.

And though I am aware that some of you found it somewhat boring, I can promise you that it wouldn't happen again, as the foundations of the next few volumes have all been laid down by this one, so the events of whom will flow far smoother now, without the need for lengthy interruptions in between to slowly set up the threats and motivations of future events.

So in a sense, this volume could be considered a sort of a necessary evil.

I hope that's consolation enough to those of you I have disappointed this time, and again you have my apologies.