novelbin Chapter 144: No Longer Worthy (2)
Chapter 144: No Longer Worthy (2)
"Moon Heart... this rebellion of yours will only hasten our destruction!" Gustav shouted.
Moon answered without hesitation.
"We’re doomed either way if we stay here."
Until now, Moon had followed Gustav patiently ever since the raid on Old Ashvarn began. Even though she had disagreed with many of his decisions, she had never openly opposed him before.
But that changed the moment she realized he was no longer capable of leading them properly.
"Moon Heart... we just lost two members of our squad, and our captain is still trying to figure out what’s best for all of us."
One of the First Squad members intervened.
A veteran mage.
He tried easing the tension after seeing the growing split between them.
"Please give him some time. He simply doesn’t want more of us to die."
The First Squad mage had barely finished speaking—
When loud laughter suddenly echoed from Moon’s side.
Everyone quickly turned toward Ethan, who had started laughing uncontrollably as though he had just heard something genuinely absurd.
"You say he doesn’t want more of us to die?"
Ethan laughed even harder, causing most of the First Squad members to frown.
"Do you find something amusing about this situation?" the mage asked angrily.
Ethan answered immediately.
"Of course."
"Your entire stance is laughable."
"You claim your captain doesn’t want more Hunters to die..."
"But the truth is..."
"That’s nothing but hypocrisy."
Ethan slowly turned his eyes toward the scattered Hunters who belonged neither to the First nor Third Squad.
"How many Hunters have died under his command so far?"
"From the Fourth Squad... the Fifth... the Sixth... and every other squad besides his own?"
Ethan asked the question himself before answering it.
"A lot. Isn’t that right?"
"And yet he continued fighting without hesitation."
"He even showed willingness to abandon me despite the fact I was still alive... all because of the curse I carry. This great captain capable of making decisions like that suddenly collapses pathetically the moment members of his own squad die."
"That alone proves how double-faced his standards truly are."
"Shut up... you don’t understand anything..." the First Squad mage snapped, attempting to silence him.
But Ethan said everything he wanted regardless.
"You’re the same man who never wavered while countless Hunters died."
"The same man willing to sacrifice me without hesitation."
"So why are you refusing to fight now just because members of your own squad died?!"
"The truth is..."
"You’re nothing more than a damn hypocrite, Gustav Heart."
Ethan spoke coldly.
A direct insult toward the captain of the First Squad.
A level of boldness that shocked everyone present.
Especially the First Squad.
The mage gripped his staff tightly while the remaining knight drew his sword, both immediately targeting Ethan.
But a third person moved before either of them could.
Holding his greatsword—
A massive slab of iron over two and a half meters long—
Gustav erased the distance between himself and Ethan in an instant, reinforcing his body with an immensely powerful Aura Armor.
He brought the blade down vertically toward Ethan’s head with enough force to split him cleanly in half.
But the Hunter of the Third Squad stopped him.
The Executioner’s Sword materialized within Ethan’s grasp, reinforced by his dark Aura Armor.
Both men were Elite Rank.
But Gustav’s Aura Armor was clearly superior since he had already reached the peak of the rank, unlike Ethan, who had only broken through recently and still remained at its beginning stages.
Yet Ethan compensated for that gap through the sheer strength of his demonic body, forged under Jackson’s brutal training...
Alongside the telekinetic force amplifying his weapon.
The two blades collided violently.
Metal screamed against metal as a violent storm of dust and wind exploded outward, slamming into everyone nearby.
And unexpectedly—
Ethan succeeded in blocking the captain of the First Squad.
Gustav failed to push him back even a single step.
Everyone was stunned.
"You are not fit to lead Hunters."
"A leader who allows emotions to control him is not worthy of leading anyone."
Ethan spoke coldly while their swords continued grinding against one another.
The clash did not last long.
Gustav suddenly realized he was already cornered.
Moon had appeared behind him, her sword pressed against his neck while every member of the Third Squad stood ready to attack at any moment.
"That’s enough, Gustav Heart."
"One more movement... and I won’t hold my blade back this time."
Moon threatened him as the flames of the phoenix blazed brightly along her sword.
And Gustav immediately understood.
No amount of aura would stop something like that.
His defeat was decided.
Moon stared at him silently before shifting her gaze toward Ethan.
He gave her a small smile and nodded.
’Thanks... and sorry for dragging you into this.’
His thoughts reached her directly, causing Moon to sigh inwardly, unable to keep up with his sudden improvisation.
’One day, I wish you’d stop pulling things like this out of nowhere...’
The two had communicated through Chai Heart’s telepathy.
A blessing Ethan had secretly used earlier to inform Moon of his intentions and prevent both her and the Third Squad from interfering when Gustav attacked him.
He wanted to block Gustav himself.
Everything happening now—
The confrontation.
The division.
The tension.
It all looked perfectly natural.
Yet it had been orchestrated from the start.
Ethan seized the opportunity immediately and raised his voice loudly enough for everyone to hear.
"Gustav Heart is unstable."
"He’s incapable of thinking rationally and is letting his emotions control him..."
"To the point of attacking another Hunter."
"In my opinion, someone like that should no longer lead us."
"And the captain of the Third Squad, Moon Heart, is a far better choice."
Ethan finally threw the decision into everyone’s hands.
This was what he had wanted from the beginning.
And he had deliberately created a situation that would support his argument perfectly.
The entire Third Squad stood behind him.
Jackson as well.
And among the remaining Hunters—
The strange witch, Schierke, quickly took their side with a wide smile.
"I completely agree!"
"Moon is definitely the better leader!"
Despite how foolish and random she appeared...
She became the first person willing to openly support them.
And by doing so—
She opened the path for everyone else.
Most of the Hunters had lacked the courage to become the first to choose a side.
Schierke did it for them.
Then, one after another...
The others slowly joined Moon’s side as well.
Until eventually—
Only the two remaining members of the First Squad stayed beside Gustav himself.
He had completely lost.
Ethan had exposed his contradictions publicly.
And even Gustav’s strength no longer inspired the same awe after a single member of the Third Squad managed to block him head-on.
His position shattered completely.
At that point...
There was nothing left for him to do except yield.
The plan would continue.
The Hunters would return to the depths and resume the hunt.
For either success...Or death.