Chapter 61

|3rd POV|

"I see. I guess I understand the reason why you didn't know what he is doing on the side."

"Right? I am glad that we–"

"BUT! It is also not an excuse for you, Azazel. As a leader, some of the blame falls on your shoulders. Especially the one causing the problem is one of your inner circle. You have done this twice. The first one is Satanael, and now it is Kokabiel. We can let you go when it is about Satanael without blame because the Five Principal Clans get involved in that matter."

Yasaka looks at the General Governor of Grigori right in the eyes.

"However, we cannot let you go without blame in this matter. You let Kokabiel build that kind of army under your nose. Don't say some kind of bullshit about something you didn't know about because that kind of army will surely gather at least suspicion. I know about this movement but you decide to ignore it. That problem will fall on your shoulder."

Azazel releases a tired sigh and says.

"Then what do you want?"

"I want the people who are involved in this matter to get punished."

"We will–"

"By dead."

"What?"

Azazel looks at her in shock and says.

"You want me to kill them?"

"Yes and no. We have one demand that has two options. The first option is to kill the leader of this mess, which is Kokabiel. The second option is to kill all of his underlings. Choose."

"You want me to kill one of the Cadre or kill more than three hundred Fallen Angels. Need I remind you that your bodyguard already killed more than a hundred Fallen Angels while he was on a rampage?"

"And what seems to be a problem? Your people attack me, a leader of a faction. They need to feel the consequences."

"You are asking too much, Yasaka."

"What? So my life is not worth that much, Azazel?"

"That is not what I meant."

"But that is what you imply. If I die, the one controlling the barrier around Major City will be gone, and do you know what that means? That means countless people from different factions will come and try to capture my people. I might not actively check on the price in the Black Market, but I know that a Youkai fetches a great amount of money from the buyer. If I am gone, my people will be threatened by the outside force and it will take a long time before the barrier can be restored. Is my life not worth that much, Azazel?"

Yasaka nods her head when she sees Azazel sigh in defeat.

"Or you can choose the first option. Kill Kokabiel in a public execution, and we are even."

Azazel is in a dilemma. He did not know what to do. On one hand, killing almost four hundred Fallen Angels will greatly cut down their population and decrease their standing among the other factions even more.

On the other hand, he did not want to kill his brother. A brother that goes to war with him. A brother that he has known for more than a millennium. A brother that falls alongside him. A brother who stood there alongside him when they created the Grigori. That kind of connection is hard to forget and ignore.

After staying silent for a few seconds, Azazel sighs and says.

"We will do the public execution. I hope this makes you happy, Yasaka."

"Happy? What makes you think I am happy? That man is about to kill me and my people. If he manages to kill Ryan and Asia, his death will be the least of your worries, Azazel."

Azazel sighs and gets up before leaving the room with his people. They leave the mansion and quickly teleport to their headquarters. Azazel did not get back to his office but rather walked to the dungeon, where he saw a sight of a defeated man.

Kokabiel leaned over the wall with a defeated expression. His wings cannot be hidden because more than half of them are cut off or torn away from his body. His face is full of burn marks from the fire and lightning Ryan uses in his attack.

Kokabiel looks at Azazel and gives him a mocking smile.

"What? You want to gloat, Azazel?"

Azazel shakes his head and says.

"No. I want to see where my brother has gone. I want to know where the brother that fell alongside me is gone."

"Hah! He stayed, Azazel. He stayed behind."

"What?"

Azazel looks at him in confusion while Kokabiel gives a small smile.

"I never go away, Azazel. I stayed behind. The brother you know is somewhere behind the path you walk. While you and the others move forward to create a better future for our people, I stay behind. I stay behind the path of War. We are raised in war, but unlike you, who can walk away from war, I cannot. I cannot get away from the path of war and I decide not to leave it either. Do I regret it? No, never. This is the path I take and I will continue to walk in this path."

"And that path already got you killed!"

"Oh? That woman demands you to kill me, huh?"

"You or the rest of your army."

"Kill. Don't let that woman kill my army."

"What?"

"As their leader, I will be the one taking the blame. Kill me."

"How can–"

"Azazel! It is time for you to act like a leader! An act like this that makes many of our brethren going rogue, Azazel! This kind of act is the reason why they are willing to join the Old Satan Faction! Our sworn enemy!"

Azazel can only look at Kokabiel in shock as the man sighs and continues.

"You are a great head of state, but you are a shitty leader. You need to set an example for your subordinates. Kindness will make loyalty last longer, but you also need a little bit of fear to make that loyalty last forever. You cannot only use the carrot. Use the stick every once in a while. Use the stick on me and make sure to raise that stick high to put the rowdy Fallen Angels in their place."

Azazel releases a sigh and looks at Kokabiel for a few seconds before saying.

"Very well. Your execution will be done tomorrow morning. Is there anything you want before your execution?"

"Hmmmm? I am craving some fried chicken. You know what? Get me a plate full of Southern US Fried Chicken and one full plate of Korean Fried Chicken, will you?"

"You want me to go across the world to get you fried chicken?"

"What? This is my last day."

Azazel shakes his head and gets up from the ground.

"Very well. I shall buy the best fried chicken you will ever taste."

"Hah! I am looking forward to it."

Azazel walks away from the cell, but before he leaves the door, he says.

"Goodbye, brother."

Kokabiel only closes his eyes and says.

"Good luck, brother. You need it."

After hearing that, Azazel leaves the dungeon and is ready to buy some fried chicken.