Chapitre 11: The Three Remaining Heroes' Cracks
The three remaining heroes—Dylan, Ichiro, and Jina—gathered in the grand dining hall of the castle. The atmosphere was heavy, the air filled with an unspoken tension that hung like a shroud over the ornate room. The gilded chandeliers overhead, the pristine marble floors, and the exquisite feast laid out before them did nothing to alleviate the weight they carried.
None of them had spoken much since Alex's public humiliation and subsequent banishment. His absence left a gaping hole in their group, one that no one seemed ready to address.
Finally, Dylan leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms with an air of indifference. "I don't see why everyone's so worked up about this," he said, his voice casual but carrying a dismissive edge. "The guy got what he deserved."
Jina's fork paused halfway to her lips, and she set it down slowly. Her dark eyes narrowed as she looked at Dylan, her usually calm demeanor cracking. "How can you say that?" she asked, her voice quiet but laced with anger. "We don't even know if he was guilty. What if the princess was lying?"
Dylan scoffed, his blonde hair catching the light as he leaned forward. "Come on, Jina. Are you seriously doubting the word of a princess? She's royalty. Why would she lie about something like that?"
Ichiro, who had been sitting silently at the edge of the table, finally spoke, his voice low and measured. "People lie for many reasons, Dylan. Even royalty."
Dylan rolled his eyes, his lips curling into a smirk. "Look, I get it. You two are feeling all sentimental because we've been stuck together since day one. But let's face it—Alex was weak. He didn't belong here in the first place."
Jina's fists clenched, her usually composed expression giving way to frustration. "Weak or not, he was one of us," she snapped. "He didn't deserve what happened to him. And you're just going to stand there and defend someone who might have framed him?"
Dylan shrugged, unbothered by her anger. "I'm just saying, the princess had no reason to lie. Alex was always... off. I mean, come on. Online Browsing? That's his Heroic Skill? What was he going to do, search for 'How to Fight Goblins'?"
Jina's glare sharpened, and she stood abruptly, her chair scraping against the floor. "You're unbelievable," she said, her voice trembling with a mix of anger and sadness. "You're so blinded by her status that you're willing to throw Alex under the bus without even thinking twice."
Dylan smirked again, leaning back casually. "And you're so caught up in your emotions that you're forgetting how things work here. This isn't some fairytale world where everyone's treated equally. The strong survive, and the weak get crushed. Alex couldn't cut it. Simple as that."
Ichiro's quiet voice cut through the tension like a blade. "Dylan, enough."
Dylan turned to him, his smirk faltering slightly. "What? You agree with me, don't you? You're the logical one here."
Ichiro's dark eyes met Dylan's, unflinching. "Logic doesn't mean abandoning decency. Alex may have been weak, but that doesn't mean he deserved this. We were supposed to be a team."
Dylan opened his mouth to retort, but Ichiro's stern gaze silenced him. For a moment, the room fell into an uneasy silence.
Jina, still standing, crossed her arms and looked away, her thoughts racing. She felt torn, her emotions a tangled mess. On one hand, she had doubts about Alex's innocence—Princess Selene had been so convincing.
But on the other hand, the way Alex had looked at them during his punishment haunted her. The desperation in his eyes, the pain etched on his face... it didn't seem like the expression of someone who was guilty.
"Do you really believe he did it?" Jina asked softly, her voice directed at no one in particular. "Or are we just accepting it because it's easier than questioning the princess?"
Ichiro's gaze softened slightly. "I don't know," he admitted. "But I do know this—Alex didn't fight back the way someone guilty would. He seemed... broken."
Dylan snorted. "Or he's just a good actor. Look, you two can feel bad about it all you want, but it doesn't change the facts. The princess said he did it, the king believed her, and Alex is gone. Case closed."
Jina shook her head, her jaw tightening. "It's not that simple, Dylan. If Alex was framed, then what does that say about this kingdom? About the people we're supposed to trust?"
Dylan's smirk returned, but it was colder this time. "It says we should stop worrying about the weak links and focus on ourselves. We're here to fight the Demon Lord, not babysit someone who couldn't pull his weight."
Ichiro stood, his movements deliberate. "You're wrong, Dylan. If we lose our humanity in this fight, we're no better than the monsters we're supposed to be fighting."
Dylan waved him off, leaning back in his chair with a smug expression.
"Whatever you say, man. Just don't come crying to me when being sentimental gets you killed."
Later that evening, Jina sat alone in her quarters, staring out the window at the darkening sky. Her mind replayed the events of the past few days over and over again. She thought of Alex—the way he had stood beside them in the beginning, awkward but earnest. She thought of his protests, his desperate pleas for someone to believe him.
She sighed, running a hand through her dark hair.
'Was I wrong to doubt him? she wondered. Or am I just clinging to the hope that this world isn't as cruel as it seems?'
A soft knock at her door pulled her from her thoughts. "Come in," she called.
The door opened, and Ichiro stepped inside. His face was as calm as ever, but there was a heaviness in his eyes.
"I figured you'd still be awake," he said, his voice low.
Jina nodded, gesturing for him to sit. "I can't stop thinking about Alex," she admitted. "What if we were wrong? What if he didn't do it?"
Ichiro sat down, his posture relaxed but his expression serious. "I've been asking myself the same thing. But the truth is, we may never know. The princess's word is law in this kingdom, and questioning her would put us in danger."
Jina frowned, her hands clenching into fists. "So we just let it go? Pretend it didn't happen?"
Ichiro shook his head. "No. But we have to be careful. If Alex was framed, then there's more going on here than we realize. We need to stay vigilant."
Jina sighed, her shoulders slumping. "I just... I feel like we failed him. We should've done something."
Ichiro's gaze softened. "Maybe we did fail him. But if we dwell on that, we'll lose focus. We can't change what happened, but we can make sure it doesn't happen again."
Jina nodded slowly, his words resonating with her. "You're right. We need to stay strong. For Alex... and for ourselves."
Ichiro stood, his movements deliberate. "Get some rest, Jina. Tomorrow's a new day, and we'll need all the strength we can muster."
As he left the room, Jina turned back to the window, her resolve hardening.
'Alex, if you're still out there... I hope you survive. And I hope we can find the truth.'
Meanwhile, in his quarters, Dylan lounged on his bed, his arms behind his head. He stared at the ceiling, a small smirk playing on his lips. "Weaklings like Alex don't belong here," he muttered to himself. "If the princess got rid of him, she probably did us all a favor."
But deep down, in a corner of his mind he refused to acknowledge, a small voice whispered:
'What if you're wrong?'
Dylan shoved the thought away, burying it under a mountain of arrogance and self-assuredness. He had made his choice, and there was no going back.
For the heroes, the cracks in their unity were becoming impossible to ignore. And for Alex, somewhere far away, the fight for survival was just beginning.
État de l’alimentation hebdomadaire
-- Classement
Power Stone 
-- Power
stone