Chương 284: Harlin's and Lazar's Goals

I talked with Crow for a while, before Lazar returned. Lazar was not alone, he came back with Harlin. I said "It's good that you are here. I actually have a few things, that I would like you to get". Harlin shook his head, and replied "It will wait. Before that, what do you know about the Avians and Yagaroths? The whole Vulture Cliffs ceased to exist… Is that your doing?".

I smiled, and said "Sit down". Both Lazar and Harlin sat down, then I continued. "I knew you would find out sooner or later. Yes, it was me who did this. As for the reason, you should be aware why I did this". Harlin became a bit angry, and said "I know why, but destroying the whole race… two races. This is going overboard". I asked "Is it? Chasing one man with an army, is not going overboard? Blaming one man for the sins of another, is not going overboard? Harlin, don't be naive".

Harlin stood up, and shouted "Naive? You are crazy!". Crow stood up instinctively, and was ready to protect me. I waved my hand, and said "Sit down. No one is going to fight here". Harlin was angry, but what I said was true. He was naive, and I had to do something about that. I said "No race is invincible. You are naive Harlin. If you continue with that mindset, and become the commander of the main army, you will not go far". As he was about to explode with anger, I continued "Sit down, and let me continue". Harlin calmed down a bit, and sat down. I asked "Do you know why, I called you naive?". He answered, still a bit pissed "Why?".

I replied "Because if you keep thinking like this, you will be used by the Royals. If you get that position, you will be used for their own purposes. In the end, when you are no longer needed, they will discard you. This may sound stupid now, but that is how all the creatures behave usually. Especially those that hold power. I've seen it many times, and I'm done". Harlin replied "That doesn't mean you can kill 1000s, because of your revenge".

I asked "What about you? Why can you kill other races without remorse? Furians, Vanauts, Slethers and so on. Why can you kill them?". Harlin replied "They are the enemy. We are at war". I shook my head, and said "So? Just because the tag called "war" is attached, you can kill? If you don't kill them all, then more of them will grow up. With deep hatred seeded inside them, they will fight you again, and again. It will go like this, until one of you ceases to exist. So my question is, how is that different?".

Harlin gritted his teeth, and replied "It's not". I smiled, and said "Exactly. I said you are naive, because you are too soft. I'm not saying you should slaughter everything that you see, but you have to be ruthless sometimes. Avians and Yagaroths paid the price, for messing with me. Golems paid that price as well. I didn't kill all Golems, did I?". Harlin asked "So what now? You want me to be a slaughterer? Have no remorse for lives? Never forgive?".

I stood up, walked over to Harlin and said "No. I never wanted any of you, to become crazy bastards that kill everything in sight. One Razor was enough for me. I want you to see the bigger picture. You see this as me destroying two races, but what about those two races, that wanted to destroy me? Sure, I did some bad stuff, but did that warrant them to send a whole army after me? Not giving me a choice, but to blow myself up? Did the Golems have the right to record stuff about me? If I were naive, I would just let them live, but then I would always be chased, or even worse".

Harlin started thinking about something, while I continued "Harlin, I'm not going to lie. You are all my friends here, but I see a bigger picture. I have plans, and I will need people who I can trust, to help me. I also need strong people, not people who waver, or cannot decide. Believe in your decisions, and rise to the glory by your own choices. When you have to be ruthless, do so. Punish for betrayal, not forgive. That is what it takes, to make a good leader".

Harlin asked "Leader?". I said "Yes. I want you to become the leader of the whole military available to Royals. To become the greatest general alive". Harlin felt inspired. He stood up as well, and said "Greatest military general… Yes. This is something, I would like to aim for". I patted his shoulder, and said "Good. You have to be inspired, in order to achieve your goal". Harlin asked "Why did you chose me though? I'm not that talented, and I usually did errands for Royals, there are many who are better than me". I said "Because you are my friend", and smiled. I then continued "Besides, don't think of yourself so lowly. Keep your head up". Harlin nodded his head, and started thinking about some stuff.

I turned towards Lazar, and said "Don't feel left out. You are my friend too". Lazar smiled, and asked "I'm worse than Harlin. I will never be able to get such a high position, so how can I help you?". I smiled and said "I have a plan for you as well. Harlin needs to take care of his ranking, but you don't have to do that. I want you to take Harlin's information network over, and make it bigger. Much bigger, and better than it currently is". Harlin said "It wouldn't be very hard, to make Lazar my successor… but to extend the reach… and all that…". I said "He can do it. If he tries, he will succeed. Besides, He is very good at running from one place to another".

I turned towards Lazar, and said "You ran errands for most of your life. Now you will build your own network, that not only runs errands for you, they will also collect information for you". Lazar nodded, and said "I will try". With that, my friends had new purpose in their lives. 'This is something I wanted to see. People who are decisive, strong and loyal. With our small group, we will be able to do much, in the future. But that is for the future' I thought, and turned towards Harlin, to ask for the materials.