Puchi.
The spearhead punched through Idris's shoulder. Scarlet poured down his sleeve at once.
Everyone froze. Before they could even react, his voice—cold as iron—rolled across the yard.
"This strike… is my apology, as Grand Sage, on behalf of those before me—to the Corps of Thirty and the Matra."
The pain made his jaw clench, but even as the shaft jutted from his left shoulder, his gaze stayed glacial, looking down on Cyno, the Matra, and the Corps' leaders alike.
Seeing the spear buried in an unguarded shoulder, Cyno's eyes narrowed; outside the gate, Nilou and Dehya went pale with shock. None of them had imagined Idris would use blood—his own—to make his point.
Weren't sages supposed to be soft, afraid of pain, and good only at moving their mouths?
In that instant, they understood: this Grand Sage was not the same breed as the ones they knew.
"If you're dissatisfied with me—hit me, hurt me, curse me. I won't hear it, and I won't shout that it hurts," he said, voice ringing. "But you live in Sumeru and eat the Akademiya's rations. What right do you have to use dereliction of duty to express your displeasure with me?"
"Or is it simply that you're a pack of cowards?"
With a crisp crack, Idris's face blanched—but his tone never wavered. He wrenched the spear out of his flesh and let it clatter to the ground.
Blood speckled the dirt. The fallen weapon was slick with the Grand Sage's fresh red.
Staring at that spear, then hearing the lash of his words, the Corps of Thirty… the Matra… felt their lips go numb. Their bodies trembled, yet not a single rebuttal would come.
Off to the side, Cyno lowered his head, fists tight. Pride twisted in his chest, but for the moment—even he had nothing to refute.
Because Idris was right. You could resent the Grand Sage all you liked. But holding those posts—what gave you the right to slack off where you were sworn to stand watch?
Yes, past Grand Sages had made foolish, unforgivable choices. But weren't the Corps of Thirty and the Matra charged with protecting Sumeru's order and her people?
You can protest in a hundred ways. You chose the one most irresponsible.
If guilt and wounds were burdens to be carried, the Grand Sage would take them. But soldiers and lawkeepers who abandon their posts—
—if that isn't cowardice, what is?
Realization burned hot across their faces. When they looked up at Idris again, shame forced their eyes down.
At the gate, Nilou and Dehya covered their mouths, stunned. They hadn't expected Sumeru's new Grand Sage to be this fierce—to make the Corps and the Matra bow their heads in a matter of minutes.
There were Visions on hands at the scene, fighters who could have flattened an unarmed scholar in moments. Yet now, none of them dared take a step, much less argue.
"Hmph. Think it over," Idris said. "If you've got no spine left, then let Sumeru dissolve and be done with it."
"I, as Grand Sage, will stand here to the last breath—no matter how many crises come."
"As for the rest of you, conduct yourselves. This is my final warning."
"From today on, if I'm given a single report of dereliction—pack your things and get out."
Clutching the wound, he let the blood run and turned away, step by unhurried step.
And then—a current surged through him. Power, sudden and verdant, flooded his veins. Even the ache in his shoulder eased by half.
[You have completed the first reversal: re-establishing authority before your subordinates.]
[You tread ever further down the Grand Sage's 'villain' path.]
[Reward granted: Dendro Vision.]
A clear green gem bloomed at his belt, light gathering into a bright orb—the unmistakable mark of a Vision.
Cyno, Nilou, Dehya, the Corps captain—every eye went wide. They all knew what it meant to receive a Vision.
Which was to say…
The Grand Sage who had just torn into them—had been acknowledged by the gods.
Their shame deepened into something more complex as they watched his back recede. Idris kept his expression still, showed them only that departing silhouette, and walked away—one hand pressed to a bleeding shoulder, the other resting near the new, softly glowing Dendro Vision at his hip.