The sight made the captives tremble with fear. Many fell to their knees, weeping and begging for mercy. Only the nobleman stood proudly, neither humble nor arrogant in the face of his situation, while Silas indifferently said his final goodbyes to the nobleman's retinue.

"I am saddened to be able to show you the beautiful world that is coming. ”

The words sent shivers down the sleeve of the recruit.

"Silas, don't," Hap objected. "They're just...... Everyman. ”

Ignoring his pleas, Silas stretched out his hands and fingers, unleashing the magic stored in his gauntlet. A black cloud rolled out of his fingertips, gathering over the heads of the nobles' retinue. Almost at the same moment, they all began to scratch their throats in despair from suffocation. In a few moments, they all fell to the ground and died.

The mages fell silent, and they dutifully watched the entire execution. The nobleman whimpered silently, tears rolling across his clenched lips. The only sound came from the recruit.

"No...... Why?" Hap fell to his knees.

Silas gently lifted the young man to his feet and comforted him with a fatherly hand.

"Hap, you want to help us do great things. That's our liberation ......."

He gently brought the recruit to the nobleman and pushed him forward.

...... Die one prince at a time. ”

Hapu looked at the nobleman with tears in his eyes. He stretched out a trembling hand, ready to take the life in front of him. Then, his hand hung limply.

"I ...... Can't do it. ”

Silas' gentleness and patience began to dissipate.

"This person is not your friend. His wealth is built on your suffering. He prefers to see you hanged rather than show you any kindness. ”

The recruits were reluctant to budge. Finally, the nobleman spoke.

"You're a monster. His voice trembled.

"Yes," Silas said. "That's what you said when you locked me in the dark. ”

Silas held out a hand, the shackles still gleaming. The magic he had taken from Hap summoned the last rays of darkness. A small black cloud enveloped the nobleman's face, pulling air out of his lungs. As the man twisted and rolled, Silas looked back at the recruit, no anger in his eyes, only sadness.

"I'm sorry, Hap. You are not ready for liberation. Go ahead. Get back into your chains. ”

Silas watched as Harp turned away, his eyes dodging in shame. The recruits looked at the damaged carriage in front of them, and the long dirt road leading to Xiongdu. Silas could almost feel the lad thinking, imagining the bleak old age that awaited him.

Hap bent down, wrenched a dagger from the hands of a dead coachman, and returned to the nobleman, still wheezing on the ground.

"I'm ready. ”

The young man raised the dagger above the nobleman's head, and Silas' grief turned to utter joy. No matter how many people he liberates, he can make him smile.

"The country and the people have made me who I am. If I don't give anything in return, how can I be a human being?"

~The Power of Demacia

A proud and noble soldier, Galen was at the forefront of the fearless vanguard. He was loved by his comrades, respected by his enemies – and just as important, the queen of the Crowned Guard family, tasked with guarding Demacia and his ideas. Clad in heavy armor against magic and armed with a broadsword, he is always ready to take on all magic-wielding madmen on the battlefield with a storm of righteous steel.

Galen and his sister Lux, both from the noble family of Demacia's crownguards, learned from a very young age that he was expected to defend Demacia's royal power. His father, Pete, was a highly decorated officer, and his aunt, Tiana, was a swordsman in the intrepid vanguard of the elite troops—both of whom were appreciated and respected by King Gawain III. It was natural for all to assume that Galen would one day be loyal to the king's son in the same way.

The kingdom of Demacia rose from the ashes of the Rune Wars and experienced more conflicts and strife in the centuries following its founding. One of Galen's uncles, a Ranger in Demacia's army, told young Galen and Lux stories of adventures outside the kingdom's walls, and how he protected the kingdom's people from the dangers of the outside world.

He warned them that one day, something would end this era of relative peace—it could be an uncontrolled mage, a creature from the abyss, or an unprecedented, unimaginable fear.

As if to confirm those fears, their uncle was killed by a mage in the line of duty, before Galen was eleven years old. Galen saw the blow to his family from the death of his loved one, and the fear in his sister's eyes. It was then that he understood that magic was the first and most powerful danger Demacia faced, and that he might vow never to let magic enter their walls. Only by following their founding ideals and manifesting their immovable glory can the kingdom be safeguarded.

At the age of twelve, Galen left the ancestral home of the crowned guard in Mithril City and joined the army. As a knightly squire, he spent his days and night in military training and strategic studies, sharpening his body and mind into weapons as strong as Demacian steel. It was at this time that he first met the young Jarvin IV, the prince of this time and the future king to whom he would be allegiant, among the other recruits, and the two became inseparable.

Over the next few years, Galen gained his place as a Demacian warrior in the shield wall, and soon earned a reputation for bravery on the battlefield. By the time he was eighteen, he had won honors on the frontiers of Freljord, played a pivotal role in the cleansing of the Cultists of the Silent Forest, and fought alongside the valiant defenders of White Rock.

Gavin III personally summoned Galen's battalion back to Demacia, where he presented them with a commendation in the Hall of Valor in front of the palace. Newly promoted to Generalissimo, Tiana Crownguard singled out her nephew and recommended him for the Dauntless Pioneer's trial.

Galen returned home to prepare, and was greeted warmly by Lux and his parents, as well as the ordinary people living in his mansion. Although he was happy to see that his sister had grown into a smart and capable girl, something had changed about her. He notices the change every time he sees his sister, but now Galen has to face a real and painful suspicion that Lux has magical abilities......

(End of chapter)