Emperor Augustus stared at Greg—the arrogant man who had dared to oppose both his rule and the might of his empire. Behind the emperor stood every able knight and mage he could recruit on short notice, each one prepared to bring the full weight of imperial power down on this singular foe.
He hadn't wanted to deploy the empire's forces in full. Doing so against a single man felt beneath him—beneath the majesty of his empire. But Greg had become too great a threat, a blasphemous shadow over his reign. Holding back was no longer an option.
"In the end, confrontation between us is inevitable," Emperor Augustus said, his voice even, his expression cold and unreadable as his gaze bore into Greg.
"Indeed," Greg replied, a faint smile curling his lips. "Like I promised, I came back, didn't I?"
