Malakor's skeletal fingers drummed once on the table, a tiny sound that somehow echoed through the entire hall.
"I have seen many candidates for this seat," Malakor said. "Warriors who boasted of their kill counts. Mages who demonstrated their magical prowess. Tyrants who promised to expand demon territories through conquest. All of them failed to impress me because they offered nothing new. Just more of what we already have."
He paused, and Satou felt his fate hanging in the balance.
"You are different," Malakor continued. "Perhaps because you are young. Perhaps you may be the change we needed to stop this everlasting war between all races. Perhaps because you've experienced weakness and remember what it's like to be powerless. Whatever the reason, you offer something we do not have. A vision of the future that doesn't simply repeat the past."
