Chapter 170: Pardon

Kalon stood over Poppy’s body.

She tried to breathe, but every time she did, a sharp pain spread through her torso from her upper body.

She prepared a healing skill, but Kalon raised a finger, as if to say that it was not allowed.

The Supreme Leader still wore that look of anger and defiance on her face, but in truth, she was compliant now.

She knew the strength of Kalon. He had beaten her, all while taunting her and complimenting her in inappropriate ways the entire time.

"So, are you finally ready to talk?" Kalon asked her.

Poppy nodded her head as she cupped her hand beneath her breasts where her ribs hurt.

In the meantime, Kalon used Absolute Mend to heal his body of its own wounds. Poppy watched in complete awe as the man healed his wounds so easily.

"There are two questions I have for you. Answer them carefully, and I think we will get along better than you think."

"What are they...?" Poppy asked after a bit of hesitation.

"First, how are you able to travel through space? The second... well, I guess it’s more of an order. Call off your attack on Veylora."

The woman visibly winced after hearing the order. It was clearly a project she had been working on for a long time.

As for the other question, she explained briefly.

"It is a simple matter of combining a large group of light affinity wielders and using a specific skill to mimic travel at the speed of light. Our planet is located close to Veylora. We wished to start with them, and had plans to expand further throughout the galaxy as time went on..."

Kalon listened carefully. He knew that combining skills was possible, however he had never thought they could be used in such ways.

"How many people are required to produce this effect?"

Poppy answered immediately.

"One thousand."

The answer caught even Kalon off guard.

One thousand light affinity users. It explained why the planet had such a high threat level.

Kalon wondered if even he could handle the joint forces of such a group.

"As for your order..." Poppy’s beautiful face softened for the first time. "What of all the work I put in? Will it all just go to waste— nnghh!"

Her sentence ended with a wince as the pain from her broken rib started to affect her more.

Kalon felt some sympathy towards the woman and allowed her to use her healing ability.

A green light flowed from her hand and slowly worked at the area. It was nowhere near the efficiency of his healing skill, and would probably take an hour to heal, but it was much better than waiting naturally.

"You can find a planet that actually deserves to be conquered. One that is inherently evil. Or, do not conquer them. Simply give your aid. You are a developed planet. Far more developed than the other planets that I’ve been to, so I’m sure there’s a lot of things that you could provide for them."

After hearing Kalon speak, Poppy looked up from her wound and straight into his eyes. There was a look of surprise on her face.

"You... you have been to multiple planets?" She couldn’t help but show her curiosity.

Kalon nodded his head.

"Including your planet, I’ve been to five in total. There is still more to come too."

The Supreme Leader sat in silence for a while, seriously considering what she was hearing.

After a few moments, she spoke again.

"Then you carry even more knowledge than our scientists..."

Supreme Leader Poppy pushed herself to her feet. As she did, she winced, and her breasts and soft body swayed gently.

She moved over to her communications device, and at first, Kalon was about to stop her.

He lifted his hand and prepared a skill, but Poppy lifted hers too.

"Don’t worry, visitor... I no longer have any hostility towards you."

Kalon hesitated, but allowed her to use the device. He could tell from the now soft look on her face that there was truly no hostility in her heart.

Something he had said to her had given her a sudden change of heart.

Poppy spoke into the device in a clear, firm voice.

"This is Supreme Leader Poppy. Call an emergency council meeting. Full attendance. War Commander Daisy. All ranking generals. Science division heads. I want everyone in the high chamber within the hour."

Confirmations came back one after another. Poppy ended the channel and looked at Kalon again.

"You will come with me," she said. "If you want the invasion stopped properly, it needs to be done in front of them."

Kalon nodded once.

After Poppy had dressed, they left the ruined bedchamber together.

Poppy moved carefully because of the rib, but she refused any support. Guards outside the door stiffened when they saw her injured and the foreign man walking at her side, but a single look from their Supreme Leader kept them silent.

The high chamber was a wide circular room with tiered seats and a central floor. By the time Kalon and Poppy entered, it was already filling up.

Daisy stood near the front in fresh armour, pure black eyes locked on Kalon the moment he appeared. Around her were generals, officers, and older figures in formal clothing. The weight of many strong presences pressed into the room at once.

Poppy walked to the centre and did not sit.

"There has been an incident in my private quarters," she said. "This man is the cause of it. His name is Kalon Manchester. He defeated me in combat. He also reached War Commander Daisy before that."

Murmurs moved through the chamber. Daisy’s pink gems flickered, but she did not speak.

Poppy raised one hand and the noise dropped.

"I am issuing a public pardon. Kalon Manchester is not to be treated as an enemy of Cupid. Any act of aggression against him without my direct order will be treated as a crime against the throne."

That landed harder than the first statement. Several generals exchanged looks. Daisy’s lips twitched, but she stayed silent under the weight of the formal pardon.

Poppy continued.

"Furthermore, this man is a true space traveller. Not through our thousand-user light method. Through means of his own. He has visited multiple planets beyond our current reach. Cupid will no longer waste resources attempting to seize Veylora by force. The invasion is called off, effective immediately. All staging orders are frozen. All scout groups are to be recalled."

Daisy’s black eyes widened a fraction. Around the chamber, shock spread in tight whispers and stiff postures.

Poppy looked across her council, then briefly toward Kalon.

"In place of conquest, we will pursue knowledge. If Kalon Manchester is willing, Cupid will offer cooperation in exchange for information on true space travel and the worlds beyond our neighbours. Our development, our science divisions, and our future expansion will be built on understanding first."