Alister let his glowing hand fall—like a divine gavel delivering its final judgment.
A flash of golden light surged forward in a single, razor-sharp arc. It was clean. Swift. Final.
Aiku's head flew from his shoulders, tumbling through the air in slow motion before landing with a dull, flesh-heavy thud against the broken concrete. His body crumpled beside it a moment later, limbs folding unnaturally like a puppet with its strings severed.
Silence.
The entire city held its breath.
Even the rotor blades seemed quieter in that instant, the floodlights frozen in their focus on the brutal stillness below. Smoke curled in lazy spirals around the Dragon Lord's feet. Alister stood like a statue carved from light and fury.
"…he did it…" one reporter finally breathed, barely audible.
"…he actually did it. On live broadcast."
"This was… a public execution."
"My gods, look at the crowd reactions—pan in on the apartment towers!"
