Playboy Cultivator in the Apocalypse

Chapter 186 The Night After: Tonight, We Celebrate

"Tonight, we celebrate." The emperor announced, standing before a flickering bonfire, sending his dancing shadow over a large crowd of Immortals.

He panned their faces, ensuring each could see him and hear his words before continuing.

"Tonight, we celebrate the life of the [heroes] who fell protecting Immortal Skye, our people, and way of life." Kaze announced slightly louder and more boldly.

All the ex-soldiers and Immortals cheered lightly, like a lit fuse, before their reaction ignited the emotional powder keg within their hearts, making the area explode with booming cheers and applause.

"That's right!" He affirmed louder, "Those who fell were not [victims]--no!"

His words picked up momentum, intensity, and passion with each sentence, pulling people in like a magnet.

"Our fallen heroes will get immortalized in our history books as we rebuild civilization in this hell-stricken world." The emperor roared, "None have truly died, as they will live on forever--as legends!"

The Immortals developed goosebumps on their skin when they heard his words. He made death sound more appealing than life and turned mortals who died into gods--and they believed it.

The image of the fallen stirred powerful emotions within them and poured over, triggering a cataclysmic chain reaction of chaotic fervor and primal roars.

"Tonight, we celebrate!" Kaze yelled at the top of his lungs, panning everyone's faces, "We celebrate our victory over the powerful cultivators who destroyed our world. While everyone else has fallen victim, we fought back--and claimed victory!"

Battle cries shattered the sound waves, echoing endlessly down the clear-cut forests around them. Their words carried, sending a warning message to Meridian City and beyond.

"Tonight, we celebrate!" He continued, "Tonight, we celebrate the longevity of Immortal Skye, which has faced its first challenge--and still stands!"

Immortal Skye developed a pulse, beating to the sound of its people's cheers, howls, and roars, breathing life into the shredded mountain everyone called home.

"Tonight, we celebrate." Kaze announced, calming down to grasp everyone's attention, "We celebrate our talent, skills, and power which has protected us all."

Pride-filled whistles met his words, each feeling proud for learning under his tutelage.

"Tonight, we celebrate." He continued, building up momentum again, "We celebrate all the people that used those talents and skills to protect us.

It doesn't matter what their history is, how small their contribution was, or whether they attacked, organized, or helped heal.

For it is for [all] who contributed that we have claimed victory!"

A wave of overwhelming emotion washed over the area. Those that aided the most, especially the soldiers, felt welcomed and appreciated for their actions.

Likewise, those who fought little felt vindicated for helping in other ways and less ashamed for not fighting directly.

As for the traumatized who did nothing, they were wrapped up in the cheering and fervor, making it impossible for them to feel bad for their fear and ineptitude.

Kaze's speech was masterfully constructed for that purpose, building everyone's emotions with intensity before addressing the part that haunted them.

"Most of all, tonight, we celebrate!" Kaze roared, stealing everyone's breath, awaiting his closing words, "We celebrate our lives! Immortal Skye! And the birth of our civilization!"

Delirious battle cries and cheering rocked the airwaves, expressing their approval of his vision and what it represented.

His speech encapsulated all their feelings, power, and emotions, soaking up their disdain and hatred and replacing them with fervor and pride.

Everyone was proud to be alive and felt refreshed, having experienced victory over defeat and standing tall above all odds. It was a time for celebration, and everyone got wrapped in it.

"Now stand tall and celebrate, my brethren!" Kaze roared, "Raise your drinks for the fallen and celebrate on their behalf! Celebrate your lives and the fallen for becoming legends!"

His words triggered a feast brought to everyone by the cooks, making everyone immeasurably grateful.

It was the following day at dusk. They had awoken early, fallen into their roles, rebuilding Immortal Skye in its broken state, and were mentally and physically exhausted. So the food left them feeling refreshed.

Tired as they were, everyone felt proud of what they had achieved that day.

Soldiers reconstructed the walls with Crux's help, trades workers rebuilt a residential mansion, which lost a third, and the rest cleared the broken amphitheater or helped in miscellaneous tasks.

The cooks put together lunch, and Kaze taught the military counselors the basic tranquility technique to help the traumatized recover.

He helped clear their minds with his greater techniques, and then they used the lesser technique to calm everyone else and work through problems. They called the therapy a miracle solution.

Naturally, the counseling didn't remove everyone's anxieties or fears. However, those feelings were natural, as they were the key to survival in a world stricken with death, nightmares, and fear.

The feast was massive, having every food imaginable, including plates of roast beef, chicken, and fish, as well as pizza and clam chowder bread bowls.

Their wasteful dinner was practical, as the food would soon spoil. Therefore, they were switching to dried and canned foods and would cleanse the campus of their supplies that week.

It was a well-planned maneuver that ensured that people would feel proud, wealthy, and victorious the next week without worrying about the costs. More importantly, it prevented him from getting lectured by Evalyn for wasting funds.

"Faction Leader... leader... Emperor...." A brown-haired Immortal said softly, walking up to Kaze, sitting in the grass in front of the main mansion, "I'm... sorry.

Despite everything you've done for me, I doubted you and your actions and publicized my feelings in the heat of the battle.

I was also... very rude to [her] after she reminded me of all you've done. I'm sorry for feeling so ungrateful."

Kaze looked down at the pink-haired woman sleeping, using his outer thigh as a pillow. Anyone who saw her felt their hearts flutter, forgetting the cute woman was the same tyrant that put them in their places, healed the dying, and protected them with overwhelming force.

"Do you know the differences between insubordination and discord, Keaton?" He asked calmly, making the Immortal's heart nearly stop.

"I-I don't... I mean... impact?" Keaton stuttered.

"Calm down." The emperor chuckled breathlessly, "The difference between insubordination and all else is that there are rare times, in battle or disaster, when deviating from your orders saves lives.

So long as the action is successful and [aligns with the vision of the objective], it is permissible."

Keaton's heart pulsed with hope, hearing the potential for exoneration or praise. He desired the latter beyond all else.

Crux's eyes did the opposite, snapping wide in disbelief at the notion that he'd anyone could question his authority.

She was sitting next to the emperor peacefully a moment prior. So when everyone saw her amethyst eyes become crazed abruptly, they held their breath in fear.

However, a moment later, she ignored everyone, returning to the carrot cake in her lap.

The Immortals sighed when they realized her madness-stricken eyes, with pupils the size of pins, were primarily a result of a biblical-grade sugar high.

"Misguided and tasteless as your actions were, I hear you attempted to do just that." Kaze chuckled, glancing at the divine beast, "You saw my goal was to save lives and promoted that with rational logic. For that reason, while I do not praise your misguided actions, I do not condemn them."

The man exhaled in relief, feeling a weight lifted off his shoulders.

"Discord--" The emperor said boldly, snapping the man's anxiety back into place, "--is when you purposely spread such thoughts without a life-saving purpose, maligning your leader's name, to sow doubt. Tell me, Keaton. Do you believe that would've been okay?"

Keaton trembled slightly and gulped nervously, shaking his head. "No. That wouldn't be okay."

"Why not?" Kaze asked strangely, "I'm asking about the reason beyond the obvious."

"I...." The brown-haired man said, withholding the basic desire to say [I would offend you], "It... would cause disorder... and... potentially result in people dying because people aren't unified during times of crisis?"

"Your mind is sharp, after all." The emperor smiled, "You have captured the importance of political cohesion and adherence to the law.

Whether a ruler is benevolent or oppressive, they serve a purpose in maintaining order and saving humans from their own barbarity.

If you uproot a leader without a stable replacement, the army will fall into disarray when enemies strike, and citizens will attack one another, ripping families apart and defiling women.

Justified or otherwise, aimless publicization of one's strife has consequences. Do you understand?"

The man's eyes widened, and he nodded in understanding, thinking about it for the first time. "Yes."

"Good man." Kaze smiled mysteriously, "Now go, celebrate, Keaton."

After a few more pleasantries, the man walked away with a rapidly beating heart, and another person walked up.

A line of people wished to speak to the emperor for various reasons, and he accepted each with a wide smile, encouraging them to approach despite the cracked-out cat woman next to him.

Evalyn walked up with a strange smile. "You look like the don of a mafia family. Are you telling people they should expect favor requests in the future?"

"Oh, but of course." Kaze replied, smiling charmingly at the beautiful blonde, "Only instead of favors, I call it the law."

She turned away and laughed breathlessly, trying to scoff but smiling instead. "You sound like a tyrant."

"In a classical sense, yes; in the latter sense--equally yes." He smiled mysteriously, "Though I prefer the term benevolent dictator and deserve an asterisk for sharing top authority with you."

Her smile relaxed at the end, finally hearing about their ruling relationship.

"Top? That's... more than I expected." She noted honestly, "I figured I'd hold the second in command post as the general. Is that not correct?"

"Those are both of your roles." Kaze confirmed, "However, within the constraints of my veto and vision, you'll share the same authority I do. I refuse to make you a Queen-like figurehead."

Evalyn's heart pulsed, hearing his genuineness. The difference was night and day; he told her she could do anything if she was loyal and abided by his general wishes.

From a relationship perspective, that was tyrannical. However, from a political perspective, there was no greater authority that he could give.

"I...." She said in disbelief, "Am humbled. Not with your faith but also in your adherence to our relationship. I'm not sure what to say."

"There's no need." He smiled, "It's a night for celebration, yes? Will you join us?"

Evalyn glanced at the teen sleeping on his thigh peacefully, the cracked-out cat sitting with the remaining fifth of a carrot cake in her lap and the corpses of a molten fudge cake and simple vanilla cake with vanilla frosting beside her.

The blonde's heart ached at sight. She had accepted them as conditions for her relationship with Kaze, but she hadn't accepted them as part of their relationship.

However, that was slightly changing.

Something changed when she went down on him, embracing her desires over her perceived reputation. After all, it had come and gone, and nothing happened.

The same was true of having sex with him crisis, which bore no social consequences.

Perhaps if Kaze Lexicon was any other person, she might face negative backlash for sexual actions. However, people treated sexual actions as natural.

Still, there was a gap between something intimate and private and something public and blatant--and being part of a harem was in the latter category.

"Join you right now?" Evalyn asked for clarification.

"That's a given." Kaze smiled charmingly, "But, I'm asking if you wish to sleep in the same bed with us tonight."