Revenge: A Path of Destruction
Chapter 119: Thutmose’s Confusion

Chapter 119: Thutmose’s Confusion

After speaking those words, Alex let his gaze drift across the gathered nobles one last time. Among them, some wore the hollow expressions of those who had already accepted death, their wills broken cleanly. Others trembled, unable to look at anything except the severed head in Alex’s hand—the head of Khepri, the man they once called sovereign. Not a single word came from them. No weeping. No shouting. Just stunned silence.

He expected to feel satisfaction. Triumph, even. But all he felt was disgust.

"These are the ones who ruled millions," Alex muttered under his breath, his voice nearly drowned by the wind. "Pathetic."

The bile in his chest churned, not from the wounds that still pulsed with pain beneath his skin, but from the void left inside him. The inner demon stirred, restless, unsatisfied. Too easy, it whispered. They didn’t even fight back.

His eyes narrowed—then landed on Thutmose.

Unlike the rest, Thutmose stood tall, composed. His posture didn’t scream surrender. No—he looked at Alex directly, eyes steady, his face calm despite the suffocating mana pressure Nyxara had cast to keep everyone frozen. Not even a Grandmaster dared twitch under her presence, but Thutmose simply endured, showing no signs of fear or desperation.

Then Thutmose finally spoke.

"I suppose you aren’t going to let any of us go. Seeing as my family destroyed yours."

His voice was firm, not defiant—just honest.

Alex met his gaze. "Yeah. I don’t plan on letting anyone leave. Do you have a problem with that?"

"None at all," Thutmose said. "We started this. We bear the consequences."

He paused, then added, "But... I do have a question. If you don’t mind."

Alex didn’t speak, but his silence was answer enough.

"Why spare me and Talibah? If your reason is that we didn’t participate in the war, then I’d say... you’re still naive."

Alex blinked, surprised not by the question, but by how composed Thutmose remained. There wasn’t a trace of arrogance in his tone—only something strangely principled. And beneath that... rage. Controlled, buried deep, but real. Not for his family. Not for Khepri.

But for the people.

Alex could sense it. When Alex had killed Khepri, Thutmose hadn’t flinched. But now, speaking of their nation, of the people, that was when the cracks showed.

"You’re not angry that your father’s dead," Alex murmured. "You’re angry that I brought a nation to its knees."

Thutmose didn’t deny it. He waited.

Alex sighed through gritted teeth. "You’re right. That is why I was going to spare you. You and your sister didn’t lift a hand when my clan was destroyed. I was raised to believe that justice has weight, context. But..."

He paused. The pain in his side flared, but he forced himself to continue.

"...that’s not the only reason."

"Oh?"

"There are two other reasons," Alex said, his voice like stone. "First, someone has to spread the word—about me. About what I’ve done and why. The other Higher Clans need to know what happens when you rip away someone’s entire world."

Thutmose’s eyes narrowed slightly, calculating.

"And the second?"

"The Earth Continent still needs rulers," Alex said flatly. "If I killed all of you, the survivors would turn on each other. Every petty noble would try to carve out their piece of the ruins. I’ve already sacrificed millions to get here. I won’t burn the entire continent just to tie up loose ends."

"So you’re pragmatic now," Thutmose muttered.

"I’ve always been pragmatic," Alex said. "Just not merciful."

He looked past Thutmose and gestured for Nyxara to move. The massive tigress padded forward with deadly grace, her golden eyes no longer warm but burning with disdain. As Alex passed by Thutmose’s side, he spoke again—but this time, low, like a whisper meant only for him.

"One more thing."

Thutmose tilted his head.

"You’re wondering about your mother’s death," Alex said, without emotion. "You should be. But here’s some juicy information for you—Lucy was the one who killed her. And your father... he knew. He allowed it."

Thutmose’s expression didn’t change at first. But something deep in his eyes fractured, just for a second. A flicker of disbelief, pain, and dawning horror flashed behind his calm exterior.

Alex didn’t stop to watch it fester. He simply walked forward, seated on Nyxara’s back as she carried him toward the rest of the family, who had been forced to kneel beneath the weight of her pressure.

"You should think carefully before starting your revenge story," Alex added coldly. "Hate has a price. I’ve already paid it in full."

Behind him, Thutmose remained still—his mind no longer focused on Alex, but on the truth that had just been dropped into his lap like a landmine.

----

Thutmose stood rooted to the ground as Alex and Nyxara passed by, their presence heavy and final, like a storm that had already torn through everything and left only silence in its wake. His body remained upright, composed, but inside, his thoughts were in chaos.

He’s lying, Thutmose told himself at first. He has to be.

But the more he repeated it, the hollow the words felt.

His mother... murdered. And his father... knew?

The idea clawed at his mind, wild and relentless. No. Not Father. Not like that. He tried to remember Khepri’s grief—how he acted during the funeral, the moments he spent alone after. But the memories were foggy now. Vague. Calculated. Controlled. Too controlled.

Confusion spiraled into anger, then disbelief, then rage again. It was a cycle that refused to end. And underneath it all, something worse—doubt.

Alex’s words echoed louder the more he tried to silence them.

"You should think very carefully before starting your own revenge story... Hate has a price. I’ve already paid it in full."

Thutmose clenched his fists until the skin tore at the edges of his knuckles. It wasn’t the threat that haunted him. It was the implication. That Alex wasn’t trying to provoke him, but to save him from becoming another version of himself. That Alex was... giving him a choice.

Thutmose understood why Alex confided in him about this. Alex aimed to redirect Thutmose’s rage, not toward him, nor vengeance, but inward, targeting those responsible for instigating this war in the first place: his family.

They were his blood, his people. He was supposed to protect them.

But now... he wasn’t sure he wanted to.

His resolve to stand as their shield, to carry the burden of their sins while forging a better path—that resolve cracked. Shattered. Because how could he fight for a family built on betrayal?

Without realizing it, Thutmose lowered his head.

He didn’t notice the wind shift or the sound of Nyxara’s footsteps fading into the distance. All he knew was that something fundamental inside him had changed.

A seed had been planted—small, insidious.

And Alex had already walked away, knowing full well it would grow.

Search the lightnovelworld.cc website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.