Death... and me

Rean and Min were also curious about that. "Back when you thought only you and Erla were listening, you mentioned that you would make sure the White Scaled Carp race would be safe. It's not the kind of words you would use if both races were on friendly terms."

Blansin's expression turned worse when he heard those questions. "After you left, my Silver Horn Sturgeon race finally succeeded in forcing one of the elders from your race to talk. Only then did we find out that Erla really was the next Pristine Blue Carp. Naturally, the elders of our race were enraged."

Rean nodded, saying, "Well, that's to be expected. You were both supposed to be friends. However, the White Scaled Carp race hid the fact they knew who the Pristine Blue Carp was. It was obvious that they intended to use Erla in the future for their own gains... or so your elders thought."

Min added, "Maybe they just wanted to protect Erla until she could protect herself. After all, it wouldn't be only your Silver Horn Sturgeon race that would be interested in her. Instead, everyone in your Terces Continent, including the humanoid races on the surface, would probably try to get her and especially her heart. In the end, the lesser the number of individuals who knew it, the better."

Rean sighed in response, saying, "That's only your way of seeing things. Did you forget? This is the Realm of Gods! Do you think a big race like the White Scaled Carp would hide Erla because they were worried about her or because they didn't want to lose her power?"

"My father would never let me turn out like you said!" Erla suddenly blurted out.

Rean smiled in response, replying, "Either option is probable. I won't put my hand on the fire for any of the possibilities. All I'm saying is that everyone would definitely think like me instead of accepting Min's thoughts."

Blansin agreed with Rean. "For my Silver Horn Sturgeon race, the fact that we were friends but were still kept in the dark made us even more certain of Rean's line of thought. We were supposed to have each other's back, but the White Scaled Carp race kept us in the dark. Whether you like it or not, the elders and everyone else truly thought the White Scaled Carp race wanted to do that."

"Then? What happened to Erla's race in Terces?" Rean went back to the main topic.

"As soon as we found out the truth, we sought the help of a few other sea races in Clendes Sea before attacking. It was a lightning-fast operation to paralyze the chain of command of Erla's race. They stood no chance whatsoever," Blansin responded.

Erla's feet couldn't help but give in... well, the gravity didn't help either. "You killed everyone?!"

Blansin looked away as he clarified, "Not everyone. To make sure they would talk where you went, we put their race under arrest. However, it's true that many died during the attack. I did my best to try and prevent meaningless deaths, but I alone couldn't do much. In any case, with the rest of the White Scaled Carp race at risk of being wiped out, the elders who survived were forced to open their mouths about you."

"You!" Erla felt like killing Blansin right there and then.

However, Rean quickly stopped her. "It'll be pointless to attack him. If anything, I do believe he didn't want this outcome. You have to put yourself in the shoes of the Silver Horn Sturgeon race. If you were them, would you stay put and do nothing?"

"I..." Erla's anger suddenly disappeared after that. Obviously, she wasn't confident enough to say she wouldn't do anything like that.

Rean smiled after seeing her reaction. "In the end, the Silver Horn Sturgeon race was simply thinking about their own future. If you ask me, I'm sorry to say that your White Scaled Carp race was definitely in the wrong to not have shared the information with their leader, at least. If they had, the already friendly races would have joined hands to make sure you would grow properly."

Min glanced at Rean and said, "Or the Silver Horn Sturgeon race would use this information to capture Erla and take the heart for themselves."

Rean shrugged his shoulders in response. "You will definitely call me naive. However, if they were truly friends, they wouldn't do such a thing. Not telling them about Erla is akin to being betrayed by someone you trusted. Naturally, they were enraged by that. In my opinion, sharing the information would have been the best option."

Rean then shook his head. "Well, it matters little now." He then looked at Blansin and asked, "The only reason the White Scaled Carp race is still alive is because of Erla, correct?"

Blansin nodded, saying, "As long as we had the heart, we wouldn't need to kill all of them. Only their elders know about it. Although it pains me, I believe the best way of preventing more killing is to take Erla's heart back."

Rean shook his head, saying, "Nope. You're wrong there. From what you are telling me, the other sea races you joined forces with don't know the real reason why you attacked, right?"

Blansin nodded. "Obviously. If they knew, then the entire continent would be on our doorsteps the next morning."

Rean agreed with him. "That's why you're being naive. Can you guarantee that only the captured elders know about the Clendes Sea Heart? What if someone else in their race also knows about it? If you let the White Scaled Carp race go, the information could possibly escape. With that said, as soon as you bring Erla's heart back, I can guarantee that her race will be wiped out to prevent other problems."

"This..." Blansin suddenly had no more words.

Min looked at Rean before saying, "I reached the same conclusion as you. But that also means we're in extreme danger now."

Erla couldn't help but ask after that, "Rean, Min, what should I do?"