He let out a dry, humorless laugh, shaking his head at himself in a brief, self-critical gesture. "Exactly. Complaining won't change it. The die is cast now. Everything happens for a reason. I made the mistake, and now… we'll deal with the consequences together."
His gauntleted hand brushed against the cube-shaped AI drone hovering faithfully at his shoulder. "Hey, Hays. You there?"
"Yes, Master," the drone replied instantly. Its voice was crisp, electronically neutral, yet somehow perfectly attentive to his mood.
"Upload the final footage to the public forums," Kael said, his voice steady now despite the turmoil in his chest, taking charge of the narrative. "Title it: Killing an Ogre in Just Two Minutes The Five-Hundredth Group's New Record. Make sure the title is suitably provocative."
"Yes, Master. Uploading now. The attention is already spiking exponentially."
