The ground was littered with discarded weapons and the smoldering remains of those who had dared to challenge me.
I stood there for a moment, watching the chaos dissipate, my voice cutting through the silence like a blade:
"Are you guys ready to die?"
The few who remained froze in terror. Their eyes widened, their breaths hitched, and then, like a wave, they turned and ran.
I didn't bother to stop them. Fear was a far more effective tool than death. Killing them all would serve no purpose—letting them live in terror would.
I turned to Max, who was pushing himself up from the ground, his lip bleeding but his eyes burning with unwavering loyalty. "Manage them," I ordered, my voice firm and unyielding.
"And my offer still stands—women can enter the fortress. They'll live as they did before. Work, eat, thrive." I paused, my gaze sweeping over the remnants of the crowd, the ones who hadn't fled yet. "But men stay out. That's the rule."
