Ren flinched, caught off guard by Yuuto's intensity.
Yuuto stepped closer. "This isn't about what I could do. It's about what needs to be done. I may not agree with his methods, but I understand the weight he's carrying. Can you say the same?"
The room fell silent again, the weight of Yuuto's words settling over them like iron.
Ren finally spoke, "I certainly wouldn't—"
"Tell me, Ren," Yuuto suddenly interrupted, each word deliberate, "if you were in his position… a man who commands hundreds of dragons… being targeted by some cosmic entity hellbent on wiping out your family, your people—everything you love—"
Yuuto's eyes didn't waver as he took a step closer, his voice low but piercing.
He paused, letting the weight of that scenario sink in.
"Let's say you've seen this massacre before. Let's even say…" his voice dropped, tinged with pain, "you've experienced it. Watched it happen. Felt it happen."
Yuuto's gaze hardened, his tone like iron.
