From Ruin to Reign Leander's Unbreakable Will novel Chapter 406

Under the weight of Leander's gaze, Logan and Dorian went pale. They stood frozen, scarcely daring to draw breath.

It was only in this moment that they understood the true, terrifying influence of a supreme Martial Practitioner.

A man like Leander, whose very presence seemed to dominate the heavens, held a stature in the eyes of Astria's leadership that their family could never hope to challenge.

They had called upon five additional generals. They had allied with two provincial governors to formally petition against him.

They had even stationed a hundred thousand troops on standby.

Yet, none of it had contained him; he had executed with a single, effortless blow.

Logan, in a final, desperate move, had personally journeyed to Mount Martial to beseech Galen as their ultimate safeguard.

But even Galen had been effortlessly maneuvered, reduced to a mere stepping stone.

Every card the Riverstone family held, every last shred of their influence, had proven utterly meaningless before this man.

Politics, commerce, military might, the martial world—Leander had dismantled the Riverstone family on every conceivable front.

Breaking the limbs of two of their younger members was a trivial matter.

If he willed it, if he decided to erase their entire lineage from existence, it was likely that not a single voice in all of Astria would dare to speak in their defense.

"G-General Ashcroft… the fault was ours."

The old general, a man who had spent a lifetime on the battlefield, finally lowered his proud head. A single, clouded tear traced a path through the grit on his cheek.

The Riverstone family was powerful, their strength rivaling that of Highcliffe's four great elite families. Yet today, before the assembled nobility of the city, they were forced to offer this humiliating apology.

"My grandsons were the ones who foolishly challenged you. They must face the consequences of their own actions. As for rallying forces against you… that was my decision, and mine alone. I beg of you, General Ashcroft. Take my life as recompense, but let the Riverstone family live."

A collective, sharp intake of breath rippled through the onlookers. Their faces tightened with stunned disbelief.

Logan's status was immense, a pillar of the establishment. Yet here he was, bowing his head to a man so much younger.

In that moment, everyone's hearts bowed once more to the sheer, intimidating power Leander commanded.

"But—"

Dorian's fists clenched until his knuckles were white, a tempest of shame and anger warring within him.

"Be silent!"

Logan's voice cracked like a whip, cutting off his son. He looked back at Leander, his expression grave, a silent plea in his eyes.

"Kill you, and let the rest of your family go?"

Leander let out a soft, humorless chuckle.

"The matter with Quincy and Skelly was finished. I had no further interest in your family. But you… you rallied a mob against me. You sought my utter ruin—to have me exiled and stripped of my rank. And now you believe you can pin all the blame on a single man and call the debt settled? Do you truly think it's that simple?"

His gaze turned icy. His voice dropped, each word sharp and frigid.

"You have three days. The entire Riverstone family will leave Highcliffe. For the next ten years, not a single one of you sets foot back in this city."

"Disobey a single word of this, and you know precisely what I am capable of."

With a seemingly casual flick of his wrist, he gestured to the side.

A thunderous boom shattered the silence.

The entire side wall of the hall imploded. From Leander's feet, a fissure several dozen feet deep tore through the floor, carving a ravine straight through the Celestial Pavilion and ending only at the far edge of the terrace.

A dead, hollow silence filled the hall, replaced only by pure terror on every face.

Logan and Dorian looked like men already walking to their graves.

With one sentence, Leander had just torn out the Riverstone family's century-old roots in Highcliffe.

Logan let out a long, weary breath.

His strength was undeniable, but his web of connections and influence now dwarfed even the Ashcroft family's, his wealth rivaling that of nations.

A low, self-deprecating laugh escaped Ethan—a mix of bitterness and a strange, fierce pride.

To have such a man as a brother gave him a lifetime goal to pursue.

But with such a brother… When would he ever catch up? Could he even hope to reach the edges of the shadow Leander cast?

Nearby, Mira's gaze drifted to the suitor a classmate had introduced—an heir from a second-tier Highcliffe family, a match she had considered acceptable.

But measured against Leander now? The young man seemed insufferably dull, a flickering firefly trying to compete with the brilliant, unapproachable moon.

They weren't even in the same league.

Ginny's lips parted in quiet astonishment. She knew Leander was formidable, a force of nature, but she had never grasped the true scale of his power. To see seven generals and three governors humbled by one man…

She shook off her stupor and turned to Arden, a teasing glint in her eye. "Well, Arden? Still doubting if he's truly peerless?"

Arden's heart hammered against her ribs. She swallowed hard, utterly speechless.

If he wasn't peerless, then who in this world could possibly be?

Meanwhile, Daphne stood a short distance from Leander, her eyes shining with a soft light. Her mind drifted back through the years, to a dusty childhood memory.

Back then, Leander was only eight.

He'd stood atop a small dirt mound, his small face tilted defiantly toward the sky, and shouted with all the conviction his youthful voice could muster:

"Dani, just you wait and see! One day, I'm going to stand above the whole world!"

Her eyes settled on him now, standing amid the wreckage of his enemies' ambitions. An irrepressible, playful smile curved her lips.

"Leander… is this what you meant by standing above the world?"