Forged Destiny [Book 9: Ch. 21]

"Heroes of Vale stand tall!" a powerful voice boomed. It was familiar and yet not, loud and deep and causing reverberations through my very body. All eyes turned in the direction of it, to King Galan, King of Vale, who stood surrounded by his Royal Guard.

What the hell is he doing here? He can't fight.

He knew it too. Even from such a distance I could see his fear. And also something more resigned.

"You shall feel no fear! You shall fight! You shall not give in to despair this day. Not until the monster that stands before you is slain once and for all! Until then, you are immovable. Fight now! Fight for Vale and for all of Remnant. Fight!"

Ragged cheers echoed him. I was surprised to find Weiss' being one of them, the Mage snapping out of her panic so quickly she caught whiplash. Heroes who had all but been routed suddenly stood tall and roared their defiance.

The King was using his Charisma to bolster the forces. I could feel it as a dull hum, but my Resilience was too high to be affected. For everyone else, however, it was as good as mind control. Much like it had when the King of Mistral commanded Cinder to kill me, everyone here found sudden bounds of confidence within them, morale snapping back into place like an iron lock.

—Forged Destiny [Book 9: Ch. 21]