It was as if someone had chained the people of the snakemen village to the ground, and then proceeded to attach 100 ton weights onto the chains followed by removing the very ground which the weights rested on, causing them to hang freely on all sides- forcing the snakemen to the ground with such pressure that even lifting a finger was too much to conceive.

The pressure was so great that the people could not even so much as wonder as to how they had not died.

Silence was the rule of the village before in the face of the leader. Failure to comply with this rule would lead to arrest, and possibly death depending on the mood of the provider.

Before these beings, such things were trivial.

Silence was no longer a law which was enforced by a mortal where those who broke such a law was punished.

Before these beings, silence was now the very law of the universe.

To speak would be physically impossible. It was as if the vocal cords of every single person within the vicinity had been torn from their throats under the immense pressure.

To raise ones head before the provider would be worthy of punishment to the point of enslavement.

Yet to raise ones head right now, before these beings, it would never be possible.

It was then that the heads of each and every snakeman moved up on their own, as if they were being forcefully grabbed by the hair and thrusted upwards.

Before them, sitting in four thrones made from a glassy substance were four figures.

A succubus who seemed to be filing her nails, barely even paying attention to the insects which surrounded her.

An elven figure wearing an elegant suit who seemed to look down on every single person in this area as if they were nothing more than tools for profit.

A spiritual woman with dark lines under her eyes and hair so messy it appeared that electricity was flowing through it, who was staring down at the people with disinterested boredom as her eye seemed to twitch.

And a crimson demon who playfully chuckled while looking up into the sky, his hands behind his head.

These four beings sat upon the thrones in front of the snakemen, and on witnessing them the people could not help but feel completely helpless.

'Upper demons.....'

'What are they doing here???'

'Are these..... could these people be the ones who those humans serve?'

'Why..... why..... why..... why... why..... why..... why don't they just kill us off? Why are they forcing us to suffer like this!?!?!?!'

'I... urg..... can't.... breathe..... huff..... huff.....'

'Help....somebody.... anybody.... provider!!! Please come back!!!'

'Save us!!!!'

'I don't care who you are.... just save us from these demons!!!'

Fear trickled into the hearts of the people, spreading through the crowd like water filling up a retention pond during a storm.

"I'm going to try a new setting out.", the succubus said to the others as she stood up on a piece of the glassy substance which served as a floor, not diverting her eyes from her nails as she raised the other hand and seemed to do some strange motions with it.

It was then that the people of the snakemen village found their bodies moving on their own, completely outside of their control.

They witnessed a light smirk from the succubus as she continued to file her nails, and their bodies were thrusted upwards, causing them to stand.

When this happened, the people were filled with even greater terror.

Not only were their bodies moving on their own, but they had now stood up in front of these beings.

Having submitted themselves to the provider their entire lives, to stand in front of someone greater than yourself was considered to be a great offense.

And yet, outside of their control, they had been forcefully stood.

Would they be killed now?

"It looks like it worked. I can now put them under mind control, while allowing them to retain their consciousness.", the succubus said to the others. "Meaning..... I can force them to watch as they do whatever I order them."

"Ehh.... I wanna be able to do that too.....", the spirit seemed to complain. "No fair."

"You can already do that if you control them with your mana, can't you? And I don't think you have the right to complain about fair when your abilities are so much more powerful than any of ours, Mrs. Origin."

"Ah, I guess that's right.", the spirit girl said while placing a piece of hair in her mouth and innocently chewing on it.

"What are you..... nevermind."

The elf looked over to the spirit girl as she did this, unable to comprehend her actions, but he then stood up, looking over the people before him with a grand grin.

"Ahem. To everyone and anyone here. Welcome. People of the snakemen village, I am sure that this is not exactly a very warming welcome, however it will have to do. It seems that our slaves have already eliminated those who would likely cause significant issues, so I'll get straight to the point."

The elf looked around the village, putting his hand to his chin as he grinned.

"We're taking this entire village for our own. Welcome to the Dictatorship. It will be a pleasure to work with you."

----

'If only the provider were here.....'

'He would protect us from these beings of chaos.....'

'It's over now..... now that the provider is gone...'

'No.... wait.... what if the provider is still living?'

'What if the provider is working behind the scenes as he always is to save us from the evil forces of the outside!?'

'What if that dead body over there was not actually the provider at all!?'

'The provider would have never lost that easily....'

'Even if they used a cowardly method, he would somehow survive and save us!!'

'I can't control myself....'

'They've taken control of my movements....'

'I want to run.... but I can't....'

'I want to hide..... but I can't....'

'Would hiding even work against these beings?'

'Provider....'

'Save us.....'

Samantha glared down at the rows of people. She could now control their every movement while leaving their minds in tact.

"These insects don't seem to understand their position.", she stated while plucking her eyelid. "I'm going to make them understand."

The other three watched as Samantha waved her hand and before her appeared a stairway made from her own barriers.

She walked down it in a queenly manner, forcing the eyes of every single person within the snakemen village to watch as she processed down.

However, even if she was not controlling them, they would not have been able to look away, for her beauty was unrivaled.

Despite her demonic form, even the snakemen who were obsessed with their former leader to the point of clinging to false hopes that he still lived were completely captivated by the woman who approached them.

"Your leader is dead. You can go ahead and believe that he still lives, but that won't change the truth. As a matter of fact...."

Samantha waved her own hand in an upward motion and 20 men walked forward from their spots, quivering in fear.

Samantha motioned for the men to walk forward and they took kneeling positions before her, shaking terribly.

"Some of you still believe that this leader of yours lives and is waiting for the right moment to slaughter us."

Glancing around the entire arena, Samantha then smiled and began to laugh.

"Haha.... heh heh.... AHAHA!!! And it seems like every single person here seems to believe something hilarious. Hahaha!! Every single person here seems to believe that your provider, who was turned into mincemeat over there, cared for this village. Why are you all so brainwashed? I've never seen anything like this. Ah.... wait..... I suppose I have seen one scenario."

Samantha grinned seductively, her demented face destroying the wills of the people around her.

"Back home in our nation, I suppose there is brainwashing which is on par with this."

Samantha then brought up her hand and formed a barrier underneath the body of the provider, in the shape of a platter.

As if it were scooping it up and preparing it to be served, she carried it over to the 20 men in front of her.

"Not a single one of you seem to believe that this is the body of your provider. Isn't that right? Then prove that to me. Prove to me that with your heart, mind, and soul, that you truly do not think this is your leader. To use the same terms he used....."

Samantha snapped her fingers with a grin.

"You are permitted to move. And you are permitted to speak."

Undoing the conscious mind control on the men before her, they looked around with confusion.

Just moments before they felt a crippling weight on them forcing them to move in such a way where it was impossible to defy.

However, the 20 men who were sitting up front now felt as if an enormous burden had been lightened.

They no longer felt the tremendous pressure which shackled them, and could freely move around, however their bodies hesitated to say or do anything- for it had been drilled into them to not so much as breathe in the presence of their leader.

And there was something far greater than their leader here.

Slowly they raised their faces to look at the face of the succubus in front of them, and when they looked up, they saw something horrible.

She was quietly and calmly laughing, but her face was filled with a terrifying sadism.

She was enjoying every moment of squashing the insects beneath her feet.

Like a child who enjoys pouring water into an anthill, she looked down on these people, flaunting the dead body of their leader before them.

"Eat him.", the demon stated with a commanding tone.

The men looked to the body, staring at the mutilated face of the corpse.

Even being as destroyed as it was, they knew with all their hearts on seeing this corpse up close.

Without a doubt.

This was their leader.

There was no question.

There could be no other who had the same features.

"What's wrong? You all seem to be hesitating quite a bit... ah, no.... it isn't that your unsure..... it's that you've just now become certain."

Quivering, the men hopelessly looked up to the demon before them.

Tears formed in their eyes and they held in their screams of despair on knowing that all hope had been lost.

"You were unsure before, but at that point you would have been reluctant to consume this corpse. After all..... if there was even the slightest possibility that it was your founder, then you would have been desecrating his body. And you could not take that risk."

The demon put her index finger to her lips, grinning.

"But now you're completely sure. And so you cannot do it."

'It's....  as if she's reading our very minds.....'

Samantha then came closer to the man, appearing behind him in an instant and whispering into his ear.

"That's because I can."

The man was shaken to the point of paralysis, unable to move from the spot. The others didn't dare to look behind them, for fear of once more witnessing that horrible face.

Turning back to the others, Samantha once more spoke with a dominating tone.

"To anyone who believes that the provider you once served was a hero who would save you from the evil outsiders who wish to do harm to the people of this village, I pose a question to you."

Samantha then raised her own hand, creating a large number of blades made from barriers, and used them all to simultaneously slice off the heads of the men kneeling in front.

The heads of the men dropped to the ground with splatters of blood, killing them on the spot.

The demon grinned, speaking in a horrible whisper that sent chills down the spines of each and every person present.

[Where is your leader now?]

As Samantha walked back up the stairs, the people could not cease their trembling.

'The provider.....'

'He.... didn't come.....'

'He didn't save those men.....'

'He truly is dead.....'

'He could not save us..... not from these demons.....'

'Is there anyone?'

'Is there anyone in this world who can save us?'

As she sat back on the throne, looking down at all the people in the village, Samantha made one final statement, answering the question which lingered in the mind of all the people.

"There is no one."

----

"Shall we?"

"With pleasure."

Samantha raised her own hand, creating a barrier which surrounded the plaza which they were in completely.

Ashley smiled, standing up while looking down on all the people.

"Hehehe..... watch and learn, snakemen..... I'll show you just how powerless your leader was before us. Take a good look around."

The crackling voice of the ghastly girl pierced away at the snakemen who heard her, making them want to shrivel away and scream in pain.

Their eardrums could not handle it. It was as if nails were being scraped on a chalkboard.

The voice of the succubus was one which was beautiful, and captivated the people with a terrifying and untouchable beauty, but the girl who had the appearance of a spirit was the exact opposite.

With a voice which would fill people with nightmares, she commanded the attention of everyone present.

"Your provider preached that outsiders would destroy this town.... that we would corrupt you one by one and eventually destroy you from the inside..... but you know what? I want to prove him wrong."

Thinning her eyes with a disturbing smile and a bloodthirsty glare, the wretched girl spoke without care for the minds of those around her.

"We won't destroy you from the inside. Only a weakling would need to bother with something like that."

The spirit's green eyes seemed to flash blue as she lifted her arms.

[Sea of Flames]

In an instant, the entire city around the barrier was engulfed in a raging fire.

The very sky itself was completely out of sight, and the heat could be felt even from inside this barrier.

And then, with the snap of a single finger, the sea of flames dispersed.

In just a second, the entire city had been reduced to nothing.

Not even ashes remained.

The ground was flattened, and any sign of anything existing there before was completely removed.

All that remained in this wasteland was the desert.

"Your leader thought that we would destroy you from the inside? Why bother when it would be easier to just burn this entire city down?"

The people were allowed freedom of movement, staring with their mouths gaping at seeing their entire village decimated in an instant.

It was then that Garett stood up from his seat.

He placed his hand on the head of Ashley, rubbing her messy hair.

"You did great."

"Hehe.... t-thank you...."

The fingers which they wore on their necks seemed to jingle as he passed her, raising up his own hand.

"Your leader had the power to transform the desert itself into sustenance, you said? And without him, you all are doomed? He was your only hope?"

Garett put his hand to his forehead and began to chuckle.

"Heh heh heh heh heh..... to think that he would gain such power over something so trivial. This isn't even on the level of a party trick it's so pathetic."

Garett raised his hands, and Samantha dispelled the barrier around the plaza, which remained intact.

[Equivalent Exchange]

The sand of the desert which completely surrounded the people became a sea of flesh, patched with all different types of meats.

Turning back, Garett chuckled while waving to the people behind him.

"Is something like this so much to fawn over?"

The people were stunned at this.

Those who were not members of the military police and had not been arrested and forced to work in the slave camps believed that the provider had similar powers, but never had they seen it done.

As for the people who worked in the slave camps, this was something which they knew was unprecedented.

The very skill which the provider pretended to have in order to maintain his position truly existed, and was being wielded by that demon in front of them.

'My..... goodness...'

'It.... actually exists.....'

'A true provider.... actually exists...'

Trevor then stood up, taking the stage as the others sat down.

"Thank you all for such a splendid presentation. It's now my turn to finish this off. Then, what do you all say? Your provider was nothing special. It is the role of every leader to provide food for their people. It is now your turn to make the decision, here and now. Will you become like those men who held onto the hopes that your provider was still alive, or will you bow before us as our slaves? I ask for you all to worry not about the term slaves. After all, were you not already slaves to that man before you?"

The people began to look around.

They looked at the dead body of the provider in front of them, and the monsters who were alive before them.

'Do I betray everything I've ever lived for, or do I die here and now?'

This decision plagued the minds of the people.

The evidence and facts said that they should bow before these people.

However their hearts went against this with every fiber of their beings.

They did not wish to betray the very person who they had served from the moment of their existence.

It was something which had been so deeply instilled into their minds that many could not give into such a mindset of serving a new leader.

Yet the first person to speak up was a man from the slave camp.

"I will serve you."

"Me as well."

"I too."

Some women from the camp began to speak as well.

"I will serve you."

"The provider..... he.... he was unsatisfiable.... no matter what I did, I couldn't please him..... he threw me into this prison for next to no reason....."

"Me as well...."

"Will.... will you all put unreasonable demands on us like he did!?!?"

"Will you abuse us in the same way!?! Will you expect us to do the impossible!?!?"

"Will you kill us just for flinching in your presence!?!?"

Many men and women were now shouting out, asking questions to the antiheroes with tears in their eyes.

"I don't want to serve someone like than anymore!!!! If you have such expectations, then just kill me right here!!!!!", a beautiful snakewoman shouted.

"Me too!!!!"

"I as well!!!!"

Many people began to agree, shouting out in rage.

"We will not serve someone who expects us to be able to do two contradicting things at the same time!!!"

"If you cannot agree to this condition then we will never serve you!!!!"

At hearing these complaints, Trevor pushed up his glasses and fixed his tie with a smile.

"How excellent. Worry not, my new slaves. Not once in my life have I ever held any expectations for anyone but myself."