It is said to be the greatest turnout for any speech in Draconian history, because Draconian populations had boomed in the years leading up to it. Due to the tragedy that followed, such a large crowd would not come again for any other Grand Wizard's speech, and most future Grand Wizards would instead hold smaller, more targeted speeches.
Only the 69th Grand Wizard and pupil of the Herald, Ardar Tilrak, would have a comparable crowd at his concerts because he was a Bard.
The Speech
Before the true speech began, the Herald asked his interns Ardar Tilrak and Raegal to tell him how many people were gathered. Upon Raegal telling him, the Herald said:
“Goodness, there are so many people here for my speech. It’s almost as if I’m an important global figure. Wouldn’t that be funny? Such a bumbling old fool making decisions that could impact the world would be ridiculous.
If history were to remember me, it should remember all of us. Our lives. So I ask of you, for the future... to remember this day. Remember me, so that we may all go down in history."— The Mighty Herald
At the time, few acknowledged this as part of his speech. They didn't think he could have preplanned it, and saw no reason why he would. It seemed a genuine thing from the Herald, but in truth it was a trick he used to connect with the people and get them to do what he wanted: remember him. By connecting that idea with history remembering them, he intended to get people to want him to be remembered.
It was after this that the Herald cleared his throat and addressed the crowd:
"Life is something precious, as we all share one life, though our bodies may be separate, I believe that we all end up together in the end. In the end, my body is your body, your magic is my magic."— The Mighty Herald
This was an ominous hint towards the tragedy he would cause in the future, as Unity Day would end with him absorbing the life energy and magic of all of his cultists, making their bodies and powers one not for the good of the world, but for the sake of his own growth.
"Those who refuse the truth are merely fuel to the eternal fire of life, and we will make that known. We will show them. I will show them.— The Mighty Herald
Here, the Herald showed that he only viewed people as fuel, though he claimed it was only those that didn't "see the truth" when in reality, he even saw his cultists as that. He even ends this segment with a threat that he will show them, implicating himself in a potential plan to attack non-cultists that he never went through with.
With the help of those that stand beside me, I am stronger than any army that may rise against me. And you will all stand beside me. It is but a matter of time.”— The Mighty Herald
This final part of the speech shows that he intended to absorb more, as it is said that his spell to absorb the cultists was stopped before it could get out of their temple, meaning he had intended to absorb even more power.
While few truly understood it when he said it, it has since become a sign of the evils that lurk beneath men's words, and has caused future Grand Wizards to hire speech writers to make sure they aren't accidentally implicating themselves in evil plans.
Aftermath
Copies of the speech were distributed after it was given. The Mighty Herald wanted to be remembered, and so he passed it along so that it could be quoted in the history books. It was his motivation and, therefore, he succeeded in creating something that would be remembered for generations to come.
The Herald went on to kill a majority of the Paragons of Unity, as well as his intern Raegal, before he was killed.
His successor, Draqiroth Lealred, would end up learning to speak in rather blunt speeches so that the people would not see him like the Herald, even when Draqiroth did the equally insane move of declaring war on the entire world.
The words of the Unity Day Speech would live in infamy for the remainder of Draconian history, as a sign of what not to do, but also a sign of how well the Mighty Herald was able to trick the public into his plan. If he was anything, he was a powerful man and a genius, but so too was he evil. As long as he is remembered, his plan is fulfilled and those that died did so for his historical ego.
Many look back at it as a speech that portrayed his malicious intent, while others see cracks of a man regretting what he was about to do. For a tragedy would come about not long after by the Mighty Herald's own hands.
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