Orario was still a huge city. Once he sensed the commotion, Finn rushed as fast as he could—and only barely made it in time.
But by the time he arrived, it was already over.
"How did it go? I heard there was an adventurer who could duel a Tyrant one-on-one—where is he?"
Finn found Shakti and asked anxiously.
He looked toward the center and saw only the silhouettes of the two Tyrants.
Did he die… erased so completely not even ash remained?
Given what Finn knew of those two, they were absolutely capable of that.
"No. He left on his own, but I'm not sure of the exact result."
Shakti shook her head in regret, still somewhat dazed.
It was deep night, and she'd been too far away—dodging constantly—so she couldn't see clearly.
When that powerful stranger had left, she'd intended to approach and invite him to join forces.
But he vanished in an instant. She never got a word in.
It was truly instantaneous—like a dream bubble popping.
If the two Tyrants hadn't still been there, if the place weren't still a wreck, she would've wondered whether she'd imagined the entire thing.
"He left first? That's good—meaning he won."
Finn licked his thumb and quickly pieced the outcome together.
For the past eight years—since the decline of the two great Familias—Finn, as captain of the Loki Familia, had been one of Orario's most important figures.
If not for the overpowered Tyrants, this era—and the next—should have belonged to him and Ottarl.
Finn understood the mindset of the strong.
In a duel like that, the one who leaves first can only be the victor.
That was a strong person's pride.
"Fair point… but will he fight in the next decisive battle?"
Shakti finally steadied herself.
Only someone who'd been there could truly grasp how much pressure those two Tyrants put on Orario.
Now that someone capable of matching them had appeared, Orario finally had something to anchor itself to—
Even if that person's origins were unknown… even if they might not even be friend rather than foe.
In despair, you cling to even the smallest hope.
"He'll definitely fight. I don't know what interrupted things, but they obviously weren't finished. Next time, the Tyrant we have to face will be only one."
Finn smiled, deliberately projecting optimism.
In truth, he had no idea whether they could win.
Even against a single Tyrant, Orario might still lose.
After all, besides that Tyrant, they also had to deal with the Dark Faction—an enemy force of comparable scale.
But adventurers were always stubborn.
So long as they could see hope, they would meet the future with grit.
"We can't win head-on… but we can borrow external power."
Shakti wasn't ordinary, and she didn't need pep talks.
Facing the situation, two figures flashed through her mind immediately:
One was Asfi, the Hermes Familia's "万能者" (the All-Rounder).
The other was Fels, the "Sage" who answered directly to Uranus.
Both were item-makers with a "mystery" attribute—maybe they could produce targeted tools to counter a Tyrant.
With item support as external force, Shakti thought they might actually have a shot.
"The Tyrant he just dueled was Chardo of the Zeus Familia."
Shakti emphasized it.
"I know. If nothing changes, next decisive battle he'll face Alfia of the Hera Familia. And the one we must handle… is Gluttony."
Finn's face hardened.
Just look at the ruins in front of them—Ottarl alone wouldn't be enough.
...
Cid left the center of the decisive battle and used his skill again to conceal himself.
The moment he landed, he saw Filvis's cheeks flushed red.
"Lord Shadow—are you alright?"
Filvis stared at him in worry.
She hadn't seen the battle itself, but she'd seen the scale of the destruction.
Even though Cid returned safely, he was covered in wounds.
She thought he'd lost.
"I won. These are just minor scratches."
With a thought, all the injuries on his body healed in an instant.
They'd been so shallow he'd simply forgotten to restore them.
"Just as expected of Lord Shadow!"
Filvis relaxed immediately, not doubting him for a second.
"Not worth praising."
Cid wasn't pleased.
Those two were touted as "Greatest Evil," and he'd been genuinely excited—convinced they'd be strong enough to satisfy him.
Fine. The truth was their strength wasn't weak at all—both were far stronger than Orario's strongest, Ottarl.
If both were healthy, Cid would have to treat them carefully.
But in their current state… it left him unsatisfied.
They were the last glow of a dying sun—without Cid's help, neither would live much longer.
And Cid was the newborn morning light.
He was only Level 5; in theory, he still had enormous potential unrealized.
On the path of an adventurer, he had only just begun.
If humanity didn't produce opponents strong enough…
Wouldn't Shadow's future devolve into nothing but bullying the weak?
Becoming the strongest this early didn't sit right with him.
What about his effort?
His struggle?
Becoming the Eminence in Shadow was supposed to be hard.
In this world, Cid had gradually adapted to the rule of getting stronger by breaking through levels.
So why did he debut and immediately end up "the strongest"?
…Though, to be fair, bullying the weak sounded kind of fun too.
In an instant, he'd already thought up a lot of entertaining ways to play it.
As the Eminence in Shadow, he should be the strongest existence.
But Cid didn't want to explore this world "to completion" so quickly.
If he did, what goal would remain—other than the One-Eyed Black Dragon?
So those two had to be saved.
They needed to work harder—at minimum, give him enough pressure to help push him to Level 7.
"Those two… aren't bad. But this world still hides an even greater darkness."
Cid tilted his head up at a forty-five-degree angle, craving a more valuable opponent.
First, there had to be a mastermind lurking in the shadows, trying to overthrow the world.
Second, ideally, powerful beings from other worlds would arrive here—like him.
If not…
Even gods would do.
"Lord Shadow… do you mean there are still Dark Faction members hiding, watching the situation from the shadows?"
Filvis immediately thought of Dionysus.
From earlier signs, he was definitely not some peripheral member of the Dark Faction.
So… was Dionysus secretly plotting something enormous?
Lord Shadow must have guessed all this long ago—that was why he'd never exposed his hand, never shown his depths: so the enemy wouldn't learn his intel.
Filvis's gaze grew even more reverent.
Lord Shadow was truly incredible!
"Yes. Exactly."
Cid nodded in satisfaction.
This little elf really gets it.
He enjoyed being the Eminence in Shadow, but he also knew that to outsiders his "performance" could look awkward.
For her to willingly play along—and to act it so well—what a good kid.
He'd decided it.
From now on, he'd spoil this kid properly.
Meanwhile, Aki arrived with Noin at the location where Cid had been struck.
Noin looked at Aki in confusion.
"…Where is he?"
....
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