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[Hi, everyone!! months since I talked directly here xD, not really the best talker (maybe because I spend all day reading...) anyway! as how prices of everything is going up and everyday life is getting expensive I decided to reduce the price of my sub on P@tr30n.
I don't want to make my readers stop having a good time so this is the least I can do.
To coushion a little the lost of money I added a tier for people that want to support me and have access to the polls for new fanfics and incoming events. Just a 1 buck one xD.
The next event will be a poll to pick one of my fanfic to get 10 extra chapters!
Thanks for your support!]
"Where did this grimoire come from?"
Genichi took the grimoire, let his gaze rest on the cover for a moment, then looked up at Ryuu.
A trace of scrutiny flickered through those black eyes.
Ryuu was slightly taken aback, but she answered honestly anyway.
"Syr guaranteed it for me so I could buy it on credit."
Genichi's brow twitched.
Syr?
As expected.
What credit? It was obvious Freya had used Ryuu's hands to place this priceless grimoire into his.
That goddess of beauty had really gone to a lot of trouble.
But...
What exactly was she after?
Otherwise, why would she use Ryuu to hand over something this valuable to him?
In the original story, the only one who got treatment like this was Bell.
But him?
Genichi could not make sense of it no matter how he thought about it.
His soul was black. One hundred percent black.
And not just ordinary black either. The kind of black that was so dark it practically shimmered in color.
How blind would Freya have to be to take an interest in him?
Unless...
She had some other goal.
Genichi frowned slightly.
But he quickly forced those thoughts back down.
Whatever Freya's objective was, the most important thing right now was the grimoire in front of him.
He accepted it, feeling its heavy weight in his hands.
The third magic.
He could finally awaken it.
Genichi put the grimoire away, then raised his head to look at Ryuu.
A complicated emotion flickered through those black eyes.
"If you want an answer, I can give it to you."
He paused.
"But I should warn you first. If you want revenge, your current strength isn't even close to enough."
Ryuu's gaze sharpened slightly.
But she did not retreat.
"That's my business."
Her voice was calm, but it carried a certainty that left no room for argument.
Genichi looked at her in silence for a moment.
Then he nodded.
"All right. Do as you like."
He paused again.
"Jura is inside the artificial labyrinth."
The artificial labyrinth?
She had never heard of such a place.
"What is the artificial labyrinth?"
"Daedalus, a follower of Uranus, was captivated by the Dungeon after witnessing its impossible craftsmanship."
"So Daedalus began building an artificial labyrinth of his own."
Ryuu listened quietly, thought flashing through her emerald eyes.
"Where is this artificial labyrinth?"
"Inside the Dungeon."
Genichi looked at her.
"As for where the entrance is exactly, that's something you'll have to find yourself."
Ryuu's brows drew even tighter.
"You're not going to tell me where the entrance is?"
"Our deal was that I would tell you Jura's whereabouts. Nothing more."
Genichi's voice was calm, but utterly certain.
"Whether you can find him or not depends on your own ability."
Ryuu fell silent.
She knew he was right.
Their deal had always been "tell her where Jura was," not "take her to Jura."
Finding the entrance, finding that man, all of that was her responsibility.
It had nothing to do with him.
Ryuu took a deep breath and nodded.
"I understand."
She turned and walked toward the door.
When she reached it, she suddenly stopped and looked back at Genichi.
"Genichi."
"Hm?"
"Thank you."
Her voice was quiet, but sincere.
Genichi was silent for a moment, then gave a small nod.
Ryuu opened the door and left.
The door closed softly behind her.
The room was left with Genichi alone.
He lowered his head and looked at the grimoire in his hand, irritation flashing through those black eyes.
Freya.
The name circled endlessly through his mind.
What exactly was she trying to do?
He did not know.
But he did know one thing: from now on, he would have to be much more careful.
That woman was more dangerous than Dionysus.
Because her weapon was not power. It was charm.
That irresistible ability was enough to drive anyone mad.
Genichi took a deep breath and forced those thoughts back down.
Then he opened the grimoire.
Not long after, he fell asleep.
Genichi slowly opened his eyes.
He rose to his feet and went to find Demeter.
"Update my status."
Demeter looked at him, a hint of confusion flickering through her amber eyes.
But she asked no questions. She simply stepped behind him and placed her hand against his back.
A moment later, her eyes opened again.
They were filled with shock.
"Genichi, this magic of yours..."
She handed him the parchment.
Genichi took it and glanced over the lines of divine script.
[Shadow King]
Can summon shadows to fight. Each shadow possesses all of the summoner's strength
Gains a shadow space. The main body and shadows can switch places
Upon receiving a fatal wound, a shadow can take the damage instead, while the main body transfers into the shadow space
The feats and status growth obtained by shadows are synchronized to the main body
One additional shadow is gained every day at midnight, and the number can stack
Genichi's pupils contracted slightly.
Shadow King.
It could summon shadows that possessed all of his power.
And if he suffered a fatal injury, a shadow could take his place while his real body retreated into the shadow space.
Even more outrageous than that, the feats and status increases obtained by the shadows would all synchronize back to his main body.
And he gained one extra shadow every twenty-four hours.
What did that mean?
It meant he now had countless extra lives.
It meant he could send shadows out to grind monsters while he rested.
It meant he could have shadows go adventuring while he stayed behind and collected the rewards.
This magic was absurd.
Genichi fell silent.
He stared at the words on the parchment for a long time without speaking.
Demeter stood beside him, equally too shocked to say anything.
His first two magics had already been powerful, but neither of them was as important as Shadow King.
In her eyes, the survival effect of Shadow King was practically unbeatable.
Transferring into the shadow space upon taking a fatal wound. That basically meant almost nothing could kill Genichi anymore.
"Genichi..."
Demeter's voice trembled slightly.
"This magic is too strong..."
Genichi said nothing.
He only held the parchment over the candle flame and burned it away.
Then he turned to look at Demeter.
Before he could say anything, she suddenly stepped forward, threw her arms around him, and kissed him.
Genichi was briefly caught off guard, but he quickly responded, wrapping an arm lightly around her waist as the room fell quiet around them.
Early the next morning, Genichi opened his eyes.
Sunlight spilled in through the window, bathing the whole room in warm gold.
He sat up and stretched.
"Shadow King."
The moment the words left his mouth, the shadow at his feet twisted slightly.
Then a pitch-black figure slowly separated from it.
It was humanoid in shape, entirely black, with only white outlines where its eyes and mouth should have been. It looked like one of those faceless culprit silhouettes from Detective Conan.
The shadow stood before him and silently looked back at him.
Genichi faced it in silence.
A complicated emotion flickered through those black eyes.
So this was his shadow.
A shadow that possessed all of his strength.
(End of Chapter)
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