Reidar walked toward the center of the cavern. He didn't hide. Stealth was useless here, especially since Reidar wasn't so naïve as to think that Silas hadn't noticed him already.

He reached the edge of the liquid mana lake. In the center, hovering slightly above a jagged platform of raw crystal, was the man.

He looked unremarkable compared to when Reidar had seen him in the past. He wore simple white robes, the same ones that the lower-ranking Deacons seemed to love. He sat in a lotus position with his hands resting on his knees and with his eyes closed.

—[Silas Bishop—Level 397]—

Reidar stopped.

<397. I came just in time.>

The number was terrifyingly high. He had expected Silas to be strong, but this was different. This was three levels away from level 400. In the System's logic, Level 400 wasn't just another step; it was likely a Tier threshold, a point where power scaled exponentially rather than linearly.

Reidar looked at his own status. Level 379.

There was an eighteen-level gap.

In the lower levels, eighteen levels were manageable with tactics and better gear. But up here, every single level represented a massive accumulation of attribute points, perks, and skills.

Silas was likely superior in ways Reidar couldn't even predict, or at least, he almost was. There were still chances for him to win. Reidar simply had to play things well.

<Let's be positive.>

He didn't have to win in a fair fight. He just had to kill him.

Silas opened his eyes.

They were gray, weary, yet remarkably keen. His gaze found Reidar on the opposite side of the mana lake. He showed no sign of alarm or fear, though a brief flash of astonishment crossed his face.

"So," Silas said. "You came."

"I did."

Reidar stepped closer to the edge, measuring the distance. About fifty meters. Within range of the Event Horizon Javelin, but also well within the range of whatever artillery Silas probably had.

"I am curious," Silas said, stretching out his legs and standing up, still flying. He hovered an inch off the water, not touching the crystal-clear substance. "How did you find me? We are quite far from Creamont, after all."

Reidar didn't see a reason to lie. "Summons, how else? I planted some on you the last time we saw each other, and I tracked you to Ashwick. Then I spread some more inside the city to get news of you, and once I found out you were in a cave, finding this place was all but complicated, just a little time-consuming."

Silas paused. He looked at his robes, then back at Reidar. A slow smile spread across his face. An appreciative smile at that.

"Smart," Silas said. "I scanned for magic and mana all the time, and yet you bypassed my perception. I wonder how you did that." He nodded. "A compliment, Reidar. You did what the entire Aegis Phalanx failed to do. You found me."

He stepped forward, floating over the gap between the platform and the shore. He stopped ten meters away.

"But finding me and stopping me are two very different things."

"I'm sure it is."

He paused. "Say, why are you so stuck on working against us?" Silas asked.

"Really? After everything you did?"

"Oh… spare me the moral reasons," Silas said. "People die every day to monsters, and while we sacrificed a few, we actually made more than twice the amount twice, if not thrice, as strong. Strong enough to survive." He paused. "If you have been to Ashwick, then you saw their levels. Even the weakest of us is many times stronger than the best out there."

"The Church says it's about salvation, but you're just slaughtering people. Even now, your people are planning ways to get into Highmont."

"You keep bringing up morality. But true salvation demands sacrifice," Silas said. "You have the System. Say, do you really think this is a blessing? Don't you even have a shred of doubt about it? About the Allied Worlds and their Aegis Phalanx?"

Silas looked up at the ceiling, as if seeing through the rock to the sky beyond.

"The Allied Worlds," Silas said, spitting the name. "They claim to be our saviors. They told us they were here to help us survive. But tell me, Reidar... where were they five years ago? Where were they before all of this started?"

He paused. "They knew all of this was going to happen, but instead of preparing us, they left us on our own, coming only when the Progenitor appeared. Weird, isn't it?"

Reidar frowned.

"They monitored Earth for centuries. They knew the mana density was rising. They could have intervened. They could have uplifted our technology, prepared our military, and defended our cities."

He looked at Reidar with burning eyes.

"They watched billions die in the first week. They watched our governments collapse. They waited until the population was reduced to a manageable fraction. Why? Because a desperate, broken population is easier to control. Fewer people means fewer variables. They didn't save humanity, Reidar. They managed a herd. Don't tell me you think otherwise. After all, with your strength, I think they are as wary of you as they are about me and the Progenitor."

"You don't know that," Reidar said. But he knew Silas was actually right in this.

"I know enough," Silas said. "Look at the System. It rewards killing. It rewards obedience to the mechanics they designed, to the quest they created. It turns us into soldiers for their wars. I want to break it. I want to shatter their connection to this world. The progenitor gave us the way, the means."

He pointed a finger at Reidar. "Do you truly believe, deep down, that the Allied Worlds are benevolent? That the aliens who gamified our apocalypse are our friends?"

Reidar hesitated.

"I don't trust them either," Reidar said. "There are surely things that don't add up. I'm not naïve enough to not think they don't have a hidden agenda. But what you are doing is taking people and turning them into monsters. Humanity will cease to exist if we follow your way."

Reidar paused.

"The Allied Worlds might be manipulative; they might be using us, but they gave us a way to fight back. Without the System, we would have been turned into ravenous fiends in less than a week. You basically talk about 'dying on our own terms,' but that just means dying. The Allied Worlds acted in humanity's help, overall. It wasn't perfect, but it was something."

Reidar shifted his stance, mana beginning to coil around his hands.

"And even if I didn't trust them," Reidar said, "I definitely don't trust the man who was going to feed an entire city to a magic circle just to gain more power."

Silas's expression hardened. The appreciation vanished, replaced by anger.

"That was the last time I tried to reason with you, Reidar Miller," Silas said. "You have the potential to be a god in this new world, and yet you choose to be a dog."

The air pressure in the cavern dropped. The crystals began to vibrate, and Silas began to glow with a white light radiating from his skin.

"You ruined my work in Creamont," Silas said. "You and your little pets walked in and undid months of planning."

He rose higher, the mana lake beneath him churning in response to his rage.

"I will make you pay for that."

Reidar didn't wait for the speech to finish. He slammed the Void-Caller's Baton into the ground, and his summons appeared.

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