As he looked at Rikiâs ashes, a whirlwind of emotions seemed to run amok within him.
At the same time, he came to realise something.
Frey realised that he had just lost an unparalleled helper who would have had an enormous impact in his fight against the Demigods.
ââŚif I had trusted Riki a bit moreâŚâ
Or if they had moved more carefully.
Such regrets began to fill his head.
However, all these assumptions were meaningless now.
Riki was already dead.
Now, Frey could only think of ways to best make use of the year Riki had earned him at the cost of his life.
âBefore that.â
Frey used his mana to dig a hole beside Lucidâs grave.
Then, he carefully buried Rikiâs ashes in it with his own hands without using mana.
At that time, something bumped against Freyâs hand.
When he checked to see what it was, Frey found a marble the size of a fist buried under the ashes.
The glittering silvery bead reminded him of Rikiâs hair.
It must be his Demigod crystal.
Frey wondered what he would do with the crystal. After all, this was a Demigodâs crystal, not an Apostleâs.
It would only be possible for him to make use of it after it had been processed into an elixir, but it was not something he was capable of doing on his own.
In fact, he was certain that Adelia couldnât either.
Then, Hectorâs face flashed across his mind.
Wouldnât that Dragon turned man, who was extremely talented in alchemy, be able to process this crystal?
But there was a problem.
âIs it really okay to go to Hector?â
It was possible that his identity would have been exposed.
But Hector didnât know that he was Rikiâs âApostleâ, besides, he was supposed to collect Anastasiaâs body from him in the future.
When he remembered Hectorâs eyes, Frey was sure that he was working on the production of the Golem, even at that moment.
Even if it was risky, it was still worth it to visit Hector.
As he had that thought, Frey put the crystal away.
Chuk.
Frey then stabbed Rikiâs broken sword, which was little more than a hilt, into his grave.
Frey looked at the two graves that laid beside each other.
Lucid and Riki.
A human and a Demigod.
It was strange for the graves of such opposing beings to be placed beside each other.
Frey shook his head and focused his mind.
There was a lot of work to be done, and he didnât have the time to dwell in sentimentality.
He remembered Rikiâs words.
ââŚBlake family.â
Otherwise known as the site of Leyrinâs experiment.
There should be clues about Illuminium there.
Frey had been planning on visiting the Blake family in time, but now, he felt like he had to make his move sooner rather than later.
Illuminium.
The metal that removed the Demigodâs inhibitors.
If they managed to find a way to produce this metal in bulk, the circle, no.
It would be a disaster for all life on the continent.
âI have to stop them.â
He only had a year.
In that time, the four Apocalypses and Lord would be unable to move properly, so it was his best chance.
Of course, it was still risky.
Out of the four Apocalypses, Leyrin was the only one left unhurt.
However, Frey did not intend to miss this opportunity.
The next thing that came to mind was the mysterious Demigod âElliahâ.
Riki had described her as a weirdo who did not care about the Circle nor the Demigods. He had also added that she was mostly likely the only other Demigod who would cooperate with Frey like he had.
âA Demigodâs cooperation is necessary.â
If he wanted to kill Demigods who had been forced into hibernation because he killed their Apostles, then he would need a Demigodâs help.
The only problem was that he didnât know how strong the Demigod Elliah was.
He had no idea just what she was capable of. More importantly, he wasnât even certain if she would cooperate with him like Riki had.
Even so, Frey trusted Rikiâs words.
If it was impossible from the start, then he would not have mentioned it in the first place.
ââŚof course, it wonât be easy.â
Nevertheless, he had to hurry.
Lord could try to kill him at any moment. After all, he held a grudge against him.
The anger he directed at Frey now was many times greater than the anger he had towards Lukas 4,000 years ago.
He felt that Frey was the reason Riki betrayed him.
Frey was certain that Lord knew just how ridiculous that was, but he still wouldnât change his mind.
âBecause he needs something to direct his anger at.â
It was the betrayal of Riki, the sibling he cared the most for.
No matter how clear it was, he would never believe that he was the one at fault.
In this way, Freyâs existence became the perfect justification.
Besides, Frey knew the identities of all the Apocalypsesâ Apostles, so that was even more reason to kill him.
Depending on how he used this information, he could put a lot of pressure on the Demigods.
âPhoenix.â
He couldnât help but think about her.
It was still something he had a hard time coming to terms with.
The Phoenix, who he had promised to reunite with, had become Agniâs Apostle.
This meant that at least for Agni, he would not be able to deal with him through his Apostle.
Then what could he do to kill Agni, a powerful Demigod otherwise known as an Apocalypse?
âŚIt was a difficult problem.
He didnât know about the other Apostles, but heâd have to at least keep the Phoenixâs identity to himself.
Otherwise, the Circle might try to kill her after learning of her identity.
âGood.â
First, he would head to the Blake family.
After thinking this, Frey stood to his feet before he suddenly thought of Iris.
ââŚwhy did you save me?â
It was obvious that Iris had saved his life.
If she had not arrived and stopped Lord, he would have been tortured and killed right there.
At first, heâd felt resentful and ashamed for what sheâd done, but looking back, more questions popped into his mind.
Did Iris really betray them?
And if not, then why did she kill Schweiser and start a feud between Kasajin and Lucid?
âLucas, that stone-headed bastard. He was the only one on the entire continent who didnât realise she was blatantly flirting with him.â
Schweiserâs voice drifted in his head once again.
SurelyâŚ
No way. Frey shook his head.
Regardless of the circumstances, nothing could change the fact that she was the one who killed Schweiser.
Frey stopped thinking about her and walked out of the cave.
* * *
He came out of the cave and looked around before realising how close he was to Dalamanâs castle.
In fact, he could clearly see the smashed castle not far away.
Shuk.
Frey warped to the castle.
After all, he no longer had a reason to hide his mana.
He hadnât used his mana in a month, but it still moved in a smoother manner than his divine power.
At this point, he felt like he could smoothly use a close range warp even if he was half asleep.
ââŚâ
After arriving at the castle, Frey couldnât help but fall silent for a while.
The castle and its surroundings had been completely destroyed. The fact that the terrain itself had been irreversibly changed showed the ferocity of the fight that had happened.
ââŚby himself, he was able to defeat the other four Apocalypses.â
Frey had not witnessed Rikiâs full power personally, but he was able to get a rough idea from the traces that had been left on the battlefield.
It was amazing.
No, even such a word was not enough.
Riki was truly incredibly powerful, even among the Demigods.
It was then.
Frey felt something nearby.
He turned around without bothering to hide his presence.
When those who were carefully approaching from a distance saw Frey standing in the air, their expressions hardened.
âMmâŚ!â
Standing there were people from the Circle.
Among them were many people that Frey were familiar with.
No, most of them were.
Shepard Jun, one of the few Archmages and Tower Masters in the Kastkau Empire. Dugenjar from the Phisfounder Armlets whom heâd had a dispute with in the past. Jerome Werner from the Lucid Swords that he saw not so long ago.
âŚAnd Heinz Blake, the second son of the Blake family and his older brother.
There was only one person in the group that he hadnât seen before.
It was a woman with the appearance of a blonde girl with red eyes.
Frey realised that she was Sheryl Roland, Circle Rounder of the Phisfounder Armlets.
The word âgirlâ was suitable for her appearance, but she was, in fact, a terrifying vampire who was actually several hundred years old.
Shepard, who was at the front, couldnât help but mutter in a confused voice.
ââŚI couldnât feel anything.â
It wasnât his fault.
Freyâs control over his energy was, in itself, outstanding, and it was further enhanced by the mask.
At that moment, even though Frey was clearly standing in front of them, they could barely feel his presence.
âWhat the hell is going on?â
Shepard stared at Frey with a stiff expression.
They had seen the Demigodsâ fight unfold from a distance.
At first, they were shocked.
Why had they suddenly started fighting?
However, the answer quickly made itself known.
Internal strife.
They had personally seen the infighting with their own eyes, something that had never happened in the past thousands of years.
They had borne witness to an indescribable fight.
And while they were still shaking from the sheer power the Demigods had displayed, the fight had ended.
Once they confirmed that the Demigods had left, they finally approached the scene of the fight.
Shepard knew that the masked man in front of them was the Sword Apocalypseâs Apostle.
âŚAnd the Sword Apocalypse had been the one who was fighting against the other Demigods.
Therefore, it was too early to regard this man as an enemy.
âWhat are you waiting for, Honor Shepard? This man is an Apostle.â
Jerome spoke bluntly and drew his sword.
He glanced at those around him and said.
âAll of us are executives in our circles. Now that the Demigods are gone, we can subdue him for questioning.â
ââŚitâs not that simple, Honor Jerome.â
Shepard sighed heavily before looking up at Frey.
âKain Rixton, right?â
They were aware of his fake identity.
Frey realised that they were the ones who had been monitoring him and Riki in Pillat.
Heâd believed that they had managed to lose them, but it seemed they were even able to follow them here.
He nodded his head, answering positively.
âYou know weâre from the Circle, donât you?â
âI do.â
Shepard spoke in a solemn tone.
ââŚwe saw the Sword Apocalypseâs fight with the other Apocalypses. We believe that it was infighting. Should we consider you an enemy?â
Frey admired Shepardâs social skills and flexibility.
He felt that this man was truly deserving of the title âArchmageâ.
It wouldnât be strange if a fight broke out immediately simply because of his identity as an Apostle.
Shepard, however, calmly analysed the situation and was able to determine that infighting had occurred for some reason, and he sought a way to avoid fighting.
Frey realised then that the outcome of this situation could change greatly depending on his response.
Except for Jerome, he could see that none of the others had any intention of fighting him at that moment.
It was then.
Freyâs eyes turned to Heinz.
ââŚâ
Then he unleashed his divine power.
Kooo~
âMmâŚ!â
âKuk!â
All of those present could feel it.
Frey calmly observed the circle members who were rapidly distancing themselves from him.
âHmph!â
Jerome snorted coldly and kicked off from the ground.
His body soon appeared beside Frey. His speed was quite admirable.
But to Frey, who had trained with Riki for the past few months and had gotten used to his movements, Jerome was even slower than a slug.
BesidesâŚ
Crackle.
âKukâŚ!â
He had no reason to make a move anyway.
The Lightning Barrier.
At Jeromeâs level, he couldnât hope to break through the barrier.
âThatâŚ?â
âLightning divine power? How?â
Confusion was clear on Shepardâs face.
The Apostle who had the power of lightning had already died.
He had been killed by Frey, Camille, Liamson and Mikel.
When an Apostle died, the Demigod would fall into hibernation.
The Circle wasnât able to get all the information, but they were certain that Apostles using the same power wouldnât appear for a while.
âItâs not the sameâŚâ
Shepardâs confusion deepened.
But in the next moment, everyone present was shocked to the core.
Woowoong.
ââŚ!!â
âWh-, whatâs going on?!â
The expressions of Shepard and Dugenjar showed astonishment beyond comparison.
Everyone had suddenly been deprived of their control over mana.
Sheryl and Heinzâs eyebrows furrowed.
Mana Room Projection.
In other words, he had taken control over this space.