Lanqi and Hyperion, still seated on the sofa, watched as the manor dissolved and Xigelei vanished. As the piano music echoing through the estate faded away, they knew their time was up.
Hyperion held on reluctantly, trying to pull Xigelei just a little closer.
Yet the harder she tried to feel Xigelei’s soft, petite body, the more she found herself unable to touch her.
Until the estate walls crumbled entirely, the starlight over Berkingham County reached a brilliant zenith for a fleeting second, only to be swallowed by profound darkness.
In the mere blink of an eye, Lanqi and Hyperion found themselves in a transparent plaza enveloped by an eternal starry sky.
"Hyperion, we'll see her again next time,"
Lanqi said, gently patting Hyperion on the shoulder as he noticed the desolation in her eyes.
He knew Hyperion had longed for a kindred spirit and playmate like Xigelei since childhood.
Having grown up starved of love, she habitually offered affection to those who never lacked it, much like a pauper giving charity to a billionaire.
Xigelei, on the other hand, both lacked love and did not.
If Hyperion was willing to offer her love, she would gladly accept it and return equal affection—love that Hyperion could easily accept.
"Mm."
Hyperion nodded softly and shifted half a seat closer to Lanqi.
Now that Xigelei was gone, Lanqi was the only one beside her; leaning a little closer felt natural.
Even without words, sitting beside him brought a profound sense of peace.
They were still sitting.
The manor and estate were gone, replaced by a circular open-air plaza where they sat on the steps.
The only constant was the clear midsummer night sky on the horizon. Stars twinkled hundreds of millions of light-years away, glittering brilliantly as if recounting ancient legends from millennia ago, casting enough light for the two of them to see their surroundings clearly.
It was a wondrous space—a threshold where reality and the Shadow World intertwined to form a liminal edge.
Not far off on the transparent barrier, a spreading fissure silently opened, and a few tranquil ribbons of purple light drifted from within.
Soon, by passing through this small Void Gate, the two of them could return to reality and resume their familiar life in the city of Ikerite.
"Judging by when we entered the Shadow World, after a full forty-five days, it should still be around eight in the morning when we get back to Ikerite,"
Lanqi recalled, speaking to Hyperion.
The Shadow World's settlement had yet to appear.
"Meow, meow."
Boss Cat poked its head out from beside Lanqi and circled the two of them several times.
It gazed around, nervous yet full of curiosity.
To the cat, every inch of this place was entirely novel.
A threshold space following the clearance of a Shadow World was something it had never seen before!
"Boss Cat, your reward this time certainly won't be bad."
Lanqi picked up the fidgety little black cat and held it up as he spoke.
From their previous two experiences, Lanqi and Hyperion were reasonably certain that the greater the deviation from actual history during a Shadow World trial, the longer the settlement process would take.
"..."
Hyperion glanced at Lanqi.
To ensure her contribution score was high enough, Lanqi had handed full control of the negotiations and treaty between the Demon Realm and the Polant Empire over to her.
This time, not only did she avoid sacrificing any virtue, but her reward was bound to be exceptional.
It was likely because she had sacrificed virtue last time; seeing how terrified and anxious she had been, Lanqi had thoughtfully found a way for her to claim her rewards with peace of mind.
Of course, expecting Lanqi not to sacrifice virtue at all was impossible.
It was just that the sacrificial offering had been switched to Boss Cat this time.
"Meow, meow! I'm so excited!"
The magic cards on Boss Cat were mostly low-tier, inexpensive goods. The rare high-tier or high-rarity cards it owned had all been gifted by Lanqi. At the thought that it might obtain its very first Epic card—perhaps even a high-tier Epic card—all its earlier worries evaporated in an instant!
"..."
Hyperion didn't know how to warn Boss Cat.
In the eyes of Fall Lord Caliera, this little black cat that pressed the doomsday button had become a divine beast of the Demon Realm with a kill count numbering in the millions.
Even the most ruthless calamity beast in the Demon Realm's history had never racked up a record so illustrious.
If this kept up...
While the three of them chatted leisurely just as they would back at Boss Cat Restaurant, flickering lines of text suddenly materialized in the wondrous, starlit space. Luminous white characters rolled line by line across the darkened void—
[Shadow World: Darkest Solar Eclipse Realm cleared.]
[Calculation complete. Evaluation generating.]
[As challengers Lanqi, Hyperion, and Yami entered as a party, the party settlement method is applied.]
[In this strategy-type Shadow World, over a total duration of 45 days: Public Support +499%, Parliament Support +212%, Military Power +305%, Economy +378%, Diplomacy +719%. Final Victory Probability: 32.6434%.]
[The party has achieved the following accomplishments.]
[Reversing History (S) — Under your influence, the seeds of drastic upheaval have been planted in the Polant Empire. The constitutional monarchy is shifting uncontrollably toward an absolute monarchy and the divine right of kings. It is difficult to describe what state of mind drove you to begin such a story.]
[Darkest Hour (A) — You withstood the pressure of Parliament, reigniting the Polant Empire's resolve to resist.]
[Diplomatic Expert (SS) — Your diplomatic actions yielded extraordinary results.]
[Cultivation of the Arts (D) — Under your guidance, the Poet of Great Love became a pianist in the palace dining hall rather than remodeling the grand piano into a barbecue grill according to her personal preference. She is acting more and more like a lady.]
[Demon Realm Princess (SS) — As a princess of the Demon Realm, you successfully earned the trust and veneration of the demon race, flawlessly overcoming a series of conspiracies by the Blood Clan.]
[Pitch-Black Reaper (SSS) — You stand atop millions of lives.]
"Wait, Boss Cat, your name is Yami?"
Lanqi stared at the refreshing light screen, then suddenly looked down at the little black furball in his hands.
"That's right!"
The little black cat nodded.
"Understood."
Lanqi nodded in turn.
From now on, Yami could be the company's legal representative.
"...What's with that Cultivation of the Arts accomplishment?"
Hyperion recalled there had been one about the Poet of Great Love last time as well.
During the cathedral banquet, she had been eyeing the pipe organ the whole time. This time, it seemed the dining hall's piano had narrowly escaped her clutches.
The Poet of Great Love was clearly gifted in music, yet she seemed to hold musical instruments in utter contempt.
"Ever since the last Shadow World, I've kept a strict watch over her, making sure she never poses a threat to precious instruments. But it's fine. As long as she doesn't ruin your family's hundred-and-eighty-thousand-pound piano, I can still afford to pay for damages,"
Lanqi said, shaking his head.
If the Poet of Great Love accidentally destroyed some priceless instrument, any damage caused by a summon fell squarely on the summoner, and Lanqi would bear full liability.
The most terrifying potential casualty was undoubtedly the piano in the duke's manor that was hailed as an invaluable treasure. A foreign merchant tycoon had once offered one hundred and eighty thousand pounds for it, and Duke Mikhail had refused to sell.
By simple purchasing power, a single pound could buy two to three thousand small bottles of mineral water, making one hundred and eighty thousand pounds roughly equivalent to nearly five hundred million.
"Don't worry. My father refused to sell that piano simply because my mother loved it so much. It's not actually worth one hundred and eighty thousand pounds,"
Hyperion said.
After her father's disappearance, if not for the piano's immense weight and the multiple barriers around the ducal manor, it probably would have been stolen long ago.
"Besides, even if you broke it, I wouldn't make you pay for it."
Hyperion patted Lanqi's shoulder, telling him to relax.
"Is this what it's like to be a duke's daughter...?"
Lanqi hesitated for a moment before replying.
When Hyperion said that, she truly sounded like an immensely wealthy heiress.
While they were conversing, the Shadow World's evaluation continued to refresh.
[Progenitor Bomb (SS) — There are few exploitable functions left for the Blood Clan.]
[Goodbye, Purgatory City (C) — You have returned to where it all began.]
[Her Golden Moment (S) — This time, you must give your all; this time, you will do splendidly; this time, you have done everything within your power... because you know she deserves a ring.]
[Accomplishments tabulated. Evaluation generation complete.]
[Descending from the heavens, is it the wrathful judgment of fury, or the blessing that shatters shackles? But in your eyes, this is called love.]
[Comprehensive Evaluation: SSS]
[Tier Promotion: Lanqi Tier 4 → Tier 6; Hyperion Tier 5 → Tier 6; Yami Tier 7 → Tier 8.]
The moment the rewards finalized, Lanqi, Hyperion, and Boss Cat all underwent a tier breakthrough simultaneously.
Lanqi, who had already been near the peak of Tier 4, broke straight through to Tier 6 thanks to the overwhelming completion of this Tier 7 Shadow World.
Challenging a Tier 7 Shadow World at Tier 4 was already fighting thirty levels above his rank, not to mention securing an SSS evaluation.
Beside them, Boss Cat, experiencing such a sublime divine blessing for the very first time, simply froze up entirely.
Chapter 604