Target: Noir, Phantom Gate — Successfully copied skill!
[Phantom Gate (Advanced)]: A rare dimensional skill that allows the user to open a temporary rift to any place they’ve personally visited, even across realms. It takes a few seconds to activate and consumes a large amount of mana, but it can bypass most barriers unless they’re divine-level. Cooldown: 3 days.
[10x Upgrade Detected – New Skill Unlocked]
[Upgrading Phantom Gate ×10...]
[Ding! You have awakened Sovereign Gate.]
[Sovereign Gate (Ultimate Skill)]: A supreme teleportation skill allowing instant travel to any location the user has visited—across continents, realms, and even sealed dimensions. It ignores all spatial restrictions, magical barriers, and divine interference. The gate forms instantly, carries entire armies if needed, and leaves behind a permanent anchor for future travel. Feared and revered, [Sovereign Gate] is the mark of a true ruler of realms. Cooldown: 1 day.
Nox stared at the upgraded skill with a speechless expression on his face. Travel through realms... carry an army alongside you?
Immediately, he felt his heart pounding tremendously as he took another look at the skill just to be sure.
And sure enough, his eyes hadn’t been deceiving him. A rush of excitement surged through him, and a grin threatened to break out on his face.
Though he successfully concealed the smile in the capital, the same couldn’t be said in the barony.
Both Akira and Serena stared at his face with slightly dumbfounded looks.
"Maybe he saw something that excited him on the other side."
Right at that moment, someone walked through the door.
It was Aina, and she was no longer wearing her armor. Now she wore a robe, making it easier for her to move freely around the house.
With a warm smile on her face, she spoke. "Thank you for watching after him. I can take it from here—"
"Aunt Aina, please let us look after him," said Serena with a pleading look in her eyes.
Aina paused and then glanced over at Akira. Although she didn’t say anything, her eyes suggested that she also wanted to watch over him.
Aina then looked over at Nox. Seeing his peaceful expression and radiant aura, she sighed and said, "Alright, I’ll let you girls watch over him for now, but I’ll return in a few hours."
With that, she left the room, and the two girls returned to the bed.
The atmosphere grew awkward.
Then Serena asked in a low voice, "How did you meet him?"
Akira didn’t respond immediately. She flicked a strand of hair from Nox’s face.
"I met him in a dimension back in my kingdom," she said with a soft smile, as if reminded of a pleasant experience.
The frown on Serena’s face deepened. She didn’t like the way Akira looked at Nox at all.
"Well, I’ve known him longer." Serena smiled. "We’ve been friends for as long as I can remember, and if there’s someone who knows everything about him after Nyx, it’s definitely me."
"I see," Akira nodded. "Well, thank you for being there for him."
"Excuse me?" Serena exclaimed quite loudly when she heard Akira’s tone. Why was she making it seem as if she had just done her a favor by being Nox’s friend?
"I mean, thank you for being there for him," Akira repeated.
"He’s my friend. Naturally, I’ll be there for him." Serena folded her arms against her generous chest. "So why are you thanking me?"
"Nothing. I just appreciate all those who’ve been there for him before I came into his life."
"Tsk, what are you even saying?" Serena’s expression twisted into one of mild disgust. "I know you might not have noticed, but Nox and I have something going on—and everyone is aware of it."
"Oh really?" Akira smiled. "I thought you were just his friend."
"Yes, I am," she nodded. "But our friendship is deeper than most."
"You know you girls can just confess to him when he wakes up."
Another voice came from the door.
She had been standing there for a while and had overheard everything.
"Serena, I know you have feelings for my brother," she said as she slowly walked over. "The same goes for you, Akira. So all you have to do is confess to him when he wakes up—whoever he accepts, wins."
From the doorway, another person entered the room as well. Serena and Akira glanced at her with slight disbelief.
"Even you?" Serena exclaimed.
Wendy simply smiled shyly but didn’t say anything.
’Should have known, she was becoming too clingy.’ Serena grumbled inwardly, realizing that her competition was growing.
Meanwhile, Nyx stared at all of them with an irritated look on her face. ’What do they even see in him?’
If it was Serena, she understood—after all, it was no secret among the kids and adults that she had a crush on Nox.
But these other two? She simply shook her head, choosing not to think about it anymore.
"Alright, it’s decided!" said Serena, an eager and determined look in her eyes. "We wait for him to wake up."
Back in the royal capital, after Noir stepped through the portal, Number Two had left, saying he had something to do. He was followed by Hendrix, and the last person was Eve.
He took a deep breath and attempted to make himself appear calm as he approached her.
Eve noticed Kira and raised a brow. "What is it?"
Nox fidgeted for a while, but this was simply an act. Then he glanced up, holding eye contact with Eve, who remained calm, observing him with those ruby, emotionless eyes.
"I want to accompany you," he said and dramatically went down on one knee. "Please allow me to redeem myself."
Eve stared at Kira with a thoughtful look on her face. She couldn’t help but feel she was different—behaving oddly. The Kira she knew, even if for a short time, had been confident and cold.
’Did the defeat really break her that much?’ she thought, a subtle frown appearing on her face—one that went unnoticed.
She didn’t think it was impossible. In fact, it was very possible.
"Alright. You’ll lead the army alongside me!" she said, rising from her seat. "However, I want you to follow every one of my orders and not question my decisions. You’ll do whatever I tell you. Understand?"
Nox nodded. "Thank you for giving me this chance."
"Good. Start preparing. We leave in exactly three days."
With that, she left, leaving Nox all alone. He slowly turned around, watching her back disappear.
The reason he had decided to tag along was because... he wanted to see just what his master was planning. After all, there was nothing of the sort included in the letters she left behind.
"Just what are you planning?"
In exactly three days, half of the entire demonic army marched out of the capital, ready to conquer the West.
Or so the soldiers thought—unaware that a not-so-pleasant surprise was waiting for them.