The one-week deadline Aenon had set went by quickly. The three battlefronts—Neverhelm, the Fire Ant dungeon, and the area around the Treants—saw a sharp decline in monster population. Each group approached the problem in their own way. While Thalindra used complicated battle tactics she had learned over the years, Ignar's party just decided to bulldoze through the enemy lines. And then there was Aenon's group; the ones with the highest risk of being overwhelmed. They neither had a healer, nor a safe place to retreat to. And yet they had found workarounds. They used the Shadow Realm to hide and recuperate, while stuffing down the mountain of recovery food Aenon had prepared.

And all this was being carefully observed by a pair of hauntingly beautiful women—one with blonde hair and hollow eyes, while the other was dressed in pink scrubs. Even the vast number of floating screens that usually covered the hall were dismissed in favor of the three prominent ones that showcased the grueling, albeit one sided, slaughter fests.

The System Admin sat calmly on her obsidian throne with a chalice in one hand. Her companion stood on the side, with her hands clasped demurely. Neither spoke as they observed the three scenes. But the System Nurse only had eyes for the middle display, the one showing the hundreds of Fire Ants that had cornered the invaders in a section of the tunnels.

Despite taking devastating losses to silent shadows that cut through their numbers like chaff, all the insectoids were solely focused on the shield bearer amidst them. Like a stable pillar of ice, Jenny Taunted the enemy with abandon while not losing ground in the slightest. The chill that spread out even froze many of the opponents, which made it easier for her team to whittle down the numbers with ease.

"He has gathered some powerful allies," the Nurse finally commented. "Especially the red head. Just the fact that her Title grows stronger based on the odds she is up against makes her an insane addition to his ranks."

The Admin though merely smiled without a word. Prompting the draugr to continue the one-sided conversation.

"My liege," the Nurse said hesitantly. "Even at the risk of annihilation, I must speak up. The entire group he has assembled…they are no doubt a cut above the rest. But they will not survive what's coming. The scion from the Lightseeker house will pick them off one by one. That woman is too shrewd to risk a direct confrontation against seven Awakened. Her achievements…"

"Are nothing," the System Admin finally broke her silence. "Dominating the weak willed is nothing to be proud of. All her followers are merely enticed by her power and schemes. That too more out of fear, than loyalty. Unlike the boy."

"But she is a devious schemer," the Nurse argued. "I know that Assistant Guild Leader is trying to counter plot, but it might not be enough. They don't even know the gravity of the situation. Your Title evolution quest has put them on guard and given them time to prepare. But I fear it might not be enough. He is just too valuable to lose, my lady."

Unlike the previous time, the desperate plea seemed to have some impact this time around. As the rigid expression of the System Admin finally cracked a bit. She gazed longingly at the screen showing Aenon finish cleaning up the last few remaining Fire Ants before collapsing in exhaustion next to Jenny and the wolf pups. They survived the horde and retreated into the Shadow Realm to rest.

The System Admin's face hardened again, before she spoke.

"Yes, he is too valuable to lose. But I will not risk coddling him. Doing so will weaken his resolve, which in turn might erode the resistance he has built to the void aspect."

"But—"

"Enough," the Admin's Aura flared, shutting up any further complaints. "He has grown faster than even I anticipated, and on his own merit. What's more, his achievements are going beyond the physical realm. The karmic scales that have been skewed for so long, have started to balance out. The positive karma he has sowed will pay exponential dividends in the future. Something no one has considered yet."

Two more screens were brought up. But these didn't show any epic battle or political schemes. One showed an older dwarf hammering away at a set of sixteen rings, while the other showed a frail old lady gently mixing an ordinary stew in a regular kitchen.

The Nurse looked lost but didn't risk angering her patron further. There was something in the lady's expression that scared her. Like she was seeing things with her hollow eyes that no one else could.

The draugr turned to the two new screens, unsure of what was so special about them. But she had pushed her luck too far today.

"Just stay quiet and watch," the Admin said while dismissing the two screens. "Things may not be as dire as you think. Those old fogeys from the empire have become too comfortable with the status quo; sending in their amateur heirs to garner benefits. They want to use hardships to hone their talents. Not knowing that they have thrown their children into the den of a true predator. So be it. Let them learn what true power means."

A chill ran down the draugr's spine as the surrounding area distorted with the Admin's Aura infused words.

"Let them learn what a true Sovereign is."

* * *

Aenon

Aenon sat with his back against the wall, resting to recover his strength. That last fight was tedious and exhausting. Throughout the raid, he had relied only on his physical skills, conserving his mana exclusively for their time within the Shadow Realm. He didn't really need to depend on his Spells anyway, since the group dynamic was much faster and safer this way. They had spent the last five days carefully decimating small groups of enemies before escaping into the dark dimension. But the exhaustion was starting to build up, making their breaks longer. At least they had managed to cull most of the insect population. Which was apparent when he reviewed his level up and quest objectives.

Level Up | Void Stalker | Level 32 → Level 41 | +36 INT | +90 WIL | +36 PER

Level Up | Abyssal Warden | Level 37 → Level 38 | +8 INT | +10 WIL

Evolution Quest Objectives | Kill 10000 enemies of equal or greater level (2160/10000) | Protect your settlement from the coming horde (Time left before attack: 31 days)

Aenon had made some significant progress in levels, apart from the decent increase to his quest related kill count. But that wasn't what was concerning. Aenon did a double take at the quest countdown timer. He was pretty sure that it hadn't been 29 days since he got the quest. Which meant something had changed. Most likely the unknown Alliance leader was speeding up her plans. If so, the timer wasn't very reliable.

Aenon turned to Jenny to update her on the new development. But paused at the scene: the woman was sleeping amongst the pups. The five were huddled together in a pile of black fur and red hair. She had truly integrated herself with the pack. Aenon smiled; she had come a long way from the scared and lost woman in a foreign land to what she was today.

<Jenny | Warrior | Level 88>

She had gained a lot more levels than him, but he was sure that he surpassed in pure stats. He decided to let her rest while he went through the rest of his notifications, starting with his Titles.

Title achieved: Raid Bait | +5 all stats | Enter a raid level dungeon with an undersized, and under leveled party.

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Title achieved: Bug Exterminator | +10 all stats | Kill more than 1000 monsters of the insectoid variety.

Title achieved: DPS Reaper | +5 all stats | Do the most damage in a raid group.

Title achieved: Anti Mage | +5 all stats | Deal pure physical damage despite having magical Spells and abilities.

The Title stats again weren't anything impressive since this much had become routine for him. But it was good progress, considering that he was close to his S-grade evolution requirement of 2450. He just needed a sliver more to achieve that, which hopefully would ensure he didn't have to stall his evolution like the rest. Apparently, the others from his group would need some additional time to attain that. At least their progress had increased tremendously since he assigned them the ridiculous missions.

He quickly reviewed his status before taking a brief nap.

Aenon/Ashryn Fenrast

Race: Ascended Human (M)

Age: 13 years

Level 40

Class: Void Stalker (Level 41)

Subclass: Abyssal Warden (Level 38)

HP: 17700

HP Regen: 353.8/min

MP: 22460

MP Regen: 515.2/min

Stats - Multiplier: 128 (Locked)

STR: 1770

CON: 1769

DEX: 1774

INT: 2246

WIL: 2576

PER: 1940

Titles (2352 points)

Unfettered Soul (+100 all), Alpha (+20 all), Domain Walker (Withheld), Bulwark (+5 all), Speed Runner (+10 all), Hoarder (+5 all), Landlord 2 (+25 all), Planetary Forerunner (+30 all), Ancient Killer (+20 all), Untouchable 2 (+40 all), Archivist (+5 all), Royal Assassin (+30 all), Corruption Cleanser (+5 all) ), Underdog (+20 all), Limit Breaker 2 (+20 all), Raid Bait (+5 all), Bug Exterminator (+10 all), DPS Hogger (+5 all), Anti Mage (+5 all)

Lone Wolf (+2% Title stats)

Prodigious Mage (+10% Title stats)

Nature's Attendant (+200 all stats when within 50 meters of sapling)

Skills (Available SP: 56)

Weapons (Unarmed, Daggers, Traps) | Savant

Stealth and Tracking (Woods, Urban) | Savant

Mana Manipulation | Savant

Cooking | Adept

Internalized Skills

Identify

Mana Sense

Soul Authority – Sovereign's Eye, Soul Beacon, Soul Purge, Soul Syphon (Unfettered Soul)

System's Grace

When he woke up again, his mana was almost dried up. Thankfully Jenny and the wolves were up, and ready for the last leg of the raid. He quickly left the Shadow Realm with the others, bracing for the familiar scorching heat of the underground terrain. Passing on the last of his cooked rations, they all sat down in silence and ate.

"So, looks like it's just the boss chamber left now," Jenny commented while scarfing down her food. Of all the things she could possibly like about their new reality, her inability to gain weight despite stuffing herself seemed to be on top of her list.

"Yes," Aenon replied while staring at her destroying three bowls of rice and meat with gusto. "It should be straightforward fight. I am not expecting a Fire Ant Monarch level threat, but it's better to be cautious."

"Got it," Jenny acknowledged before reaching for her fourth helping. It seems she had picked up more than just the berserker's fighting style.

Aenon shook his head, as he too devoured his food that gave them several buffs for the upcoming confrontation. After drinking plenty of water and soupy elixirs, they were as ready as they could.

Jenny took the lead as usual on their march towards the innermost chamber of the caverns. They had systematically cleared the entire dungeon of any stragglers to prevent the Fire Ant Queen from calling any reinforcements from behind them.

As they stood before the entrance to the Queen's chamber, Jenny and Aenon checked their armor and weapons one last time. With a solemn nod, the warrior stepped forth towards the oppressively hot cavern.

The moment her foot went in, there was a disorienting loud screech, which was followed by several angry chittering sounds from the other occupants.

The internal space was very similar to the hive Aenon had raided a while back. Hundreds of transparent eggs filled the floor in every direction. Dead center was the owner of the place, along with four enormous protectors.

<Fire Ant Queen | Level 85>

<Fire Ant Queen's Guard | Level 88>

<Fire Ant Queen's Guard | Level 86>

<Fire Ant Queen's Guard | Level 89>

<Fire Ant Queen's Guard | Level 85>

"YOU!" the Queen shrieked. "You are the ones killing my precious children. YOU WILL PAY!"

Aenon detected the familiar Corruption from the creature's soul, a part of which had spread to dozens of eggs. Jenny turned to him with a serious expression and nodded. There was no need to play defensively this time.

Both unleashed their Auras simultaneously, making their opponents stagger back in alarm. Aenon followed up by setting up both his barriers around himself. It was just in time since Jenny held her sword with both hands before plunging it into the ground.

"Ice Field," she chanted as a chilling breeze spread outwards from her location. It froze everything it touched, including the unhatched eggs which were starting to stir. If Aenon had not put up his defenses, even he would have been affected by the indiscriminate attack.

"NOOO!" The Queen screamed in anger upon seeing her eggs turn to lifeless ice blocks. Only the ones with traces of Corruption clung to life. Something Aenon wanted to rectify.

As he dashed towards the nearest egg with void mana coating his blades, the Queen commanded her Guards to attack. But they never even got close as Jenny tackled them with twin ice weapons of her own. She intercepted two of the Guards while the pups handled the other two. The Queen tried to stop Aenon herself using projectile vomiting attack of highly corrosive liquid. But Aenon was too fast for the attacks to land.

And so, the pattern continued: Aenon destroying the Corrupted eggs, while Jenny expertly engaging two of the Guards in direct combat. The wolf pups merely kited the other Guards around the cavern, keeping some of the pressure off Jenny. Her fighting style was reminiscent of the berserker's in that she analyzed her opponents closely. But she had a massive advantage her teacher didn't. Her ability to shut off all unnecessary emotions.

Jenny had gotten a lot better at it since her first fight, actively allowing some fear to seep through to keep her survival instincts sharp. Aenon smiled as he observed her soul while continuing his systematic destruction of the eggs. The Queen kept desperately screaming and attacking from long range. But it was for naught.

Within twenty minutes, all her unhatched eggs were destroyed. The only thing standing between her and death were her four Guards. Three of the wolves had taken some injuries, at which point Jenny had stepped in and was now facing all four Guards alongside the biggest wolf from her group.

Despite it being a 2-vs-4, the two females fought with an unmatched ferocity. They could have perhaps taken the fight to the finish, but Aenon sensed the exhaustion and mounting injuries of the two. Her AoE spell taxed her mana resources significantly.

"Phase one complete," he mentally informed the two before running towards them.

Hearing him approach, Jenny smiled and lowered her swords. Even when the Guards charged at her from four sides, she didn't raise her weapons to defend herself. Even the proud wolf pup sat down on her haunches, indifferent to their oncoming death.

Just as the four towering monsters got within two feet of their enemies, dark shadowy tendrils leapt up and dragged the two into the abyss. In their place, a lone enemy emerged. One dressed in pitch black armor, and a predatory grin on his mask.

"Blooming Earth."

Several dozen spikes erupted in a circle around Aenon, piercing the charging Guards with ease; their own momentum being used against them. Two of them were killed instantly, while the other struggled to retreat. But the spikes kept coming till they were riddled with holes and eventually died.

The Ant Queen staggered back in horror, looking at the grizzly sight of her arch nemesis standing at the center of the blood-soaked flower.

Aenon stepped out of the gruesome structure as he approached the cowering Queen. Jenny and wolf pups too walked behind him. As they stood before the former royal of the hive, Aenon felt the dread leaking from its soul. It had fashioned itself a predator and a sovereign of its own domain. Not realizing till now that it was neither.

For she had mistakenly entered the domain of another.

And the group she had so foolishly provoked were the actual predators.

End of Book Two

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