The mont Max stepped into the eting ground, every conversation stopped. Dozens of powerful auras shifted toward him at once. The leaders of the Four God Nation turned their heads. President William rose slightly from his seat.
The only calm ones were the Old Saintess and the leader of the Black Lotus Guild among them.
The mysterious master of the Obsidian Order narrowed his eyes. Lady Divine and the other guardians of the Middle Domain watched him with solemn interest. Even the geniuses seated around the outer circle straightened their backs, unable to hide the mixture of admiration and silent pressure they felt toward him.
Max acknowledged them with a brief glance, but his attention did not linger on any of them. His gaze was drawn unavoidably toward one person seated at the head of the table, as if the entire eting revolved around her presence alone.
It was a black-haired woman who looked to be in her late twenties. She sat with a calm posture, her expression unreadable, but the weight she carried made even the leaders hesitate to speak before her. There was an aura of quiet authority around her, an aura that did not need to be displayed to be felt.
The instant Max saw her, his entire body froze.
He never expected—never even allowed himself to imagine—that she would be here. In all the years since he began searching for her, he had co to accept that she might never et him in the mortal worlds. He had forced himself to accept the pain of that truth. He had told himself countless tis that she was gone from his reach for now.
But she was here.
Sitting right before him.
His big sister, Freya Voidwalker.
For a brief mont, Max's mind went blank. His breath stalled. His thoughts scattered. The emotions he had buried deep—the longing, the questions, the hurt, the resentnt—all rose together like a tide smashing against a fragile barrier. He wanted to shout at her, to demand explanations, to ask why she left, to tell her everything he had endured, everything he had discovered.
Yet as he looked at her across the table, he realized that none of those words mattered here. There was no point bringing personal emotions into a eting that would decide the fate of an entire world. What he felt could wait. What this world faced could not.
When he finally spoke, only one sentence ca out.
"I know a way to kill Mark."
His voice was calm, but the words struck like thunder.
Every leader of the Four God Nation rose from their seats. The elders of the Middle Domain stood up in shock. The guardians exchanged alard glances. A ripple of disbelief ran across the entire ground.
"What way?" the leader of the Azure God Nation demanded, unable to contain his urgency.
Max did not look at him. Instead, he turned his gaze toward Lucien, who sat beside Freya. Lucien stiffened slightly under the weight of Max's stare.
Max pointed directly at him.
"You should ask him," Max said, his tone steady. "He already knows the answer. He knows the only thod to kill Mark once and for all."
The entire gathering turned toward Lucien.
Silence fell over the eting ground like a heavy curtain. Lucien's expression darkened, and for the first ti since the eting began, true tension filled the air.
"Lucien, why are you hiding this information from us?" the mysterious leader of the Obsidian Order asked. His tone was solemn, and his eyes were fixed sharply on Lucien, demanding an answer.
Lucien let out a long, tired sigh. His shoulders lowered slightly, as if the burden he carried had grown heavier. "Because revealing it would only bring the downfall of Acaris faster than ever," he said quietly.
The leader of the White Tiger Nation slamd his hand on the round table. His face twisted with anger. "What do you an by that? Hiding such information is the sa as betraying humanity. If there was a way to kill Mark, then hiding it is unforgivable."
Lucien lifted his gaze, looking around at each of the leaders seated at the table before his eyes finally settled on Max. There was a brief exchange of understanding between them before he began to speak again.
"You all know," Lucien said slowly, "that Mark was once the crownbearer of this world. That crown is the source of his immortality. As long as he remains without the crown, he cannot be killed. That is why every attempt we have made so far has failed."
He paused, letting the weight of his next words settle over the crowd.
"But there is a way to kill a crownbearer," Lucien continued. "They can only be killed by soone who was born on this world. A native of Acaris. However, this is only possible under one condition. Mark must have the crown atop his head."
The mont those words left his mouth, the entire eting ground plunged into thick silence.
Then chaos erupted.
"What? Are you insane?" shouted one of the leaders seated at the round table. His face paled visibly. "Mark is already overwhelmingly strong. If he wears the crown, he will have the full authority of this world. We would lose instantly!"
"This is madness," another leader said, shaking his head fiercely. "With the crown, Mark will not only be immortal, he will be unstoppable. His power will reach its true peak. Bringing out that crown is the sa as inviting our own doom!"
"Who would even dare to place the crown on his head?" another comnted, his voice trembling. "It is a death sentence for all of us!"
Voices clashed from every side. Panic spread among the lower-ranked geniuses and worry tightened the expressions of the middle-ranked leaders. The entire atmosphere grew heated, loud, and chaotic.
But through all that, the top leaders of the Four God Nation and the surviving strong figures of the Middle Domain stayed silent.
They exchanged glances with one another instead of joining the uproar. They all knew Lucien. He had never lied to them, not when the fate of an entire world was at stake. And if he ever tried to hide sothing or twist the truth, Max would have imdiately exposed it.
Yet Max had not spoken a single word since Lucien finished explaining.
His silence alone confird the truth.
The leaders felt their chests tighten as the reality settled in.
The only way to kill Mark required giving him the one thing that would make him completely invincible.
And there was no guarantee they would survive long enough to strike once that crown touched his head.
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