Just an hour after the battle against Gladius and their conversation with Aiden, Adam and Silvana found themselves in a cozy, ordinary café on the Third Ring, not far from the Morton Observatory.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
Adam tapped his finger on the table with a deep frown on his face. He was thinking about everything that had happened in the Hollow Lands and at the Morton Observatory.
In just one week, he had managed to make great progress, fulfill one of his conditions, learn more about the world, and finally et Aiden. Moreover, Adam had perford well in two battles and gained a better understanding of just how strong he really was.
However, now there was only a frown on his face, and Silvana, who was sitting across from him, had a similar expression.
"Adam, you’ve realized this too, right?" Silvana asked, looking at her reflection in the wine glass in front of her.
Slowly, Adam nodded. They were thinking the sa thing.
"Aiden is hiding sothing. It’s not just how he answered my question about Queen Elisa’s blood, but overall. I just don’t believe that soone like him is worried about the Zero War."
Silvana folded her hands together, running her thumbs over them with a pensive look.
"Yeah... If soone like Douglas had warned us about the Zero War, I would have believed it. But... Aiden? I’m sure that even if he’s actually wary of the Zero War, he has more effective ways to influence the outco of the war than trying to create yet another Second Rank Phantom through his list."
Scratch. Scratch. Scratch.
Adam scratched the back of his head.
"That’s the problem. Even if that’s true, it’s not his only goal. I’m sure the list exists for sothing else, and we still don’t know exactly what. Why does Aiden want to make a specific person so powerful?"
Silvana nodded silently, mulling over his words.
"Maybe he needs a replacent for Gladius in case sothing happens to Gladius? Although, no, that’s silly. Gladius is too strong, and if that were the case, Aiden would treat you like a friend, not an ally with a complicated relationship."
A few monts later, Adam leaned back in his chair and glanced at Silvana.
"Do you think this might have sothing to do with Queen Elisa? I an, there must be a reason why he lied. Also, exactly how does Aiden have her blood?"
Silvana bit her lip, trying to find answers, but all they had were endless questions.
In fact, they only had more questions now. At first, when Aiden told them about the Zero War, Adam and Silvana thought they’d found an explanation for his actions. But the Zero War turned out to be just a cover, and his true motives were still unknown.
"Tsk. Still, the Zero War and the Gray Sea are more than real, aren’t they?"
"It seems so. The Befallen Crown, every ti we hear about them, we learn more details and realize just how badly they want to establish control over a large number of territories."
Silvana’s gaze grew deeper.
"Moreover, of all the factions in this world, they are the only ones who are so aggressively hostile toward humans. It seems impossible to negotiate with them. They’ve tried to kill you several tis and always went straight to combat, there wasn’t even any dialogue."
However, there was no fear or tension in Adam’s gaze. On the contrary, a satisfied smirk appeared on his face.
"That’s fine."
"Agh?" Silvana looked up.
"When I first arrived at the Dark Shore, I was still at the K3 level. I wouldn’t have been able to even scratch their weakest fighter. But now? Now, I can defend myself against the Barons or escape from stronger Lords if necessary."
Adam leaned forward as a fla slowly ignited in his eyes.
"Imagine what will happen when I obtain the Bottomless Void? What will happen when I create my Third Grand Star."
Silvana didn’t answer right away. For a while, she just stared at Adam until her lips moved in the expected reply:
"You’ll beco stronger, Adam, and you still won’t be a Second Rank Phantom. You’ll reach the barrier, and..." Her voice faltered. "What happens next, Adam? Will you be able to break through this barrier that stops almost every K4-Phantom?"
Unlike Silvana, who took the situation seriously, Adam just shrugged.
"I’ll have no choice but to break through that barrier. Zin did it in a few minutes, so I can too. Tsk, that bastard, he didn’t even wait for to leave the Hollow Lands. He knew I’d sense his evolution and did it on purpose."
Adam’s relaxed deanor and confidence in his abilities had a positive effect on Silvana, bringing a slight smile to her face.
"Yeah, I guess you’re right. Right now we need to focus on the Bottomless Void and the Gray Sea."
"Not just that."
"Hmm?" Silvana gave him a questioning look.
Adam crossed his arms over his chest. "As I understand it, I’m finally going to have to face the Renegades. You know, for the most prominent faction in the Tarnished Lands, they’re pretty secretive guys.
"It doesn’t matter where I’ve been before: the Primal Lands, the Hollow Lands, or even the Dark Shore. One visit was enough for to et mbers of the strongest factions in those lands."
He closed his eyes.
"This will be the third ti I’ve gone to the Tarnished Lands, and it’s a little nerve-wracking that I know nothing about the Renegades. They don’t seem like dangerous guys, but I doubt they follow the rules the sa way the monsters in the Hollow Lands do."
"I’ll try to find out as much as I can about the Renegades," Silvana said confidently, with a gleam of eagerness in her eyes.
Adam chuckled.
"I never doubted that."
Then, for a mont, silence hung over the table, as they both realized what the conversation was about to turn to.
"You figured it out too, right, Silvana?" Adam asked.
Silvana nodded deeply.
"Yes. Sano and Natta... They don’t have Operators, do they?"
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