Affinity: Chaos

Chapter 2166: God-tier Genius (GT: bonus Chapter)

When the Mayor saw the condition of the two young men, he could not help but sigh in genuine praise.

”The youths of this generation really are more outstanding than the last.”

He had been somewhat skeptical at first. Even after sensing the successive deaths of the Ninth-stage Sovereign Necromancers during the battle, he had assumed Elder Voss had carried most of the heavy fighting. In his mind, Grey’s primary role had been to prevent the Necromancers from freely using their puppets and to hold down one or two of the Ninth-stage experts at most. Only after they finished dealing with the Peak Sovereign Necromancer on their side did Elder Voss tell him the full truth: Grey had single-handedly killed three Ninth-stage Sovereign Necromancers before assisting her in finishing the last one.

When Elder Harrington later described Grey’s contributions during the pursuit and battle against the Peak Sovereign they had chased down, the Mayor was truly astounded. He had always believed the rumors surrounding Grey’s talent were slightly exaggerated to some degree. After the events of tonight, he felt those rumors still failed to do the young man proper justice. Grey was a godly-tier genius even when compared to other exceptional talents of his generation.

Grey and Reynolds had already changed out of the torn and bloodstained clothes they had worn during the fierce battle, but the deep exhaustion on their faces remained obvious to anyone who looked at them.

”Do you want to call off the attack on the Gnomes’ camp later?” the Mayor asked carefully. Grey had been the one to originally suggest the plan, yet looking at his current worn-out condition, the Mayor sincerely doubted he was in any proper state to participate in another major fight so soon.

”No need,” Grey replied with a calm shake of his head.

The Mayor looked at him with mild confusion. ”Can you still fight?”

”A little, but I’d rather not,” Grey answered honestly. He could still force himself to fight if absolutely necessary, but the injuries he had sustained would require at least a week or two of proper recovery. On top of that, he had just fought a Peak Sovereign alongside Elder Harrington and was thoroughly drained both physically and mentally.

”Then why should we still go ahead with the attack if you can’t fight?” The Mayor’s confusion only deepened. The two elders and Reynolds shared the same perplexed expressions. Reynolds, in particular, clearly had no desire to throw himself into another serious battle anytime soon after the night’s events.

”Bunny leader,” Grey said instead of offering an immediate explanation.

The bunny leader appeared beside him at once. Grey simply raised two fingers in a clear signal. Understanding exactly what was required, the bunny leader summoned two Ninth-stage Sovereign bunnies into the center of the hall.

The eyes of the Mayor and both elders widened in visible shock. Reynolds was not particularly surprised by their appearance, since he had already known of their existence for some time, but a bright gleam still flashed through his eyes as he immediately understood Grey’s true intention.

’Poor Gnomes,’ he thought to himself, almost feeling a trace of genuine pity for the enemies who would have to face them during the coming siege.

”You had those two the entire time?” Elder Harrington asked, still staring at the powerful bunnies.

”More, actually,” Grey replied evenly. ”These are just to show you that we have more manpower available than you currently think. Even if I don’t personally raise a hand in the fight, it won’t matter too much. My presence alone is enough to ensure the Gnomes cannot freely use their puppets, and with the help of my army we can overwhelm them through numbers and coordination.”

He then motioned for the bunny leader to put the two bunnies away. The bunny leader was about to do so when Elder Voss walked over without a word and gently picked up the one with deep golden fur. The unusually soft texture of its fur caused a clear spark of interest to appear in her eyes as she examined it.

Seeing this, Grey signaled the bunny leader to leave that particular bunny out for the time being.

”If that’s the case, then we will proceed as you originally suggested,” the Mayor said after a long moment of serious thought. ”They have three Peak Sovereigns on their side. Voss and one other Ninth stage Sovereign can hold off one of them. Fortunately she is still in relatively good condition after tonight’s battle.”

He carefully reassessed the entire plan and found it workable once again. Originally he had agreed to attack the Gnome camp not only because of Grey’s unique ability to cut off their connections to their puppets, but also because of Grey’s personal combat strength. He had believed that if Grey and Elder Voss worked together to deal with the extra Peak Sovereign on the Gnomes’ side, victory would be achievable. Grey’s current injured and exhausted state had made him seriously consider canceling the public announcement and focusing purely on defending the city instead.

The sudden appearance of the two Ninth-stage bunnies, along with Grey’s casual mention of even more of them in reserve, completely changed the evaluation. They now possessed additional high-level manpower that the Gnomes would not expect. Grey, even while injured, could still occasionally eliminate one or two key enemies if the situation required it. Overall, the setup was almost the same as what the Mayor had originally hoped for, if not slightly better.

The group continued discussing several more practical details of the upcoming operation, including rough timing, coordination signals, and fallback plans, before finally dispersing to rest. The night was already very deep, and everyone present needed whatever recovery time they could get before the formal gathering scheduled for the morning.

Hours passed quietly over Cinderloch City. The earlier chaos and destruction of the night battle gradually faded into the background as the city settled into an uneasy but controlled stillness under the Mayor’s prior arrangements.

By the time the first traces of dawn appeared on the eastern horizon, the sky had begun to lighten with soft shades of pale gold, pink, and blue. The heavy darkness of the previous night slowly retreated. In the Mayor’s manor, the atmosphere was already starting to shift with quiet purpose as the time for the gathering drew near. Guards moved with increased focus along the corridors and courtyards, and the remaining high-level experts of the city began to arrive one after another.