Endless Evolution: Last Star

Chapter 1876: Who was he working for?

Strange as it may seem, Adam knew practically nothing about the past or the events of antiquity. He didn’t even know exactly when that period took place, since he had only heard about it a few times.

At the same time, he knew a great deal about the present and the future, about what was inevitably going to happen in six years: the World Wipe.

But the World Wipe had been occurring for thousands of years and had restored the world to its original state countless times, or so it was believed.

With each World Wipe, something was preserved and carried over into the next quarter-millennium. The Lords and the Second-Rank Phantoms were strong enough to defend certain territories, and the humans had Queen Elisa. Thanks to her, the First Ring of the Citadel was preserved.

Moreover, battles took place between the World Wipes. Some great warriors perished, while others were born, but there were those who, time and again, survived into the next World Wipe, amassing ever greater power and influence.

Thus, despite its name, the World Wipe was not capable of resetting the entire world to zero. However, it was still the most destructive event that occurred every 250 years. There were no exceptions.

Adam lived in a time when all the major powers of the world had already been established, and the territories had been divided among them.

Up until that point, he had only thought about it occasionally, but he understood that everything had to have a beginning, it made sense.

At some point, the major factions must have emerged and established control over their territories. Even the Citadel and the Befallen Crown had their origins.

And, as an experienced and powerful Phantom, Adam understood that most issues, just as they are now, were resolved through bloodshed, cruelty, and battle.

The event that led to the creation of one of the Legacy Artifacts was no exception to this rule.

Adam wasn’t thousands of years in the past, or so he hoped, since Kae’ra and Laerdor had spoken of the Befallen Crown, and their base was located in the Primal Lands.

However, right now he wasn’t thinking about the Befallen Crown or the reasons behind Kae’ra and Laerdor’s dispute.

All his attention was focused on just one person.

“Gladius…?” Adam muttered in disbelief.

He turned to see the monsters’ reaction.

Kae’ra and Laerdor’s eyes were wide with shock, and the warriors’ faces were as pale as a sheet of paper.

Gladius looked nothing like he did in the present day. His hair was long and thick like a mane, and he wasn’t wearing the tailored suit that only the finest tailors could make. Instead, he wore a simple robe that fluttered in the wind along with his hair.

But even though Gladius looked less mysterious, he appeared far more intimidating in this form.

“Damn… Come to think of it, I’ve never really wondered how old Gladius is or what his exact power level is. Though, finding that out isn’t exactly easy… He’s a very secretive person.”

Whoooooosh!

In the blink of an eye, Kae’ra and Laerdor soared into the air. Their warriors followed, but stayed behind.

Also, many other guards climbed to the tops of the towers, all because a single Phantom had arrived on their territory.

“You…” Kae’ra narrowed her eyes, staring intently at Gladius. “You’re Gladius, aren’t you?”

Gladius nodded deeply.

“Yes. I think you already know why I’ve come here.”

Step!

Laerdor stepped forward, shaking the air with his aura.

“Wait! We can still come to an agreement! What happened at the mountain lake was a misunderstanding!”

Gladius said nothing. He just folded his arms behind his back. His face betrayed no emotion.

Kae’ra clenched her teeth.

“Your people attacked ours! A skirmish broke out! It was a war over resources, and nothing more! This happens all the time!”

Tap.

Laerdor’s hand fell on Kae’ra’s shoulder, gripping it tightly.

“My daughter is right. We don’t want a conflict with the Citadel. We believe that an agreement can be reached. A war between our factions would not be good for either side!”

For a long time, Gladius looked at them in tense silence.

Then, he lowered his gaze and sighed heavily.

“Gha… I think there’s been a misunderstanding between us.”

Gladius raised his head.

“First of all, there’s no point in trying to deceive me. You’re trying to convince me that something never happened. The battle at the mountain lake, that wasn’t just a random clash over resources, was it?”

Laerdor narrowed his eyes. He realized that Gladius knew far more than they had suspected.

Gladius continued:

“You killed our people, or, to be more precise, five K4-Phantoms and twenty K3-Phantoms, because the Befallen Crown ordered you to. Instead of contacting us to sort out this situation, you decided to carry out the Befallen Crown’s order without giving the consequences a second thought.”

“That’s a lie!” Kae’ra exclaimed, her eyes filled with fury. “We are the proud Frost Dragons Clan! We would never have obeyed those bastards!”

However, that was clearly not enough to convince Gladius.

“Is that right? So the Befallen Crown didn’t approach you with a proposal to seize the ice caverns to gain full control over the Frost Essences?”

His eyes darkened.

“You could have come to us with a proposal for cooperation. Perhaps we could have reached some kind of agreement and shared the resources of the caverns. But you didn’t do that because you were convinced that killing the Phantoms and proving your loyalty to the Befallen Crown was the best decision, wasn’t it?”

“No! That’s not true! Stop making things up!” Kae’ra shouted angrily.

She was ready to keep defending her position, but soon she noticed that everyone except her was silent, even her father.

“Agh…?” Kae’ra turned to Laerdor. She sensed that something was wrong. “F-Father?”

Laerdor clenched his fists.

“I’m sorry, Kae’ra… but our Clan accepted a request from the Befallen Crown. I didn’t want to tell you this.”

Kae’ra was speechless.

Meanwhile, Adam watched from the sidelines. Now he understood what the conflict was about, but he was interested in something else.

He glanced at Gladius.

“Let’s say this happened a thousand years ago. Who was Gladius under at that time? Who was he working with back then?”