Endless Evolution: Last Star

The conversation with Gladius came as a surprise to Silvana, but she learned a lot.

Sure, it was no secret to either her or Adam that the Second Circle Creatures could create defensive barriers strong enough to protect against even the World Wipe shockwave.

But she didn’t know that Queen Elisa’s barrier was so different from what other Phantoms were capable of. Also, even though Gladius tried to hide it, she got a glimpse of what had happened in ancient times, when Gladius was different, when Queen Elisa was just a Phantom, and when the whole world was different.

Perhaps Silvana still had some questions about Queen Elisa and that time, but Gladius made it clear that he had no intention of discussing it further.

From this conversation, Silvana realized one important thing, every Second Rank Phantom was critically important to all of humanity because they could create protective barriers. The monsters had long had enough Lords to protect their main strongholds, such as their faction bases as well as several cities.

The Hollow Lands were a good example of this. Each pillar had a Lord-level monster, which meant that these pillars could have been there for over a thousand years, having survived more than four or five World Wipes.

In fact, the Citadel was the only faction that didn’t have enough Second Rank Phantoms to protect all of its territories.

“Can I ask one more question? The last one before we move on to coffee and picking out an outfit for me,” Silvana asked, hoping for a positive response.

Gladius gave her a quick glance before nodding.

“Of course, but don’t try to ask me any more questions about the past. I’ve told you far more than you or Adam should have known.”

He knew that as soon as Adam and Silvana left this atelier, she would tell him everything. Gladius couldn’t stop it, and didn’t want to. He had shared only what he was willing to share.

Silvana pressed her palm to her chest.

“If… no… When Adam becomes a Second Rank Phantom, he’ll be able to create protective barriers just like everyone else, right?”

Gladius nodded. “Correct. It’ll take him some time to learn how to do it, but it usually doesn’t take more than a few days. So yeah, new Second Rank Phantoms = a new barrier.”

Silvana’s gaze dropped for a moment.

“So, when Adam reaches that level, which part of the world will he go to defend? I mean, if Queen Elisa defends the First Ring and the Lower Ring, what do the other Second Rank Phantoms do?”

Perhaps if someone else, an ordinary human, were in Silvana’s place, that person would have asked why the Second Rank Phantoms couldn’t defend the entire Citadel instead of just the First Ring?

Well, the Second Ring was enormous, and the Third Ring was also much larger than the First Ring. To defend the entire Citadel would require about ten Phantoms like Queen Elisa.

Considering how many Phantoms humanity had and how much stronger Queen Elisa’s barrier was than that of the other Second Rank Phantoms, defending the entire Citadel was simply impossible. To do so, humanity would have needed far more Second Rank Phantoms than they currently had.

Gladius spread his arms wide.

“He’ll head to one of the Bastions. You know, not all Bastions survive the World Wipe, only the ones where we have enough Phantoms. Depending on the size of a Bastion, you’ll need 2-3 Second Rank Phantoms to protect its central section, just like the First Ring of the Citadel.

“Sure, the Bastions aren’t proportioned like the Citadel, and their central section makes up almost half the entire Bastion, but I think you get the idea. So yeah, Adam and one or two more Second Rank Phantoms will head out to defend a Bastion.”

Silvana nodded slowly.

The Bastions were important because they allowed humanity to expand its influence without having to endlessly increase the size of the Citadel. They couldn’t hold more than the First Ring anyway.

“So when Adam becomes a Second Rank Phantom, we’ll be able to hold one more Bastion?”

Gladius touched his chin thoughtfully.

“Well, I don’t exactly remember what the current situation is with the last defended Bastion, but yeah, you’re thinking along the right lines. Every Second Rank Phantom isn’t just a fighter, but a chance for humanity to expand its influence.”

Gladius smiled bitterly.

“If we had enough Second Rank Phantoms to defend every Bastion, every Spire, and the entire Citadel, our position in the world would be much stronger. Though, considering what it was like a thousand years ago, things are much better now. Back then, the current situation would have been like a dream.”

Gladius said nothing more on the subject as he returned to the coffee machine, intending to make two cups, one for himself and one for Silvana.

Silvana, in turn, began to count.

She realized she didn’t know about all the Second Rank Phantoms, but she did have some information.

‘Alright, Queen Elisa defends the Citadel, and she’s also a Second Rank Phantom – that’s one. The Twelve Branches – all their leaders are Second Rank Phantoms, though apparently not all of them are equal in power. Then there are the Azure Lotus, the Dark Order, and the Crimson Path. Frida is the leader of the Azure Lotus, and Damien is the leader of the Dark Order…’

Strangely enough, up until now, neither Adam nor Silvana had known who the leader of the Crimson Path was, even though they’d interacted with Frida and Damien several times and the two had even helped them with many things.

But Adam and Silvana realized that this person was also a Second Rank Phantom.

‘Then comes the Lower Ring. As far as I know, every tower head is also a Second Rank Phantom, like Wilfred. Still…’

Silvana’s eyes turned to Gladius. He was casually making coffee and looking for some snacks in Relana’s kitchen.

‘He and Relana, which group do those two belong to?’