1.
Nahan thought.
‘Honestly, if I wanted to, I think I could take down all four of them.’
He hadn’t properly unleashed his power yet, so he wasn’t entirely confident—but for now, the goal was to corner Asha and then naturally swoop in to rescue her…
‘Use <Veil of Shadows>, pretend to be on the same side as the <Eclipse>, help out lightly, and then smoothly escape.’
And then, when Asha ends up in real danger, reappear as Ian Red and rescue her in a self-sacrificing way?
‘Bad Ending cleared.’
At the same time, his relationship with <Ian Red> would skyrocket, making him even more useful in various ways later on.
‘Still, using <Veil of Shadows> just to restrict Asha’s movements…’
It was a delicate level of control that would have been impossible before obtaining the power of the <Black Wolf>, but now, aside from his ultimate skill being sealed, he was practically the complete Black Wolf.
‘Controlling my strength at that level is a piece of cake.’
Luna once said that the 7th Elder, the Calamity of Whispering Nightmares, had a skill that restricted movement as if the target were paralyzed in a nightmare, regardless of who they were.
‘Let’s try dialing it in to just that level.’
After sneaking up close to the three of them, the moment he activated the skill—
【<Veil of Shadows (EX)> has been activated.】
Crack.
With a crisp, splitting sound, the three Elders and Asha were all flattened to the ground simultaneously.
No—more accurately—
“Was there… one more!?”
“Grgh…!?”
“Cough!”
“…!!!”
As if crushed by an invisible hand, they all collapsed to the floor in an instant.
Piece of cake.
Utter failure.
‘Wait, why are they that weak?’
…No, hold on.
‘Why am I this strong?’
Even though he’d only released a small portion of his power—just like when he used life force before unlocking his body and Aura—
The <Veil of Shadows> powered by Aura, a new fuel, had a dramatically greater output than when it had been fueled by life force.
‘First, calm down and lower the output.’
Reducing the Aura supply from a liter per second to something like a paper cup’s worth, the three who had collapsed finally began to stir.
“Urgh…!! Are you their leader…!!”
Asha barely overcame the pressure and managed to rise, glaring at Nahan.
“W-What is this…!! Cough, haagh…!!”
“…Kkghhh……”
The <Calamity of the Blooming Blood> and the <Calamity of Silent Silence> both vomited up dark red blood.
They had only barely regained a sliver of freedom—still dazed and confused—when…
“No way…”
Only the 2nd Elder, the <Calamity of December>, managed to calmly assess the situation and whispered to the others.
“…Elders, raise your heads. The 1st Elder, <Calamity of Destruction>, has descended by borrowing the body of the 7th Elder, <Calamity of Whispering Nightmares>.”
…Huh?
“The 2nd Elder, <Calamity of December>, pays respects to the Calamity of Destruction, who eclipses the sun.”
…Huh?
“The 3rd Elder, <Calamity of Silent Silence>, greets the Calamity of Destruction, who eclipses the sun.”
“The 4th Elder, <Calamity of the Blooming Blood>, greets the Calamity of Destruction, who eclipses the sun…!!”
Wait, hold on.
‘…Are they seriously…?’
Did they mistake him for the leader of the <Eclipse>?
Maintaining his silence in suspicion, the man who had introduced himself as the <Calamity of December> barely lifted his head and looked up at Nahan.
“My apologies. We understand now that Your Grace came in person because you doubted us. This is all due to my failure in underestimating the strength of the Hero.”
“Old man…!! Why did you go alone…!!”
“Silence.”
He had thought they were fellow Elders, but with only a harsh tone and a glare, the <Calamity of December> silenced even the <Calamity of the Blooming Blood>.
“The same goes for you.”
“…Yes.”
He pressed even the <Calamity of Silence> into submission, then turned back to Nahan and bowed respectfully.
“But thanks to the 1st Elder’s intervention, we now understand the Hero’s strength. If you would grant us just one more chance, we will succeed flawlessly this time without disappointing you again.”
“How?”
“…We will use <that>.”
And with that, Nahan was sure.
‘They’ve mistaken me for the leader of <Eclipse>, the <Calamity of Destruction>.’
Just in case, he reviewed the events again.
—…No way.
The moment he activated <Veil of Shadows>, their eyes had shaken, as if they’d instantly assumed he was the leader.
The true leader of <Eclipse> was likely someone of comparable strength to Nahan in his current state.
—… Elders, raise your heads. The 1st Elder, <Calamity of Desturction>, has descended through the body of the 7th Elder, <Calamity of Whispering Nightmares>.
They had said he descended by borrowing a subordinate’s body.
And they accepted it without question, suggesting the real <Calamity of Destruction> probably had such a skill.
— The <Calamity of Silent Silence> greets the Calamity of Annihilation, who eclipses the sun.
— The <Calamity of the Blooming Blood> greets the Calamity of Annihilation, who eclipses the sun…!!
The two other Elders had responded instantly to the 2nd Elder’s words—so these two hypotheses were likely correct.
Based on what he’d uncovered, if he were to speculate further—it wouldn’t make sense for a possession like this to occur suddenly without a reason.
‘There’s a high chance the real one is observing the situation somehow.’
In that case…
If a powerful individual similar to himself—one who could intervene at any time—is currently watching this unfold…
‘Should I keep deceiving them by pretending to be the 1st Elder, or should I find another route?’
Unfortunately, he didn’t have the luxury of time to deliberate.
So Nahan immediately chose the former.
“This will be your final chance.”
To be honest, it was a gamble.
If the real 1st Elder were to show up, he’d have to face both Asha and the <Eclipse>.
“We’ll succeed no matter the cost.”
“…My gratitude.”
“…”
Yet, despite having the ability to correct the misunderstanding with a single skill, the real 1st Elder had not stepped in—meaning he was watching this unfold, silently.
Which led to Nahan’s judgment.
Possession may be real, but perhaps not monitoring.
Or both are true, but for some reason, he’s choosing to just observe.
Whatever the case, the misunderstanding wasn’t going to be cleared up any time soon.
‘For now, I’ll threaten them while pretending to be the 1st Elder, then show up later to save Asha from that very threat.’
Having made up his mind, Nahan slowly turned his gaze toward the 2nd Elder.
“If you fail to eliminate them even after being given this chance, you are not to lay another finger on the Saintess or the Hero.”
“But as long as those two exist, they will undoubtedly cause great disruption to our plans!!”
So <Eclipse> was indeed wary of the Hero-Saintess duo.
Nahan kept the flow going, using the information he’d just gathered to fuel the act.
“…Disruption?”
As he pressed the 2nd Elder, the 4th Elder hastily jumped in.
“Y-Yes!! The coexistence of the Hero and the Saintess means that cursed Goddess is aware of us! If she sends down a revelation and begins to exert pressure, her awakening could be—!!”
Her fragile body trembled violently as if her words had been forced through fear, but Nahan was too busy stringing together the new clues he’d just acquired.
‘The pressure of the Goddess. Her awakening.’
So the <Eclipse>’s goal wasn’t simple world destruction—it was to awaken some being?
And the interference of the Goddess, along with the Hero and Saintess, was obstructing that?
If that’s the case…
Then the words most fitting for the 1st Elder to say—to the Elders, who were more afraid of their cause failing than they were of him—
“Then I’ll handle it myself.”
Would be just that.
Nahan spoke the words, and at the same time, channeled a large amount of Aura into <Veil of Shadows>.
【The power of <Veil of Shadows (EX)> increases.】
Until now, it had only been an invisible pressure—but now it manifested like a thick black mist, bearing down on them all.
As their already fragile reason looked about to collapse under the overwhelming fear, Nahan once again questioned the Elders.
“Do you still think it will be a disruption?”
Their lips trembled, but no sound came out. They couldn’t even muster a whisper.
Instead, they quietly shook their heads—an act of submission, of trust in the 1st Elder.
Satisfied, Nahan turned and spoke one last line.
“I hope I won’t have to handle it myself.”
With that—
【<Veil of Shadows (EX)> has ended.】
Nahan vanished once again.
Honestly, even though it had been three against one earlier and she’d been getting beaten up, he was worried how Asha would fare.
But then—
— “…We will use <that>.”
The moment the 2nd Elder finished speaking, a foreign, unfamiliar spear of information surged into Nahan’s mind.
【Warning.】
【<Calamity of December (SSS-)> is attempting to germinate <Seed of Regret (???)>.】
【If successful – the grudge of <???? ?? ??> will take root in <Calamity of December (SSS-)>】
He wasn’t sure what it was—but the moment it succeeded, they’d likely become as powerful as Asha.
Even if all three Elders—now powered up by several levels—were to rush Asha…
Nahan didn’t feel like he’d lose.
‘Guess I’ll just watch for now, then step in at the right moment and rescue her.’
With a relaxed mind, Nahan began observing the battlefield where Asha now stood alone.
2.
A short while later—
“…You two, stay back.”
The <Calamity of December>, having restrained the other two Elders, lightly kicked Asha’s Holy Sword back to her and opened his mouth.
“I know it’s shameless to say this after what I just pulled, but from now on, I’ll face you with respect—and with my full strength, young Hero.”
.
.
.
【Warning.】
【<Calamity of December (SSS-)> has germinated <Seed of Regret (???)> in his heart.】
【Due to the grudge of <???? ?? ??>, the individual’s rank temporarily increases.】
【<Calamity of December (SSS-)> has ascended to <Calamity of December (SSS+)>】
