Alex had already handled what needed to be done with the angels.
Their armies were being rallied, their leaders had been convinced, and their internal conflicts silenced.
With that handled, he had initially intended to turn his focus toward the dark elves after dealing with the minotaurs and demons.
But to his mild surprise, the angels had insisted on taking responsibility for that task as well.
According to them, they had their own reasons, reasons he didn’t care to pry too deeply into.
He chose to believe them.
There simply wasn’t enough time left to do everything personally.
[Time Remaining Before the Chosen Games: 19 minutes, 28 seconds]
Letting out a long breath, Alex opened his [World Map] again.
His original plan had been to spend every remaining second in the [Fox Tribe Village], but two more locations lingered in his mind, unfinished threads he needed to revisit, not because they were urgent, but because they mattered.
He couldn’t quite explain why, only that he had to see them.
The first of those was obvious, [Dragon City].
He didn’t hesitate.
With a flick of his fingers and a flash of light, his body disappeared.
Fwish! Ding!
In an instant, Alex arrived at the far side of the continent, far from the twisted lands of the Demon Empire.
The sky above him was a clear blue, the wind light, the ground still carrying faint scars of a great battle.
But what caught his attention was what stood in front of him.
“Oh?”
It had only been around three weeks since [Dragon City] had been reduced to rubble during his battle with the Hatred Demon.
Back then, the city had been nearly unrecognizable, craters where homes used to be, smoke in the sky, ash choking the air.
He had entrusted the remnants of that city to Alphox, his dragon companion, hoping he would rebuild what had been lost.
He hadn’t expected this much progress.
Before his eyes stretched dozens upon dozens of newly constructed buildings, with many more still halfway completed.
Hundreds of dragons moved through the streets, some carrying supplies, others using their elemental abilities to assist in construction.
The presence of ancient, towering figures among them suggested the [Primordial Dragons] had returned as well, and were helping in full force.
A faint smile tugged at Alex’s lips.
They were doing it.
They were rebuilding.
Even after all the destruction, all the loss, they were putting their city back together again.
He didn’t need to speak with anyone.
He didn’t even want to.
The scene was enough.
Opening the [World Map] once more, Alex turned to the final place he wanted to visit before everything began.
Ding!
[You are teleporting to the “Mage Tower.”]
There was one person he wanted to check on, Arceus.
He had been quiet lately, and Alex didn’t want to enter the [Chosen Games] without knowing if the man who had once served as Grand Mage was still alright.
When the light faded and his vision returned, Alex found himself standing in the same high chamber at the peak of the [Mage Tower].
It was quiet, still and undisturbed.
Books floated slowly through the air.
Glowing orbs pulsed with magical energy.
The scent of ink, dust, and aged parchment filled the room.
But Arceus was nowhere to be seen.
Alex looked around for a moment before muttering, “Probably at the mansion… where I killed the others.”
He was just about to teleport again when his eyes caught something resting on one of the pedestals.
It wasn’t the books or the glowing orbs that caught his attention, it was the [Abyss Scythe].
The same weapon he had once given to Arceus to investigate.
It seemed like not much had come from it.
“I guess I’ll take it back,” Alex murmured, walking toward the pedestal.
The scythe radiated with a thick, dark aura, its edges jagged, its form whispering with shadows.
The moment Alex’s fingers touched the weapon—
Ding!
[The Crown of Calamity has sensed an item worthy of being absorbed…]
Alex raised an eyebrow, already understanding what was about to happen.
“Go ahead.”
He held the scythe up toward the [Crown of Calamity], and in response, a dark tendril slithered out from the crown’s base, wrapping itself around the weapon.
The tendril pulsed once, then yanked the weapon inside.
Ding!
[The Crown of Calamity has absorbed and analyzed its fifth item…]
Alex expected the usual result.
Either the weapon would be reborn into something new, or its powers would be incorporated into one of the crown’s many evolving abilities.
But this time…
[Another entity in the host’s body has cut off the initial connection, adding its own power into the item.]
“What?” Alex blinked in surprise.
“What entity?”
The [Undead King] was inside him, yes, but he’d been silent since absorbing the [Heart of Endless Dread], likely still dormant.
Time passed equally for both of them in this world, and if Alex had only experienced a few hours since then, it was safe to assume the Undead King was still asleep.
Which meant there was only one other being capable of interfering.
“…Hatred Demon,” Alex groaned.
Fwoosh!
A small explosion of darkness formed beside him, and a tiny figure resembling a twisted, malicious fairy emerged, the Hatred Demon in its usual small form.
“I was planning to give you the [Sword of Hatred] eventually,” it said bluntly, as if it was explaining a casual gift, “but when I saw that scythe, I thought, why not mix it with my power and the crown’s potential? We might get something better.”
Alex narrowed his eyes.
“So you hijacked the absorption process?”
The demon shrugged.
“You’ll thank me later.”
And with that, it vanished once more.
Ding! Ding! Ding!
New notifications began to flood in.
[The “Abyss Scythe” (Artifact+) has been upgraded to the “Scythe of Hatred” (Forbidden)]
[A weapon that is a fusion between the “Abyss Scythe” and “Sword of Hatred.” It grows stronger by absorbing souls and hatred. Can evolve further if the user activates “Hatred’s Fury” and their hatred reaches the threshold.]
[The scythe is as sharp as the “Wings of Hatred,” capable of cutting through nearly anything. It is among the strongest weapons in Universal Descent.]
Alex blinked.
This was beyond what he’d expected.
Even with the Hatred Demon’s interference, the resulting weapon was far stronger than the original.
A forbidden weapon that thrived on hatred, and one that could continue to evolve.
He tried summoning it into his hands right away.
Beep!
[Hatred levels are not high enough. You cannot summon this weapon.]
“…Oh.”
He frowned.
So he literally needed hatred to even wield it.
That explained why the weapon was classified as forbidden, it demanded emotional fuel, the worst kind.
Still, even if he couldn’t use it now, it would be a valuable asset in the [Chosen Games].
He’d have to test it in real battle, see what it could do when things got serious.
Time was running out.
He opened his [World Map] again, for what felt like the fifth or sixth time that day, and selected the [Grand Mage Island], the last place Arceus might be.
It made sense for him to be there now.
As the new [Grand Mage Master], it would’ve been the logical place to reestablish his influence, especially with the Mage Tower lacking direction after its recent upheaval.
Alex had no idea what the man was actually up to, though.
Everyone had their own goals, their own plans.
While some chased their ambitions or rebuilt their worlds, Alex had to focus on something bigger.
The [Chosen Games] loomed ahead like a wall that couldn’t be climbed with hesitation.
Without waiting, he confirmed the teleportation.
A flash of light swallowed his body.
Ding!
[You have teleported to “Grand Mage Island.”]
This was it.
His final errand before returning to the [Fox Tribe Village].
[Time Remaining Before the Chosen Games: 17 minutes, 42 seconds]