Chapter 398: Turning Tide

"Hmm, to give you an answer, you could say that you didn’t kill me to begin with. Anyway, that matter is in the past now. What matters is whether you want to save this world or this girl." She paused before turning toward Melina, who was still bleeding profusely, her blood being washed away by the flowing water beneath her.

Despite her condition, Trelisa showed no particular concern, as though Melina’s suffering was nothing more than a convenient part of her arrangement.

"If you want to save this... thing, then you must come here alone."

Atlas remained frozen where he stood. He didn’t even blink for a moment, his mind drifting back to the instant when he had literally erased Trelisa into Nothingness. Yet, here she was, speaking to him as though nothing had happened.

Her appearance alone was enough to raise questions, but the confidence with which she threatened him made the situation even more difficult to understand.

The situation simply didn’t make sense. ’Something is fishy.’

He knew that no one, regardless of their rank, could survive his Flames of Nothingness. That was especially true for Trelisa, who had attempted to block them with a barrier made of time. He could still recall how completely those flames had consumed her, leaving nothing behind.

Just as he was following that line of thought, something suddenly clicked in his mind.

’Wait... when I killed her, shouldn’t I have received something in the Codex, similar to what I obtained from Orivian?’ The realization sent a shiver down his spine. He had been so certain of her death that he hadn’t even considered the absence of a reward until now.

There had been nothing. After erasing her, he hadn’t gained anything from the Codex, unlike when he had erased Orivian. That meant he hadn’t truly killed her. ’Then who did I kill? No one? But how is that even possible...?’ He considered the possibility of an illusion but quickly dismissed it, knowing such tricks wouldn’t work on him.

No matter how he examined the situation, he couldn’t find a reasonable explanation, leaving him with no choice but to watch the woman sitting on a floating throne as she stared at the screen.

For a brief moment, Atlas closed his eyes. He allowed himself a moment to process everything before exhaling slowly and pushing those thoughts aside. Whatever the truth behind Trelisa’s survival was, he could investigate it later.

For now, he had no intention of letting her dictate his actions.

"Who gave you the idea that holding a hostage could force me to come to you?"

In an instant, the atmosphere inside the emergency meeting room changed. The expressions of the Conclave members turned into frowns, while Trelisa’s face darkened on the screen. They exchanged brief glances, seemingly unsure whether Atlas was genuinely unconcerned about Melina’s situation or simply refusing to give Trelisa the reaction she wanted.

Trelisa, meanwhile, felt immense irritation boiling within her. ’Such audacity and arrogance. If it were anyone else... they would have died countless times.’

’But he... possesses the power to think that way.’

She couldn’t afford to underestimate this man, not after what she had witnessed in that arranged memory Demious had integrated within Atlas. The memory had shown her enough to understand the kind of existence she was dealing with. She would never allow her dignity or arrogance to cloud her judgment in this situation, regardless of how much his words irritated her.

"...What gave you the idea that she was a hostage?"

Her question made Atlas narrow his eyes. He couldn’t understand why she had suddenly said something like that. Trelisa continued, "She isn’t here as a hostage. What I meant by ’saving’ her was essentially saving the information about you, the people connected to you, and..."

She deliberately paused, allowing the silence to linger for a moment. A grin gradually formed on her lips as she finally revealed the last piece of information. "The world known as Eliomor."

Atlas and the Conclave members widened their eyes.

From Atlas’s perspective, this was impossible. He had made a contract with Melina through the laws themselves to ensure she could never reveal anything about him, let alone disclose information of this magnitude.

The Conclave members, however, were shocked for an entirely different reason. The name itself was enough to make them reconsider the implications of what they were hearing.

If the existence of that world became known to every faction in the galaxy, they couldn’t even begin to imagine the chaos that would follow. Based on what they already knew about Eliomor, they could easily envision countless factions waging war over it, disregarding every rule established by the Conclave.

The conflict wouldn’t simply be limited to a few territories or resources; it could involve nearly every major power in the galaxy.

After all, Eliomor possessed ancient ruins and an seemingly endless supply of resources. In their eyes, its value surpassed that of any artifact or treasure in the entire galaxy. Even the Conclave’s established rules might not be enough to restrain the greed of those who learned of its existence.

As if their shock wasn’t enough, Trelisa’s grin widened as she revealed something else. "On that matter, we have already sent our forces to conquer that world. Now, whichever faction comes after it once we spread its name won’t dare to do so. I can already imagine how much profit we will sabotage for them. Fufu~"

Kael, who had been leisurely listening to her threats as though they meant nothing, suddenly choked. His eyes widened as he stared at the screen, momentarily unable to believe what he had just heard. "What the fuck did you just say?"

Everyone turned toward him with confused expressions. Kael clenched his fists, his gaze fixed on Trelisa. "...You wouldn’t dare. My friend Alberion is there. If something were to happen to him, I swear you will pay for it." His eyes had turned bloodshot as he continued staring at the screen, his usual relaxed demeanor completely gone.

Trelisa furrowed her eyebrows as she looked at him. "Another puny Human? Are you acquainted with that human there? Then it’s best for you to convince him to come here alone." She spoke as though his threat meant absolutely nothing to her, barely acknowledging the anger in his voice.

Kael clenched his teeth before speaking again. "Hey, bitch. I normally don’t curse at females, but you’re getting on my nerves."

"This is the last time I am asking. When did you send your forces there?"

Trelisa looked at him with an indifferent expression, seemingly unmoved by his threats. "Tsk. I am bored of dealing with insects. Our forces have been there for two days now. I think all your lands are already in ashes at this point—"

Before she could finish, another voice interrupted her.

"Are you sure about that? From what I can see in real time... it seems you are unaware that all your forces are currently engaged in a decisive battle against someone strong."

The holographic screen floating above the table suddenly split into two. The original display continued showing Trelisa’s situation, while the second screen revealed a figure floating high above the ground beneath a clear sky. The sudden change drew everyone’s attention, including Trelisa’s, whose expression shifted as she recognized the voice.

That man was none other than the Black Arbiter.

Trelisa was the one to widen her eyes this time. ’That man again?!’ She cursed inwardly as she stared at his image. She and every Weimbron knew about him. No, it wasn’t limited to the Weimbrons; every single faction in the galaxy knew his face and title.

What infuriated them, however, was that they possessed absolutely no information about his abilities.

His mysterious nature made it difficult for the factions to understand why someone like him worked for the Conclave in the first place. Even after all this time, there was hardly anything they could confirm about him beyond his position and the reputation surrounding his name.

Nevertheless, Trelisa frowned upon hearing his words. "Let me just show you a footage of what’s really happening."

Suddenly, the screen displaying the Black Arbiter glitched for a moment before showing a completely different scenario. What appeared on it was enough to make anyone scratch their head and wonder how such devastation could have occurred.

Thousands of beings floated in the sky, divided between two distinct factions. One was obviously the Weimbrons, while the other was none other than the Eternals.

Trelisa immediately widened her eyes in horror. She rose from her floating throne, her pupils trembling as she watched the scene unfold. Hundreds of Weimbrons had been crushed into several nearby planets and stars, while the remaining thousands were either severely injured or struggling to breathe.

At the far front, the man who was leading them was injured heavily as well.

The battlefield was filled with the aftermath of a devastating confrontation, and the Weimbrons were clearly on the losing side.

"Do you see what I was talking about?"