As the blinding light from the runes dimmed, the entire hall fell silent.
Many eyes stared at the spot where Whisker had stood before, each one of their gazes filled with utter disbelief. After everything that had happened, had he really just left like that?
Just like that?
It was insane. It was maddening, infuriating. For a few seconds, no one spoke, with each person processing a different wave of emotions.
For Jenera Flux, the Evolari paragon, though her gaze remained impassive, she was inwardly very pleased by the events.
The Evolari race had always embodied evolution. They loved and hoped for change. To them, the greatest sin in this world was remaining stagnant.
In their belief, there was no such thing as true perfection; change was always needed, and evolution had no limit.
The human domain had remained stagnant, in Eldoralth they had been at the bottom of the power scale for centuries.
Personally, she hadn't hated or even disliked them; in fact, she didn't care much for the politics between the races or their power struggles.
Nothing was more important than evolution, and to achieve it, constant challenges were essential. She welcomed any challenge, it made her change.
'They're changing.'
A smile appeared on Jenera's face. The humans were changing; this was the thought that led her to support Whisker earlier during the talks.
First, there was Atticus, he had defeated not one but two superior race apexes when even the greatest of the human talents couldn't even stand toe to toe against them.
And now, Whisker—a paragon who could potentially stand toe-to-toe with a superior race paragon, had emerged among their ranks.
It didn't benefit her directly, but she felt glad for their change.
"We're leaving, Karn."
Youn stood up from his seat, ignoring Azrakan, who was staring at him with a cold gaze.
Karn said nothing. He, along with the mid race paragons and apexes, still remained in the middle of the hall. The rune had targeted only the humans and Whisker, leaving the rest behind.
A brown aura engulfed both Youn and Karn before they disappeared from the hall.
Azrakan's gaze was icy. He didn't speak, but when his gaze met Carius's expressionless face, his anger intensified. To think his son had witnessed this embarrassment scene.
Without a word, he disappeared from the hall, along with many of the Dimensari paragons around the hall.
Jezenet of the Vampyros race also stood up, leaving the scene, along with Lirae, who couldn't stop smiling, her gaze lingering on where Atticus had stood.
Everyone began leaving the hall. After what had just occurred, no one stopped the mid races from leaving. They each exited the hall with their apexes.
Soon enough, the hall cleared, leaving only the Obliteri race paragon and apex.
The silence stretched for a few moments.
The Obliteri paragon finally turned to Maera Nihilus, the apex of the Obliteri race.
"Why?"
Her voice sounded hollow and, at the same time, heavy, as if an intense vibration resonated across the hall with each word.
Maera turned toward her grandmother, their impassive gazes meeting.
Marae's eyes flickered as countless memories flashing through her mind. Despite her expressionless face, a wave of emotions surged within her.
Her eyes narrowed slightly. "I want him."
Those were three simple words, vague in their meaning. But her grandmother didn't seem to care.
She nodded her head, and both of them disappeared from the hall.
…
A blinding light filled a room before dimming after a few seconds. As the light faded, multiple figures appeared, and the room was suddenly flooded with intense pressure.
"Release your aura, you're back home," came Oberon's calm voice, and although none of them needed to be told, it was as if a collective sigh of relief swept through the room.
It had been a close call.
"Hehe, that was fun!"
Everyone froze. In their relief, they had almost forgotten about one important thing.
All eyes shot toward the side and landed on Whisker, who wore a wide grin. Many didn't even realize when they began stepping back, leaving him standing alone in the center of the room.
Whisker looked around, confused.
"Hm? Do I smell that bad? I swear I had a bath!" He sniffed under each of his armpits, muttering under his breath, "Last year."
Atticus and the other paragons in the room exchanged strained expressions, and each took an instinctive step farther back. Their disgust was apparent.
Even Oberon moved to the side, his eyes fixed on Whisker.
"Who are you?" Thorne finally broke the silence, prompting Whisker to stop sniffing his armpits and turn toward Thorne with a look of confusion.
"Huh? Were you asleep when I introduced myself? I am Whisker Von Pounce…"
Thorne's lips twitched, but Oberon interjected. "I think what he means is, where did you come from? We've never heard of a human paragon of will, and there's no way someone could break through in the human domain without us knowing."
Atticus remained quiet while the others waited patiently for Whisker's answer. They were all trying to answer one simple question: was he a threat or an ally?
He had assisted them at the banquet, but that didn't necessarily mean his intentions were good. It was already clear that he was strong—strong enough to force the superior race paragons into a vote.
It was obvious he wasn't a member of the human alliance and wasn't bound by any mana contract. Which meant he was a wild card. A powerful one.
They waited for an answer, but all they received was a wild grin and a casual response.
"You all need to lighten up. As I said earlier, I only came here to get my star actor." Whisker sent a wink to Atticus, who frowned slightly, unsure how to respond.
Whisker had helped him, yes, but had they been close enough for that? Definitely not. And judging by his character, there was clearly something more to it. Whisker confirmed this assumption in the next instant.
"Well… since that's done, I'll take my leave." Whisker's gaze met Atticus's, and his smile widened as he mouthed, "You owe me."
Whisker disappeared in a burst of blue light before anyone in the room could react. Silence descended.
None of them had tried to stop Whisker. They were currently in Sector 6, and since they hadn't determined if he was friend or foe, they couldn't risk a fight.
"Who is he?" Magnus's voice rang out, and all eyes turned to Atticus. From their interactions, it was clear they somehow knew each other. But none of them could have expected Atticus's answer.
"The sovereign of the beast race."
Everyone in the room looked stunned.
The beast was insane. He wasn't even human, yet he had convinced the strongest races on the planet that he was.
Even they had been confused, wondering if they had missed someone breaking into the paragon rank.
But to think it had all been a lie. He was a master manipulator.
Atticus went on to tell the group about Whisker after receiving Magnus's permission. Magnus already knew about him from Atticus, but this was the first time he had seen him.
Oberon was also aware, as Magnus had informed him earlier, wanting him to check Atticus to see if Whisker had left anything on him.
The rest, however, were utterly shocked. The abyssal chasms they had wondered about for decades had all been caused by that beast?
That revelation deepened their confusion. Was he an ally or a foe? He had helped them today, but he had been attacking the human domain for decades. People had died during those attacks.
They were about to start pondering further when Oberon noticed the exhaustion in Atticus's gaze.
"I think we should all get some rest. We'll continue this meeting tomorrow."
Everyone understood and nodded, leaving without argument. Oberon assigned each of them rooms to rest in.
Seraphina, Thorne, and Luminous decided to stay behind in Sector 6. One reason was the ongoing discussions, and the other was for precaution.
A wild card was loose, and if he could infiltrate the Dimensari domain without detection, then the human domain was no safer. They made sure to rest in rooms close to Atticus.
As soon as he reached his room, Atticus slumped onto the bed without even taking a bath. He hadn't mentioned it earlier, but he was thoroughly exhausted.
The apex competition had taken place all in one day, and he had fought two life-threatening battles back-to-back.
It had been thrilling but intense. And because of the situation in the Dimensari domain, he hadn't been able to rest; he had even gone so far as to train.
Atticus didn't bother with anything else. As soon as his head hit the pillow, he fell asleep.
Meanwhile, the human domain was still buzzing with excitement, and people celebrated in earnest. The streets were filled with people holding banners of the Ravenstein insignia, along with pictures of Atticus.
And while everyone celebrated, the cause of all this excitement was snoring peacefully on a king-sized bed.