My Living Shadow System Devours To Make Me Stronger Chapter 865 - 866: Odds And Allies

Damon's hand drifted toward the fruit platter on the table, selecting a tamberry that resembled a plum. He bit into it, letting the juice trickle down his chin.

"Personally, I love tamberry cakes, but I don’t particularly care for the fruit. Still, it’s nice to know this world has some of our local produce."

His casual demeanor suggested he hadn't just dropped a massive revelation on the gathered assembly.

A vein twitched in Abellona’s eye.

"This isn’t about your taste in pastries or fruit. You just said you knew who Lazarak was."

Swallowing the fruit, Damon lifted his gaze and scanned the faces in the room.

"Yeah. We went to jail together."

A weary sigh escaped Lilith. Having survived multiple regressions, she was privy to this information, yet this specific interaction was unfamiliar to her.

In her past lives, Damon had always been more frigid, lacking this tendency to joke or stall.

Nevertheless, she knew better than to let herself feel hopeful.

Evangeline also sighed, recognizing that he was putting her through another one of his performances.

While Xander closed his eyes in resignation, Leona, seated next to Damon, couldn't help but let out a burst of laughter.

"What is that even supposed to mean?" Abellona demanded, her voice thick with frustration.

A small smile played on Damon's lips.

"I mean we were in Eidolon together. Bottom-most floor. You know. As great evils or whatever."

The room, previously buzzing with whispers, suddenly became deathly quiet.

The name Eidolon carried a heavy weight; everyone knew the legends. It was whispered that even Seraph Null refused to cross its threshold.

Eidolon served as a tomb for both the prisoners and those who guarded them—a place where world-ending calamities were entombed. The more catastrophic the entity, the deeper into the earth they were buried.

That Damon was a threat was common knowledge. He had already neutralized Amon the Unknown Ruler, a figure many believed was the reincarnation of Ashcroft the Dominator.

But it seemed impossible that even he could be that level of dangerous.

"Wait," Leona interjected, her laughter dying away. "Then who’s Lazarak?"

Damon took another leisurely bite of the tamberry.

"He’s a god."

Total silence.

The air grew heavy with expectation as the group waited for further explanation.

"I won’t say more than that," Damon declared. "Don’t bother asking. All you need to know is that I have things under control, and any information on Lazarak is on a need-to-know basis."

He tossed the pit of the fruit aside dismissively.

"And you don’t need to know."

The adventurer from the war games, who had apparently survived his previous trial, glared intensely at him.

"Why should we trust you when you won’t share information with us? You’re hiding things. Scheming, as always. Tell us the truth."

Damon let out a mocking scoff.

"You can’t handle the truth." He gestured with his thumb toward the exit.

"The door is that way. Good luck surviving on your own."

The man scowled, his aura of a third-class advancement rippling through the air in a show of force.

Slam.

Damon struck the table with his palm and stood up abruptly.

"Lazarak is the least of our problems. In case you haven’t figured it out, that bastard unknown god has his hands all over this. And maybe you didn’t realize it, but he’s not just going to let you reach fourth-class advancement."

He narrowed his eyes at everyone in the room.

"Victory is an endless nightmare, and defeat is the moment of waking."

He winced slightly at his own words.

"That’s not some fancy quote. It’s probably a riddle. He loves those."

"So what I’m saying is, unless we figure out what that means, we might as well be dead, even if we somehow beat Seraph Null."

The adventurer stood up, fuming.

"You won’t tell us everything, yet you expect us to magically find the answer? In my line of work, information is the difference between life and death."

"Exactly why I can’t just give it to you," Damon countered with a cold stare. "Anyone here could be a spy. I’m not saying you are, but what if one of us is compromised? Is it worth risking everyone’s life just so you can hear a bedtime story?"

Abellona exhaled sharply and raised a hand to intervene.

"That’s enough. Very well, Damon. What can you share without compromising us?"

Damon gave a slow nod and returned to his seat.

"From what I know, this world imposes a rank cap. Nothing above fourth class, which is good, since none of us have reached that yet. However, we still have the problem of mana. We can’t absorb ambient mana here."

He pointedly shifted the topic away from Lazarak.

If Seraph Null had planted moles, they would already be on high alert.

The adventurer’s glare didn't waver.

"For a commoner, you’re very arrogant."

"Have I ever been humble?"

Abellona struck the table for order.

"Staying on the agenda is our top priority."

She tightened her grip. "That includes you, Damon."

He slumped back in his chair, yielding to her authority.

"Now then," Abellona continued, "let’s talk resources and numbers."

"The way things stand, we don’t have the manpower or supplies to defeat the Chained Knights. And Seraph Null is far beyond our league."

Evangeline folded her arms across her chest.

"Then we’ll just have to make do."

Damon nodded in agreement.

"Yes. And they outnumber us a thousand to one. I don’t imagine any of you can fight a thousand opponents of comparable strength."

A heavy silence descended upon the room.

Sylvia looked toward Lilith, who gave an almost invisible nod of confirmation.

They both understood the direction Damon was pointing them in.

Sylvia raised her hand, her snowy hair shifting despite the lack of a breeze.

"We can recruit unlikely allies. Those who share the same predicament as us."

Damon cocked his head. He knew exactly what she was getting at, but his persona required him to be difficult.

"Huh? We’ve already found everyone. At least, everyone still alive."

Several others voiced their agreement.

Sylvia sighed. He was forcing her to be the one to say it.

"Not everyone," she noted cautiously. "Have you forgotten... them?"

Abellona’s brow furrowed. She had anticipated this path, but proposing it herself would have been a political disaster.

Damon’s eyes went wide in a display of feigned horror.

"You don’t mean—"

Sylvia nodded firmly.

"We have to ally with the demons."

Damon shot to his feet.

"Never!"

He stood tall and defiant.

"I would rather we all die at the hands of the Chained than ally with demons, even for a second. So what if their power increases our chances by thirty percent? I’d rather we risk everything and die gruesome deaths."

He made sure to explicitly mention the tactical advantage.

Sylvia fought the urge to groan at his theatrics. Instead, she played her part.

"Ah, but then we’ll all fail," she remarked, struggling not to roll her eyes.

Damon was already putting on a show of fuming rage.