THE VILLAIN'S POV

Chapter 788: The Path to Absolute Manipulation (1)

"Frey? What’s wrong?"

Ada approached Frey slowly when she saw how shaken he looked.

She had no memory of what had just happened.

Whenever Agaroth possessed her, she lost all recollection of that time entirely.

So from Ada’s point of view, what had just occurred was deeply unsettling.

One moment she had been sitting peacefully with her brother...

The next, she had blanked out for a heartbeat, only to find Frey standing in front of her with his sword drawn, murderous intent still leaking from him.

The air itself felt heavy and suffocating—

as if a violent clash had just taken place.

Frey kept that terrifying expression for a few seconds longer, then slowly relaxed. He lowered his sword and smiled at her.

"Nothing... nothing at all, Ada."

He gently placed his hand on her head, though his gaze had turned sharp.

"Everything is fine. I promise nothing will ever harm you."

That only made Ada more confused—and more uneasy—but she simply nodded, hiding what she truly felt.

The exchange between Frey and Agaroth had lasted barely five minutes.

Moments later, Frey sat down again as if nothing had happened.

Abraham was still outside, and their family was the only one in this part of the Shadow Sect .. Frey had forbidden anyone else from approaching.

He spoke with Ada for a while longer.

Then the thirty minutes passed, and it was time to go outside and join Abraham.

Before standing up, Frey suddenly took Ada’s hands firmly.

"Ada... from now on, I don’t want you to take part in the coming war in any way. You’re no longer our family’s lord, and you don’t have to fight. There’s no need for you to put yourself in danger."

Ada’s face tightened in pain.

"You want me to stay here... while you and Father bear everything alone?"

Her voice trembled with helplessness.

Frey nodded without hesitation.

"Yes. Leave everything to me and Father. All we want is for you to stay safe. In return, trust us. I promise we will come back alive—no matter what it takes."

"You’re selfish..."

Ada lowered her head so he wouldn’t see her expression.

Frey remained silent.

He knew his request was selfish.

Making Ada hide here in safety while he and Abraham went to war would likely destroy her emotionally if anything happened to either of them beyond her sight.

Ada had been born into a family of monsters—

Abraham, the miracle of the past, and Frey, the miracle of the present.

Compared to them, she had inherited her mother’s weakness.

In the kind of war that was coming, even her intelligence and administrative talents would be worthless.

In other words... she would be nothing but a burden.

Frey didn’t say that aloud .. but his request carried the same meaning.

Ada had no choice but to accept it.

"...Alright, Frey. I promise I won’t take part in the coming conflict."

Frey smiled gently.

"Thank you."

He released her hands and stood.

"Come outside with me. You can watch while I train."

Ada nodded.

"I’ll join you in a moment."

"Alright."

Frey left the cabin quietly.

His expression returned to its cold calm the moment he stepped out.

"This will be enough... The Shadow Sect is the safest place on Earth right now. And Gehrman’s artifact is still protecting it."

For now, that was enough.

Frey headed toward the forest—but stopped when he sensed someone nearby.

After a few steps, he found Abraham leaning calmly against a tree.

"Father..."

One glance was enough for Frey to realize that Abraham had been here for a while.

"...Were you listening?" Frey asked.

Abraham turned toward him, his expression serious.

"I won’t ask anything right now, Frey. But I expect you to speak when you’re ready."

Frey smiled faintly and nodded.

"Yes. I promise I’ll tell you everything."

He meant it.

He didn’t want to hide anything from his father.

Abraham normally called him "my son."

This time, he had called him by his name.

That alone told Frey everything.

Abraham was shaken.

He had just seen his daughter possessed by the strongest being in the universe.

But Frey’s promise was enough—for now.

"Good. Follow me."

Abraham turned and walked deeper into the forest at the edge of the Shadow Sect.

"Where are we going?" Frey asked.

"Far enough away from the cabin and the sect. I don’t want anyone else getting hurt during your training."

"I see."

Frey understood immediately—

this training would not be gentle.

As they walked, Abraham glanced back.

"From what you told me... you’ve reached the final stage of that ability of yours, haven’t you?"

Frey nodded.

"That’s right."

He had already told Abraham about Shadow Adaptation .. its seven stages, and how each one was a separate power in its own right.

It was terrifying ..

every one of Frey’s seven abilities stood on the same tier as Abraham’s Absolute Manipulator.

"Have you figured out what the seventh ability truly is?" Abraham asked.

Frey shook his head.

"No. From what I understand, the seventh ability won’t fully awaken unless I reach the very peak of SSS... or fight someone vastly stronger than me."

Abraham frowned slightly.

"Did Gehrman tell you that?"

Frey hesitated for a moment before answering.

"You could say that..."

In truth, it wasn’t Gehrman—it was Nameless.

But Frey hadn’t told Abraham that he was now in direct contact with that being, or that they had become something close to allies.

To the rest of the world, Frey was still nothing more than Nameless’s vessel.

From what Nameless had told him, the seventh ability was the strongest of all—

the one that could make Frey’s power explode to absurd levels once its conditions were met.

But Frey couldn’t use it yet.

So for now, mastering the first six abilities was the wiser path.

Each stage of Shadow Adaptation grew stronger with every awakening, and since Frey had unlocked all seven, his current potential had reached its absolute ceiling.

Which meant that after breaking into SSS, Frey’s true power would be... immeasurable.

They walked deeper and deeper until they reached a vast open field that looked like a natural battlefield.

"We’re here," Abraham said. "This is far enough that we can go all out without worrying about the consequences."

Frey surveyed the area.

"So what exactly are we going to do here?"

In response, Abraham stretched slightly as radiant aura flooded his body.

"I’m sure you already know. The only thing in my arsenal that has any real value for you right now is my world-breaking ability—nothing else."

As he spoke, Abraham activated it.

Through Frey’s Void Eyes, he could see it clearly.

Abraham’s body was no longer flesh at all—it was entirely composed of aura, without organs or physical structure.

His reaction speed, strength, and aura control had reached an entirely different dimension.

"I’m certain this ability will be extremely useful to you."

At that moment, another voice spoke beside Frey’s ear.

It was Nameless.

"Abraham Starlight is right. That ability would be an enormous gain. Even I never thought of doing something like this..."

The Absolute Manipulator had given Abraham a body unlike any other.

The closest thing to it was the body of the Demon King himself.

"Agaroth has something similar. His body is made of a strange power different from aura—but the effect is the same. Acquiring this would be a massive advantage."

Even Nameless admired Abraham’s chaos-based ability.

And it made sense.

Both Shadow Adaptation and Absolute Manipulator belonged to the same law—

the Law of Chaos.

Frey agreed.

Gaining this power would be an incredible boost.

But...

There was a fatal problem.