My Living Shadow System Devours To Make Me Stronger

The battle of Harlem Pass was the first battle in the most recent Demon Wars, which ended in disaster for the goddess races, causing the demons to gain a foothold in their landfall invasion of Soltheon.

Damon narrowed his eyes, looking at Paimon. Something was off, he could feel it in his bones.

His face still pale, Damon decided there was no use waiting there. Whatever it was, he would figure it out, but standing still and second-guessing himself would not do.

Glancing at his shadow, he whispered.

"Are you ready, Matia?"

He saw her blue eyes glowing within his shadow, staring back at him, eyes filled with battle intent.

With a soft, gentle whistle he called out to his unique companions. A few seconds later, a squirrel and a raven flew onto his shoulders. Their soft sounds carried meanings he wished he didn't understand. His preparations were now completed.

"Ahhh," he gasped, letting out a small cough.

With a single step, he leapt down into the arena. His body was consumed by light, and when he looked up again, he was standing in a white realm surrounded by hundreds of young warriors.

There were so many people he couldn't even find his allies.

"Welcome, young warriors, to the Land of Glory. This is a secondary magical realm. I shall now explain the rules."

Damon narrowed his eyes, turning himself into a shadow as he spread his perception outward, searching for his friends. He needed to find them first.

Leona had joined, Evangeline, Lilith, Renata, Xander, and Abellona. Excluding Sylvia, he wasn't even sure where she was, but....

"She must have taken the opportunity of me meeting her parents to come here."

He found them. It seemed they had the same idea to regroup with familiar faces.

The voice of the emperor boomed as Damon approached them.

"It has been brought to our notice that some of you youths feel like nobles have a special halo that guarantees favorable treatment in the war games...."

The voice, coming from everywhere, was cold.

"They do not. There is no mercy on the battlefield, and this is a battlefield. Now, the rules are simple."

The white realm began to change, the ground beneath their feet glowing with shifting colors due to magical seals activating.

"The fate of all those who wish to participate is now in the hands of the goddess. Those who have stepped inside can no longer leave, and neither can we go in."

Kronos' voice was cold, as though he had planned the potential deaths of the young members of the goddess race. But the truth was, he was actually doing it to trap the demon youths.

In his mind, he believed the members of the goddess race would put down their hostility to fight their great enemy.

At least it seemed so on the surface. His true reason was to prevent whatever Paimon was planning. She couldn't go in now.

"The objective is simple. The gate to the World Dungeon lies at the center of this artificial world. You will all have a fair chance to enter. Only the strongest will survive. To do so, you must find and collect medallions. The more you have, the greater your chance to enter."

His voice paused, taking on a sinister edge.

"You may team up or form groups, but know that your party can easily be a hindrance to the number of medallions you find. You may kill demons and monsters inside to obtain these medallions."

Damon narrowed his eyes. So that was it.

Creating a sense of urgency with an unknown number of medallions no matter how many you had, you would never know if it was enough.

'Therefore we have to find as many as possible, even if we have to kill to obtain them.'

Kronos let out a small smile on the outside.

"When I say demons, that includes the ones who just joined from the Demon Continent. Demon kin are worth an unspecified amount of medallions that can only be obtained by killing them."

He expected a reaction from Paimon, but she wore only a polite smile that revealed nothing. The lack of reaction made Kronos even more uneasy.

Damon looked to the side, where he suddenly noticed a small sphere floating in front of him. In fact, not just him everyone had one.

"We have deployed these magical recording devices from the Magic Continent. They will broadcast your situation to the outside, giving us visibility. Try not to destroy them…"

Damon chuckled.

'I'm definitely destroying mine.'

"There are penalties if you do."

After that, the emperor continued to explain the rules, terrain, and victory conditions.

However, the only thing Damon truly understood was simple. This was a battle royal in which killing the guests from the Demon Continent would earn more rewards, but the goal was to gather medallions and deliver them before the World Dungeon gate.

During this time, the battlefield would begin to shrink. The edges of the so-called combat zones would transform into abnormal mana regions, killing anyone left behind.

It would force everyone toward the center.

'When we get to the center, only the strongest will be left....'

Cruel, but expected of the goddess races. Forcing their children into such a harsh trial by fire was well in line with a warlike world such as Aetherus.

Finally, the emperor who had explained the rules spoke one last time.

"Many of you will die. That is a tragedy. However, those of you who remain will be the sharpest of blades. Only the strong can survive the perils of the World Dungeon. Those who survive but fail to reach the World Dungeon will return safely to the outside once the chosen heroes have entered."

With that, his voice disappeared. The circles beneath their feet began to glow brighter, though it would take some time before they were transported into the main battlefield.

Damon was about to go meet his friends when he heard a voice from behind him.

"Take it off, you wretch...."

He frowned. This voice was familiar.

He turned around and found the familiar face of Prince Waton though in his mind, Damon preferred to call him Prince Wagon.

"Prince Wagon."

Waton gritted his teeth, pointing at Damon's head where a crown glimmered faintly.

"How dare a mere commoner wear a crown! This is an act of lèse-majesté! By the glory of the emperor, I sentence you to death for high treason!"

His voice bellowed out so that everyone nearby could hear him.

Damon glanced at Waton, then touched his head.

Ahh, right. He had taken off his hood. Technically, the prince was right about it being lèse-majesté.

But.

"So what...."