The World's most Overpowered Side-Character

"The first thing Dr'ul did was extend her hand in a gesture of peace; now that I think about it, the two of them deserve to serve the same punishment, it is dangerous, but it will obviously lead them to making amends after what happened between them, plus there is the added benefit of overcoming their fears with someone there to support." Sol sat with his legs crossed sipping daintily in his study with Talia before him on his table staring intently at his actions.

"So, it will benefit us in the long run is what you mean?" Ikaris leaned her head and smirked at him.

"I know you intended for this to happen, Ikaris," Sol raised an amused brow at her.

She was laying on a massage table barely clothed, having a deep tissue experience by Arla who she had volunteered to be a test dummy for so she could learn. She was already quite good, but over the last few months the Elf's skills had become phenomenal.

"I knew that Dr'ul likes fairness, even as a warrior goddess, she strives for equilibrium all the time, seeking balance in whatever she does almost as much as I do, I knew that with her knowledge of the [Nightmare Prism] she would not allow herself any lesser punishment as a part of the problem which caused Cecelia to end up there, though I expected her to ask to be sent in a separate one at first, the latter decision to go into the same place as her enemy to right her wrongs is brilliant on her end." Ikaris responded through a groan.

"In any case, thank you." Ikaris smiled at him once more closing her eyes and moaning when Arla started on her lower back. "I never imagined that the horrible Forbidden technique you developed in your time on Atla to seal me away forever would have solved so many of our problems.

Han, Sitri, and Now Dr'ul and Cecelia will use it as a tool for bondong..." She peeped an eye open seeing Sol frozen in his seat with his eyes settled on the floor and slight guilt etched across his face.

"...How long have you known?" He asked, and with his admittance, Dina who had been minding her own business with Sara and Arla stopped what they were doing and looked around at him surprised, they often forgot that his and Ikaris's relationship started with him hating her for what happened in his past.

"I knew the moment you were able to trap Sitri in it, stripping her of her divine mana and tearing away all her demonic powers, cursing her as you wished and leaving her to suffer for eternity."

"[Atla 2.0] ...such a horrible power in the hands of the man I trusted the most, it was the only forbidden technique I did not implant in your subconscious when I was blessing you with the [Creation] skill," She admitted.

"It and [Reaper's Calling] the only other technique which not even I could have resisted in my divine form, I trusted you to not use anything of the sort on me, but secretly, I had accepted that there was a small chance you would." Ikaris lowered her head and stuck it into the hole in the bed while Arla slowly began working again.

"You trusted me to not use it," Sol stared at his hands, placing the tea down and narrowing his eyes. "But the truth is, I almost did." He admitted and she smiled with her face obscured and hummed.

"Yes, after we first arrived back on earth and you realised that I was basically powerless to resist anything you did, I felt a lot of animosity, even though you smiled and treated me kindly, and even started making future plans for us...

inside of the clothes store, that animosity was at its highest, you activated it secretly, and I prayed, when I sensed the nature of that cast I prayed that whatever lay in store for me would heal your hatred, I did not blame you, I knew what I did caused you to suffer more than any one person ever should."

"That's..." Sol sucked in a breath and averted his eyes. "Ikaris, back then I was a much different person than I am right now, the way I viewed the world, the way I saw people, I was not that different from Umbra-" Sol paused and opened his eyes wide in horror. "Oh... no."

Similar to him, Ikaris and Dina glanced at each other and then Arla when all four of them came to the same conclusion. "Sol, how long ago did you create the [Nightmare Prism]?" Ikaris raised herself, sitting on the bed and staring at him while Arla covered her with a towel.

"I started working on it right after Jun...

my plan was to use it as soon as I was back home, or if not then when you least expected it, I didn't know if it would have worked or not, so the first time I used it completely was against Han, but it had been completed a year before I fought the Demon-God," Sol's eyes widened as he realised his greatest and most busted skill was also in the possession of his alter ego and current biggest threat.

"If he realises that the prism works, Umbra will come striking in full force." Sol stood and began seething in both worry and anger, staring at everyone.

"If he uses [Reaper's Calling] against me similarly, there is nothing I can do against it, if It hits I die, nobody, not even death itself can survive that skill, Sitri only did by fragmenting her soul and leaving her memories inside of someone else as a failsafe, but after him, there's no way in the nine levels of hell I'm gonna fragment my soul again!"

"So the two sure ways to defeat you are in the hands of the person who hates you above all else and has sworn on his soul and the existence of life and death that he will kill you and take everything you love away, no matter what it costs." Dina released a long sigh, allowing that fact to sink deep in her mind and marinate.

"Oh dear," Arla sat with her hands in her lap, and then slowly looked up at Talia, along with Ikaris and Sol. "Oh my," She furrowed her brows in worry. "Master, will you pursue him more furiously after this fact?" She queried almost in a state of panic.

"I'm waiting on Ikaris's Campaign against the Emporium to end before I start actively pursue him, the last thing I want is for Umbra to see any form of desparation from our side, and most importantly, his emissary can never find out about this, as I am right now I can cast either of these skills with perfect autonomy from wherever I please within my range of senses."

"What?!" Ikaris slid off her seat to her feet staring at him, showing shock the others had never seen before. "Without effort?"

"Yeah, it will lock on to them without my effort as long as I can sense their mana and know who it is, all I need is a location, the range is my senses, it's the only limitation." Sol furrowed his brows.

"After I used it on Sitri and became aware of the uses it held, I have been developing [Nightmare Prism] in secret, the same with [Reaper's Calling], I have spent endlesss days and nights researching ways to make them powerful enough to kill and capture any creature regardless of their power, their defiance against reality, or their link with creation and the truest form of mana, I doubled down on that research after I was exposed to the Grand Emporium."

"I wanted to always have an out, I was doing it because I know there are beings out there who are many times stronger than I am, I sense them when I seek them, I feel their gazes; there are so many Primordial entities out there in the Khalla-Nova Collective alone that could easily kill us all, and on the top of the list of enemies is Umbra's ally, the Divine Darkness above Darkness; the Primordial God."

"If someone like that gains knowledge of any of these skills, the Grand Collective as we know it will cease to exist."

"Jeez..." Sara rubbed her brows. "Master, forgive me for saying this but it just goes to show, wherever the culture, world or system lies, the pursuit of power is always what leads to ultimate destruction," She huffed with her eyes locked on him, and Sol nodded, agreeing with her.

"I know that all too well, Sara" Sol sat again with a stressed huff from the corners of his mouth and rubbing his forehead.

Stay connected with empire

"It has shown itself time and time again throughout all forms and mediums in history; power leads to destruction, but, in contrast, a lack of power always leads to being the victim because there always exists someone seeking greater power to triumph over their adversaries, mostly with malicious intent."

"It tips the scales of balance; one may either conform to the system and change by gaining more power, or succumb to it and be consumed by the powerful."