While I was going through the various different seeds that Aurivy had brought me, I was at the same time familiarizing myself with the changes that had occurred within the world. For instance, Aurivy’s presentation of the Withered Tree token alerted me that this thing would very likely change the way the lower level forces of the world functioned. Thus, I checked the market to look up their prices.

There were already people that had online businesses set up to purchase ready-made Withered Tree seeds. These seeds were protected under the same copyright system that had been previously introduced with the last update. This meant that it was impossible for someone to simply buy the seed and then mass produce it to sell for themselves.

As for the price of the seed? It depended on the abilities stored within. A seed that only had the ability to convert natural energy into ki and mana could be purchased for the price of a used car or a half-decent weapon. If the seed is capable of producing other elemental seeds on its own, it’s more expensive than even a large house in the elven capital.

These seeds didn’t sell particularly well, partly because the investment didn’t just end at buying the seed. Rather, they had to buy multiple copies of every seed that they wanted to reproduce. Although it could eventually lead to them making a profit on their investment, it was too high of an initial cost.

However, there was a rather positive effect that had arisen due to Fragments of Acidia. Because of the world’s interest in the sylvans increasing, there were several golden sylvans that often visited popular cities to do trade on behalf of their respective groves. There had even been a new grove that was set up within the border of Hanbei.

Finally… I learned about the Machine Empire that arose within Fragments of Acidia. Looking back, I couldn’t help but sigh at the realization that Dana’s familiar had been involved in something like that. Well… at least they had access to quite a bit of high-end technology, some of which seemed to have been used to modify Olympus itself.

“Is there anything else that I can get for you, my Keeper?” Tsubaki asked, standing next to my desk with her hands folded in front of herself.

“No, thank you.” I smiled at her. “Let me know when Lifre is back. Given her personality, I’m sure she’d love to report on all of her adventures. In the meantime… I think I should get back to training.”

Lifre let out a long groan as she opened her pale blue eyes, blinking at the sky above. “Wow, I needed that!” She said, before abruptly sitting up and looking around. “They didn’t run off and leave me here, right?”

Hearing the small pout in her tone, Petra rose up from a nearby shadow, smiling at Lifre. “Not at all. I had to go and check up on the Shadow Guilds.”

“The shadow-what-nows?” Lifre blinked, causing Petra to chuckle.

“It’s a special type of space that Thelsa set up to catch criminals around the time that Olympus was created. We’ve been running it all this time, making sure to let it rest long enough that the majority of criminals see it as something necessary, as they believe that it helps them avoid the gazes of the Greater Pantheon.”

“That’s silly! They’re silly!” Lifre retorted, shaking her head quickly. “Those guys can see everything! If they don’t see something, it’s just because there was something more interesting elsewhere.”

Petra shrugged her shoulders. “Of course I realize that, as does Thelsa. However, the vast majority don’t have this awareness, and the fact that the Shadow Guilds have been left unchecked for so long is ‘evidence’ to them that they are free to do whatever they want in those spaces.”

“By now, I can’t guarantee that we have every criminal in our net, but most organized crime passes through the Shadow Guilds. Most organizations will have their more sensitive tasks taken care of there.”

“I see…” Lifre tilted her head, as though she didn’t really get it. “Well, when do you plan to close the net, then? You can’t just leave it like that forever, right?”

Petra offered a small smile. “We’re in the process of finalizing this new. We want the Shadow Guilds to be a reusable trap, though it might take some time before they’re activated again. For now, we’ve made the arrangements. Would you like to watch from the sidelines?”

Lifre pursed her lips, before shaking her head in refusal. “Nah! Let’s practice the natural martial arts, instead! You said that you wanted to learn it, right?” Petra’s eyes went wide, immediately putting aside the topic of the Shadow Guilds as she sat next to Lifre.

“Are you ready to begin?” Thelsa asked, crossing her arms as she looked at the male figure before her, his eyes dark, almost completely hollow. His body had a lanky build, draped in a black robe. “You’ll need to change your identity again after we do this.”

The lanky figure cackled, shaking his head. “That’s nothing new. I was born for this sort of dirty work, wasn’t I?”

Thelsa hesitated, before offering a small nod. “That’s right… though I hope that after this I can give you a better role for a while. I’ll preserve your soul and memories.”

“Nonsense, Thelsa.” The figure smirked, its empty gaze directed at the Saint of Shadows. “If I do not carry this stigma, who will? You? Sora? Maybe Petra? Oh, I bet Maria would love the challenge. Best to let my hands be the bloodied ones, and let all of you operate in peace.”

Thelsa gave a slight sigh. “Alright… I’ll continue to employ you as the cleaner. For now… have you memorized the list?”

“Naturally. I know who can and cannot be touched. Just make sure to temporarily block the gates for me, and this will be over soon. Have you decided who it is that will be killing me, this time?”

Thelsa’s eyes narrowed, but she couldn’t provide an answer right away. “By the time you’re done, it should alert the local gods. You’ll just have to do your part.”

The man chuckled. “I thought I might die to someone special. Oh well… there’s always next time.” As he said that, his body faded into the darkness.

His first destination was the largest and most populated Shadow Guild, often used as a medium for trafficking. When he arrived, his voice spread out through the area. “Mm… such ripe karma… I shall have to help myself.”

The men and women walking the dark streets looked up at that voice, startled. It wasn’t often that someone made trouble for the Shadow Guilds, as they had their own gods employed. However, this was the first time that someone had managed to get in with the intent of seemingly destroying the entire place.

Some stood by, as if preparing to watch a good show. Others began to make their way towards the nearby buildings to hide or gather their assets. Regardless, it was only a moment before a burst of flame erupted in the sky, one of the ‘guardians’ of the Shadow Guild appearing.

She had a dark expression on her face as she looked around, seeking the source of the voice. “If you want to make trouble, come out! I’ll be sure to scorch your soul.”

“My, my, such a fickle temper.” The voice said, manifesting as a dark figure that hovered in the air behind her. “Don’t you know that you’ll never find love with such a personality? Though… I don’t think you’ll need to worry about that anymore. My shadows have covered this place long enough. Now… I’m simply taking back what’s mine!”

The flaming goddess turned, her body igniting as she began to charge over in a rage. However, before she could reach him, her body began to full, her flames mixed with darkness. “W-What’s happening?” She called out in shock, feeling her energy going out of control.

“Allow me to introduce myself.” The man snickered, watching the goddess fall. “I am Boreal Grandire, the God of Darkness and Poison. I’ve had my eyes on this place for a while. Now that so much karma has appeared, it is only right for me to harvest. And you, my dear… your hands have taken so many innocent lives… it would be rude of me not to send you off to accompany them.”

“But don’t worry!” He laughed, his arms spreading wide as darkness enveloped the world of inverted light. “You shall not suffer this journey alone!”

On the streets, the faces of those who had planned to watch a good show distorted. With pale complexions, they turned to flee, only to fall flat a few moments later with hollow eyes. The man’s voice boomed out across the Shadow Guild as more and more criminals fell. “With such rich karma, I will surely receive a heavenly blessing. There is nothing quite like cleaning up filth~!”

Once his power had spread, and he killed those from his list in this space, his body distorted in darkness. This scene was repeated again and again, dozens of Shadow Guilds falling in the span of an hour. With each one, every vicious criminal was slaughtered, leaving only the abducted victims, or those with less heinous crimes to tell the tale.

Boreal counted off the spaces he had yet to visit, pleased with his progress. There were only three left, and they were among the smallest Shadow Guilds that Thelsa had established. His body raced through the shadows, appearing within the next space only to blink in surprise.

A total of five gods awaited him upon his arrival. Of the five, one seemed to have a power to prevent his concealment, forcing him to reveal himself ahead of schedule. As he tried to spread his dark poison, another of the five countered him with a healing power taking the form of a black pulse of energy. Boreal let out a laugh as he realized what was happening. “I see... I see!”

“The Five Shadows… interesting!” Boreal’s laugh echoed maniacally. Each of these gods cultivated a power related to darkness, specializing in upholding the rules of the Shadow Guilds. “However… I want to see if you are as strong as they say!”

His body launched forward, towards the man leading the group of five. His hands turned into outstretched claws, though the man only watched him with a calm, calculating gaze. “Halt.” He muttered, a black ripple spreading out from his body. When this ripple wrapped around Boreal, his body froze in midair, his expression one of excitement and twisted malice. His consciousness had been frozen, as had his body. “You all know what to do.” He said, the other four not hesitating to launch their own attacks on the paused deity.

There was little suspense in the fight after this, Boreal unable to move, or even think for that matter as his body was crushed under their combined power.

Thelsa watched in concern as she condensed a new shadow, recreating the memories and soul of the god that she had just sent to his death. He would need to begin his training from nothing, but he was still able to retain his identity.

To her surprise, Boreal’s first action upon regaining consciousness was to laugh, holding his stomach. “And here I thought that you wouldn’t have prepared anything special for me! The Five Shadows, such a nasty little trick of yours, Thelsa.” He said in a teasing tone, causing Thelsa to dip her head slightly in shame.

“I couldn’t have you aware of it too early, or the performance wouldn’t have been convincing. Just like you, they have their roles to play…”

“Oh, I understand.” Boreal smiled joyfully. “The Shadow Guilds are a trap. I clean out the trap when it’s full, and the Five Shadows kill me to refresh the bait and let people believe that the guilds are safe. I’ll be needing a new appearance and set of domains this time, before we activate the traps again.”

Thelsa let out a sigh of relief, glad that Boreal was so accepting of this plan. “Of course. You may take whatever form or domains you wish to train. It will likely be a while before we are ready t o use this plan again.”