Only I Am A Reader

’Let’s try something first.’

Although he was once again in a position of absolute strength now that his Enigma consumption didn’t have to be so limited, Leo didn’t immediately unleash hell upon the enraged Abyssal Dragon. Instead...

Thud!

’Come closer.’

He retreated once more, only to be lunged at again, confirming the fact that he was the Black Dragon’s undeniable target.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

Following which, he kept leading the Abyssal Dragon around. At first, it appeared to be a little bit random, but then...

"Release the cage!"

The spot where Leo eventually reappeared was right atop the caged Octopus Heads!

Since this Abyssal Dragon didn’t seem to follow the rules, Leo couldn’t help but wonder if he could be used to crush the nuisances huddled up in their cage, and the answer to that question was...

Thud!

While the Black Dragon attacked the intended location without any hesitation, the result was quite underwhelming.

’Bummer.’

When the draconic claws actually came into contact with the alien creatures, they phased through them as if they existed within separate planes.

Just as Leo had predicted but hoped otherwise, there was a ban on friendly fire put in place, and not even the glitchy Abyssal Dragon could change that.

As much as this place seemed to seek the highest level of realism, allowing friendly fire made for a highly exploitable vulnerability when coupled with the mental state that all enemy units were in.

Besides, simulating friendly fire in itself was highly unnecessary for realism, especially considering that the ultimate target was an immovable castle.

’Well, it doesn’t really matter.’

That being said, while it would have been nice to lessen a bit of the burden imposed on Kara, Leo wasn’t exactly sad about the outcome. He was merely experimenting.

These creepy alien creatures were never much of a threat to begin with.

The physical force that their tentacles applied was dozens of times weaker than a single Dragon’s claw.

They might possess dozens of such tentacles, but when caged together in a tight space as they had been so far, their only tools became tangled and impossible to utilize.

While friendly fire could phase through their bodies, attempting to attack through their comrades’ bodies was impossible; the rules couldn’t be exploited by either side.

This left only the dozen who directly came into contact with the cage’s boundaries, but considering how they were being continuously crushed by the starry walls, only a few of them could clumsily try making their way out using a tentacle or two.

In the end, the actual Enigma being drained from Kara for this task was rather meager.

’They are just a bad match... Or should I say we are the perfect match?’

Most importantly, the Tentacle Heads’ true strength lay in their mentally invasive ability, which proved completely useless to the defender team.

Through personal experience, Leo knew he was invulnerable to their methods, likely thanks to Shadow Mastery, and by extension, Kara was as well.

When it came to Aurora, having no clear idea about how she cleared Level 91 and above, Leo wasn’t sure if she was susceptible or not, but after a couple of seconds of observation, he confirmed his guess.

They were all immune! In a way, they had perfectly passed half the test simulated by the final wave without even having to fight. Simply by having unshakable mental stability!

’Aurora had to be immune as well.’

In fact, it made the most sense in Aurora’s case; she might have been manipulated in both timelines, but her pure Light always repelled any and all direct attempts of corruption.

In the first place, the mental realm was usually where all protagonists, including weak ones, excelled.

Of course, Aurora was a special case whose mental state appeared perfect on the outside but was extremely fragile on the inside.

Even then, the Aurora in the novel whose mind should have been in tatters at this same point had somehow still passed the same Trial, so these fishy aliens never stood a chance to begin with!

’Still, precautions are precautions.’

For Leo, sparing a few seconds for reassessment would always beat having to fight all six Dragons as well as a possessed Aurora, relying solely on his own offense.

Especially not since he had to ’Save The Protagonist’.

Thankfully, however, this nightmare of his didn’t come true. Otherwise, he would be in a race against time to squish every single alien to free Aurora before she could squish him in the process.

’Since they are like cockroaches, they can only go on the back burner.’

Yet, even when they were rendered useless, the Octopus Heads were troublesome to kill, as proven in Leo’s own Level 91, so keeping them for last made the most sense.

This was the most optimal decision that Leo came to right at the beginning. After all, when imagining the scenario where Kara would have to withstand the damage caused by all six Dragons until he and Aurora finished these guys off...

’Even with the main constraints, efficiency is still the key.’

In a one-to-one comparison, doing it the current way virtually consumed no resources!

"Cage them back in!"

In a matter of seconds, Leo retreated elsewhere as his little experiment came to an end; it was now time to seriously finish the dog chasing his tail.

Spraghh! Spraghh! Spraghh!

However, just as he was about to melt away into the ground as usual, a strong burst of light flashed at the frontline, illuminating the battlefield and threatening to erase the existence of all shadows!

’Crazy...’

As Leo’s shadow completely dissipated, the Abyssal Dragon’s claws were still going for his neck. Fortunately...

’I still got hit by friendly fire after all.’

Leo still managed to disappear from his position in time as a circle of deep dark shadow surrounded his feet as if completely ignoring the extreme brilliance of Aurora’s light.

’Well, I did see this coming.’

Leo had chosen to create some distance from Aurora specifically for something like this; it was just that he didn’t exactly expect her to go this big from the get-go.

Thankfully, Leo had long stepped beyond the boundaries of a basic user of shadows.

Having evolved into a proper Lord of Shadows, it only took him a little bit more Enigma to manifest the medium of his Ability with just a thought.

Without any actual interruption, Leo’s battle went on!