SSS Awakening: I Can Devour Gods to Evolve My Goddesses

Sable March.

Varek Sorn received the first report while watching the final completion count for the Newcomer Region Ranking.

[Completed Newcomer Regions: 96 / 100]

Settlement was close.

Nadia Serr stood on the other side of the table, recording the latest movement in the wager pool.

Riftward was still not the market favorite.

But that was not the line they were truly waiting on.

Forgotten Shrine.

The Black Banner strike team that had entered through Riftward’s interior should, by now, have opened the Spatial Lock.

Varek had never even required them to take the Domain Core immediately.

Lock the Warden Gate first.

Make sure Cassian could not pull the Outer March main force back.

Then see what Forgotten Shrine actually had left on its main layer.

Instead—

no communication came back.

The first thing to arrive was not a message.

Inside Black Banner’s internal Roster, the name of Duskmoor’s Regional Warden—Ronan Greaves—went gray.

Then Silas Crowe.

A heartbeat later, every ownership mark belonging to the Epic swordsman squad Varek had temporarily loaned Ronan went dark in a row.

By the time Nadia looked up, Varek had already closed the Ranking panel.

"How long?"

"From the first Lord record going dark to the last mark on the Epic squad disappearing?"

Nadia checked again.

"Under five seconds."

The room went quiet.

Five seconds.

That wasn’t losing a battle.

That was never getting the chance to fight one.

Varek asked,

"What did they send back?"

"Only half a line."

Nadia opened the broken transmission.

[...twenty trails—]

Nothing after that.

Varek stared at the fragment.

Twenty.

Of course he knew Riftward had twenty Rocketiers.

The problem was that, two days ago, all twenty had still been recorded in Galegrass Expanse.

Public hunting traces.

Firepower signatures seen by outside Lords.

Everything had been there.

"They came back," Nadia said.

"At least before the strike."

"When?"

"I don’t know."

"How?"

"The Warden Gate can bring them back."

"That isn’t what I asked."

Varek lifted his eyes.

"Why didn’t our scouts see them?"

Nadia did not answer.

There was only one answer worth considering.

The Forgotten Shrine they had observed—

had never been all of Forgotten Shrine.

What Cassian kept outside the visible main layer was not public.

When the Rocketiers had left the Outer March was not public either.

Their intelligence had not necessarily been false.

It had been stale.

That was worse than being fed one fake report.

Because from now on, every time Black Banner "saw" something, they would have to ask another question.

Did Cassian want us to see this?

Varek was silent for several breaths.

"Edrin?"

Nadia’s expression tightened.

"Exposed."

"How?"

"Cassian posted in the Riftward channel that both attacking Lords had been captured alive and were being questioned about the entry route."

Varek’s brow moved slightly.

"They lived?"

"No."

"Then how did Edrin expose himself?"

"Five seconds later, he submitted an Outbound Relocation request."

"Destination: Sable March."

Varek closed his eyes once.

He still did not curse.

Nadia continued.

"Cassian didn’t approve it."

"Then a Blackfang tracked one scout who had stayed outside the main formation. Tobias confirmed the retreat route from outside Edrin’s Domain."

"Riftward has already named him publicly."

Varek opened his eyes.

"Don’t rescue him."

Nadia looked surprised.

"Edrin knows some things."

"He knows his own gate."

Varek’s voice remained level.

"If we rescue him now, we finish Cassian’s evidence for him."

"Black Banner never publicly acknowledged this operation."

"And both Lords involved are dead."

He pushed the Sable March marker on the table back a little.

"Let Edrin figure out how to stay alive."

Nadia nodded.

She did not argue for him.

Black Banner was not a charity.

A piece that had already been exposed still had to offer value before it was worth paying a second cost.

Edrin did not.

Varek reopened the Ranking.

[Completed Newcomer Regions: 97 / 100]

"Leave Forgotten Shrine alone for now."

"Until the Ranking settles, we do not give Cassian a second chance to test another hidden layer."

Nadia asked,

"And the wager?"

Varek looked at Sable March, still sitting at the front of the popular choices.

"As normal."

"What happened on the battlefield can wait."

"We settle the ranking first."

The next morning.

Forgotten Shrine.

Cassian collected from the Domain Aether Vein first.

[Daily Natural Condensation: Aether Crystal +10,000]

[Aether Crystal: 315,266 → 325,266]

The Fountain’s daily output followed Realm Time as well.

[Fountain Daily Output: Life Essence Stored 2 → 3 | Life Water 36 → 46]

The twenty Rocketiers who had recovered from Overload the day before did not return to the Outer March.

Veyra kept them in the Deep Layer.

Not because they could not be used outside.

Because Black Banner had just spent an entire strike force proving something.

Other people not knowing where the Rocketiers were—

had value by itself.

Cassian did not object.

What he kept open all morning was the Shattered Marches Wager.

[Wager: Newcomer Region Ranking Final Rank 1]

[Completed Regions: 98 / 100]

[Riftward: 4,423,540 | Defense Ended]

[Riftward Confirmed Stake: 10,000 Aether]

That ten thousand still belonged to Tobias.

Cassian had not put in one Aether of his own yet.

Veyra came out of the training area and saw the panel again.

"You got a Rare Scroll yesterday."

"Mm."

"And the first thing you’re staring at today is still the wager."

"It’s about to close."

"So?"

Cassian checked his balance.

325,266.

Earlier, he had drawn a line for himself at no less than two hundred thousand.

That had not been his final bet size.

It had only been the minimum amount he was willing to deploy back when Riftward was priced at 8.0.

Now things were different.

The Warden Gate was built.

Rank IV was complete.

The Outer March main force did not need an immediate large-scale recall.

Forgotten Shrine had just proven that, even in the worst case, it did not need to open the Gate and drag everyone home to survive.

Cassian separated two hundred fifty thousand.

That left 75,266.

Enough to keep several short Warden Gate openings available.

Enough for ordinary emergency operations.

If he pushed any higher, he would start eating into real operating cash.

There was no reason to.

Veyra saw the number.

"Two hundred fifty thousand?"

"Mm."

"More than the two hundred thousand you said before."

"I know more now than I did then."

"Black Banner came to attack you once."

Veyra raised a brow.

"And that makes you more willing to bet?"

"They confirmed something for me."

"What?"

Cassian looked toward the Deep Layer.

"The market doesn’t know how much is in here."

Veyra smiled.

"That part is true."

"Bet now?"

"Not yet."

"You’re still waiting?"

"Last few seconds."

Veyra looked like she had given up asking.

"Fine."

"You wait for your price."

"My Rocketiers stay hidden."

Before noon, the ninety-ninth Region completed its Regional Boundary Defense.

The Shattered Marches Channel immediately became denser.

Most Wardens were no longer discussing how to fight.

They were talking about the ranking.

Sable March.

Stoneward.

Ironwake.

Northwatch.

And several Regions that had barely spoken publicly, yet suddenly pushed high Scores late.

Riftward was mentioned less often.

4.42 million was not low.

The problem was never that it was low.

The problem was that it had stopped too early.

Every Region after Riftward had entered with more complete rules.

They knew about the War Drum.

They knew about the ten-minute recovery window.

They knew that remaining in the battle after Regional success could continue adding Ranking points.

Some even deliberately held back the hundredth Rank-III Domain until their main force was fully prepared.

Those were not market fantasies.

They were facts.

So when Riftward’s odds climbed beyond 8.0, Cassian did not complain once.

The more wrong the price became—

the better.

Tobias, however, was getting restless.

[Tobias Reed: Have you bet yet or not?]

[Cassian Vale: No.]

[Tobias Reed: Still no?]

[Tobias Reed: My ten thousand has been sitting in there so long it’s growing mold.]

[Cassian Vale: Money doesn’t grow mold.]

[Tobias Reed: It loses value.]

[Cassian Vale: That’s because you bet too early.]

Silence from the other side for five seconds.

[Tobias Reed: I’ve decided Regional Officers should charge the Warden first from now on.]

Rowan cut in.

[Rowan Ashford: You’re a Regional Officer, not a Wager Broker.]

[Tobias Reed: I can do both.]

Cassian stopped replying.

Because the first notification that actually mattered had arrived.

[Completed Newcomer Regions: 99 / 100]

One left.

The lock rule opened at the same time.

[When the 100th Newcomer Region completes Regional Boundary Defense, the Wager enters a 10-second lock countdown.]

[No new Stake may be added or withdrawn after lock.]

Cassian left the panel in front of him.

No other movement.

The final Region did not keep them waiting long.

Twelve minutes later, a golden announcement descended over the Shattered Marches.

[The 100th Newcomer Region has completed Regional Boundary Defense.]

[Settlement conditions for the Shattered Marches Newcomer Region Ranking have been met.]

Almost in the same second, the wager countdown began.

[Wager Lock: 00:00:10]

[Riftward Current Odds: 12.0]

Stake surged in from every direction.

Sable March.

Ironwake.

Several Regions whose supporters had held back until the end.

Money moved rapidly through the final ten seconds.

Cassian did not chase the total pool.

He watched Riftward.

Nine.

Eight.

Tobias’s ten thousand was still the only stake under the name.

Seven.

Six.

Veyra had appeared beside him without him noticing when.

"Still not betting?"

"Five."

"Four."

Cassian dragged 250,000 into the wager.

Three.

Confirm.

[Stake: Riftward Rank 1 | Cassian Vale: 250,000 Aether | Confirmation Odds: 12.0]

[Aether Crystal: 325,266 → 75,266]

Twelve times.

If it hit—

[Total Return: 3,000,000 Aether]

[Net Profit: 2,750,000 Aether]

Two million seven hundred fifty thousand in profit.

Only two hundred fifty thousand short of two B-grade Domain Environment Advancement Seals like the one he had bought before.

Those had cost 1.5 million each.

Of course, the actual Fountain of Life had cost ten million.

2.75 million could not buy another Fountain.

But it was still more than a quarter of the cost of that Legendary Building—

earned back from one correct judgment.

That was what twelve times really meant.

Two.

One.

[Wager Locked]

No second person had time to follow Cassian’s move.

On the Shattered Marches Exchange, Riftward’s total Stake jumped from 10,000 to 260,000.

Tobias’s message hit almost instantly.

[Tobias Reed: Two hundred fifty thousand?!]

[Tobias Reed: You seriously waited until the last three seconds?]

Seraphine sent one too.

[Seraphine Valcrest: At least you didn’t make me take the blame for that ten thousand for nothing.]

Cassian replied.

[Cassian Vale: Can you still place a bet now?]

[Seraphine Valcrest: No.]

[Cassian Vale: Then you didn’t lose anything.]

No reply came back.

Veyra looked at him.

"Did you do that on purpose?"

"Which part?"

"The last line."

"It was true."

"Then yes. On purpose."

Cassian closed the Private Channel.

The wager was locked.

The money had actually left his balance.

That 250,000 was no longer "reserved."

It was no longer operating cash.

It had one purpose left.

Buy Riftward first place.

A little more than ten seconds later, the Ranking interface appeared.

It did not crawl upward from one hundred like the Hero Power Ranking had.

This time only the top ten carried Ranking rewards.

The system did not reveal six names at once either.

The first result appeared alone.

[Shattered Marches Newcomer Region Ranking]

[Rank 10 | Duskmoor]

[Regional Warden: Ronan Greaves | Status: Deceased]

[Region Reward: Region Fortune +1 | Settled normally to Duskmoor]

Cassian’s eyes stopped on the name.

Ronan Greaves.

Yesterday.

Five hundred meters outside Forgotten Shrine.

The first Black Banner Lord to disappear under those twenty rockets.

The system notification was not finished.

[Rank 10 Warden Personal Reward: Free Attribute +10]

[Ronan Greaves is deceased and cannot claim the Regional Warden personal reward.]

[This unclaimed reward will be transferred to the Rank-1 Regional Warden of this Shattered Marches Newcomer Region Ranking.]

The channel went quiet.

Tobias reacted first.

[Tobias Reed: Wait.]

[Tobias Reed: So whoever gets first gets the normal +50 and Ronan’s extra +10 on top?]

[Rowan Ashford: The system is explicit. Region Fortune stays with Duskmoor. The Warden personal reward transfers to the Rank-1 Warden.]

Veyra was still beside Cassian.

"You blew up the Rank-10 Warden yesterday."

"And now his ten points are hanging on first place."

Cassian looked at the transfer notice.

"Don’t count them as mine yet."

"First hasn’t been announced."

Veyra glanced at him.

"Not collecting early this time?"

"The system doesn’t owe me anything yet."

"Fine."

The corner of her mouth lifted.

"Then we’ll wait until it does."

The golden Rank-10 result remained overhead.

Another settlement notice lit below it.

[Next Settlement: Rank 9—5]