The Dark Age.
Once Charles realized which era he was in, things like the Soma Familia or divine wine stopped mattering.
This was the most chaotic, powerless era Orario had seen since the thousand-year reign of the Zeus and Hera Familias collapsed.
Countless gods had been sent back to Tenkai. Familias were wiped out.
Level 1 and Level 2 adventurers were cannon fodder. Even Level 3s were thrown at Level 7 monsters as front-line fighters.
Ordinary people fled in panic, leaving mountains of corpses behind.
Someone like Zanis, a Familia captain, would probably have no choice but to hide and evacuate with the civilians—or worse, be forcibly conscripted to fight.
One wrong step and you could be blown to pieces by a suicide bomber.
This was an age of calamity—one that would wipe out at least half of Orario's population.
In short: being an adventurer was dangerous. Being a high-level adventurer was more dangerous. And even if you weren't an adventurer, surviving was no guarantee.
"Leave Orario?"
The thought crossed Charles' mind, but…
"Zanis would never allow it. And the Guild won't let adventurers leave the city."
Falna was a shackle, and Orario was a prison.
"What do I do? What do I do? What do I do?" Charles raked his fingers through his hair.
Calm down… calm down. I've been through this kind of thing before.
Analyzing the situation, the Soma Familia might actually be one of the safer factions.
They weren't like the Loki or Freya Familias, shouldering the duty of fighting the darkness head-on. And they weren't like the Evilus factions, used as suicidal cannon fodder.
Once again, his "organization" training in his past life kept him from panicking.
He ran through what he knew of the story.
The Evilus faction's top fighting force this war would be two Level 7s, plus fifteen Level 5s.
The city's side? One Level 6 and six Level 5s.
A slaughter.
Those willing to stand against such odds were undoubtedly heroes. If they lived, they'd stand at the peak of the world, famous forever.
But…
How much does that pay?
Seriously—risking your life for what? If you've got that much selflessness, go help an old man cross the street.
"In my past life, I learned one thing worth more than gold—if you can't beat them, join them!"
"I, a dignified reincarnator, will gladly be your subordinate!"
Once the thought appeared, it was like a candle in the dark, lighting his way forward.
Yes—if you can't beat them, join them! The only way to leave the Soma Familia was for Soma to be sent back to Tenkai. The lawful factions would never do it, but Evilus would!
During the "Seven Days of Death," I could sell out Soma's escape route, have him sacrificed, and use that as my entry ticket into Evilus.
And besides… the Auntie over there was very much his type. You could call it a… perfect career match.
A bold plan took shape in his mind. This was the advantage of knowing history.
"Right… I'll also need the 'Ignition Device' and the 'Great Sacred Tree Branch.' Maybe stockpile some magic swords too… but I'm broke."
In his past life, he'd never compromised under threat, but that meant he could only go down the path of flattering that big shot woman, which eventually cost him his kidneys. He had family and friends then—he couldn't hurt others.
And to catch her attention, you couldn't exactly keep your hands clean.
He'd been prepared to die someday.
But here…
"No matter what I do, it counts as emergency self-defense."
After all…
I'm just a despicable outsider.
Joining Evilus might lead to more deaths, but there's an old saying: If you're poor, protect yourself; if you're rich, help the world.
If I can't even keep myself alive, why worry about anyone else?
A hero? Don't make me laugh.
Face reality, "great hero." You can't even be a proper keyboard warrior for justice.
The vague plan in his head was coming together. But first…
"I need enough strength to sit down at the negotiating table. Two months—if I can reach Level 2, even Level 3, I could qualify for a cadre position!"
Only Charles could think of something this outrageous.
His past-life experience told him: if you don't seize opportunities and just keep compromising, you'll lose even the basic qualifications to be human.
More importantly, he didn't want to be dragged into a war alongside lunatics.
Back to business.
Relying solely on [Second-Dimensional Pandora] to randomly roll a rapid-growth skill in six months? The odds were too low.
"I need to increase my number of skills… or get more magic."
First thing that came to mind: grimoires.
A single copy cost at least 100 million valis—and they weren't even always available. No way a supporter like him could buy one any time soon.
But… there was a certain shop that might have one.
The Witch's Secret House—a confirmed seller of grimoires and rare magic items.
He couldn't afford anything there now, but there was another method. One that might lead him into getting one…
"But I'm nowhere near ready for that to work yet."
He jotted down "steal grimoire" as a future plan.
Another option: self-awakening.
It was hard—self-hypnosis to form an obsession that could manifest as a skill.
Liliruca's [Artel Assist] and [Cinder Ella], Bell's [Argonaut] and [Hero's Strike], Lefiya's [Elf Ring]—all were born this way.
"What if I start tomorrow? Tell myself every day I'm stronger than yesterday? Go! Go! Go! Try harder! Try harder! Try harder!"
"Or… convince myself I'm a nuclear bomb? Hmm… maybe I should bring back my chuunibyou phase…"
After all, one dark elf had awakened a magic just to overcome her shyness—by making herself act like a chuunibyou.
Charles spread his fingers, took a stance, and lifted his shirt hem slightly.
"My Name is Shadow. He who lurks in shadow in order to hunt shadow"
…Something was missing.
He suddenly clutched his right arm and cried out:
"Aaahhh! My right arm! Calm yourself, black dragon of the apocalypse sealed within my wrist!"
BANG—
A loud crash came from next door, along with a gruff shout:
"Keep it down, you idiot!"
Charles coughed awkwardly in the silence that followed, sat cross-legged again, and ran through other ways to gain skills.
When it came to Falna mechanics, he knew them better than anyone.
Skills could appear from powerful desires—but they could also be inherited within the same bloodline under the right training.
Like the Gojou house Kaguya belonged to—members raised under the same regimen could awaken similar abilities.
In Danmachi, the most common recurring skill was the elf-exclusive [Fairy Chant], which reduces magic casting time.
But he wasn't a mage—he couldn't get it quickly.
Next was commander-exclusive leadership skills.
The requirements were simple: participate in one or two monster-slaying expeditions, want to be a commander, and shout orders loudly.
Desire and volume were key.
Granted, the effect was usually something like "increase speaking volume."
But under [Second-Dimensional Pandora], that could be rerolled into something much stronger.
"I'll need some teammates…"
He refined his plan, checking for holes.
Possible paths:
1. Commit a crime and get sent to the Prison City—avoiding the Seven Days of Death entirely.
2. Get an invisibility cloak from the Witch's House and sneak out of the city.
But he shook his head.
Both would likely result in his Falna being sealed. Arrest meant the Guild would strip it; desertion meant Zanis would have Soma seal it.
Either way, a lone human wouldn't survive long inside or outside Orario.
Charles gritted his teeth.
"The bigger the storm, the pricier the fish!"
The Seven Days of Death was a crisis, but also the fastest path to strength. If I can absorb the experiences of the likes of "Silence", I could secure my place in this world.
It was a beautiful plan—but nearly impossible to pull off.
"At least I have a goal now."
No matter what, with my knowledge of this world, I've got a good shot.
High risk, High Reward. Go down or Go up!
And besides… that auntie really was worth looking forward to.
Charles lay down on his bed, planning his future step by step, until he drifted into sleep.