The moment the Ineffable Pantheon departed, an uneasy stillness settled over the room.
The eighteen leaders stood frozen, eyes fixed on the empty space where Ash and his family had just been, while the headless corpse of the Prime Devourer slowly disintegrated into drifting motes of consumed void across the floor.
No one dared to move or speak, the weight of the moment pressing down on them all, until at last, the Dean with the yellow star-shaped eyes broke the silence.
His voice was taut, edged with irritation he could barely restrain.
"What… what are we going to do about the deadline for the mana stones? We have less than a decade before the representatives from the Tenth Reality arrive to collect," he said sharply.
"If we miss even a single cycle—"
Matriarch Minx finally spoke up.
Until now, she hadn't tried to overstep or even say a word—just quietly observed.
