Endless Evolution: Last Star

When Adam met the real Lakma at Silent Hills, he saw for the first time a Phantom trapped inside a crystal, just like Queen Elisa.

But their situations were strikingly different. All that remained of Lakma was her energy, since she had long since died. She had been able to protect her body and preserve her energy, but not her life.

To some extent, there was almost no difference between her and a dead body encased in a block of ice.

Queen Elisa’s situation was different because she was not only alive, but she also defended the Citadel during the World Wipe and helped the Phantoms during their crucial moments of evolution.

Adam knew it couldn’t be that simple. He was certain there had to be a reason why Queen Elisa ended up in a crystal and why she was alive.

Adam had several theories, the main one being that Queen Elisa might have been severely injured in the past and therefore had to resort to this measure to survive and help the Citadel.

However, things turned out to be not quite like that, and Silvana was the first to learn more details about what had happened.

It all turned out to be far less tragic and more pragmatic, although different people might have had different opinions on the matter.

Gladius, as one of those who had lived through those times, would have preferred that Queen Elisa remain a Phantom, just as she had been before, fighting alongside them against the monsters. For a long time now, she had been half-alive and resembled more a statue full of energy than the great Phantom.

“So… Queen Elisa wasn’t mortally wounded, and this wasn’t an emergency measure?” Silvana asked, slightly uncertainly.

In response, Gladius shook his head.

“No. She knew what she was getting into. If she hadn’t done that, we would have hit a wall in our development. We wouldn’t have been able to make the Citadel any bigger, and there would have been fewer Bastions. Also, by doing so, she ensured her own safety.”

Silvana nodded. She understood what Gladius was saying.

Even though Queen Elisa was one of the strongest Second Rank Phantoms, she was still not immortal.

The Befallen Crown, or even just a few True Lords, had more than enough power to kill her if Queen Elisa found herself in a difficult situation or were careless.

But for that to happen, Queen Elisa would have to be in enemy territory and without allies, which in itself was already a rarity.

Now, with Queen Elisa in the very center of the Citadel, in its most secure location, on Heaven Island, that was impossible.

Frida was constantly stationed at Azure Island. A powerful barrier surrounded Heaven Island, and Queen Elisa’s energy alone was enough to withstand, for some time, even the most powerful attacks that the strongest monsters were capable of.

And if anyone were to attack Queen Elisa now, in less than a minute all the Second Rank Phantoms in the Citadel would be at Heaven Island, followed by the Lower Ring and the Second Rank Phantoms of the Bastions.

All of humanity’s strength would be gathered in one place, and the battle would take place under Queen Elisa’s aura.

This was a scenario in which even all the monsters in the world would have no chance of victory.

That is precisely why the Befallen Crown still hadn’t been able to destroy humanity, even though they believed that humanity was the source of all problems and that humans were meant to disappear.

To do so, they would have had to kill Queen Elisa, but that was simply impossible given the current balance of power.

“But… Why did it have to be Queen Elisa specifically? I mean… This might sound harsh, but if everything you said is true, then Queen Elisa voluntarily decided to become a shield for humanity. Wasn’t there another candidate, one who wasn’t as important as she is?”

Silvana was afraid that Gladius would misunderstand her. After all, it was already clear to her that Queen Elisa was one of the few people Gladius felt a special connection with. To him, she was more than just a curious case. She and he had once fought side by side against monsters and, in essence, built the Citadel.

However, Gladius reacted calmly. He understood what she was getting at.

“It’s not that simple, Silvana. Back then, there weren’t as many Second Rank Phantoms as there are now. There are still barely enough of them now, but fortunately, there are more than before. The size of the protective barrier you create depends on your strength.”

“Her goal was to protect the First Ring, since it was a large enough area that, after the World Wipe, humanity could quickly recover – technologically, territorially, and in terms of population as well. I think you know how it works with the Zero Vault.”

Silvana nodded deeply.

The Zero Vault stored all the necessary resources and technologies for a rapid recovery after the World Wipe. It contained seeds and drives with valuable information, as well as incubators to restore the population.

When survival was the goal, anything that was effective was used, and no one gave a second thought to morality. They didn’t have that luxury.

Gladius waved his hand:

“As a result, the number of Second Rank Phantoms suitable for this role decreased. I won’t lie to you, among the Second Rank Phantoms alive at that time, there were several other candidates who could potentially have replaced Queen Elisa.

“But Queen Elisa believed it was her duty to humanity. Just as she is now, she was a Queen back then, but in the past, this wasn’t hidden the way it is now.”

Silvana gulped as she looked up for a moment.

If Queen Elisa had been just a Phantom, nothing would have prevented her from acting in accordance with her status as Queen. Everyone at the Citadel would have known they had a Queen, the strongest Phantom, always ready to protect them.

But… If people found out that their strongest Phantom was a half-alive woman, resembling a statue sealed inside a crystal, morale wouldn’t rise, it would drop significantly.

“Also, there’s something else.”

“Ah?” Silvana blinked.

Gladius smiled bitterly.

“Her abilities. They… they’re perfectly suited to her current state. For 250 years, she’s been gathering energy to later release it as a protective barrier capable of covering the First Ring. The other Phantoms we had back then wouldn’t have been able to do that.”

He looked at Silvana.

“In the end, there were several reasons why it had to be Queen Elisa. She considered it her duty, she was one of the strongest among us, and her abilities were the best fit. To this day, no Phantom has appeared who could create a protective barrier as large as hers.”

Silvana gulped, but she wanted to know more. That wasn’t enough for her – her eyes burned with curiosity.

“Speaking of the barrier… Just how big is Queen Elisa’s barrier, exactly? I mean, I understand that it covers the First Ring, but how does it compare to the barriers of other Second Rank Phantoms?”

Gladius smirked. He liked her question.

“Well, if you compare Queen Elisa’s maximum capacity to that of a regular Second Rank Phantom, such as the heads of the Twelve Branches, most of them, her barrier would be at least 8 to 9 times larger.”

Silvana was speechless. She froze for a moment.

“Wait… Are you saying that if it weren’t for Queen Elisa, we’d need the combined strength of nearly all the Twelve Branches just to defend the First Circle?” Silvana’s lips trembled.

Gladius, in turn, waved his hand nonchalantly.

“Yep, something like that. Now do you understand why Queen Elisa is so important?”

He took a deep breath.

“Sure, if Queen Elisa weren’t here, we could defend the First Ring, but in that case we’d have to sacrifice several Bastions. Also, the Lower Ring would come under attack as well.”

“Agh? Why?”

Gladius spread his arms wide.

“It’s all about size. Let’s say the nine heads of the Twelve Branches could defend the First Ring. To do that, they’d have to take up the necessary positions at equal distances from one another, basically forming a circle. But their barrier wouldn’t reach the Lower Ring.”

A glint flashed in his eyes.

“Queen Elisa’s mastery surpasses theirs. She can alter the shape of her barrier, and given her powers, she can protect both the First Ring and the Lower Ring with a single barrier.”

Gladius touched his chin with a pensive look.

“So… If we include the Lower Ring as well, Queen Elisa’s barrier is comparable to the barriers of 11–12 other regular Second Rank Phantoms. In other words, Queen Elisa alone can replace all Twelve Branches at once.”

“This…” Silvana shuddered. “It’s unbelievable. We should all be grateful to Queen Elisa for what she’s done. I don’t even know what to say…”

Gladius smiled, and this time it seemed genuine.

“That’s enough. That’s exactly why we need more Second Rank Phantoms, because every Second Rank Phantom is a new barrier, which means more lives saved and more territory protected.”