The subterranean map of the capital's sewer and catacomb networks lay sprawling across the oak war table, pinned down by iron daggers and blood-stained compasses. Outside the reinforced bunker, distant explosions rattled the stone foundations, a constant reminder that the surface battlefield was still burning.
Hegemon stood leaned over the table, his right leg immobilized by a rigid iron brace, a wooden crutch supporting his left side. His butler uniform had been replaced by lightweight leather armor under a dark, heavy cloak. His face was pale, his eyes rimmed with red, but the sheer, icy precision in his voice was undeniable.
"The Western Cult does not construct fortified bases; they occupy existing spatial anomalies," Hegemon said, tapping his finger against an unmapped cavern section beneath the central trade district. "Leo's location—the Abyssal Altar—isn't just deep underground. It sits inside a dense pocket of folded space, created by the initial rupture."
Kenji stood opposite him, leaning on the pommel of the Holy Sword. "If it's folded space, standard earth-cleaving magic won't break through. We'll be funneling ourselves straight into a bottleneck."
"Which is precisely what they expect," Hegemon replied, pulling three small glass vials filled with condensed spatial-resonance dust from his belt and laying them on the parchment. "Relay, the 10th Officer, maintains the spatial perimeter using her gravitational pendulum. She anchors the pocket dimension to our reality. As long as her pendulum swings, no surface army can enter without being crushed by spatial distortion."
Xuka Astri stepped forward, tracing a line along the eastern aqueducts. "Then my vanguard must eliminate Relay first."
"No," Hegemon corrected sharply. "You cannot kill her initially. If Relay dies abruptly, the spatial pocket collapses into a void, killing everyone inside—including Lily. We need Relay distracted, not dead. Xuka, your squad will assault the outer perimeter at Sector 4 with heavy artillery and mana-flares. You must force Relay to shift her pendulum's frequency to defensive stabilization. The moment her pendulum shifts to defend against your barrage, a three-second delay will form in the spatial fold."
Kenji's eyes narrowed, grasping the logic immediately. "A seam in the barrier."
"Exactly," Hegemon continued, moving his finger to the center of the subterranean map. "During those three seconds, Kenji, you will use the Holy Sword's unsealed authority—specifically the Divine Arc—to slice open the weakened seam. You won't be cutting stone; you will be cutting the spatial boundary itself."
"And once we are inside?" Kenji asked. "Leo won't be alone. Helar's shadow locusts guard the inner sanctum."
Hegemon pulled out a detailed diagram he had drawn from memory—a precise breakdown of the cult's defensive layout. "Helar's locusts are blind to light, but hyper-sensitive to heat and informational mana flow. The moment we enter, I will detonate high-concentration magnesium flares mixed with raw mana residue. The sudden thermal overload will force the locust swarm into a defensive hibernation loop for roughly four minutes."
"That leaves us four minutes to reach the altar and confront Leo," Kenji said, a grim smile touching his lips. "You've thought this through down to the second."
"I have no choice," Hegemon said, his voice dropping into a cold, lethal whisper. "My mind is fragmented, Kenji. I cannot use my original combat skills, and my body is broken. If we deviate from this timeline by even ten seconds, we fail. Lily dies, and Leo remains untouched."
Kenji looked at Hegemon, sensing the terrifying intensity radiating from the butler. "What about Leo's intangibility? How do we strike a man who disconnects himself from reality?"
Hegemon picked up a small iron spike from the table, balancing it on his fingertip. "Leo's intangibility relies on a continuous spatial vector. He doesn't dodge; he lets attacks pass through him into the folded space behind him. But to extract Lily's informational mana, he must act as a physical receiver. At the exact moment he draws her mana into his body, his spatial connection must lock onto this world."
Hegemon's eyes turned razor-sharp as he looked up at the Hero. "I will force him into that locked state. When I give the signal, do not hesitate. You strike through me if you have to, Kenji. Just slice him in half."
Kenji stared at him for a long moment, then nodded slowly, tightening his grip on the Holy Sword. "Understood."
"Equip your squads," Hegemon commanded, turning his back to the table and leaning heavily on his crutch as he prepared to step into the dark subterranean stairwell. "The three-second window opens in twenty minutes."