Chapter 225

Without a doubt—

The Ancient One was, by far, the most powerful being Eren had encountered since his arrival in this world.

Before she brought her legendary life to a theatrical close, she was the undisputed strongest on Earth—its guardian deity.

But tonight… that image had been completely shattered by her own hands.

Because—

She had wanted to kill him.

Perhaps in the eyes of most beings on Earth, she was still the guardian of the planet.

But to Eren—who had stared directly into the intent to kill—she was no longer a protector.

She was a potential threat.

And the worst part was… Eren had no way to fight back.

In order to stay alive, he had no choice but to smile and offer up the Byron Conversion Array, a treasure he'd spent a fortune of fate to obtain.

That feeling of being the fish beneath the butcher's blade—

It carved deep into his soul.

He stood by the raging River of Fate for a long time in silence.

Then—

He summoned the projection of the Scales of Fate once more.

Without hesitation, he threw the Philosopher's Stone—the one he had just received from the Ancient One—into one side of the scale.

Whether it was given out of compensation or for some other unknown reason, it didn't matter to him.

Because Eren—

Had no intention of using it.

Not even keeping it.

He couldn't be sure whether the stone had been tampered with.

And for someone like the Ancient One, she didn't even need to physically tamper with the object. She could easily allow some hidden flaw to remain in the Philosopher's Stone—something that would, under certain conditions, spell doom.

Or worse—

She could be in possession of an item capable of sensing the stone's usage. If that were the case, she could potentially spy on him through it.

That was a risk Eren absolutely could not take.

Even if all of this was just paranoia—even if her gesture had been truly benevolent—

Eren wasn't about to bet his life on a gamble.

So instead—he chose to exchange it.

He spoke aloud his wish to the Scales of Fate:

A defensive formation.

Or anything that could completely prevent unauthorized teleportation into his home.

Tonight had taught him a bitter lesson:

His so-called "safe haven"—his carefully constructed refuge—was, to the Ancient One, no different than an open door.

Even Oddball had been locked down so hard it couldn't warn him.

Eren didn't expect his defenses to repel the Ancient One.

But he at least wanted a warning.

Time to react.

Not like tonight, where the guardian of Earth had simply waltzed into his house—like it was nothing.

...

As soon as Eren finished describing what he wanted—

A swirl of fate-mist rolled across the Scales, and three faint silhouettes emerged on the opposite side.

The first:

A small silver-white stone, no larger than a fingernail.

[Voidlock Stone]

[Formed deep within the chaotic maelstroms of the endless void, this rare mineral embodies the principle of reversal: a complete lockdown of space where space is otherwise turbulent.

The stone creates a unique field in which space is effectively frozen—rendering all teleportation and dimensional movement impossible.]

[Note 1: Works indiscriminately. Enemies can't teleport—but neither can you.]

[Note 2: No forging required. Simply placing the stone somewhere will activate its effect.]

[Note 3: The effective radius is 100 meters.]

Voidlock Stone…

Eren's eyes lit up.

If he had this during the Ancient One's visit, her teleportation portal wouldn't even have opened.

She'd have had to force her way in—fighting Oddball directly.

"Not bad at all."

A naturally formed treasure with no harmful side effects.

Though Eren wouldn't be able to use teleportation inside its field either—like his flame step technique—it was a small price to pay for such powerful spatial defense.

Still—

Before deciding, he glanced at the second silhouette on the Scales.

He wanted to see what else fate had to offer.

The second:

A silver, shimmering barrier hovering in midair.

[Guardian's Shield]

[A supreme space-anchoring formation created by a dying World Guardian who sacrificed body, soul, and will to protect his realm.]

[As long as the shield holds, no outsider may enter—not even gods or demons.]

[Note 1: This version is a projection with limited energy. Once depleted, the shield fades.]

[Note 2: When active, nothing can enter without permission—not even space-warping divine beings.]

Eren sucked in a sharp breath.

Even gods couldn't bypass it?

That was insane.

This second option clearly surpassed the first.

Not only did it block teleportation—it also distinguished between friend and foe.

But its drawback—

It consumed energy.

If the stone's energy wasn't enough to keep it running for even a minute… it'd be pointless.

Despite that, Eren leaned toward the shield.

A defense capable of holding off even someone like the Ancient One—even temporarily—was far too attractive.

Still—

He kept his desires in check.

There was a third option.

The third:

A rusted, broken anchor the size of a boulder.

[Broken Anchor]

[A fragment of a backup anchor from a ghost ship that once sailed the seas of chaos. Lost during a catastrophic battle with a terrifying entity in the void.]

[Ability 1: Anchoring — Locks space in place, creating an immovable zone. Not even high-level space magic can break through without permission.]

[Ability 2: Dimensional Shift (damaged) — Allows the anchor to bring its associated structure across dimensions. Currently broken.]

[Warning: This anchor is tainted with blood and a curse. If triggered, it could lead to disaster.

Be wary of It.]

Eren exhaled slowly.

This thing…

Was terrifyingly powerful.

Not only could it anchor space like the previous options, it could potentially allow dimensional travel in the future.

A mobile base—

A castle that could teleport.

Though repairing the anchor would be insanely difficult… with the Scales of Fate, not impossible.

The curse?

Well—

That was a risk.

But risk… was sometimes the price of reward.

Even the curse could become a weapon, if used cleverly.

Staring at the third silhouette, Eren's eyes sharpened.

Cold light danced beneath his lashes.

He made his decision.

"In that case—

I choose…"

(End of Chapter)

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