-1512- Myself

Possessing Collapse Force and not possessing Collapse Force are two completely different concepts.

If one can wield Collapse Force, then, as long as they aren't as weak as Real Nua, in the world of humans—or even in the world of Armored Beetles—they are almost unbeatable.

Take the same example: even Chloe Sevegny can only compress 10% of her mana, and yet the Compressed Mana she creates is enough to wipe out an army of Armored Beetles in one go. So, if someone could use Collapse Force, which is based on Compressed Mana that's compressed to 100% and beyond, how could they possibly lose in battle?

Let's not forget Rozen himself. After gaining High-Grade Mana, he became much stronger than before.

To put it bluntly, even without compressing his High-Grade Mana to the extreme, just using ordinary High-Grade Mana, Rozen could easily crush his past self who hadn't yet mastered it. Even if it's not an instant kill, he could still overpower and defeat him within tens of seconds.

In such circumstances, Collapse Force, which rivals the power of High-Grade Mana, could allow humanoid Armored Beetles to crush someone like Chloe simply by relying on brute strength, even without exceptional combat experience.

Thus, possessing Collapse Force and not possessing Collapse Force are two entirely different concepts, and the gap between the two can truly be described as heaven and earth.

The existence of a Collapse Force user could determine the outcome of a war.

If you face a Collapse Force user, unless they are an amateur like Real Nua, ordinary Sky Wizards stand no chance against them.

Given that, the number of Collapse Force users the enemy has is the biggest issue.

"So far, we know of three Collapse Force users in Zeth Wiegert's faction—Zeth, his secretary, and Elis Wiegert."

Rozen lifted his gaze and looked at everyone.

"Among these three, Elis is relatively weak, showing vulnerability and naivety. If we can exploit her weakness, perhaps we can deal with her. But as for the other two, none of you stand a chance."

Zeth is a ruthless and cunning tyrant.

Kirsty Vermilion's only concern is Zeth's interests.

It would be hard even for Rozen to find weaknesses in such individuals and target them.

Therefore, facing these two, Chloe and the others stand little chance.

"To be frank, just these three teaming up could probably take down human strongholds one after another. Not to mention they have a large number of subordinates scattered around the world. If their goal wasn't to rule humanity but to annihilate it, they could have done so long ago, right?"

Rozen spoke calmly.

"Of course, the past is a different story. Now, every floating city has a mana reactor that I provided, allowing them to resist even Collapse Force users. Zeth can no longer easily strike at humanity. But on the flip side, Zeth now holds terrifying power and influence within human society. The enemy is entrenched deep within humanity, with countless ways to strike, such as destroying mana reactors. This is our disadvantage."

If the enemy has other Collapse Force users, the situation would indeed be dire.

"Our only consolation right now is that the Pope has been in hiding for a long time, and even Zeth seems to have no idea where he is. Otherwise, Zeth would have already made his move on the Pope and taken control of humanity."

Rozen's gaze swept over each of his companions.

"If I'm not mistaken, the enemy's next move will be a major one."

Upon hearing this, everyone's expressions grew grim.

They weren't fools and understood the implications of Rozen's words.

"The Pope remains hidden, yet offers the reward of revealing the truth of the world's creation to the victor, gathering all the top Sky Wizards from the various floating cities to Vebel."

"Meanwhile, Zeth has begun moving openly, and making contact with me is just the first step. His ambition is now exposed without reservation, which likely means he is fully prepared to challenge the rulers of humanity."

"Currently, Vebel can be roughly divided into two factions: the Pope's faction and Zeth's faction, both of which are starting to openly confront each other."

"This is why the Pope is recruiting manpower from all over the world."

"This is why Zeth is trying to recruit me before anything else."

Rozen laid out his thoughts one by one.

"The Pope has probably figured out Zeth's true nature and knows he plans to strike against him. That's why she's hiding and quietly gathering forces to prepare for a showdown with Zeth. Hence the Sky Wizards Martial Arts Festival."

"Zeth, on the other hand, wants to use this opportunity to expand his faction and show the world his power, conquering humanity as an absolute ruler."

"Both sides are now playing a global game of chess."

"And we are the only wild card on this stage."

Hearing this, everyone nodded heavily.

"So, what should we do next?" Yuri asked.

Rozen gave a succinct answer.

"Wait."

"Wait?" Kanata, Chloe, Mena, and Yuri were all taken aback.

But this was the best course of action.

Because...

"We know how dangerous Collapse Force users are and how much of an advantage they give the enemy. Humanity is utterly outmatched, currently at a complete disadvantage. The Pope's faction surely understands this as well."

Rozen smiled subtly.

"And the only ones who can deal with Collapse Force users are those who also possess Collapse Force—or those who possess comparable power, like High-Grade Mana users."

In other words, Rozen is an indispensable asset to the Pope's faction and the only threat to Zeth's faction.

"Zeth's faction has already made contact to eliminate me as a threat. It's only a matter of time before the Pope's faction approaches us as well."

Rozen's tone was filled with intrigue.

"We can decide our course of action once we've weighed the strength of the Pope's faction."

After all, while stopping Zeth's plans was the goal, whether or not Rozen should join the Pope's faction was still up for debate.

Rozen wasn't naive enough to casually pick a side.

If the Pope's faction was trustworthy and aligned with Rozen's interests, then he wouldn't mind cooperating with them.

If not...

"I'll will bring down Zeth myself."

That's how it was.

Seeing Rozen grinning, Kanata, Chloe, Mena, and Yuri exchanged glances and then smiled wryly.

Though they had plenty of questions, Rozen's calm attitude put them at ease, and they unknowingly adopted the same composure.

Their instincts told them that as long as they followed Rozen's lead, they would ultimately achieve victory.

Such was the leadership and charisma of the Hero of Humanity.

And so, no one said anything further.

Thus, the first day in Vebel came to an end.