No, more accurately, they were casting their shadows here through some kind of magic artifact, gathering in this manner and appearing here.
That is to say, their physical bodies were not here, but spread across different corners of the Akasha continent.
Yet this did not hinder the gathering of the seven in the shadows, allowing this secretive meeting to be announced and immediately dive into a heated discussion.
"âIce Maiden,â sister! Iâm right here! Look this way!"
Sitting opposite the âIce Maiden,â âGigabyteâ was the first to speak, waving vigorously at the âIce Maidenâ as if he had seen a beloved, his demeanor joyous as could be.
"Shut up."
The âIce Maiden,â however, spoke coldly, her voice filled with disgust and disdain.
"Oh, donât be so cold."
âGigabyte,â seemingly accustomed to this, chuckled and said, "Iâve got some good news for you, sister âIce Maiden.â I finally took that step and am now on the same level as you, you know?"
His words did not elicit any reaction from the âIce Maiden,â but caused the others present to sit up straight.
"You finally took that step, huh?"
âFire Princessâ sounded quite surprised, yet her seductive tone was unmistakable, commanding respect.
"Hmph, I thought you had long forgotten to advance your strength."
âTyrantâ scoffed coldly, sparing no mercy in his sarcasm.
"... You should have taken that step long ago."
âBa Serpent,â expressionless, spoke up, his voice monotonous.
"If you hadnât wasted too much energy on that relic, you could have reached this level a year or two earlier, right?"
âGiant Soldierâ glanced at âGigabyte,â speaking indifferently.
"Donât say that, Iâve already tried hard enough."
âGigabyteâ spread his hands, his expression helpless.
"This is good news."
Sitting in the chief seat, âSky Hunterâ also spoke up, offering a mild comment.
"Very well, this means that all seven of us present now stand on the same level, no effort made by me and âGiant Soldierâ in creating those opportunities for you has been in vain."
Upon hearing these words, all present fell silent.
Clearly, everyone tacitly accepted this point.
If it were not for the opportunities created by âSky Hunterâ and âGiant Soldier,â if not for their substantial support, they would not have been able to secure such influential positions in their regions, leveraging domestic vast resources, and subsequently achieving their current strength.
Although this was also due to each of their inherent potentials being strong enough to seize those opportunities and take that crucial step, without the help of âSky Hunterâ and âGiant Soldier,â it would not have been possible to achieve this so quickly.
Thus, among the seven present, the status of the others was more or less the same, only âSky Hunterâ and âGiant Soldierâ were implicitly a step higher.
Besides âSky Hunterâ and âGiant Soldier,â if anyone elseâs status was considered a notch above, it was probably only âFire Princess.â
This was evident from âFire Princessâ being able to sit at the chief position, just like âGiant Soldier,â on the right hand.
In this situation, everyone quietly listened as âSky Hunterâ spoke.
"How are things going? Letâs report on the progress!"
âSky Hunterâ did not waste words and went straight to the point.
"Everything is smooth on my side."
âTyrantâ was the first to speak.
"...No problems here either."
âBa Serpentâ followed suit.
"Iâve also just come out from the ruin on this side."
âFire Princessâ spoke with a smile.
"Ah, I havenât started on my side yet, just reached a crucial moment for a breakthrough, thereâs no helping it, I had to put the task on hold for now."
Reiger Brillhaut raised his hand, speaking in a flippant tone that earned him discreet glares from the crowd.
"Youâre the slowest again, you brat. When will you ever take things seriously?"
Giant Soldier looked dissatisfied, scolding him as if he were reprimanding his own grandson, his voice laden with the frustration of unfulfilled expectations.
"Forgive me, old man," Reiger said with a bitter smile, "I didnât want this to happen either, but I had no choice. I couldnât just ignore a breakthrough, could I?"
"...Weâll let it pass this time," Sky Hunter said after a pause, adding indifferently, "Next time you delay the progress, youâll go to Ba Serpentâs place to help him deal with the ruins in the Walker Kingdom."
"Spare me!" Reiger immediately surrendered, bowing his head, "Those guys in Walker are tough, nothing like the opportunities in Ginas and Lebrus. Iâd have to be cautious if I went there."
"You still have the nerve to say that?" Tyrant immediately sneered, looking displeased, "You messed up the mission in the Meprus territory last time, didnât you? Because of you, I not only had to start developing that ruin, but I also had to clean up after you. The old man didnât consider my tasks at all and made me send so many people to him. If Lebrus wasnât busy thinking about fighting Ginas every day, I might have been suspected."
"Really?" Reiger said helplessly, "Is the old man that harsh?"
"Did you think I could just stop?" Giant Soldier frowned, "Magic constructs are the sharpest knives in our hands. If we ever come into the limelight, I doubt many of us could bring our loyal followers with us. By then, our only reliance would be on magic constructs. Therefore, the most important thing I should do before your tasks are completed is to produce as many magic constructs as possible."
"...If weâre really short on people, I might be able to figure something out," Ba Serpent suddenly spoke up, "Although Walker is hard to exploit, there should be plenty of loopholes in the small countries surrounding it that are controlled by Walker."
"Are you sure?" Giant Soldier perked up immediately, "If there really are loopholes to exploit, send as many people to me as possible. Iâm really short on materials."
"Shouldnât be a problem," Ba Serpent said coldly, "My tasks are nearly complete anyway. Might as well help the old man sort out the material issue while Iâm at it."
"Good!" Giant Soldier nodded vigorously, smiling, "Youâre reliable!"
"Hear that?" Tyrant mocked Reiger, "Keep this up, and youâll fall out of favor with the old man."
"No worries," Reiger said nonchalantly, "As long as âIce Maidenâ cares for me, Iâm satisfied."
Unfortunately, Reigerâs words fell on deaf ears as Ice Maiden wouldnât even spare him a glance.
"What a pity,"
Fire Princess immediately covered her mouth and laughed, causing Reigerâs shoulders to sag in defeat.
"Hey Ice Maiden, do you have to be that cold? Please acknowledge me, will you?"
Reiger desperately pestered Ice Maiden, who gave him an icy stare.
"Donât talk to me." Ice Maiden said coldly, "If it werenât for you, my mission wouldnât have encountered hitches."
At her words, everyone turned to look at Ice Maiden.
"There was a problem on your end?"
Sky Hunter asked solemnly.
"Yes."
Ice Maiden didnât hide her troubles, simply stating.
"I was injured by someone, all the magic constructs by my side were wiped out, and the mission failed for a while."
Upon hearing this, everyone present was shocked.
"You were injured by someone?"
Fire Princess was the first to express her surprise.
"You were actually injured by someone?"
Tyrant too, was utterly astonished.
"...You didnât use that sword?"
Ba Serpent asked this.
"No, I did, but it still wasnât enough."
Ice Maiden succinctly dispelled everyoneâs doubts, intensifying their shock.
"...Who was it?"
Sky Hunter asked after a moment of silence.
Ice Maiden, expressionless, named someone in front of everyone present.
"Reiger Brillhaut."