Cheri felt as though her heart leapt into her throat. First she was worried that Sylas might have thought that she betrayed him, but then she realized that she had been with Sylas the entire time, there was little chance for her to do so unless he thought that she had before even meeting him.

Then she was worried about the fact Sylas might think her judgment was lacking. He had requested her, point blank, whether she believed anyone else could deduce who he was, and she had all but said no. She had been so very smug and arrogant about it too.

And then she started to worry about just what it would mean for Sylas' identity to be exposed like this.

Her own inner turmoil was hidden well within, but her heart was doing back flips and fluctuating wildly.

Sylas, however…

Was entirely indifferent.

He hadn't asked Cheri that question because he planned to take her answer as gospel. He just wanted to understand how she thought, and as far as he was concerned… she was quite the interesting woman.

She was arrogant, full of herself, and maybe gave herself a little too much credit. She was used to feeling like she was the smartest person in the room, and took pride in how well she hid that most times as well.

It was a curious combination of things to be. She was the sort of arrogant that wanted to be covert and didn't feel the need to flaunt until she was pushed to an extreme.

It was certainly a unique Path of Pride.

However, the way Sylas saw things, if one person could guess it, another person could guess it. Cheri had done her job. Thanks to her, he had been able to get his hands on his parents with minimal effort.

The question now was just a matter of getting out.

And so long as he only had to make sure he was protected… he would figure that out no matter what odds he was against.

"Do you think that you are very clever?" Sylas asked the Matriarch.

Melody blinked. Of all the answers she expected, this was certainly not one of them.

"You don't deny it? How interesting." She eventually said with a chuckle.

"I didn't come here with my face hidden."

"Your aura certainly is."

"Just because your senses are inferior to mine and your Rune Path is lacking does not mean I came here with the intention to hide."

"Oh?" Melody giggled. "I guess the Ancestor of Creation truly does have the right to say such audacious words. But why is it that I have heard that you are only a D-tier?"

"Because it is true." Sylas replied.

Cheri's pupils constricted and Melody was once again baffled.

"I think that it's quite clear that Tier does not dictate strength."

Sylas didn't look toward Elder Bash again, but the intent of his words was clear and obvious enough.

"Hohoho," Melody laughed, leaning back up until she rose at her full height once more, "I may not know exactly what method you used to kill Elder Bash, but I know a use of external means when I see one. And even then, I am only unsure because I was too far away."

"If you would like, I can do it again. How would you like to be a test subject?" Sylas asked.

Melody's eyes narrowed. "Threatening a dainty beauty like me isn't very manly of you."

"You reek of men. There hasn't been anything dainty about you in a very long time."

A flicker of rage passed through Melody's eyes.

If she had known Sylas better, maybe she wouldn't be so angry. Sylas would never spend this long speaking if he had another option. He was only doing so because he was still trying to find a way out.

Melody was correct. He had used external means to kill Elder Bash, that being the Hollow Ship he had received as his World Destroyer Reward. Its ability to hide was even more powerful now that he had perfected his Rune Path.

Normally, it could only hide from those with weaker Rune Mastery than his own. But obviously, now, its hiding ability was even better than usual.

That was also exactly where he had sent his parents.

The trouble was that Melody was right about more than one thing. If she was closer, she would definitely be able to sense it. Until Sylas mastered the C-tier, he couldn't hide from a Legend like her and he was still somewhat lacking.

He was still getting used to his perfect Rune and Void Paths. He couldn't just leap to the next tier already.

This was why he hadn't just hopped into the ship himself. The moment he did that, these elders would have appeared to look for him much the same way they had after Elder Bash's death.

In fact, the only reason he was able to kill Elder Bash so easily was because he had triggered the Lust Seed with a perfect amount of timing. The combination of the stealth of the boat and Elder Bash's loss in strength and senses had led to the perfect kill.

But… even if he managed to do the same to Melody, there were over a hundred other Legends waiting around that would be looking for exactly what methods he could use.

And his Lust Seed would be hard pressed to deal with them all with the same surprise.

His back was well and truly against a wall.

Melody's fury melted away into a smile. "I get it. You men are so territorial all the time. So many in my life have wanted me to themselves. Unfortunately for them, not a single one has been strong enough to command such a thing of me. I don't believe that you are either.

"So, to me… your words sound very much like sour grapes.

"That said… I can give you an opportunity. Not to taste my body, I think I might accidentally break you in half. I mean to leave here alive. It's quite simple, really. In fact, I can give you two options.

"Option one, leave the two Grimblades here for safe keeping, of course. I'll treat them so very well.

"Option two, fuck little Cheri right here. If the show is good enough, I might take it upon myself to give you a passage out."