Becoming a Shadow in the New World

The longer Alexia stared, the more determined Sid became to act.

Just as Sid decided to take action, Alexia suddenly looked away and sighed.

"How could I possibly doubt you, Pochi, who would abandon your noble dignity for money? What am I thinking? Am I out of my mind?!"

Has this crazy woman finally realized she's mentally ill? If she does, she should take the initiative and go to the hospital to see a doctor.

Staring at Sid's confused and bewildered face, Alexia really couldn't see what Sid was pretending about, or rather, what qualifications Sid had to join the Diablo Order.

His title is only that of a baron, and he is unlikely to inherit the position of head of the family.

As for talent... she couldn't see any talent in her Pochi. Does being able to act like a dog without any bottom line for gold coins count?

In terms of strength, and I'm not bragging, based on the strength Sid has shown so far, even if her Pochi has hidden strength, she could level up Sid and then use drugs to level up again. She's confident she could easily defeat her Pochi.

Based on this deduction, Alexia completely abandoned the idea that her Pochi had secretly joined the Diablo Order behind her back.

However, we still need to be careful. If Pochi really is a member of the Dia Cult, then we'll have to use physical means to force Pochi to wake up.

Although it can be explained by the saying "wise men are often suspicious," I still feel that she was so stupid just now!

Alexia, who was covering her face in her inner world, and Sid, who was still thinking about how much force she had just used, fell silent.

"Alexia, who is this gentleman? You two seem to know each other quite well. Could you introduce me to him?"

A voice broke the silence, drawing the attention of both of them to the speaker, who was none other than Beta, who was all smiles at that moment.

After calming down, she had given up on the idea of ​​killing Alexia, mainly because she wasn't confident she could fool Lord Shadow.

It's not worth it to kill such an ignorant princess who only gained the favor of Lord Shadow by luck and briefly became his girlfriend.

Hearing Beta's words, Alexia frowned, feeling displeased, but she understood that Beta had a point, so she patiently introduced the two of them.

"Sid, Sid Cagano, the second son of the Cagano family, barons of the Kingdom of Midgar."

Previously, she studied at Midgard Magic Sword Academy just like me. In order to keep up with me during World Fusion, she trained hard and was able to transfer to the school I am currently attending, Rainbow Ocean Campus.

Natsume, just call Pochid Sid, don't give him any random nicknames.

In the end, Alexia secretly gave Natsume a wink.

"Um, I don't remember... It's okay."

Sid opened his mouth to correct a mistake Alexia made. He didn't transfer schools to keep up with Alexia; he was forced to transfer by her sister. Alexia's statement sounded a bit like that of a sycophant.

But Alexia blocked Beta's path by turning to the side, and then, from an angle that Beta couldn't see, pulled out a gold coin from a rather tricky angle.

Do you think you can buy me off with this little bit of money and make me lose my dignity because of my vanity?

Sid wanted to say that, but she had given too much.

"This guy, Natsume, is just a novelist. He's nothing special."

Unlike when he introduced Sid to Beta, where he tried to connect himself with every possible relationship, his introduction of Sid to Beta was extremely perfunctory.

"Sid, may I call you Sid?"

"Yes, of course, Natsume."

Beta, you did it! You did it! Not only did you call Lord Shadow by his name, you also got the merciful Lord Shadow to forgive your offense, Alexia. This might be the only good thing you've ever done in your life.

"Tsk, although I told you to call Pochettino Sid, can't you be a little more reserved? Where's your usual defiance towards me?"

Ignoring Alexia's calls from the side, Beta suppressed her excitement and continued speaking gently.

“Sid, you don’t need to call me Natsume. My real name is Beta, and Natsume is my pen name.”

"Beta? Hey, Natsume, how come I didn't know about this?"

"There are so many things you don't know, where do you get the confidence to say that?"

Oh, and also, our relationship isn't that close yet, so please just call me Natsume.

Unable to bear it any longer, Beta retorted. Knowing that what Beta said was indeed true, Alexia, feeling guilty, could only change the subject in annoyance.

"Alright, that's all for the introductions. I have some things to say to Natsume, so I'll be leaving now."

Feeling guilty and influenced by certain peculiar emotions, Alexia, who usually lingers with Sid whenever she encounters him, now only wants to quickly pull Natsume away from Sid to prevent this spirit, whose attributes largely overlap with hers, from affecting her.

"Actually, I don't mind at all. In fact, I think Sid and I are quite compatible."

Hmm... I'd like to spend more time with him. Alexia, why don't you bring Sid along too?

"Are you serious?"

Staring at Beta in disbelief, they were about to talk about the Diablo Order. Did they want to kill Pochi by bringing him up?

"No, no, if Pochi is here, he's probably waiting for someone else, so he probably doesn't have time to keep you company. Natsume, if you feel lonely and want to find a man, I can recommend a few to you with just one phone call after it's all done."

“Do you want to die!!!”

Alexia rejected Beta's proposal without hesitation, and even made up an excuse, claiming that Sid was busy and couldn't get away.

"Actually, I'm quite free right now. The person I'm supposed to pick up has run into some unexpected trouble, so I probably won't have to wait for her."

At this point, Sid glanced at Beta, and Beta lowered his head, not daring to meet Sid's gaze.

"Of course, I firmly believe that my friend did not do it on purpose; she must have broken the rule because of some accident."

Beta raised his head again, his eyes seemingly flashing with light.

"This was the gift I originally planned to give her, but now it seems I can't give it to her, and I don't like reading this type of book."

If you don't mind, I'll give it to you as a gift for our first meeting (our long-awaited reunion), how about it?

He lifted his hand so that Alexia and Beta could see what he was holding, then handed the book to Beta and gave Beta a subtle hint.

"Of course, Dark... no, I mean I'm honored to receive a gift from you, Lord Sid."

I love this gift very much. I will cherish it as a testament to our love. I believe today will be an unforgettable day for me.

Ahhh! ! !

Dark... no, this is a gift from Lord Sid. This is a gift from Lord Sid. It seems to be the first time Lord Sid has given me such a formal gift.

Can the other seven Shadows do that? Can they receive gifts from Lord Shadow? No!

Yes, I am the only female protagonist in "The Chronicles of Shadow Masters", only me!

Thinking about all this, and with a slight tremor of excitement, I accepted the gift from Sid.

The moment she accepted the gift, she, who usually prided herself on her superb acting skills and the ability to easily fool a bunch of cunning and shrewd executives, couldn't suppress the smile on her face at all, revealing a genuine smile that was pure and innocent.

Yes, in Alexia's eyes, the smile Beta was showing at that moment was her true smile.

Unlike the standard smiles they usually cultivate for etiquette and social interactions, this was a genuine smile, unpretentious and simply born of happiness. Perhaps because they were of the same kind, Alexia could tell that.

It sounds simple, but for people like them who frequently attend various social events, taking off their mask is incredibly difficult.

Without masks, how can they smile in front of people they don't know or even dislike?

Why is she worried about Natsume? Shouldn't she be the one worried about now? It looks like her pet Pochi is about to be kidnapped by someone else!

At some point, the initiative that was originally in Alexia's hands had slipped away from her, with most of it going to Sid, and the remaining small part to Beta.

Judging from the current atmosphere between the two players, she's clearly an outsider!

I'm annoyed, extremely annoyed.

Even knowing that the two people in front of her were an ally from whom she currently obtained most of her intelligence, and a friend who knew her true colors, she still felt genuinely uncomfortable.

Under the influence of her emotions, Alexia even felt her head getting a little heavy.

"Hey, if I remember correctly, this is the first time you two have met, right? Natsume, don't act like you and Pochi are old friends."

Seeing the two of them gazing at each other with affection after receiving the gifts (from Alexia and Beta's perspective), Alexia couldn't stand it anymore and interrupted their eye contact.

"Also, Pochi, I advise you to stay away from this woman. She's no good."

After interrupting their eye contact, Alexia turned around and started badmouthing Sid, trying to reduce Sid's affection for Beta, but she didn't notice that Beta was staring at her blankly from behind.

My scene in "The Chronicles of Shadow Lord" where the male and female protagonists exchange tokens of love was... interrupted, and this damned woman is now badmouthing me to Shadow Lord!!!

Before the brain could even process it, the body had already acted according to the owner's first thought.

The slime liquid instantly formed a black blade, which was secretly extended from the palm of his hand. He mobilized all his magic power and swung it at a single point towards Alexia's back.

Feeling the movement in his body, Beta came to his senses and tried to retract his attack, but... he couldn't.

The attack was now too close to Alexia, only a centimeter away, and she reacted far too late. Under the force of the attack, she simply couldn't stop it.

Even if she disregards the damage to her body and forcibly removes her power and withdraws her magic, Alexia will still either die or be crippled.

So... we can only pray that Alexia doesn't die so easily. As for the explanation to the outside world, we can just say that she was suddenly controlled.

In an instant, she had figured everything out. Just as Beta was about to forcibly withdraw most of her magic power despite the strain on her arm, her body suddenly felt as if it were imprisoned... no, as if it were encased in cement. Although she was alive, she couldn't move and couldn't even breathe in the outside air.

"the world!"

Time in the world has stopped.

Feeling a slight headache, Sid looked at Beta, pressed his temples, and asked a question.

"Have you calmed down, Beta?"

Chapter Ninety-Six: The World Where Time Stands Still