The room was still heavy with the weight of the Tribunal's words.
No one spoke.
No one dared.
But their minds were racing. Everything they thought they knew was just a surface. The real game had always been deeper.
Then, Baba finally broke the silence.
"So, this Tribunal… they were the true masters of every underworld? David was just another one of their pawns?"
MRD leaned back, exhaling slowly.
"Exactly."
Rayyan furrowed his brows, deep in thought. "Then what happened to David? After you erased his empire, he disappeared. We haven't seen a single move from him."
MRD smirked, but his eyes held something deeper. "I let him prepare."
Rayyan narrowed his eyes. "You let him?!"
"Yes."
The weight of that answer dropped like a hammer.
"Why?" Malik asked, his tone sharp.
MRD's golden eyes flickered. "Because when he is ready… he will think he has a chance. He will bring every resource, every secret weapon, every hidden force he has been building. And when that moment comes… I will make sure he never gets another chance again."
Silence.
They understood now.
David wasn't missing.
He was being watched.
Amir leaned forward. "But brother, the real problem isn't David. The real problem is that force from the black hole."
Malik exhaled, rubbing his temples. "I've been analyzing every frame from that moment. The day you lost control. The day your power spoke to us. The black hole appeared, but… I never saw anything come out of it."
Baba nodded. "Exactly. Maybe the Tribunal is just bluffing. Maybe they want us to fear something that doesn't exist."
"No."
The word came from MRD.
His voice was low. Absolute.
"They're not lying."
His brothers looked at him.
"What do you mean?" Baba asked.
MRD's fingers tapped the table. Then, his golden eyes burned as he said the words that shook the room.
"None of you saw anything come from that black hole."
"But I did."
The air turned ice cold.
Baba stiffened. "What do you mean? How?"
MRD leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table.
"That was the day I realized… I can see things no human can."
Everyone sat up straighter.
Sara whispered, "Brother… what exactly did you see?"
MRD exhaled sharply. "I remember asking Amir that day… 'Did you see anything come from the black hole?' And Amir, you told me you didn't. That's when I understood."
"Understood what?" Rayyan asked, his voice sharp.
MRD's eyes darkened. "The thing that came out of that black hole was either too fast for human eyes… or it was invisible."
A chill ran through the room.
"If it was invisible, my eyes could still see it."
"If it was too fast, my eyes could slow it down."
"But even now, I don't know what it truly is."
The weight of his words sank into them like a knife.
Baba clenched his jaw. "Then that means…"
MRD nodded.
"Yes. Whatever came from the black hole… it's already here."
A silence heavier than steel fell upon the room.
They were no longer preparing for a battle.
The battle had already begun.
They just didn't know when it would strike.
Sara's voice trembled slightly. "Then… how did the Tribunal even find this force? Why now?"
MRD's expression hardened. "That… is still a mystery."
"But one thing is clear."
"We don't focus on it now."
"Let it move in the shadows."
"For now, we continue what we started."
"We transform this world."
He stood up, his presence casting a shadow over the room.
"The rest… I will handle."
And just like that, the room exhaled.
Not out of relief.
But because they now knew—the war had already begun.
And their leader was the only one who could see the enemy.
The question was… would it reveal itself before it was too late?