As the glowing particles surged into Morpheus's body, he felt his power grow slightly.
Not by much—just about a million units of Light Power.
For others, this would be a tremendous boost.
But for Morpheus, it was less than one percent of his total strength—hardly noteworthy.
And this was the accumulated energy of the Cursed Wasteland over who-knows-how-many years.
After his purification, the number of evil spirits in the Cursed Wasteland had dwindled to nearly nothing.
Restoring it to its former state, teeming with spirits, would take at least a century.
In other words, this place couldn't be used as a reliable grinding spot.
Oh well, time to leave.
Morpheus took a step, his form turning translucent, and effortlessly left the Cursed Wasteland, returning to the human world.
He reappeared on the same bustling street as before.
The masked man stood in a corner, a flicker of surprise in his eyes as he saw Morpheus materialize, clearly not expecting him to return from the Cursed Wasteland so quickly.
"Congratulations, Captain Morpheus. You have earned the right to participate in the Dark Tournament."
He bowed to Morpheus and pulled an invitation letter from his pocket, handing it over.
Morpheus gave a hum, took the letter, and glanced at it.
It detailed the exact date and location of the Dark Tournament.
The event was set for a month from now.
The location: Kyoto.
"The invitation has been delivered. Please don't be late, Captain Morpheus," The masked man said before vanishing from sight.
A spark of curiosity flared in Morpheus. It was obvious the masked man was connected to the Dark Tournament's organizers.
But who were these organizers?
Should he follow and find out?
The thought crossed his mind, but he shook his head.
Nah, he'd deal with it later. Better to keep some mystery. If he knew everything, what would be the point of the Dark Tournament?
With that, Morpheus dismissed the masked man's whereabouts, resumed eating his ice cream, and continued strolling down the street.
That evening, Morpheus received a message from Nanami.
"Lord Morpheus, if you're free, may I bring a few people to meet you?"
Bring people to meet him?
Morpheus blinked, intrigued. "Who are they?"
Nanami replied, "They're my clients. They've run into some trouble and might need your help."
Morpheus nodded to himself. It probably wasn't about slaying devils or monsters.
If it was, Nanami wouldn't need his help—she could handle it herself.
Don't let her massage parlor fool you.
Nanami was no pushover.
As one of Morpheus's followers, she wielded formidable Light Power and had mastered his magic. Dealing with a few devils or spirits was well within her capabilities.
"Alright," Morpheus said, not refusing. He was idle anyway, so he agreed readily. "Where are you? I'll come to you."
Nanami responded instantly, "I'm at my massage parlor."
Morpheus gave a quick "Wait for me" and, in the next moment, used teleportation magic to transport himself to Nanami's parlor.
The shop was closed for the night, its shutters pulled down.
Inside, besides Nanami, were two teenage girls.
Both wore the uniform of Teitan High School. One had a distinctive horn-like tuft of hair, while the other had a headband, exposing a broad forehead.
They were unmistakable.
Morpheus recognized them instantly.
One was Ran Mouri, the female protagonist of Detective Conan.
The other was her best friend, Sonoko Suzuki, the second daughter of the Suzuki conglomerate.
The two girls jumped, startled by Morpheus's sudden appearance. A person materializing out of thin air was, admittedly, a bit unnerving.
Nanami quickly reassured them, "This is the divine lord I serve. He can definitely help you."
Morpheus didn't ask why Nanami knew these two.
Nor did he question why, when faced with trouble, they sought out Nanami instead of someone else.
After all, Nanami's massage techniques were extraordinary. Anyone who experienced them would know she was no ordinary person.
It wasn't hard to imagine why they'd turn to her in a pinch.
What surprised him was that Nanami openly revealed his true identity as a divine being to the girls.
This suggested their relationship was closer than he'd thought.
Could they be best friends?
Nanami's massage parlor was in Beika Town, and she had a warm personality. It wasn't impossible that she'd become close friends with Ran and Sonoko.
It made sense that, when trouble arose, they'd turn to Nanami first.
Morpheus asked curiously, "What's going on?"
"Here's the situation, my lord," Nanami said, gesturing to the girls. "This is Ran Mouri, and this is Sonoko Suzuki. They're both good friends of mine."
"Ran has a childhood friend named Shinichi Kudo, a famous high school detective."
Morpheus nodded. "I know him. The Sherlock Holmes of the Heisei era, the savior of the Japanese police, always hogging the spotlight on TV."
Ran and Sonoko exchanged a glance, a hint of surprise in their eyes.
Sonoko spoke up, "I didn't expect you to know Shinichi's name, Lord Morpheus."
Morpheus rolled his eyes. "I'm a divine being, not a caveman. A showoff like Shinichi Kudo? Of course I know him."
"So, what's up with him? Missing?"
If that was the case, it meant the Detective Conan storyline was kicking off.
But Morpheus didn't sense any disruption in this world's timeline.
The Detective Conan timeline was notoriously chaotic—Valentine's Day and New Year's had come and gone countless times, yet Shinichi Kudo, transformed into Conan, never aged a day.
It was unscientific but very Conan-esque.
However, this wasn't just the Detective Conan world. It was a massive crossover of countless anime universes.
Morpheus suspected that even if Shinichi Kudo shrank into Conan, the timeline wouldn't shift much.
After all, if even a Magic God couldn't destroy and reshape this world, what chance did a mere Conan have of disrupting its timeline?
That was a pipe dream, harder than become Magic God.
If that was true, didn't it mean Ran Mouri wouldn't see Shinichi Kudo again for at least a decade?
A decade. How many decades does a person get?
***
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