and so his closest friend's truth & treachery, at last revealed.
I see no way through this fight, as he is consigned to death no matter what may happen. Shadowstone wants Seraphina, and Arvel would see him obliterated before that could happen. And with Valery seeking Arvel's death due to his surname, the only remaining hope is that he can Loop one final time.
The issue from there...being how he navigates these long-running grudges and machinations, keeping them all in mind so that he can counter them where it's most beneficial...and managing the emotional fallout of this latest and likely deepest betrayal.
Because it would be simple to take yet another Loop's worth of accumulated mana and simply annihilate all of those who stand between Seraphina and a 'Happy Ending' all on his own. But I have to imagine he's reaching a point where his body won't be able to actually contain and withstand the amount of power he'll possess.
Plus, Shadowstone might try some fuckey here to entrap him, given he was talking about Avery's mana capacity before now, anyway.
It's just going from bad to worse, it would seem. And while there's the loop to fall back on...it needs Seraphina to instigate it, and they're currently under ....well, a lot, right now.
But, thanks for the TL. Really enjoying this one thus far.