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Bad News

After hearing all the stories and precautions related to the system, I crossed the Gate and returned to Earth.

As I stepped into the room…

Woooong!

As if it was waiting for my return, the golden Gate fluttered.

The surface rotated, its volume decreased, and the flash dispersed.

And so, the trace of the Gate disappeared completely.

As soon as I used the key, it melted into the air and disappeared. The only thing that proved that I entered there was the artifact in my hand.

[Sephirot Guardian Bow]

‘I should test its performance at least once soon.’

After putting it properly into the snake inventory, I recalled the things I heard from the spirit.

‘She said that the reason they led successors by creating such micro-dimensions in that way is to avoid the system’s tracking methods.’

I knew because I already experienced a few times how far the authority of the ministry spirit was.

The system couldn’t track my deviant location from that dimension in real-time, nor could they read my thoughts or memories.

Unless it was an exceptional case of choosing a special reward such as an EX-Class item, it didn’t seem to intervene by monitoring it in real-time. Crucially, it couldn’t even read what my unique skill was.

At least it was limited that way for the spirits I had met so far.

‘I should be more careful from now on.’

The story of the being I met at the small dimension shocked and awed me, yet it also somehow terrified me.

I asked how she gained so much knowledge, and according to her answer, she was merely responding to the memories buried in the depths of my subconscious.

Like looking at some sort of a mirror, it was as if I conversed with another me that I wasn’t aware of.

‘What the successors of my previous lives have not yet figured out about the system is why it suddenly began to function strangely and how it got contaminated.’

She suggested that it was still dangerous for me to dig around looking for clues about it or trying to figure out the mystery behind it.

If the other person thought so, it meant that the collection of experiences buried in my unconscious mind had also been judged.

I thought about it in the room for a while, but I realized that there was only one thing I could do right at that moment.

‘According to the spirit, the thing that I desire now is inevitably connected to the objective of this life.’

When I thought about it, I realized I had never doubted my life’s purpose before.

When I was living my past life as Choi Seung-Hyun, I didn’t even have a single grain of Mana, but I struggled day and night to prevent the Earth’s doom regardless of my weakness.

The first thing that I worked on, even when I was reborn as Seo Jin-Wook, was to kill the enemy of my past life, and after I completed that task, I only focused on twisting the depressing future without taking any break.

Even though an old man in his 80s was reborn as a young man in his 20s, I had no intention of enjoying the life I started again for a bit. I still didn’t have any, even at that moment.

I acted like someone who was being chased by something.

‘Is there a reason for everything that’s happened, will happen, and is happening all this time?’

Then, there was no reason for contemplation or hesitation.

I only needed to push through, faithfully trusting the direction that I was heading to.

‘I have no other option but to trust my choices as much as I can.’

To protect our world, we had to quickly finish the tutorial and move on to the next level: the main quest.

However, in order to do that, there was a precedential condition that must be met first.

Gulp!

From the snake inventory, I took out a metallic cube. I observed it for a while before I contacted Secretary Kim through the terminal.

“I will need a reservation for accommodation, please.”

He replied with a question, looking curious and interested at the same time.

“Under whose name should I make the reservation?”

I answered.

“Edward Danton.”

The guru of the black markets around the world and the godfather of Washington D.C.’s lobbyists…

That was the Senator’s real name.

*

A few days later.

“So, this is… that thing you talked about?”

I invited the Senator, Chief Technology Officer, who oversaw the U.S. R&D Center of Danton Corporation, and a key research team under his wing to Korea for a meeting.

The Senator planned to come to Korea to pretend to lobby me in the first place, so the process went by swiftly.

“It’s truly jaw-dropping.”

Jonathan Gray, the Chief Technology Officer, spoke out of pure amazement.

He was a great scholar who was also the Head of J/V’s U.S. research institute.

The production of the first model of mass-produced artifacts was also carried out under his general provision.

“Will this work like this even without the Guild Master later on?”

“Yes, all you have to do is instill Mana into it. It doesn’t require an elite hunter, so there won’t be any difficulties on your part.”

What I took out in front of them was the highest class of all the artifacts I had ever acquired.

[Imperial Army Tactical Fortress Construction Kit (Rank: EX)]

– Item Description: The key power of the Sebrarian Imperial Army that made any space into a battlefield at the user’s will, is the kit to construct a tactical fortress. The completed fort is unable to pass through Gates due to its mass and density. It would be wiser to begin the construction in the dimension where the fortress will be operated.

※ Precautions: Administrative measures under no. 100-1-6888 of the Business Regulation restricts the complete manifestation of its performance. Suppose the dimension on which this kit is operated is in the tutorial phase. In such a case, the number of complete forts that can be constructed will be limited to one. The condition will be applied regardless of whether construction materials have been secured.

“A Tactical Fortress… When you were talking about it through the call, I was wondering what kind of nonsense you were talking about since it’s way too extraordinary to be believable.”

I injected Mana into the item that the ministry spirit handed over to me after limiting its functions.

After that, light shot out of the cube that had a size that could be held in both hands.

As soon as I placed it on the ground as guided by the message, the rays of flash divided into two; one coagulated in a circular form right on top of the sphere, making a sphere created out of light, and the other made a giant hologram window-like object.

I could see that the hologram style was very similar to the Mana screen that the ministry spirit was looking at.

However, it was different in the sense that even people without [The Successor’s Eyes] could see it and its contents.

“So, correct me if what I understood it the wrong way, but…”

Senators spoke in a voice mixed with awe.

“That screen-like hologram is a kind of manual, right? It shows what materials and how much we need to build a fortress?”

“That is correct.”

“And we just put the material that the hologram demands into that circular sphere of light? Like pouring ingredients into a pot?”

“Well, it’s not the metaphor I would’ve gone with, but it’s accurate enough to describe it.”

I wondered how it would function as a production kit, but as I activated it, it was a lot more intuitive than I thought.

As if playing a game, one just needed to supply the necessary materials and put them in that light sphere.

All other complicated processes were nullified and omitted. There was no need for engineers or construction equipment. Complicated calculations, actual measurements, polishing, and assembly were no longer required.

The hologram was clearly telling us that we just had to pour all the ingredients it required into the sphere. After that, the light bulb would produce a giant tactical fort in front of us like a magic box.

‘It’s a very thoughtful approach. It’s as if it’s… hastening the civilization and the species that got this item. It’s like it’s trying to say that it’ll show us a sample here, so we have to study it as much as possible carefully..’

Assuming that that was the intention, I spoke to the two.

“Unfortunately, the explanation is in Archid language, and you will need to check it by regularly tearing an Analysis scroll.”

Jonathan replied, saying not to worry about it.

His eyes shone with intense determination and fiery passion.

“Thanks to the generous budget you provided, you don’t have to concern yourself about that at all!”

There was also a video of what the completed tactical fortress would look like in the hologram, and the Senator could hardly take his eyes off of it.

“You’re saying that if we do finish it, we’ll be able to make something like that?”

We should not stop at simply making the fortress.

We needed to study its principles to develop Earth’s civilization even more at a fast pace and to build the base to handle the main quest.

“According to the item, that’s what would happen.”

To sum it up in one word, it was quite close to a floating artificial island.

It was an aircraft carrier in the sky that was plastered with various long-range weapons and could fly with a large number of Awakened aboard it.

I spoke to the Senator.

“I was thinking if we could put a large amount of J/V money into procuring construction materials to build that for the time being.”

“Why do you need to ask me about that? Of course, I agree.”

“I will cooperate and provide the materials available only in dungeons.”

“No, you’d better not mind that.”

Senators made eye contact with me and spoke in a serious tone.

“By the look of it, we don’t have to waste the time of a person as big and busy as you. I would rather just outsource the S-Class hunters.”

He spoke determinedly.

“So, focus on doing something more important…. Although it’s hard for me to even tell how far the plan in your head has reached by now.”

I replied with a smirk.

“A job like getting another item like that?”

He was so quick to respond.

“Yeah! EX-Class items! I didn’t even know such things existed!”

I looked at the Senator, who was relaying calls everywhere, and the Chief Technology Officer, who was talking seriously with the researchers that came along. While doing so, I pondered in silence for a while.

‘Adam and other species call the items with the Imperial keyword ‘heritages.’ That’s not the right expression. For most people, the birth and destruction of the Sebrarian Empire is not a thing of the past. They think of it as an event that will happen in the future.’

Naturally, items called heritages did not come directly from that era.

Those were reproductions made by many of my reincarnations in conjunction with the system in the past.

They had reproduced the incredible invention that would be created in the future beforehand.

The reason was evident.

‘When a civilization that has gained strength during the tutorial phase gets its hands on something like that, of course, it will take it apart and study the principles. It’s some sort of out-of-place artifacts, after all.’

They were all super-civilized mysteries that emerged against time.

‘In that way, my reincarnations and systems in the past encouraged and urged modern intellectuals to develop faster. It’s all for the sake of shortening the development speed that would’ve taken forever at this rate and eventually become a seed for the greater empire.’

But from a certain point, things started to be out of tune.

The frequency of discovery of ruins, which should have been much higher by then if it had continued with the trend, had begun to decrease.

The change’s timing coincided with when it was confirmed that if the successor were identified by the system, that cycle would fail.

‘It wasn’t that the reincarnations were controlling and managing the entire aspects of the system.’

They had no such luxury for it when they were completing their destiny as well.

‘That is why they granted automated authority for certain aspects. They allowed it to develop alone by itself. As artificial intelligence, that is.’

That must be one of the reasons why the plan went wrong.

‘She said that it’s still out of my power to dig deeper into it…’

I sensed that in the end, we would have no choice but to crash into each other.

*

“Do you have time to spare?”

As I returned to my office, parting ways with them, Adam knocked and pushed his face in as if he had been waiting for his turn.

“Ah, it’s been a while. I heard you were looking for me?”

I frowned slightly, recalling what Secretary Kim said.

“I heard you were involved in something troubling… What is it?”

At that moment, Adam made the darkest expression I’d ever seen him make.

“I bring you bad news and even worse news. Which one do you want to hear first?”

“… Bad news first, I guess.”

What the hell was going on?

That was the first time I saw him showing that kind of attitude.

Adam sighed deeply, then spoke.

“I must apologize first. This was my mistake.”

“What do you mean?”

“My plan to get rid of that Mercadius bastard utilizing the observer. The intent of fighting fire with fire was good, yet it failed in the end, right?”

“You already talked about that.”

There was no reason for him to apologize again for the thing that already failed a long time ago. It was all spilled milk anyways.

But Adam was not done talking.

“No matter how much I think about it, I think I’ve done a useless thing. I went to my hometown again this time.”

“Mmhmm.”

“The Union’s audit team was waiting for me there.”

“What?!”

He spoke, trembling with anger.

“The reason why I took some time returning was that they caught me.”

“Can’t you deny them since you’re part of a neutral dimension that does not belong to the Union anyway?”

“I told you. It’s the strong ones that bully. If the other side comes out that way, we have no choice but to follow.”

He continued to explain.

“They already knew that I had come in contact with the observer that wore the shell of a dog. According to the transmission the poodle sent to the Union headquarters before it died, it was said that a question about Mercadius was included.”

The headquarters must have answered to only observe without attacking him prematurely.

“But then right after that, the observer died.”

“…”

Things seemed to have gone a little different from what Adam and I expected.

An observer in the shape of a toy poodle did not go to arrest Mercadius. The headquarters just gave instructions to observe him. Hence, it should have only monitored him from afar.

But it nonetheless died.

“They were already certain that I had leaked the information to the observer. So, I couldn’t deny it as well.”

Unbeknownst to me, a sigh poured out.

“Things turned out troublesome.”

Wouldn’t the Union be aware of Adam’s plans for the assassination method of fighting fire with fire?

As I expressed such worries-

“Oh, that doesn’t mean that’s the source of the headache. There’s nothing wrong with the act of reporting to the observer. I did nothing but provide information about what they were assigned to do.”

“That’s a relief, then. So, what’s the problem?”

“I had no choice but to talk about this while I was being interrogated. About why I was following Mercadius with interest.”

Perhaps?

“Yeah. Because there was already content that the observer had reported, I had no choice but to mention your name as well. I have to apologize again.”

So, that’s what happened.

I shrugged and replied.

“We can’t do anything about that. Go on.”

Adam spoke with a serious glance.

“Soon, the audit team will head to Earth. And… They want to proceed with a meeting with you. They want to hear more about what happened between you and Mercadius in the past.”

As soon as I heard that…

Without realizing it, I couldn’t stop myself from looking at the red Mana lingering in my heart.

It was the traces of the curse that had yet to be completely erased- the seeds that Mercadius left behind.