Chapter 469: Chapter 469

A list of objectives pooled in my head along with a bit of status work. Taking a moment, I allocated my attributes from the fight, finalized my decision, and inspected my status.

Things were looking good.

The Living Multiverse | Level 39,918 (Cap: 46,000) | Current Influence: The Rise of Eden | Class: Sovereign

Strength – 789,155 | Constitution – 796,314 | Endurance – 1,232,700

Dexterity – 532,312 | Willpower – 1,489,506 | Intelligence – 1,095,903

Charisma – 577,730 | Luck – 737,796 | Perception – 423,414 |Awe - 67,361

Health: 38.18 Billion/38.18 Billion | Health Regen: 9.348 Trillion/min or 159.81 Billion/sec

Stamina: Infinite +++++++++++++++++++++++++ | Ambient Mana 123,152 Trillion

Mass: 32.358 Billion Pounds(1.471 Billion Kilos~)

Height: 63'02 |19.25 meters | Actual: 63'02

Damage Res - 99.835% | Actual: 99.835% (Infinity) | Dimensional Res - 100%

Phys Dam Bonus – 1.298 Trillion% | Damage Bonus – 40%

The Rise of Eden - enhances base stats by 30%, increased to 40% for allies within the aura's radius

Mana Conversion(Elemental Furnace Count: 14) - 632.2 billion mana/min siphoned into runes and armor

Overall, my stats continued their steady march. Mana generation, physical damage, and my mass were the biggest winners overall. While the actual differences were significant, I couldn't help but feel stuck. I'd gained so many levels, stats, and skills. Despite those many accolades, I had to rely on quick thinking to handle Ghelid.

I could shatter several mountains with a single strike. What difference did destroying five mountains make versus seven? The enemy would either be vulnerable to that kind of physical power, or they simply wouldn't be. Therefore, I was at an impasse. I could spend an enormous amount of time and resources building my mana even further. Perhaps I would eventually snowball into some godlike being that could challenge the Old Ones.

However, I could just as easily run into a wall where my acquired abilities didn't matter. It would be like playing rock, paper, scissors, but only working on playing rock. I could have my rock move refined to an utter and absolute extent, one that defied all previous conventions for rock. The resilience would shatter all that existed, and it could crush through planets made of scissors, let alone a single pair.

But the game didn't care if I could smash paper. I would lose by the definition of the rules. In many regards, facing Kryaa felt that way, as did facing Ghelid in his domain. It was a matter of rules versus my execution of them. Instead of trying to get better at this game and how I played it, I needed to change the game I was playing, one that operated on fundamentally different underlying rules.

To that end, I established a set of goals for Amara, where we exchanged our cipheric knowledge. If she changed her outlook, we could level her up quickly before grinding out runes for a few months. The end goal would be to update my runes and elevate their bonuses beyond mere stats. I wanted them to rival trees, perks, and maybe even skills, but no matter how I handled that process, it would be a long road.

Even after months of research, I only came up with better rune carving methods. Quite a few, actually, but they needed more complex runes to work. In that regard, I had hit a wall. I couldn't construct a tree or perk using my runes, and the barrier between my knowledge and Schema's felt insurmountable.

Outside of system-like benefits, I had to get a grip on my dimensional abilities as well. Hell, every other conflict had the word dimension slapped onto it, after all. Being a living multiverse had given me a leg up, but I had to get with the program. Besides my unused potential, I relished another hidden bonus - Schema's involvement.

Ever since my return from L-7, Schema had changed his approach to me. Before, the AI acted stingy and selective. He hadn't handed out quests, restricted what counted as experience, and stopped me from learning skills. The worst element was Schema restricting my primordial mana for years. That crippled my progression at the time.

Nowadays, Schema handed out quests like candy, and they carried no drawbacks. Gone were the days when every quest set me against an evil faction or stopped me from leaving a planet. They actually aligned with my current goals and even offered direction where I had none. My current quest was a great example.

I had no idea what to do next after killing Ghelid. I would've returned to my base and tried to randomly fly around. The quest offered direction, so I knew how the planet worked, what needed to be done, and what to communicate to my guild members. It left me confident on a path, and I cherished that after having no guidance for so long.

At this rate, I might even have enough cores to some to my guild as rewards. At the very least, it would be a start. Speaking of, I took out the glowing core that Ghelid worked on. I tried inspecting it, and boom, the system actually did its thing.

Radiant Nucleus of Stillness | Enchantments: Cold, Hardness, Inviolability, Purity, Serenity - Ghelid strived to create a perfect stillness, and this radiant nucleus is a near-perfect incarnation of the concept. This object is an altered blue core. It has been covered by innumerable leylines gathered from nature or Schema. Ghelid held eldritch in place for centuries, and he channeled their life force and desire into this object.

It has become a corrupted core over time due to this influence. The leylines covering it stabilized this corruption, elevating this into a pseudo-magenta core. While lacking the enormous, solar-spanning powers of a magenta core, this nucleus can create profound effects on reality.

That was an interesting bit of information - the tier above blue cores was magenta, from the sounds of it. The enormous core on L-7 had been black like a blackhole, so that could be the next step up after magenta. Either way, I marveled at the marble in my hand. It carried an absurd potency, something I felt down to my bones, and even a casual psionic check verified what the status had to say.

Within this vessel, the desire for freedom effused from a myriad of eldritch. It also contained their pain and volition, a haunting reminder of its source. I stared at it with a sad smile. It was a resource that had a painful origin, and I didn't want to use it. At the same time, some part of my being longed for the energy this object held.

That desire manifested from my cells and bones alike, and my armor pulled over my face and drooled mana. My helm's jaws opened, wanting to swallow the core. I pulled my hand away before smacking my armor.

It flowed back, but it left me wondering why I hungered for this thing. Before swallowing it, I stowed it away in my pocket dimension. I didn't want some residual piece of Ghelid infecting my soul or something, so a bit of research was necessary before I started popping pills. Or cores. Well, nucleuses. Nuclei?

My mind wandered to even more important topics before I prepared to harvest all I could from this situation. I wouldn't be left empty-handed after a fight like that. Scouring the area, I found the core that Ghelid said would take him to Earth and inspected it.

Minor Spatial Nucleus | Enchantments: Space Manipulation, Spatial Folding - Spatial nuclei allow the user to manipulate and fold space by using up the condensed principles within the core. This minor variant gives the user the ability to warp across planetary-sized spaces. This can be used in alchemical ingredients, armor, or weapons to spatially modify them.

I cursed at Ghelid and my poor ability to discern the lies of an otherworldly being. After a bit of thought, it was good that I took the situation as seriously as I had. Even if he hadn't reached Earth, Ghelid would have been able to warp to the capital. Unfortunately, I didn't know if the being could've gotten inside the barrier of the city or not.

It wasn't a fact I wanted to find out either, so I moved on, that knowledge in tow. After scouting the area for several more hours, I uncovered thousands of leylines but no more cores. Considering these leylines fed into this odd formation, I returned to where I carved Ghelid apart. Reality had healed, having been torn apart in many ways at this spot, but the echo of its pain remained, my own fabric rippling at the spatial carnage.

Stepping up to the phantom wounds, I pulled out one of my own blue cores from L-7. The radiant orb floated toward the center of the old subspace. The energy from the leylines siphoned into it once more. The eldritch howled far into the distance, and the workers continued mining ice mana.

I shook my head before taking the core out of the ritual site. I could harvest gains from here without having to lift a finger, but was it worth it? I wouldn't want to torture an entire region's life for my gain. It wasn't who I was or wanted to be. Instead, I snatched up the majority of the leylines here.

How? Well, that was one of the best benefits of leveling up - I gained mass. The more I weighed, the more I could store in my dimensional spaces. It was like upgrading encumbrance in a video game. Even if temporary, it was always, always worth it. After all, you could muscle through combat via skill. Encumbrance required time, and that was painful in and of itself.

After a while, another idea popped into my head. I carried a bunch of tiny dungeons with me, but they weren't actually small areas. They were the size of countries, and they could hold stuff within them. Taking advantage of their full utility, I took many of the central leylines and put them into the dungeon spaces.

As I opened them, I winced. My spatial clapping had left portions of two worlds destroyed. Cracks radiated across the endless plains of the firefly world, and a dying sea world still had tsunamis flowing through it that eclipsed the clouds. I wouldn't be using the clapping technique if any of my guildmates were inside one of these spaces, that's for sure.

Hours passed during my leyline harvest, and I grabbed nigh every leyline in

the Frostland's center. No one would stumble onto this hellhole and reactivate it unless they remade it from the ground up. Without anything sustaining the ritual site, the seven-walled glacier began collapsing, and the sluice ran across seven great rivers to different regions of Rebirth.

I smiled at my work. I worried about the glacier melting and creating a great flood, but instead, this torrent harmonized with the regions nearby. Life-giving water drenched several regions, and the creatures of each area lapped at the torrent. Once the vast glacial sheet melted, a few ruins dotted the lowest, unveiled portions.

Swimming through a filthy lake, I found a few broken, splintered remains of skyscrapers and an advanced society. Most of the metal rusted into red dust that painted the water a dull red. The stone powdered down into a fading echo of a once prosperous society, and no pieces of the technology remained.

I held down my disappointment, having hoped to bring amara something more substantial. After all this time, we found a planet that held Builders and other pillars of Schema. Watching it all fade to time and the endless proliferation of the eldritch, it left me bitter. Such a magnificent and grand society fell, one that held an enduring legacy in Schema.

And yet I hoped our planet would last forever. In that moment, I felt small.

I breathed, letting the sensation flow through me. It was something I felt, not acted on. In the end, I had killed a monster that terrorized a continent. It was a good day, one that I chose to remember fondly. Immersed in that contentment, I flew off to the capital of Rebirth.

This time, I took my bullet form and stormed across the land. More hours passed, and I reached the city. I slowed down and landed at its center. By now, the architect golems had completed the entire abode, and the city reminded me of a forested version of the albony's cities. Using Diesel's designs, the golems went with organic materials, and they even marked imperfections onto each material to achieve an aged look.

It felt like a city carved out of the world by nature, or like some benevolent god commanded the stone to mold into a metropolis. I enjoyed it, and I found my living quarters near the top of an inner skyscraper. I sat down in a room mirroring a modern suite before calling in an architect golem. They helped me find places for plants in the space alongside runes to water them at set intervals.

Because I would 100% let the houseplants die.

By the time we finished, it was a verdant paradise. Wafting in the scent of cinnamon and cedar, I shooed the architect golem away. I soaked in the ambiance for a few hours and collected myself. The trip through Ghelid's territory had taken far more than a few days. While I could endure decades of harsh labor, my best work was always done with breaks.

So I took one. For the rest of the day, I called and chatted with Althea, Torix, Kessiah, Diesel, Florence, and even Helios. It was fun to catch up. The next day, I strode out in pursuit of everyone. I found Chrona and Hod sparring outside the town. After the last obliteration of the capital, it was inevitable we'd have to move our fighting out there.

Even if the architect golems could restore the city to pristine condition, leveling the town every few hours wasn't exactly productive. The spar, however, was. They chose one of the transitional patches of ground between different elemental zones. Here, the manas meshed into the essence of life, and a jungle formed where strong eldritch thrived.

Well, used to thrive as Chrona and Hod had cleared the area for their training. The flattened stone was surrounded by tall plant eldritch on all sides, and my two vanguard golems kept them at bay. At the center of it all, Other Hod flipped, darted, and ducked through different shadows. His fleeting form shifted in and out of every patch of darkness, even dodging out of Chrona's nostril at one point.

Chrona stood at the center, doing everything in her power to pound Other Hod to a pulp. She whipped her tail, flashed her fangs, and cleaved her claws until she blurred in my sight. Other Hod was far slower than he was against me since Chrona's time magic slowed him down. However, the few marks Other Hod left on Chrona ate away at her focus, the psionic poison dealing unstoppable damage.

Chrona rotated primordial mana through her body to fight the desert poison, but that left the psionic effects rampaging through her psyche. That crippling debuff prevented her from maintaining her magic's full strength. That created an unstable equilibrium that threatened to shatter at any moment.

They both continued until Chrona's tail made contact with Other Hod's chest. At that point, Other Hod tried dematerializing before having half the bones in his body shattered. He collided with the ground in a quaking boom. A crater formed, and dust plumed. I flew over.

"You guys don't look like you've lost a step."

Other Hod spat out shadowy blood.

"Ah, Harbinger. Excuse my sorry state. As you so aptly put it, Miss Time Dragon is vicious. Evil, some might say."

Chrona glared at him, and Other Hod chuckled. I immersed him in The Rise of Eden, bolstering his healing. It would take a while, but he'd be at full strength soon enough. After Other Hud chugged a health potion and devoured some mana-laden meat, his wounds recovered fast enough to see the tissues mesh together.

It was, oddly enough, a familiar sight. Chrona smiled my way, her teeth pearly and clean.

"So, where were you?"

"I'd rather tell everybody at once, if possible."

Chrona stood tall and peered at the forest.

"They should be back any-"

Opal and Amara rustled out of the underbrush, both of them covered in wounds. Amara held the shields I made for her floating beside her arms. The facemask and gauntlets also covered her face, giving her a menacing, eyeless appearance. That illusion shattered as she heaved for a breath before ripping the face mask off, falling, and vomiting.

Other Hod changed into Hod, who pointed at the pile of refuse.

Other Hod's shadows swallowed their face.

"Only if you practice your magic today."

Hod popped out of the shadows.

I gawked at them, and not only because Hod's hunger outmatched my armor's endless drive to consume. Our eldritch Builder had a different figure, her body losing its emaciated, hollowed-out appearance. She gained lithe muscle all over herself, and it made her look far healthier. Her pale, dry skin smoothed out, her teeth having fallen out and regrown good as new. She even smelled better.

She'd had a glow-up, effectively.

"Ah, there they are."

I inspected them. Opal was the same, but Amara's title had changed.

Amara, the Harbinger's Prime Mover | Guild: The Harbinger's Legion | Class: Builder | Level 9,910

I nodded at her, begrudging respect written all over my face.

Hod popped out of Other Hod.

"Hod know Hod do well."

"You're eating someone else's vomit."

Hod changed back into Other Hod, who glared at me. He simmered his words.

"What? Do you have any idea how expensive feeding that imbecile is? If I didn't let him consume trash or vomit, then he'd sneak food from other sources. If anything, I'm lucky he doesn't like feces."

I shook my head while holding down a laugh.

"It would be a...Shitty situation then, wouldn't it? Eh? EH?"

No one laughed because it wasn't funny.

Other Hod stomped over. He glared up at me.

"You think this is a laughing matter?"

Obviously, I didn't because I was making bad jokes. Other Hod's glowing eyes went distant.

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"The things I've seen. Th-the burps I've burped."

Chrona patted his shoulder with her tail.

"We all eat a bit too much bone sometimes."

Other Hod took a breath.

"Not . Not. Like. This."

Amara took one of the rotating shields, scooped the throw-up, and threw it to the eldritch outside. She snarled.

"Enough talk of vomit."

Opal fell forward as the lights on her body flickered. She took a breath.

We rallied where the two of them had collapsed. I took a moment to let them recover before looking through my storage. I scratched the back of my head.

"Damn. I don't have any potions of any kind."

Opal stumbled when she tried to stand, so she gave up and sat down.

"That's ridiculous. Do you not need them since you're some weird healer?"

"More like I'm forgetful. Anyways, how did you level Amara so much?"

"It was tough work. She's so weak and, er, unprepared for most combatants. Their level isn't helping either, but your vanguards saved us from pretty much any sticky situations. And like, wow, there were plenty of those. Did you know the system had Amara's level reduced to the cap before we unlocked her class?"

I shook my head, and I gazed at Amara's title, her Builder class evident.

"I didn't know, but I can see the class. How in the hell did she unlock that?"

"If I'm honest with you, I've never even heard of it before. It sounds old, though, like one of the big three that most people start with."

Amara tilted her head at us.

"It's obvious I would be given a profession based on my origin. How is this confusing?"

I reached out with a hand before pulling it back.

"Uh, so, it's...Hmm, it's . Schema has been very antsy about giving people access to the cipher. You have a class that revolves around using it and making the most of what it has to offer. If you think about it, you're an eldritch that's snuck into the system's purview, and now you've gotten an exiled class that's given to damn near nobody."

"It's really unlike Schema."

Amara scratched a gauntlet across the ground.

"The system was designed to help your kind against mine. This is the least it may do to help bridge the physical differences between us. Still, what you said has a strange merit to it. Whenever I gained my class, I received notifications. Unlocking it stemmed from the silver-tier rights of your guild. Some tree called Schema's Champion."

I rubbed my temples, straining my memory.

"Wait a minute...Oh yeah, Schema's Champion trees. It's really nice that the tree lets us know when and where it's helping out."

"Transparency is always appreciated."

Opal looked into the forest.

"We're just lucky that Amara has a lot of mana and has a tough body for her level. That eldritch half came in handy more than once, and this gear is extremely good. Like, too good. It's way beyond her level, so I'm kind of surprised the system is even letting her use it."

I smirked as Amara held up her hand. It held one of my rings. Combine its bonuses with her shield and facemask, and she carried immense power for her level. Amara murmured.

"I wear the flesh of the Harbinger. His blood is my strength."

Opal covered her mouth and coughed.

"You're hundreds of years old and still can't take a situation seriously? It makes you feel awkward, so you disperse the tension of my words by calling forth shame on me? Do you think I'll kowtow to something so benign? Pathetic."

Opal rolled her face and facial cross, the expression much like rolling one's eyes.

"Ok, monster lady. Say whatever you like. Anyways, let's talk about something else, like what did you do, Daniel?"

I detailed what I'd done since I left. Before I finished, Opal sat herself up and downed a stamina potion. She honed in on the story, and when it ended, her cross frowned.

"That's...Uhm, how do I word this...Improbable?"

I pulled out the strange core, and it resonated with a different reality. It called out for all to change to its rhythm, and its voice was undeniable. I gestured to it like I was in an infomercial.

"Well, here's your proof."

Opal gawked at it before reaching out with a hand.

I wrapped my hand around it.

"It has a powerful psionic presence. If you hold it, there's a good chance you're mind and personality will be washed away in the resentment it carries."

Opal jerked her hand back.

"Yeesh. Thanks for the heads up, and did you know I really, really hate mind magic stuff?"

I looked at the core.

"Me too. Either way, I wanted your thoughts on this and what we should do next. I'm conflicted on my path forward."

"Psh, what? You follow Schema's quest, obviously."

"Why is that so self-evident?"

Opal leaned back, holding herself upright with her arms.

"Schema's goal is to strengthen us and have us eliminate the eldritch threat as much as we can. It knows how to make that happen in the most streamlined way, so following it tends to be a good decision. If you need to do something else, you can always adjust your path once you need to."

"I've only gotten like...Maybe four quests since I've gotten into the system. In fact, the few I got have always carried some hidden agenda that's more trouble than the quest is actually worth."

"That's some heretical blasphemy you're spouting, don't you think?"

I leaned towards her.

"Ok, tell me this. Where was Schema when Elysium invaded?"

"He sent in armadas, gave us experience bonuses, extra trees, skill compendiums, and the AI even helped us with our evacuation. It did all that while offering us quests that gave us critical information about enemy movements. I had a few, and they were super wordy for no reason except to screw over Elysium."

"Well...That would've been helpful."

Opal's body glowed brighter.

"It's how all the other planets have fared as well."

Other Hod cracked his neck.

"I have helped Helios spill the blood of Elysium, and I promise you that they have received little compensation or assistance."

I peered up at the sky.

"Yeah, man, what the hell? Where was all that support when we fought Elysium?"

Opal threw her hands up.

"I don't know, but Schema was good to us. If Elysium hadn't infiltrated our guild after the lottery, then we would've probably fought them off. It would've been a hard-fought conflict, but it was doable, at least by my guesstimations. Schema is actually why we went to your planet. It gave us a quest to do so."

"Ok, we've had very different system experiences. Regardless, I could follow the quest, but I have other options. I want to make sure those are examined."

"Schema's just trying to help you out, and you're finding a lamp in the dark and asking where it got its oil."

A weary smile traced my lips.

"What can I say? Old habits die hard, and every lamp we've found in the dark has been surrounded by a thousand eyes from monsters skulking in the darkness."

"Why do we speak of lamps and the dark?"

I shook my hand in frustration.

"Look, Opal started the lamp analogy. I just went with it."

Other Hod tilted his head at me.

"But you're the one who took it too far."

I rolled my eyes at Opal.

"My point is that you have a lot of faith in Schema. That AI has already tried warping me into a black hole. I'm not about to forget that because of one quest or class unlock."

Everybody looked at me. I shrugged.

"I don't hold grudges unless I have a good reason. In my opinion, that was a damn fine reason."

Opal peered down. After a moment of thought, she met my eye.

"That...That's awful. I've never heard of anything like that happening to anyone. I'm sorry you've been through that."

Amara let out a cackle.

"Of course you didn't. The dead tell no tall tales. They drift into memory, and memory gives way to oblivion."

"Ok, well, if you don't mind, I think we should stay on the AI's good side for now since, you know, the rest of us will die if we're shoved into a blackhole."

"Fair enough. Now, assuming we follow this quest, how would you recommend conquering the Frostlands?"

Opal's fiery hair rippled behind her.

"Hm. If it were me, I'd probably focus on starting up a media campaign to advertise a Speaker-led program to clear the area. That's how it's done whenever you have a big empire. You offer up the land, resources, and eldritch as a reward for clearing a place out. Once that's done, you take taxes from the area while granting them some vanity title."

She furrowed her cross.

"You'd be amazed how hard people will work for that vanity title. If you call the same laborer a pauper, they'll barely work. Call them an Earl, and some of them will work themselves to the bone, even if they're effectively the same in social standing, freedoms, and responsibilities as the pauper. Actually, there are entire professions dedicated to that kind of, er, mass informational obfuscation. Ooh, big words. Anywhoo, the class is a variant of the Speaker class. What were they called? Hm, oh yeah, Advocates."

"We called them politicians in our world."

Opal leaned back in horror.

"Even the word sounds evil."

"You have no idea how right you are."

"Can we talk about the territory and its clearing?"

Opal leaned away from her.

"Ok, sheesh. For us, I would recommend we take the golems, go out, and clear dungeons. It should take a few decades at most and-"

"Decades? Sheesh, what kind of timeline do you think we have?"

"I assumed a century. That's the standard we've seen for clearing a fringe world, and this definitely fits the classifications for one."

Chrona furrowed her brow.

"You've cleared over fifty worlds, so you've lived for over five millennia?"

Opal nodded. Chrona tilted her head,

"I don't mean offense by this, but you act childishly for someone your age. Why is that?"

Opal's cross curved up.

"No offense taken, and actually, thank you for the compliment. I try to keep my spirit youthful. That's something I've noticed with lots of millennials. They become set in their ways and lose their love for life. I never wanted to be like that, so I've fostered my sense of wonder and animism. I love to hear that my efforts aren't in vain."

Amara raised her gauntlets to Opal. Our Builder murmured.

"What makes you think that a carefully curated facade implies a youthful demeanor?"

She hugged her knees to her chest.

"You get to decide who you want to be and how you act. You can say I'm lying or being fake, but I think it's the opposite. I've created a harmony between how I act and who I want to be. That means you see what you get, which is a lot better than most people."

Opal's hair frolicked about.

"That's because most people are driven, at least in part, by their instincts. They say and do things they don't mean, and a lot of what they do is outside their awareness. I have had enough time to reflect on those subconscious factors, and I've made my habits reflect who I wanted to be."

Opal tilted her head at Amara.

"Besides, it's pretty idealistic to try to be someone. That's the definition of being young if you ask me."

Amara frowned, her teeth glistening in the sunlight.

"Hm. You carry more depth than the puddle you present."

"Never judge a light under the sun. What matters is how it burns in the dark, but look who's getting off-topic now?"

Opal turned to everyone.

"Ok, Dungeon clearing. If you're looking to expedite the clearing process, you might be able to get it down to five or six decades. Any lower than that is risky since you may leave patches of the world uncleared. I've seen plenty of empires try to rush the process. It never works out well for the populace that tries to move in afterward."

Opal's face wrinkled, the light overlapping over her.

"Entire towns just disappear because of some ancient horror. Dark stuff, I tell ya. That's why I never recommend trying to lower the time for a planetary clearing by going below the standard rate of one century. Like I tell my clients, you don't want the job done. You want it done well."

I sat down with her, and Chrona followed suit. I waved off Opal's concern.

"I'm going to mass produce golems and have them clear out the eldritch. I'll run around and get cities made in the meantime. It shouldn't even take a year, let alone ten."

Opal let out a giggle.

"I'll believe it when I see it, Harbinger, sir."

I flashed the radiant nucleus.

"I can't believe I'm the one who's supposed to be the walking encyclopedia of the group...So that's a, ugh, I wish they had grabbed Marcia. She's way better at this kind of thing."

"If anything I'm saying isn't super reliable, please don't bite me for it later. So basically, that's a weird blue core covered in leylines. Leylines were an old method that the system used to convert and control the mana flows of planets. They were disincentivized after the great war with Baldowah's followers."

"Why? And what is a leyline in detail? They sound useful."

Opal lightly tapped her head with her fist as if forcing knowledge out.

"A leyline is a naturally or unnaturally occurring series of runic formations. They can convert mana into specific subcategories that tend to be more stable. During the war, several methods of abusing the leylines were uncovered, making them easily exploitable to knowledgeable parties."

Opal's cross scrunched up, and her voice went higher and higher.

"This resulted in specialized, smaller eldritch or avatars of Old Ones that could wield the entire force of a planet using certain stones. These stones connected them to leyline conduits that enabled system-breaking powers that even Overseers and the like struggled against. This is why they were discontinued. That discontinuation of leylines was a containment strategy for the eldritch, and it was met with lots of controversy. So yeah, Schema punishes any guild or planet that uses them."

Opal deflated while spilling her words out.

"Since you don't see them much anymore, it's obvious who won out in the long run. You have a clear example of a leylines demerits right there."

She gestured to the nucleus. I held it up with two fingers.

"Then what's the biggest issue with eating one?"

"You'd explode for one thing. Most eldritch can't even do that, and their physiology has been corrupted and evolved to assimilate energy at outlandish rates."

My armor flowed over my face before swallowing the core. I put my hands on my hips.

"An explosion? If that's all, then let's get on to the next topic of discussion. So, Ghelid-"

"Wait a minute. Did anyone else see that?"

The group stared. Amara simmered.

"Just, uh, making sure is all."

Amara left her gauntlets on an autopilot floating function.

"I, too, am curious about Ghelid's origins or how it came to be. It sounds insane."

"He swallowed the nucleus. Guys, he's going to explode."

Other Hod spread his large hands.

"He will be fine. What of this eldritch leader? Are they common?"

"Ok, uhm, they're not super unusual or common. I'd say you see them in one out of seven worlds, depending on the type. They can be aggregates like a hive mind. A Ruhl is a classic example of an aggregate eldritch. They can also come in a boss type, which is what Ghelid falls under. It was a single entity that controlled eldritch through force. That tends to be far more common than the other kinds."

Opal stared into the distance.

"They're also intelligent types that rule through subterfuge and manipulation. We call them deceivers, and they are extremely dangerous. Oftentimes, Fringe Walkers give up on planets that have a deceiver class nesting on them, and we'll even call in preemptive glassings. I've done it twice."

Amara's hair writhed behind her.

Opal gave her an eager nod.

"Absolutely. I know when I'm in over my head. Besides, you've seen my skills, and I'm able to handle myself. Still, if I see anything resembling a Ruhl or an eldritchified avatar, then I'm out."

"Eldritchified avatar? That sounds horrifying."

Opal closed her cross, the glow gone.

"They're some of the worst enemies of all living things in known space. When you combine the wild power of an avatar with the endless hunger of an eldritch, then you get lost space."

Opal massaged her temples.

"It's like I'm talking to preschoolers. Ok, patience, Opal. Patience."

"Look, a lost planet is when a perfectly functional planet suddenly disappears without a trace. When there's a cluster of these planets that disappear, it's called lost space. It's pretty self-explanatory."

I winced. It was a haunting term, one that fitted the situation well. I raised a hand, but Opal cut me off.

"Ap, ap, ap, I'm done explaining stuff. If you guys want lectures, we're going to have to spread this out over our time here. I can't keep doing this. Otherwise, I'm going to vomit."

Hod popped out of Other Hod.

Opal drooped down like a wilting flower.

"Opal...You've chosen this for yourself. Of all things, this. By Schema, what was I thinking?"

"You spoke of a promotion when we traveled."

Opal focused her gaze. She raised a hand.

"That's right. I want that pay raise after all these centuries."

Familiar thoughts clicked into my mind. I raised a brow.

"What's your salary?"

Opal furrowed her brow.

"1.5 million credits yearly. I also have a bonus for cleared planets, and I get royalties on cities I've established. It's 3% of their annual profits."

"I'll double it if you work under my guild."

Opal stood up and gave me a salute.

"I'm in, sir Harbinger, sir. Should we discuss details before formalizing the contract?"

Chrona opened her eyes wide.

"Something I've noticed and am curious about. Why is it that you poach every high-standing member of any guild you come across?"

I leaned back in indignation.

"I don't do that. Name one examp-"

Other Hod raised a large hand. He counted on his fingers.

"Helios. Florence. Technically, you took Althea from Yawm. Chrona and Krog were aligned with Emagrotha. Tera was a member of the albony."

I turned a hand to him.

"Yawm had that coming, and it's not my fault that these empires have underappreciated talents. Besides, who cares about three million credits a year? That's chump change."

Opal stood with her heels together.

"It's actually a pretty standard rate. If it takes me a century to clear a planet, that's 150 million credits apiece. I usually get a 50 million bonus at that point, and then the royalties are more like, er, 40,000 to 50,000 credits a year? They weren't much to start, but now they make up most of my actual income."

Opal put a fingertip to her chin.

"So it ends up taking about fifty years before they've made up their investment, assuming you only count the initial clearing costs. I don't actually set up any of the infrastructure or buildings involved with establishing a planet. All I do is get rid of the amassed eldritch and set the dungeons up for standard clearings."

"Would you set up a course for future Fringe Walkers and be a teacher at Mt. Verner for a while?"

She raised her palms.

"I like my alone time. It helps me keep my sanity. I know that sounds weird, but if I'm surrounded by people for too long, I go stir-crazy."

"Huh. You prefer actual Fringe Walking, then?"

"Yup. Sorry if that's a deal breaker."

I smiled back, a bit reserved.

"I'm sorry, but it is. That's the last thing I need. I want to set my guild up for other Fringe Walkers in the future."

Opal shook her hands back and forth in a flurry of movement.

"Oh, don't mind me. I understand you're just feeling things out, and I can respect that. Besides, it's important to communicate when you're trying to get employed. You need to know what I am willing and not willing to do. That being said, I can be a teacher for a few months and help set up a course for you if you'd like."

"How about three million credits?"

"I'll give you a ring instead. It will likely hold more value over the long term anyway."

Opal leaned towards me.

"Oooh, jewelry? Wait, Opal, don't get sucked into the charming ways of shiny rocks. Ooooh, but it's so hard. Ok, first off, how bright is the ring?"

Amara turned her hand to Opal. A ring of dark metal rested on her index finger.

"This is what they look like. They are not made for their aesthetic, but the stats they grant are immense. That, this gear, and his legacy are how I was able to survive in the forest with you. Otherwise, I would be paste."

Opal crossed her arms.

"They're that good, huh?"

I made one in real-time before tossing it to her.

Opal marveled at the band. She put it on before taking a step back. She let out a yelp as she grew half a foot in height.

"What in Baldowah's name is this?"

"It's not by or for Baldowah. It's a piece of my skin molded into powerful equipment. It carries characteristics similar to my accrued stats. And, well, I have high-ish stats."

"Wait, Amara wasn't being dramatic when she said she was talking about wearing your flesh? I thought it was some weird eldritch metaphor."

I gestured to Amara's equipment.

"Where do you think she got the gear from?"

Opal closed her cross.

"You...You make the gear? The golems? The cities, too?"

"Uh, yeah. You've seen it."

Opal put her face in her hands.

"Why do you even have a guild? What do they even do for you?"

"They organize my home planet. They create a reliable place with the social structures I want in place. They handle all the legal, economic, and informational issues for themselves. They give me a purpose beyond simply fighting to grow stronger. You know, a home to go back to."

Opal looked at the others.

"You guys. Guilds are supposed to support their leader. They enable the ruler and let them focus on strengthening themselves. It sounds like he's enabling all of you instead."

I propped a knee up and leaned my arm against it.

"I can't control my territories without them."

"But why even own the territories to begin with? They can't give you new equipment, materials, or additional economic means. From what I've gathered, they drain you of your personal time without any real way of helping you. In essence, your guild boils down to a bunch of busy work taking care of people."

"That's what a leader does, isn't it?"

"Absolutely not. They usually establish a guild so that they can systematically extract wealth from a populace and the natural resources of a planet. They then use that wealth to build up their own abilities. This is the opposite. You're basically hamstringing your own progress so that you can build up a society."

"Don't be so certain. My golems were made with their help. They were far more mindless when I first constructed them, and I worked alongside my guild to develop them into the monsters they are now. I gain perks for every planet I own as well, and they've added up enough to give me a solid boost in my stats. I've also learned a lot about different techniques from my connections built on having an empire."

"And I wouldn't have gone to the lottery either. Even though I didn't enjoy the trip, it gave me immense gains in my personal abilities."

I peered at my guildmates.

"In that regard, my people have given me many opportunities. It's only right I return the favor."

Opal searched for her words as she spoke.

"No matter where I've gone or who I've spoken with, I've never seen a guild leader who has to be this self-sufficient or that coddles their people as much as you do."

"Thanks. What you call coddling, I call decency."

Opal stuck her hands out to me.

"You're going to end up behind other guild leaders who are focused on their own personal strength. At that point, you're guild can be assaulted and taken over by a strong faction."

I allowed Event Horizon to skulk over her. I didn't eat her mind or mana, but simply allowed the weight of the aura to settle. I gave her a knowing smile.

"Do I feel weak to you?"

"Hm, yeah, it does sound kinda dumb when I say it out loud. You know what, forget I said anything."

I scoffed before hovering myself up.

"Honestly, it's interesting to hear a fresh perspective. But yeah, just to finish the conversation, I want knowledge, techniques, and general practices. The last thing I need is more fighting power. In fact, guess what the most valuable thing I've gained from the luminari has been?"

Opal's hair rippled behind her.

I pulled out some lamps from my storage.

Opal laughed as I stowed them away. I held a hand out while pressing my fingertips together.

"It's this simple. I need a purpose. I need a home. I enjoy fighting, but I enjoy fighting for a reason even more. Besides, in the long term, these investments will pay for themselves. Now, I'm going to go out to the next zone to harvest another core for my armor. It's going to be a zone that revolves around heat and fire, and I was wondering if anyone wants to come with?"

Opal's hands flopped against her sides.

"I know I just criticized you for being generous, but can you be generous and carry me through that area? I think it would be good for my progress since inspiration will be all around me."

Chrona smiled, her teeth glinting.

"You're shameless, aren't you?"

Opal held up her hand, a tiny space between her fingers.

"Maybe just a little bit."

"I like it. I'll go with you whenever you conquer the territory with time or spatial fluctuations. I think I'll uncover more depth to my magics there."

I gave her a thumbs up.

"Sure thing. For you, Opal, I think if we get the right circumstances, we can even get you that class unlock."

"I wouldn't bet on it. Fringe Walkers are notoriously difficult to upgrade, and I haven't been able to push for that even after thousands of years."

I gripped my hands into fists.

"Then let's change that."