Chapter 332: Remnants of Time (1)

Two days after the Defense Force’s coup, where Commander Edmus Treffen’s ambition met its destined end.

Agent Deputy Director Pallard was in his office, fighting a fierce battle with incoming phone calls.

“…I already told you about that. We only received formal approval from the City Council for this specific incident…”

“Reinforcements are difficult. Right now, our personnel are stretched thin just dealing with the aftermath of the Defense Force.”

“What? Some city council members want a quick distribution of the spoils? You mean the mobile fortress’s military supplies? Why on earth would they be involved?”

CRASH!!

“Damn it!!”

As soon as Pallard slammed down the phone, Hina, whose head was wrapped in bandages, placed another stack of documents on his desk.

THUD!!

“This is the last of it. It’s about 200 current status reports on complaints and approval proposals. Just read them all and sign.”

“I see why the Director lady abandoned her perfectly good position and ran away,” Pallard muttered, picking up a pen with a haggard expression.

“Every time something happens, they dump it all on us to handle…”

As an intelligence agency directly under the city government, Aegis was a group of superhumans relatively free from the Prohibition Edict, and one of the few specialized forces capable of directly intervening in the underworld of the megacity.

Therefore, the city government naturally transferred the on-site work and administrative processing of incidents in the outer districts to Aegis.

Until now, they had managed to muddle through such incidents, but the coup that occurred just two days prior was a serious matter that couldn’t be handled so casually.

With all eyes in the City Council focused on it, missing even a single document would surely lead to being summoned to City Hall for a harsh dressing-down.

“If I’d known this, I would’ve pretended not to notice if the Commander fired a missile or two into the restricted zone. Then the Prohibition Edict would be lifted much faster, and we wouldn’t have to suffer like this…”

“That’s a very useless and dangerous statement.”

“Is Agent Evelyn Marcia still out of contact?”

Hina nodded meekly.

Pallard clicked his tongue in displeasure.

“So, she’s not even going to send an interim report after getting such a long vacation? I might need to re-evaluate her diligence as a team leader.”

“You’re not saying that because you don’t know why the team leader went to the North Continent, are you?”

“I know. Most intelligence agencies that need to know probably already have a rough idea of what happened… Oh, damn it.”

“What’s wrong?”

Hina turned her head to see Pallard frozen, holding a single document.

“Senator Jekiel’s directive has come down.”

“Jekiel? You mean that…”

The City Council, which wielded the highest power in the city. And within it, the Upper House, which was no different from a playground for powerful figures who had lived like nobles for hundreds of years.

Jekiel was the name of a senator who commanded one of the top three most powerful factions in that Upper House.

“They want a thorough investigation of Van’s personal information to be sent up the chain,” Pallard muttered, pressing his forehead.

“It’s a direct line. Senator Jekiel has clearly started paying personal attention.”

“Did he hear about what Van did?”

“There were an unusual number of witnesses during this incident. It would have been difficult not to stand out. But I never imagined they’d move so quickly…”

What Lennok did in the mobile fortress assault wasn’t merely limited to assaulting the fortress.

He infiltrated the fortress alone, lured the Defense Force into friendly fire, and used that as bait to pursue and subdue Commander Treffen.

In that process, he completely destroyed a fortress without anyone else’s help, and then survived the chaotic battlefield he encountered immediately after.

The achievements from this operation felt unrealistic just by listing them.

The mere fact that such a directive came down before a proper report had even reached the higher-ups proved how seriously the City Council regarded this matter.

“Hmm…”

Pallard, sweating profusely and agonizing over the decision, finally made a difficult choice.

“City Council matters should be handled by City Council members, right?”

“Deputy Director?”

“Let’s toss it to Councilman Meyer.”

“…”

Ignoring Hina’s cold stare, Pallard pretended not to notice as he found Meyer’s contact information and picked up the phone.

“…He’s not answering.”

Pallard, beads of cold sweat trickling down his face, looked up at Hina.

“What should I do?”

“Shouldn’t we at least contact Mr. Van first?”

“No, but the problem is… Van isn’t answering his phone either.”

The megacity, Vulcan.

Specifically, District 8, where the city’s core administrative facilities were located.

John Meyer, a City Councilman of the Lower House, sat on a bench on a quiet street.

It was the intersection in the district where the Patent Office was located. As a place where specialized administrative agencies with no connection to ordinary people were gathered, it was relatively free from public scrutiny.

It was an ideal spot for a meeting without worrying about being seen.

That’s probably why he was able to meet that wizard there for the first time.

Meyer thought this, recalling the days he first met Van.

Three years had passed since he climbed to this position, burdened with countless ambitions.

Many things had happened, but Meyer had never once doubted the conviction he felt upon seeing Van that day.

Believing that with such a wizard by his side, any difficulty could be overcome, he didn’t hesitate to make contact when the opportunity arose.

The outcome proved him right.

Commander Treffen ultimately fell, unable to break through the undeveloped zone, and in the process, other council members who had been keeping Meyer in check were successfully weeded out.

John Meyer himself had officially secured the council seat that was initially only temporary.

He was still only in the Lower House, but that didn’t matter.

As the one responsible for this incident and the person who condemned other traitors in the Central Council, he had risen to prominence in the Upper House.

While others would find such attention and scrutiny overwhelming and burdensome, Meyer remained composed.

To climb higher than this, to reach beyond the Upper House, this much was still not enough.

This meeting today was to reaffirm that conviction.

“You’ve been waiting.”

WHOOSH!!

A sound like a slight gust of wind.

A few steps away from the bench where Meyer sat, a sharp-featured young man was sitting, resting his chin on his hand, looking at him.

A jet-black coat that let no light through. The only luminescence emanating from his body was the glowing tip of the cigarette in his mouth.

The young man’s eyes, as he exhaled a long stream of smoke and gazed at Meyer, felt deeper than anyone Meyer had ever seen.

Meyer swallowed hard and asked,

“How long have you been here?”

“Not long. I was a bit delayed confirming a tail.”

Lennok chuckled and replied.

“It seems it’s become difficult for us to meet in places like this.”

“…Indeed.”

Meyer nodded heavily.

“But there was something I absolutely had to tell you, even if it meant taking special time. Please understand my position, unable to leave the central district.”

“Is it about the aftermath of the Defense Force’s coup?”

Lennok said, leaning comfortably against the bench.

“Now that you mention it, I’ve been so busy dealing with personal matters that I haven’t heard properly.”

“I’ll explain it now.”

Meyer said that and briefly told Lennok how things had progressed since the coup failed.

All of the Defense Force’s military supplies and mobile fortress resources were allocated under Meyer’s responsibility. Over half of that share belonged to Lennok, who had achieved tremendous results in this operation.

Furthermore, Meyer, who had purged and driven out internal traitors from the Central Council, officially succeeded to the council seat.

As for the Air Force fleet dispatched to sort out the situation, it was apparently handled quietly because it encountered an uncontrollable variable.

Many things were handled expediently in various ways, but there was no need to explain how much effort Meyer had put into it behind the scenes.

Lennok listened to Meyer’s explanation, nodding quietly.

“I heard the general situation from Jenny. Congratulations on becoming an official City Councilman of the Lower House.”

“Thank you. I say this, but all these achievements are practically thanks to you.”

Meyer smiled.

“No matter how eloquently I spoke in the Central Council, it would have been meaningless if Commander Treffen hadn’t been dealt with in the undeveloped zone.”

“…”

“That’s why I wanted to tell you once again, here today. The reason I seek to reach the pinnacle of this city.”

Meyer’s eyes shone intensely.

“The secret of the Black Consumer Project that occurred 50 years ago.”

Giant city-states built across the continent. The zenith of residential facilities where tens of millions lived.

The crystallization of civilization, built by monsters surpassing humans.

But some knew that this glory would not last forever.

The coming end in a world where the causal loop was closed.

When the heavens opened and monsters from the Outer Seas descended, all life and death would cycle, and the world would meet its end.

The only way to avert this was to challenge Ascension and reach a level beyond the world.

However, there were also those who sought immortality through other means.

The Vulcan Central Council. The handful of power-wielders who held absolute power at the time were not free from that desire.

“They forcibly tried to purchase non-existent lifespans and immortality. The City Council initiated the project, but a considerable number of superhumans also supported it.”

Rogue customers trying to forcibly acquire life. Hence, the Black Consumer Project. It was almost a self-deprecating name.

“Other cities also carried out similar acts, like the Ascension Gate in the machine city of Machina, or the Man’gwi Yahaeng (Night Parade of a Hundred Demons) in the military city of Yorta, but the project in Vulcan was on a different scale.”

“A different scale, you say?”

“I don’t know the details myself. I’m just chasing the specter of that project.”

“…”

“However, the project’s methodology involved the integration of power and ideas that transcended natural law, and it seems there was a key figure who played a central role in that process. I only found that one name in the deepest part of the Council Hall, which I was allowed to enter as a reward for my contribution in stopping the coup.”

Only then did Lennok understand why Meyer had gone to the trouble of calling him and nodded.

Meyer’s biggest goal was to reach the top of this city and uncover the truth behind the Black Consumer Project.

He believed that Lennok, who had made the greatest contribution to this incident, should share the information gained as a result.

“Who was it?”

“Alkaid.”

“…”

At the sound of that word, Lennok’s eyes chilled.

The last message left by The Lighthouse Keeper. He never expected to hear that name here, a name whose trace he could never catch no matter how hard he tried.

“It’s unclear whether it was an individual or a group. Many names were erased from the meeting logs I checked in the hall… However, it’s clear that the disappearance of that entity dealt a fatal blow to the project.”

Meyer, unaware of Lennok’s internal turmoil, continued.

“From that point on, internal strife broke out among the members. After that, it’s as recorded in official history.”

Meyer explained.

“The project was indefinitely suspended. All its facilities and traces were buried and kept secret, and the City Council began dividing and managing the districts to hide their mistakes.”

That’s how the districts of the megacity were numbered and assigned purposes.

“Both those who supported the City Council and those who opposed it were equally exiled to the outer districts. Only a very small fraction of the neutral armed groups survived… Can you imagine how many compromises and deals were made to create the current order?”

“…I see.”

“I will absolutely unearth the secret of this project that defied natural law. If I can get my hands on the secret hidden in the deepest part of the megacity, then surely…”

Lennok listened to Meyer’s words, lost in thought.

Alkaid.

If that unknown entity, whose trace he couldn’t even catch, was involved in the City Council’s project 50 years ago,

Then The Lighthouse Keeper’s visit to this city just before his death wasn’t a mere coincidence either.

The last message left by the Transcendent who had seen through Lennok’s talent and chains, and the truth of this world.

If it was an entity that even a Transcendent challenging Ascension warned and cautioned against, it wouldn’t be strange to compare its danger to the demise from the Outer Seas.

‘Perhaps, Alkaid isn’t just a name…’

Innumerable conjectures and suspicions flashed through his mind.

But instead of dwelling on it, Lennok shook his head lightly and stood up.

It was a problem that wouldn’t yield an immediate answer by pondering here. It was enough to confirm that Alkaid’s actions overlapped with the project from 50 years ago.

That alone was sufficient motivation for Lennok to feel less hesitation in the process of uncovering this city’s secrets.

“What do you plan to do next?”

Meyer said, watching Lennok slowly rise.

“The City Council will accelerate discussions to lift the Prohibition Edict. To prevent such a situation, they’ll likely believe it’s necessary to somewhat destabilize the balance of power. We have no justification to stop them.”

“…”

“Once the Prohibition Edict is lifted, this city will become a complete mess. The underworld, including the outer districts, will be no exception.”

When the overt forces, restrained by the City Council, began to be unleashed, it was natural for the entire city to descend into chaos.

The number of organizations operating within Vulcan easily exceeded thousands, and their intertwined interests spared neither the overt nor the covert.

The Vulcan City Council intended to use this chaos to filter out the power within the city and increase their control.

They wouldn’t greatly consider the number of lives sacrificed in that process.

“…Well, I plan to think about it after some time has passed.”

Lennok pulled out his phone, checked the message on the screen, and let out a light sigh.

“It seems I just got something new to do.”

As if it knew Lennok had just been thinking about The Lighthouse Keeper.

Beyond the lightly flickering screen, Lapis’s name appeared…

The leader who guided the Eyes of Blue, and the Watcher who bore the legacy of The Lighthouse Keeper as the owner of the Lighthouse.

If she, who had built up her organization alone without asking for Lennok’s help for at least two years, had contacted him, there could only be one reason.

Three days after the mobile fortress assault ended. Approximately a month after Evelyn Marcia headed to the North Continent.

Finally, the summons from the Eyes of Blue had reached Lennok.