"How about turning them against each other, making them compete to give you the technology?" Rina suggested, after taking a moment to gather her thoughts and reflect on everything she had learned.That was all Aron needed to hear. He immediately grasped where Rina was heading with her explanation, but he didn't interrupt, letting her finish in case she presented something he hadn’t considered."From what you’ve said, even though they operate under a conclave, they're still competing with each other. So, as long as the incentive is right, they'll likely hand over the technology willingly—and might even be pleased to be the ones who do. Offer them a deal: whoever provides you with the technology gets a permanent ten percent discount on all mana stone transactions, as long as the stones are used directly by that entity and not sold to others. With that, the stronger ones might hesitate, but the weaker factions will scramble to deliver the technology. They'll rationalize that we'll get
Aron stepped out of the pod after spending several hours inside, now far more knowledgeable about the Astral Conclave than before. With this newfound understanding, several uncertainties that had previously clouded his thoughts seemed to vanish, as though a fog had been lifted from his mind.But despite his newfound knowledge, none of the decisions he had made earlier were altered. In fact, his conviction to stick to them had only strengthened. The primary reason for this resolve was now hovering directly in front of him, reinforcing his belief that his choices were the right ones.In front of him was the description of the mana oath, now registered in his system the moment the knowledge entered his mind. This integration also allowed him the option to upgrade the oath if he wished and paid the price for it.[Mana Oath (Low-Grade)The Mana Oath is a basic magical contract that binds two or more parties through the essence of mana, enforcing agreed-upon terms with consequences for brea
Once he sensed that the tension had reached a peak, he continued, “As a result, conflict erupted between the two sides... and by the end of the day, we achieved victory,” as he was saying that, he could almost hear the collective sigh of relief from those who had feared they were losing the fight.He paused his speech as a short video played behind him. It began with Xalthar demanding the emperor’s surrender, then shifted to the opening shots fired at the massive ship. The footage showed breaching forces making their way into the vessel, capturing it meter by meter until every section was under control. The video concluded with footage of the recovery process, where captured aliens were being collected and sent back to their ship. As the video ended, the feed returned to focusing on Aron.“With that, I have both good and bad news to deliver,” he said, pausing for emphasis. “The good news is that we won the initial contact and captured the majority of the enemy alive, allowing us to ex
Time has a way of moving at exactly the wrong speed, especially for those who find themselves in a moment of anticipation. For the inhabitants of the solar system, it felt like time was speeding by when they desperately wished for it to slow down. In the blink of an eye, twelve days had passed, bringing them to thirteen and a half days since Xalthar had sent out his message. The countdown was almost over.Despite all the preparation, no one in the military felt confident that things would unfold as planned. Their extensive VR training had shown them that when facing the unknown, unpredictability is inevitable. This awareness kept everyone on high alert, a state they were able to maintain with ease due to their rigorous training. It also helped that they had already entered their military pods a week prior, ensuring they were mentally primed for the upcoming confrontation.To humans, death evokes a tangle of emotions. Sometimes, we long for it to rescue us from despair, while other ti
A brief silence fell over the battlefield as both sides took in the data that was still being collected by their sensors, with the other side immedialtely realizing that Xalthar the person who brought them here has already being captured, making their work harder than inntiatily expeted as not matter where he is they had taken an oath to rescue him and they had to keep that oath no matter what.At the same time they were also surprised by the sheer numbers displayed before them as despite it being lower than them by maginiutes it was still beyond their expectations. The only one unfazed was Aron, who stared passively at the massive number of enemy forces without a hint of emotion on his face as even if the number on the other side doubled it would still be within his expectation."Start sending the broadcast signals," he instructed calmly, aware that this was the only window he had before the chaos began. Once the other side finished analyzing their surroundings and pinpointing allie
In the next five seconds, silence gripped the Conclave forces as they struggled to process what had just occurred. The concept of a black hole was something they had only studied from afar, a distant cosmic phenomenon at the center of the galaxy, safely observed but never experienced. Now, faced with the unimaginable reality of being caught in its devastating force, panic set in. The terror was overwhelming—horror-inducing, will-breaking, and utterly impossible to combat.Ten seconds later, the urgency hit them. With only fifteen seconds left to respond or face another round of annihilation, chaos erupted. Frenzied shouting filled the air as soldiers and commanders alike screamed for their leaders to surrender. Discipline, rank, and years of training were forgotten in the face of imminent death, as the overwhelming fear of being obliterated consumed them.They were prepared to sacrifice their lives for their civilization, their organization, or any cause they believed in—but only if t
The imperial first-line fleets reacted instantly as the incoming missiles and spells entered the point of no return. They launched their own counterattack, deploying smaller missiles, which were accompanied by a barrage of sleek, black spheres. These spheres spread out in all directions, tasked with intercepting the incoming threats from every possible angle, given that the attacks were converging from multiple vectors in space to bypass potential defenses.While the missiles handled the initial phase of interception, the sleek spheres communicated and coordinated seamlessly with each other. Each one generated a hexagonal shield, which linked together to form an interlocking barrier around the fleet. This network of shields braced for impact, prepared to handle the incoming mana-powered attacks that could not be countered through conventional methods alone.The first attack to challenge the hexagonal shields was an immense ball of fire, burning with such intensity that it could melt m
From a two-dimensional perspective, an observer witnessing this conflict would see two sides engaged in entirely different battles as a result of the ongoing attacks. The imperial forces remained focused on thwarting waves of incoming assaults, while the Conclave forces were also caught in a defensive struggle against attacks that seemed to emerge from thin air.The invisible enemy skillfully capitalized on the gaps created by the Conclave forces, who had spaced themselves apart in preparation for a potential rush after the imperial forces were defeated. Their attacks, launched from these positions, caught the Conclave by surprise, throwing them into a scramble to respond effectively.As the Conclave struggled to counter the incoming assaults, they faced the daunting task of not only stopping the initial attacks but also preventing breaching pods from infiltrating their ships. At the same time, they had to focus on eliminating the stealth forces that were orchestrating the offensive.