Gaia nodded. {I ran four filters through the entire Akashic Record database, each time selecting for a different quality that would benefit the empire specifically, as well as humanity in general. First was loyalty, second was their opinion of the empire, third was ambition, or in less polite terms, corruptibility, and fourth was how motivated they would be to benefit humanity by bettering the lives of the people. The ones that filtered to the list in front of you are the ones that scored in the 90th percentile or higher in all four categories, with at least one in the 95th percentile or higher.}“What happened to the rest of the candidates?” Jeremy wondered.{That depends. The majority of them were assigned to lower positions in the various agencies, but a few were passed to Nyx for further investigation and monitoring. We may be able to know everything there is in a person’s head, but the imperial code doesn’t cover thoughtcrime. But that doesn’t mean we can’t predict the likelihood
{The second-to-last item on today’s schedule is the military,} Nova said. {With the designation of Mars as ARES Command, Lab City is in the middle of the final push in materials science to develop a new alloy that’ll turn the entire planet into a fortress. The design is finished and will include surface domes and a tunnel network that delves all the way to the solidified core, where we’ll house the necessary reactors and quantum superclusters. Work on that front has already begun and the mobile atomic printers we deployed reached the halfway point two days ago.}“How long will it take for the necessary advances to be completed?” Aron asked. “If necessary, I can join in on the research and cut the time down by quite a lot.”Only Nova knew that he was talking about purchasing another knowledge from the system. She thought for two whole nanoseconds before answering, {That won’t be necessary for now. The research should be completed within a month or two, Lab City time. There are better t
“Alright. On to the elephant in the room. How should we deal with the awakened?”Youssef and Jeremy remained silent. Neither of them had any idea of the full situation at all, having only been ministers for a few hours now, so to throw out suggestions now would simply show their inexperience rather than their abilities. One thing they had realized, however, was that the emperor was an awakener himself. But how was that possible? He hadn’t been absent at all, let alone for the weeks it would take to undergo an awakening!Still, it didn’t matter, so they pushed the thoughts about that until later when they at least knew what they should know as ministers.Aron could see the thoughts on their faces, but didn’t care. As the highest level members of the government and part of his inner circle of advisors, the two had a valid need to know about everything save the existence of the system. “From the data Akeso collected, it seems they’re already capable of immense destruction if they’re trai
After the meet and greet with the rest of the council was over and everyone had familiarized themselves with each other, the council room was left empty and dissolved into the qubits from which it had been created.The two new ministers were in turmoil, each of them considering many different things. The meeting itself had been extremely productive, which surprised Youssef; he was too used to meetings where the main focus was on snatching credit and being seen by upper management rather than resolving issues and enacting plans. Conversely, the emperor, despite his lofty position, was willing to involve himself in even the most minor details of the operation of the empire. Not that he was a micromanager, either, but he had actually listened to the advice and suggestions of his advisory council instead of stubbornly insisting that his was the only voice that mattered.Jeremy, on the other hand, had no experience in society and had felt that the council meeting was more akin to a group
“By the way... when do you think His Majesty became an awakener?” Jeremy askedYoussef thought for a moment, trying to come up with a timeline in which the emperor could have awakened without noticeably being absent from the public eye. But he couldn’t remember a stretch of even a week since the founding of the empire where Aron hadn’t made an appearance. “If it happened after the empire was founded, it was probably in the first few weeks. But that isn’t feasible either... so he must’ve awakened much earlier than that.”The younger man nodded at the idea that Aron had awakened before founding the empire. He hadn’t made that many public appearances at all up until The Last War, only showing himself when it was absolutely necessary, he was forced to do so, or when he introduced his first products.“Even if he did awaken earlier, it just goes to show that he’s a very patient man and seems to have hidden it quite well. I can’t think of anyone I personally know that wouldn’t parade their n
Lab City.Aron was in a lab, his focus on a smartphone-sized brick of metal. His fingertip was tracing back and forth on its surface, leaving behind line after line of glowing golden rune script.“No, that’s not it...” he sighed, tossing the brick over his shoulder, where it landed atop a waist-high pile of other metallic bricks of similar size and shape.He leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes, his perception turning inward in meditation until he saw his runic heart. It rhythmically pulsed, flashing a dark gold light with each cycle of contraction and expansion. Over the past ten weeks he had spent in Lab City, he’d been deciphering the trillions of lines of rune script that had been carved into his heart by the system, focusing on increasing his library of useful runes beyond those imprinted in his memory by the knowledge he’d bought from the system.What he had discovered was... absolutely nothing. He still couldn’t grasp how they worked or what they were supposed to do. Wo
“Shit! Run, you fucking idiots!”Master Sergeant Jose “Tekillya” Cuervo was in a ruined city with the rest of Reaper Team 22. It had started as a nice, quiet little metropolis full of busy little worker bees going about their day, until a supervillain had kidnapped the son of the city’s mayor. Reaper Team 22 had been sent in to neutralize the criminal, save the child, and prevent the situation from spiraling out of control and escalating to an absurd level.Obviously, something had gone wrong. Tekillya fervently cursed Murphy as he ran at top speed, the shadow of an entire skyscraper surrounding his team. As it turned out, the kidnapper was part of a team of criminals, and one of them had ripped an entire skyscraper off of its foundation and simply thrown it at the hapless reapers.Naturally, it wouldn’t kill them if it hit them. It wouldn’t even really cramp their style all that much, much less part their hair on the wrong side, but it would still be embarrassing. After all, who wou
The world was still in the recovery phase after the economic and financial crash. Thanks to an immense amount of stimulus and other aid payments on behalf of the government, companies had been hiring people in droves, driving down the global unemployment rate by quite a lot.However, due to the disparity in education among the population of some former countries—either as a result of devastating wars or just plain bad leadership—some areas were still suffering. The economic growth seemed to have passed them by; after all, if they don’t know a program exists to help them, how can they be helped? Thus, they were only surviving on life support thanks to the Coeus Foundation donating funds and building free clinics and schools and such. But recovery in the worst areas would still remain slow until their education levels caught up to the global standard. And that, unfortunately, was a problem that only time could solve.Among those areas still in the grip of an economic downturn was the fo
“Seraphina,” Aron began, his voice steady but carrying an undercurrent of authority, “I’m not your enemy—unless you choose to make me one. I understand your anger, your frustration. You’ve lost control of a situation you believed was firmly under your command. But this predicament wasn’t my doing—you’re here because your leader chose to sacrifice you. What I’m offering you isn’t a chain—it’s an opportunity.”Her sharp eyes narrowed, the intensity of her gaze unwavering, but she held her silence. Aron leaned forward, his own gaze unrelenting as it met hers.“You can continue resisting, pushing the boundaries of the mana oath, and enduring needless pain. Or…” He paused, letting the words linger like a challenge. “You can choose to turn this situation into one that serves us both. Your strength, your insight—these are not things I wish to suppress. Quite the opposite. I want them refined, amplified, and put to meaningful use.”He motioned toward the table, where Nova was still doing fina
[Colosseum]Aron and Seraphina stood motionless, maintaining the same distance as at the start of their faceoff. Neither had moved, even during the spectacular fireworks show that followed Aron’s acceptance of her surrender. The only exception was Aron briefly waving to the citizens of his empire watching the broadcast, many of whom were overcome with emotion, crying in celebration of their historic victory. This event marked the first-ever interstellar combat they had participated in, and despite their lack of experience, they emerged as the sole victors.As cheers of triumph reverberated among his people and the disbelief of others lingered, the broadcast concluded. The moment Aron secured his final victory, the Arena itself was officially handed over to him as part of his reward, along with control of the AI referee. Without hesitation, the AI complied with her new owner’s first command: to end the broadcast. Aron had more pressing matters to attend to—a private conversation with a
[Meeting Room]Inside the Zelvora mental network, an oppressive silence hung over the gathered representatives around the meeting table. The events of the day had left them all stunned, their minds racing with the implications of what had transpired. These were not just any representatives—they were the ones who had signed off on the agreements, the architects of their civilizations’ participation in this contest.Now, they were confronted with the brutal outcome of their decisions.Many representatives sat deep in thought, their faces betraying various degrees of fear, frustration, and resignation. Those who hailed from civilizations steeped in selfish political traditions knew all too well the grim truth: scapegoats would be needed. Someone would have to bear the brunt of the blame for the humiliation, anger, and setbacks their civilizations had suffered.For many of them, the path forward seemed bleak. In the best-case scenario, they might lose their positions, exiled from the corr
To say Aron was surprised would be the understatement of the gigaannum. The announcement had obliterated every scenario he had meticulously crafted in his mind. In all his time spent in simulations, preparing for countless contingencies, not once had he considered the possibility of the Xor’Vaks surrendering—least of all without a fight.Their pride in their strength was legendary, surpassing even the vaunted arrogance of the Valthorins. For a race that reveled in their dominance, surrendering, especially on such a grand stage, was unthinkable. This sudden reversal of expectations hit him with such force that he could practically feel the metaphorical veins in his temple throbbing from the sheer shock of it all.The audience’s collective astonishment mirrored his own, but none felt it as acutely as Aron, whose carefully laid strategies now seemed almost laughably over-prepared in the face of this unanticipated twist.The largest part of Aron's shock wasn’t just the surrender itself bu
The minutes passed quickly for the viewers, their eyes glued to Aron as he sat unmoving in the same meditative position for over fifteen minutes. Speculation ran rampant on both sides, fueled by curiosity and tension.For those in the Empire, the consensus was that Aron was in VR, likely meeting with family or key figures. Many debated who he might be speaking with, guessing that he was either calming worried loved ones or strategizing for the next fight.On the other hand, viewers from the Astral Conclave harbored a mix of anxiety and intrigue. They questioned whether Aron was recuperating in preparation for the upcoming battle, enhancing his focus and mental clarity, or if his recovery from the previous fight was incomplete and he was still in the process of healing.But their speculations ceased to matter as Aron opened his eyes with five minutes remaining in the waiting period. Calm and deliberate, he removed the glasses from his head, placing them back into their container. His n
The moment the fight was officially declared over, Nova acted without hesitation. She immediately dispatched the collector ship, equipped with a medipod, to retrieve the Trinarian fighter's body. Simultaneously, she ensured Aron could rearm himself with a fresh set of nanomachines. For the first time, this process was being done openly, marking a significant shift.Previously, nanomachines had been classified technology, their existence kept strictly under wraps. However, that secrecy had been unintentionally broken when Nova used them to cover Aron’s exposed body during a critical moment, prioritizing his dignity over confidentiality. As a result, while the technology remained shrouded in mystery, its existence was now officially acknowledged, albeit without disclosing any further details.Aron retrieved a small canister from the ship and opened it, revealing a liquid-like substance inside. Pouring it onto his hand, the substance behaved unnaturally, defying gravity as it began to sp
"Him alive is better than dead, right? I can use his live brain data to study how they use their spatial abilities—it might even help accelerate my plans if things go as intended," Aron said as he stood over the fainting Trinarian fighter.{True, having him alive presents opportunities. But dead men cause no problems, while the living carry infinite potential for chaos—especially one like him. If our spatial lockdown isn’t enough to fully contain his abilities, he could use them long enough to cause catastrophic damage, even if it means enduring the backlash,} Nova replied, her tone laced with caution. She wanted to ensure Aron was fully aware of the risks he was inviting by sparing the fighter's life.Usually, Nova would have been in favor of keeping him alive—it meant more data for her to process, analyze, and extrapolate from. But spatial ability users were in a league of their own when it came to danger. Even a dead one would yield enough data to at least satisfy her curiosity for
“Nova,” Aron called out in his mind the moment his eyes snapped open, rapidly collecting information and orienting himself, realizing he had finally left the enigmatic place the system had sent him.“Nova,” he called again, this time aloud, his voice carrying a commanding weight as it echoed faintly in the arena. Receiving no response to his first call, his sharp gaze shifted to his surroundings. It didn’t take long for him to notice his current state—nearly naked, save for the swarm of nanomachines that had begun assembling around him.{The system had ejected me, sir,} Nova’s voice finally came through, calm but slightly delayed as the nanomachines completed their task. They prioritized covering his lower body, forming a sleek pair of trousers, as there weren’t enough surviving nanomachines to reconstruct full armor. His chiseled upper body remained exposed, glistening under the lights of the Colosseum, much to the awe and unease of the spectators.Nova’s pragmatic choice left Aron l
Following Nova's orders and the AI referee's approval, the mana stone carriers swiftly began moving toward the Colosseum. As the first ship arrived and entered, it wasted no time, promptly unloading its entire cargo of mana stones before departing to make way for the next carrier to do the same. The process was conducted with remarkable efficiency, ensuring a steady flow of mana stones into the Colosseum without any unnecessary delays.The process continued as over fifty ships unloaded their cargo of mana stones, an act many from the Conclave viewed as both excessive and wasteful. With each successive ship, the pain of the Conclave's viewers grew, particularly when the fifth ship alone had already matched the quantity of mana stones used during the Colosseum's initial construction. Yet, they didn’t stop there; instead, they went on to unload ten times that amount, as if mana stones were an endless resource, leaving the Conclave citizens bewildered and horrified by such apparent extra