Chapter 1240: Until Next Time

A few days after the mission at the Corrupted Volcano, Adam and Fromund left the Bastion Opard.

Since they were in no hurry, they used fighter jets, which were much less expensive than teleportation.

Sure, it was long, but Adam and Fromund decided to use this method.

They rested well at the Bastion Opard; it was the first experience of this kind for both of them. The Bastions were not radically different from the Citadel, that was obvious, but they were not the same places.

From time to time, differences were visible because the Bastion Opard has existed for over 200 years in its current form. After the World Wipe, much will change, but that is a matter for the future, the near future.

Over several generations and two hundred years, with the passing of generations, each place acquired unique features, and the Bastion Opard was no exception.

A few days were not enough to see the whole picture, but Adam and Fromund did as much as they could.

As soon as they realized that their recovery was almost complete, their desire to explore the Bastion Opard disappeared, replaced by an urge to head out on their next mission.

Fromund was one step behind Adam, as he had not yet created the First Grand Star, but that would happen soon enough. They both knew it.

‘Hmm,’ Adam hummed as the outlines of the Citadel appeared in the distance. ‘Come to think of it, besides Fromund, there’s also Katrin, Nessa, and Alexia. They were all very strong, at least they were my equal when we last encountered each other. I wonder what’s going on in their lives now?’

In fact, Adam was curious to know only one thing. Were they as strong as Fromund? He understood that statistically, only a small fraction of Phantoms reached his level, but none of them were ordinary Phantoms, especially Nessa.

But none of them were ordinary Phantoms to begin with. Not Adam, not Katrin, not Fromund, not anyone else Adam had encountered on his journey.

He had a list of formidable opponents he had to defeat to become stronger and survive, but he had allies as well.

Sure, every Phantom was his ally in the fight for humanity, because in the face of the World Wipe, any conflicts between people ceased to matter, even those as long-standing as between the Upper Ring and the Lower Ring.

“By the way…” Adam’s gaze dropped lower. “The Lower Ring, Risha… She’s pretty strong, too. And, doesn’t the Lower Ring have four Second Rank Phantoms?”

Adam knew only one of the strongest people in the Lower Ring — Wilfred. However, he knew nothing about the others and did not know what stage they were at.

‘If they’re all at the same level as Damien and Frida, that’s very good, but if they’re like the heads of the Twelve Branches, that’s also good… Hah, after all, they are the Second Rank Phantoms.’

Tap.

Fromund tapped Adam on the shoulder.

“Hey, it’s time to go!”

Adam blinked as he looked back. They had already landed. Adam had been so lost in his thoughts that he hadn’t even noticed.

“Yeah, sure. Let’s not waste any more time.”

They got out of the fighter and stood at the edge of the wall. In the distance, soldiers could be seen, both regular patrols and those monitoring the massive turrets. They were ready to fire if the White Threat Monsters got too close to their targets.

Adam glanced at the heavy turret, its black metal frame, energy core under the hull, and massive cannon.

At the beginning of his journey, Adam thought that with time, technological progress would reach a point where ordinary people, trained soldiers, would be able to fight the monsters on equal terms with the Phantoms.

‘But now I realize that’s impossible. They have all the latest weapons, exoskeletons, cannons, and so on, but the most they can handle are the White and Green Threat monsters. It’s just not enough,’ Adam thought as he clenched his fists.

True, the weapon was becoming more powerful, and technological progress was active, because in this matter, the World Wipe was not as big a problem as in other instances.

All the latest developments and blueprints were stored in the Zero Day Vaults, both in the Citadel and in the centers of the Bastions, but that wasn’t enough.

Perhaps with the special equipment created by Refesa, the military had a chance even against some of the Blue Threat Monsters, but her weapons used the energy of artifacts, it wasn’t pure technological power.

The whole problem was that the Blue Threat Monsters were nothing compared to the Lords.

If humanity didn’t have a single Second Rank Phantom, a single powerful Lord could destroy the entire Citadel. There was no doubt about that.

“Agh…” Fromund sighed deeply, enjoying the view before him. “You know, it’s like I’m looking at the same lands as in the Bastion Opard, but for some reason everything looks different here, much better.”

Adam smiled bitterly. “Well, this is our home, isn’t it? Neither you nor I were born in the First Ring or into some noble family, but we were lucky to end up here in the Citadel.”

“Hah, you’re right.”

Then, with a broad smile on his face, Fromund turned and held out his hand to Adam.

“In that case, see you next time, right?”

Clutch.

Adam squeezed his hand tightly.

“Yeah, no doubt about it. I don’t know if we’ll be Second Rank Phantoms by then, but we’ll definitely be stronger than we are now!”

“As you say!”

Thus, Fromund left, intending to meet with Arayna to plan their next steps. He had to catch up with Adam and was going to do so very soon.

Adam had to do the same, but one thought made him look to the side, at the building on the edge of the Citadel where his journey had begun—the Morton Observatory.

‘Aiden Henk… and his laboratory. Hah, if I had been born in any of the eight Bastions, I would never have become a Phantom, would I? Only in the Citadel are there bastards like him.’