Chapter 524: Signature Isolation Framework

They let us into Workshop Number 2 the next day.

No test needed, leaving both Hed and his group, along with the trio of thylarin behind in Workshop 3 even though they are a bit more experienced on the whole.

I enter, expecting to find something different from Workshop 3, but it’s surprisingly similar, the only big difference being the number of war armor parts and level 8 technicians. Even Leth, serving as our guide, seems to have a lot of respect.

I look around, hoping to see Ardenyx, but there are only a few of its parts here; most of the war armor was brought to its own tent to be handled by dedicated technicians.

The rush here is intense, even more so than before. Parts are constantly being shuffled around, materials are delivered, and the machinery remains in constant motion. I see pieces of the arms, a few fingers, plates from the chest piece, and a few portions of the “wings.”

“Hurry,” Leth chastens, putting a stop to our ogling before guiding us to our corner, “You will only be assisting me today, nothing else. We don’t have much time, so I won’t be actively teaching you.”

“Leth, why do we not have much time?”

“I’m sorry, Assistant Sophie. I don’t know much, and what I do know I cannot share.”

“I understand.”

“Thank you. Sophie and Nathaniel will be directly supporting me. Dennis and Aaron, you will take over if either Sophie or Nathaniel makes a mistake.”

We get to work right away, working on the hand and connecting a new finger to it while repairing a bit of damage to one of the other fingers. Leth works incredibly quickly, using a specialized method and an assortment of items that seem to act as keys to unlock the various parts so we can work on them.

The whole experience has the feel of working on proprietary hardware and software protected by passwords, to ensure that only authorized personnel are able to work on it. However in this case it’s probably motivated by a need for security to avoid sabotage rather than because of greed.

Sabotage is a constant worry, and for good reason. Some of the powerful enemy forces are really good at infiltration.

They have to be. The Absolute monster is a mimic, and the others are its kin.

As Leth works—despite his earlier warning—he continues to explain his actions in his normal calm tone. He really is a good teacher. He’s not the most talented, as demonstrated by his extended stint as a level 7 technician, it’s an unfortunate fact that he lacks the skills he needs to push himself higher. But among the level 7 technicians, he’s probably one of the most talented and he certainly loves what he does. There is no bitterness at his inability to break through, and I don’t need Izzy to tell me what kind of guy he is.

Still, even then, he is far beyond any of us. I think we could be considered level 4–6 technicians. It’s hard to say accurately since I’m not sure how they assign rankings here.

Both Sophie and I hungrily take in everything he shows us and almost flawlessly fix the hand, leaving it for a higher-level technician to check over and implement.

After all of this, I still feel fresh, but I notice Sophie and even Leth beginning to look a bit tired. Leth because he did the most work, and Sophie because she doesn’t have the same kinds of passives I do. The twins are the same, even though they're struggling to hold on for as long as they can.

We continue for longer, and they are sent away after Leth determines that they’re just too exhausted. Then it’s just him and me continuing on, moving on to different, and bigger parts, helping other technicians as we go.

At this point, there are rarely any assistants other than me. As before, I follow Leth and support him to the best of my ability. It’s been a while since I activated my Mana Wavelength Iris, and I’m fully aware they might recognize it but I just can’t bring myself to resist.

I reach into my reserves, letting mana flow through my body as my mind endures more and more strain. And I learn more and more, absorbing the information and filing it away in its own place in my mind, keeping it fresh and ready to store in a mana stone once I’m done. 𝖗а𝐍ȯ𝐁Êș

The proper way to connect the different parts. Methods of constructing circuits so they can continue to function even if some part of them takes damage, duplicate layers, defensive mechanisms, nodes, the proper means of connecting mana batteries, using multiple pathways to deliver mana.

I examine more of these artificial muscles they use to move the armor. They’re made of an incredible material I can’t quite comprehend, durable yet elastic and highly sensitive to mana. It feels so flesh-like that some part of me wonders if it might be possible to heal them with the proper application of mana or with help from a healer like Lily.

And as the hours pass, I realize Leth is beginning to succumb to exhaustion first, and not just because he did the bulk of the work. Even though it doesn’t come up too often, my mid-arcane passive is simply incredible. My Mental Attunement Loop, my experience, my extreme mana reserves, my Physique, my eyes—all come together to make me very good at this.

Finally exiting Workshop 2, Leth takes a deep breath of cold air, “Good job today, Assistant Nathaniel. Please take a good rest; there is so much to be done.”

He doesn’t give me an opportunity to answer before he heads off toward his own tent, and I return to ours.

Once there, I find myself greeted by the colder weather in the hall before making my way into the living room, where Izzy’s flames are keeping the area warm. I noticed it even while working, but it seems like the entire Exoria deployment camp has started using less mana for its functions, almost like it’s going into some kind of battery-saving mode.

“So, what happened?” I ask, forming a manablock chair before taking a seat.

“Ardenyx’s pilot died an hour ago,” Tess states, refusing to beat around the bush.

“I’ll take over. Rest a bit,” I say, looking over at Izzy as I start generating my own heat and place a set of thermal orbs around the room.

“Thanks,” Izzy says, flashing me a weak smile and lying back on the couch while pulling the sleeping Biscuit closer. Noodle even expands slightly so that she can use his body as a pillow.

Otherwise, there is only Lily and Min-Jae here; the rest seem to be doing their own things.

Lily is the next to speak. “I couldn’t help him at all. We even destroyed parts of his body to regenerate them from scratch, but whatever was killing him seemed determined to linger. It must have been some kind of curse, or poison, or… or something. I don't know. I only heard whispers, but I think he stayed in some kind of tainted area too long, fully knowing the damage it would cause. All just to retrieve that item.”

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Tess catches my attention and says, “It’s one of the few times Lily couldn’t heal someone, and it shook her a little.”

And I have to agree, Lily seems genuinely down.

“If that happened to any of you, Tess, I wouldn’t be able to help. And it would be worse with you. That lumoran was the Champion’s disciple and he was somewhere around level 400, so his body could endure it somewhat, but you? Or someone like Nat with his low Constitution?”

“How was it, healing someone so high-leveled?” I ask, changing the subject.

“As we theorized. It took a lot of mana, and it was much slower than it would’ve been with anyone from our group. I was mostly there as support for the lumoran healers, but even then someone with such a high level, multiple body upgrades, and who knows what else simply requires higher-level and more mana for me to heal.”

“Tess, any ideas as to why they went into power-saving mode or theories about the item the lumorans got?”

“Nope. But they sent out some lumorans and mercenaries, perhaps to fight or make sure that Ardenyx didn’t leave anyone behind for us to find.”

“Got it. Could you get me the warm clothes the others got when they come back? I have a few ideas for some new modifications in case we end up needing to leave the camp. And on that note, how are the twins doing?”

“Dennis and Aaron say they should be able to get into one of the storage tents in the near future, and they’re going to look for a replacement tent for us to ‘borrow’ along with some supplies. But I’ve been talking to the girls Nat.”

“It’s about the design, right?”

“Yes.”

“What’s the problem? They work well.”

“Yes, but the changes you made… have made them a bit…unsightly. I know that’s not the main priority, so don’t take it too personally. But if you happen to have a bit of free time…”

“It’s always the girls. The boys love the clothes.”

Tess avoids my gaze for a moment.

“Those jerks, them too?”

“Min-Jae said they look lame and now they’re even bulkier than before, and some of the threads you added restrict his movement.”

"That traitor. If movement is such a big deal, he might as well run around shirtless. Then everyone can admire his scrawny arms and so called abs."

“Please don’t be too harsh on him.”

“Tess, the other day the twins got bored and started giving me nicknames. Min-Jae jumped in and reminded them of ‘Tent Creep,’ and the fact that we’re living in a sea of tents now. And I’m pretty sure the assholes made a set of private links that I haven’t quite cracked yet so that they can laugh about it behind my back.”

“In that case, don’t be

too

harsh.”

“I knew you would understand,” I say, leaning back in my chair and looking at the ceiling of the tent. As I do I wonder, “They must have known Ardenyx’s pilot was about to die yet they still had us fix the parts, so they must have a replacement pilot ready. I’ll try to get some info out of Serabeth; she probably knows something even if it’s not much.”

“You know there’s no way you’re the replacement they have in mind, right?” Tess taunts, ever the party pooper.

But it’s not like I hadn’t thought of that. “It’s unfortunate, but I agree. I don’t even think anyone other than a lumoran could control them, not without an extensive set of modifications.”

Tess, deep in thought, stands up after a while, “So the plan remains the same. Since we can’t leave, we’ll prepare for the event that we end up on our own, and worst comes to worst, we’ll head to the 8th floor.”

“I guess that makes the most sense,” I agree, moving to sit next to Lily. “Try to describe the feelings you got from the thing that killed the pilot of Ardenyx.”

That night, a group returns, composed of human mercenaries and lumorans. All of them bear the signs of combat. Damaged equipment and that look in the eyes that tells you when someone still on edge, ready to attack.

Standing near our tent, I observe the process while noting the way the weather has grown even colder, something I can feel even through the clothes I’m wearing, particularly when I’m not supplying them with enough mana. Still, I refuse to let it bother me and watch as they go through the protocols that come into play every time someone leaves and returns to the camp.

One after another, all the mercenaries and lumorans pass through the array and then step into the circle on the ground. A few lumorans from Serabeth’s personal unit stand around the circle, other than the Champion and his closest men, they’re the strongest people in the camp.

The circle always lights up momentarily, and everyone inside it shows a great deal of relief. Remembering the rules they explained before, I know you’ll be killed on the spot if you refuse to go through the test.

As the tests slowly progress, I notice the mood shift. The last remaining human is acting nervous, which doesn’t go unnoticed by the guards who shift and grip their weapons.

Mana fills the air.

“I’m not getting in that weird circle. I fought one of them, so some of their blood got on me,” he lifts his arm, showing his bloodied sleeve, “I won’t let you kill me for that.”

“Viden, just go into that damned circle. We saw it before, it’s safe,” one of his friends snorts and turns to one of the guards. “I’m correct, right?”

“Yes, Mercenary Zale, each Signature Isolation Framework was personally constructed by one of our Champions in collaboration with our Absolute.”

“See, Viden, just get in the circle.”

Despite these words, the man continues to refuse, and with each denial, the expressions around him grow darker, even those of his friends.

As he yells, two lumorans grab him and throw him into the circle.

This time, the light doesn’t shine.

The man’s face contorts, half of it twisting as if it were melting, while his body begins to expand. Even his clothes and equipment stretch and grow rather than tearing, their textures remaining intact even as they take on a disturbing resemblance to the flesh. Multiple mouths emerge from the surface of his skin, clothing, and gear, some of which reveal themselves to be about as wide as my arm is long, gaping wide and full of long, sharp, white teeth.

One of those mouths disgorges a series of long tongues, each one covered in a sort of slimy saliva that burns anything it touches.

A dozen or so eyes sprout across his form, varying in size. Some are as large as a human’s, others are bigger than my fist. Each eye glows with an orange radiance framing their black pupils. The grotesque transformation doesn’t spare his equipment either, as mouths and eyes begin to emerge across them as well.

Even then, the mimic still bears some resemblance to the man it replaced, retaining its humanoid figure, despite its engorged and twisted frame.

The mimic doesn’t have a chance.

Serabeth’s elites surround him, deploying an array and barrier that cuts off any chance of the mimic sending out a signal or damaging the area.

Two guards step inside and rip the mimic apart, their bodies and equipment easily withstanding its desperate attacks. Such is the effect of the array and barrier, that I can’t sense so much of a hint of the mana that must be raging within.

When the mimic dies, they collect all the parts of its body, including the bloodied snow and pieces of cloth around it, piling it all in a single heap before placing a dark blue orb on top. Inscriptions flare to life, consuming the orb just before a gout of blue flames surrounds the corpse, burning it until nothing remains.

Everyone in the group is forced to undergo another test before being led over to the tent where Serabeth usually stays, likely for further examination and questioning. I take one last look at the spot where the mimic died before returning to our tent.

Interestingly enough, I noticed the man’s level and class name when he was still human. I made sure to check all of them before they left to scout.

Even as a mimic, his level and class remained exactly the same.