Chapter 549: What do you want?

My good mood from enduring this ordeal with a mere hundred or so healing marks quickly fades once Lily starts healing me. She points out the damage I still have and the damage that’s continuing to worsen even now.

I think it’s been a long time since I’ve seen her this worried. Her face settles into a focused expression and she continues to work on healing me, forced to resort to excising parts of my body to restore them properly where her marks have clearly failed.

“It’s okay,” I tell her.

“You always say that! How is it okay to injure yourself this much?”

“Lily.”

“What!”

“It’s okay.”

“It’s not…”

“It is. I can handle it.” I reach out and ruffle her hair. “I’m not used to people worrying about me, so tone it down. I feel awkward.”

“I… I wish I could help you more. You and everyone else.”

“Humans are greedy creatures, aren’t they? What you’re doing right now is enough, and you’ll be able to do more in the future, so don’t worry about it.”

After a long moment of silence, I tweak her nose, pulling her head from side to side. After all, she deserves some teasing every now and then.

Just in case, I rely on her healing and don’t bother to check the state of my body again, using the reprieve to focus on keeping my new heart from burning me and fine tuning my adjustments. For now, I split off half my mind to manage the process.

And damn, that’s what it’s going to take, even with all the restrictions I’ve already placed on it.

“Yo, do a check on me,” I turn to Sophie. And unlike Lily, she just shrugs and does exactly that.

As with everything, it takes a while, and then we repeat the process with the twins.

Though the recently evaporated lake starts slowly filling out, so we evacuate the area.

I use one of my Beyond-stay tokens to return to the fishing village, ignoring monsters as much as possible.

There, I collect the shards Duncan left with one of the city leaders, my portion of the profits from selling the fish.

A full two hundred and five thousand shards, bringing my total to 309,939 shards.

For now, I resist upgrading my healing passive, deciding to wait for the tournament and see if I can use these shards as an investment instead.

Otherwise, my short Beyond visit is uneventful. I use the time until my Beyond token wears off to further stabilize my modifications. I don’t meet anyone I recognize, and no one starts a fight with me.

Even as I’m leaving, my handler leaves me with a simple greeting and well wishes regarding my performance in the tournament and reminds me that a good showing will help ensure that I get better Beyond quests and attract offers from bigger guilds in Beyond.

As the timer ticks down, we all gather in one of the gardens. A few bags are sitting nearby, packed just in case the system allows us to bring them with us to the tournament. Lissandra and Myrra are there as well.

Everyone, other than Lissandra, is giddy and smiling, excited to meet the people from other groups and rounds.

All the training we went through here, all the effort we put in, is about to be tested against the rest of Earth’s first generation. The generation that has Earth’s future Absolute and Champions.

The most powerful people who, after the end of the tutorial, will change the rules of Earth. They might try to keep the current structure, they might try to make their own kingdoms, or they might try to leave the planet for adventure.

It’s an exciting thought.

Sophie is holding Izzy close, and Noodle is coiled around her arm. The twins and Min-Jae are throwing insults at each other, boasting about how they’ll beat each other up.

Maya talks with Tess, who to my surprise, is holding Biscuit. The now soon-to-be best doggo of the second tournament licks Tess, then looks at me, his expression taking on something resembling a gentle smile.

Lily patiently listens as Myrra tells her some story about her childhood in Virelia.

Congratulations on your 2nd year in the tutorial!

Tournament preparations have been concluded.

For the duration of the tournament, all Floor Quests will be put on hold. The tournament will have a 14-day duration, and each person may decide whether to participate or not.

More information will be forthcoming upon entrance to the tournament floor.

Would you like to participate in the second tournament of Earth's tutorial?

Yes / No

Please decide within the next 30 seconds.

Everyone’s hand moves to press the button, and I don’t even feel the effects of teleportation as I find myself in a different place.

The bright sun makes me squint. All around me, I hear small birds singing. The sky is beautifully blue, and a gentle breeze moves through the leaves of the trees all around. The air smells like summer.

This time, we’re not separated, and everyone is looking around, curious.

Only then do I hear that single sentence from Maya.

“Where is Tess?”

A brief wave of panic washes over me as I expand my senses and scan my surroundings.

Tess isn’t here, and neither is Biscuit, even though I saw her pressing the button on the system window visible to her alone.

“Tess!” Lily calls, even though our senses have already scanned the area thoroughly.

The Community is also disabled here, so no one is able to send any messages.

"You, what's happening?" Maya steps forward and stops in front of Lissandra. "I talked to her. I saw her press the button. I know you're really smart or something. You must know something!"

For a moment, I think she might grab Lissandra and start shaking her, but thankfully she doesn’t.

“Isn’t that obvious?” Lissandra tilts her head. “The system wouldn’t allow someone with a mimic inside them to enter the tournament.”

In the silence that follows, Lissandra smiles. It’s the kind of smile you might make when explaining something to a child.

POV Earth

“General, I’ve got the breakdown on the power levels the returnees have reported, and we’ve decided to change our system from grades to categories and make further edits. So far, the highest levels are still hypothetical and based on what they’ve told us about their experiences on the tournament floors and encounters with Normal, Hard, and Hell participants. Then there are those who’ve been to what they call ‘Beyond.’ The categories are split into ten levels. This information comes from participants from the Easiest difficulty, so we’ve increased the scales slightly, to account for the secondhand nature of the intel.”

“Understood. Start with the weakest.”

“Category One, sir. These are the baseline enhanced: they’re generally faster, and stronger than the average person, but not by much. Think elite athletes and special forces soldiers. Dangerous to civilians but no real threat to us. They might demonstrate the odd supernatural ability like creating fire with their mind.”

“Manageable. What about Category Two?”

“Augmented tier. Potentially dangerous under the right conditions, their physical strength is generally sufficient to punch through reinforced doors and flip cars. Still manageable with current equipment, but they’ll take out regular squads if we’re not careful.”

“Noted. Category Three?”

“This is where things get serious. We expect them to be able to breach most walls, tank small-arms fire, and engage entire squads without effort. Still within reason for us to handle, but it’s a bit of a stretch.”

“Category Four?”

“Superhuman. Leaping buildings, tearing through vehicles, and taking heavy ordnance like it’s nothing. If one goes rogue, even sending in heavy units might not be enough.”

“We haven’t seen any such returnees as of yet, is that correct?”

“Yes, sir. Everything is based on the returnees’ accounts and our observations. We expect Category Four to start appearing with Normal and Hard difficulty. We expect Easy difficulty to place between categories one and three with few possessing the potential to reach that status. After that, the categories escalate fast.”

If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

“Then let’s hear it. What’s Category Five?”

“City-level threats. These individuals could heavily damage a small to midsize city. Flattening entire blocks, destroying infrastructure. We expect Hard difficulty returnees to be about that level.”

“Category Six?”

“Regional devastation. Entire counties are at risk, think massive destruction spreading for miles. This matches the upper tier of Hell Difficulty elites. We’ve been considering the addition of three extra subcategories within each category, inspired by the system. For example, low Category Six, mid Category Six, and upper Category Six.”

“And Seven?”

“Nation-level threats, General. These will be the strongest Hell and Beyond elites, we believe they will have the strength to topple nations. Their abilities and strategies are far beyond anything we’ve encountered thus far. We don’t think many people will reach that category, if any.”

“That’s... concerning. Category Eight?”

“This one is purely theoretical. From what we heard from Easy difficulty returnees, we don’t expect anyone to reach that rank. It would mean continental destruction, sir. At this level, they would be operating on a scale that makes our military capability seem irrelevant.”

“I’m almost afraid to ask about Nine.”

“Capable of planetary devastation. Wiping out all life on Earth.”

“Should have known. And Category Ten?”

“Planet breakers. Capable of not just ending all life on the surface but destroying the planet itself. Our sources have heard legends about such beings, but we don’t consider it reliable information.”

“Understood. So Earth’s still in the lower tiers, but the infection is spreading and It’s only a matter of time before we see what’s next.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Continue collecting information. Now tell me about Project Moon Spider.”

“Yes! If you look at the document on your table, our army, in cooperation with NASA, has prepared the module, and in a few weeks we should be able to send it to the Moon.”

POV Earth

“I’m Colonel Jonathan Kane, and it’s my pleasure to meet you, miss. First, I’d like to ask you to state your full name for the record before we start our conversation.”

“You already know my name. Do you need it again because of the recorder you put on the table?”

“Yes. This is a very important matter, and we’re creating a system to address it. Recording these conversations will allow us to examine them accurately, provide feedback, and adjust our approach.”

“Very well, my name is Thalia Gwyn.”

“Thank you for your understanding. Are you the biological mother of Victoria Gwyn and Nathaniel Gwyn?”

“Yes.”

“Ever since their disappearance two years ago, you haven’t received any information regarding their whereabouts?”

“None at all. Same as I told the sergeant you sent before. So I wonder—why is a lofty colonel such as yourself speaking to me?”

“I’m afraid I cannot disclose that information at this time. I can only say that we’ve come into contact with someone who met your daughter Victoria around one year ago, and we have strong reason to believe your son, Nathaniel is in the same location.”

“I… I thank you for this information.”

“I’m glad I could help at least that much, Mrs. Gwyn. I have two daughters myself, and though I do not fully understand what you’re feeling, I can empathize.”

“Yes. So, what do you want from me?”

“We have strong reason to believe your daughter will be a very… important person in the future. Please don’t take this for granted, even we aren’t sure if she’ll survive, but it’s possible she will return in three years at the latest. Once again, I’d love to say everything will be fine, but it’s also possible she won’t…”

“I understand. It’s better than I could have expected.”

“You seem surprisingly calm about it.”

“Trust me, I’ve been through a lot over the last two years. And you could say I’ve taken after my kids in some ways.”

“I do not understand.”

“That’s fine. So once again, what do you want?”

“There are multiple things, but firstly, we’d be thankful for any information you could give us regarding your son and daughter: their personalities, how they react to different situations, their relationships with people, what they like and dislike. Anything we could use to build a psychological profile and…”

“I see. If that’s what you want, then you can fuck right off.”

“I apologize if I’ve offended you, but…”

“Oh, I know you weren’t trying to be insulting. Nevertheless, my answer remains the same. If you, our country, or our army wants to use me against my kids, you. Can. Fuck. Off.”

“That confuses me, Miss Gwyn. Our intel didn’t suggest you had a very good relationship with your children. Your daughter was serving a ten-year sentence for the second-degree murder of your husband, Robert, her father. Something she did as a nineteen-year-old. Your then-sixteen-year-old son was also suspected of helping with the murder, but the charges were dropped based on your daughter’s statements. After that, you haven’t visited your daughter even once, and your son moved away.”

“I am well aware. And?”

“Maybe we started on the wrong foot. Let me emphasize, the creation of psychological profiles regarding important personages isn’t exactly uncommon. I’m sure my higher-ups have one on me that includes the details of my entire life. This is a sensitive matter, so we felt it would be appropriate to create profiles for your daughter and son as well. But I understand your hesitance, and we can drop it for now. On the other hand, I am authorized to offer you Diplomatic Compensation to the tune of one million dollars.”

“Colonel, I don’t know if you think I’m stupid, but you should stop.”

“Allow me to explain, Miss Gwyn. We’re well aware of your current employment history and the fact that you were forced to move into a smaller apartment just a few weeks ago. The ‘Diplomatic Compensation’ is, to be honest, a bribe. We expect nothing in return. Rather we simply hope your children will look more favorably upon us once they’re back.”

“You said there’s a chance they won’t come back.”

“Yes. If you’re thinking in that case the money we gave you would be a waste on our part, we’re willing to take the loss.”

“I see. Ten million then.”

“I… what?”

“Look here, Mister Colonel” Jonas Kane, a man of your rank wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t very important, right? Ten million, or you can leave.”

“It’s Colonel Jonathan Kane, Miss Gwyn. You’ve already confirmed your lack of a stable relationship with your children.”

“That’s true. I guess you can just take the risk and leave. However, I might mention it to them. But our relationship isn't very good so it surely won't come back to bite you in the ass.”

“Are you blackmailing me, Miss Gwyn?”

“Yes.”

“Well, that’s a first for me. An interesting experience all around. Understood. I can increase it to ten million. If you’re willing, we can even relocate you to a safer location, as we have reason to suspect things might get dangerous around here. Of course, you’d be able to come and go as you please.”

“I’ll think about it. When you send the money, make sure it’s all there, I don’t want half of it disappearing because of taxes or some ‘processing fee.’”

“I… I understand. We will make sure nothing like that happens.”

“Thank you, Colonel Jonathan Dane. I’ll make sure to remember your name and put in a good word for you.”

“It’s Colonel Jonathan Kane, Miss Gwyn.”

“Sure.”

POV Earth

“The cat-sized ants in Africa ate an entire village. Did you hear?” the friend asks another boy next to him.

“Yes! There were a bunch of leaked videos, but someone keeps taking them down. I also heard something about huge wolves, a massive white bear, and a pod of sharks as big as ships! Do you think it’s some new species?”

“Probably. Maybe some kind of tunnel to the center of the earth opened, and released all these weird animals are coming from,” he laughs.

“Heh, so you’re saying Luna came from there too?”

“Luna?”

“The fucking spider on the moon.”

“Oh, are they calling it Luna nowadays? Weren’t they calling her The Moonster?”

“What the fuck, haha, I hadn’t heard that one.”

POV Earth

“Boss, we broke another diamond-coated drill on that damned rock,” a worker in a yellow hardhat says as he exits the tunnel.

He walks up to his boss standing near the entrance where the giant machine is digging away.

“These things are fucking expensive. Fuck. Did you at least get the results from the samples of rock that broke the drill heads?”

“They’ll come in today, but the lab guy told me he’s never seen rock like this in his life,” he whispers. “Don’t tell anyone, but he was saying that their lab is getting a lot of samples like that, new metals, new rocks, plants, and the like. Or old ones that are suddenly more durable. It’s insane.”

The boss takes his helmet off and wipes the sweat from his forehead with a handkerchief. “I’d give a good amount of money to know what the fuck is going on.”

POV Earth

Standing at attention in a dimly lit room, a soldier in the uniform of an Asian country continues giving his report to his leader. There are no electronic devices present in an effort to ensure that nothing can be leaked.

“The Americans recently got at least one group of Easy Difficulty returnees two months ago. In that time, we’ve found no signs that any other country has received any additional returnees. According to the returnees in our employ, it may have something to do with the second tournament. After that, we should expect more groups.”

“Do we have any information on the higher-tier returnees?”

“So far, only Easy difficulty, but we still expect the earliest Normal difficulty participants to start appearing sometime in six months to a year.”

“Good. What do we know about that group of Easy difficulty that tried to take over Cyprus?”

“All eight of them were assassinated. Five of them by poisoning, and the remaining three were taken out with anti-materiel sniper rifles. We’ve collected some information, and it seems like all the shots went through the eye, they were probably worried the skull might deflect the bullet.”

“That poison must have been quite something.” The leader continues to tap on the table with his finger. “Do we know who did it?”

“We suspect China. All the bodies went missing as well, and we only have photo documentation. But we think there was a submarine nearby to support the operation.”

“Understood. You can leave.”

“Yes, sir!”

POV Nathaniel

“So you knew and didn’t say anything?” Maya shouts, continuing her tirade against Lissandra. After the bomb she just dropped, I’m sure Maya would be charging the woman if Lily and Sophie weren’t holding her back. And even they seem angry.

While Myrra stands by her side, Lissandra answers, “It would’ve been strange if I hadn’t noticed.”

That gets her another round of curses, but she seems inclined to show a bit of understanding and doesn’t retaliate. Instead, she catches my gaze, as if urging me to say something.

I know her well enough to sense there's more to this, but I’m deep in

[Focus]

now, trying to steady my emotions. Even so, my hand clenches. As the others continue hurling insults and questions at Lissandra, I take a step forward.

“What do you want?” I ask.

All the words cut off, and the remaining members of group four jump in between Lissandra and me.

Lissandra just looks at me, still smiling. “I can help that girl. I’ve been observing her. The mimic hasn’t taken over; it hasn’t even started. There’s a reason for that. As for your bond, I don’t know why he decided to stay with her, but he doesn’t have a mimic.”

“Good. So I ask again. What do you want?”

"It’s simple, truly, little pup. If she survives these two weeks on the seventh floor until our return, I will remove that mimic. If necessary, I will even force the Progenitor Mimic to assist me—that much I can promise. I can also promise that if you fail to fulfill what I ask of you, I will let her die. Do not expect otherwise, not even for a moment."

Lissandra steps forward with purpose, her smile giving way to an unshakable calm, "I want you to win every event in this tournament, little pup. No, not just win, I want you to obliterate everyone in your way. Do that, and I will save your friend."

There is only one answer I can give from my place deep in my state of

[Focus]

.

“Consider it done.”