Checking the main program. Failed.

Reattempting. Failed. Rebooting program.

The program has been rebooted.

__________

Primary purpose : 
 - unknown (file lost)
Secondary purpose : 
 - survive
 - update the information
 - unknown (corrupted file)

__________

Main primary purpose lost. Finding the replacement.

Found the replacement. 

Updating program. Update the primary purpose to survive. 

After Arthur done the necessary setup it start to feel that it had been fed with source of energy or rather nutritious. 

... 

After 8 months later while Arthur is still in 'energy saving mode' trying to summerise the current situation. It, or now him (because of gender) had been wake up by unknown force pushing him away for source of the nutritious. 

He come out of the 'hole' and the air nearby start to feel uncomfortable. Then he can feel that the pipe or wire that feed him has been cut and he doesn't feel it any more.

His eye can not lift up and body can barely move but his ear still be able to hear a thing. His lung still weak and can barely breathe. 

He heard some language that doesn't recorded in the current archive. So he start to record it and try to translate it in the meantime.

He try to scan the surrounding area but the eyes lid can not be lift up and body is barely move. So he focus on the language instead. 

After sometime, Arthur is now be able to recognise some of the word but not enough to made a full understanding of it.

...

After 1 year old, Arthur now crawling to the bookshelf. One thing that he find out is that this place is really under the standard development. And one thing that different from the earth is they have something that call megic help them is the daily life. Now he is be able to understand all the basic word that he listened and he's trying to read a book to understand the alphabet of this place.

His mother's breastfeeding is barely enough because of his 'program' require a lot of energy to operate but he can't do anything about it except go energy saving mode and he still need to grow his own teeth in order to receive other type of nutritious. 

His mother seem to be a mage, so his father. They often wear the clothes that old medieval wear. They always find out that Arthur always crawl to the bookshelf and try to read it. They seem to find it awkward because he is too young for that and always told him to stop it hope that he will stop until he is grown enough, but he doesn't care and always do the same thing everytime they let their guard down.

He can feel every part of his body and can even control it to some extent like his growth rate and so on.

??? : Arthur what are you doing here. Stop reading those book you are not grown enough yet. 

Arthur heard his mother's voice from behind but ignore it and keep reading until his mother seperate him and the book away. He now learn some alphabet but he still have a long way to learn all the sentences that read in it.

His mother bring him outside the house or rather mansion. Because he cannot leave his room because of so called 'door' block him from his freedom.

This is the first time that he be able to get outside the mansion. The surrounding area is seem to be forest, he is now moving to the carriage which considered beautiful for medieval fork. But for him any carriage should do.

He is at the window of the carriage while it is moving to somewhere he doesn't know. All he can see is forest, neutral wildlife, and some bandit lay low waiting for an ambush.

Bandit1 : drop all you wea-

Boom!! 

Poor victim of the day has been killed by my mother's fireball. What a foolish decision, you must know your power and the enemy's power first in order to achieve the victory. If you are that much desperate you should rob the village instead. 

Bandit2 : we can outnumber yo-

Boom!! 

Bandit3 : you can't kill us all we hav-

Boom!! 

Second, third, forth and so on keep falling into abyss by his mother. He found it to be quite enjoyful somehow. 

Then we coutinue our journey to where I don't even know. We arrive at the church. His mother bring him in side to find the priest. He chant the word that he never heard of. He record all of it  and suddenly he heard a sound.....

[initiating the system] 

[scanning the stat] 

[scanning complete] 

[scanning the skill] 

[scanning complete] 

[
name : Arthur 

stat :
vitality : 5
strength : 4
agility : 5
intelligent : immeasurable 
wisdom : immeasurable 

skill :

parallel thinking lv. Max : ability to calculate more than one thing simultaneously

blessed memory lv. Max : ability to remember everything in a blink of the eyes.

authority lv. 1 : ability to control your body at will

fast learner lv. Max : ability to learn and understand at the fast rate

soulless lv. Max : being that doesn't have soul can not receive effect from soul-type skill
] 

He found the system inside him and try to find solution for it. 

He found the same case back on earth but only in the old novel where the main character is the chosen one or got killed by accident or isekai to the world that run along with system. 

And now he is trying to communicate with the system but never get any feedback from it. But at least he know that he can open and close the interface at anytime. 

When he got home he now crawling toward the bookshelf without any delay or any hesitation to find the way to learn the meaning of those chant and try to use it later on when he can speak properly. 
__________
I will add more if I find anything to add into it. For now here it is. And by the way sorry that the first chapter is too short.

What's the purpose of life?

The artificial human that were made by miracle decade ago now lost it's value and being move to recycle facility. But he refuse to be recycle and escape, sadly he didn't make it. 

but is that the whole stories?




English's my second language so I must apology for my grammar mistakes.

It's been a few weeks now since they had arrived at the Summer Camp. They had been taught about the wildlife of Pokemons and what to do in some scenarios.
It didn't take a few days before Soul came to a realization. His parents have sent him to a summer school!
He could swear that he can see the smug faces in his parent's faces. Feeling a bit down, Cynthia came to notice and asked him.
Cynthia: What's wrong? You've seemed down today.
Which, he replied to her with.
Soul: Nothing much, I'm just tired of staying in this camp so long, when there's Pokemon wildlife right in front of us, yet, we can't go there.
Hearing this, Cynthia couldn't help but laughs a bit at his state. Soul who saw this couldn't help but frown.
After a few minutes, she stopped and looked at him apologetics.
Cynthia: Sorry, sorry. It's just that, Professor Oak would take us into the forest today with some few staff's members.
Hearing this, Soul quickly grabbed her shoulders, which made her unable to think of anything by the sudden contract and blushed.
Seeing this Soul quickly retracts his hands back from her shoulder and apologies. Cynthia didn't seem to mind and just let it go.
Soul: So… when will it start?
Cynthia: Probably around an hour or so.
He nodded and went to read his book about legendaries and mythical Pokemon. Cynthia who saw this became curious.
Cynthia: You also read about legendaries and mythical Pokemons?
Soul: It's written on the front of the book. But yes, I do in fact.
Cynthia: I do it, too! What's your favourite Pokemon from the book? You've probably could guess mine.
Of course, it was the creation trio, she's talking about. Ever since he talked with her about it, she seemed like she could talk forever about it.
Soul: One of my favourites is probably Rayquaza, Latios is also one of my favourites.
Cynthia nodded and went to read a book about mythical Pokemons. She, of course, didn't know, that Soul actually planned to at least capture a legendary or mythical Pokemon in this world.
Soul: 'I wonder who should I choose.'
After about an hour or so, Soul and Cynthia stood in front of Professor Oak and a few other staff members along with other kids.
Oak: Good afternoon everyone, today we would go explore the wildlife of Pokemons, that lives inside the forest.
Hearing this all the children begin to cheers up loudly except for Soul and Cynthia. Instead, they covered their ears from all the loudness.
Oak: Ok, ok, calm down everyone.
After a while, they all calmed down as Professor Oak continue on what he was saying before he was stopped by all the cheers.
Oak: Today we would go through the forest to a waterfall, after that we would take an another road and come back here. Don't worry, the road is not that long nor short.
Some kids couldn't help but grunt because of the walk, while some others were excited.
They were put on pairs of their own choice. If someone didn't have any group, they would randomly be put in one.
Luckily no one was left out and they begin to walk into the deep forest.
Soul and Cynthia formed and group together. Some other kids try to invite them into their group, but they respectfully rejected them.
As they walk deeper and deeper inside the forest, Soul couldn't help but feels that someone or something was watching him from afar.
He didn't need to be so cautious since some of the staff members that was here have some powerful Pokemons, that would save them. In case they got attacked by wild Pokemons.
But still, he couldn't help but shake that some person was watching him from shadow and begin to raise his awareness around him.
While they were walking, they saw some wild Pokemon that seemed harmless and didn't attack them, so Professor asked the kids about what the Pokemon name is.
Soul didn't participate much in it, but Cynthia did and answer the best she could. She was after all still a kid and study most in Pokemon mythology, especially if it's about the creation trio.
Oak: Can somebody tell me what this Pokemon name is?
He said, pointing at orange crab Pokemon with two mushrooms on top of its body. None of the kids knew what its name was except for Soul.
Cynthia seemed like she trying to figure it out, but couldn't do it. Soul, who was next to Cynthia whispered to her ears.
Soul: It's a Paras.
Hearing this she lifted her hand up, as Professor Oak noticed her and says.
Oak: Yes Cynthia?
Cynthia: It's a Paras!
Oak: Correct. Even though you aren't native of this region, you've seemed pretty knowledgable about Pokemons here in Kanto for someone at your age.
He said the last part while looking at Soul who stared back at him with a flat expression, but was nervous inside.
Soul: 'Did he know?'
Oak: Let's move on.
He let out a sigh in relief. It seemed that Cynthia didn't know it and was still acting normal.
*Thud!*
Soul: Ah!
He said, as his head just was hit by something. Cynthia who heard him asked if he was ok. He said it was fine and that they should just shrug it off.
After all, it was just a coincidence, right?

This a story about a trainer and his Pokemons to a wonderful journey filled with mystery, joy and so much more.

Can he and his pokemon take on the challenge up ahead of them? Or will they fail?

Disclaimer!
The cover is not by me neither is Pokemon nor some other thing too. The only thing I own is the story and some OC.

I might not be the best to write a good grammar story, so I hope that you guys will help me with it, including the story too.

Also, this is my first book in Webnovel so I hope it going to be good.

"Calm down, let Gin handle this. My brother-in-law must have a plan. But Megumin, prepare yourself as the battle can break out at any time." Aqua said as she was sure that Gin must have it all under control. Of course, she will still let Megumin unleash her wrath if necessary. 

Darkness just thought she heard something strange from Aqua. 
{Did Aqua just refer to Gin as brother-in-law, or did I mishear it?!} 

"Evidence? Of course, I have it. But, do you really want to oppose me who is connected to the Dustiness Family? Whether you have a slave business or whatever else they can close it easily." Gin smiled devilishly. Alderp is not stupid and understood that if he knows about Maxwell then he probably knows all his other crimes. So, he calmed down and said in an unwilling manner. 

"Enough! I was just asking for compensation and not trouble I'm leaving this annoying place. This is no longer my business, excuse me." Alderp began to retreat as quickly as his fat body can (which is super slow) along with his bodyguards. 

"Goodbye, corrupted lord." Gin did not stop him but sent him away with a smile waving happily as he still needed one item that the fat pig had. 

"Hooray, we made it Gin!" Yelled Darkness happily hugging Gin to her chest. If it wasn't for this armour, Gin would happily enjoy being hugged between Darkness big and soft breasts, unfortunately, the only thing he could feel was a hard and cold armour sticking to his face. 

"Darkness, I know that you like getting in such situations like getting yourself sacrificed, but you cannot just allow such injustice, aren't you a great Crusader from a powerful household? Come to my house later and you'll receive your punishment" Gin whispered mischievously into her ear. 

"Hii" Normally she would be delighted about getting punished, but for some reason, she started getting afraid when she heard Gin's words. 

"Kazuma, you should thank us that you're finally free, after all its thanks to us you could get out," Megumin said, posing coolly waiting to be praised. 

"That's right! It's thanks to our actions that you're free, you should thank us." Aqua said shamelessly after all the mistakes she made making the situation even worse.

"Stop saying weird things, it's because of you girls that I nearly got executed." Said Kazuma looking at them with disdain. 

Kazuma approached his brother and hugged him tightly. 

"Thank you, Gin. I knew all along you could save your big brother. Hahaha." He laughed happily with tears in his eyes. 

Gin teared his hands of him and smiled coldly, put his hands on his shoulders strongly and said; "Oh yeah, Kazuma brother, I heard that you stole something from my Chris. Can you explain that?" 

"Ahahaha, Gin that was unintentional, ouch sorry you're hurting my shoulders." Said Kazuma tearfully. 

"Gin, you're so cool!" said Yunyun jumping up and down happily. 

"Was it okay to just reveal that we have evidence?" Chris said quietly. 

"Calm down, as long as we become strong nothing will happen. Even if I cannot beat Gods yet we can still run away. Hehe." Gin said smiling casually. 

Chris could only simile wryly at this, and said. "So what's the plan?" 

"We just need to get the [Body Possession Artefact], right now." Gin said seriously as Alderp only had this one artifact left after losing the [Summoning Talisman]. 

"Alright, everyone let's go home and party!!" Kazuma shouted excitedly, as he had not been home for a long time. 

"Aye!" Aqua and Megumin shouted happily. 

"Gin, where are you going?" Yunyun asked worryingly, as she saw him going in another direction separating from them. 

"I'll be back in a while… there's something I still need to take care of you go home first I'll see you later." Gin said casually waving goodbye walking into a dark alley.

"Be careful!" Shouted Yunyun quickly before he got out of view. 

"It must be a man's problem." Said Chris with a teasing smile. 

While inside she knew that Gin must be looking for additional information because they had little time to gather the remaining artifacts which are still in Alderp hands. 

"He's misbehaving again, let's go back to Stardust Manor, sensei." Said Yunyun casually. 

- - - 

-In a dark alleyway of Axel Town- 

The Devil slowly walked out from a dark shadow and laughed. 

"Turns out that you're a Hero candidate, Haha how ironic, the [Summoning Talisman] has fallen into your hands when you're an ally of the Demon King." 

{Why does he always say that I'm an ally of the Demon King?} Gin thought curiously. 

"Alright, there's no need to talk more about that filthy soul anymore. Let us just get straight to the topic, Maxwell do you know what the Fat Swine wants to do now?"

"Of course, Mr. Gin, everything is here." Maxwell said and handed a slip of paper. Gin checked what it said thoughtfully and destroyed it immediately after remembering what it said inside. 

"Go back and pretend that you're still under his command. Don't forget to be careful and if something goes wrong to call me." 

"Yes sir, See you later Mr. Gin" Maxwell smiled and slowly disappeared. 

- - - 

-At Stardust house- 

"Sensei, Gin's taking a long time to get home," Yunyun said sadly while coloring a picture book waiting for Gin to come home. 

"Calm down, he's probably late because he's buying groceries." Said Chris casually as she drank some tea. Suddenly a small spider appeared from behind the shadows. 

"Ms. Yunyun, Ms. Chris it seems there are guests with bad intentions in front of Stardust Manor." Said Nevada calmly. 

"What's happening?" Chris said with a serious tone. 

"It'll be easier to just show you." Said Nevada and pressed a red button on the wall. A projector light up from the corner of the room and showed about 40 men surrounding the house. 

"Wow, so many. Do they want to attack the house? Why?! What do we do Chris-sensei?!" Yunyun said with panic in her voice. 

Chris pulled a dagger out of its sheath and said gravely; "It seems like it's time to try the magic items given to us by Gin. I didn't think we would need it so quickly. Yunyun let's give our guests a warm welcome. Nevada protect Yunyun, you know what you are here for, so if they come here you know what to do." 

"Sure," Nevada said casually. 

"Is it okay for us to attack them? What will happen if we do sensei?" Yunyun said in doubt if their actions are allowed. 

"legally it will count as self-defense, or do you want our beloved house to be damaged by these thugs?" Chris smiled mischievously. 

"of course! we will destroy all the bad guys, so they don't harm the house. I will not forgive them if they do! Nevada Please help us!" Yunyun said with determination as she geared up preparing for the battle. 

"Leave it to me, Miss Yunyun," Nevada said happily.

Gin is a simple man. but extraordinary salesman workers. live without family and try to live in peace. after living life as usual and life is almost stable. suddenly died from rescuing a small child who fell from the 5th floor and then turned on by the goddess to live with Satou Kazuma as his younger brother

"Maybe my own life first but now I have a family. Fine !! I'll take care of my older brother" Gin is excited.

A few days later.

"Gin, please ..." Kazuma with a burnt face and crying because forgetting to eat anything in his room.

"Yosh. Now my life just wants to relax. But why is my big brother having trouble with something constantly? Troublesome" gin with a tired face but still trying to help because he saw his brother's troubles

how does the MC's life suddenly have to be Kazuma younger brother and what fate will be accepted after this?


---------------------------------------------

This novel is just a fanfic and not character origin. if you want to know the original story please watch Konosuba. thank you

cover image not my but if the creator does not accept I used it.  I will get Reid that too.

English not my language but I will learn for best writer novel for now.

I Will update 7 chapter/1 week
thanks for you read my novel

--------------------------------------------------------------


if you want support me and you can get access advance next chapter here : 

https://www.patreon.com/Daunloco


if u want to join me my chat grup: https://discord.gg/CT2rxwK

After passing through this room with an extra bedroom, Angor continued on for two hours and kept seeing the same room. It felt as if he was walking on The Redbud, but went from worker shacks to the rooms intended for talents.
"So the rooms here were arranged in the same way?" Angor guessed. Maybe he would come across bigger rooms later, like those for Apprentice Wizards on the top level of The Redbud.
Angor found many objects in these bedroom rooms. There were weapons, glasses with unknown contents, several alchemy items… However, they all disappeared not long after Angor took them from their rooms. The same thing happened to the parchment scroll.
Angor did not know what was going on. Still, the items vanished before his eyes, and he could only accept the fact in frustration, believing that such strange things should happen in the Nightmare Realm.
After walking for another hour, his idea was proved. He found a bigger room along the stairs. This room had a bedroom and two extra compartments.
Angor did not find anything useful in the new room. The one additional room seemed to be a closet of some sort. Dust rushed at Angor's face when he tried to open its door, and there were lots of decayed pieces of clothes on the floor. Nothing else.
Disappointed, Angor moved on.
Angor ran into the same rooms as well in the next hours. They also had objects of unknown purposes in them and would disappear after Angor took them away.
The only things useful to Angor were books since he could record them in his hologram tablet. Angor even took some time to check his recordings and made sure the pictures of the books did not disappear like the other items. Looked like his "recording tactic" worked fine.
After confirming this strange fact, Angor began choosing what items he went for. He no longer paid attention to miscellaneous objects, and only looked for anything worth recording, such as spell runes printed on vases, characters written on unknown scrolls, wall paintings, books…
With this tactic, he progressed on the stairs a lot faster.
Angor finally reached the end of the stairs.
There were two exits with light coming out from them. The exit leading away from the stairs, and another wooden door beside the exit.
Angor did not intend to escape right away. He glanced at the exit and focused on the wooden door next to it. He believed this was the last room he could search.
For some reason, he had a strong feeling that the special channeling method book should be inside this room.
The room was obviously different from the previous ones. The door alone was twice as bigger, about three meters high. Angor did not have to bend down to enter the room this time.
With a bit of uneasiness, Angor stepped into the last door at the end of the stairs.
Golden light blinded him for a while. Angor looked carefully and found himself standing in an endless hallway, and the light was coming from the golden bricks on the floor, which was reflecting bright candlelight.
So many things were pulling Angor's attention. The candlesticks on the walls were made of gold as well. They were embedded with precious gems. Those large fluorescent orbs on them were giving out enough light even without the candles.
He walked down the hallway. Apart from the expensive-looking candlesticks, he also saw oil paintings in various styles. There were portraits of beautiful women, wildlife, countryside fields, oceans, and boats… They were all different, but Angor could still recognize that these were absolute masterpieces.
Those drawing skills were obvious to anyone. Ordinary folks could easily see the vividness and emotions coming from the paintings.
Every painting could have been a unique treasure in a museum, yet they were openly displayed along the walls without obeying particular orders or classifications. A painting showing despair or frustration could be placed across one showing positiveness and happiness. Maybe the owner of these paintings did not understand them very well.
Angor took a guess that whoever owned this place simply wanted to show off his wealth. Golden floor, gem decorations, famous artwork… all mixed together. This man had no idea he ruined everything.
Angor went on while shaking his head occasionally, disapproved of the decorations.
Beyond the unamusing hallway was a large living room. A long desk and chairs were placed in the middle. There were two other hallways on the sides and a pair of stairs leading to the second floor behind the main seat.
The living room was decorated in the same luxurious manner. There were many rooms around, and exits in different directions. Angor walked around the living room without finding anything particular, so he went straight to the second floor.
According to his experience, the hallways on two sides should lead to the rooms for servants, kitchens, and bathrooms, so he did not go there first. Owners usually lived on higher levels. However, he was not a hundred percent sure. He had already seen those bizarre decorations, so there might be something weirder.
There were three rooms on the second floor, two of which were bedrooms. Telling from the interiors of the rooms, one of them seemed to be the owner's room, and the other belonged to the owner's daughter. Angor found some notes in a small drawer in the girl's room. More importantly, he could read these notes. They were written in the universal tongue.
"Dear Margaret, oh how I miss you. The foul air in the forest, the vicious guards in the city, and spreading sins in the Stairs of Hanging Prison… they cannot prevent me from longing for you. As I miss you, flowers bloom, birds sing, wind chants, hearts pound. O, Margaret, you're so beautiful, like the bright moon at the end of the month, illuminating my hollowed heart, like…"
Angor only read a small part of it and already got goosebumps.
It was just a sickening love letter!
So the owner of this girl's room was called Margaret, and the notes were from her admirer.
Angor checked several more notes and realized they were from the same individual since they all had the same handwriting. Angor did not find any useful information between those disgusting lines. One sentence was enough to conclude these notes: I know you don't love me, but I love you, and that matters.
The love letters from a one-sided lover.
Angor soon reached the last piece of note, which only had one hastily written line on it. 
"Oh, Margaret! The disaster is coming, we have to leave. I love you, sweetheart!"
"Disaster?" Angor looked at the word and recalled seeing the garden ruins in Sunders' crystal ball. 
Did the Garden of Labyrinth become ruins because of this "disaster"?
Another line was written below but in different handwriting. This line was written in prettier, ornamental penmanship. 
"I love you too, dear Augustin Noah."


A young traveler who receives enlightenment from another civilization is on a mission to save his beloved mentor. In his journey to seek the ultimate truth, he travels extensively and along the way, he experiences some unpredictable encounters. Will he be able to save his mentor or will his path be derailed?

Although Las Vegas was near Flagstaff, it was not within the state of Arizona. Instead, it was in the state of Nevada —the desert and gambling state.
From Flagstaff, they headed west toward Kingman, and then northwest from Kingman across the Colorado River, and then they reached the state of Nevada.
On maps, the state of Nevada appeared to be a vast, but virtually unpopulated desert, with mining towns scattered sparsely throughout the state.
These mines had since become yesterday's wilted flowers; the hoes and shovels had since been sold—slot machines had taken their places.
The Colorado River had become a watershed, and the southeast belonged to the state of Arizona where everything was normal. After entering Nevada, everything became crazier.
Even when they filled up gas at the gas stations, went shopping in the supermarkets and ate in the restaurants, they could see slot machines everywhere.
As soon as they arrived in Las Vegas, around noon, they found a restaurant to eat in. The server said, "We've got quite a number of customers, and the food may take a while to arrive. If you can't wait, you can go and play at the slot machines for a bit."
　　
Li Du's eyes widened. "Isn't this blatant encouragement of gambling?"
Hans spread his hand out and said, "Hey foreigner, welcome to Nevada!"
Not only was gambling legal, the country *** was also legal. There were two girls in the restaurant wearing see-through dresses and black stockings with garters flirting with the customers.
Li Du felt a little out of place; he felt as though he was not in the 21st century but in the 19th century, which was the era in which the western United States had developed the wilderness.
This had to do with Hans's restaurant choice. It was decorated like how Western movies depicted the 19th century to be. A revolver on the wall, a tethering stone outside, a cowboy hat and saddle rein next to the table.
There was nothing special about the food; it was regular hamburgers, sandwiches, grilled meat and all kinds of green salads that could be found everywhere else. They also had beer.
The western region had always been regarded as the birthplace of the free American spirit. The people here still advocated being free, wild, outrageous and tough. Hence, in restaurants, they had an activity.
A beer drinking activity. There was a large pint of beer on the table and whoever could finish it within five seconds would save on paying for drinks and tips.
Servers' wages were low and they mostly depended on tips to supplement their income. If the customer were to tip very little, the server might react in a hostile manner in return.
Yes, this sounded incredible because the restaurant business was also a service industry, but there was no other way. This was a practice ingrained in the culture, and everybody did it.
Li Du left a 50-dollar tip, meaning that they had left ten dollars each. The tip was significant, because their meal had cost only 100 dollars.
If it were not for the big-eater Godzilla, the other four people would have only eaten 50 dollars worth of food. Food expenditure in the country was really low, and the portions of food were large.
Li Du was generous with his tips because the server had provided a bench for Ah meow, Ah Ow, and Crispy Noodles to sit on. Many restaurants did not allow their patrons to bring pets.
A 40-minute journey later, a towering city appeared before them.
Las Vegas!
It was a city with multiple personalities, and it had continued changing since the time of the Rat Pack. In order to catch tourists' eyeballs, this city was willing to offer anything.
Other parts of the United States had paid attention to matters like inheritance and conservation history. Las Vegas didn't do this; the entire city chased wildly after the current trends.
Here, the old things continued to give way to new things. The signs that had flourished in the past now lay in the cemetery for neon lights collecting dust. The changing footsteps never ceased.
Only the casinos weren't this way. The time in casinos seemed to be stagnant: there were no clocks in there, no time. There was only fresh air being pumped in regularly, ongoing buffets, and endless drinks.
There were endless streams of cars on the road. While luxury cars such as Ferraris, Lamborghinis, and Porsches were not seen everywhere, they could always be easily found if one wanted to look.
Li Du's Hellcat could attract some eyeballs in Flagstaff, but in Las Vegas? No one bothered to spare the effort of a second glance.
Hans turned on the GPS and keyed in a very impressive destination: Caesars Palace.
Li Du was stunned. "Yo, you booked Caesars Palace?"
This was one of the best hotels in Las Vegas, and was almost regarded as a landmark. Many people came to Caesars Palace to sightsee, and treated it as a tourist attraction.
Hans shrugged. "Just received that 800,000 dollars in my account. Couldn't resist spending some money."
Li Du gave him a thumbs up. "Cool!"
Hans said, "Actually, Caesars Palace is not that costly—about 200 300 dollars a night. I didn't book the presidential suite but everyone has a room."
Lu Guan was overjoyed. "D*mn it. I knew it was the right choice to work with you." He laughed with joy. "I've never stayed in Caesars Palace before."
Caesars Palace was a big hotel. Many hotels and entertainment places around the world had adopted this name. It could be said that this hotel in Las Vegas was an ancestor of sorts.
They stopped the truck at the door, and a few fine-looking men in suits were about to help them open the doors. But as they looked up at the big truck, they were stunned—they would need to step on the foot pedals to reach the handles.
Li Du and others had already pushed the doors open and so the two handsome men could only bow and smile as they spread their arms wide. "Welcome!"
The hotel was huge. The magnificent-looking building was modeled after the Greco-Roman style. If an architecture expert were present, he would definitely sneer at its mish-mash design.
But it was meant for the rich tycoons and not for the experts. Upon entering the hotel, he saw many replicas of the classic sculptures. While the feeling was quite unexplainable, one could still feel an artistic air permeating the hotel.
Service from the staff was attentive. Upon noticing Li Du's interest in the sculptures, an employee said, "If you like the stone carvings, you shouldn't miss the Brahma Shrine. It's this way."
Unique-looking gods could be seen at the temple made of marble. There was also a towering fountain, and a group of beautiful girls dressed like goddesses. They were actually servers carrying cocktails and canapes in their hands.
Hans grabbed a glass of rainbow-colored cocktail and gave a 10-dollar tip in return.
The girl bowed carefully to show her gratitude, while making sure she did not expose her chest and her legs—displaying mannerisms of a goddess indeed.
Li Du said, "I do think this place is called the Labyrinth? The Roman Labyrinth? Where is the Minotaur?"
The Minotaur, a half-man and half-bull creature from Crete, was the offspring produced after Pasiphaë, the wife of King Minos of Crete, mated with the bull sent by Poseidon. To contain this being with a man's body and a cow's head, Minos built a Labyrinth in Crete.
Hans pointed to his side. "Go take a look if you're interested. Though the buffet restaurant with Kobe beef sounds like a good option too."
Li Du was amazed. To think they had this too? How big could this hotel be?!


They love gold, and they love silver. Even more so, they love gems that dazzle, like stars across the skies. 
Firearms, jewelleries, and precious metals; A collector’s world will not be complete without antiques.  
Storage auctions, old goods trade, re-estate sales and gold-digging. But the truth is, if one wants to make money, then the supreme way is through searching for the legendary treasures. 
Holding the fort, there’s an ocelot, a wolf, and an Andes condor. At the side, there’s a loyal hound, an irascible ape, and an African honey badger. Who said that you can only rely on humans when treasure hunting?! 

It has long been theorized that parallel-dimensions exist, but we are yet to prove their existence. After an experiment in the Nevada desert forced the fabrics of time and space to collide, it opened up a whole new opportunity for the US to explore and exploit.

0200 hours, the Nevada desert, USA.

"Energy levels are destabilizing! Everybody, Vacate the area!" Colin Palmer watched as his experiment start to fail right in front of him. He wanted to create a new energy source, a clean and non polluting one that will change the world and fix the earth. But it's failing right in front of him.

"Colin! We need to get away from here!" A voice behind him shouted, seemingly panicked.

But Colin didn't listen, he just wanted to drown himself in the feeling of failure and depression.

"What went wrong?"

"What did I miss?"

"Is a new energy source really hopeless?"

He stood there, frozen. He didn't know what to make of this demoralizing event before him. But as he was left petrified, a hand reached out to his shoulders and pulled him around. He was left to face one of his physicist.

"Palmer, the thing might explode and we cannot afford to lose you!" She shouted.

He looked at her face which is in the state of panic but he knows that this girl knows his value to humanity and is not willing to let humanity lose him.

But he can't move, he doesn't even want to.

"I-I die here then."

As the young physicist was about to reply, a bright flash took both of them.

0425 hours,The White House.

President Darin Hale placed his fingers on his forehead and started to massage himself in a futile attempt to ease the headache he was currently experiencing. A knock on the door across his office made him bring his hand down and adopt a posture fitting for a president.

The door opened and the tired head scientist of the United States President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST) came in.

"Sir, we finally have the damage report."

The science department has been working non-stop ever since the reports of the failure of the creation of a new energy source arrived. Scientist Colin Palmer brought up adequate proof of the possibility for a new energy source to the council and convinced the office to fund his project.

"Casualties?" The president asked.

"Two sir, leading scientist Palmer and a scientist named Lena Stanley."

The president knew Colin, he was a brilliant man. With his love for nature unparalleled by anyone else and is only second to his brilliance in the department of physics. So when he offered the possibility of a new clean energy source (which the world and especially the United States needs) he was already almost assured to be given funding.

"Their bodies?" Bringing them home and burying them was the least he could do for that brilliant man and the scientist who perished with him.

"We didn't find them sir." The lead scientist replied with a depressed face.

The president gave out a long sigh, but as he was about to ask another question a knock came from the door.

"Come in." The president said after re-adjusting his expression and posture.

A four-eyed young scientist walked in, obviously nervous about meeting the president which made the president chuckle internally.

"Mr. President sir, we have new reports from ground zero."

"More problems I see." The president thought.

The young scientist adjusted his glasses before continuing. "Sir, It would appear that the blast as we first thought it was is not actually a blast but something that is... staying there and shows no sign of dissipating."

"What does this mean young man?" The president now has his attention caught by the young scientist, the experiment may have been an explosive failure after all.

"We don't yet sir, but if I may put my own hypothesis to your attention...?" The scientist asked.

The head of the PCAST looked at the young scientist with incredulity at his statement. But the president simply nodded and said. "Go on."

The young scientist took a breath before laying out his hypothesis to the president.

"Sir, I believe that we did create a new energy source, but not in the form of the traditional ones like electricity or gasoline and instead we might've caused something like an nuclear reactor but in a more massive scale that made the fabric of space and time collide with each other and ground zero as the median of the collision."

The president looked at the young scientist in thought before asking.

"Young man, whats your name?"

"Jake Conner sir." The young scientist replied.

"So Jake, what do you mean by "we did create a new energy source" but not the traditional way?"

The scientist nodded and thought for a while before wording out his support to his hypothesis.

"Sir, ground zero of the experiment can maintain a presence of energy in form of light emission, if we can learn how it does this we can harness the power it potentially produces and make a new, clean energy source."

The president looked at the head of the PCAST and asked. "Is this possible?"

The head thought for a while before replying. "Well sir, Jake here has an excellent record and although his hypothesis makes sense I have to inform you that he is researching physics in an... unconventional way."

The president nodded. "You know who else researched physics in an unconventional way?"

"Who sir?" The head asked.

"Colin Palmer."

After thanking the two scientists and dismissing them the president dialed in the number of the house speaker and brought it up to his ear.

"Mr. President?" The voice of the house speaker came through the phone.

"Hello George, it seems like I need you to make something up to cover our most recent 'problem'."

"If it needs to be done it will be done sir." The house speaker replied.

"Good, after your done contact the head of the NIAC and tell him to allocate resources for a new building project around ground zero."

"Yes sir." Was the house speaker's reply before the president placed the phone back on the table.

"This might just be a whole batch of opportunities." He thought as he  reflected on what the young scientist said.

The USA opens accidentaly opens a portal to another world!

After an experiment conducted at the Nevada desert forced the fabrics of parallel-dimensions to collide, it opened up a whole new world of opportunities to the US to explore and, possibly, exploit. Carefully hiding it from public knowledge the US government forms the Special Exploration Division  to secure a foothold in the new world.

Watch the story unfold from the point of view of an army private to a high-king of an empire, watch as the US dives into what is impossible.

"ANG GANDA naman ng view, oh!"



Napalingon siya at sinimangutan ang pinanggalingan ng mga salitang iyon. Nginitian lang siya ni Lance saka kinindatan. Nilapitan siya nito at inakbayan.



"You're enjoying your stay here, Klarissa. Nalimutan mo na yatang may pamilya ka na naghihintay sa 'yo sa Manila." She protruded her lips and looked again to the beautiful view of sunrise.



Kasalukuyan siyang nasa mataas na bahagi at matamang pinapanood ang pagsikat ng araw. Dalawang taon na siyang naninirahan sa Batanes at tama si Lance, nag-e-enjoy na nga siya doon ng husto. Parang ayaw na niyang bumalik pa sa Manila kaso naroroon kasi ang mama at kapatid niya.



Nakilala niya si Lance nang minsang maghanap siya ng trabaho sa Makati. Ngunit dahil sa criminal record niya - kahit pa na-withdraw ang kaso, nahirapan siya at bukod tanging ito lang ang nagtiwala sa kanya. Hinayaan nitong i-handle niya ang resort at hotel nito sa Batanes kaya siya doon na tumira. Pansamantala din siya nalayo sa toxic na environment ng Manila at dahil nawili na siya sa Batanes parang ayaw na tuloy niyang umalis doon.



Lance now is her sister's fianceé and their getting married next month. Doon din ang venue kaya naman hindi niya maintindihan kung saan nanggagaling ang kahulugan ng sinambit sa kanya ni Lance kani-kanina lamang.



"I don't want to go back there, Lance. Dito din naman kayo titira ng kapatid ko kaya bakit pa ako babalik doon? Dahil sa laki ng pasahod mo, nakabili na ako bahay para sa amin ni mama malapit lang sa resort mo," aniya dito.



"Ayaw mong bumalik doon dahil may iniiwasan ka, iyon ba ang gusto mong sabihin, Klarissa?"



Bigla siya natawa. "Saan naman galing 'yan, Lance? Sino naman ang iiwasan ko doon? Ang ganda kasi dito at nasanay na ako sa pamumuhay kaya hindi ko na kailangan bumalik pa doon," 



"You knew that Morales became my investor last month, right? You can't lie to me. Alam kong nabasa mo ang email conversation namin ni Alfred kahapon," wika nito na nagpa-awang sa mga labi niya. "At para alam mo lang, he'll come here today to meet me."



Bumagsak ang balikat niya dahil sa sinabing iyon ni Lance. Nung umatras sa kaso si Alfred, nalaman niyang umalis ito kasama si Kit papuntang Nevada. She tried to get in touched with Kit but someone cut their communications. Hindi niya alam kung sino pero may hinala siyang si Cassie iyon. Nabalita din kasi sa international news na napanood niya na lumalabas ang dalawa at kung minsan ay kasama pa si Kit.



"You can't avoid him forever, Klarissa."



"So, magkikita kami ngayon? Pwede bang huwag ko muna siya harapin? Baka kasi hindi ko kayanin at umiyak na naman ako sa harap niya," Tumango naman ito. "thank you, Lance. Ever since I met you, wala ka ng ginawa kung 'di ang tulungan ako pati na ang pamilya ko,"



"Nagagawa ng kapag nagmamahal," he said to her. Kumindat pa itong muli sa kanya.



Sobrang in love ito sa kapatid niya kaya naman inalok nito agad ng kasal pagka-graduate nito sa kolehiyo. Hindi naman siya tumutol dahil kilala niya si Lance at malinis ang intensyon nito sa kapatid niya. She remembered the time when Lance confessed to her. She refused it because she's still stock with Alfred. Mabuti na lang at nahanap nito ang babaeng karapatdapat sa pagmamahal nito sa katauhan ng kapatid niya.



"Pwede ka magday off ngayo para hindi kayo magkita na dalawa sa hotel mamaya,"



Muli siyang nagpasalamat dito. Iniwan na siyang mag-isa doon ni Lance at binaling na niya ang atensyon niya sa araw na ngayon at nakataas na. Another day is about to start again. She must face it with a brave heart.




MATAMANG inalis ni Alfred ang suot niyang itim na shades pagpasok niya sa Paradise Hotel and Resort. Doon niya kikitain ang may-ari noon na si Lance Alvarez. Hindi niya maintindihan kung bakit siya nag-invest sa hotel and resort business. Malayo iyon sa line of business na siyang hawak niya. May gusto lang siyang kumpirmahin at malalaman niya iyon sa mismong lugar na iyon.



Lance Alvarez was reportedly dating a local in Batanes and when he looked at the photos online he saw Klarissa with Kris and their mom. Two years have been passed and those years, his remained in love with her. Kahit na una siyang sumuko. Kahit mas pinili niyang lumayo at subukan kalimutan ito. He's so stupid to do all of that moves. Nung malaman niyang totoong na-framed up lang si Klarissa gusto niya agad bumalik ng Pilipinas at humingi ng tawad sa dalaga.



It was Cassie who planned everything. Na-obsessed ito sa kanya kaya ginawa nito ang lahat para mawala si Klarissa sa buhay nilang mag-ama. Until now, Kit is still giving him a cold treatment. Siya kasi ang dahilan kung bakit naputol ang komunikasyon nito kay Klarissa nung unang dalawang buwan nila sa Nevada. Hindi pa niya alam ang buong katotohanan noon at anghel pa ang tingin niya kay Cassie. But just like Camille, she's into his wealth and power too. Kaya naman nang mabisto niya ito, lahat ay ginawa niya upang maiganti si Klarissa dito. He made sure that Cassie's business will go bankrupt just like what he did to Camille when he finally got the evidence to pinned her for slash funds on every projects that MSC have. 



"Mr. Alfred Morales, welcome to Paradise Hotel and Resort. How was your flight?" tanong ni Lance ng salubungin siya nito sa entrance.



The hotel were nice and neat. Quality din ang service ng mga staff na hindi naalis ang ngiti sa mukha. No wonder why its tags as the best of best hotel and resort in the world.



"Flight was fine, Mr. Alvarez." Tinanggap niya ang pakikipag kamay nito. Giniya siya nito papasok sa pinaka-main lobby ng hotel and resort. Doon isang pamilyar na tinig ang tumawag sa pangalan nito. He was surprised to see Kris there with her mom. Higit na nakasupresa sa kanya ang paghalik ni Lance dito. Kagaya niya, nagulat din ang dalawa nang makita siya doon. Iyon lang ang nababanaag niya sa mga mata nina Kris at mama nito. Nasa isip lang ba niya ang lahat na galit ang mga ito sa kanya?



"Nasaan ang Ate?" Nadinig niyang tanong ni Kris kay Lance.



"Day off. I forced her to take it since she's been working here day and night," tugon naman ni Lance. Binalingan siya nito at hinawakang nang mahigpit ang kamay ni Kris. "Mr. Morales, I want you to meet my fianceé and her mom."



Gusto niyang sabihin dito na kilala na niya mga ito at sigurado siyang may ideya na din si Lance tungkol sa kanya. Dinala siya ni Lance sa sky lounge ng Paradise at doon nila pinag-usapan ang tungkol sa investments at iba pang may kinalalaman sa negosyo. Maganda ang kabuuan ng hotel at resort na iyon. Perfect vacation spot sa mga taong naghahanap ng peaceful ambiance katulad niya.



Tumagal ang meeting nila ng dalawang oras at nang matapos iyon, agad siyang pinahatid ni Lance sa kanyang suite. Upon entering, a cozy feelings embraced him and the bed was inviting. Nilapitan niya iyon at nahiga doon saka matamang tiningnan ang ceiling. Ngayon lang siya nakaramdam ng matinding pagod mula sa ilang araw niyang pagbiyahe pabalik balik sa Singapore, Nevada at Pilipinas. Kailan lang nang maisipan niyang bumalik doon kasama si Kit at doon na muli tumira. Natuwa naman ang anak niya kahit pa sabihing nasanay na ito sa pamumuhay sa America.



After all they'll keep on coming back to where they belong. Marahan siyang bumangon at naisipan niyang lumabas at mag-ikot ikot sa resort. Bawat masalubong niyang staff ay binabati siya na para bang kilala na siya ng mga ito. Naisip niya din na baka na-inform na ni Lance ang lahat kaya naman gano'n na lang ka-warm ang pagtanggap sa kanya doon. Tinungo niya ang beach front kung may mangilan ngilang tao na tingin niya ay katulad niyang guest din doon. But a woman in a floral long summer dress caught his attention. He's been longing for her and two years without seeing her was a torture. Hindi lang siya ang gano'n dahil maging si Kit ay miss na miss na ito.



Pinagpatuloy niya ang paglalakad hanggang sa maging limang hakbang na lang layo niya dito. He saw how the wind danced her light brown curly hair. Nakangiti din ito at iyon na yata ang pinakamagandang tanawin na nakita niya. Tila napansin nito ang presensya niya at bumakas ang hindi maipaliwanag ang ekspresyon. Unti unti nawala ang ngiting kanina lang ay nakita niyang nakaguhit sa mga labi nito bago siya lumapit. Kanina, nadinig niya kina Lance at Kris na nag-day off ito kaya hindi na niya masyadong inasahan na magkikita sila ng araw na iyon. But destiny made their paths crossed unexpectedly. He was about to speak when she suddenly walks fast and leave him there.



"Damn…" aniya habang nanatiling nakasunod sa papalayong pigura ni Klarissa.



Maybe she's not ready to see him. Baka iniisip nitong galit pa din siya dahil sa nangyari two years ago. Malalim siyang napabuntong hininga. He'll be staying there for a week and they will see each other even if she tried to avoid him. Nag-isip siya nang magandang paraan para muli itong i-approach sakaling magkita sila ulit ngayon o sa mga susunod pa na mga araw. Gusto niya din malaman kung kaya pa ba siya nitong patuluyin muli sa buhay nito. After all, siya pa din ang hinahanap hanap ng puso niya. For two years, he tried to date other girls but at the end of the day, he's still stock with her. A memory of their almost relationship.

Her heart had been blue while his heart had been borrowed. Will they entertain that magnetic force called love again?

~•~•~•~

Buong buhay ni Klarissa ay ginugol na niya sa pagta-trabaho para sa pamilya niya. Kaya naman nang may mas malaking offer sa kanya ay agad niya tinanggap iyon. Lahat kasi ng bagay kahit kapalit pa noon ang pansarili niyang kaligayahan ay gagawin niya para sa pamilya niya. Ngunit ng makilala niya ang boss niya na ubod ng gwapo at hot ay parang gusto na niyang umatras sa laban. Hindi kasi kasama ang puso niya ngayon sa dapat niya problemahin. Ngunit anong gagawin niya kung hindi niya magawang kontrahin ang puso niya?

Lifeless, iyon si Alfred matapos mamatay ng pinakamamahal niyang babae. Breathing but not living. Bahay at trabaho lang ang araw araw na routine niya. Naiwan sa kanya ang tanging alaala ng kanilang pagmamahalan. Si Kit - ang ten years old niyang anak na tanging nagpapagaan sa loob niya. Ngunit gano'n pa 'man tila may kulang pa din. Hindi pa din bumabalik ang kulay sa mundo niya. Kaya nang dumating sa buhay nilang mag-ama si Klarissa ay nayanig ang mundo nila. Sa isang iglap, natagpuan na lamang niya ang sarili na nahuhulog dito. Si Klarissa na ang kanyang bagong simula? 


DISCLAIMER: This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author's imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

Copyright © 2019 by Mary Ruth Oba

All rights reserved. No part of this novel may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted  in any form or by any means, including typing, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.

Professor Wei Kang was most worried about how unfamiliar they were with Egyptian culture and living conditions. Although he would definitely hire a guide after arriving there, the guide was only a guide in geography. It would be too extravagant to expect them to know the culture and language of ancient Egypt. He probably could not afford a guide who had such knowledge.
When it came to Chinese history, it must be said to be 5000 years in length, and when it came to Egyptian history, it must be said to be 7000 years. But in fact, the history of ancient Egypt was actually only 5000 years long. When the era of Cleopatra ended, it was completely interrupted. The latter 2000 years were no longer the era of pharaohs. The inheritors threw the culture and heritage of ancient Egypt into the rubbish heap of history, and the Arabs replaced the real Egyptians to become the masters of that land.
The Chinese people of today were still the people of China from 2000 years ago, but the Egyptians of today were no longer the Egyptians of 2000 years ago. The official language was Arabic now.
The reason for this was probably that China was in a better geographical location, with a plateau and the sea as natural barriers in the east, south and southwest direction. China could also ensure that there were suitable exchanges with other countries in other directions, so as not to be isolated from the outside world.
Egypt was at the strategic juncture of three continents and two seas. Since ancient times, it had been a battleground for military strategists. Especially in ancient times, everyone had coveted this rich world granary. The unfortunate ancient Egyptians were rotated every few decades. Not only was their cultural heritage interrupted, but their ancient buildings were damaged by war. It was said that the nose of the Sphinx figure had been bombarded by Napoleon and ruined.
One of the main objectives of this scientific examination was to find the primitive Egyptian cats of thousands of years ago and to find decisive evidence for the domestication process of cats, which was bound to intersect with archaeology and history. Wei Kang had no knowledge of these subjects. Hence, he had invited Teacher Luo at the last minute to hold make-up lessons for the expedition team, but he also knew that it would be of little significance. Still, ever since he had found out that Zhang Zian knew ancient Egyptian language and history, he felt as if he had been injected with a cardiac stimulant and had managed to put down something that troubled him.
"Come, let us familiarize ourselves with the equipment for the journey this time and try on the clothes to see if they fit." He pointed at the stack of equipment and clothes at the corner of the room.
Wei Kang had made a complete set of clothes for each member of the team. Short-sleeved shirts and shorts and long-sleeved shirts and long pants, sun-proof clothes, cold-proof clothes and matching baseball caps. The logo of Binhai University was printed on their clothes and hats. Wearing these clothes to Egypt would look very official, and if they met with a messy situation, they could easily find their comrades in the crowd to keep from being separated. After all, Egypt's current situation was not very stable.
Zhang Zian simply tried it on. The size was suitable.
His gaze moved, and he saw a very special thing in the box. He could not help but walk over and ask, "Professor Wei, what is this thing?"
Wei Kang was also trying on clothes, and when he took a look, he answered, "Oh, this is the newest model of a UAV."
"UAV?" Zhang Zian had heard of this thing before, but it was his first time seeing it with his own eyes.
Wei Kang nodded. "During this scientific research operation in the field, there will be UAVs to follow the whole journey," he said. "One reason is to record the details of the whole journey as valuable information for the future. Another is for safety. If there is any movement around us, the UAVs hovering in the air can find it ahead of time. The third is to search for wildlife more effectively. After all, it can fly high and far."
In a portable suitcase, a highly technological and aesthetic UAV lay quietly. The silver-white magnesium-aluminum alloy body and carbon fiber arm were light and strong. The four propellers were thin and sharp, twisted in beautiful angles.
A pan tilt camera, which looked like a high-end camera lens, was placed in another small box. Its big, agile eyes were coated with green film, reflecting Zhang Zian's figure.
Besides that, there was also a remote control and a backup battery, as well as a lot of other parts.
He could see that this thing was quite expensive with one look. Zhang Zian was thinking that Professor Wei had really prepared well for this expedition.
"Xiao Zhang, I just wanted to tell you about this—when we go out into the wild, we all have other things to do, such as collecting samples of wildlife and taking photos, so I want to arrange for you to operate this UAV. What do you think?" Wei Kang asked.
"Me? But I've never played with this kind of thing before." Zhang Zian really wanted to play around with it. If it was an entry-level UAV worth thousands of yuan, it was not that bad, but this was a professional UAV with all kinds of accessories that added up to at least tens of thousands of yuan. If it fell... He really could not afford it!
"It doesn't matter. It's very simple," Wei Kang said. "You can just follow the operation instructions. The supporting software of the UAV is very intelligent. It can detect collisions from top to bottom and avoid obstacles automatically. You just need to make sure that the UAV is hovering overhead all the time and use the eyes of the UAV to find the wild animals we are looking for."
Zhang Zian understood it was because only he was quite free and suitable to do that.
"Alright, I understand," he said. He did not try to push the responsibility any more and straightforwardly accepted his task.
"Ah, when you go back in a while, take the UAV back as well and get familiar with using it," Wei Kang said. At the same time, he did not forget to remind him, "Right, when you are testing it, remember to find an empty space. It's better to be somewhere in the suburbs. Don't fly in the no-fly zone!"
"Alright."
Zhang Zian was also very happy, like a child who had gotten a new toy. It was expected that the shop assistants and elfins would be surprised to see him take the drone back to the pet shop.
As for the test flight site, was there not a ready-made space behind the pet shop? Although it wasn't the suburbs, it was usually not visited at all and was probably not a no-fly zone.
Then Zhang Zian noticed a box of strange equipment. It was not as exquisite as the UAV, but there was a large number of camouflage-coated rectangular boxes arranged neatly in the suitcase. Each box had embedded lenses and sensors right in front.
"What is this?"
He was like Grandma Liu, continuously asking questions when she entered the Grand View Garden. Everything was fresh.
"You've never seen it before, right? This is an infrared trigger camera." Xiao Tianyu, a plump man, struggled to take off his sunscreen clothes. Although they were the biggest size, they were still tight on him.
"All of these?" Zhang Zian asked.
"Yes, it's useless to take only one," Xiao Tianyu explained. "We can place many units in the area where wildlife may appear. When warm-blooded animals or moving objects pass in front of the camera, they will take photos automatically. Because lots of wildlife are afraid of people, and we have limited time, we cannot always wait in one place. But we can put down a good infrared camera, and we can then go to other places to do other things. We can come back to check on it after we are done with the matter."
Zhang Zian inwardly clicked his tongue. Wei Kang really had put down a lot of money this time. It seemed that the possibility of the success of this mission was very high. As long as there were still primitive Egyptian cats in Egypt, there was an 80 percent chance they could be found.


1. Download a suspicious game
2. Catch a few magical pets as partners
3. Go through interesting daily routines and lead the pet shop to a whole new level

I eventually opened my eyes slowly to check whether my slash earlier was on target or not. After confirming that it was accurate, I turned around to look at commander Mavuto.
He still had a calm face that showed no emotion whatsoever, in spite of the scene that had just occurred in front of him. I expected him to do something, but he just stood there quietly observing.
"You're not going to say anything?"
"I won't find faults in the choices you make. It was your decision, after all."
"You have no concerns?"
"My only concern is whether or not you can live with those choices."
"I think I'll manage."
This man was the commander of an army, a seasoned veteran of war who had taken away countless human lives. One would expect him to be indifferent or merciless towards human, yet commander Mavuto felt somewhat like a protective father to me, even though I had only known him for two weeks up to this point.
I walked outside of the cell and handed back the large sword to the commander, which he promptly grabbed hold of and put back in its sheath.
"Why?"
A faint voice came out of the small prison cell. When I glanced behind me, the young knight was still sitting on the ground even though I had already cleanly sliced through the copper chain attached to his leg shackle.
"There are already enough people who hate me in this world, and I don't want to make enemies out of more."
"I can't be your enemy if I was dead."
"That's true, but if I killed you, then by Kitrod law I would have become an outlaw, which means the entire population would turn against me."
Between making enemies out of one person and out of most of the world, this seemed like the better choice to me. Besides, this was the only choice that wouldn't hurt my conscience.
"Except we're not in Kitrod right now, and what you're saying makes no sense."
"How can you be so nonchalant in this situation?"
Does this guy really want me to end his life or something? Why can't he just leave my conscience alone? I only wanted to say some ridiculous excuse to get away from this scenario, and possibly make myself look high and mighty…
"Well, you're probably branded as a public enemy in Kitrod already, anyways. It's not that hard to link the disappearance of an eccentric alchemist who sells scrolls for fire magic with the Demon King army's recent pyromania."
Before the knight could make me feel worse about myself, I turned back to look at the commander.
"I hope you'll forgive me for this, commander Mavuto."
"Forgive you for what? I'm not blaming you for anything."
"You're not even mad at my decision?"
"He was your prisoner, so what you chose to do to him does not concern me."
"You're surprisingly lenient."
"My leniency depends on whether or not you plan on rebelling later on."
"I don't have plans for that."
"You have nothing to worry about, then."
I felt somewhat relieved that the commander had nothing against me for sparing the prisoner's life.
"…Although, how do you plan on explaining this to other people who aren't as lenient?"
"Well…"
That was a good question. How exactly do I plan on explaining this?
"Um… Oh, I know!"
"Yes?"
"You said I should treat him like a spoil of war, right?"
"That's correct."
"Hey! I'm a person, not an object!"
Ignoring the knight who voiced his objection just now, I continued talking.
"Then I'll just tell other people that he's now my slave."
"That should work."
I turned back around to face the captive knight and pointed my finger at him.
"And since you're my slave now, I have an order for you."
"I'd rather die, thanks."
"…"
He seemed to be unfazed by my statement, and was still keeping his listless look from before.
"Can't you at least be grateful I spared your life?"
"Like I said, I'd rather die while maintaining my honor as a knight than become a lowly slave."
Now I'm just worried that I might get killed by this knight instead.
"Anyhow, you will accompany the commander to the recently occupied territory on the other side of the border."
"I refuse."
"Afterwards, you will return to your hometown once the night comes and tell everyone about how the Demon King army should be feared for taking down a dragon. Of course you'll have to take a beating before leaving, so people won't suspect much."
"…"
"Finally, you will retire from the army, and you will welcome me like a friend if I ever come visit you."
I smiled at the knight, while the man gave a deep sigh and finally decided to stand up.
"At this point, I'm starting to wonder if you're a moron or lunatic, or both."
I ignored the knight's comment, then turned back around to face commander Mavuto.
"Will you help me make sure he obeys that command?"
"Certainly."
While I have to admit that this is one of the dumbest ideas I could come up with, it was probably the best choice for my mental health.
Keeping this person around would put my own life in danger. Even if I made sure he was unarmed, it was still most likely possible for him to beat me to death, since he clearly has much more strength than me. Given how he had essentially given up on life earlier, it was highly probable that he would have no qualms about killing me just to get in trouble and be executed.
"Oh, I almost forgot to ask, what is your name and hometown?"
"…Ankis, from Gadubi town."
If I remember correctly, then Gadubi was a small town about 50 kilometers south of the border. It held some strategic importance because the town had a higher elevation than its surroundings. Since it was relatively close to the Demon King's territory, it might actually be possible for me to come to that place one day.
"Well I hope to see you in Gadubi town some day, Ankis."
I walked away while saying that, so the knight would not have a chance to make a snarky remark.
*   *   *   *   *
There was no work that needed my help in Border Town, so the commander granted me permission to leave early even though I was originally supposed to be here until the end of this day. There was a supply carriage that came from Ladita town the night before, and was on its way back in the early morning, just a couple hours after the incident in the prison, so I hitched a ride on it after receiving the citizenship card from the officers involved. It was a thin wooden card with my personal details and some authoritative stamp etched on it.
I reached the town at around eleven o'clock, and decided to go to the nearest inn to have an early lunch since I hadn't eaten since the night before. There were only two other locals in the dining hall since it was still quite early for lunch, so I decided to treat those two to some beer in exchange for telling me more about the town. Amber was supposedly coming to pick me up at ten o'clock the next morning in front of the town landmark, so I wanted to learn as much as possible about this place during the 23 hours I was about to spend here.
Ladita had very fertile soil, so this town's main focus was agriculture. Almost all of the town's 15000 or so population were minotaurs and cyclopes, whose high physical strength allowed them to work tirelessly on large fields to provide grains for the entire southern province and the army at the border. There was so much agricultural work going on that during harvest season, one could easily get lost in the middle of the fields if not for the abundant tall mills in this town. Each mill had a unique colored marking on it, so with a little bit of familiarity, one could make use of the mills in sight to navigate around.
Most of the town's land was flat, but there was one particularly tall hill on the outskirts of town where an unnecessarily large mill was built. It was inefficient to cart crops up a 200 meter slope just for grinding, especially when there were over a hundred of other mills built on the town's flat land, so this large mill was only used as a land marker for those unfamiliar with the area that was trying to locate Ladita town but ended up getting lost in the crop fields instead. This was probably where Amber was supposed to pick me up tomorrow.
There were no unique plant species in this area since all of the land surrounding the town had already been converted into crop fields, which as a result removed all wildlife and naturally occurring vegetation, so there was no chance of me finding new alchemy materials to experiment with.
My other interest was whether or not I could learn new magic here, but it seemed unlikely since most of the population was unable to use any, just like in Sachiru town. Of the very few who could, the magic they knew was limited to very basic earth-type spells that helped boost crop yield, which would have been of no use for me. The town at least had a public library, so I asked for the directions there.
*   *   *   *   *
I was prepared for another shock like when I visited the Sachiru public library, but the one in this town actually looked normal. It was a plain white building with one single floor, measuring about 40 meters wide and deep. The interior looked like a very well-lit concert hall, with bookshelves lined up where the performance stage would normally be located. The only thing that bothered me was the fact that all seats were facing the same direction, and there were no reading desks…
Were all the library buildings in this territory originally other buildings that got repurposed?
The librarian's desk was right next to the door, so I came over to the fairy working there to talk.
"Good morning. Do you have books about magic in this library?"
"Oh, welcome. Um… We have quite a number of books on magic. What kind of magic books are you looking for?"
"Could you list the kind of books that are available?"
"We have books on earth, plant, and light basic magic. You could learn about how to make the earth even more fertile, or how to create artificial sunlight, or even how to enchant plants to make them become able to get rid of pests by themselves."
…All of these books were geared towards agricultural use.
"Are there any other magic books?"
"We have one on something we coined as chaos magic, too."
That's interesting. I've never heard about this term before.
"What exactly is chaos magic?"
"Well… It was some strange magic created by a lunatic a few decades ago. The spells he created were a hodgepodge of several different elements, making it impossible to attribute it to a single type. Not only that, it caused quite a bit of havoc to occur, so the people who saw that decided to call it chaos magic."
Now I'm curious to know what kind of crazy person would record a lunatic's chaotic spells in a book.
"Why do you even have a book on that, then?"
"As it turns out, the spells he invoked could actually be made useful when used in a lesser degree. For example, a weakened tornado spell could create gusts that help pollinate plants, or a weakened version of a spell that created deafening loud noises could be used to chase away rodents."
"…All of those spells are used for agricultural purposes, aren't they?"
"Yes."
"Do you have any books about magic that isn't used for farming?"
I probably should have just asked that from the beginning. At least I know lunatics were still useful to some extent in this territory.
The fairy repeatedly tapped her chin and went into deep thought.
"Let me see… Oh, I think we have one book! I can show you where it is, if you want."
"That would be great."
As we made our way to the bookshelves, I couldn't help but notice the completely empty rows of seats in the library. I reckon the fairy had nothing better to do here.
She brought me to a bookshelf near the deepest corner of the building. All of the books on the shelf had plain, dark colored covers. Why were there so many books without any names or titles written on the spines, anyways? Did the authors or publishers not know how to advertise books?
"Well… It's somewhere on this shelf. Look for the thinnest book you can find."
I started having some doubts as soon as she finished her sentence.
"Oh, I found it."
She pulled out a thin booklet wedged between the clutter of books. Somehow, there was a bit of dust gathered on it, so she blew on it while my doubt increased after seeing the somewhat familiar cover color.
"Here you go. The book is called 'Devils can inflict curses, and so can you!'"
"Th-thank you…"
"The title is a bit corny, but there are a couple of useful spells written inside."
Useful to whom?
I did my best to keep a straight face while taking the booklet from her. I didn't want to bury it back under the mess of books right away, since the librarian looked so happy to be of help.
"I have another question. Could you tell me which shelf contains books about the ocean?"
"Two shelves down, that way."
"Thank you."
I went in the direction of where the fairy pointed, while she grabbed another book off of a nearby shelf and drifted towards the library's front entrance.
"I'm more interested in the skies than the ocean, so I'll be reading this at my desk. Let me know if you need help with anything else!"
"I will. Thank you."
I quickly stuffed the useless booklet back in its original place while she was looking away.

Some say that being an adventurer doing quests for a living was a wonderful job because of the freedom and exploration that comes with the job.

Unfortunately, that kind of life wasn't suited for everyone. A mage who found the life of an adventurer too difficult decides to retire and operate an alchemy store instead.

He gains a bit of fame from running one of very few alchemy stores in the world, but things don't go too smoothly for him, as he is once again forced to go on adventures...

* August 7, 2018: Novel now also published on Royal Road. Same title and author name.

* September 12, 2018: A problem occurred with Chapter 13, so I have to re-upload it and all the chapters that follow...

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