Chapter 65 - The Guardian Corps' Invitation

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Although the information surrounding the Anomaly Rifts was sparse, everyone knew what a Guild was. It was an independent unit created by a strong Guardian after being granted a license by the Corps.

Oftentimes, this process was headed by either a Director or Head Director of a division inside the Guardian Corps. And, while the Guild was independent of the Guardian Corps, that was only when it came to the Corps governing them. There were still other limiting clauses put in place towards the Guilds.

If not, then one of them could grow strong enough to overthrow the order. 

Hence, while although guilds seemed detached from the Guardian Corps, not only were their movements inside Alteria always monitored, but their Anomaly Rift activity was restricted by forcing them to acquire permission first.

Should that law be disobeyed, then the Guardian Corps would move personally to cripple said Guild. At least, that's how the current order worked. There was no telling how the future would unveil.

Still, Lucian was unsure. 'The Guardian Corps is undoubtedly the strongest entity on Alteria and going there will make things easier, but there's nothing significant here.'

The sole reason for Lucian's uncertainty was that the invitation didn't detail whether he would be confined to the Corp's territory or not. If this was a stipulation, then it would it difficult for him to visit his siblings. Which was a condition that Lucian couldn't abide by.

Additionally, while it presented the ultimate ability to form a Guild, it didn't list the requirements. Such as minimum headcount for creation, what needed to be sacrificed for the license, and how strong the Guardian needed to be in order to command the position of a Guild Master.

"Have they extended a warm welcome to the Corps?" Cyrus muttered since he was right next to Lucian, reading the notice as well. "You know, you're not a true Guardian until you join that place."

"Mm," Lucian nodded, but still possessed a conflicted expression.

When he saw that, Cyrus placed his hand on Lucian's shoulder. "I know you're worried. But, you don't need to accept straight away, right? Why not scope out the place first, then?"

"I could," Lucian replied with a contemplative expression. It was true. He didn't need to deliver an answer right away. And, should he end up refusing, then the Corps would have a hard time tracking him, given that surveillance was a moot option.

Meanwhile, Doctor Arc's jaw dropped when he saw the notification Lucian received. While he was aware that the Corps recruited actively, he didn't expect them to move this fast. Therefore, he could only change his plan on the spot while grabbing Lucian's arm.

"Lucian, if you go there, remember to mention me!"

Gradually, Lucian's expression became odd as he looked at Doctor Arc. The desperation in his eyes made Lucian understand something, "Is there something you need from that place?"

"Assistance…" Doctor Arc muttered, causing Lucian to be slightly taken aback by how transparent Doctor Arc was. Only he understood just how rare it was for a Guardian to pass the tutorial since most of them were too greedy to work together properly.

"For what reason?" Lucian asked further. Since he was being so transparent, then he might as well receive the whole story.

"For their equipment. I think there's a way to create Guardians. If we can get the right tech, then…" Doctor Arc's expression changed drastically, showcasing how much of a scientific zealot he was.

But, as one who experienced the Fractal Pillar, Lucian understood that it wasn't something that a mere human could hope to replicate. At least, not without an item on par with the Limitless Stone.

Unless there was someone similar to Lucian, who possessed a type of transcendent item that could act as a catalyst for Doctor Arc's research, then Lucian didn't see how it could possibly work.

Regardless, Lucian found use in his zealous nature, "If I mention your name, what can you do for me?"

"I… I can… err," Doctor Arc stammered and looked about as he tried to scrounge up an enticing offer. Eventually, he settled for something that Lucian hadn't expected, "I can pour all of my research into Cyrus, effectively creating a way to augment him with the help of Mana Crystals!"

"In other words, you want Cyrus to be your test subject?" Lucian replied with a deepening frown. Though the offer sounded good, it was too dangerous. Let alone Doctor Arc, because of the stone's words, Lucian barely even trusted the Fractured Monolith.

After all, what was the reason for the Monolith? It wasn't like the planet was on the verge of dying. The scientists had long since solved the issue of global deterioration. All the Monolith did was fortify the planet and humans more than they could accomplish through their own knowledge.

After all, Mana was simply an energy of the gods. Its uses were simply innumerable, spanning from fuel to healing. 

"Erm," Doctor Arc murmured.

"Forget about that. Instead of a test subject, how about you offer yourself? You said you want to research? Then surely you have knowledge outside of the norm," Lucian replied.

"Undoubtedly!" Doctor Arc nodded repeatedly.

"Good. Then if I come across a way inside the Corps, then I'll present you an offer later. Acceptable?" Lucian said.

Although it wasn't the best answer possible, Doctor Arc settled for it and simply nodded. In truth, Lucian wasn't interested in searching for such material, but perhaps having a seeker of knowledge on his side would prove beneficial in the long run.

After all, he couldn't accomplish everything himself.

Eventually, because of both Doctor Arc and Cyrus's input, Lucian decided to check out the Guardian Corps. However, while the invitation didn't reveal a date, it told him to arrive as soon as possible.

If it was anything like the Awakened Association, then Lucian was sure it didn't tolerate sloppy punctuality.

Therefore, Lucian decided to travel there. Except, the Guardian Corps wasn't like the Awakened Association with branches all over. It only had one branch per locality and one main headquarters.

And, when it came to registration, new Guardians were required to head towards the main headquarters. Because of the vast distance, the invitation doubled as a flight ticket. With how far it was, a jet was the fastest and only option to arrive there. 

Unless it was someone like the strongest Guardian, who was in the Heroic Order and thus possessed the ability to take flight.

"It's that far away?" Lucian muttered. After bringing up the location of the main headquarters, Lucian learned that it was over 14,000 miles away! That was equivalent to the distance from New York to China twice over.

Trying to get there on foot was simply impossible, especially in his weakened state. Lucian was incapable of reaching even half the speed of Jacob, who not only had high agility but possessed an ability of superspeed that increased his running speed by 3 times.

Whereas Guardians awakened abilities tailored to them, simple Awakeneds only possessed general abilities of superstrength, superspeed, telekinesis, or the like.

"I guess you'll have to get going soon then," Cyrus said as he read the distance with Lucian. He too, was just shocked.

"Yeah, perhaps so. I'll call you when everything is done," Lucian replied before standing up. But, before he even thought about leaving, he needed to do something else. There was an unpleasant smell coming from his body that he couldn't stand.

All the sweat from battle had accumulated.

"Shower?" Lucian asked while looking around, causing Doctor Arc to point towards the back. 

"If you need, we can send for a change of clothes as well!" Doctor Arc politely offered. Since Lucian more or less agreed to his demands, he treated him like a golden child, catering to his every need.

"That would be appreciated," Lucian said with a nod before heading towards the back.

…

Three hours later…

Lucian stood before an open lot with a few faces he had seen before. Though he wasn't acquainted with them, he remembered their faces from the Echelon Lounge and Proximal Space. They were also new Guardians heading towards the Corps headquarters.

However, there were no more than 30 of them, since there were various countries for the Guardians to live in. It just so happened that a handful of them came from within a 100-mile radius of Lucian.

Still, Lucian didn't interact with any of them, simply resting against the hangar gates as he heard the turbines of a jet approaching from the distance. 

'Time to board,' Lucian thought before walking towards the jet that opened before them.