Chapter 410 Final Stops, the world beyond Part 2

Chapter 410 Final Stops, the world beyond Part 2

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/Later... Around ten days after Babylon ended.../

"Huff... Huff... Arg..."

'This is killing me... Slowly...'

Inside his room, Dale sat down with his legs crossed, rapidly moving mana around his body.

A small blue marble of light moved within his veins, flashing in and out of his skin as it moved rapidly, so fast it seemed as if his body was about to collapse, like a bomb about to ignite.

"Phew..."

But in the end, he endured the pain and breached his previous limits, and with a satisfied exhale, he stopped his training.

'Twenty rotations in a single second... It was only for a moment, but I got it.'

'Before returning to the past, I could do about ten consistently even in a fight, now, I can do about six, which is already far beyond what I could do at the same period in time.'

'Well... Being able to circulate my mana a few more times than my enemy won't change anything, but it's about control, flow, speed, potency, etc. That's what can define a fight.'

'Soon, I'll surpass my old self... I'm speaking like a true regressor...'

Ten days had passed since Babylon closed, and about a week since he experienced the memories and settled most of his pending affairs.

In the last few days, Dale meticulously and unwaveringly prepared for his plans, honing his skills, strategizing, and preparing for the most opportune moment to embark on his Questlines, given most of them pointed outside of Resko.

The trend of most of his Quests was to pursue their completion by seeking outside of Resko, it has been like this for quite a while...

But first, in the real world, he slowly settled his issues, which weren't numerous.

He scheduled a talk with Roger not long after their previous talk, discussing as much as he could of what he experienced in Babylon but in a way that wouldn't confuse Roger.

Now, after a few days of trying to explain things to him, Roger had an idea that Dale possessed knowledge of future events and was willing to move on with some of his ideas.

He accepted it all far too readily, honestly... Which Dale assumed was because he better understood the backstage picture.

For him, the idea of his family being attacked wasn't all too far-fetched. He must've been thinking about this possibility for a long while.

However, despite everything Dale said, Roger did not share much with him, not because he couldn't, but because by this point in time, Dale wasn't an initiate, so he feared the worst.

It was the same old problem again... It seemed they would need to pass by one of the Crucibles again, but this time, not the South American one.

Meanwhile, Roger began acting to move Dale's family to Japan, where it was safer.

Dale's deep concern for his family's safety was evident following what he experienced. He felt no confidence in the American defense force after what happened before.

He did not care about the innuendos, be it corruption, or the enemy's ability, the stars aligned to fuck him over... None of it mattered; what he cared about was their failure to prevent the attack, and that's all.

So, with both in progress, most of Dale's real-world issues were solved or en route to their conclusion.

There was still the matter of his friends recognizing his identity in-game and discussing some things with the Assassin girl, but those two were better left for another time.

His friends were still there, and he exchanged some words with them, while the Assassin girl was currently online doing something.

She had accepted his friend request, which was surprising to him. Had she refused, she may have been able to flee from him, but it seemed she was being genuine... Or she was looking to have him do something for her.

Contacts were rather crucial in this line of work, maybe that's why she accepted it...

Aside from those, if he were to stretch things a little bit further, there was the issue of his real-life opponents, those who received training since they were born, such as the Swordswoman he faced at the end of the Arena.

Dale sometimes wondered how that girl was doing, and he even asked Roger who she was, only to be teased by him a little.

Unfortunately, Roger did not share who she was because, according to him, she was a friend's daughter, and until he got his permission, he wouldn't be introducing any boys to her. Which made Dale cringe a little...

There was also everyone from the first three Generations; Dale assumed everyone apart from a few to be his enemies, as until he understood what the "truth" and "roles" they were assigned following the end of the respective games, he would remain in the defensive at all times.

Back at Resko, Dale put his entire will and energy into improving himself and recovering his past Skills and Abilities.

His time was always full.

In the morning, he would wake up in the Inn, which, by now, was mostly empty.

The only one living here besides him was Illia. They would wake up together and eat in the main room next to the kitchen before parting ways.

She would work on her shop, and he would train with Sarferato.

Many would often join or observe his morning training and exercises, but given how heavy they were, only some of the trained individuals amidst those he rescued from the forest could follow, and even then, not for long.

Sarferato really held nothing back with his training, and nor did Tina, to the point he would leave their sight bleeding or in deep pain.

While the old General had him perform excruciating physical and technical exercises, Tina taught him a lot about energy manipulation and began to push him towards more advanced, more challenging forms of Witchcraft.

The Mark of the Witch on his palm was only the beginning of a lengthy journey; the ritual he performed not long ago was an extension of that, and there were still many left to accomplish.

Even then, things were flowing, and it was fine as long as they flowed.

Also, hecouldn't mention the players without talkingabout Rodi and Roger's granddaughter.

After much turmoil, Rodi's Clan was the one furthest in what Dale liked to call "His Questline",but in truth, they were just his errand people.

Whenever he needed something done and didn't have the time to confirm or do it, he would send them after it.

For example, there were dozens of mines scattered throughout the land. Dale gave them a mission to go to each Mine and scan its resources. It's important to mention that each mine is an undiscovered dungeon, and its levels varied from 40 to 60; some were even as high as 70+.

Dale knew which of the Mines held resources, having explored them before, but for his Quests, he needed to recheck them all and a few more he never had the chance to enter.

So, who better than Immortal players to send on this endeavor?

They were all leveling up efficiently, with Rodihimselfalmost reaching Level 50!

That was relatively high for today's standards... Back in Babylon, he saw no player higher then Level 55, with Twilight Moon, the previous Champion, being only Level 47.

By now, she was likely beyond 50, but Rodi wasn't that far off, even though the difference in their strength was as high as the sun and moon...

He even heard rumors that his Clan was thinking about transferring their headquarters to Resko, given the Capital was way too full of people.

Do remember that Azimuth is a single, worldwide server, the dozens of clans from each country would all try to settle down at the center of the world!

Hundreds to thousands of groups, each containing dozens to hundreds of members!

So those with ambitious goals would be looking for opportunities to get far ahead of others, and right now, Resko was proving to be this very place...Which was what Dale wanted.

As for Roger's kin, she was...Doingexactlywhat he expected her to do.

Their first encounter was full of caution and formalities, but after she got to know him personally and that he was a "normal" man, she began opening up... Fast...

Way too fast...

Now, she would often invade his room in the Inn and ask for Quests or "Fun things" to do...

Not anything of that sort, mind you!

She was an overly energetic girl who trusted her grandfather greatly, and this spread to him because he trusted Dale.

Dale wasn't bothered by her antics, but he did discuss how overwhelmed he felt with her grandfather, who spared no time to say how sorry he was...

He helped hergrow,she had the talent and the will, and he had the resources to guide her down her path.

Roger Agents had also all leveled up quite efficiently. Evenmore than Rodi and his group.

They were only in the low 30s when they arrived due to the lengthy travel time between the Capital and Resko; otherwise, given how elite they were, they would all be in the mid-40s.

After ten days of farming and training, they were all in their late 30s, with some already being Level 40+.

Once they reached Level 60, together with good items, Skills, Classes, and the fact they were all Hardcore players. They would become quite the force.

Until then, Dale would focus on his usual activities...

Oh! Not to forget Roger's grandson! He did exist...

After he failed in acquiring Caladbolg in the Church, he and his Clan remained mostly silent, gathering their strength as they tried to recover after that catastrophic failure.

However, thanks to certain events, such as the siege against Kuddan and the death of hundreds of players, they managed to climb back a little. However, they're still as cautious as before.

Although the brother and sister were rather unique, but they both shared the ignorance of Azimuth's real purpose.

Upon asking Roger about that, he said it was due to his negligence and fears...

The fear of pushing his loved ones into danger... How could he not understand?

It was all too dangerous these days... The world was changing, and he needed to get ready.

That was the only thing he could tell the old man.

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"Phew... Alright."

Following his isolated training session, Dale moved to the edge of Resko, going to the Horizon Woods Forest, the small field between the city and the forest where the farms remained and the grass was green... And full of flying spiders...

Today, he would be waiting for a guest...His guide for his next adventure!

Meanwhile... He opened his System Menu, taking a look at his long list of Quests:

[Oppening...]

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Notes