As the global situation continued developing into more and more complex interactions between ancient and new factions in power, time passed, and with each cycle Aven went through, he made the most use of it as he could.

The production hall was always maintained in a state of energy infusion that resulted in more than 670% tech-enhanced ammunition that kept progressing by 2% each cycle.

His integrated combat uniform was prepared only a few cycles after he gave his various design upgrades to Milada and was then put inside a box that took residence in his quarters, to be forgotten until the day where it was needed.

His stock of FCP climbed quickly, reaching 97 million by the end of the 7th cycle, and 143 million by the end of the 10th one.

His first anti-Canopy project was also advancing smoothly, with at the end of the 10th cycle a first prototype design being completed.

It was also around that time that Aven received a strange message from Drayce, telling him that according to his colleagues at the front, the surge was more imminent than ever.

Faced with such an impromptu message, the only thing he could do was thank this strange friend of his that had an innate ability that worked half of the time before resuming his work.

And 3 cycles, or 181 and a half hours, or even 7 and a half days after receiving this message, Aven finally reached the major turning point of his life without having to use the abomination surge as a stepping stone.

…

“Claim,” he ceremoniously claimed his reward for this cycle as natural exhaustion had already broken through his spirit’s defense and was getting to him.

Dynamic Faction Contribution Quests: Nation of Eland Military

…

Dynamic Contribution: 18 199 632 FCP

But even the divine natural exhaustion assaulting him couldn’t fight against the brightly burning ambition inside of him that had reached its tipping point.

“Now…” Unable to control his excitement, he opened his shop to confirm that he wasn’t dreaming.

Faction Contribution Shop: Nation of Eland Military

Faction Authority: Six-Star General

Faction Contribution Points: 205 014 104

…

“It took me more than a month… But now…” He repeated.

He didn’t feel like a weight had been lifted from his shoulder, he also didn’t feel like his life would change now that he had reached that threshold, it just felt like he had reached a symbolic threshold.

“I’ll establish the most absurd foundation any super could ever ask for,” he whispered without joking at any point. He firmly believed that once he awakened his fairy ancestry, he wouldn’t be stoppable anymore.

Fetching his phone, he sent a message to a number he had been secretly given soon after the visit of Novus, the fairy who allowed him to discover the existence of fairy crystals capable of awakening his ancestry.

[Aven: I’m Aven Amias, I have enough to redeem a fairy crystal.]

And mystically, a few seconds after he sent his message and wasn’t expecting one in return, he received an answer.

[Eland Royal Agency: Your message has been transmitted to the Royal Family.]

“Ho~” Impressed, he sent a thank you message.

[Aven: Thanks for your efficiency. <3]

Then received a message proving it was either a very developed AI or just someone very dedicated to his job.

[Eland Royal Agency: It is our duty.]

Not bothering them, or him, or her anymore, he switched off the lights of his bedroom and surrendered to the invasion of an enemy that couldn’t be fought eternally against, to his greatest dismay.

Being given the free field it had wanted for more than a dozen minutes already, exhaustion took over all his capacity in an instant, and with no intention to resist it, Aven drifted to sleep without even realizing it.

…

Waking up 5 hours or so later, Aven went on with his normal routine of drinking some water, putting on a clean white military uniform, and going to the production hall to verify that nothing crazy had taken place while he was absent.

Nothing like a welcome committee awaited him at the hall, and he went on to fill back all the energy that had been consumed since he had left the hall for the last time.

‘Today… I should reach 694% tech-enhancement, I’m closing in on 700%. What a crazy benchmark when I think about it. What does 700% tech-enhanced steel even mean at this point? How crazier can it get?’

In the middle of his infusion that asked him to mobilize all his intellectual capabilities and beyond as he wanted to push his knowledge application skill ever onward, he had this small realization about the thing that brought him the most joy out of everything about the production tech super path.

It wasn’t just about being able to make anything into more than it should be, it was about pushing the limits of anything he could link to his energy system again and again and being able to measure how much they had been pushed.

‘I know it would be wasteful, I also know it has already been done before and that there’s a massive diminishing return to doing it… But how can I not think about creating tech-produced industrial machines to help me produce even more perfect industrial machines?’

Projecting himself into the future for a moment, Aven fantasized about how reality-bending he could make simple alloys that could then be used by anyone for any purpose, himself included.

Then from those simple alloys, he would produce tech-enhanced alloy maker that would produce an alloy that little bit stronger, which would feed another iteration, creating a cycle that, while it wouldn’t go on forever, would push what he tech-produced to the apex perfection he could reach at this point in life.

“When I join the royal family…” Saying something but keeping the end to himself, he stopped daydreaming and concentrated on properly infusing this machine to grow his knowledge application skill as properly as he could.

Finishing his “morning routine” a few hours later, he fetched something to eat on the way to the design room and used his energy telekinesis the moment he entered to turn on the music and the computers, instantly transforming the environment into one perfectly suitable for a long-term stay.

Settling himself comfortably, he resumed working on his newly initiated second anti-Canopy project, having left his all-sensors helmet on the shelves for when the surge finally ended and he could fully dedicate himself to it.

“If only there was a way to simply discover supers in hiding or even energy traces… But no, of course, the world wouldn’t give away such an easy solution to find these rare prized individuals, and that’s more good than bad, isn’t it?” Sarcastically commenting as he added new materials to the database which he intended to use for the moving massive sensor array he was designing, he thought about how hard it really was to locate anything related to the Canopy.

They were experts in what they were doing in the same way that Star Trail was in researching new natural phenomena and that the Conglomerate was in doing legal worldwide business.

In the end, the only way he could think of to locate them steadily was to comb through every possible incongruity in each city, going out of his way to scan through anything and everything that the Canopy couldn’t hide no matter how hard they tried.

The problem with such a solution was that the incongruities he would be searching for were different depending on the branch types, whether it was a rogue production facility or a covered intel-gathering station changed their modus operandi completely.

“But in the end, it doesn’t change anything,” he sharply added as he stopped thinking about this matter, “I’m in the light and they’re hiding in the dark, I don’t care about provoking an absolute mess that anyone can see, so there’s only 1 possible result regarding this conflict.”

“What big words! Hehehe! I like it!” A high-pitched voice he didn’t recognize suddenly reached him.

Turning his head in reflex, Aven didn’t see anyone but he didn’t believe his sense and started mobilizing his energy in case something he didn’t like happened.

“Look at you! So young and so fiery! Hehehe!” Accompanying a second instance of a high-pitched voice reaching him, he felt the world around him warp in gray as gravity started fluctuating without him being able to do anything, “Yeah, you really need to get some more practical experience, a fairy can’t be below anyone!”

Understanding the situation from these few words, Aven stopped preparing for the worst and only reached for his desk to stabilize his body that started floating towards the ceiling as he found the courage to reply, “You scared me not just a bit there. Is that the manifestation of an energy domain? Are you a grade 5 super?”

“Yeah! That’s right!” A much higher-pitched voice reached him, except this time he could localize it and he turned his head to look at a side of the room where dozens of chairs were piled in a mess.

And there “she” was.

A 30-centimeter tall female fairy in a regal flowing white female dress reclined in the middle of the chair mess, making them all float in an impressive show of super capabilities that Aven had no memories of ever seeing except in video.

Looking at him with pure black eyes that exhibited both curiosity and playfulness contrasting with her relatively-sized regal white dress, the fairy smiled as she commented a bit more, “You’re showing the curiosity expected from any fairy who respects itself! You’re nearly born to be one!”

“I ought to be curious about anything that interests me, that’s a principle I followed much before I awakened as a super!” Adding more to his profile for no reason other than wanting to, he emphasized the importance of curiosity in his life.

“And you also don’t care about anything! Marvelous! You’re so similar to a fairy without even being born as one, I’m sure you would have eventually awakened your fairy bloodline even without the help of a crystal, you’re too suitable!” Flying up from the chair mess, she gave him a very high evaluation and made a medium-sized box appear from seemingly thin air.

Unlocking the box with a few gray energy pulses, a rainbow crystal he had only had the opportunity to see once when Novus had come to verify his innate ability’s materialization aspect was exposed to the air in all its glory.

“It’s not every day that these crystals can see the light,” stopping to speak explosively, the female fairy lowered her tone to that of a pedagogic teacher, “As you should know, their formation requires very unfortunate circumstances that we want to avoid at all costs, and when one is formed, it's often broken on the aftermath of the… Circumstances that led to its creation.”

“Ah, yeah,” Aven realized what she was talking about instantly, “So it’s not some sort of unbreakable crystal… Very unfortunate. Does that mean the one I see here comes from a fairy that died of… Old age?”

“Maybe?” Taking on a cute pose to display her ignorance on the matter, all signs of teaching wisdom vanished instantly, “I just took one of the dozens we have and brought it here, maybe it's one of the few that survived the brutal circumstances that could even kill a fairy? It would be dope if that was the case.”

“Well, can you give it to me for a moment? I need to- I want to! Start materializing it,” correcting himself in the middle, Aven cut to the chase and exposed his desire for the crystal floating in the air without ambiguity.

“Hehehe! Here! You greedy man!” Launching the rainbow crystal at him like a cannonball, he was sent flying as the gravity was still somewhat canceled and he had forgotten to hold onto something at the moment of the impact.

Stabilizing himself, he pushed the ceiling and landed back on the floor where he used his legs to keep himself immobile as he opened his shop without waiting.

Faction Contribution Shop: Nation of Eland Military

Faction Authority: Six-Star General

Faction Contribution Points: 205 014 104

…

Fairy Crystal (189 000 000 FCP): A crystal formed when a fairy dies. This exotic is the purified crystallized form of a fairy energy origin and can help people with traces of fairy bloodline or ancestry to awaken as a violet fairy. Can also alternatively refine their awakened fairy bloodline up to blue grade.

“Oh, that’s right, sorry for that, I wanted to show you how cool manipulating gravity is,” realizing her prank had worked, the fairy retracted the gray energy surrounding her and the whole room on the same occasion, “Now show me something interesting in counterpart for me showing you one!”

“I hear and I obey~” Taking to the act, Aven claimed the one item that would mark a definitive turning point in his life.

Fairy Crystal (Claim?)

‘Claim.’

The next second, under the eyes of both an excited young man and a curious fairy, an excessively large color and light show began. It was clearly not of the same scale compared to the previous items he had materialized.

“How beautiful!” Not fearing anything, the grade 5 fairy approached the 1-meter large sphere filled with chaotic rainbow lights and tried to touch it only for her small hand to pass through, “And mysterious too!”

“I’m not going to spoil you, but you can try anything to disrupt the materialization phenomenon and nothing will stop it,” bragging about experiments he had done months ago, Aven didn’t fear one bit that his world-revolutionizing innate ability could be interrupted so easily.

“Do you take me for a child? I’m not going to try anything drastic when what’s materializing is the only steady way of birthing new fairies,” criticizing him after crossing her arms and adopting a motherly tone, the fairy still looked ready to make a prank at any moment.

“What is your name, oh great grade 5 fairy? If you don’t mind me asking,” diverting the conversation when he saw the flame of playfulness intensifying a little, he used the chance to ask a question he didn’t really need to ask if not in politeness.

“Appraise me,” seeing right through him, she didn’t turn her eyes from the mesmerizing materialization phenomenon.

Arbelle Aerora

Faction: Nation of Eland

“Arbelle Aerora, where’s the Eland part? Is it just an option to change your name when you join the royal family?” Curious about the weird things at the strangest timing, his inquisitive spirit really made itself known at that time.

“A name is only a name, what’s important is the blood! So your name doesn’t matter, and my name doesn’t matter either!” Acting as if she was a cult leader trying to indoctrinate him with her weird idea, Arbelle made uselessly complicated what could have been a simple “Yes”.

“So… Are you trying to say that at your level, you don’t need to rely on the nation of Eland anymore? That you can live independently just fine? What a deep hidden meaning! I respect you so much more now, not that I didn't respect you like a divinity before!” Familiar with making his talks similarly as uselessly extendable, Aven copied her style and continued to divert her.

“Sigh… Eland is the nation established by the ancient fairies, and the conditions back then were completely different,” she suddenly turned a bit nostalgic, “Even for me, if I was sent back to that time I would only be a prospective soldier, unable to truly help fight against the ancient behemoths that ruled Green.”

“Is there something you regret the loss of the most for not belonging to that era? And which era in particular? The wild ancient era or the fairy era?” He pursued this interesting subject that he knew a lot about thanks to his innate ability.

“As surprising as it might sound, what I miss the most is the presence of roaming grade 6 beasts, nowaday grade 6 is an unreachable grade and no one has attained it since the disappearance of the fairies,” she explained her point of view without hiding anything.

“I and dozens of grade 5 are only waiting for an opportunity to show itself to harvest grade 6 beast parts, making adequate grade 5 cultivation resources… But the occasion simply never showed itself. And never will. Sigh…” Sighing once again, it seemed that this subject was a bit sensitive even for her standing at the apex of the sapient’s food chain.

“Why is that? I get that the abomination core and the abandoned nest are areas that can’t be trodden just like that, but… For you to say that there will never be an occasion?” Once again curious, Aven just let his curiosity drive him without holding it back.

“It’s been proven again and again, or more like, once every few years when a grade 5 courageous enough tests the waters once again,” Arbelle disclosed intel that only people at her authority or power level should have, “Be it the abandoned nest in the Abandoned Continent or the abomination core in the Forbidden Continent, they’re both defending against every intrusion into their true turf with full-blown lethal forces. And grade 6 are stronger and quicker than us, so escaping is doomed to fail.”

“Well… That sounds like a conundrum, isn’t it?” Half-sarcastic and half-thoughtful, Aven focused on the materialization show that had been reduced so much over their conversation that it was now only fist-sized at best, “But it’s not something I have to care about, you’re here to hold the sky if it collapses.”

“Exactly!” Assuming an arrogant tone and putting her two hands on her hips to show her confidence, she proclaimed that what he said was completely right, “Grow at your own amazing speed, show the world that amazing fairy blood flows through your veins, and blind them with how amazing you are! Hehehe! That’s all you have to do! Be amazing! Be a fairy!”

“Hehehe~” Laughing and smiling to the point of hurting his jaw muscles at the ridiculous thing she had just said, he reached for the finger-sized rainbow crystal floating in the air before him that had just finished giving out its last signs of still being in the materialization phase, “So… Do I drink it in accompaniment with my favorite drink?”

“I don’t know, I don’t care,” shrugging irresponsibly, she just lounged in the air, defying gravity in total leisure.

“Well, awakening my fairy ancestry is somewhat symbolic, isn’t it?” Thinking aloud, he went to a conveniently placed fridge and took an expensive peach iced tea bottle out of it.

Then, he fetched a cool-looking glass out of somewhere and served himself.

Taking a sip out of this very special martial-produced peach iced tea, his taste bud exploded in fervent adoration at this taste they so loved taken to an extreme he had only started enjoying 2 months ago.

“It’s a bit like a medicine pill… If a bit long. Not that my grade 3 super body can’t take something much worse and live just fine,” still finding the situation pretty casual, he finally ingested the finger-sized rainbow crystal and swallowed it, washing it down with martial-produced peach iced tea.