To Nova, freedom was the thing he cared the most about due to his traumatic childhood.
Every single thing he did until now was with that goal in mind and each time he pushed himself further was a small step toward it.
He wouldn’t accept anyone blocking the path that led to it.
But now, in front of him, there was someone from an alien civilization that might be harboring malicious thoughts toward Earth and, indirectly, toward himself.
The emotions he had nowhere to focus other than an abstract word such as “aliens” now found an outlet on Erevan.
Nova’s ice-cold, merciless eyes stared deeply into Erevan’s, which sometimes sparked with barely noticeable dark-red flames.
A flicker of black would sometimes appear in the depths of Nova’s eyes, but it was so well hidden that nobody was able to see it.
Not even Nova himself could tell there was something in his eyes.
The aura around his body trembled slightly, ready to be unleashed at a moment’s notice along with his Will, while his elemental cores spun within him.
In his mind, the Status window was ever-present; he was one thought away from allocating all the available Stat Points to increase his strength.
He didn’t care about the consequences.
As long as Erevan said the wrong word, he would bring hell upon this place.
Both Erevan and Jack could feel the air growing more and more oppressive as Nova’s body tensed.
The mana in the surroundings shook.
Jack stared at the former. His eyes didn’t carry as much hatred as Nova’s, but the coldness in them betrayed that he, too, was ready to fight if Erevan was truly plotting against humanity.
Erevan understood where Nova was coming from. He wouldn’t feel good either if some random person plotted against his civilization, and himself, in order to enslave them, so he didn’t blame Nova for the current outburst.
This, though, was just a misunderstanding.
He firmly stared at Nova without looking away, then calmly said,
“It wasn’t my civilization who contacted Earth first.”
Muscles still tensed, Nova stared deeply at him.
Erevan hadn’t admitted it, but… how could he know if this was true or not?
He needed more information.
So, he lowly said, “Do you expect me to believe that with no proof?”
“My father only found Earth after a smaller civilization had already made contact and I was only five when I was sent here to enter the Lesser Orange portal. You could call it a rite of passage of sorts. My family doesn’t need either the resources or the people from this planet. And although I’m after the EXP from the Lesser Orange portal, it will probably only save me about a dozen years. It’s not insignificant, and I don’t need to fight on the frontlines to gain that, which is a plus, but it’s not something I’d die for,” Erevan stated evenly.
The only real benefit he stood to gain from Earth was the Lesser Orange portal’s rewards and, perhaps, a few resources from the Store.
But there was a problem with the latter.
The prices were so incredibly high that, despite many useful items being available, the time required and the number of portals he would have to clear were immense.
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This meant that although the rarest resources weren’t readily available at home, he could at least enjoy uncommon and rare resources throughout his progression.
“Then do you know which civilization is trying to enslave Earth?” Nova asked. He didn’t know if what Erevan said was entirely true, but he couldn’t detect any nervousness in his voice that might reveal a lie.
From what Erevan said it seemed like his family was well connected, Nova thought he might as well find out who the true culprits were.
As for determining whether the information was real or not… that could wait until after the Lesser Orange portal.
At that time, he would be able to explore the universe and personally verify all the claims.
Erevan shook his head with a sigh. “I was too little when that happened, but I can tell you that civilizations who do that are usually relatively weak compared to the vast expanse. They stoop so low as to exploit weaker civilizations because they either are too weak to increase their levels through wars with other civilizations or are too cowardly to do so. I can promise you that after we’re done with the portal, I’ll ask my family about the details and let you know which civilization it was. Is that enough?”
Nova gave him a deep look and nodded. Then he sat down.
That was as much as he could get out of this situation.
There wasn’t much Erevan could do before he reunited with his family.
The oppressive air in the room lifted like a fleeting dream.
Jack took a deep breath and relaxed. Despite all the time he had spent with Erevan’s group and the training he had received, if Nova had decided to attack, he would have supported his best friend, even if it meant cutting ties with them.
Fortunately things calmed down and he didn’t need to act.
Seeing that the situation had defused, Erevan asked, “What were we talking about again?”
This time, Jack asked a question that had been weighing heavily on his mind.
“Do you know how long the trial usually lasts? I don’t really want to come back to Earth only to find out that dozens of years have passed.”
He glanced briefly at Nova, who noticed his gaze and looked back, only to shrug and turn away as if to say, What can I do about it?
He didn’t want Amelia to stay alone for decades, with no way to even know when he would return.
After so many years, the two had officially become a couple, and despite knowing she wouldn’t be angry at him for entering a portal, he didn’t want to take that risk. It was his personal choice.
But that was also what had held him back from entering a Purple portal when he first had enough strength to do so. Only fairly recently, when the time difference had shortened, did he enter one. Even then, it cost him months, and he considered himself lucky with the result.
“Don’t worry, I’ve already checked many times,” Erevan said with a smile. He pulled out a device that looked like an old clock, which shimmered in the light, and said, “The time inside the Lesser Orange portal flows twice as fast as on Earth. That means two days inside are equal to one day outside. We need to kill a total of a thousand people to complete the trial. It doesn’t matter if they are from many different civilizations or from the same. If we’re unlucky, it might take several years; if we’re lucky, it might be only a year or two.”
Jack and Nova’s eyes widened.
The latter felt especially targeted. ‘Why did every portal have a time flow slower than Earth, but this one was twice as fast?’
He immediately asked the question, to which Erevan replied, “I’ve already said that the space inside is shared between all civilizations in the galaxy, and time flows differently. Thus, what we consider fast inside might be slow to many others. In short…”
He looked at the two and said, “Earth is lucky. I believe that if other advanced civilizations knew of this, they would’ve done anything to send their geniuses here for the portal.”
Jack laughed, his worries gone with the wind. “Good, good. This is perfect.”
On the other hand, despite Nova outwardly appearing calm, inside he thought, ‘With so much time on my hands, I should be able to advance all my skills. Hehe, by the time I’m back, there’s no telling how strong I’ll be.’
The most time-consuming skills, such as weapon skills, could easily be advanced without feeling like wasted effort when he had double the time that others had.
This also meant he would have time to study Arrays and advance his crafts as well.
Overall, this news couldn’t have been any better.
Clap
Erevan clapped, getting both of their attention back.
“I’ve explained most of what I know about the Lesser Orange portal. Inside, we will find other people from more advanced civilizations than Earth who are exploiting the portal the same way Slade and I are. That means you can’t let your guard down, or you’ll pay dearly for it.”
He retrieved a few books from his Inventory and handed them over to Nova.
“Study these. When you’ve comprehended them, come train with us.”
Nova accepted them and muttered, “These are…?”
The books had no title, only a black cover. Unless one read them, they wouldn’t know what they were about.
Erevan waved his hand and said, “You’ll find out soon. The resources you need are in the Store, just buy them.”
He looked at Jack and added, “Training starts at the same time tomorrow.”
Jack nodded. He gave his friend a glance and couldn’t help but shiver when his eyes landed on the books.
Memories from years ago resurfaced in his mind.
Memories he wished he could forget, but couldn’t.
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