Uncertainty

"But what is puzzling to me is that the crystal dust belonged to low-quality mana crystals, and the individual responsible for the array left the area using a teleportation array and again using low-quality crystal as the source for the array," Serpent said, raising valid questions that he failed o warp his head around.

"What is there to understand? It was likely some array master trying to experiment to further his understanding," Fang was one to respond, unfazed by the oddity of the situation.

"The fact of the matter is that we have lost a Mutator Core host and are down to just three, and even among those three, one is too young, the second is on the path of failure, so basically, we just have a single creature who could grow to achieve our goal,"

"When everything is going great, something just has to go wrong," Fang growled through clenched teeth, his eyes flashing angrily. His fingers tightened into fists, the veins in his pale skin pulsing.

"The death of Kythera does not change anything since we were only using prototype Mutator Cores to gather information, and our plan for this world never truly depended on them," Basilisk said, appearing carefree, almost bored.

"We just needed that spider to reach a stage where it could consume the other stable Mutator Cores and grow in enough power to create a big enough disturbance, so we could tear the Human Empire apart and plunge this continent into a state of war,"

"Now that she is gone, we could just make something else to do her work," Basilisk said, looking at the Gorgon as he talked like the rest did not even matter.

"Basilisk is right, the death of Kythera is not the end, but it will set us years back in progress," Gorgon said, her finger tapping on her chair armrest.

"Everything goes as planned, but since we are in this situation, I am going to feed one of the unstable Mutater Cores to Termite Queen," Gorgon said, making everyone look at her with eyes wide in surprise.

"We are neck and neck against the Hydra branch, and if we wish to take the first position in the cult and receive the great benefits when our King makes his reveal to the wider Galaxy, we need to complete our mission on the world of Tessrak, within a decade."

"The Termite Queen is already failing to meet our expectations, so it is very likely that she would die under the influence of the unstable Mutater Core,"

"But, if she happened to survive, we would be done with this world years before even a decade," Gorgon said, a wide smile breaking across her stone-dead face.

"Amitabha, May the Enlightened One allow us to succeed," Aegis, The monk said, raising both his hands, palms pressed together at the chest level as if he prayed for their success.

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

Draven entered the city unnoticed and found a dark alley, waiting nearly twenty minutes before the effects of the invisibility potion ended.

After getting dressed up, he left the alley and made his inner area of the city, going straight to the adventurer guild and resting in one of their training chambers for one day.

'So, what are we doing next? Once we acquire the Devourer system, what's next?' Nero asked, eager to know their future plans.

'I didn't tell you, but it's not certain we will even get the Devourer system,' Draven paused briefly before replying. Hearing such a wild statement, Nero froze, his eager expression dropping. 'What? Tell me that you are joking,' he asked, his voice laced with disbelief.

'The chances of us getting the Devourer system are 50/50 at best because while it should work since it was a one-time event associated with a unique individual, it is also possible that we will fail to receive the same result,'

'The person who received it in my timeline was a prince, and he fulfilled the condition by accident when he killed his grandfather and consumed his heart in hopes of getting the Kin Ascendancy system,'

'The system only required one to kill and consume the heart of a kin that was stronger than the user while also having a great affinity with the darkness element, and in the case of the prince, he chose his comatose grandfather,' Draven said, explaining the history of a man who acquired the Devourer system.

'It is possible that the prince was already chosen by the system long ago and only when he foolishly consumed the heart of a Void ascendant, rich with pure mana which was lethal poison for his body, did he trigger the system,'

'But it is also possible that only because of his foolish action, and somehow surviving a guaranteed death, did he acquire the Devourer system,' Draven said, settling on the cold stone floor and taking out a mana crystal and the Rune pen.

Nero assumed success was guaranteed, as Draven had practically manipulated him to pick the Devourer system, telling him it was a galactic threat in someone else's hands and their only real hope of survival.

But the fact that getting the system with the method they knew was not even guaranteed, and Draven had known all along and hadn't shared it, was like a punch to the gut.

'So, what if we fail to get the devourer system,' Nero asked, disappointment evident in his voice.

'If you fail, then you get to pick between the three strongest primordial systems,' Draven said, and with a soft chuckle, added, 'And this time, I promise, I am confident in getting any one from three,'

Nero nodded in silence, feeling truly down at the notion of not getting the Devourer system. While not perfect, the sheer ability to control multiple systems thrilled him, causing him to feel such a range of emotions that it was hard to put them into words.

While thinking about what system would be best in case they failed, Nero suddenly realized something and a question came to his mind.

'Is it possible for someone to have more than one system?' Nero asked a question that had plagued many, but few knew the answer.

'An individual could have as many systems as he could acquire, but it's rare to encounter someone with even two systems, let alone more,' Draven answered, explaining the reason after a brief pause. 

'As I mentioned before, systems are sentient beings, and there's a vast disparity between their numbers and those of intelligent races, so even the weakest systems have countless options.'

'I plan to acquire all four highest grade primordial systems if we fail to get the Devourer system, but since those old monsters would never share their host, we first need to prove our worth,' Draven continued, dropping a bombshell that left Nero stunned in silence.

Nero was at a loss for words about his ambition, but as his surprise faded, he realized that Draven never gave him a choice as to which system to choose; everything was going as he had planned.

'So, all the talk about my life, my choice was complete bullshit,' Nero said, not disappointed at being lied to since he knew that he was being manipulated into picking what Draven wanted but just a bit sad to confirm that his feelings on this matter were true.

Nero knew that Draven was a man driven by a singular motive of revenge against his old enemy, or maybe he really wished to save the galaxy from the true king, and he would not stop at anything to achieve it.

So, Nero had accepted that he would be manipulated or outright forced to do things, and it was not like he had a choice in this matter. He was also fine with it because he understood that there was no free meal in the world, and if fulfilling his desires and dreams came at such a cost, he was perfectly fine with it.

'It was, and It was not,' Draven said, understanding what Nero meant, 'It was a test to see if you could make the hard but correct decision, and it also showed my trust in you.'

'You need to understand something,' He continued, his tone more serious. 'My life is in your hands, and yours is in mine, but working under such threats would ruin us sooner or later,'

'I wish for you to be free, to pursue what you desire but also never lose sight of the greater goal, the ultimate end to our journey, to understand what depends on our success or failure,'

'If you want the freedom of life, then you also have to be ready to sacrifice and capable of making hard decisions that go against your will,' Draven said, with his silence stretching uncomfortably long before he continued.

'I have no desire to manipulate you or control your actions, to live your life for you,' Draven said, his tone steady. Then, with a cold, hollow edge to his voice, he added, 'Unless you give me a reason to,'

Draven went silent and continued carving runes on the mana crystals, while Nero gained a newfound respect for his old self as he felt his words to be sincere.

Nero was not really bothered by his discovery since he had already expected it, but Draven's clarification only made him feel better.