SOUL LINK

The king had organized a ceremony to thank Kojo and his friends for their help and presented them with rewards. Kojo reluctantly accepted them. He wouldn't have been there in the first place. All he heard was that the king wanted to see him on the balcony, and the moment he opened the door, he was met with applause from the crowd. Sharone and the others were already present and smiled while clapping. Kojo stood there briefly and attempted to retreat, closing the door behind him, but Rey grabbed him and forced him to endure the entire thing. He had to rack his brain to come up with a speech, which was too jovial for an official event. Nonetheless, the crowd praised him.

Immediately afterwards, they said their goodbyes to the king and his family as they prepared to leave. Klara hugged her cousins, sad that they had to leave, while Billiam folded his arms in impatience.

"Hurry up and leave already," he'd wanted to say, but a glance from his smiling mother made him keep quiet.

"I am thankful for all you've done, Kojo. If there's anything, feel free to ask. Don't hold anything back. After all, we'll soon be family," King Gorges said, winking at Adriana, who looked away, blushing. Sharone glanced at her and smiled.

"Mmm. Okay. Oh, and if anything pops up, don't hesitate to call. I'll be there in under three seconds," Kojo responded, handing the king a piece of string that had been tied around his hair. It was a seal he made that would immediately draw his attention to any immediate threat. He also gave one to Klara. Billiam stretched out his hand, expecting to receive a seal, but looked down to see a large beetle had been placed in his palm. He yelled and ran around as the beetle flew after him, drawing laughter from the group.

"Then see you around," Kojo said, stepping away.

"But Kojo, I've been wondering. How are you going to get back if you don't take the carriage?" Queen Morgaine asked.

Kojo smiled as a magic circle appeared under them.

"Later," he said, flashing them the peace sign with his right hand, then vanishing in a flash of blue light.

They arrived outside of Opal. Kojo braced himself because he was expecting to be greeted by the people but was instead met with a long line of people leaving the city.

Kojo immediately knew the cause. He'd brought the others up to speed on the arrangement he made when he returned from the tower. He'd met mixed reactions: opposition from Rey and worry from Adriana, but Sharone gave him her full support.

"The audacity of these people! Not welcoming my master during his glorious return?" Eden said with annoyance.

"Let it go, Eden," Kojo said. Mekna and Keo came forward and bowed.

"Welcome home, master," they said together.

"Finally, people with brains," Eden said, looking at them. He noticed the maid outfit Keo was wearing and the butler's attire Mekna was clad in. He also sensed the energy that emanated from members of Kojo's household.

"I see. So you are also servants of my Lord?"

"Master Kojo, why is this one's tongue as loose as an old woman's undergarments? Does he not know reverence in your presence?" Keo asked.

"And who made you rank over me? I am clearly Sir Kojo's most competent subordinate," Eden said.

"I am yet to see your competence. When master was last here, he spoke of you, but I must say I find you quite... underwhelming," Keo said.

"So, will an exchange of blades be enough to rid you of that notion?" Eden said, with veins showing on his forehead as he manifested his silver sword. Keo's bident appeared in her hand, and she pointed it at Eden, ready for battle.

"Both of you, please calm down," Mekna attempted to calm them down. "We're here to welcome our master and mistresses. This uncouth behavior shows a lack of civility. Regardless of who came first, we're all members of his household, so please control yourselves."

They looked at Mekna in surprise. He was refined and ethical, nothing like the brute he was during the tournament.

"Both of you," Kojo spoke up. Eden and Keo immediately backed down and bowed.

"Forgive us for our behavior," they said together. Kojo sighed.

"Eden, I know you're strong, but that is no way to speak to a lady. Besides, she's your senior, so you should treat her with respect. I expect both of you to take good care of him," Kojo scolded. Eden looked at Kojo unhappily, while Keo beamed.

"So, how many people have left?" Kojo asked.

"So far, 90% of Opal's total population has left, with most of them moving towards the province of Carnelia," Mekna answered.

"And what about the suburbs of Ekron?"

"Most of them left. The remainder were sheltered in the city by the Duke for their security," Keo said.

"Those are the people willing to coexist with other races. I kinda feel like I forced them to leave."

(You did force them to leave.)

"It's for the greater good."

(You're only doing this so you can laze around in the future.)

Kojo was silent.

"True, but it's still gonna be for the greater good, so yeah."

Sysia groaned.

"I know we just got here, but I've gotta do this," Kojo apologized.

"Why are you apologizing? Do what needs to be done," Koniko said.

Kojo then faced an empty space and summoned two huge gates from a magic circle he'd conjured. The gates opened, and the leaders of the other races, as well as their people, stepped out.

"Are you guys ready for this?" he asked.

They bowed.

"As you command," they responded.

"We're going to see the Duke to clear this today," he said, moving towards the Duke's estate with them. They met up with the Duke, Glenn, and Jack. Introductions took place, and they spoke about the upcoming events. Jack told Kojo that most of the raiders had left, and Ovid and Chiron promised that they would contribute to building a stronger force to take care of their people. After that, it came to land allocation and job assignment. Kojo didn't want it to be like each race was isolated from each other, but he wanted some synergy while they had their own places.

So he opted to mix them up and have them work together. The other leaders agreed and decided that the jobs wouldn't be divided by race but by ability. They then called all the people and races together and told them their plan. There was murmuring, but they had no choice.

And so they spent the rest of the day settling them down. Kojo teleported their houses to fitting locations all over the province, entire floors with their flora and fauna blending in as if they had been there from the beginning. It took a few more days for them to get used to one another, but after some months, things smoothed out, and there was harmony. Kojo had begun to send parties to export what they had produced: fruits, textiles, and forged items. Those outside the province didn't patronize them at first, but as time progressed, they began to slowly open up, appreciating the quality of the goods that were being brought. Not that it mattered if they didn't, as Opal had become self-sufficient enough. Lloyd had also moved from the Capitol to settle in Opal. Immediately, Kojo transferred information to help with the relevant changes in architecture and started to slowly incorporate technology like simple machines. Kojo thought if it was instantaneous, it would be too overwhelming.

Finally, he stood on a hill and observed the development in the sunset. It had been over a year now since he came to this world, but he'd been able to change things this much. He thought he'd been able to nudge things in the right direction. He unfurled his wings and flew toward the city.

Nefaria, who had been observing everything from the other plane, realized that the time had come. The merchant who was indulged in trafficking had met up with Krone and decided to settle in Ekron for a bit to lay a foundation should anything occur. The Dark Apostles' plans were unfolding, and she still hadn't seen it, been in contact with Faust.

"This is vexing. Well, I guess it's time to pluck the fruit," she said, stretching her hands toward her crystal ball as her eyes began to glow.

Kojo couldn't sleep. He tossed and turned in bed.

(Initializing. Complete. Deciphering the Babel Archive 100%.

Successful.)

Nefaria smiled as she forced the archive to fully merge with Kojo's being. There was a rune glowing on Kojo's lower abdomen.

Images began to rapidly flash through his mind. He began to toss around even more.

"Kojo," he heard a girl's voice and opened his eyes, sitting up.

(Warning! System Breached.)

The voice called him again, and in a daze, Kojo looked at his window, his sightless gaze looking beyond the city. He opened the window and flew away. He flew for a long time, then landed in front of a cave, the same cave he'd woken up in a year ago when he came into this world.

(Source of the breach identified. Commencing purge.) Sysia was trying to break Kojo free from the mind control, but Nefaria's hold on him was too strong.

The voice called again, and Kojo walked in, going deeper and deeper. The cave was illuminated by the blue glow of Mystium crystal embedded in the walls. He came to a stop in front of a large body that was trapped in the crystals. It was the Homunculus body that Rigarde and Oslon had prepared. As to how it was encased in a thousand-year Mystium deposit would be unknown for a time.

"Now begin," Nefaria ordered.

A magic circle appeared under Kojo, who began the incarnation and opened a hole in spacetime, linking the present happening to the point between time and eternity, the thing that was only at the beginning and the end of time. This ability was...

Soul Link Magic.

He began to call forth the being who had been trapped there but was being blocked by something. He analyzed it.

Sysia broke him free of the mind control just as he was about to break the silver chain. Kojo then reached out through the rift and pulled Nefaria from the Demon realm into the realm he was in before passing out. Nefaria was so stunned that she didn't know how to react. The portal to the beginning of time began to close, but a pair of hands held it open. The chains binding them broke as they stepped through. Nefaria's eyes widened in horror.