Chapter 10: I lost a level!

The battleship changed its trajectory, ever so slightly. Its new destination was a small planet called Earth.

"Captain, should I make an ERA knock you out, if you are unable to sleep?" A few hours had passed before Esme offered a suggestion.

Cassian outright rejected her absurd suggestion. "There's no need for that."

His gaze remained fixed on the system screen that was showing the features of the ship. He had gone through the details multiple times, yet he never got tired of it.

Even though only two of them were unlocked with their details available, they still felt like a dream to him.

............

Name: Spectral Cloak (Unlocked)

Description: Utilizes Ether reserves to manipulate light and energy signatures around the Fenrir, rendering it invisible to all known forms of detection, including visual, thermal, and quantum radar.

Ether Consumption: 6 Unit Per Hour

Limitations: Firing weapons or activating high-energy systems will cause a temporary disruption in the cloak.

............

This was the feature that Cassian was really interested in. It basically granted him the ability to use stealth, which was a feature that only the most modern and expensive battleships could use.

The only problem was the consumption. At the moment, he only had twenty Ether Units. The consumption alone was one unit every ten minutes.

There was only one way to gain more Ether Units. It was through the second feature of the ship, which was also its defining characteristic.

............

Name: Devour

Description: Deploys nanite swarms to break down and absorb matter from external sources. The absorbed matter is then repurposed into Ether Units that can be used for repairs, power generation, and system upgrades.

Increases Synchronization Rate based on the quality and quantity of matter devoured.

............

"Whoever made this ship must be a genius. Even the Imperial Mechanics could never think of something like this in their wildest dreams."

He really wanted to know more about the history of this ship. With technology like this, if the creator wanted to, he could control the entire universe. Why would he remain unknown?

"Esme, do you think your creator could still be alive?" Without proper authorization, he could only use roundabout ways to get answers from the AI.

"Error. Insufficient Authorization." Esme's voice sounded slightly more mechanical when she answered. However, it soon returned to normal.

'Just as I thought, she won't answer.' Cassian gave up and slowly closed his eyes.

The ship warped past millions of stars across the galaxy, traveling faster than the speed of light, which increased its consumption.

Initially, twenty Ether Units were available. After two days, a total of four units were used, and the battleship reached the milky way galaxy.

"Captain, we have almost reached the Destination." Esme's voice echoed in the Command Center.

In the captain's seat, Cassian was lying with his feet resting on the console. His eyes were still closed.

It had been over twenty-four hours since he had fallen asleep. Esme naturally let him sleep and recover, as it was hard for him to fall asleep in the first place. He even looked like a peaceful baby when sleeping.

In his absence, she controlled the ship and even avoided some troublesome routes, like an autopilot with intelligence.

Only after reaching the destination did she try to wake him up. The alarms in the command center also started ringing, but Cassian still didn't wake up.

It was only when an ERA pinched his cheeks forcefully on Esme's instructions that he woke up from the pain.

"Good morning, Captain."

Cassian's cheeks were hurting. He rubbed them lightly when he heard Esme's greeting.

"Did we reach Earth?" He checked the map and only sighed in relief after confirming that they were still a few hours away.

"Esme, check for their radar. Even if they are a backwater world, we should be careful. When we reach their detection range, turn on stealth for one hour."

He immediately started giving new instructions to Esme. He was going to Earth, which wasn't under any Union's protection, but there was still a lot unknown about it as no one was interested in it.

In fact, the last data about Earth was updated over a hundred years ago. It was impossible for Earth to have advanced in a hundred years to the point that it could threaten him, but still, he tried to be cautious.

He treated Earth with respect and used stealth for an hour to enter with his battleship. If everything was safe, he could reveal himself. If something was wrong, then he could use a little force.

He treated the first hour like a reconnaissance mission, something he was an expert in.

"Acknowledged."

The ship moved closer to Earth, passing various lifeless planets like Saturn, Jupiter, and Mars. It was only when it reached within the nearest Earth satellite's range that the ship turned on stealth.

It used some Ether Points, but this was something that Cassian was planning to spend for now.

After all, he couldn't really upgrade the ship with a mere ten or so units. If everything went well, he could recover his units on Earth.

The ship, larger than an entire city on Earth, had entered the planet's atmosphere, yet no one knew about it.

The ship hovered above a massive city, yet it didn't even cast a shadow.

"Hmm? They really are backwards. They are still using swords and fighting on the streets?"

On the screens of the battleship, the scenes from the ground were being revealed. Although the tall towers didn't look half bad, the humans disappointed him.

The first thing he saw were two humans using swords to fight each other. The battle was short and ended as soon as one of them was killed.

Cassian was about to shift his attention to another screen when his eyebrows suddenly rose.

The person who had died stood up as if nothing had happened. Even the wounds on his body had healed through some miracle.

"You bastard, I lost a level because of you!"