Chapter 517116.1 - Faceless woman


    Nadia continued to work, her hands steady as she applied the bandage with practiced precision. "You know," she said after a moment, her voice thoughtful, "I have to admit, I was leaning more toward Mikhail''s theory. The idea of an ancient entity, something primal and unstoppable, it just made sense with everything we were seeing."


    I nodded slightly, acknowledging her perspective. "It did seem that way. From the start, all the evidence was pointing in that direction. The disturbances, the fear, the rumors—everything lined up perfectly with what you''d expect from an ancient force reawakening."


    Nadia nced up at me, curiosity in her eyes. "Then what made you think otherwise? What was it that tipped you off?"


    I leaned back slightly, letting the bed support me as I considered her question. "That was exactly the problem," I said, my voice calm. "It was all too perfect. The signs, the patterns, they were so neatly aligned that it felt… artificial like someone had crafted the narrative to fit our expectations. It was almost as if we were being guided to that conclusion."


    Nadia paused in her work, her eyes widening slightly as she absorbed my words. "So perfect that it looks artificial, huh? I see… that does make sense. When something fits too well, it''s easy to overlook the possibility that it''s been manufactured."


    "Exactly. It''s a ssic misdirection. When you feed people the information they''re expecting to see, they''re less likely to question it. That''s why I started looking for inconsistencies, for anything that didn''t quite fit with the narrative we were being shown."


    Nadia finished securing the bandage and stepped back, her expression thoughtful as she regarded me. "I have to say, Astron, your abilities and instincts are impressive. After you arrived, everything seemed to fall into ce. In just two days, we''ve gone from chasing shadows to uncovering the real threat."


    "It was a team effort," I replied. "The investigation had been ongoing for a while, and everyone''s workid the groundwork for what we discovered. I just happened to be there at the right time."


    Nadia shook her head slightly, and I could see a small smile. But it seemed she also realized that if she were to continue with her point from here, it would open up some misunderstandings.


    And that was not something she should want.


    "I guess that is right."


    And that is why she took a step back.


    Sensing the shift, I decided to steer the conversation in a different direction. "So, how''s the local job around here? Is it as intense as it seems?"


    Nadia rxed a little at the change in topic, nodding thoughtfully. "It can be, especiallytely. Most of the time, things were rtively calm—routine investigations, minor disturbances, that sort of thing. But when things get out of hand, like with this recent situation, it can be pretty overbearing."


    "Were?"


    "Yeah." She moved to organize the supplies she had used, her hands moving with the ease of someone used to multitask. "The local government used to do an okay job managing the gates, but they''re stretched thin. Recently, with the increase in gate openings, they''ve even found it hard to keep up. It''s putting a lot of pressure on everyone, especially us."


    I leaned back slightly, listening carefully. "And what about the viins? Has their activity been increasing too?"


    Nadia sighed, a weary look crossing her face. "Yes, unfortunately. With more gates opening, there are more opportunities for them to cause trouble. They seem to be getting bolder, too, likely sensing that the authorities are overwhelmed. It''s like they''re taking advantage of the chaos, knowing that we can''t be everywhere at once."


    ''That is why Shanks was not here, isn''t it?''


    While the motives of the organization were still clearly unknown to me, their actions aligned with the fact that they were somehow against the fall of the federation.


    At least, that was the case for some ces.


    ''There are still many things that I don''t know about.''


    It was evident that I needed to learn more for the time being.


    She paused for a moment, her expression darkening slightly. "It''s not just the gates, though. There''s something else… like a shift in the air. It feels like more than just a coincidence that all these things are happening at once. Almost as if something bigger is brewing beneath the surface."


    And what she was saying was indeed correct.


    Whether the timeline of the game''s events was pushed sooner or not, in the end, the inevitable woulde.


    ''The war of Demons, the coup attempt, The Elven Disaster, Orc Invasion…..''


    All of these things were bound to happen one way or another. Those things added to the chaotic descent of the Demon King and many other threats.


    This world is bound to be burnt by the chaos itself. After all, the border between the worlds is getting thinner and thinner with each second, and this results in the change in the Mana Ratios around the world, the gate spawn rate, the space ripples, the phenomenon rate, and everything else.


    The day of Nexus Convergence. N?v(el)B\\jnn


    It was just a start, and the convergence has yet to stop.


    "Sounds like things are getting moreplicated," I said, my tone reflective.


    Nadia gave me a small, appreciative smile. "Yeah…..But it''s also an opportunity, isn''t it? For us to prove ourselves, to make a real difference."


    "That''s one way to look at it. And you''re right—every challenge is an opportunity in disguise."


    That was indeed correct.


    Amidst that whole chaos, there alsoid an opportunity.


    The opportunity of my revenge.


    ********


    Following that day, I was granted a day off.


    The investigation concluded smoothly, and the counselor''s capture provided the organization with all the information it needed to close the case.


    I spent the morning in my room while also remembering what the Counselor did.


    His motivations were both simple and twisted—a hunger for power born from the discovery of his Trait''s true potential.


    Twenty years ago, Counselor Varnis had stumbled upon a special property of his Trait, one that allowed him to absorb the emotions of others, particrly despair and fear. At first, he hadn''t realized the full extent of this ability.


    He''d assumed, like many others, that his Trait was minor, offering little in the way of power or influence. But as he experimented, he began to understand the potential thaty within.


    It started slowly. Varnis absorbed the despair of those around him, growing stronger with each passing day. He realized that by cultivating and manipting these emotions, he could feed off them, using them to enhance his own strength.


    His rise to the position of Counselor had been part of a carefully crafted n, one that would allow him to expand his influence over Veilcroft.


    After all, he was from a wealthy family with rooted backgrounds. While not on the level of Hartley or others, locally, they held a good influence.


    Once in power, Varnis had begun orchestrating the city''s slow descent into chaos.


    He manipted events, sowing discord and fear, allowing the city''s despair to grow.


    ''He really did quite crafty. Even the increased actions of viins do stem from him.'' Theck of city governing came from that. He intentionally leaked the ns and intel from inward, making viins act a lot more efficiently.


    However, he kept it still under control so as not to attract too much attention by keeping it periodical.


    He fed off that despair, steadily increasing his power over the years. However, at some point, he reached a bottleneck.


    But he was already expecting this, and that was why he decided to push for one of the most detailed ns he had made.


    His first n.


    When he started as a counselor, he initially bribed a bunch of schrs so that they could create stories about an ancient monster''s traces being found in Veilcroft. The reason for that was to just sow some small discord into the public.


    There was nothingplex. While they were baseless, and most schrs knew about that, that would not be the case for the general public as stories held more importance than a bunch of official papers.


    Varnis had always been meticulous, his mind working several steps ahead of everyone else. He knew that his n needed more than just rumors and whispers—it required a physical manifestation of the fear and despair he intended to cultivate. That''s when he decided to establish his ownpany under the guise of a construction firm.


    Thepany was named "Veilcroft Development Consortium," and it appeared to be a legitimate business on the surface, specializing in urban development and infrastructure projects. Varnis used his family''s wealth and influence to secure contracts from the city, allowing him to dig deep beneath the surface and create the tunnels and chambers he needed for his n.


    The official reason for the extensive underground work was to modernize Veilcroft''s aging infrastructure, including the instation of new sewage systems, the construction of underground transport routes, and the reinforcement of old foundations. But in reality, these projects were a cover for something far more sinister.


    Using the constructionpany as a front, Varnis secretly expanded the undergroundwork beneath the city, creating abyrinth of tunnels and chambers that mirrored the ancient tales he had fabricated.


    Theyout of thework was deliberately designed to match the descriptions in the stories that the bribed schrs had spread years before.


    This was no coincidence; Varnis wanted to ensure that if anyone ever stumbled upon his secret operations, they would attribute it to the ancient legend rather than his machinations.


    To make his n even more convincing, Varnis enlisted the help of a specialist—an expert in ancient symbols and runes.


    This expert was skilled in creating energy conduits, and Varnismissioned them to inscribe the tunnels and chambers with intricate symbols that would channel the fear and despair of Veilcroft''s citizens directly into the heart of his undergroundwork.


    These symbols were carefully ced to form a web of energy flow, converging on a central chamber deep within thework.


    This chamber was the heart of Varnis'' operation, where the umted negative energy would be concentrated and absorbed by him, further amplifying his power.


    Once thework wasplete, Varnis began to push his n into action. He subtly encouraged the spread of the ancient legend through his controlled media outlets and well-ced rumors, ensuring that the citizens of Veilcroft would begin to fear the supposed reawakening of an ancient monster.


    The whispers of the monster''s return grew louder, feeding the collective anxiety of the city.


    And he was just about to break through.


    Even if he discovered the potential of his traitter than any others and his talent limit was just a 6, he breached the limit and was about to reach the rank of 7 for all of his parameters.


    If not for the investigation team.


    ''Well, that basically sums up.''


    Yet there were some things that were suspicious.


    ''In the game, the city became more deste than ever. But if Varnis only wanted to strengthen himself, he would have finished his n and wouldy down for a while.''


    It seemed there was another force in the y.


    ''Wait.''


    And that made me think of something as I slowly stood up.