Chapter 288: Aether

"And now that Veil is going to wear off in just two months."

Everyone immediately had visible shock etched across their faces. From what they could tell, if the Veil were to disappear, the outside threats would obviously be able to detect Eliomor and eventually come to conquer them.

The situation could become even worse if those outsiders decided to enslave the entire world, especially since Eliomor had already explained the existence of the Eternals to them on the day after the battle.

None of them could simply assume that every civilization beyond their World would leave them alone after discovering their existence.

Zaakrax remained motionless as he stared toward his four old "friends," his eyes narrowing slightly as he considered what Eliomor had just revealed.

’Hmm... This "Veil" seems more like a concealing barrier. If it needed energy to remain active for that long, where did it even get enough energy to function for two thousand years?’ He narrowed his eyes as he saw the ’already known’ expressions of Mostleon, Yulia, Garthax, and Aurelis.

Atlas also felt that something about the explanation was suspicious, and he began thinking along the same lines as Zaakrax. Before he could continue those thoughts, however, Kael suddenly stood up and spoke, "Then couldn’t we just give it more energy so it can sustain itself for longer?"

His question was based on a fairly obvious conclusion, and he couldn’t understand why the solution hadn’t already been considered. ’If energy is what it takes to sustain it, then just refill the energy. Just like how petrol works with cars on Earth, hehe.’

Everyone turned toward Kael after hearing his suggestion, and several of them seemed to consider the possibility for a moment. Their shock had even begun to calm slightly because, if his idea worked, the immediate problem would no longer be as dangerous as it initially seemed.

However, Eliomor quickly dismissed the idea, "No, that is not possible because the Veil doesn’t run on Spirit Energy to begin with. It runs on a completely different type of energy."

Kael frowned slightly as he heard that answer. ’Different energy? System...’

The System responded almost immediately.

[Host, you already know that there are many types of energy outside of Spirit Energy in this world, such as Mana, Qi, and others. It must be one of them.]

’Hmm, I know that, but there is no Mana or Qi in this world, is there? So what is it talking about?’ Kael asked again, but the System gave him another vague response.

[...Host should listen to the World’s explanation.]

Kael felt irritated again, but he didn’t show it on his face. He simply sat back down and continued listening to Eliomor. Atlas, however, was thinking about something completely different.

’A "Veil"... Could it be that it isn’t simply meant to protect this World from outside threats? Could there be another reason behind its existence?’ He narrowed his eyes slightly as he thought about everything that had happened so far.

The involvement of Eliomor, the agreement with that man Luberion, and the existence of the Veil itself were beginning to form a pattern that made his instincts tell him to remain cautious.

His thoughts were interrupted when Eliomor continued with its explanation. "That Veil receives energy from this realm, specifically from the Tree of Astraya."

"That energy...is called Aether, and it is circulating throughout the Galaxy."

The moment Eliomor mentioned Aether, everyone either became shocked or confused. They were shocked to learn that another type of energy existed beyond Spirit Energy, while others couldn’t understand how an energy that supposedly circulated throughout the Galaxy could be present within the Tree of Astraya. The contradiction immediately raised several questions in their minds, but they didn’t have to wait long for an explanation because Eliomor continued speaking.

"Aether was originally the energy that should have been circulating throughout our World from the beginning. But when these Ruins started to emerge across the entire World, Spirit Energy somehow leaked from those Ruins and gradually filled the World."

Eliomor paused briefly before continuing, "Thus, the entire World’s natural function became separated from the rest of the Galaxy. That was also how those Eternals detected this World as a ’Strange One.’ Although, for some reason, no other threats appeared before the Veil was constructed by Luberion."

"There is no way to know when another civilization or existence might eventually discover us once the Veil disappears."

Eliomor’s explanation ended, and every person present, including Atlas, stared at it with widened eyes. They had just heard another piece of history concerning the World itself, and the Ruins were beginning to appear far more significant than they had previously imagined.

They had changed how people lived, influenced the existing power hierarchy, altered the physical structure of the World, and affected countless aspects of civilization. Now they were learning that their influence had extended even further, to the point that the energy released from them had changed how Eliomor itself functioned in relation to the rest of the Galaxy.

Did that mean the Ruins were responsible for almost every major problem that had occurred throughout the history of Eliomor?

Atlas narrowed his eyes as he crossed his arms. ’These Ruins are what caused Human greed to surge to such an extreme degree, ultimately bringing suffering to countless commoners and creating the suffering of my past self...’

He paused for a moment before shifting his gaze toward Eliomor.

’Meaning there are still things outside of just revenge that I need to destroy, and...’

His thoughts returned to what had happened after the battle. When he opened the Codex the following day, he had discovered the absurd abilities possessed by Orivian, which had now become his Traits. The discovery had shocked him beyond words, and his Bloodline had also increased directly to twenty-three percent.

Yet despite crossing another threshold, there had been no new ability from his Bloodline this time.

Atlas’s thoughts then returned to the battle itself, ’I will grow even stronger through that process. If it weren’t for that guy’s sword sealing that bastard’s powers, I would have certainly lost, and maybe even Seraphiel would have died at his hands.’

His fist clenched slightly while his arms remained crossed. The thought of Seraphiel being killed because he wasn’t strong enough caused his expression to become colder, but he quickly suppressed the emotion and returned his attention to Eliomor.

’For now, I need to know everything about this World.’ With that thought, Atlas calmed himself down.

Seraphiel, who was sitting beside him, had already noticed the sudden change in his expression and the brief anger that had surfaced within his eyes, but she didn’t say anything. She knew Atlas was now capable of keeping his emotions under control, so there was no reason for her to worry. She simply remained beside him and continued listening to Eliomor’s explanation.

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[A/N: These few Chapters can feel like Info dumping but these are necessary for the entire arc, so bear with me a bit.]