Chapter 29: Highest privacy

Neolan was sitting inside his own room on the lowest floor of the Ashburn Estate, resting comfortably on a cushion that appeared to be made entirely from holographic material. The cushion adjusted itself slightly according to his body, providing support without any visible physical structure beneath it.

Technology had advanced to such an absurd level by this era that things like this were no longer considered impressive or unusual. To the people of Earth, such technology had simply become part of their everyday lives.

He sat quietly while keeping an eye on the cup of coffee his personal maid had brought him several minutes earlier. Thin wisps of steam slowly rose from the futuristic cup while its internal system continuously maintained the coffee at the perfect temperature.

Neolan picked up the cup and took a small sip before setting it back down, his attention shifting toward the small letter resting beside him. The letter had been delivered directly by his maid after being handed to her by his mother, and Neolan had immediately recognized her handwriting.

He really wanted to see his mother right now and simply hug her after being separated from her for so many years in his previous life. However, he restrained himself after learning that she had temporarily returned to her parents’ home to discuss something with them.

The contents of the letter were simple, mostly reminding him to take care of himself and not push his body too hard after the Awakening. Neolan stared at the letter for a few seconds before gently putting it aside, knowing that there was nothing he could do about her absence for the moment.

Neolan shook his head before picking up the other letter sent by his father. "I will meet her once I am finished with the investigation. I also don’t have much time left in this world for today. It is already eleven, meaning I only have thirteen hours remaining." He opened the letter and immediately saw a brief message congratulating him on his Awakening, followed by a few simple instructions.

Your training will begin the day after tomorrow. Once you have completed your first Rift clearance, come to the fifth training room.

Neolan stared at the message for a moment before letting out a quiet sigh. ’Mother and Father really seem like polar opposites when it comes to these things...’

He shook his head and shifted his attention toward the matter at hand. The rules governing newly awakened Individuals were very clear, and Neolan already knew them from his previous life. After the Awakening Ceremony, every newly awakened Individual had to clear a lowest-rank Rift before they could be selected by one of the Noble Families they wished to join.

Once they became part of a Noble Family, they would receive access to better resources, training, and opportunities, and that was where their true journey as an Awakened Individual would begin.

The Awakened would then be assigned missions of different types and difficulty levels throughout the outer space regions controlled by the Federation, with the missions determined according to their current Strength Rank.

Clearing Rifts, obtaining Monster Cores, and completing missions were the primary ways for them to accumulate Astrine and gradually evolve their Astrine Blades. To ordinary newly awakened Individuals, this entire process would take years of effort and countless dangerous missions before they could reach higher Evolutions.

’All of that would be a hassle if I didn’t already know the future.’

A faint grin appeared on Neolan’s face as he remembered something he had discovered in outer space five years later. It was something that had taken humanity a considerable amount of time to develop, but Neolan knew exactly where its development would eventually lead.

’If I bring ’that’ here five years before it is supposed to be discovered, the technology on Earth could advance even further. There will definitely be a Butterfly Effect because of that, but I can deal with those changes later.’

Neolan stood up and picked up the cup of milk coffee before gulping down the rest in a single motion. He placed the empty cup aside and stretched his body slightly before looking toward the room’s exit. "Now, it’s time to get to work."

He stepped forward, and before his foot even touched the ground again, a completely new white shirt appeared over his bare upper body, followed by a long black coat forming over it. Despite the additional layer of clothing, his body remained extremely lean and refined, with his physique looking completely different from what one would expect from someone who had only recently awakened.

Neolan didn’t bother looking at himself as he took another step forward and calmly spoke, "Void Steps."

His entire figure vanished without leaving behind even the slightest trace. Spiritual Qi flowed through his body and activated the perfected technique with complete precision, allowing him to cross an enormous distance in an instant.

When his figure reappeared, he was no longer inside the Ashburn Estate or even on Earth. He had arrived inside the deepest chamber of the Federation’s massive space station, which remained stationed in outer space while continuously rotating around Earth’s axis.

Neolan looked around the enormous chamber without wasting a single second. Numerous researchers and scientists were working around several massive Mecha Robots, each of them capable of being controlled directly through the user’s thoughts rather than conventional controls.

These machines had not been created recently, as humanity had already developed Mecha technology centuries ago. The researchers were currently working on something far more ambitious than simply constructing another Mecha.

They were modifying the existing technology and developing an entirely new battle Mecha that could potentially rival the destructive power of a Hydrogen Bomb.

Astrine Technology served as the core of the project, allowing the machine to utilize Astrine energy in ways that ordinary weapons could never achieve. It was still in the development stage, however, and despite years of research, the scientists had yet to overcome several fundamental problems preventing the project from becoming a reality.

"All of you, stop."

The moment Neolan’s voice reached the researchers, everyone immediately became alert and turned toward him. Several scientists stopped what they were doing while others looked at him with confusion, clearly wondering why someone had suddenly entered one of the most restricted areas of the Federation’s space station.

Neolan didn’t bother explaining himself immediately and instead raised his left hand, activating the wristwatch on his arm. A holographic display appeared above it, showing his identity and current Federation Ranking.

"I am Neolan Ashburn, heir of the Ashburn Noble Family. My Federation Ranking is currently one hundred, which easily falls within the thousandth position required to enter this room without permission."

[Federation Ranking: 100]

The scientists stared at the holographic display for several seconds before their expressions changed slightly. They were aware of the requirements for entering this chamber, but Neolan’s identity wasn’t what surprised them. What caught their attention was the ranking displayed beside his name.

’How did he reach the hundredth position so quickly?’

None of them had an answer. Neolan had only awakened moments ago, yet his Federation Ranking had already reached a position that most Awakened Individuals would never come close to achieving. Before anyone could ask him about it, however, Neolan spoke again.

"Sanction a new project under the highest privacy level, Goddess of Niflheim."

The moment those words left his mouth, a figure suddenly appeared in front of him. She was composed entirely of blue holographic light and took the form of a beautiful woman with long, flowing hair that reached down to her waist.

Her slender body was covered by a simple yet elegant white dress made entirely from holographic data, giving her appearance an unmistakably artificial quality despite how lifelike she looked. A strange device resembling futuristic VR goggles covered her eyes completely, hiding them behind a smooth blue interface where countless streams of information continuously flickered across its surface.

A mechanical voice came from the holographic woman’s mouth. "Neolan Ashburn, you must prove that you possess the necessary authority to activate the highest level of privacy for a project."

Neolan immediately nodded because he had already expected this response. "Alright. Show me the unsolved #q79 question, we are going to create AEGIS-01, something that countless researchers have failed to complete for the past decade."

The scientists holding their instruments immediately froze. Several of them exchanged confused glances before looking back at Neolan, their expressions gradually becoming more incredulous.

One of the researchers finally stepped forward and spoke, "Neolan Ashburn, I don’t want to judge you, but creating AEGIS-01requires an equation that can actually function within the theoretical framework of #q79. And that’s without even considering the practical materials required to construct it."

Neolan turned toward the scientist who had spoken but didn’t bother answering him. Instead, he looked directly at the holographic Goddess of Niflheim. "As I said, this is going to be a project under the highest privacy level. I will need some privacy, Goddess of Niflheim."

The holographic lights covering the device over her eyes flickered slightly. A moment later, the space around Neolan and the Goddess of Niflheim suddenly changed as an isolated Virtual Space emerged around them, completely separating them from the surrounding researchers.

The scientists could still see that Neolan and the Goddess were present, but every sound and piece of information from within the Virtual Space had been completely isolated from the outside.

Neolan smiled as he understood exactly what she had done. He had already known that the Goddess of Niflheim would provide him with a private environment once the highest level of security was activated. He looked around the isolated Virtual Space for a moment before turning toward her.

"Alright, now..."