It turned out there was a way to store memories.

In fact, there were several ways, but Adranial only wished to use the one. Though they now had a way to use the System Shop in Collinsville—God, it still felt a little strange naming this place Collinsville—Adranial didn’t trust herself to keep the memories in her own storage. And she didn’t want to entrust them to an item.

“There’s a chance I could lose them,” Adranial had said. “An item… it’s not safe.”

“How could you lose the item if it was in your Storage Ring?” Xavier had asked.

The woman had then explained that there were certain spells that would let certain classes take from other people’s Storage Rings.

Thief classes. Xavier hadn’t even contemplated such a class existing, but he supposed it made sense. Why wouldn’t there be thieves out there? There had always been people taking from others for their own benefit.

There were apparently ways to store items through the System Shop, with people selling secure vault services, and the more powerful Denizens having their own vaults, but it wasn’t something she was able to access from a restricted world.

“The only surefire way to keep these memories safe is to store them somewhere secure. Somewhere they will never be lost.” As Adranial had said those words, she’d looked at him closely.

There’d been something in her eyes that he couldn’t identify.

“Memories can be stored in another person’s mind.”

“In the mind of one of your party members?”

Adranial had shaken her head. “No. They will need to do something similar. Besides, I don’t think their minds would be any safer than my inventory.”

“Are you saying what I think you’re saying? Do you… want to store these memories in my mind?” Xavier shook his head. “I don’t… see how that could be a good thing. I don’t want to be influenced by someone else’s memories.”

“That’s not how it would work. The memories would be locked away from you. You wouldn’t be able to access them without either my permission, or the requisite spell. Tell me, do you possess any kind of mind-reading ability?” She had smirked slightly as she’d said those words. He’d shaken his head. “Then I think your mind would be the safest place in the entire sector.”

It was the next day, and Xavier’s head hurt. Adranial told him the headache would go away soon, but she also hadn’t warned him about it in the first place.

At the back of his mind, a knot of memories sat. A knot of memories that were not his own. He touched the back of his head with his index finger and wondered about what the memories stuck in his head held.

Adranial hadn’t been the only one to give up her memories. Her entire party had done the same. When Adranial had spoken to him of this—of what she intended to do—he’d told her it wasn’t necessary.

Apparently, she didn’t have a say in the matter. Whether she wanted to do this or not, it wasn’t something that was under her control. She was loyal to her ancestor, and if he said jump, she asked how high.

It wasn’t something he felt comfortable with.

On the other hand, he knew how helpful it could be. The woman had knowledge of tower floors that no one on Earth could ever possess. In fact, she had knowledge that no other True Progenitor would ever likely have access to, as they were all from newly integrated worlds. Xavier’s advantage within the tower was only liable to grow.

Though he was sure the woman would want something in return, even if it had been something she’d been ordered to do.

He’d felt something strange at the prospect of having her join him in the tower, even if they wouldn’t be a part of the same party. A flutter in his chest that he’d squashed. He didn’t know how long he would be stuck in the Tower of Champions this time around—didn’t know how many floors he would need to clear before he came back to Earth. And even if he did know how many floors it would be, that didn’t mean he knew how long it would take.

There was one mere hour left before they would be taken from this place. Teleported away from Collinsville and brought back to the tower. Xavier was standing on his balcony, leaning on the railing, looking out at the city he’d created. At the people who’d come here, seeking his protection and looking to gain power of their own so they could protect each other.

A crowd was slowly gathering. He didn’t know how many would turn up. Howard stood to his right, Siobhan to his left. Justin was just behind him. His whole party was backing him up. Public speaking, much like interpersonal relationships, was not something he excelled at. Quite the opposite.

But times had changed, and he had to change with them.

He thought, for a moment, about all he’d accomplished here. He hadn’t just been on Earth since coming back from the Tower of Champions, either. He’d been on two different planets since coming back. A part of him wondered if he should use his Sector Travel Key to get somewhere else—somewhere that it would be easier for him to train at a higher level, but that seemed to be something that wasn’t necessary at the moment. It would have, in fact, been counter to his goals. There were too many dungeons here he needed to clear, and he knew that the moment he was no longer on Earth, the Denizens here would likely start to become strong enough to take on new dungeons by themselves. Many were already strong enough to do so, and many had already done so.

Which meant that by the time he returned to the planet there might no longer be any first-clear dungeon titles left to attain, unless there were really high-level dungeons that hadn’t yet been discovered.

I’ve protected this world. Stopped invaders from coming here. I’ve brought strength to those who will remain, and they will protect this place while I’m gone.

Six E Grade Denizens stood at the front of the gathering crowd. Melissa Donavon. Allegra Delacorte. John Hammond. Talia Warburton. Shane Jamison. Barry Wu. He’d gotten to know the six of them quite well over the past few weeks.

This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author's work.

Powerlevelling wasn’t his favourite thing to do, but there was something satisfying about bringing other people up, about dragging their levels higher and higher—especially with how fast he was able to do it.

Though the six of them were E Grade and had gained a great deal of titles on their way, they were still nowhere near Xavier’s level of power. Still, he was confident they were strong enough to take care of E Grades near, or higher, than their own level easily enough. The advantage titles gave them was rather amazing, and he’d tried to ensure they ranked up their skills and spells along the way as well.

The Earth should be in good hands while I’m gone.

He released a sigh. More people were gathering in the crowd. He was anxious to leave, but worried, too. He felt like a parent who’d been looking after his kids for so long and was finally about to go outside without them for the first time. There was excitement, but there was also anxiety, worry, fear.

Earth was his baby. He didn’t want anything to happen to it while he was gone.

At the same time he was thrilled to be heading back to the tower. The dungeons hadn’t been a challenge to him. The only challenge he’d faced since being back here was when he’d gone to the other worlds and faced D Grade enemies.

As the minutes ticked by, and the crowd grew as large as it was ever going to get, Xavier decided it was about time he said something.

“As you all know, today, I, along with all the other Champions of Earth, will be leaving you.” He paused. “This isn’t something that we can control, like many things since the System came down. I have done my best to protect Earth in the time I’ve been back here, and I assure you that while I’m gone, the world will be in good hands. The other worlds within our sector know this place is off-limits to them. they know the consequences if they invade it. But that doesn’t mean there are no threats. I have been told that there are entities that deem themselves too powerful to worry about my warnings, and while they are unable to send Denizens to this world that are more powerful than myself, they may have sent people anyway.” He bent his head forward, looking down at his hands where he clutched the rail. “If this is true, these Denizens may very well be hiding on Earth right now as we speak, awaiting the moment when I, and my fellow Champions, are taken from this world.”

The crowd was quiet. No whispers passed from one person to another. Howard’s family stood near the front. Kelly holding the shoulders of Michael and Rebecca, her forehead creased in worry, her eyes shining. Justin’s mother stood beside Siobhan’s sister. The woman had said she would look after her while Siobhan was gone, and Xavier hadn’t seen Siobhan look more grateful.

Xavier’s own mother was there. She stood off to the side, a cigarette dangling from her mouth, a blank expression on her face. She always seemed to be smoking, for as long as he could remember. He wondered where she was able to find a pack in this post-apocalyptic world. She must have raided some stores before he’d found her.

What Xavier was telling his people wasn’t news to them. They’d heard all of this before. He didn’t intend to hide anything from them. Not unless strictly necessary. He didn’t see the point of keeping them in the dark.

“To combat this threat, I have brought these six people to E Grade.” Xavier gestured toward those he’d powerlevelled. “While we are gone, they will be your protectors. They will keep you safe in my stead. I have left one of them, John Hammond, in possession of a Communication Stone. While I am gone, he will have a direct line to me, so I’m always kept appraised of the situation on Earth. It will also allow me to give you all updates about what is happening in the tower. There may be things that we learn there that will help people here—I want to share as much knowledge as I can with you all.”

Xavier stopped talking for a moment. He wasn’t really all that sure of what he should say. These people needed more reassurance than he was able to give. He wanted to fill their hearts with hope.

“I know none of you expected your lives to be this way. That none of you expected the System to come down, for the world to change so much.” He put a hand to his chest. “I certainly didn’t see any of this coming. Many have suffered heartache and tremendous loss because of this. Many of us have lost people. Family. Friends. Loved ones. People who will always be in our memories. And we have lost our way of life. Our dreams. Our paths. I will never be able to say enough to explain all of that.

“But the integration, as horrible as it has been, has not only brought loss. It has brought other things, too. An opportunity. For all of us to become more than we ever knew we could be. To live longer than we ever thought possible. To join the Greater Universe, not as a world that is enslaved or destroyed, but as a world that is equal in strength, or greater, to any other. Most of us would not have chosen this life had we been given the chance, but now that the path has been laid out before us the only thing that we can do is walk it.

“When I and my fellow Champions return from the tower, we will be stronger for it, and I know that we will return to an Earth that has grown. An Earth that has embraced its new future. An Earth that has moved forward. Each and every one of you is capable of more than you know. I expect only the best from all of you, and I can’t wait to see what you all do while we are gone.”

Xavier felt a little breathless, which was strange given how much endurance he had. Perhaps that was from the nerves, or the passion he felt. He hadn’t expected to talk to the crowd for as long as he had. Hadn’t expected to actually enjoy the feeling, either. But looking out at them all now he could see a difference in their posture. Could see a glint in many of their eyes, a glint that he was sure was hope.

He raised his hands. “For Earth!” It sounded like a foolish thing for him to call out, and suddenly all the doubt he’d had at standing up here and talking to such a large crowd of his people came flooding back.

But then the people in the crowd began to raise their hands. Kelly was the first, her children following suit. Then Justin’s mother. Siobhan’s sister. The six E Grades, standing together with their heads held high.

Everyone else followed, until they all had their hands in the air.

Xavier’s mother was even one of them, to his surprise, though she still had a cigarette hanging from her mouth, the thing halfway burned to ash.

“For Earth!” the crowd shouted. They chanted the words, louder and louder.

The minutes had ticked away until only seconds remained. This was how he was going to leave his people. With hope in their hearts. Hope for a new future for the planet. A future that he would ensure they all had.

Adranial and her party stood down amongst the crowd as well. Adranial looked up at him, an odd look in her eyes. The woman hadn’t seemed to have changed all that much since some of her memories had been taken from her. She didn’t appear to feel a sense of loss for the memories that were now gone, but it was difficult to tell.

For one, how could someone miss something that they’d never had? Or at least, never remembered having? Well, he supposed he knew the answer to that question. There were definitely things out there people could miss, even if they’d never experienced them…

He shook the thought away, looking down at the other members of her party. They’d followed her without a second thought. They’d given up memories of their own for this. Given up the ties to their world. All so that they could follow him into the Tower of Champions.

While he didn’t feel good about what they’d each lost, he was glad to have them along. Their knowledge would be a huge asset to not only him, but to every Champion from Earth. He would ensure that it got to everyone. Ensure that they all knew what he knew.

Adranial’s ancestor’s motivations were still unclear. Xavier would have thought someone like that would want him dead. But clearly, he wanted to gain Xavier’s trust, and even ensure his safety.

And so far, they hadn’t tried to control him. Not overtly, anyway.

The timer ticked on. Three seconds remaining. The people were still cheering, and he along with them. He could hear the voices of his party members behind him, joining in the chorus of chanting. That made him smile.

Maybe we are all in this together.

The countdown timer reached zero.

Xavier, his party, Adranial and her party, and every other Champion around the entire planet disappeared.

It was finally time to return to the Tower of Champions.