ACCR Chapter 4 Khaatam

I had expected an outpost or some sort of factory in outer space, or in orbit around Earth and Mars, maybe even slightly included in that, were Jupiter and the other planets, but now that we were bearing upon our destination, I struggled to maintain control over my shock. It was a war to maintain my stoic mask.

Khaatam!

It was the single most valuable place in the entire solar system, with technological means surpassing almost every single thing on Earth, including the super large Federal Quantum Computer chip!

It was both costly to build, yet profitable at the same time, with said profits far surpassing the cost! And all that profit came from a single important resource! Solar crystals! They were the crystallization of solar attuned spiritual energy, a type of energy that had come to be considered way more valuable than even unattuned spiritual energy crystals in the past 80 years!

Just contact with any type of plant was enough to activate its growth by such speed that in just a few minutes, it would flower, and even bear fruit! And that wasn't even the most amazing g of its functions! Genetic limitations could be broken! Actually even we humans-no, every living thing had some positive or negative reactions to the solar energy!

"Mr. Paul..." I paused here to take a deep breath such that I didn't fumble. "...Is Mr. Mumaso really located on that?" The words came out as calmly as I wanted them, instead of the inner me that wanted to simply scream them out.

A 3D hologram, in the likeness of Paul, materialised beside me at the question. Meanwhile, his true body was on the bridge behind me, piloting the small private vessel.

"Yes. Most of his time is spent on Khataam."

"Has there been a concrete date of when it will be completed?"

"In the year 4523. Of course, that's just an estimate. The deadline could shorten or lengthen depending on a myriad of factors. The variables are too many."

Over 4000 years!

That was a very long time! If I was lucky, having had descendants that reached the Core Formation in every generation, and birthed new borns relatively late, then in about just over ten generations, someone from my line might be alive to see its completion! But, that could never happen since the future was in constant flux.

Within mere minutes, the ship circled over the side of the ring, bringing us to the face, the side directly facing the sun, which was lined with panels that served to collect the hot radiated solar energy.

One large panel slid to the side a minute later and the vessel slipped inside, upon which I released my divine sense for a moment, allowing me to catch a glimpse of the only human below, among the giant green and beautiful trees and flower stalks, which I counted to only be three, holding up three giant white flowers with countless petals and a vibrant yellow inner core accommodating the reproductive parts.

The scenery was beautiful, like the way the emerald moss covered up every inch of tree bark, even reaching up into the branches, or the vibrant green carpet of grass that covered up whatever medium the entire ecosystem was seated upon, yet the moment my divine sense had swept past the man, I had been taken in. His aura, his emerald green eyes...

A tile below my feet dissolved and I sunk below, encasing myself in my spiritual energy to prevent my already short silver skirt from fluttering upwards while also making sure that the auric shield around me obscured the tiny windows underneath my skirt.

Upon making a soft landing upon the carpet of grass, making sure that my heels didn't dig into the soil by covering the underside of my heels in aura that made it appear like I was wearing flat soles, my attention didn't for a moment slip towards how soft it was or how unnatural it all seemed.

My eyes were only drawn into those green orbs that were looking at me calmly and somewhat detached. Though, I could feel an undercurrent of uneasiness.

My heart raced, with my aura following suit a moment later, almost bursting out of the constraints that was my body. Yet, in a fraction of a second, I contained everything, making sure to purge any hormones that had caused the problem.

"Miss Toba, It is a pleasure to finally meet you."

The voice was masculine, yet appeared to be uncertain, as if Mr. Mumaso hadn't spoken to people in a long time.

It cast a spell upon me, which I hurriedly broke apart, instead deciding to compartmentalize the memory for perusal at a later date.

"It is the same for me, Mr. Mumaso."

The shirt clinging to his lean form, the promise of his hands that were deep within his pockets, with only the forearms visible.

Breathe Lily, Breathe!

Maybe this weirdness was a result of being affected by the Nascent Soul stage aura...? After all, this was the first time I was meeting one on a personal basis since my birth.

Even Zeus, I had only spoken with, in a virtual setting.

Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

"You seem... unnerved. Is there something wrong?"

"Huh?! No no no. I just need a minute to get over the fact that I am meeting a cultivator of your power for the first time. It will pass. Now that I have met you, would you enlighten me as to what kind of things I would need to do as you secretary?"

A frown crossed his features for a brief instant, making me feel the burning in my cheeks. I was embarrassing myself, no doubt about it.

It was puzzling. I searched through my memories at the speed of thought until I picked up what was really causing my peculiarities.

'There's absolutely no way!!!'

"An aide. That's what you will be. Basically, this first week, you will be following me around, getting to know the people I work with and the places you might need to be. As you must have gleaned from my profile, I don't love interacting with people, so most of that will be on you after getting familiar with the others."

I nodded in understanding. My boss was an introvert, and though his Nascent Soul strength masked anything I could glean, I was certain that even talking to me was a herculean task.

"What's going to be first on our agenda?!" I asked with an enthusiasm I was partly faking. For some reason, my excitement was causing my aura to roil even though my body had been calmed down.

The urge to from almost took me. It seems that as long as I was near him, I wouldn't be bored.

"A board meeting. Would you be interested in taking a look around this place for a few minutes?"

"Is that allowed?" The question had to be asked even though I was entirely welcome to the suggestion.

It was a reason to be close to him. It was a surreal feeling really. What was it about this man that caused me yo feel as if I had been lit on fire?

-----

Joy. That should have been the prevalent emotion at the appearance of my bait, this woman. Yet as I strolled with her, I couldn't dredge out even the tiniest spark of said happiness. Instead, it was guilt that was eating at me.

Using this woman for my own purposes was something I was struggling to deal with. Even as we walked leisurely, touring my organism, while she asked questions, with I satisfying her curiosity, most of my attention was taken up by thought. The moral conundrum was weighing upon me. If I had been sure that she was a bad person, then I wouldn't have had any guilt. But the investigations done by Paul had turned up nothing. Most clan cultivators were a match for those sect bastards in evil or grey-are things.

She is clean.

That was a right statement. And it was the source of my moral dilemma.

I took a breath, instead deciding to focus my mind on this peace, this beauty. The wind on my skin, the feeling of the stalks of grass as I crushed them beneath my shoe-clad feet, the cool air that kissed my skin when we occasionally walked underneath the canopy.

I loved nature to an extent, especially the wood or plant aspect of it. Many had expressed immense disappointment when I had chosen to base my core around wood. I would have been dissuaded if it hadn't been for one man. Yet now, many naysayers had been slapped and silenced at my success.

Though, there was still a faction that was still holding out, with an argument that I was useless in combat.

"What is your aim with this organism, these plants, trees, grass and large flowers?"

The question set my heart aflutter with excitement. She was an administrative type of cultivator. That I knew. And yet, it still brought me joy that she had taken an interest in my work.

"Miss Toba, what do you think is the biggest problem cultivators face in raising their realm of cultivation?"

"Mmmm...time...?"

"Right, time! That's the thing we lack the most! Its the whole reason I created that talisman!"

"It has really helped us out. I didn't get the chance to experience it personally, but the younger generation have benefitted immensely."

"Yes..." Some embarrassment welled up with that praise, but I moved on. "In the past, it took over 30 years for a Spirit Gathering cultivator to reach the peak of the realm. And their lifespans were a mere 100 years!"

"That's... I have lost many relatives because of that." She admitted with an air of sadness that I didn't quite know how to handle.

Though, before my mind would go into overdrive to think of a way to comfort her, she reverted back to how she was before.

"And how is this grove going to help? Could they be some lifespan extension fruits?" Before I could answer that question though, she answered it all on her own.

"Ah! If I were you, having invented that formation that allows auto cultivation, then that means that this fruit is of the same type, or close, right?"

Her steely grey eyes were glowing with what I would consider awe while gazing at me, which prompted me to look away. I wasn't worthy.

"Yes. The fruit that will be borne from these flowers will be much the same. More on that will be a surprise for the future."

"Really! How can you not sate my appetite, Mr. Mumaso?"

The question, thrown out in jest brought me to a pause, though for her, the reaction was intense, with her eyes widening before she hurriedly apologised for overstepping her bounds.

My pause had been of a different purpose, though her reaction puzzled me at first, yet in a moment, I managed to figure it all out. And the answer almost solicited a tired sigh out of me.

"I am not like other Nascent Souls, or higher realm cultivators. For as long as we aren't in a public setting, you can act at ease around me."

"I dont think it will be that easy."

She said, with the next few minutes walked in silence.

"This board meeting, would you at least brief me on who will be there?"

'The types of people I really don't want to meet.'

"Shareholders and some department heads. Its been five years, so most of the crowd will be there except for those in seclusion... About 40 people."

I stopped in place and reached out with my divine sense, connecting directly to hers, though only after she accepted my query.

All the information I possessed on anyone who would be attending the meeting, sorted and organised, was passed onto her. It wasn't much, but I also added a bit of my memories to the mix, so that she could parse out their personalities.

"It seems that our walk must come to an end."

My words brought her back from her parsing of the data.

"A pity." Was all she said.

With one last glance at my garden, I rose upwards, with Miss Toba trailing under me.

I would have loved to spend more time here as it was a place that allowed me to unwind, but there were things to do. No matter how much I put them off, they weren't going to go away.

A small sliver ship appeared, the one that had brought the woman here.

On entering it, Paul appeared, and I smiled. It had been some time since I had last seen him.

"Its good to see you, boss." His metallic face mimicked an exact expression of pure joy with those words.

"Yeah, its good that you are still here." I answered while clasping his hand in mine.

"Did you really think that they would replace me with another?" He jerked back in mock shock.

"Nah! I bet even they wouldn't be able to handle you. You are a handful."

"Thank you for the compliment!"

"It wasn't!"

My retort brought a smile to Miss Toba's face, though it soured my mood.

It would have been better if I could keep her far from me.

'Should I leave her in Paul's hands? She can surely learn the same as if she were shadowing me.'

Even as my thoughts became complicated and conflicted, my feet were moving towards my private cabin.