October 22, 1616 Central Calendar

Southwestern Silberian Sea

Meteos had spent nearly a month in the Gynamo Kingdom balancing business and leisure with his father. With their trip considered to be largely a success within the narrow time limit and the next item on their agenda nearing, it was time to head back to the Holy Empire. The flying boat gradually lifted off and rose higher into the sky. As he looked back, the island grew smaller, the modest trading hub of Zelmoda and the surrounding green low hills slowly blending into the sea until they disappeared entirely beneath the horizon. From here on out, it would be half a day before any sign of land appeared again—the monotony of a long journey.

Despite his attempts to temper it, the inconvenient thing about traveling on a plane, or covering long distances on a vehicle in general without adequate infrastructure, is that it easily made the reincarnator and his inherited memories restless. The world situation and the feeling that he has to do something made him so. Alas, with the so-called Cauldron Equipment (or Weapons) Group worked on by the White Lotus just barely taking shape, the technology of the time felt woefully inadequate to meet his requirements. Without a significant source of mana nearby—certainly not the fuel from the flying boat—Meteos couldn't indulge in a satisfactory Overhaul session to create random things. Sleeping when he's already well-rested would be a waste of time either.

On the flip side, however, Meteos has all the time to spend with his father, Roderick Roguerider.

"Bored, son?"

Roderick, seated in the lounge on the deck below the bridge, called out as he noticed his son wandering aimlessly. An open book lay in front of him on the table.

"More restless than bored," Meteos corrected, approaching the table. "Mind if I join you?"

Roderick beamed and gestured to the empty seat across from him. "Not at all. Come sit down."

"Thanks, Dad."

With a sigh, Meteos settled into the chair, briefly glancing at the distant horizon and the featureless sky outside, before turning his attention back inside.

"...Now more than ever, I'm realizing just how much I appreciate being free to do things without something constantly constraining me. This trip has been nice, but now that I have nothing immediate to focus on, time feels like it's dragging."

It would be great to have a faster means of traveling. After all, this planet is huge. Air travel technology would evolve to accommodate the enormous distances between locations. For instance, anti-gravity magic technology that might've led to the rise of modern intercontinental airships or maybe airliners flying at suborbital altitudes had already been pioneered by the Holy Empire earlier than his past timeline. Even if it's not Meteos, someone in the future would've imagined ways to traverse the vast expanse of Ars Goetia in a single flight, or something like that. He wanted to believe it, that someone would walk the path he'd blazed.

"Yes, I've noticed that about you, Meteos," Roderick chuckled. "Restless when idle, but once locked into something that catches your interest, it's hard to pull you away. You've been that way since you were little."

"If you see me like that, then I guess it can't be helped... but you've always been there for all of us, Dad. I don't know how to thank you for everything."

"Oh, Son. It's only natural, isn't it?"

Meteos sheepishly returned his father's sentiment, recalling that even as a child, he could easily spend hours lost in sketching those "amazing contraptions" inspired by memories of the future. The cascade of recollections reminded him just how unchanging—and yet endlessly supportive—Roderick had been. Across all timelines.

The father's face seemed serene and content. Seeing it brought a smile to the son's face, but inwardly, he wondered how much sin he dug for himself by bringing even family the more he advanced. It was endlessly infuriating that with the gods selling them to feed their own addictions, they mortals had to fix the mess left behind by this betrayal. A hero would've done it driven by strength and belief in the goodness of mankind. Roguerider did it because he was selfish and spiteful. It just happened that Roguerider won the natural selection. This is why he needed something to work on, to do something useful and to escape the feeling of agonizing in silence, fully aware that he brought this to himself.

He couldn't stop and abandon everything now.

Roderick's voice took on a more contemplative tone as he posed a question that had been lingering on his mind for a while.

"Son, don't you think it's a missed opportunity to not offer any sort of development to Gynamo? Or at least Zelmoda. It has so much potential for growth."

"We just can't do it yet," Meteos replied. "There's no good in having a bunch of modern infrastructures standing in Gynamo only for Annonrial to obliterate them not long after."

"That's honestly terrible."

"Well... it just can't be helped. As long as Annonrial is still at large and is running circles around us, nothing in the known world is safe."

Roderick nodded, heaving a sigh in response. Meteos supposed that it must've been the idealistic civil engineer in him speaking. A man wielding more power than he ever was in the past life, yet tempered by such an endearing compassion. Despite being a sinner himself, Meteos seeing and helping nurture it felt so... nice.

The Annonrial Empire wasn't built on top of foolishness. If they're pursuing their own daunting task of facing the world alone like the Ravernal Empire before them, they must have prepared layers upon layers of strategies that allow them to defeat their enemies piecemeal. Whatever they're planning for the future in the Second Civilization Area, for one. The White Lotus had only started to seize and repurpose a couple of the enemy's assets in Gynamo, and even that was still far from a completed objective. Some of them even suspected that Annonrial's still-unclear next major strategy must be just another part of Zarathostra of the Messiah's unrelated scheme.

"Anyway, Son, you've done what you can in Gynamo for now. It's time to move on to the next agenda while seeing how the seeds you've planted grow," Roderick remarked. He referred, of course, to the White Lotus' growing Gynamo Branch that the White Lotus Leader just helped cultivate.

"Yes," Meteos offered a small smile, so as not to worry his father too much. "I hope they'll make good use of those small gifts."

Steadily advancing to enter the First Civilization Area, the Foundation's Boudica 213 flying boat continued to soar through the clear skies.

…………

Zelmoda, Gynamo Kingdom

That night on the same day, members of the White Lotus' Gynamo Branch convened at the Holy Empire's Order of the Ancients outpost under the leadership of its designated leaders: the Levins who maintained their original role as Handlers overseeing the base's activities, as well as Dagded Dujardin from the Seventy, now responsible for coordinating the operatives using his knowledge as the Annonrial Imperial Intelligencer to monitor and maneuver around the remaining hostile Annonrials in the field.

"This is what the Annonrial Army is using as its standard portable manacom set?"

Propped on the table surrounded by the meeting participants were objects left behind by Meteos to advance their plans. Between appreciating and scrutinizing the White Lotus Leader's small gifts, they were unsure exactly which was more appropriate. But hey, they can do both. The Order of the Ancients always did at least two things at the same time.

"Hmm, considering it's supposedly more advanced than our conventional counterpart, I can see the reason," one member remarked pointedly at one of them.

The Holy Empire's previous-generation "backpack"-style manacom set consisted of a large transceiver and a separate battery plus accessory pack that had to be hauled by two men. The new conventional set used as the Imperial Army's standard issue integrated all components into a single metallic box case, resulting in a more compact unit weighing around ten to fifteen kilograms. However, not only did this Annonrial counterpart do it earlier than the Holy Empire, this unit's dimensions and weight were also approximately three-quarters that of the Holy Empire model. Overall, it ranked fourth in terms of sophistication, superior to the Holy Empire's conventional tech but outclassed by the Ravernal relics and the upcoming Cauldron Equipment Group from the White Lotus that utilized Attarsamain technology, and then the Desire Drivers' Extremely Far Future Earth technology.

Turning to the redheaded Intelligencer, Dalisay Levin asked. "What's your final verdict on these items, Mr. Dujardin?"

The winged man nodded to himself as he spoke.

"As we've seen from the tests, it functions as it should. Even for me, it's indistinguishable from the real thing. If this is really a reproduction, it's a bloody good one. I don't see any obvious differences from the Annonrial design. Had I not known that these are replicas, I would've fallen for it."

"Then it's good," Gira Levin commented. "Well, while the White Lotus Leader has brought these items for us to judge, their true purpose is to convince the Holy Empire's leadership as evidence of Annonrial's true capabilities, no?"

Everyone nodded in agreement. In their consensus, the quality of these Cauldron-produced imitations was so convincing that even the Annonrial people themselves could be fooled. Therefore, it would be even easier to use them to 'merely' persuade the Holy Empire's leadership, specifically the Emperor, who is currently beyond Amon's reach. You could describe Annonrial technology as something of 'unknown knowns' to Milishial VIII. While the Emperor might not have known about its existence, he has the capacity to comprehend its nature.

Following their inspection of the equipment, the meeting shifted to focus on the details of the plot to bring these items back to the Middle Lands and convince the Emperor.

Dalisay spoke up again. "So, to summarize the plot: the defectors are supposed to be escaping the Messiah's regime, which is subtly manipulating the populace in order to sacrifice them during the Ancient Sorcerous Empire's return. These defectors, who have joined the Intelligencers, have been biding their time to reveal this secret, fracture the Messiah's grip over the innocent people of Annonrial, and delay if not outright thwart the greatest enemy's return. They've smuggled several key pieces of technology within their capability, such as this manacom set and a projector along with several materials, and these will serve as proof of Annonrial's true capabilities to convince the destination country to give them asylum. The Holy Empire is the natural choice due to its advanced tech base, which means it's their best chance to oppose the Messiah's regime."

The White Lotus collaborators on the Middle Lands side would take care of the transfer and subsequent revelation operation upon arrival, ensuring that they made it into the right hands.

In case the enemy somehow intercepted intelligence regarding the defection, they would stage a fake accident. A seemingly unfortunate disaster would provide a cover story for any missing people or items.

Despite the extensive planning, however, the White Lotus Leader had ensured that the operation would be actually much simpler than it seemed. Nevertheless, Meteos had instructed the White Lotus collaborators to organize everything as if they couldn't rely on support from the others. The narrative of defectors escaping from Zarathostra of the Messiah's regime with crucial intelligence to help them receive asylum was an illusion designed with this caution in mind. This wasn't just his pointless addiction to complexity, however, as it was a precaution to ensure they had a solid cover in case anything went wrong. As the saying goes, anything that can possibly go wrong, does.

Should the plan proceed without a hitch, the items and 'defectors' would arrive safely, and the Middle Lands branch with its larger resources would handle the rest. The Emperor would be presented with proof of the Annonrial regime's advanced capabilities, tipping the scales in favor of cooperating with the White Lotus. Everything was in place, contingencies set, and the night's meeting ended with a collective hope that this was not the calm before the storm.

----------------------------------------

October 26, 1616 Central Calendar, 09:00

Runepolis, Holy Milishial Empire

Mere days after arriving at the Middle Lands, Meteos once again trod the grounds of the Imperial Board of Magical Arts Supervision Headquarters as an entrant to this year's exam to attend the pre-Phase 2 technical meeting. Approaching the crowded archway that marked the main entrance, he reflected that even with the extended free time, the schedule still felt packed. 'Well, this is what I signed up for,' he mused with a self-deprecating smile, resolving to just push through and get the task done.

With a soft sigh, he spoke aloud to no one in particular, though his friends walked beside him.

"It's good to be back."

Next to Nadia on his right, Annette raised an eyebrow. "Didn't you say that phrase the last time?"

"That's not true," corrected Walman walking to Meteos' left.

"I don't believe you two."

"What."

The last person in the group, Kaios, stayed quiet and took in the usual banter with occasional glances at the people around them. The five of them formed a horizontal row as they made their way through the courtyard toward the meeting hall. The deeper they entered, the hum of the crowd surrounding them became more apparent.

As Kaios observed, he couldn't help but notice the people gathered for Phase 2. The overwhelming majority of the entrants were like them, teenagers, with a wide variety of outfits and physiques. A redhead and a couple of her friends in what seemed to be maroon school uniforms were chatting. A young fox beastman looked lost among the crowd. A tan-skinned one with a confident stance and athletic build, dressed in a navy blue parka and a fur-trimmed pelt draped over her loose-fitting blue pants, stood alone with a rather silly grin on her face. Maybe she's just an expressive person, not that Kaios holds anything against people celebrating their success. But when they made a brief eye contact, Kaios quickly looked away and continued watching the people.

"This place still feels packed," the blonde boy remarked. "...I heard so many were eliminated, right?"

"Mm. There were thousands who entered," Nadia nodded in agreement.

Walman let out a low whistle. "Damn... that's kind of terrifying if you think about it. We're the lucky ones."

Hearing those words, a certain noblewoman's eyes gleamed as soon as she saw an opportunity. "Lucky, huh? Tell that to the Ace over here," Annette winked.

"Why me..."

The group laughed at Meteos' expense.

…………

The group soon made their way through the people crowding the meeting hall entrance and went inside, where the air felt more subdued. The buzz of excitement lingered but was much more controlled than in the bustling courtyard. Rows of seats stretched out before them, facing a large semicircular podium underneath a large magic transmission monitor that dominated the front of the room. At its center stood a lectern.

"Well then, let's stick together and find a spot for us," Meteos suggested, pointing to a section of empty seats near the middle.

"That's the plan."

"So..." Walman trailed off. "I'm only seeing humans and beastmen here. They really separated the competition by tiers, huh?"

"Well, it says so in the manual, right?"

"...I'm just observing, Milady, sheesh!" the brunette grunted with an exasperated shrug, prompting Annette and Nadia to let out a giggle.

Even though it occasionally became a topic of political debate, the official stance from the Imperial Board of Magical Arts Supervision was that their goal was to uphold fairness as much as possible, especially given that many high-paying jobs in the Holy Empire required the Mage classification for qualifications. However, when it comes to obtaining the Advanced Mage classification, all races were to compete as one. Now that's when the gloves are off. Under the strange Milishian Model for ranking magical arts practitioners' abilities through various considerations instead of raw power alone, unlike other nations, not even elves and dark elves with their high mana reserves are guaranteed the title of "Master," let alone "Grand Master," the highest of them all.

The group continued their chatter as they began walking to the seats, paying no attention to a girl wandering nearby calling out someone's name until Meteos felt someone grab his shoulder and try to pull him from behind. When he didn't budge, he barely had time to turn around before the person, apparently the girl shouting earlier, yelled again.

"........."

"Kylo! ...Kylo, seriously! Where have you been!? What took you so long!?"

Slowly turning after glancing over his shoulder, Meteos raised an eyebrow as he regarded the girl who had just yanked him.

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"...I'm sorry, but my name is Meteos Roguerider."

"!?"

The girl's eyes widened in surprise, momentarily at a loss for words. She stepped back and glanced up at him, taking in his taller stature while being fixated on his silver hair for some reason. When all of Meteos' companions turned and watched her with varying degrees of amusement, the girl started to fidget under their curious gazes.

"Who is this?" Kaios blurted.

"I don't know."

"......Girl, did you just mistake this guy for someone else?" Annette asked, pointing at the impassive-looking Meteos with her thumb.

"Uh, umm...... I'm sorry..."

"Meteos! Do you know what this means!?"

Nadia wondered, "That's right, if she mistook you for someone else, does this mean this Kylo person has silver hair too?"

Meteos glanced past the girl and pointed with his chin toward a boy who had just stepped into the vicinity, standing awkwardly at the edge of the crowd.

"...So it would seem..."

The boy had short and spiky silver hair with several strands sticking up, glinting in the light as he shifted his weight from one foot to the other. His grey eyes, in contrast to Meteos' cerulean ones, scanned the hall, obviously looking for someone. He was about the same height as Meteos, but a bit slimmer. Lastly, while Meteos' wardrobe was like usual, dressed as if he's a nobleman's son in his black long coat and maroon sleeveless vest over a white collared shirt, the boy opted for a laid-back white jacket over a black shirt.

"........."

"Ah! O-once again, I'm really sorry!"

The girl's expression shifted from embarrassment to relief as she caught sight of the one she was searching for. "Kylo!" she exclaimed, waving frantically before sprinting toward him through the crowd.

"Their outfits aren't even the same color..."

Hearing Kaios muttering something in mild disbelief, Walman snorted.

"Heh, that means she just failed a spot check."

"People with silver hair are far and between," Annette shrugged. "She must have gone for that."

"Oh, yeah, what's the real deal with you silver-haired folks?"

"What's that, Walman?"

Meteos and the young noblewoman replied to Walman in unison. The two might have ragged at each other so often, but there are times when they joined forces to... rail someone else.

"I think she was just really worried for her friend," Nadia beamed. "That's kind of sweet."

"Hm. What Nadia said."

"Aw, classic Meteos' girlfriend."

"Hee..." Kaios chuckled.

...Or maybe just pampering Nadia. Yes.

Meteos' gaze followed the girl. That boy named Kylo gave her a sheepish smile before casting an apologetic, surprised glance at the group. As their eyes met for a brief moment, Meteos offered a subtle nod in return, before turning his attention back to his group.

"Well, that happened."

Annette's eyes glinted. "Look! He really has silver hair too... We should befriend him!"

"Huh?"

Walman grinned and leaned closer to Kaios, lowering his voice like he was about to share a grand secret. "Oh, yeah, that's how she decided to be friends with us when we were kids. She walked right up and said to Meteos, 'Your hair is nice. Let's be friends!' And that was that."

It was the origin of their friendship in this Third Timeline, even though it was a gross oversimplification of what really happened.

Kaios raised an eyebrow, baffled. "That's it? Just like that?"

"Welcome to Milishial, our nobles are weird."

After that brief odd moment, the group finally found some empty seats and settled in.

"Finally," Walman said, stretching his legs a bit.

"Look who's coming."

Just as they were getting comfortable, Meteos who sat at the outer edge of the row glanced to his right. A pair of blonde-haired teens were making their way through the crowd with purpose, clearly approaching the group specifically. Recognizing them, Annette's expression brightened.

"Alain and Ezio!? Hey! Over here!" she waved excitedly.

They were the same age as the group and hailed from the noble House of Legendorga, the Rogueriders' in-laws. The beaming one with red eyes and wavy hair styled with a middle part and asymmetrical bangs is Alain, Interior Minister Benedict Legendorga's third son and the younger brother of Adel, who was married to Meteos' eldest brother. In other words, he and Meteos were brothers-in-laws. With Alain who had secured second place in the previous phase present, the current top three of the Imperial Board exam have come together at last.

The other boy with a shorter hairdo and poker face went by the name of Esiocles, even though his family and friends often called him by his nickname "Ezio." Meteos' cousin-in-law, he was the second son of Lord Victor Legendorga, the eccentric CEO and owner of the Aikon Corporation. The relationship in this timeline was a significant upgrade compared to the First Timeline, where Meteos hardly knew him and had a stronger memory of Victor's other son who was currently studying at the Imperial Navy Academy.

These two were the latest generation of the Legendorgas to take part in the Imperial Board exam, following in the footsteps of their older siblings. Interestingly, Alain and Ezio's relationship was the opposite of the sibling dynamic between Benedict and Victor, as a result of their personalities contrasting sharply with those of their fathers.

As Alain and Ezio approached, Meteos stood up and offered his hand to greet them.

"It's good to see you both."

"Good to see you too, brother!" Alain exclaimed with enthusiasm. He grabbed the offered hand and threw his other arm around Meteos' shoulder in a half-hug.

Ezio, maintaining his usual demeanor, shook Meteos' hand with a simple nod. However, he was not without a comment of his own.

"It seems the competition is heating up."

"It can't be helped."

"So, can we sit with you guys?"

"By all means, please."

Meteos gestured for the two to join them, and they slid into the row, filling in the remaining spaces while continuing to exchange pleasantries with others.

"So, how's everyone doing?" Alain asked, turning to Kaios who was seated just a bit away from him. "Van Deventer! It's been a while! How have you been?"

The jovial noble gave the Parpaldian a once-over.

"Um... I'm okay."

"I see! When I last saw you at my sister's marriage, you always looked like you wanted to hide somewhere—"

"R-really...?" Kaios looked a little taken aback, his cheeks flushing slightly at the bark of a laugh coming from Walman sitting next to him.

"Of course not, I'm just exaggerating," the smiling Alain waved a hand to calm him down. "But nice to see you here, buddy. It's been ages since a Parpaldian participated in this exam, I think? Foreigners are often noticeable in these kinds of events, yet I can't even remember the last one from your country."

"Hmm..."

"Well, I think this is a very welcome development," Alain continued. "I can't wait to see how you perform. You've got this."

"Thank you for those kind words," Kaios replied, managing to radiate the same level of warmth showered at him. Looking at Meteos, the silver-haired boy merely gave him an amused shrug.

It seemed that Walman's assessment was somewhat correct.

…………

When the technical meeting began at the scheduled time, the noises in the room began to fade as officials wearing the government's gold-trimmed navy blue service uniforms from the Imperial Board entered the hall and urged the entrants to pipe down. One of them with a silver aiguillette stepped up to the lectern. His gaze scanned the room, ensuring every eye was on him before he spoke to the microphone.

"Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. For convenience's sake, I'll try keeping this brief, as since you've all had the manual for months now, you should be familiar with the core details of what's to come. There's no point in repeating everything you already know, but I'll highlight the key points."

Kaios blinked at the official's tone. The man's words were crisp and somewhat dismissive, as if the importance of the meeting was already diminished in his mind.

"Doesn't seem like he's taking this as seriously as he should..."

Annette crossed her arms and replied. "Maybe there's something more than meets the eye. I won't dismiss the possibility that this is some kind of test too."

"Right. I'll keep that in mind."

The official's eyes flicked from one side of the room to the other before he continued. "In a few moments, the 256 of you who have passed Phase 1 will be randomly assigned into groups of four, each paired with an examiner. You won't know which examiner you'll get until your number is called. And yes, each examiner will present a challenge as they see fit. The timetable for these trials is two weeks, starting today at the earliest."

A buzz of whispers swept through the room, with several entrants visibly surprised by the schedule. The official raised a hand for silence before continuing.

"Now, now, surely you've been preparing during the extended free time, haven't you?"

The audience chorused.

Walman leaned back in his seat with a grin. "Great! I can finish this early and get back to relaxing," he whispered to the group, but his excitement was met with a couple of eye rolls.

"Let me emphasize that the challenges presented by each examiner are unique. No two groups will experience the same content, so don't waste your time comparing notes or strategies with one another."

Kaios hummed at that. Now that he thought about it, in his opinion there's no way that the tests would be so random without some unifying central theme. It seemed plausible that, using reverse psychology, the groups, or at least individual participants, were actually meant to keep an eye on the tests of other groups occurring within the given timetable and "compare notes"—essentially engaging in intelligence gathering.

However, he also believed that things wouldn't be that straightforward. For example, he doubted that each group would do the tests in locations adjacent to each other or that there wouldn't be other artificial barriers in place.

Is that what it means to "look underneath the underneath"?

"Following the conclusion of the group tests, the two highest-grade entrants from each group will progress to a single-stage elimination bracket where they will duel each other in an arena. This is an opportunity not just to demonstrate your skills, but to prove your ability to think on your feet. The eliminations will occur one week after the group tests. You may consider this a test of both your physical and mental capabilities."

This was also already written in the manual, so few had questions about it.

"I trust that there are no further questions before we proceed?"

Gauging the atmosphere, the official nodded to himself, "Excellent. Now, let's move on to the group assignments."

With a wave of his hand, he motioned to the large screen behind him, which flickered to life to reveal the first group in bold letters.

"Group 1. Rank 100, 101, 116, and 126 of the previous Phase. Your examiner is already waiting. Please proceed and follow the staff's guidance."

Nadia, Rank #101, took a deep breath and stood up along with three others. Her bright eyes darted to her friends.

"Good luck, Nadia," Meteos said, offering a fist bump. "You've got this."

"Um. I'll do my best," the girl replied as she returned his gesture.

"See you around, sweetheart!" Annette waved at her.

With a nod, Nadia followed after the others in her assigned group and walked toward the exit under the guidance of the staff who provided them directions.

After the last of Group 1 exited the hall and the next groups displayed on the screen one after another, the remaining participants began to buzz with chatter. Alain shook his head with a sigh escaping his lips.

"So this is really how they're going to organize things."

"They definitely wanted us to go in blind," Annette mused.

"...Well, if that's the case, don't mind me as I'm just going to sit back and wait until my number gets called."

Meteos relaxed his shoulders and crossed his legs, all while the hall gradually started to empty of entrants.

"Flaunting nonchalance much?"

"I am the CEO of chilling."

"You're impossible..."

"Ezio, is this what Uncle Victor looked like when he was young?"

".........I'll ask Mother later."

…………

Meteos in Group 27 was the third to part ways with his companions, following Nadia and then Annette in Group 13.

As Meteos approached a stern-looking Imperial Board staff standing nearby, she turned and informed him, "Your examiner is waiting on the rooftops."

"Rooftops, got it."

Walking through the corridor toward the nearest staircase, Meteos took in his surroundings. The corridor echoed with the murmurs of other entrants, and staff members were stationed at intervals, some indifferent, others mildly curious as they guided, or rather, judged, the participants. A few glanced at Meteos as he passed, and he returned their attention with courtesy.

Just then, a voice cut through the background chatter.

"Group 27! Is there someone from Group 27 here?"

Meteos turned and spotted a figure leading two others among people streaming out of the meeting hall. Without hesitation, he raised his hand, extending it high above his head.

"Group 27 here!"

"Alright! Coming! Let's gather up first!"

Upon closer inspection, the one leading the incoming trio was a short and slender girl with long black hair tied in a side ponytail. She had black eyes and wore goggles that rested above her eyes for some reason, an olive drab jacket over a black high-neck shirt, brown cargo pants, and shin-length boots, giving this particular girl the appearance of an adventurer ready to explore a hidden temple deep in the jungle. Though it's hard to describe as tacky, naturally a couple of curious onlookers turned to look her way as if she was wearing the outfit to make a fashion statement.

"There you go," Meteos remarked in a light tone. "Now, since we're all here, we might as well get acquainted. I'm Meteos Roguerider."

One of the newcomers, a black-haired boy with glasses, responded almost immediately. "We've heard about you Rogueriders, owners of one of the largest conglomerates in the Holy Empire—I'm Leo Lawrence, by the way."

"But you haven't known me specifically, have you?"

"...That's a fair point."

After the black-haired Leo backed down, the brown-haired one next to him stepped forward.

"Hans Mikkelsen," the boy introduced himself, extending a hand for a quick shake. "I'm not as high-profile as our friend Leo here, but nice to meet you."

"Charmed."

The girl, who had let the others speak first, now took the turn to introduce herself at last. She beamed at Meteos before speaking up.

"I'm Kaie Taniya, from Hinomawari."

The silver-haired boy hummed. "What a pleasant surprise. Let's get along."

At that exchange, Hans grinned and nudged Leo with his elbow.

"Do you know where Hinomawari is?"

"Of course I know," Leo raised an eyebrow. "It's a kingdom right in the middle of the Second Continent. Unlike a certain someone, I took my geography lessons well."

Hans, caught off guard by the jab, folded his arms and harrumphed. "Hey, I do know where it is!"

"Uh, huh."

"Well, now that we're all acquainted, how about we start to get going? The examiner is waiting."

…………

"......So yeah, I'm your examiner."

"Err......"

"........."

"Nice to meet you, sir?"

For the other three members of Group 27, their examiner turned out to be a rough-looking Mage who seemingly called them to the rooftops for no real reason. And he greeted them while balancing on the railing.

'This guy...'

Meteos held back a wry grin. He understood why Robin wasn't an option as an examiner, given that she was taking the Advanced Mage exam himself, making her unavailable. Arthur, meanwhile, was too busy with his duties at the Ancient Ministry—well, Meteos was partially at fault with the latter, with him bringing his coworkers loads upon loads of ideas to work on. However, Andreas Birkburn, in his infinite wisdom, had decided to volunteer Go-Daguva-Zeba.

Although Daguva was a friend of Meteos at the Ancient Ministry, the rules only prohibited an examiner from overseeing entrants they had personally mentored. Since Daguva wasn't mentoring anyone, he was technically eligible for the role. But that wasn't Meteos' concern.

He quietly glanced around, trying to sense any operatives from the Order of the Ancients who usually lurked nearby. Was this one of those situations where two different tests were happening simultaneously?

Although Daguva was too handsome to be called a thug, he had to admit that, he normally presented himself as a brute. His species' inherent magical ability to conjure a ferocious layer of armor out of mana and enhanced by the Manadriver to turn him into some sort of humanoid stag beetle monster made him more the type you'd send to rough someone up. It wasn't that Meteos didn't believe in character development, but having Birkburn assign Daguva to deal with a bunch of kids in order to teach him life lessons seemed like a rather bold move. Meteos wouldn't be surprised if Group 27's exam ended up involving some sort of wrestling match.

Go-Daguva-Zeba studied art and poetry in addition to engineering, yet decided that the most beautiful form of self-expression was punching someone in the face. Beautiful.

Daguva jumped down from the railing he'd been perching on and studied the members of Group 27 with an intense gaze. After a minute of silence, he finally broke it with a casual wave of his hand.

"I didn't call you up here for anything dramatic. I just wanted to make sure your faces match the papers I've been given. You know, cross-checking. Now that I've done that, I'll tell you how this is gonna work. Your actual exam is scheduled for Saturday the 29th. It'll be right here, on this same rooftop, at the same hour."

"Here?" Leo muttered.

"Yeah, here, not complicated, right?" Daguva confirmed with a shrug. "I already booked the spot, so no need to worry about clearance. This place will be all yours. Just show up on time, and we'll get started. Proper introductions will happen that day, too, so don't sweat it for now."

The man stretched his arms, clearly bored by the formality of it all. "Anyway, that's all I needed to say. You can go home, go shopping, or whatever. See you on the 29th."

Meteos didn't waste any time. "If that's the case..." he said with a diplomatic smile he'd practiced. "We'll take our leave. Have a good day, Examiner."

"Yeh."

Kaie, Leo, and Hans looked at each other and shrugged, but eventually fell in step behind Meteos as he descended the stairs. The meeting ended as soon as it began.

❖⟐❖⟐❖

20:00

Roguerider Residence

"Little Brother, Little Brother! I've heard it from the grapevine!"

That evening, Legiel barged into Meteos' room where he and Ace were sitting at the working desk, deep in conversation. The smile on his face was so broad it looked like it might burst.

"Is that true that one of your groupmates is a Hinomawarian chick named Kaie Taniya?"

"Word sure travels fast," Meteos replied dryly.

"Why the hell are you smiling?"

"Oh," Legiel chuckled, waving his hands dismissively. "Talk about a mud-boggling situation. Anyway, I'm not here to gossip. Little Brother, my Desire Driver, as I promised. Catch!"

Legiel tossed the transformation belt across the room. Seeing Meteos effortlessly catching it with one hand, he silently exited the room with a satisfied nod, leaving behind the two siblings to their own devices.

"...Did he mean something by that?" Meteos wondered. The Four Horsemen were after all known for their uncanny knowledge of everyone and everything across the infinite universes.

"I also think that he's on to something, but honestly, there's only so many worlds I could check before this..." Ace hung his head and gestured to his body. "I have no idea what he was insinuating, but I'm worried about this Kaie girl. I should keep watch... as usual..."

"I see."

Morbid as it was, Meteos decided that it was useless thinking about it without further clues and turned his attention to the Desire Driver, placing it on the stand on the table.

"Anyway... I need to reduce this thing's size," Meteos remarked, tapping the desk thoughtfully. "Now, this session's question: What if I could get Attarsamain's magic technology to reverse-engineer its Torus Reactor and create a Manadriver from it? Something that's easier to move around when I don't need to transform..."

The Desire Driver is a critical asset for him, allowing Meteos to transform into Rogue. Yet, as much as he valued its capabilities, the bulky design that wrapped around his waist made it cumbersome for everyday wear. The size is necessary for its transformation function, and Meteos has long wanted to produce just the reactor to create what amounts to a battery of unimaginable power. However, being a technology from the far future of a universe different from Attarsamain, the in-depth knowledge of it does not exist in the inherited memories. Additionally, he can't keep his Desire Driver disassembled for too long because he needs it for field quests; Ace requires his for battling monsters, and the Four Horsemen have refused to lend theirs. Until now, as Meteos and Ace were considered to demonstrate enough merit. It feels like leveling up and unlocking new powers and items in a game as the story progresses, and it's annoying.

"The end result will be something that has the power of the sun—"

"In the palm of your hand?" Ace finished.

Meteos chuckled. "Yeah... I'd like that."

"Let's get to it, then."

The two ambitious individuals thus fist-bumped and commenced the discussion that lasted through the night. While waiting for the 29th, Meteos Roguerider decided to make the most of his free time.