Arthur lay down on his bed with a completely downcast expression. Olivia sat down next to him. She spoke.

“What are you thinking about?”

“The only thing there is to think about right now.”

“I know that much. I meant what your thoughts truly are.”

“…It just feels meaningless. All that we’ve built together. All the years we were friends. Ever since we were brought to Zancorix, he kept running around. We’ve barely had a few conversations. Now, whatever’s left of our relationship might get blown away by another side effect of his bullshit powers. The whole relationship feels pointless.”

“…I understand your feelings. They are valid, but Liam is also doing what he thinks it’s best for humanity as a whole.”

“He’s sacrificing his personal relationships for the sake of his objectives. All of them.”

Arthur turned his body, laying his head on Olivia’s lap. He closed his eyes with a sigh. She ran her hand through his hair.

“That doesn’t make your friendship meaningless. At the very least, all the time you spent together was great. Nothing lasts forever. At the same time, I’m sure Liam’s willing to continue being friends with you. He might wish for nothing more than for things to go back to what they were, but more pressing issues keep popping up.”

“More pressing issues. Right.”

Arthur knew that, from one perspective, he was being unfair. Liam was a dying man who was constantly reminded of how much time he had left and forced to consider how much he could help humanity in that time frame. Now, there was also the problem regarding his emotions. Both required more of his attention than daily nurturing of his relationships. Simultaneously, he felt like his feelings were still valid. There was always a bigger goal, a grander objective to be achieved. There were always more problems that kept appearing. It was all tiring from the point of view of the “other person” in the friendship. Arthur was exhausted. He was tired of worrying sick, of feeling his stomach churn whenever Liam appeared before them with a serious expression. The fatigue seeped into his very bones. Olivia spoke.

“Remember that you still have other people: me, David, and all the others. We’re still here for you. Liam isn’t your only friend.”

Arthur let out a breath. It was true. He had made up with Olivia over the past few weeks. As usual, he talked to David daily, while his relationship with the others had also grown closer. He had become proper friends with Mikhail and Alexander and supported Cassandra and Albert whenever possible. It was a big development compared to his past self, who couldn’t bond with anyone other than Liam. He was happy about his evolution but couldn’t keep himself from worrying about his oldest friend and where their friendship was headed.

“I’m just tired, that’s all. I won’t stop caring about him, and I know he won’t stop caring about me, either. It’s all just so… Exhausting.”

“I know, Arthur. I know.”

Arthur kept his eyes closed and tried to calm himself down. Olivia kept brushing his hair. The room gained a serene atmosphere. Nevertheless, his innermost thoughts remained in turmoil. A single question appeared continuously.

What am I going to do when Liam’s gone?

Arthur knew that he had other friends. He had a lover, at least one close friend, and more people to count on. None of that changed the fact that Liam had been his oldest emotional support. He mentally prepared himself for the end of Liam’s lifespan, but the fateful day kept getting closer without warning. It was as if it were about to suddenly arrive and tear humanity apart from the ground up. Nobody could replace Liam. Luweth was the one most similar to him, but the Vampire wasn’t human. He couldn’t act as the bastion of humanity.

I can’t imagine what it’s going to feel like.

Would it feel as if part of his soul had been taken away? Or as if his identity had been split? Liam had been integral to his sense of self, for better or worse. Living in a world without him was honestly unthinkable.

From the depths of his heart, Arthur sighed.

…

Cassandra listlessly looked up at the sky through her bedroom window as if hoping to see something that wasn’t there. She stared at it for almost ten minutes before recomposing herself, donning her armor, and leaving.

It’s already been two months.

It had been two months since Liam last appeared for anyone. According to Luweth, he had been sitting still kilometers above Cinzolia Fortress for the entire time. While Cassandra felt relieved that he hadn’t gone anywhere, she was also anxious. She had no idea when he would come down again or if it would happen at all. Would he be a different man by then? Maybe he would have failed to hold back his changes and would descend as someone inhuman? Or would he have succeeded? These questions ate away at her sanity like a disease.

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She tried to keep up with her daily affairs, but in the end, Liam’s situation was all she could think about. It was honestly a hindrance, given the number of things she was responsible for. She walked into a room filled with people. Nationality, ethnicity, appearance, none of it mattered. All of those present in the room were competent to the utmost degree. They were Cassandra’s personnel. The moment she entered the room, three people directly turned to her. Their words entered her ears, but she only barely processed them. With a few nods and a promise that she had understood, they left her alone. Cassandra sighed.

Like always, she had been immediately presented with problems to be solved. As part of humanity’s upper echelon and someone with administrative functions, there was always something to do. The difficulties were never-ending.

I guess this is how Liam feels.

She felt she understood him a bit more as this thought crossed her mind. She sat down at the head of the table. Everyone took their positions. She began to speak.

“It has been brought to my attention that the training facilities are growing less efficient over time. I want a detailed explanation as to why that’s the case.”

A man raised his hand. She nodded at him.

“While our morale spiked after our victory over the Valk and the Lampier, it has decreased due to the sudden end of our last war. Our Emperor’s interference implies that something is wrong, and the troops can feel that. Insecurity and anxiety are currently running rampant among our soldiers.”

A woman also raised her hand. Cassandra looked at her.

“In addition to that, our strongest troops are beginning to stagnate. The rapid development made possible by Emperor Luweth’s and the Drakkhan’s knowledge seems to be slowing down. Our levels have gotten high, but since we had such low base stats to begin with, our stats still aren’t very high. The only reason why we managed to last so long in the wars was because of our Personal Attributes.”

Fucking hell.

Cassandra cursed in her mind. In hindsight, it was obvious that these issues would arise. She knew why Liam had prematurely ended the war, but the common soldiers had no idea. It would be more accurate to say that they shouldn’t find out under any circumstances. It was natural for this to give birth to unease among the troops. As for the stagnation of humanity’s development, it was something that all of her inner circle had predicted.

It has arrived sooner than we thought.

Humans were limited by their natural dispositions. The only way to overcome their limits was through sheer hard work, and this was something that took time. Thousands upon thousands of hours needed to accumulate before one slowly developed their skills. With the advent of the System, this slightly changed, but once one’s level got high to the point that leveling up was no longer easy, it all went full circle. Skills were hard to acquire, even harder to create, and difficult to develop. It was the case for all humans except for Liam.

We need time.

Originally, the development of a species was something that took generations. Luweth and the Drakkhan drastically hastened humanity’s evolution, but in the end, there was no way for them to become one of the strongest forces in the Convergence without allowing for time to pass. The problem with this was obvious.

Time is the one thing we don’t have.

Humans now possessed the knowledge, but even the most talented scientists still needed to study and grow their Skills in order to be able to make use of it. Spatial technology was much less accessible than the Drakkhan made it seem, especially for a species with low base stats. Only a few people had reached level 50 and unlocked the Laws system; Alexander, Mikhail, and Olivia were among them, but that was a route that took even more time. There was no way around it; humanity needed time that Liam didn’t have. Cassandra spoke carefully, trying not to reveal too much.

“…I see. We will reassure the soldiers that there’s nothing wrong,” She sensed the unease among the ones in the room and spoke in a firm voice, “Because there isn’t. Liam ended the war because the incoming enemies were too powerful for us to handle right now. To protect us, he teleported us away. That was what happened. The second issue will resolve itself as time passes. So long as we continue assimilating the knowledge offered by other species, our efficiency will increase again. How is the discovery rate of new Skill paths and evolutions going?”

The atmosphere in the room got lighter as she spoke. It was obvious that the troops weren’t the only ones affected by insecurity towards what Liam did. The administrative chain also shared their worries. In a way, it made things worse. If the ones in charge couldn’t find a way to placate the growing unrest among the people, things could turn south fast. On the other hand, if Cassandra managed to get the administrators to calm down, it would cause a ripple effect. Another woman spoke.

“By applying the knowledge of the Kingdom of Luweth and the Drakkhan Empire, we managed to develop at an unprecedented rate. However, while we’re aware of how to acquire certain Skills in theory, achieving it has been difficult. Many soldiers feel like they’re not talented enough or can’t work hard enough. A day only has twenty-four hours, and a human can only spend so many of them training. Once again, we run into the issue of time.”

By the end of her words, Cassandra could sense a questioning edge. It was obvious. The only ones who knew why humanity was acting with such urgency and why they were pressed for time belonged to Liam’s circle. Everyone else was in the dark, and for a good reason. Worst-case scenario, the information regarding Liam’s lifespan would reach Salazar. The man would make several plans that would only take place after Liam’s death. Cassandra spoke.

“That’s fine. We’re already rushing enough. If what we need is time, so be it. We only need to develop as fast as possible; there’s no need to try to speed everything up even further.”

The others in the room nodded, but Cassandra only felt her sense of urgency grow. How much time would Liam still have once he descended? Two months had already gone by. She could put on as much of a façade as she wanted; it didn’t change the fact that humanity only had a bit over a year and a half to win the Convergence.

As the people in the room began discussing the various actions that could be taken, Cassandra felt more tired than ever.