Tales of the Old World Demon Lord

Chapter 17 – Assuming Direct Control

[Eternum Calendar 1971]

Opening his eyes to the cold darkness Morgant found himself involved with the mirror world once more. The entire world, without sound and flipped reverse, served only to confuse his bearings and disorienting him to the point of nausea. Despite the fact that it was merely a minute change, Morgant could only see this once familiar room as something entirely foreign and threatening. He felt how pathetically fragile a mind was if this is all it took to completely put someone off their element.

In spite of all this he knew the reason why he was here, it was because 'he' had summoned him once more. After briefly scanning the room saw a familiar figure leaned elegantly off the windowsill to gave up at the fiery ire of the red moon. It was just the cherry on top of this backwards world to have a near insanity inducing blazing moon. Morgant clicked his tongue as he could feel the nausea slowly escalating to a full blown migraine.

He placed one hand to the tip of his forehead and tried to put some pressure on it.

"It's the same everyday sight yet with only a minimal amount of changes it can induce a heavy dose of dissociation and rejection by the mind. I want to say you'll get better as you get used to this place but on top of the dissociation there's also the matter of this place being my personal space. It's not an illusion but this also isn't true reality, an juncture created by my own psychic powers; there's no way you'll get used to that kind of removal from ordinary reality."

"Shut up for a second, the noise isn't helping."

Morgant replied in annoyance to Sovereign's explanation that conveniently missed out on any sort of remedies for the situation. However the only reaction elicited by him was a bemused laugh as he continued staring towards the large red moon.

"Why do you always stare at the moon whenever you're here?"

Morgant asked, grimacing through the pain but he wanted to change the topic to try and distract himself from the migraines. Sovereign turned back with a smile seeing the amusing little expressions that Morgant was making. He paused for a bit just to take a bit more time before answering seriously.

"The moon is mankind's greatest achievement. It is the status and symbol of our power to triumph over the forces of nature itself. Unlike the Earth that has gone through strife and turmoil time and time again the moon reflects the tranquil unchanging status of our accomplishments. Like a bright badge shining in the great vastness of the abyssal skies of this new world, it remains forever a reminder of what humanity is capable of. Know this Morgant: to 'Sovereign' the moon is forever an ally."

The moon, a never changing celestial body that sung the requiem of old humanity. For Morgant, born and of the new, it was just another unreachable shadow in the grand history of the old. 'An ally to Sovereign...' Morgant quietly contemplated to himself. Certainly, perhaps it was fate or mere coincidence, but everything that's happened so far has always been under the gentle guidance of the moon. 'If so...' Morgant nodded once.

"Is that so?"

Morgant tried to reply in a nonchalant manner as to not let Sovereign catch him in a moment of sentimentality. Still, having seen through his façade Sovereign gave a slight chuckle before delving into the real reason he had summoned Morgant.

"What's with you? Suddenly laughing at me like that; it's creepy so cut it out. Anyway why did you bring me? Did you feel like imparting to me some of your wisdom? Or did you just come here to gloat?"

Morgant asked as he breathed a sigh. He and Sovereign were one and the same, or supposedly that's how it was supposed to be yet their connection was still incomplete thus creating a noticeable dichotomy between the two.

"It wouldn't do for me to interfere in the debut of the new Sovereign. This is your proving ground, make the most of it. No, what I summoned you here for today is to leave you with a suggestion."

"Suggestion?"

"Yes, I've been thinking about what you told me the last time I called you. The duty of Sovereign was always to preserve and continue the legacy of old humanity, yet that is no longer possible."

"I'm well aware of that, what's your point?"

Morgant asked, still suffering from the adverse effects of the mirror world.

"My point is this, that even though the old world is no more, remnants of it still exists buried all throughout this world."

Through the pained expression on his face Morgant could still muster up a small smirk. He understood what Sovereign was trying to say and he had agreed that doing what he suggest would be worthwhile.

"So what, you want me to become an archaeologist or something?"

"Nothing of the sort but there is one thing I want you to uncover if you do get the chance."

This time, as he spoke Sovereign had a solemn expression, as though remembering fondly onto a past that Morgant didn't have access to yet. Though feeling a little left out Morgant gave a bit of time for the old apparition to himself. Opening his eyes after a brief moment of pause, through his glasses he gazed down at Morgant with one task.

"During my reign there was a small group of elite individuals under my direct command known as the 'Upper Echelon'. Through them my power and dominion over the world was complete. Well that’s all in the past now, but... if you have the time I would to know what became of them."

"Ah, so even the evil overlord had some friends."

Morgant jokingly replied but the comment was swiftly ignored by Sovereign.

"I don't think this would be a bad deal for you either since their fates were not known even to me. There is an opportunity here to learn much more than just from my life, I suggest you seize that chance. It could be that some of their technology has continued to remain over to this era, if that is so then it is possible that you could attain power even greater than mine during my peak. In particular it is possible that two of them are still alive, if they are it is crucial you gain their support."

With that possibility looming over head Morgant froze up for a second. The potential for a genuine article of the old world to still be alive was staggering, almost unbelievable.

"Two? Not one but two?"

Sovereign nodded once.

"The first is actually the central super AI. You've already met Ingrid haven't you? A similar construct only many multitudes more advanced."

Indeed it was possible for an AI to have survived through the transition of the eras, especially if there was already the precedent of Ingrid. If this AI does continue to exist then it would no doubt prove extremely beneficial, almost crucial even. He wanted to meet it, this...

"What is it called?"

Morgant asked.

"A program known as 'Deus ex Machina', a quite literal one at that. We often referred to it as simply 'Machina'."

‘God of the machine’, certainly it was a fitting name for an AI. Yet to the Upper Echelon who were made up of Sovereign level entities perhaps just 'machine' was equally as fitting a name.

"And the other?"

"The second is Yui Kirisaki, or 'Nemesis' as she was named after being inducted into the group."

As Sovereign spoke her name Morgant felt that he knew who this person was. Searching through Sovereign's memories she was a particular woman that was unusually enamored by him. She was also the first true success of the Kinesis Enhancement Project, however in the end she, unlike Machina, was still human.

"How is that even possible? What, does the psychokinetic augmentation increase longevity as well? I don't know exactly how much time has passed since the old world crumbled down but considering that the remnants of it are all buried deep underground I'd say it's a bit more than a ‘few’ years."

"The augmentation does increase one's longevity, installing a state of the art powerframe into your body, it would be odd if it didn't. However that's not the reason; Nemesis was actually involved in two projects. The first as you know was the Kinesis Enhancement Project… But the second, the one I had always envisioned humanity would have been destined for: 'Human Immortalization Project'."

It was easy to deduce what the aim of that project was, especially to Morgant who lived in a world of titanic powerhouses and gods. Immortality was not something that was deemed impossible but when viewed from the perspective of the old world limited by their technology and knowledge it was an extraordinary gap to close. They did not attain it through some arbitrary ritual of magic or any other kind of voodoo hocus pocus but through pure dedicated scientific endeavor; through their own blood sweat and tears.

"Aren't you guys playing God a bit too much?"

Morgant joked, he needed to for him to even compute the sheer magnitude of the old world; he needed room to breath.

However Sovereign simply gave a sinister and dangerous smirk as he looked down upon the small fragile boy. For the first time Morgant felt as though the adjective 'evil' would be an apt description for his overwhelming predecessor.

"What unbecoming sentiments for the second Sovereign to have. After all... Humanity was destined to violate and trample all over the Providence of God."

Morgant could feel his heart rate starting to jump; this situation is exactly what he had been looking for. A mission worthy for the second Sovereign; to reclaim all the apparitions of the old world. To him there was no more exhilarating of a purpose than this.

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"I suppose if I get the time I can work on a small side project for you."

...

Even before the sun decided to reveal itself onto the cold lands of Vertloch Snowdown, Morgant had already vacated his bed. Preparing himself for another long day he stared himself in the mirror unintentionally stirring back up the memories of what happened last night in the mirror world. Thinking back on it objectively, if he decided to accept Sovereign’s mission of recapturing the relics of the old world then it would mean that he would someday leave this small town. It wasn’t anything to boast about or really anything at all but it was still the town he had known all his life. The thought of leaving it, potentially for good, was a little unnerving.

He wryly smiled at himself for a bit before dismissing the thought entirely. For now it was best to just focus on the task at hand which was to trail Sipher’s party as he investigates the strange phenomenon in the forest. Putting on his favorite black jacket he quietly left the orphanage that continued to sleep through the dusk.

…

Since Morgant did not possess any sort of life sign detection abilities he had to search entirely with his eyes. It took him a little over an hour to find out where Sipher and Este were starting their investigation but eventually he did meet up and started to stealthily tail them from behind using his [Stealth Field] ability. Just to make sure that he wasn’t hallucinating that time he checked up on Sipher’s threat level again.

“562… Moderate, so I wasn’t mistaken then.”

The iron clad knight that imposed a serious aura and strength behind every movement truly did feel as though his threat level was well deserved. Though Morgant was still an amateur in combat related fields, even he could tell that there were no gaps in Sipher’s defenses.

“Fighting that kind of monster might be a little too unfair.”

He commented as he saw the mighty figure walking through the forest. However if Sipher’s threat level’s were justifiably reflected in his movements then Este Fallon’s was the complete opposite. According to her [status] screen it measured her age as ‘9’ yet her threat level was all the way up at 291. Despite the fact that it was still technically classified as a ‘low’ number relatively to Morgant it was an absurdly high number for a human child. If even Miko’s values didn’t reach such numbers then it truly told much about the girl’s talents.

“Sipher, what kind of monster do you think it is?”

Este asked as she followed a few steps behind Sipher. Just from their positioning alone Morgant could feel that it reflected a lot about their coordination as a team. Most likely they had been traveling for quite some time enough to figure out where they worked best on the battlefield. Este at the back as a magician and Sipher on the front line as a heavy tanker, it was the most synergistic combination for a two man squad.

To Este’s question Sipher shook his head.

“Even I do not know the answer to that princess. If the townsfolk’s words ring true the most likely we’d be fighting a variant of the Goblin. However Goblins are seldom much of a challenge, even in groups and yet they were still able to wipe out several people. Suffice it to say, whether it’s because we’re in the demon continent or if it’s from any other external factors, those monsters are probably not normal.”

“Hmm~ well if it’s you, you could probably take care of the entire situation no problem.”

Este replied with a rather cheerful tone of voice.

“I’m honored that you grade my skills so highly but even I’m not always going to be the strongest. There are many monsters and many other people who can far outdo even my own swordsmanship, which is why you need to be stronger as well, Princess.”

“I get that, don’t worry I’m training every day aren’t I? Geez, you really do worry too much; we’ll be fine~ we’ll be fine~”

Este answered, sticking her tongue out behind Sipher’s back as a sign of rebellion against the uptight guard knight. To her nonchalant and childish answer the Grand Praetorian Knight could only chuckle back in a defeated tone.

“Princess…”

“I know… we’re doing this to find my brother after all; I won’t drag your feet down Sipher.”

The atmosphere unexpected turned solemn for a second as Morgant pondered on her words. With her sharing the same family names as him and with that last line it was almost certain that the two points could be connected. That being said Morgant didn’t particularly feel like he wanted to reveal himself to them yet; how could he when he knew almost nothing about them?

Even if Este was truly on this journey to find her ‘brother’, it was unwise to simply assume that Sipher was on the same boat. After what he had just painstakingly taught Yvonne not to do, there was no way he could so easily trust their motives at face value. At the very least he needed to uncover their true characters and motives before doing anything. Thus for the time being he decided to watch.

A few more uneventful hours had passed since they had started investigating into the forest’s strange phenomenon yet not a sigh had shown itself. At this point it wouldn’t have been unreasonable for them to finish up the investigation and accuse the townspeople for lying. However the fact that they really did disappear was undeniable.

“There’s really nothing here. I mean the forest is nice and all but not a sign of enemy monsters, is this even the demon continent? How can it be that I’ve seen more monsters on the mainland than here?”

Este complained as she sifted through the rubble to find anything interesting.

“It is said that the demon capital, [Vertloch Skyreach] releases an aura that suppresses monsters. This is the main reason why monster attacks are so rare in this continent despite being inhabited predominantly be demons.”

“So you’re saying that that’s the reason why the monsters aren’t showing themselves? What, how boring. Here I thought I would finally get some much needed exercise.”

Este playfully commented as she pinched her own stomach.

“You have been enjoying the inn’s food a lot lately.”

Sipher sarcastically voiced.

“Hey, I can’t help it if they make the food so great here. But… you’re right, I really should start cutting down on the delicious food.”

“Just ask anytime princess, I’m quite confident in my training regime so I’m sure you’ll lose that unnecessary weight if you just-”

Sipher was about to comment but before he could finish his sentence he was jumped on by the enemy. They had caught him completely by surprise, in fact it was a completely absurd notion that such a trained knight would fail to pick up on the enemy’s approach.

Several small bodies tackled him towards the floor but thanks to his experience and skills he quickly recovered, tearing them off his armor and throwing them across the forest.

“Sipher are you okay?!”

Este shouted as she came rushing to his aid.

“I’m fine princess, how about you?”

"I’m okay too, what was that?”

Regaining their composure they glanced up to see the true identities of the enemies that had attacked them.

“Goblins…?”

Este questioned as she continued to stare directly at the monsters. She couldn’t even tell if it really was a goblin due to the odd additions to its bodies, specifically they were yellow crystals growing out of them. Their usually earthen skin tone was glowing a putrid yellow and even their eyes lacked pupils.

“I’m not sure what they are… Kuh, but they don’t seem alive to me.”

Sipher answered as he tightly gripped around his sword and prepared to engage the enemy.

As all this was happening down below, Morgant had been observing from high atop a tree still in his [Stealth Field]. ‘Goblin God…’ the farmer that was attacked had said something to that effect and certainly with the divine looking yellow crystals growing out of their bodies it would perhaps give such an effect. They certainly gave off a radiant aura but their actions were completely savage and without mercy; feral in other words.

Morgant tried to [analyze] them to see if it would come up with anything. To his surprise it did.

Goblin Fighter [Title: Crystalline]

Age - ??

Race - Goblin

Threat Level - 241 (low)

Affinity - Close Combat

Condition -Undead

Ailments - None

External Effects – Crystalline Curse

‘Undead’ and ‘Crystalline Curse’ were immediately drawn to Morgant’s attention. He had never seen ordinary goblins before but from the way everyone had been talking about them they probably did not have a threat level of 241. The only explanation was that somehow this ‘Crystalline Curse’ was giving them more power. It didn’t take much time to link up all the loose ends and he was able to form a basic kind of theory about what was actually going on.

However he wanted to observe a bit more. This was, after all, to be his debut as the second Sovereign; it needed to be done with a manner most befitting of that title. For now, observe and collect.

“Crystalline Curse… how interesting.”