We surpassed the goal by three times, so it's four chapters in total, one today plus three extra.
Damn it, I'm going to have to update Patreon to stay fifteen chapters ahead
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Just like Koneko, their first reaction was to look at Kaito with suspicion and ask who he was.
Then, after a brief headache that made them hold their foreheads, they looked at him again with recognition.
However, Kaito did not expect their personalities to have changed so much due to that process.
Contrary to what he imagined, the first to approach him was Gwen, who immediately threw herself into his arms.
"Kaito... I... I had to die. That thing... I can still feel the pressure in my head, the fire entering my brain... it was horrible," she said between sobs.
Kaito simply hugged her gently until she calmed down. When she regained her composure, Gwen blushed and slowly stepped back.
"S-sorry, it was an impulse," she muttered. "By the way, isn't Lala here?"
"I'm here," Lala replied as she entered through the door and hugged Gwen like a little sister.
Ignoring the reunion between them, who had actually seen each other only a few hours earlier, Kaito turned to Charmcaster.
She was watching him with a dangerous look, so intense that even Koneko, standing beside him, became alert.
"It's fine," Kaito said, trying to calm her. "She's just a bit crazy, not dangerous."
Koneko looked at her suspiciously but ended up trusting his words.
Seeing that Charmcaster did not move, Kaito decided to approach. Curiously, as soon as he took a step toward her, she stepped half a step back, only to move forward again a moment later.
"Are you okay?" he asked cautiously, noticing her strange behavior.
"Is this real?" Charmcaster murmured to herself, not realizing that Kaito was already standing in front of her, or perhaps simply choosing to ignore him.
Feeling somewhat ignored, Kaito reached out and gently ruffled her hair, as if she were a child.
However, Charmcaster did not get angry. Instead, she took his hand, held it tightly, and smiled with tears in her eyes.
"K-Kaito... you came back," she said with a trembling smile and contained tears.
Kaito's expression turned serious at once.
"Hope, what happened?" he asked, worried.
"I-I... was alone... are you real? No... this can't be real... I imagined something like this so many times... but in the end, always..."
"I'm real, Hope. Tell me what's wrong."
Seeing the scene, the group approached with concern. Even though Koneko didn't know her, she couldn't help but feel moved by her state.
Still, no matter how much they tried to talk to her, Charmcaster only responded with incoherent murmurs. Kaito decided to ask the system.
"System, what's wrong with her?"
[Her mental state has deteriorated due to her circumstances.]
"Weren't her original memories fused with those of the simulation I visited? Why is she still like this?"
[The memories from the simulation are too short to affect the rest.]
Kaito fell silent for a few seconds before asking again.
"How long was she trapped in that place?"
[...]
[Charmcaster belongs to a special race born in the world of magic. Due to her connection to magic, her life expectancy varies between 200 and 500 years.]
"How long was she there?" Kaito repeated, frowning.
[While inside the Legerdomain, her connection to magic was maximized, allowing her to live almost eternally. Charmcaster remained there for a total of 15,768 years before deciding to leave. When she did, her body collapsed and she died instantly, unaware that Alien X had already been defeated.]
Kaito clenched his fists.
"Can you help her?"
[By using 60,000 extraction points, all memories from the original timeline can be erased.]
"Do it."
[Insufficient extraction points.]
"Can you lend them to me?"
[The function exists within the system's possibilities. Do you wish to borrow 24,000 extraction points?]
"Do it."
[You will have to repay double the borrowed amount. Do you confirm the transaction?]
"Yes, do it."
[The character Charmcaster mastered magic for thousands of years. Based solely on her knowledge, her current level is 999. Are you sure about your decision?]
"Do it" Kaito repeated impatiently.
[This action may have severe repercussions in the future. Are you su...]
"Do it" Kaito interrupted with an annoyed tone.
[Understood. 60,000 extraction points have been used. Remaining balance: -24,000 extraction points.]
A light enveloped Charmcaster, who at that moment was on the floor in Gwen's arms, mumbling incoherently. Gradually, her eyes cleared and she began to speak normally.
Seeing everyone around her looking worried, she smiled playfully.
"Wow, what an interesting welcome," she said, then looked at Gwen with a teasing smile. "Even you?"
Seeing that she was back to normal, Gwen immediately let go, and Charmcaster fell to the floor with a small yelp.
"Ouch... and here I thought we were getting along," she said as she stood up.
"Kaito," she finally called, walking toward him. "Now that you're here, you won't be able to run away from me anymore," she said as she wrapped her arms around his neck.
Kaito smiled, relieved to see her old personality back. "I'm glad you're okay."
Charmcaster blinked in surprise, her expression changing for a moment at his straightforward response.
"You're making me worry about what happened if everyone's acting like this," she muttered.
Then she returned to her usual attitude, jumped, and wrapped her legs around Kaito's waist, forcing him to hold her.
"But this is more important. You ignored me before because you weren't sure if you could bring me back, right? So now..." she smiled seductively.
Kaito played along and kissed her, catching her completely off guard before she could react.
"Don't look, little Gwen. These are adult matters," Lala said beside them, covering the girl's eyes.
Koneko, on the other hand, coughed to get their attention.
Kaito, realizing how carried away he had gotten, returned to reality and set Charmcaster down.
"And here I thought we were going to have some fun," Charmcaster murmured with a pout.
After that, Kaito talked with the group for a while, explaining the general situation of the territory, the other members, and assigning them rooms to spend the night. Since it was already late, he didn't give them a tour and dismissed them so he could talk with the system.
Before leaving, Charmcaster turned to him. "Which one is your room, darling?"
"Darling?" Kaito repeated with an amused smile. "You'll know when you see it, it's the most extravagant one."
"I'll be waiting," she said, closing the door with a playful smile.
Once everyone had left, Kaito's relaxed expression vanished and he became completely serious. He sat down on the throne in the room.
"System, what exactly are extraction points?"
[Confirming rank, level, territory, identity...]
[Access to information granted.]
[Extraction points, whose true name is synchronization points, are extremely small fragments of ■■■■■. They can be used to synchronize different versions of yourself or others, both within the simulation and with your real version. In other words, they allow modification of the simulation. Although they may not seem important now, that is because the mission worlds you have been sent to are of easy level. When the difficulty increases, interfering in those worlds will become more complicated, and to deceive the system or the world itself, methods such as reincarnating in an existing body or even being born from scratch will be necessary. In those moments, synchronization points will be essential to avoid falling behind.]
"Those black squares again," Kaito muttered.
"System, is this the same information that was blocked when I tried to move my territory, or is it something different?"
[It is the same.]
"I'm surprised you're telling me this so honestly," Kaito commented.
[The rules do not state that I cannot answer that question. Perhaps they never considered the possibility.]
Kaito smiled at the curious response.
"So, what's used to upgrade the Lord's Mansion is also what forms these synchronization points, right?" he said thoughtfully.
"And since both are obtained every time we complete a mission world, I guess that's what they really want us to collect. Or rather, what whoever is behind you wants from each world. It's even possible that our rewards are made from that same substance."
[That is correct. Each world contains ■■■■■, they are extremely useful, and most of the resources the system provides come from them.]
"Useful, huh... Let me guess, that thing is also what makes you seem more human each time, isn't it?"
[...]
"You can't answer that, huh?" Kaito said with a grin. "You can't talk about it because I'm not supposed to know. So, if I knew what it was, could you tell me?"
[If the host already knows the identity of ■■■■■, there would be no need to conceal the information. Therefore, yes, your statement is correct.]
"Then..." Kaito said calmly. "Let me take a guess. If I'm wrong, I lose nothing. But if I'm right..."
"That thing we collect in each world, that's used for rewards, to upgrade the Lord's Mansion, and even strengthens Gaia's system itself, are... fragments of divinity."
[Level 3 information unlocked. Information regarding the fragments of divinity is now available. Congratulations, you have deceived the system.]
"So I was right..."
Kaito remembered the meaningless words Sora had muttered when she saw the so-called 'Truth of the Universe' with one of Lala's inventions. Knowing only the term didn't mean much, but somehow, it was enough to trick the system.
[Correction: you did not deceive the system, but rather the system's rules. I am aware that you are cheating, but I decided to overlook it since the rules do not specify that I must intervene.]
"So you do read my mind. Is there a reason why you decided to tell me all this?"
[There is. Although it is not in the system's records, the existence of the so-called 'fragments of divinity' has clear implications.]
Kaito closed his eyes, instantly understanding the magnitude of what he had just discovered.
"God is dead" he concluded quietly.
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+15 chapters in advance on Patreon.
p-atreon.com/IAMME26
(just delete the hyphen)
80 power stones = 1 extra chapter (cumulative)