OLD-WORLD EXTRA-Chapter 235: Livestream

"Ah..."

'...I remember everything.'

Emir looked down at the ground, and a calm smile formed on his face.

His plan had indeed worked.

The first phase of the test was called 'The Veil of Amnesia.'

It was where candidates like him had their memories stolen away.

One would usually take hours upon hours to finally piece his memories together.

Most weren't even capable of doing that.

But Emir wanted to skip this process entirely.

So he devised a plan to transfer his memories through his nanobots beforehand.

He didn't know the details of how that was possible, as Lyra had done most of the work, but he did know that it related to the design of the special nanobots he had.

These nanobots were equipped with ultra-miniature neural interfaces, which enabled them to forge a direct connection with his brain.

They were so tiny that they could navigate through the neural pathways without causing any damage.

To initiate the transfer, Emir underwent a carefully orchestrated procedure.

Lyra used a specialized 'Neuro-cybernetic Interface' to deeply synchronize his neural network with the nanobots' communication protocols.

This interface was commonly used by those who subjected themselves to cybernetic enhancements.

Even those who surfed the network.

They were called NetWeavers.

And they 'surfed' in the literal sense of the word.

Since they could turn themselves into data, flowing from an open-source network to the next.

Some of them were hackers; others were scammers like the ones usually found in the old world.

However, as time passed, their methods improved, and they were no longer the dumb scammers of the long past-those who had a weird fixation on warranties.

Now they were fixated on life insurance instead.

...So back to Emir.

This interface allowed the nanobots to begin reading the neural patterns associated with his memories.

Back then, when the process started, Emir felt a strange sensation, almost like a gentle tug on the edges of his consciousness.

Memories that were once confined to his brain began to flow out and into the nanobots.

Each memory was encoded into a digital format, compressed to reduce storage space, and then transmitted to the nanobots' memory banks.

The nanobots acted as a neural extension, seamlessly integrating these encoded memories into their network.

It occurred at speeds far beyond human comprehension.

Emir's memories, from the most vivid to the faintest, were systematically transmitted and stored within the nanobots' microprocessors.

Once the transfer was complete, he could access these memories at will, triggering the nanobots to relay the encoded data back to his neural network.

He had this set on a timer just before entering the ruin, as once an hour had passed, his memories would return.

The hour-long wait was for him to not appear suspicious.

Emir could act, but his level was not award-worthy, so he definitely would not fool those watching.

So instead, he truly experienced memory loss, and now he appeared as a 'genius' who had regained them faster than ever before!

***

"This fucker's quick!"

Isidore commented while sitting on a throne-like chair.

He was in a dark room.

There were three other thrones placed there as well.

They all surrounded a large circular table.

On that table were many holograms that showed a live feed of the test.

Ignatius, who was sitting in front of Isidore, spoke next:

"I told you, the big guy's smart."

"...Right, but do you guys think he'll join us in the rankings?"

The 'rankings' official title was Celestial Earthbound Registry.

CER, for short.

It was created under the UEF, so they were the ones who controlled it and decided the rank of

those within it.

The UEF only allowed up to a hundred Celestials in the registry.

Those below were not worthy of its graces and benefits.

Emir, as a newly ranked Seraphim, usually wouldn't even be considered, however...

He was unlike the rest, to say the least.

His battle experience was plentiful, his abilities were mysterious and varied.

His specialization was an enigma.

The man was treading an unknown path.

And all the men watching the live feed knew this, which was why Auric's question made

logical sense.

But Eldritch, who sneered, didn't seem to think so.

"That's impossible... If you think that, then you're bound to drop in the rankings soon."

Auric was ranked sixth, while Eldritch was fifth.

Their rivalry lasted for decades as they contested on who would hold that fifth rank.

Now, they sat opposite each other, their eyes locked in a tense stareoff.

"You dare?"

"I do. Piggy bank."

Before things got too serious, Isidore interfered, like a father punishing their misbehaving

children....

Of course, only if the father was the third highest-ranked Celestial among Earthkind.

His aura instantly permeated the room, drowning out everything and bathing it in black.

The other three beside him had their heads snapped downwards from the sheer force behind

his Aether.

If Emir was present, that pressure would have caused his body to crumble upon itself in a

single moment.

"B-but I didn't do anything!"

Isidore ignored Ignatius's woes and kept the pressure until the two men raised the white flag

in surrender.

How did they do so?

Well, they were knocked out.

Ignatius was the only one who remained awake.

It was catching up to him, however...

But just before he joined his friends, the pressure ceased.

And the duo immediately awoke.

Their faces didn't show fear; instead, they appeared to be... jovial, happy, and excited?

"I was awake longer!"

Eldritch's eyebrows twitched at Auric's declaration.

"Let's Ignatius be the judge of that."

Hearing his name being called, the fiery man who ranked fourth looked at Eldritch.

"It's Auric's win... He was awake a fraction longer."

"HA! I told you."

"Bah... Whatever, 12312-12312. It's now a tie."

The old monsters continued their argument, forgetting that they had a test to watch over.

Yes, Emir's abilities were interesting, but these men had seen all that was to be seen on Earth.

His actions couldn't hold their interest for long.

But someone was still interested.

Isidore.

The strongest among them.

A higher sub-rank of the Archon.

His eyes bore into Emir, scrutinizing his every action.

And it wasn't only the prince, but someone else as well.

Ragnar.

'A warp weaver, huh...'