Transcendent Gene-Chapter 204: Reward [4]

There was a difference between feeling the power coursing through one’s body and having access to it. In Gio’s case, only the former applied.

He was sore. In his mind, he classified it as soreness, but an ordinary person without his pain tolerance would have already passed out. He was using most of his energy just to move his body properly, so it was far too much to ask him to climb such a steep slope.

Luckily, Neriah was present. She didn’t need to be asked to help. Before he could say anything, she put his arm around her shoulder and jumped several tens of feet in the air.

If Gio wasn’t mistaken, he felt like the world around them moved subtly alongside them, helping them gain altitude.

’She said she got a reward...it couldn’t be that, could it?’

Considering that his reward was a mysterious energy that felt almost divine, it would make sense for Neriah to be given something amazing as well.

Regardless of how, they made it to the surface easily. The hole presented to them existed as if it had been present for all of eternity, but it was only formed when Neriah finished absorbing her Sequence.

The two of them landed on flat ground surrounded by trees that blocked their view of anything important.

Rumble!

Neriah frowned, making distance from the hole and climbing up a tree just before the ground below them caved in.

Gio held a nearby branch to steady himself.

The world itself seemed to be collapsing on the hole, covering up any traces of the legacy’s existence.

The deep rumbling came from far below the surface as well. It wasn’t a sound that came from a place nearby.

"It’s collapsing."

It was made to destroy itself after its purpose was served.

Gio looked into the hole as it was filled in, his thoughts clouded for a moment.

However, he brought himself back to reality in the next.

The world was filled with infinite mysteries, after all.

He turned his eyes away. Neriah took them to a vantage point where they could see more of the world. Only, Celestelle was not in the air anywhere near them.

Gio turned to his holowatch.

’It’s finally getting a signal.’

He was able to see the date and time while they were in the legacy site, but all of the watch’s other functions were blocked by some sort of field.

The holographic screen came to life and was soon maneuvered until it displayed a map of the world. Within an instant, it found where it was and displayed its position.

"The good thing is that it’s not as far as it seems."

Neriah looked over at the screen for a moment before frowning.

"You say that as if it’s not far."

Gio smiled wryly. Well, if they were to run while using their Sequences, it would still be a 6-hour journey, so she wasn’t wrong.

"Then again, we have no idea how we were even dropped into that place. Imagine if we came out on the other side of the world."

That would have been a much, much more difficult situation.

"Let’s get to safety first. Can you walk?"

"I can walk, but I need rest before I can do anything else properly."

"Let me do the heavy lifting this time, then."

Neriah grinned. Last time, she was the one who had to be carried around. It felt great to switch positions.

Together, the two of them retreated in the direction of Celestelle. Neriah’s pathfinding ability was incredibly flexible. Not only could it path her through mazes or around danger, but it could also use clues she found to lead her to probable locations.

For instance, as she observed the way the dirt and flora changed, the signs of fauna in the vicinity, and the changes in topography, the purple path in her eyes became clearer, leading her until she finally found a beast’s burrow without much effort at all.

"That’ll be safe."

"Depends on what lives there."

"Nothing."

Neriah motioned to the side, where Gio faintly saw patches of dried blood and signs of a recent battle.

There was a wide trail of blood exiting the scene into some nearby bushes, and beyond those bushes...

’...is a corpse.’

Gio nodded as he saw the carcass of the beast that once lived in this burrow. Most of the meat on its body was gone, and it was already polluted by bugs feasting on its remains. For at least several days, it had been lying dead here.

"Whatever killed it won’t come back. It didn’t touch the burrow at all and just left after eating," Neriah said.

"We’re only staying long enough to rest our bodies, so it should be our safest option unless you want me to carry you for another hour."

Gio smiled as he shook his head.

"No need. That burrow looks comfortable enough."

He agreed with all of the assertions Neriah made. As a hunter, she was definitely far more knowledgeable than anyone else her age.

’She’s a good seed.’

It wasn’t his first time having the thought, and it wouldn’t be the last. The Neriah he was getting to know was a genius worth turning into a hero.

The burrow was situated against a tree. The entrance was small, prompting Gio to get on his hands and knees to crawl inside. However, the space inside was large enough.

He and Neriah could comfortably sit with some distance between them without any problems. Their current shelter was made from sticks and other natural materials, but as Neriah said, they weren’t going to stay for more than half a day.

’Today is the last day of the week.’

It was just past midnight. If they slept now and woke up early, they’d be able to reach Celestelle by noon. fɾēewebnσveℓ.com

They had barely reached their deadline.

’Either that, or the entrance ceremony ended yesterday and we’re late.’

It was certainly a concern, but Gio couldn’t immediately find anything related to their disappearance on the intranet.

’Everything seems fine...’

He’d been focused on the legacy, so he didn’t think about the aftereffects his disappearance would have. He didn’t necessarily want to experience a hassle when he returned to the First Institute, but it wasn’t as if he had to hide anything.

’Other than the last bit and maybe the stuff about VNIR, nothing else needs to be hidden.’

In other words, he was overthinking and worrying for nothing.

’Yeah, I’m worrying for noth...ing...’

His head hit the back of the burrow and slumped to the side. He was asleep before the end of the thought.

He leaned over, fated to stay asleep for the next eight hours.

Unbeknownst to him, the soreness he felt in his body was not an aftereffect of the changes he experienced.

Instead, those changes never ended. The most severe of them were completed, but there were subtle alterations and changes taking place all over his body as the foreign energy completed the process of becoming one with his being.

Gio knew that he was different now. He was aware of the qualitative increase in his own strength, sure...

...but there was no way for him to know how much of a change was really taking place.

Not until his eyes saw the sunlight again, at least.

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