Chapter 135: Anti-Myth Armament (Two-in-One)
At first, Mr. Silver thought Rast’s claim of secluding himself for a month to prepare was just an exaggerated figure of speech.
It was like a college student cramming before finals—despite saying they’d lock themselves away to study, they’d still end up gaming or slacking off…
After all, faced with the dull grind of studying and looming deadlines, even the most mundane novels, games, or anime suddenly become irresistibly appealing.
But Mr. Silver hadn’t expected Rast to actually follow through on his words.
For an entire month, Rast shut himself inside the Mechanical Research Institute of the Ashen Academy.
He didn’t step outside once—even eating and sleeping were done within the institute.
All that remained was Mr. Silver, a lone silver weasel, staring at the empty and silent dormitory, speechless.
At that moment, the emotions of humans and silver weasels aligned perfectly—Mr. Silver suddenly understood how empty-nest elderly felt after the New Year festivities ended, looking at their desolate homes.
Lonely, desolate, and cold.
“Young Xiya is trapped in the Night World… and now Rast is in seclusion.”
Mr. Silver scratched his head with a tiny paw in frustration. “Even Young Tina has been busy investigating the Graveminder lately, not returning to the academy for months…”
Before they started digging, the Graveminder case had seemed uneventful.
But once they committed to a thorough investigation, even the preliminary findings were shocking.
The betrayal of Director Ingrid of the Supervisory Bureau was just a minor piece of the puzzle.
Digging deeper—nobility from the autonomous territories of the Granwill Empire, powerful officials in the capital, high-ranking officers in the military and the Bureau of Control… shadows of this conspiracy could be found in every faction, every stratum of the empire.
Over a third of the empire’s elite were implicated.
Of course, most of these elites had no direct ties to the “Graveminder”—some might not even know the name itself. Instead, they were linked through secretive organizations like the “Bronze Rose,” indirectly becoming part of its influence network.
Slave trading, disappearances, organ trafficking, hallucinogen deals… even colluding with foreign cults, sacrificing hundreds of their own subjects in exchange for political resources and career advancement.
The deeper they dug, the more horrifying the crimes became.
Unbeknownst to many, this web of corruption had already taken deep root within the Granwill Empire.
Although it had somewhat receded in the past decade under the reign of Emperor Aaron—father of Hiltina and Ophelia—such an entrenched force wasn’t so easily eradicated.
Too many people and interests were involved, creating massive obstacles for the imperial family’s sweeping reforms.
So much so that Hiltina had to temporarily set aside her Night World missions to assist the empire’s military in purging these criminal elements.
Though Hiltina herself disliked being identified as an imperial princess, her bloodline and origins tied her inextricably to the Granwill Empire.
And this empire-wide upheaval had even reached her homeland, the Autumn Leaf Territory where the Ranger family resided. For both personal and principled reasons, she had to be involved.
Of course, Hiltina’s busy schedule—
Meant that, apart from Akshia and Rast, Mr. Silver’s last meal ticket had vanished.
“Just when I thought I’d secured a third meal ticket after Young Xiya and Young Tina… finally able to live a carefree life where I could level up without lifting a finger.”
“But… why—”
“Why did it have to turn out like this?”
Feeling his Sequence progression—once on the verge of a breakthrough thanks to Rast’s presence—now stagnating again due to his meal tickets disappearing, Mr. Silver was on the verge of tears.
Rubbing his growling stomach, he suddenly recalled his distant past as an ordinary snow weasel, and the survival instinct hardwired into his genes for enduring food-scarce winters—
Hibernation.
……
Starry University, Ashen Academy, Mechanical Research Institute.
The sealed doors of the First Testing Ground, shut for two weeks, silently swung open.
Rast stepped out slowly from the steel doorway.
Though his movements carried traces of fatigue, his eyes remained sharp and clear.
Most hot-blooded teenagers might grow impatient or bored with the monotony of mechanical blueprints and modification experiments.
They’d slack off within half a day.
But Rast had no such problem.
His time in the endless loops of Deep Blue Harbor had tempered his patience to perfection.
For someone who could spend thousands of cycles—years—honing a craft just to please himself—
Whether he was locked in the Ashen Academy studying blueprints for a month or a day made no difference.
“Following your specifications, the mechanized modifications for ‘Iron Pattern Moon’ and ‘Sevenfold Domain’ are complete.”
“Since they were already mechanical in nature, the process went smoothly.”
“Interestingly, even though the modern world has entered the information age… due to tradition, most Night Travelers in the academy still prefer bladed weapons.”
“So most of the Emblem Armor they obtain from Night World rewards are melee weapons like swords.”
“Someone like you, who’s accustomed to firearms from the start and even acquired two firearm-type Emblem Armors from the Night World, is quite rare.”
A warm, aged voice spoke from behind Rast.
It belonged to an elderly woman with silver hair, dressed in a plain white researcher’s robe.
Though advanced in years, her spirit seemed lively.
Several sleek, silver mechanical messengers—etched with intricate runic circuits—floated around her.
Based on Rast’s experience, the technological level of the modern world here was roughly on par with Earth in his previous life.
But this world also had Extraordinary Items, “Night Blades,” Sequence progression, magitech, runic circuits… things that didn’t exist in his past life.
These fantastical elements, merging with existing technology, had birthed entirely new developmental paths.
Take, for example, the profession of Mechanics.
Without becoming a Night Traveler or stepping onto the Sequence path, even an Ordinary Person could wield power rivaling Extraordinary Items through sheer mechanical ingenuity and understanding.
Ophelia, for instance, was a once-in-a-generation prodigy in this field.
Had she followed the conventional path of Extraordinary Items, she could never have achieved such brilliance at her young age.
Of course, being a Mechanic didn’t conflict with pursuing the Sequence or wielding a Night Blade—one could walk both paths simultaneously.
Many Night Travelers whose Night Blades weren’t combat-oriented but leaned toward analysis or support often took up Mechanics as a secondary profession, using technology to compensate for their lack of frontline prowess.
On the other hand, aside from “Emblem Armor” and Night World rewards, most Extraordinary Items—including firearms—couldn’t be brought into the Night World, and even if they were, they’d mostly be unusable…
This rule limited the effectiveness of Mechanics within the Night World, restricting their full potential to the modern world.
However, for the Ashen Academy of Starry University—the pinnacle of modern Mechanics—this rule wasn’t entirely insurmountable.
If mechanical modifications and enhancements were applied to existing Emblem Armor or Extraordinary Items, they could bypass the Night World’s restrictions, allowing mechanized weaponry to be used in historical echoes.
Naturally, the success of such modifications depended on the compatibility between the original item and mechanical augmentation.
Turning Hiltina’s rapier into a lightsaber from Star Wars versus modifying Rast’s sniper rifle into an anti-materiel cannon—the cost, difficulty, and results were worlds apart, with the latter being far more feasible.
Buzz—
A crisp mechanical chime sounded near Rast’s ear.
A small silver mechanical messenger floated to his side, extending a mechanical arm to place two Emblem Armors into his palm.
Rast took the modified “Iron Pattern Moon” and “Sevenfold Domain,” and with a thought, they dissolved into streams of light and vanished.
Per Rast’s requests to the Ashen Academy, the external appearances of his two main weapons hadn’t changed much.
Instead, all enhancements were focused on range, firepower, and specialized alchemical ammunition for different combat scenarios.
In simpler terms, Rast had upgraded his “+0” weapons to “+11” and “+12.”
But the modifications to his firearms weren’t the focus of his month-long seclusion.
“I’ve troubled you this past month, Principal Agatha.”
He looked at the silver-haired woman before him and offered sincere thanks.
Despite her gentle demeanor, this elderly woman—Agatha—was the head of the Ashen Academy at Starry University.
Though she shared the title of “Principal” with Mr. Silver, the Ashen Academy she presided over was a crucial department within Starry University, responsible for equipment and armaments.
In terms of importance, the Ashen Academy was second only to the Lionheart Academy (which spearheaded Night World operations) and stood alongside the Ruins Institute (which gathered intelligence, studied rules, and deciphered lost histories). It was a far cry from the Magical Creatures Research Institute, a small, obscure department with barely any members.
And Principal Agatha herself, according to the Ruins Institute’s records, was one of the strongest Mechanics on the continent.
For someone of her stature to spend an entire month helping Rast modify equipment and prepare for battle… he couldn’t help but feel puzzled.
He’d never thought Mr. Silver had that much influence.
Just a word from the silver weasel and a submitted application had been enough to secure the assistance of an academy head.
Had he unknowingly owed that snow weasel a massive favor?
“It wasn’t because of that snow weasel.”
As if reading his thoughts, the silver-haired woman chuckled.
“Speaking of which, that snow weasel still owes me a grilled fish cake. He doesn’t have that kind of clout.”
Principal Agatha smiled gently at Rast. “It was Ophelia who asked me.”
“Though that girl never enrolled at Starry University, I once served as her private tutor at the imperial family’s request. You could say I was her first teacher in Mechanics.”
“She seems to owe you and Akshia a considerable debt and couldn’t let it go… so she specifically came to ask me to help you bring Akshia back from the historical echo.”
So it was because of Ophelia?
Rast blinked.
Instead of meeting him herself, she’d asked her teacher to assist…
He’d thought the Second Princess was the scheming, white-on-the-outside-black-on-the-inside type.
Turns out, she was just a tsundere.
Ahem, we’ve strayed a bit.”
“The prototype’s adjustments are also complete.”
“Now, let’s take a look at the new weapon tailored specifically for you…”
As she spoke, Principal Agatha’s voice carried a hint of anticipation.
Her gaze settled on a mechanical crystal resting on a nearby testing platform, its surface gleaming like metal.
Then, she spoke, word by word.
“Anti-Myth Armament—designed with Mythical Beings and Legendary Strongmen as its intended foes—”
“Forbidden Directory 0-13: Zenith Sword Prototype.”
(End of Chapter)
