Memoirs of the Returnee

Riley was compiling a file on Derek's artificial intelligence, weaving together the conversations she had with Dr. Killian.

Of course, this alone was not enough. More concrete information and evidence were needed for [Vancheon], but the security of the laboratory was beyond her control.

Thus, she prepared a plan.

On a late, drizzly night, Riley stayed in the Libra Station Laboratory under the pretext of working overtime. Dr. Vito had left for the Libra headquarters, and coincidentally, there was a thunderstorm forecast for that day.

Riley's Spectrum could manipulate nature. Specifically, she could control natural phenomena such as thunderstorms, tsunamis, and earthquakes to her will.

Silently, she typed on her laptop in the empty office, waiting for the right moment.

Suddenly!

A bolt of lightning cracked through the air. In that instant, Riley's magic resonated. She drew the residual energy of the Lightning that had flashed across the sky into Libra Station.

Boom!

A second, artificial flash struck the building. The Lights went out. The entire system, including the security system, blacked out.

Thus, Rile/s Spectrum could reconfigure natural phenomena. In other words, she could recycle the 'natural forces' that had been dropped across the continent.

Riley quickly got up.

There was no time to waste.

She ran down the corridor and reached the artificial intelligence laboratory. She manually opened the unlocked door.

There were many tables, but only one had documents on it.

Dr. Killian.

Riley rushed to the spot and read the documents.

Her expression hardened. The speculations she had made were indeed written there as facts.

Riley interpreted the data.

They had overwritten real human souls and contained them in a 'vessel' called artificial intelligence. The precision of the operation was as heinous as the crime itself.

“lnsane…”

Riley took photos of the documents with her phone, and just as she was about to Leave,

“Who's there?”

Someone called out to Riley. Her heart stopped.

She quietly turned around. A Chaser, whose name she only knew, stood at the entrance.

“lts Riley from the Station. You know me, don't you?”

“I do, but…”

The Chaser walked towards her, speaking.

“lt seems you were coming out of the laboratory. Did you have permission to enter?”

“No, I was just worried. There was a sudden blackout.”

Riley smiled faintly. In contrast, the Chaser's expression was unreadable. He noticed the phone in Rile/s hand.

“May I see your phone?”

“Why?”

“lts procedure.”

Procedure.

Riley Looked into the Chaser's eyes. He was exceedingly bland and had already Lifted a radio to his hand.

“Station, artificial intelligence laboratory sector.”

He Locked his gaze on Riley as he reported their location. In that brief moment, Riley intensely deliberated her next move.

Should she kill this man? Can she kill him and escape?

Her mind was tightly wound, and as her hand began to gather magical energy,

“Currently, there's suspicious activity—”

“What is it?”

Suddenly, another voice cut between them. Riley and the Chaser both turned towards the source.

“Ah, Dr. Ki Ilian.”

The Chaser recognized him first and bowed his head.

“I was just following procedure because an employee from the station entered without permission.”

At Chaser's words, Killian slightly furrowed his brow.

“Without permission? It's Ms. Riley.”

Riley Licked her dry lips. Her heart felt like it was about to burst.

“I know, but it's the procedure.”

The Chaser pointed at Riley's hand. Killian saw the phone she was holding.

“W叫 Let me check it then.”

Killian reached out and snatched Riley's phone. Her heart sank further, but Killian flicked through it briefly and clicked his tongue.

“There's nothing much here.”

“…I see.”

“Yes. Did you really suspect Ms. Riley?”

“…”

“l've checked it, so you can go now.”

The Chaser bowed his head slightly and stepped back.

“…Goodnight.”

Killian handed her the phone back. Riley responded with a bitter smile.

“l'm sorry. I was just worried.”

“Worried?”

“Yes.”

“…Lies.”

At Killian's response, Riley tensed up again.

“I know everything. You took photos, didn't you?”

“…”

Her back was drenched in cold sweat. Although Riley prided herself on her poker face, in such a situation—

“ls it your job to monitor me, Ms. Riley?”

“…7”

Riley flinched and looked up at Killian cautiously.

He shrugged his shoulders with a slightly sad expression.

“l've known for a while. There's no other reason someone like Ms. Riley would be so friendly to me unless it was that. Did you think I was going to Leak internal information or something?”

Apparently, Killian had misunderstood.

Riley was genuinely flustered but felt relieved at the same time.

“Ah… that's…”

“You don't have to feel too sorry.”

Killian gave a bitter smile.

“From now on, don't suspect me.”

Crack!

Just then, the power was restored. The lights around them turned on, and the security system began to operate again.

Killian gestured.

“You go ahead. I still have some research left.”

“Ah… yes.”

Riley turned around, her mind feeling shattered, and quickly left the area.

…

In the now empty laboratory, I sat down and began to organize the documents.

This should be sufficient.

Riley will relay the information she gathered today to [Vancheon].

However, the ending I desire is not just that.

Riley must personally finish Killian. She must track him down, uncover the information he has hidden, and expose it to the world to ascend to the higher echelons of [Vancheon].

As I've said before, there are quite a few Lunatics in [Vancheon].

Secret societies aimed at overthrowing the regime inevitably attract the unhinged, but Riley is trustworthy.

In my opinion, she is the only one I can truly rely on.

So.

“…Lets get moving quickly now.”

Pretending to be Killian is getting tiresome.

Ughhhhh—

I stretched while sitting in the chair.

Sherlock's loyal 'Belingham Kantar* was among the most talented of his generation, along with Theia EsiL and Akane. Though a commoner, he followed a path more elite than the elites with the support of Libra.

However, nothing was known about his family background. Belingham had truly 'suddenly' appeared on this continent.

“Lady Johanna?”

Recognized as Sherlock's right-hand man, he has recently been keeping an eye on a direct descendant. The subject is Johanna. Her behavior is quite youthful.

“…You've been meeting frequently these days.”

In the corridor of the Aerial Garden, Johanna responded to Belingham with a bitter smile.

“That's right. How have you been?”

Johanna looked at him and asked back.

“How is the lord? I heard you met him recently.”

“The time to select a successor is approaching, he says.”

“…IS that so.”

Johanna frowned.

Belingham smiled faintly.

“I heard you're diving into pharmaceuticals.”

“That's right.”

“ls it because of the succession structure?”

“Why do you think that?”

Johanna asked expressionlessly. Belingham shrugged.

“lt was the business that Lord Sherlock showed the most enthusiasm for.”

“…”

Johanna said nothing, just Looked at him and let out a faint sigh.

“Yes. I always wanted to be the successor.”

“…Past tense?”

Belingham detected something unusual in her voice. Johanna had already cooled down.

“Belingham. You served my father, didn't you?”

“Yes. Of course.”

“You must know what my father wants.”

“…What he wants?”

Johanna crossed her arms. Her brow slowly furrowed.

“l'm asking because I don't know. What does my father want, and what did he see, to show such enthusiasm for those human experiments?”

“Um… Well, I'm not involved in the business, so I don't really know.”

“…Pfft. I guess so.”

Johanna flashed a smile again, her expression somewhat girlish in Belingham's view.

“…You7e really thinking of giving up your inheritance?”

Belingham asked in surprise.

Johanna answered nonchalantly.

“Whether I give up the inheritance or not, nothing changes. I am still Johanna.”

With that, she brushed past Bellingham and left the mansion.

“…….”

Belingham watched her retreating figure, puzzled, for quite some time. Then, as if realizing something belatedly, he nodded.

“Aha.”

He murmured with a meaningful smile.

“So thats what being human is.”

Elise was making rapid progress in a bunker known as the Magic Tower. Her magical talent shone particularly bright, even among the myriad stars of the Milky Way.

The Spectrum known as [magnetismJ , as Akane once said, was a talent that belonged to the 'uppermost tier* of humanity.

Her focus was artificial. Using 「magnetism」 to more tightly bind the neural networks—synapses—in her brain, she could enhance processing speed, memory, and all other capabilities. She could remember everything she saw once, and complete all calculations in an instant.

Even more, this ability applied to non-logical aspects as well.

She could even trigger 'creativity.'

The side effects were scarce.

…ln fact, they were fatal.

Manipulating the brain's neural network inevitably stirred emotions.

This was especially true when dealing with creativity and innovation. Whenever Elise engaged in emergent thinking that combined rational and emotional thoughts, she always suffered.

Because she frequently thought of 'Shion Ascal:

His blond hair, his golden eyes seemed vividly before her, and the days they had spent together felt as fresh as today.

These side effects made Elise feel lonely, but she converted even that into passion, and eventually, she was promoted to a third-tier mage.

It was the fourth fastest promotion in the history of Edsilla.

“…Well, thafs the story- Even I can't fully grasp my own talent.”

Elise smiled and twirled her hair with her finger. She had just spent the Last 30 minutes bragging about herself.

She had that much to share.

“…….”

“…….”

“…….”

Layla, Asher, and Kain, who had come to see her, looked somewhat dumbfounded.

“Well, any thoughts? Hehe.”

Elise chuckled, crossing her legs.

Layla scratched the back of her neck.

“…Yeah. Impressive, Elly.”

“Yeah. You're really something.”

Asher retorted. Elise's brow furrowed.

“Thats gross. Asher, try saying that to the mage you serve later?”

The real side effect was something else entirely.

Elise had already been steeped in the ways of a mage. She treated knights as mere bodyguards or servants, and she always considered herself superior, no matter where she was.

“Ugh.”

Asher sighed deeply. Elise Looked genuinely flabbergasted.

“Now you're sighing too. Are you really going off the rails? How do you plan to team up with a mage later?”

“Never mind that. Did you hear? Shion got his knight certification.”

“…”

Elise was visibly shaken. Shion Ascal was a significant weakness for her.

Not without reason; every time she used [magnetismJ , old memories surfaced, naturally fostering feelings even though they werenl meeting.

She would come to like Shion Ascal more day by day.

“…Yes, I heard.”

Maybe we'll meet on a teaming mission later? No, she's an elite mage, so she can just appoint him.

Elise pursed her lips like a cat, looking forward to an upcoming mission.

Kain asked,

“Hey. Do you still keep in touch with your parents?”

“…Mother contacted me. She must have heard some rumors.”

The Magic Tower was on par with, or perhaps even superior to, the Round Table families. Naturally, Elise's ambition was to head the Magic Tower.

Because of Elise's revelations, the prominent influence of the Petra family had been undone.

“Really? Oh. So, Petra is becoming a magic family now?”

“lts becoming Elise's Petra.”

It was the process of changing from Ken's Petra to Elise's Petra.

Not Petra's Elise, but Elise's Petra.

“No! That's not what we came to ask about!”

Layla's face contorted with frustration, like a bulldog.

“We came to ask about Raquel Dra. How far have you gotten with that investigati o n 7”

“…Ah, that?”

Elise smirked.

“The analysis is almost done. Kve managed to replicate that chimera formula to some extent.”

Raquel Dra's chimera formulas are almost unraveled, thanks to Elise's own [magnetismJ .

“T've incorporated an old man into the magic I'm developing, and once it's complete, KU be invincible. Huh.”

Layla narrowed her eyes.

Seeing her chuckle about being invincible, it was clear that being confined in the Magic Tower could indeed cause issues.

It wasn't the people that were the problem; it was the Magic Tower itself.

“…Really. Layla. More importantly, have you ever used artificial intelligence?”

Suddenly, Elise was back to her usual self.

Layla shook her head with a look of discomfort.

“l've tried it a few times. It felt odd, so I stopped using it.”

“…Yeah. There seems to be something off about it.”

It was creepy, or perhaps eerie.

While the performance of artificial intelligence was undoubtedly helpful, the strange vibes it gave off made it unappealing.

It was probably not just a simple feeling. A mage's Five Senses are exceptionally sharp.

Elise said,

“Let's go to the symposium together.”

“Are you talking about Ortus?”

“Yes. Get us some entry tickets.”

Elise commanded Layla as if she were a maid. Layla's eyes narrowed.

“…Elly could get the tickets herself.”

“I don't have the time. Oh, and arrange transportation. A truck or even a private jet would be fine. Bianca needs to be able to come along too. And, it would be nice if there were plenty of desserts and coffee inside. I want to continue my magic research on the way…”

Elise rambled on about her desires for nearly 20 minutes, and Layla genuinely looked fed up.

All this time, I thought all mages were odd, but that wasn't the case.

It was being trapped in the Magic Tower that caused these issues…