Chapter 275: Synthesis.

Chapter 275: Synthesis.

Kael paused.

He had been using his power all this time?

For a moment, his mind went back to the battle against the Supreme Being. Was Athom referring to the power he’d used back then? It was the only explanation that immediately came to mind.

But the more Kael thought about it, the less it made sense. The way Athom had said it, especially the words all this time, didn’t sound like he was referring to a single incident. It sounded like something that had been used repeatedly.

Kael’s thoughts began to turn rapidly.

There were plenty of abilities he’d used consistently since his regression, but every one of them had a source he could trace, or at least thought he could.

Then something came to mind that made his eyes widen. There was, in fact, one thing he could think of.

"By your power..." His voice came out slower this time as the realization began to take shape. "Do you mean the Multiplier Talent?"

The moment he said it, his expression changed completely. That was the only thing he could think of that actually fit.

Back when Athom had confronted the Supreme Being, the clash between the two entities had been so overwhelming that Athom had been forced to shield Kael from their auras. Even so, Kael had sensed something from him during that battle. At the time, he hadn’t paid it much attention, there had been far too much happening around him.

But now that he thought about it, that feeling was strangely familiar.𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

Every time his Infinite Reward Multiplier activated, he felt something pass through his body. It was faint, almost impossible to notice, like a small surge of energy that disappeared before he could properly identify it. Because the sensation had always been so subtle, Kael had never connected it to anything beyond the activation of his talent.

Now, though, he was finally piecing it together, and that was the conclusion he arrived at.

Athom’s voice finally sounded again.

"You got it right, kid."

Kael’s mouth fell open.

For several seconds, he simply stared forward, his mind struggling to process what he had just heard.

None of this made sense.

If Athom was somehow connected to his Infinite Reward Multiplier, then just how long had he been there? How much of Kael’s journey had been influenced by something he hadn’t even known existed?

He quickly gathered himself and looked toward the empty space before him.

"So wait."

His expression became serious.

"Are you the one responsible for my regression? And what about the interference during my Tower Tutorial?"

There was a brief silence.

"Well, none of that was me."

Kael blinked.

Athom continued before he could ask anything else.

"I’ve been dormant inside your body for quite some time. I only managed to awaken because of the interference during your tutorial. That interference provided enough energy for me to finally break out of my dormancy."

Athom’s voice carried a strange calmness as he finished.

"So you’ll have to figure out who was responsible for that yourself."

Kael’s brows furrowed.

That answered one question while creating several more.

Athom, however, didn’t seem particularly interested in giving him the opportunity to ask them.

"Though I can tell you one thing."

His tone changed slightly.

"You’re quite the reckless one."

Kael’s expression stiffened.

"You’re this weak, yet your fate is already entangled with numerous Supreme Entities."

Athom sighed.

The sound carried the feeling of an old man looking at a child who had somehow managed to get himself into trouble again.

"How careless of you."

Kael’s expression twitched slightly, but Athom continued before he could respond.

"Regardless, you need to become stronger. Quickly."

His voice became more serious.

"If your fate continues becoming entangled with so many Supreme Entities, eventually something will crush you beneath the weight of those connections."

Athom fell silent for a moment.

"And if that happens..."

Something changed in his voice.

For the first time since their conversation began, Kael could clearly hear sorrow within it.

"Who knows how many eras I’ll have to wait? How many realities I’ll have to travel through to fulfill my task?"

Kael remained silent.

He could feel the weight behind those words, but he wasn’t exactly in the mood to sympathize with Athom. There were still far too many things he wanted answers to, and every sentence Athom spoke seemed to open another door instead of closing the ones already in front of him.

Unfortunately, Athom didn’t elaborate.

"Anyways."

His tone suddenly became casual again.

"Talk time is over."

Kael’s eyes twitched.

"What?"

"Accept it already, will you?"

Kael stared at the screen before him.

The same two options remained displayed in front of him.

He stared at them for several seconds before finally letting out a quiet sigh.

"Well, whatever."

There wasn’t much point in arguing with someone who had apparently decided the conversation was already over.

Kael reached forward and selected Yes.

The instant his finger touched the option, the screen changed.

[Synthesis Process Has Begun.]

[Estimated Time Until Synthesis Completion: 2 Hours.]

Kael stared at the notification.

"Two hours?"

He was about to ask why the process would take that long, but then he remembered what was being upgraded, a Mythical-grade Rule Card used for the synthesis. His expression eased slightly.

Considering the grade of the card and whatever changes the synthesis was meant to bring, two hours probably wasn’t unreasonable. If anything, he suspected whatever was happening inside the system was far more complicated than simply combining two ordinary items.

Kael leaned back and decided to wait.

"Athom?"

No answer.

Kael waited a few seconds before calling again.

"Athom?"

Still nothing.

His expression slowly darkened.

"That bastard."

Apparently, Athom had gone silent again.

Kael wasn’t particularly surprised. He still had countless questions he wanted to ask, but Athom had already mentioned some kind of great rule preventing him from directly affecting the physical world for long. Their conversation was likely restricted by the same limitation.

There was no point in wasting time shouting into an empty space.

Kael would simply have to wait until Athom decided to speak to him again, or until he figured out how to get through to him.

For now, there was nothing left to do.

His gaze returned to the screen.

The countdown continued to tick down slowly, second by second, with no indication of what was happening behind it.

Kael leaned back in his chair and stared at the remaining time.

Two hours.

As he watched the numbers slowly tick down, he had a strange feeling these would be the longest two hours of his life.