Chapter 45: A New Faction
Arc navigated across the slightly unfamiliar island after the merging of the two islands and wound up at a glade in the center of the island where the buildings from the Avariel island had been transferred to. But it was also around the area where Arc’s bunker had been.
He didn’t rush to use the map and decided to find his bunker amongst the buildings while giving himself a tour of the infrastructure.
There were four buildings in total: the manor he’d fought Rhea in, an armory which contained a few basic weapons, a forge which was the most interesting find, and finally a sleeping quarters, which was the largest building in the set, with a common room and a bar downstairs.
Arc was impressed and tilted his head to look at the Avariel healer, who hadn’t spoken since.
He’d explored all the other buildings but couldn’t find his bunker, leaving only the manor. The moment he stepped into it, he noticed a vast difference.
Unlike the other buildings, the blueprint and design of the duplex were neat and intricate.
He didn’t exactly have time to explore the manor, which looked like it held much more important things than the other buildings, and went straight for the first door on the ground floor.
It turned out to be a near-empty study room with the basic necessities, and luckily for him, a familiar metal trapdoor was tucked into one side of the room, leading down into his bunker.
He turned to look at Rhea, who was by the door like she was avoiding close contact with the miniature Seraphina, who was all over him.
"I’ll be gone for a bit, and this study room is now prohibited to everyone, including you. You can wait for me anywhere in the manor, and your job till I’m back is to not let anyone into the manor. Whoever uses force is to be paid in kind. Hope I made myself clear?"
He turned to descend into his bunker, but when he didn’t hear a reply from the Avariel healer, he paused to look at her, Seraphina mirroring his actions.
"O-Of course... I’m not deaf," she replied reluctantly, mumbling the last part to his hearing.
Arc sighed internally. He didn’t have time for her at that moment and might have to rough her up a bit before deciding what to do with her.
He disappeared into the bunker and quickly pulled up his status screen, his eyes dropping to a miniature [Switch] action button by the side of the [Island Management] tab.
It should be impossible to be in control of two different islands, but Arc was an exception with his [Dominator] Talent and got the little button that not only switched between islands under his control but displaced him to the corresponding island.
Having only two islands for now, he tapped the button once and the scene around him immediately changed.
He was standing in the middle of a wide throne room, now cleared and clean of the dead crimson goblins littered about the last time he was there.
There was an intimidating figure casually relaxed on the throne. They frowned upon spotting an intruder, but the moment Arc was recognized, the Destroyer tensed and quickly sat up.
Arc looked around for a bit at the peaceful atmosphere before walking towards the throne, where the Destroyer immediately shot up and stood to the side like he was offering Arc the throne seat.
Arc didn’t mind. He sat and crossed one leg over the other.
"To what do I owe this... pleasure?" the Destroyer asked in a nervous tone.
Arc didn’t reply immediately as he thought for a moment.
He’d initially come here to interrogate the Destroyer regarding other Authority Devils when an idea crossed his mind.
Arc had initially decided to stay low-key and power-level himself selfishly, aiming for the rankings, which came out much sooner than he’d expected. But at the same time, his growth had been absurdly fast over the past few days.
He wasn’t ignorant and knew his identity had been exposed to everyone who cared to know, including Zemira and her faction. There was no hiding it now, and Arc wasn’t planning to hide forever.
It was time to make a bold move now... especially after he awakened a sustainable fraction of his past life’s memories.
Contrary to his initial intuition, Arc hadn’t died at all at the hands of Max’s party. He had plotted and managed to escape to another island, though not without the help of some people. And it was during the chase to retrieve him that he had his first encounter with Lilith.
Though from that point onward, Arc’s life became relatively better and he broke out of his shell, using that same ability he was enslaved for to his advantage.
What he never anticipated was the inevitable fall of the invisible guillotine hanging over his neck the moment he made a deal with the devil.
On his quest for greatness, Arc had become the target of multiple powerful and influential figures—both players and Primordials—who were out for his head, and only survived long enough thanks to Lilith’s loyalty.
Arc was also aware now that the source of his betrayal and desire for revenge upon his first regression wasn’t just directed at Max’s party, but at the entire universe, including the three great factions and their respective leaders.
He couldn’t understand Lilith earlier, but Arc understood everything now. Lilith might not know the full story, but whoever pointed her in his direction had seen his resentment for these Primordials.
Whoever they were knew too well he’d end up seeking revenge against these three core factions, whose destruction could very much upset the balance of the universe. Yet they had still guided Lilith to him.
That could only mean two things: either they had a personal grudge against these factions as well, or they were aiming for a change in the system and believed only he could bring it about.
The first option didn’t sound like something a being who’d lived for thousands of years might do, and if it was the second option, this being was playing chess on a universal scale, plotting a coup that would dismantle the great factions.
But an army was needed for a war on that scale.
An empire was needed.
A new faction had to rise from the dust to seize control.
The only person capable of doing that... was him.
If a new faction was going to rise and challenge the heavens, then Arc would gladly build it.