The Eclipsed Order

Chapter 159: Chapter 159: A New Era for the Eclipse/ The Order’s Hidden Foundation

When I returned to Starlight, I headed directly toward the spacious room Aurora had provided for the three of them.

I hadn’t even reached the door when I heard voices coming from inside.

Loud voices.

More specifically, Draven and Cedric were arguing about something.

Astra’s voice occasionally joined them, although hers sounded considerably calmer than the other two.

I stopped in front of the door.

What could they possibly be arguing about this time?

I opened the door.

The three of them immediately stopped.

Draven was standing in the middle of the room with his arms crossed, Cedric was holding something in both hands, and Astra was sitting nearby with an expression that suggested she had already grown tired of the argument.

I looked at the three of them.

"What are you doing?"

Nobody answered immediately.

Then Astra pointed toward Cedric.

"Master, he’s the one who broke it."

Cedric’s expression changed.

"What?!"

He immediately turned toward me.

"Master, I didn’t break it! It suddenly stopped working, and Draven keeps saying I did something to it!"

Draven scoffed.

"Because you were the last one using it!"

"That doesn’t mean I broke it!"

"Then explain why it stopped working immediately after you used it."

"How would I know?!"

I sighed.

I already had a pretty good idea what they were talking about.

"Give it to me."

Cedric quickly handed me the phone.

The screen was completely black.

I pressed the power button.

Nothing happened.

I pressed it again.

Still nothing.

I turned the phone over, checked the sides, and then looked at the screen once more.

Ah.

The answer was painfully simple.

"It’s not broken."

The three of them stared at me.

"Really?"

"Then why isn’t it working?"

I looked at the phone.

"The battery is dead."

All three froze.

"...Dead?"

Draven’s expression immediately became serious.

"Then I’ll resurrect it."

He stepped forward.

Before I could stop him, he placed both hands over the phone.

A powerful magical aura gathered around him.

"Resurrection."

Nothing happened.

Draven frowned.

He tried again.

"Resurrection."

Still nothing.

His expression became increasingly confused.

"Why isn’t it working?"

He stared at the phone as though it had personally insulted him.

"How can my resurrection fail?"

Cedric looked at him.

"Maybe you don’t know how to resurrect it."

Draven’s head snapped toward him.

"Of course I know how to resurrect something!"

"Then why isn’t it working?"

"Because..."

Draven looked down at the phone.

"...perhaps it’s a particularly powerful artifact."

Astra leaned closer.

"Should I try healing it?"

I sighed.

"Don’t."

They all looked at me.

I took the phone back.

"It’s not a living thing. Your resurrection and healing magic aren’t going to work."

I pressed the power button again.

Nothing.

"It’s simply out of battery."

"Out of battery?"

Cedric tilted his head.

"Yes. The phone stores electrical energy inside its battery, and once that energy is depleted, the device can’t operate until it’s connected to a power source again."

The three listened with complete seriousness.

I glanced at the phone.

I really should have brought a power bank.

I had been so focused on returning to the other world that I hadn’t thought about something as simple as charging my phone.

"There isn’t exactly a place here where I can charge it."

I looked at the three of them.

"Still, if you like it that much, I’ll buy something better next time."

Their eyes immediately brightened.

"Something better?"

I nodded.

"An iPad."

The three stared at me.

"A... iPad?"

"It’s basically the same kind of device as a phone, except the screen is much larger."

I held my hands apart to demonstrate the size.

The three pairs of eyes widened.

"That big?"

"Yes."

Draven’s expression instantly changed.

"I want one."

Cedric nodded.

"Me too."

Astra raised her hand slightly.

"I would like one as well, Master."

I looked at the three of them.

"Fine, I’ll buy one for each of you."

Their expressions brightened immediately.

"Really?!"

"Yes."

I sighed.

"That way, none of you will have to fight over a single device."

Draven’s face became serious.

"We weren’t fighting."

Cedric immediately looked at him.

"You were accusing me of breaking it."

"Because you were the last one using it."

"I told you, I didn’t break it!"

I raised a hand.

"Enough."

They immediately stopped.

"And I’ll buy several power banks too."

Draven tilted his head.

"Power banks?"

"Yes. They’re portable batteries."

I held up the phone.

"When your phone or iPad runs out of battery and you aren’t near a place where you can charge it, you connect the power bank to the device with a cable. The power bank transfers stored electrical energy into the device’s battery, allowing you to use it again."

Draven’s eyes widened.

"So it’s a portable source of power."

"Exactly."

His expression became strangely fascinated.

"Then it’s basically a magical battery."

"No."

I shook my head.

"It’s technology."

Draven stared at me.

"Technology."

"Yes."

"Not magic."

"Correct."

He looked toward Cedric.

Cedric looked back at him.

Astra was already staring at me with the same level of interest.

I sighed.

This is going to be troublesome.

The three of them suddenly looked like children who had just been promised an entire box of sweets.

Draven stepped closer.

"Master, what other things does this world have?"

Cedric’s eyes brightened.

"Are there more devices like these?"

Astra’s tails suddenly appeared behind her.

Her human form had already begun to fade as her curiosity overwhelmed her.

"Master, are there other things that can do things like this?"

A knock suddenly came from the door.

I looked up from what I was doing.

"Come in."

The door opened.

Aurora stepped inside.

She closed the door behind herself before approaching me, then stopped a few steps away and lowered her head respectfully.

"Master."

"Aurora."

I looked at her.

"What’s the matter?"

"May I speak with you for a moment?"

"Sure."

Aurora nodded.

"Please follow me."

She turned and left the room.

I followed her through the corridors of Starlight until we eventually reached her private office.

Once inside, Aurora closed the door and walked toward her desk.

I took a seat across from her.

"So?"

Aurora remained standing for a moment before placing several documents on the desk.

"There’s something you should know, Master."

Her expression was more serious than usual.

"We’ve continued investigating the remnants of the laboratories responsible for the experiments we encountered previously."

I leaned back slightly.

"And?"

"We’ve discovered evidence that there were stronger subjects involved than the ones we originally encountered."

My expression changed slightly.

"Stronger?"

"Yes."

Aurora opened one of the reports.

"We still haven’t uncovered their complete identities or the full extent of their abilities, but according to the information recovered from the laboratory, they referred to themselves only by numbers."

She placed several pages on the desk.

"Number One. Number Two. Number Three. Number Four. And Number Five."

I looked at the documents.

"Number..."

Aurora nodded.

"During the incident at Laboratory Number Seven, Leonora eliminated the subject they encountered there. However, before his death, she managed to access his memories."

She paused.

"The man identified himself as Number Four."

I narrowed my eyes.

Aurora turned another page.

"We haven’t found reliable information regarding their whereabouts, so we can’t confirm whether that subject exists."

I nodded slowly.

"And how strong are the four confirmed subjects?"

Aurora’s expression became slightly more serious.

"According to the information we’ve gathered, they’re comparable to the Seven Crowns."

I was silent for a moment.

That was considerably more interesting than I had expected.

Aurora continued.

"However, you don’t need to be concerned about them, Master. The Seven Crowns are more than capable of dealing with individual subjects of that level."

"I know."

I thought about it for a moment.

"Valentine and Aoda should be enough."

Those two were particularly troublesome when they were given an opponent worth fighting.

Valentine was aggressive enough to turn a battle into a massacre if she became serious, while Aoda had developed a habit of treating powerful enemies as though they were simply another opportunity to test her abilities.

"Given how vicious those two can be, I’m sure they’ll enjoy themselves."

Aurora gave a faint smile.

"That is precisely what Samantha said as well."

"Samantha?"

"She was curious about the strength of these subjects."

I couldn’t help sighing.

"Of course she was."

It seemed that curiosity about powerful opponents was becoming a common trait among the stronger members of the organization.

I glanced back at the documents.

"Anything else?"

"Yes."

Aurora placed another report on the desk.

"There’s also an update regarding the organization itself."

I looked at her.

"Currently, Starlight has six hundred and seven members."

I paused.

"That many already?"

"Yes."

Aurora nodded.

"The number has increased considerably over the past few months."

She opened another document.

"More importantly, the members have improved enough that our previous ranking system is no longer sufficient."

"The ranking system changed?"

"Yes."

"The Seekers and Sentinels have progressed significantly since you last evaluated them. Their combat capabilities have improved to the point where keeping them in their previous positions would no longer accurately represent their strength."

She placed several documents beside one another.

"So we’ve promoted the members who qualified."

I looked over the revised structure.

"What about the upper ranks?"

"The Vanguard, Watchers, and Harbingers remain within the fifth level of the organization."

I nodded.

"And the Harbingers?"

Aurora’s expression became slightly more satisfied.

"They’ve improved considerably."

She turned another page.

"After you personally granted them Eclipse power during the previous incident, their strength increased far beyond what we originally anticipated."

She paused.

"They’re now significantly stronger than the Reapers were before their own evolution."

I looked at the report.

"So their growth has continued."

"Yes."

"Good."

I leaned back.

"That means everything is moving according to plan."

Aurora bowed her head slightly.

"Yes, Master."

There was a brief silence.

Then Aurora opened another document.

"There’s one more matter concerning our headquarters."

"Go ahead."

"Octavia has completed her research."

My attention immediately shifted toward her.

"Already?"

"Yes."

Aurora nodded.

"We now have an underground transportation network connecting the main headquarters to several important locations."

"Transportation network?"

"More accurately, a series of concealed teleportation chambers."

Aurora pointed toward a diagram.

"They’re located beneath the headquarters and connected to several underground facilities throughout the kingdom. Members can travel between these locations without using roads, carriages, or any other conventional means of transportation."

I looked at the diagram.

"That solves our supply problem."

"Exactly."

Aurora continued.

"Food, equipment, materials, documents, and other supplies can be transported through the network without exposing their routes to outsiders."

She tapped one of the marked locations.

"If someone attempts to investigate our movements, they’ll find very little. There are no regular caravans to follow, no large groups of wagons carrying supplies, and no predictable roads connecting our facilities."

I smiled faintly.

"When it comes to things like this, Octavia really is reliable."

"She has been exceptionally thorough."

"I wouldn’t expect anything less from her."

Aurora nodded before moving to another report.

"We’ve also completed another improvement."

"What is it?"

"The barriers surrounding both the main headquarters and Starlight have been reinforced."

"How strong are they now?"

Aurora’s expression became slightly proud.

"The barrier surrounding Starlight is composed of several overlapping magical formations, each based on a different type of magic."

She continued explaining.

"The formations don’t remain static. Their structures change every few seconds, meaning the barrier is never exactly the same twice."

I raised an eyebrow.

"So even someone capable of identifying the formation wouldn’t have enough time to analyze it completely."

"Exactly."

Aurora nodded.

"Even an Archmage or a Sage would have difficulty breaking through it. By the time they understood one layer, the formation would already have changed."

I stared at her for a moment.

That was considerably more sophisticated than I had expected.

"Good work."

Aurora lowered her head.

"Thank you, Master."

I looked toward the window.

The idea itself was excellent.

A fixed magical barrier could eventually be analyzed.

A constantly changing formation was a completely different problem.

"To think you came up with something like this."

I looked back at her.

"No doubt the Four Black Roses."

Aurora immediately shook her head.

"Compared to everything you’ve given us, Master, this is still nothing."

I looked at her with a slightly confused expression.

"You don’t have to compare everything to me."

Aurora blinked.

"Master?"

"You’ve all grown because you’ve actually used the power I gave you. The organization has grown because all of you have put in the work."

I leaned back in my chair.

"So don’t dismiss your own achievements simply because I happen to be your leader."

Aurora remained silent for a moment.

Then she smiled faintly.

"Understood."

She gathered the remaining documents.

"There are still several other matters."

"Such as?"

"The movement of the demons."

That immediately caught my attention.

Aurora opened another report.

"Our scouts have confirmed increased activity along several border regions. Small groups of demons have been moving through areas that previously showed little activity."

"Any connection to the Demon Kingdom?"

"Most likely."

She placed several marked maps on the desk.

"We haven’t confirmed a large-scale mobilization yet, but their movements suggest that they’re preparing for something."

"And the humans?"

"The kingdom hasn’t noticed the full extent of it."

Aurora’s expression became serious.

"Most of the activity is still hidden from ordinary intelligence networks."

I studied the maps.

"So they’re moving quietly."

"Yes."

"Then keep watching them."

"Of course."

"Don’t interfere unless necessary."

Aurora nodded.

"Understood."

I looked through the remaining reports.

Laboratories.

Numbered subjects.

The Demon Kingdom.

The organization’s rapid expansion.

Everything was beginning to connect.

The world wasn’t becoming quieter.

It was simply becoming more complicated.

Still, there was no reason to rush.

We had six hundred and seven members now.

The Reapers had evolved.

The Harbingers had grown stronger.

The Seven Crowns were becoming increasingly powerful.

The Four Black Roses were developing the organization into something far more sophisticated than the small group it had once been.

And now even our headquarters had become almost impossible to infiltrate without our permission.

I couldn’t help smiling.

"Good work, Aurora."

She lowered her head.

"Thank you, Master."

I stood from my chair.

"For now, continue as you have been."

"Yes. Thank you, Master."

Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!