Tartarus was notified when the spell failed. However, what angered him was not long afterward, he received a visit from the government to revoke his permit to operate Planet Rochbach because of harming the citizens. At the same time, he had to pay a hefty penalty fee.
Tartarus did not care about all of this. What he cared about the most was the fact he failed the mission from the secret organization called Underworld. He dismissed the messenger while thinking to himself.
Their organization received the help of a powerful Diviner with a bit of Seer Bloodline. That person divined the existence of lynchpins of the Empire. However, they could not pinpoint the exact person; they could only forecast many people who were possibly the lynchpin.
Amongst these five individuals, Chris Tiu was one of them.
After pondering for a moment, he counted his leader, Hades.
"What is it?" asked Hades, also showing up as a shadowy figure.
"The mission failed," stated Tartarus in a low voice.
"Do you know what you're saying?"
Tartarus knew the severity of his failure. Their group could only detect the Empire's lynchpin before Empress Luna because she was only Tier 6 and had not wholly mastered her powers. Meanwhile, they received the foreign of a high tier Diviner.
Their task was to change the fate of these lynchpins before they were detected, preventing them from growing into the individuals that would fundamentally change the Empire. Upon success, they would receive unimaginable rewards.
"What exactly went wrong?" asked Hades.
"I don't know exactly. I had a Tier 5 Arcanist cast the spell to prevent it from being traced back to us. However, not long after Chris returned home, I sensed the spell being broken.
"A few minutes afterward, the government came knocking on my door."
"Has your identity been discovered?"
"No. I've covered my track. They probably think I was using Planet Rochbach to do illegal business."
"How did Chris break the spell?" asked Hades, which was the question he most would like to know.
"I don't know. But I suspect the government has already detected his lynchpin status and has people watching him."
Tartarus had no proof for this statement, but it was the only one that made sense logically. Furthermore, he would say anything to absolve himself of this failure.
"Fine. Lay low for a while," ordered Hades before cutting the communication. He did not believe Tartarus' explanation since there were too many holes. For example, if the government had already detected Chris' existence as a lynchpin, Tartarus would never survive.
The moment they detected something wrong with Chris, they would arrest him, keep him in the rumored Secret Quantum Prison, and torture him for information. The Empire would not stop until they investigated him thoroughly.
Hades left him off because he needed the wealth and influence of Tartarus. If Underworld were to succeed in its mission to destabilize the Arcane Empire, it would need all the help needed.
Planet Earth:
Chris finished his session with Dr. King, feeling better and refreshed. He had a few more sessions, but he was once again feeling like himself.
"Dr. King is truly wonderful: talented, caring, and… beautiful." His face blushed a little before remembering he was an 80 years man despite looking like he was in his 40s.
He sat down to think about his future. "I need to go back to school."
Chris understood that education was the most direct way to elevate his status in the current era and the best way to decrease the time needed to save up for that potion.
He surfed the web searching for information about Spirit Software Engineer. As the name implies, it is the magical version of being a software engineer.
This field appeared even before the establishment of the Empire when wizards found a way to fuse a soul with a computer. They discovered that any regular soul has a large amount of computing power if dealt with properly.
Further studies showed that spiritual powers or soul strength could be transmitted to large distances with little effort. Interstellar communication was easily established by building one server on mars and one on Earth.
Spirit Web was also more secure than the normal web as hacking involved dealing with a mass of conscious spiritual power. As a Spirit Software Engineering, Chris would develop software for the web, which is not too far from his job since he was a regular software engineer.
Chris first looked at schools that specified this subject and hesitated whether to apply. He was not worried about the process of attending school since it was free. Besides high-level knowledge used by powerful Arcanists, universities and other forms of education are free.
However, Chris was worried about whether these schools would accept him since they had different requirements. He felt he was not in the mood for a lengthy application process, nor would he like to deal with rejection.
So, he decided to sign up for the Arcane Online University.
'The Emperor really likes the name Arcane,' joked Chris in his mind. The word Arcane has become a joke amongst the populace due to how much it is used when naming government-related things.
Anyone citizen could apply to Arcane Online University to learn any subjects or get their degree. Any job or company accepts the certificate from this online university since the government guarantees it. Most graduates will, in fact, receive direct invitations for government positions.
Without wasting time, Chris signed up and had his first class three days later. This class was more on the syllabus for the first year of the course, which involved learning many Coding Languages.
Chris knew he had to learn various languages like the Soul Language Code, derived from the Soul Language that some devils spoke. There was the Ancient Rune Language, Arcane Rune Language, and many others.
After the first class, Chris felt a sense of excitement he has not felt for a long time. So, he decided to invest in his education by buying a Young Brain Potion.
It is easier for children's brains to absorb information and knowledge, which is why it's easier for them to learn multiple languages at a young age. This potion reverts the brain to that stage while keeping the focus and determination of an adult.
It is cheaper than things like the Eidetic Memory Potion, so Chris did not hesitate to buy it. For the next few weeks, he would go to work, work out at home, and go to school through the virtual network.
Then, he had his first test on the program. Unfortunately, he failed miserably. The written portion of the exact was fine, but Chris performed terribly in the practice portion.
After the test, he received a summon from a guidance counselor at the university. The advisor told him that this course relied heavily on spiritual strength, and as a Tier 0 Aura Master, he had very little of it.
If he wanted to pass the course and graduate, he would need to be at least Tier 1, but he advised it would be best to reach Tier 3 as soon as possible.
This news devastated Chris because he was about to dip in his savings. He realized he could forcefully raise himself to Tier 3 Aura Master by piling resources, but all his savings would be gone, meaning he would have to save for more than 140 years before buying the potion.
Of course, that estimate did not consider his earning potential after graduating and getting his certificate. Ultimately, he gritted his teeth and purchased the things he needed; he placed faith in himself and the future.
Five years passed, and Edward had secretly left. Chris was in the last year of the six years program. One day, he was walking home, thinking about last night's class. Suddenly, the world around him began to shake uncontrollably.
Chris felt the sun suddenly disappear, even though it was the middle of the day. He raised his head with difficulty to look above, and his face changed, full of undisguised horror.
