Chapter 160: Alliance core member: Ellen
After inspecting the Origin Laboratory, Lein decided to continue exploring other parts of the city. He wanted to ensure that every project was going according to plan and that the residents were becoming more comfortable living in the City of Life.
One of his stops was at the construction site of a 200-meter-tall skyscraper that would become the new trade center. From a distance, Lein saw a steel beam floating toward the top of the building without any visible support. Curious, he looked down and saw a wide, flat device at the base.
Everything placed on that platform would float up toward the sky. "What an amazing device," Lein said in awe. After the beam reached the top, the workers were busy installing large windows overlooking the cityscape. He paused for a moment, observing an architect giving instructions to the construction team. They looked focused, and the building process was progressing with impressive efficiency.
"Good," Lein thought with a smile. He was proud to see his vision for the city coming to life faster than he had imagined.
As the day turned to dusk, Lein's spirit remained undimmed. He continued his journey, visiting various smaller projects—new public spaces, city parks, and even a new teleportation terminal designed to accommodate more residents.
Night fell, and Lein felt satisfied after hours of touring. Gazing at the star-filled sky, he returned to the city hall. The building stood majestic, towering in the city center as a symbol of governance and control. The streetlights illuminated his path, and the residents still active at night greeted him with respect and admiration.
Not long after, Lein's car, moving slowly around the city hall area, finally stopped in front of the building. As usual, his driver promptly stood by the car and respectfully opened the door.
"Thank you," Lein said casually as he stepped out. He walked toward the large entrance of the city hall at a leisurely pace.
Lein stepped into the city hall, a vast room exuding modern luxury and elegance. The walls were clad in glass and metal, intricately etched to create an elegant and futuristic atmosphere. Crystal chandeliers adorned the high ceilings, casting a soft light throughout the space.
In the center of the room stood a modern bronze statue symbolizing progress and unity, emblematic of the City of Life. Shiny white marble floors stretched to the far end, where a spiral staircase with steel railings led to the upper floor.
Lein walked across the spacious main hall, passing several staff members who greeted him with respect. He headed toward the dining room, where he heard the sounds of light conversation.
"Are there guests?" Lein wondered.
Sure enough, as he entered the dining area, his gaze was drawn to three women enjoying dinner together.
Nita, who was the first to notice Lein's arrival, smiled and greeted him, "Hello, brother, you're finally back. We're having dinner; care to join us?"
Next to Nita, Laras sat calmly, looking relaxed yet still captivating. She raised her hand slightly as a greeting without saying anything. Beside Laras, a girl with twin braids looked shy, her body tensing slightly when she realized Lein had entered. Her face flushed, and she didn't dare to look directly at him. The girl kept her head down, busying herself with her meal, clearly feeling awkward.
Lein smiled softly and stepped closer to the table. "Hello, Ellen, how are you?" Lein greeted the girl with twin braids named Ellen.
Yes, Lein knew who the girl was. The shy girl before him possessed powerful summoning abilities, rivaling even the Beast Masters Lein had encountered in other realms.
During missions or battles to earn points, the girl in front of him always wore a veil, never showing her shy face directly to strangers.
"Hello, leader... I'm good... g-good," Ellen replied, still not daring to look at Lein for long.
Hearing Ellen's broken response, Lein could only sigh deeply. Even though she was a core member of the alliance, the girl in front of him still treated him as a stranger. He then tried to find a good topic to make the girl less afraid of him.
"Haha... you're still as shy as ever. You're amazing, Ellen, making it into the top five ranks," Lein praised enthusiastically.
Not as he had hoped, Ellen became even more embarrassed. She didn't respond to Lein and just sat in silence, staring at her plate.
"Ugh... brother, what are you doing?"
"If you don't want to join us... just go," Nita yelled angrily. She had invited Laras and Ellen because she was tired of being alone. Laras and Ellen were among the three female core members of the alliance; the other member was Hana.
As women, they naturally became closer and formed a special bond that even Lein couldn't break into.
"Agreed," Laras, who usually didn't talk much, also spoke up for Ellen's sake.
"What's with these girls?" Lein wondered, confused. Not wanting to create more problems, he quickly left the dining area and headed upstairs toward his private room.
It didn't take long for Lein to reach the floor where his bedroom was.
Opening the door...
Lein was greeted by a room with a warm, positive atmosphere, enhanced by the city view from the window, adding a cozy vibe to the space.
"So beautiful," Lein said as he removed his outer clothing, gazing at the night view of the city through the window.
Humanity had been in the Divine Sky realm for over a month. Initially, everyone had the same start, the same system, the same opportunities. But only the lucky and chosen individuals would survive. Lein was among them, possessing an SSS-level talent.
Among the top alliance leaders, like the American, Chinese, and Russian alliances, all their leaders had at least S-level talents. An S-level talent never disappoints and always has a significant impact, even if indirectly like Lein's talent.
After changing into his sleepwear, Lein threw himself onto the large bed in the center of the room.
Ah...
Stretching his muscles and joints, Lein felt refreshed and relieved.
"I wonder how the human race chat is doing?" Lein asked himself.
Since the emergence of social media, the use of race chat had decreased. Although race chat allowed long-distance communication and group chats, social media provided various platforms. Some companies even created highly popular apps from Earth that attracted many users in just a few days.
The only advantage of race chat was sending messages over vast distances, while social media required transmitters to send messages between alliances. However, Lein was confident that human technology would advance rapidly, and social media would eventually match the distance capabilities of race chat.
Opening the human race chat, Lein saw that there were still some ongoing conversations.
[Blue Planet Human Race Chat]
- (Blessed One): Hello everyone, good evening. I miss the floods back on Earth 🙁
- (White Rabbit): Tune in tonight, Ariel will be live. Here's the link xxx
- (Haruka): My points have reached 50,000; I'll be promoting to tier-2 in a few days.
- (Jeran): Skill books in the Eros realm are very expensive, don't come to this realm.
- (Han Deg): Promotion at the alliance's world market. Don't miss out.
...
Yeah... the conversations were pretty light. Not as terrifying as the early days of humanity's arrival when every second, every minute, brought news of a fallen human leader.
"Ah... time to gacha ;)" Lein said in a bored tone.
Rising from the bed, Lein walked toward the large bookshelf in the room's corner. The shelves were filled with books on strategy, technology, and world history.
Without hesitation, Lein pulled one of the books from the middle of the shelf. A hidden mechanism clicked, and a panel in the room began to move, revealing access to his private room—a secret chamber where he kept his most valuable possessions.
Lein stepped into the white corridor. At the end of the hallway, a spacious room filled with racks of large golden chests bearing ancient, faintly glowing symbols came into view. This was part of his nightly routine—opening one epic chest before bed. With a faint smile, he walked toward the center of his secret room, ready to see what surprise awaited him tonight.
[Open (Epic Chest), are you sure?]
"Yes."
Suddenly, a purple light radiated from the epic chest, bright and mesmerizing. Tiny stars sparkled around the chest, creating a magical atmosphere.
[Successfully opened (Epic Chest), obtained:]
- Mid-Level Energy Crystal x150
- Lightning Boots - Level 30 x1
- Syamung Seed x10
...
[Successfully opened (Epic Chest), obtained:]
- Energy Crystal x650
- Double-Eyed Sword - Level 35 x1
- Prayer Stone x36
...
That night, only the monotonous voice of the system accompanied Lein. Steadfast, he confirmed each chest opening, glanced briefly at the contents, and proceeded to the next one. The occasional bouts of boredom crept in as he opened chest after chest, but the thought of the potential within each item quickly rekindled his excitement.
With his current power at level 50 Tier-3, Lein already possessed more than five high-level artifacts and equipment. His gear, tempered to a purple grade, provided a 15% attribute bonus. As a result, he wasn't particularly interested in ordinary items—even when level 30 or level 40 items appeared, he would only glance at them briefly before dismissing them.
His chest-opening activity continued until 10:30 PM. Afterward, Lein meticulously tidied up his storage room, ensuring every chest and item was in its proper place before exiting his private space.
With calm steps, Lein walked through the secret corridor connecting the storage room to his bedroom. His mind remained occupied with plans on how to utilize the newly acquired items, especially some valuable ones that could enhance his alliance's strength.