Kai shook his head. "I don't know, man," he said haughtily. "I will contact others first, then I will decide what to do."
"Haha!" Ravana laughed. "OK. Don't be too late about it, though. Your situation is worse than you imagine."
With that, the channel got cut off.
Kai gritted his teeth, but there was nothing he could do about it.
He was just thankful for the fact that the other Sponsors couldn't hear or know that he had already contacted one of them.
He hastily made the Systems establish another channel, this time with Contestant Black Mountain.
A powerful voice demanded the Multiverse ID even before Kai had asked anything.
After a few minutes of negotiations, this channel too got cut off getting no substantial results.
A trace of extreme wariness was making Kai's heart palpate now.
With a hard face, Kai made the Systems establish a channel with Contestant Jade Beauty. A woman's voice replied to his inquiry this time, demanding Multiverse ID again.
This was a dead end too, Kai realized, cutting off the channel.
How could he swear an oath without knowing what this world's oddness represented?
Kai knew the Sponsors were demanding this absurd thing from him because he had no other choice. If he wanted to survive, then knowledge was a must, because God knew he didn't have enough power to survive what was to come.
Only two Sponsors remained, and Kai's throat was becoming dry now.
Would he have to swear an oath? No. Kai shook his head. No matter what, he must not subject himself to their outrageous demands.
Once he was to lose the initiative, it would all go down the road from thereon.
It was the basic principle for any business.
"Ara-Ara!" Once again the sweetest voice reached Kai's ears, along with a screeching sound of whetting a sword. Kai couldn't help but praise the D-Mail. Even the words were the same as though she was speaking to him for the first time.
Well, it was the first time for her, at least.
"Hello, handsome," Aphrodite said. "You want to ask about the Random World you are in, don't you?"
"Yes," Kai nodded. "May I ask what you want in return, my lady?"
"I want little," she intoned. "Just one thing."
With the sword of premonition hanging over his neck, Kai asked, "What is it?"
"Tell me your Stats, swearing an oath upon Chaos' name."
This… Kai thought, his eyes widening. This fucking bitch!
Even after being rejected, Aphrodite didn't let Kai cut off the channel, and kept prodding him about his Stats, his experiences, and the Random Worlds he had been to before.
Only after half an hour had gone by did Aphrodite snort, cutting off the channel by herself.
Kai was already sweating by then, the sun sitting above the horizon on its red-orange throne.
Only one remained. If there was hope in Kai's heart, it was less than being called minuscule.
The Systems established the channel, and a refined voice reached Kai's ears.
"Hello, kid," Shadow Origin said, his voice neither grim nor cheery. "Don't swear an oath on Chaos' name to give your Multiverse ID to anyone."
Huh?! The very first sentence shocked Kai. What the… ?!
Somehow, this suggestion made Kai even more warier towards this person.
"I know you want to know about the current state of your Unique Random World," Shadow Origin continued. "Don't worry. I will demand nothing absurd."
Kai stared at the gurgling river in the distance and nodded. "What do you want?"
"After learning your answer," Shadow Origin demanded, "you are forbidden to contact any Sponsor other than me."
The moment Kai heard it, his heart surged with joy, but outwardly he showed a dense, pained, and ugly expression. When he accepted this request, it looked like someone had asked him to eat shit.
Even if Shadow Origin wouldn't be able to see Kai contacting other Sponsors, he could easily find out from the System how much time Kai had left with each Sponsor. So, there was no option to cheat, either.
"Good," Shadow Origin praised. "First, let me ask, do you know why the Mission Grades don't reflect a Mission's Difficulty?"
Kai had asked this question to Meg but had gotten no satisfactory answer. So he shook his head.
It was time to listen as much as he could; not speak.
"A Mission Grade tells how difficult it is to gain resources from that mission under the same circumstances as that of others, regardless of the difficulty level," Shadow Origin told him. "So, a E- Mission Grade may represents the same danger to a 1st floor's Contestant's life as a D- Mission Grade, but in the former case, it is comparatively easier to gain rewards.
"And Contestants are nothing without rewards and resources, you must have realized by now."
Kai had to nod.
"But as one goes up," the 18th-floor Contestant continued, his tone becoming serious, "this difference between difficulties enlarges between subsequent Grades. For example, the difference between difficulties of D and D+ Grades is twice that of D and D-. By the look of your eyes, it seems you have realized where I am going with it.
"The Systems do find Unique Random Worlds for Candidates during the Tournament of Worth sometimes, but it doesn't mean it would keep increasing a Mission Grade, even if the said Candidate has absurd Stats…"
Kai didn't fall for the obvious trap and kept his face plain as though he didn't know what the word absurd meant.
"Anyway," Shadow Origin said, his voice gaining an edge, "when a Candidate's Stats become so absurd that the Systems have to go beyond C Mission Grade, despite the Candidate having no chance to survive such a Random World, it doesn't just go for the next grade, i.e. C+, because one can't even compare all the missions from E- to C to a single C+ Main Mission.
"In such cases, the Systems use a Random World Setting, known to the Contestants as —
"Verse Fusion!"
Verse Fusion?! The words echoed in Kai's mind like a death knell.
"Let me elaborate." Shadow Origin's tone softened. "You can consider all the Random Worlds and their infinite Timelines in the Multiverse as distinct Symphonies. Even a single change of a musical note results in a drastic divergence.
"Now, all these Symphonies may or may not share musical notes among them, but they seldom cross each other's path.
"Yet, under exceptional conditions, if two Symphonies share musical notes, then they can superimpose, resulting in a brand new Random World."
Kai's pupils trembled. "Are these musical notes you spoke of," he prodded, "Laws?"
Silence.
Only after a few seconds did the voice return.
"Brilliant!" Shadow Origin sounded amazed. "If you have already guessed the identity of the musical notes, then you must have found out what these superimposed Symphonies represent, too.
"Yes, you are guessing true, Red.
"Verse Fusions are nothing but a source of natural Multiverse Interdependencies, where instead of Contestants, it is the main storyline Characters who show a fusion of Concepts from different Random Worlds."
No wonder, Kai thought, amazed. No wonder they want the Multiverse ID of this world. They don't want just random rewards, Titles, or milestones. They all want to learn about these natural Multiverse Interdependencies.
If it wasn't for Meg, Kai would have never known the weight of these two words.
Multiverse Interdependencies were the ladder to the top. Without it, one could forget becoming a Top Contestant.
Kai had Multiverse Interdependencies of his own.
The Characters of the book, and Kai's plans of using their Scientific knowledge as the ladder's steps. Then there was Facelessness, combined with his Reincarnation privilege. And thus, he knew very well how horrendous a task it was to get one's hands over a fresh Concept.
Just when Kai had thought it was already a god-given opportunity, Shadow Origin said something that broadened his view beyond the world's horizons.
"But the true worth of Verse Fusion lies not only in its uniqueness," he told Kai, almost chuckling. "The core of Verse Fusion can be summed up with three facts.
"First, it is a once-in-a-lifetime event. In the history of the Primordial Tower, only the Tournament of Worth is known to birth these Random Worlds.
"Second, having the Multiverse ID of these worlds lets a Contestant treat these worlds as their playground. You must know the concept of the Open World Games. Something like that, but the only player is you.
"And third…
"… third makes kings, kid."
Kai had heard this before. Meg had told him something like this when he confronted her to become his slave.
Skills make soldiers, Abilities make kings!
"Verse Fusion," Shadow Origin said solemnly, "lets a Contestant fuse Abilities."
**************
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