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Chapter 747 - Others you should be wary of
🕑 Added 2025-12-01 09:58:27 +0000 UTCPOV Lily Chen
When Nathaniel returns to the common area, he immediately sits down.
At first, nothing happens, he simply sits there, dealing with his body upgrade. But after a few seconds, his shoulders begin to shake. A moment later, he coughs, and a bit of his blood sprays onto the ground beneath him.
I do not step in, but I worry that he may have wounded himself too much again and is in pain. That thought disappears when I realize what is actually happening.
Nathaniel starts laughing, his shoulders rising with the effort. He laughs loudly and openly, which only causes him to cough up more blood that dirties his lips and chin. None of this stops him at all. That laugh grows louder and louder. For a while, it even seems like mana and thermal energy explode around him in sync.
He is laughing just like a child who pulled off a trick he is very proud of.
The entire time he laughs, he curses at the System, at himself, at the tournament, at some random cowardly thylarin with a bow, at Savant, and for some reason, at the Ruler of Diligence because of something that happened in the armory and in the end he even wishes for Elydor to be resurrected, just so he can kill him again.
When his crashout stops, he turns to look at me with that bright smile still on his face. None of his complaints has taken even a speck of happiness out of it. Even as he is now, every second and lost concentration away from death, he looks more lively than ever before.
Seeing that I look at him in surprise, his smile only widens.
Any words I would have said get stuck in my throat as I watch that smile. As it slowly disappears, and he returns to his usual expression, I feel a great loss.
Just how it all could have been if his childhood had not been the way it was.
***
POV Nathaniel
The rest of the second event continues even without me, and both sides fight over control of the bridge. Yet, it becomes super easy for Earth to win. There is no building up defenses or anything else, they just rush over the bridge while dealing with deadly green lashes, toxic mist, and the bridge’s mana disrupting material. Then they clash against the thylarin, who are missing a good chunk of their number because an unexpected explosion went off in their midst.
Christoph does not participate in the event at all and just sits it out, which allows the rest of the Hell difficulty groups to do their stuff.
I honestly think Earth would stomp that thylarin planet called Nythis even without me or Christoph. Earth’s talent pool is something incredible, even with the advantages some more “powerful” races should have. Earth has no things like Demon hearts for demons, Wyvern bloodlines for vyssari, inborn mana storage for lumorans, high strength and durability for velnar, or the flying ability of feylith, and the talent for mental skills they possess.
Yes, humans keep chugging along, and through sheer spite, contest all these races. Like cockroaches that do not have these advantages and instead have to come up with all these fucked up ways to stay in the race.
If you think about it, was it not like that for humans pre-tutorial as well? Every child in school, every adult at work, every greedy CEO, and everyone tries to come up with a way to game the system and to make things easier for themselves or gain an advantage.
I love that cockroach-like spirit. Go, humans, go.
Oh damn, my good mood is showing, isn't it? Though it lasted only a minute or so, I was able to function almost normally for that time, leaving a nice gift to these “blueies.”
Of course, I now suffer for it, but it is worth it. That short burst gained me 1st spot in the second event, and I already moved my rewards towards the end of the tournament.
Too bad for the assholes who counted me out or the people in the common area spreading that I am washed or fell off, or whatever Dennis said they say. Also, fuck Samuel, who once again seems like he would rather lock me somewhere and have Biscuit eat the key.
“Lily, participate in the 3rd event,” I tell her.
She is sitting far enough away not to be constantly damaged and where her durable body can endure these effects, but close enough to keep an eye on me.
“Are you sure?” she asks.
I confirm, “Yes, I already made modifications and developed a few specialized subminds to help me. I also have a new plan.”
“Sophie would be scared of anything called 'new plan' when it comes from you.”
“Yes, but it is better this way and requires only a few modifications. I got a little inspired by our First Beyonder. If you think about it, am I not the best thief? I am starting to lose count of how many of my best ideas come from watching you guys or some monsters or people I fight along the way. Anyway, please do not tell Sophie.”
“I will not.”
“Thank you.”
“No problem, Nat.”
“No, Lily, I mean it. Really, thank you. Like a true thank you, not just a word you throw in to be polite. Thank. You.”
“Sure,” she smiles at me. “I guess you should say at least that much for what I have done if you are not entirely shameless. If you think of it, I gave up on two events and probably very good rewards. While you get your improved upgrade, new plan, whatever that is, and even participate in the events.”
“If you put it like that, I feel sorry for you.”
“You should.”
“Okay, so what do you want? You know me, I will not come up with anything good by myself.”
“You are full of shit, you know very well what I want, but it would be pathetic to force it this way. I remind you I can be very patient, and I was able to make even Grumpy like me. But... for now, I will keep that thankfulness to myself and use it later.”
I squint my eyes and ignore goosebumps. “I am not a cat, I have to remind you, but okay, I guess,” I say in the end.
“Okay,” she says as well, ending the conversation.
***
Unfortunately, it seems like Tent Creep will not be returning this tournament. I am sure people will miss him and his great items as well. Yet, I cannot find myself to be too disappointed. I do not think I would make that many shards, and even if I did not have my body upgrade to deal with, I do not think it would be the best use of my free time.
Another thing I might miss out on is meeting some people. Damn, I almost sound like an extroverted lunatic here. But here I mean it a little, there are some things I want people to pass to Channeler outside, messages, items, and such. Then there is also, for example, Miwa, who could show me some blacksmithing. Now, with improved knowledge, I would like to check her left arm again, that pink robotic one made by Champion Keiron.
I am sure I will be able to modify my subminds enough to handle the body upgrade to the point where I get a few minutes of free time. Even if the difficulty keeps increasing, I am cocky enough to think I can improve faster. I will use these minutes to make weapons out of my Manabloc. At this point, they should be able to last over ten years if I focus on it and be extremely durable and sharp, shields, projectiles, and simpler armors. I can make a lot of that.
Then there is Manatex, clothes I can make out of woven mana threads. The same as the weapons, they can be made to stay stable for years, and the thread is more durable than some upper-rare armors I have examined.
As of late, I have even started making multiple threads, experimenting with stitching, and all that to make Manatex better. So it feels softer, stretches a little, is not as bulky, and is lighter or lets air through. All that kind of stuff.
The disadvantage is the color. All Manatex is pale blue, sometimes darker blue if the threads are more dense. One day, I might even make them out of Ley Lines, but not anytime soon. Though tricolored Manatex would be nice.
Not long ago, Maya asked me to make chainmail out of Manatex mixed with Manabloc, where the outer layer was rings made of Manabloc, and underneath, connected to it, were softer threads of Manatex.
It took me a long time, with her looking over my shoulder the entire time, but the result was really cool. If I get items like these to Channeler, it will help him a lot, and I truly trust the guy, he knows what he is doing.
I know the others do similar things, especially Lily, with disintegration orbs trapped in a box made out of her bones, weapons made out of her bones, or armor grown out of her bones.
There is a clear line of thought to follow here.
What excites others the most are the healing marks she decided to place on some people. She started working on transferable ones, or a way they would work without being modified for a certain person. Maybe they could be tied to an item, a piece of her bone, if we follow her line of thought.
Though there is always a risk with these marks and the way they heal. The ones I get are probably the most advanced ones because she created them by experimenting on me, and we went through a lot of variations.
Once the barrier flickers, it brings me back to the present, and I watch the flickering red light around Christoph die off as he walks closer to stop near Lily.
He apologizes to her for sending her away before and then asks if she could leave to let us two speak.
Lily looks at me, to which I nod, and she leaves the two of us alone. Once she is gone, that red barrier surrounds us, and Christoph looks at me with a question.
I shrug, which causes him to smile, and two red arms reach out from him to touch my shoulders, after which the mana raging inside me calms down to the point it feels like closing a window and cutting off the sound of a blizzard outside entirely.
“I want to congratulate you on your performance during the second event. I expected something like that, but it was great to watch anyway. I would like to offer you advice, or I would love to take you as a disciple, but I know how you would feel about any of that,” he says.
He says it even though he knows the emotions it will make me feel, and does it only to watch my reaction with amusement. I do not feel cruelty or being looked down upon, just like how he said before... someone older and more experienced making fun of the younger generation and the mistakes they make.
In a way, I suspect he does it all very purposefully, even showing me parts of him he knows I will dislike. It is like he wants to be honest with me and show me as much of the real him as he thinks will work in his favor. The same as me, he knows no one is perfect, and he likely knows I prefer it anyway.
He just needs to look at Group 4. There are many things I dislike about most of the members, and the same goes from them to me, yet... it works out somehow.
However, this kind of behavior from him irks me, but he knows that as well.
“Thanks for the congratulations, and you are right. So what do you want this time?” I ask.
Christoph seems to give it a thought before he says, “When you return to the Beyond, try asking your Handler, Lady Greed, who was Lioren’s Handler back then. Also, ask her how long she has known about me and who it was that connected me with the Warden of the Parallax Eyes, so I could gain The Chronometric Formula of Planetary System Awakening.”
He offers a weak smile. “You may realize that even if you do not trust me, there are others you should be wary of, just like me.”
“You seem to have had a lot of help. Are you sure you used to be a powerful Absolute?” I ask instead, watching if my words will have the effect I want.
They do not. Christoph only smiles wider, looking at me in a way that makes it obvious he knows exactly what I am trying.
“You know,” he says, “I have heard from my Handler about your 'master' and what she has done so far, as well as where she is currently. It is obvious you are comparing me to her. It is even expected of you to look down on me. In the end, in your eyes and your feelings, I have given up, did I not? I chose the easy way to start over, blaming all my failures on early me rather than my lack of skill or effort. And now, three years into the tutorial, I finally kill a Champion with all the advantages I had, while her imitation already defeated the Ruler of Envy. With all that in mind, I am nothing, am I not? Just a failure.”
“But?”
“But, ask your Handler. She will tell you more. You might understand my abilities a bit more then,” his head looks towards the sky, even a very specific spot of it. “She will not break any rules or agreements by sharing that information if I allow it, but please, Lady Greed, do not share too much. I deserve some privacy as well.”
No matter how long I look at that same place, I do not see anything at all.
Comments
Hellnhavoc
I’m not gonna harp anymore after this comment. I don’t really like how this guy and the assassin chick undo the MCs struggle just because the mc needs something to struggle against. It’s like lol they are more powerful because reasons.
Avedi Musungu
I really don't get the excessive Adrian/Christoph hate. He has just enough plot armor to make things interesting for Nat. Lord knows what a snoozefest it would be for Nat to totally own another tournament yet again Can't our dear protagonist not handle a little competition?
Avedi Musungu
Yeah...a story from Adrian's POV would be so epic. Making him a villain character is a great twist to the trope though
Rodmin
Yeah I'm also a bit sad how the tournament turned out. The past two tournaments were some of my favorite chapters and now we don't get to experience it and all the possible stuff that could have happened in it. I loved how the different earther groups interacted, the auctions, the way nat tried out so much stuff because of the immortality, the events themself... Now it's only nat laying around and adrian-guy talking and plotting and apart from our group and victoria the other earthers all seem irrelevant.
Balsamic ThunderThighs
Its funny that we could have had a story where it started off in the lens of Adrian. Where we would be reading the story of a alien transmigrator coming to Earth and rooting for him with his sad back story if being an absolute (no pun intended) buttoned failing to be the very best that ever was and betraying his rival friend and possibly more.
Al
Agreed. I’ve loved the story around it to date, but if it ends up just being ‘more conductive’ or whatever, I’ll be disappointed. I’m expecting it to actually incorporate mana into it, and have it directly synergize with his skills, particularly [manifestation]
Johnny
What do u mean by resolved? Just his full backstory? I mean we have the gist right
Poutine Au Syrop d'érable
Isn't that formula, to know when planets will awaken. Thats what the name implies in fancy talks. And thats what he did. He foresaw earth awakening, so he set his reincarnation there at the right time.
Marin Schmidt
While all the things with Adrian are a great twist I would really love it would be resolved in the next couple of chapters. It might be just me but I really don't feel the twist benefiting the characters or the story. It's a great way to solve the mystery and an unexpected twist greatly written. I just don't feel it much
Gutz
I really hope this upgrade is some crazy absolute level stuff and not some kind of simple mana stone body crap because it took sooooooo many chapters already! I loved them of course hehe
Ivan Jelenić
Meow
Ivan Jelenić
Btw, we need someone to bond the big Manasaur on the 9th floor, so Biscuit can keep playing with him, and so that Earthlings run in fear, screaming, when he appears after the tutorial. Maybe Maya can bond him since she has a preference for big mana constructs.
Ivan Jelenić
When Nat becomes Absolute, will Biscuit benefit from it too, as a bonded pet? Or the opposite, when the benevolent deer-jerky munching bestest doggo overlord becomes Absolute, will his bonded pet Nat benefit from it?
Ivan Jelenić
So, he gained an ability to affect/buff a whole planet? Or align himself better with a whole planet to get better benefits from it when he's an Absolute? If it lets him keep the Absolute buffs when not on the planet, it would be an insane ability, even on the level of Absolutes/Rulers.
Ivan Jelenić
Fraudrian hahaha I like it!
Hugh Peeble
I got chills from Lily’s thought about how things could have been for Nat if not for his childhood… kudos Cerim. goosebumps from Nat? Is that good or bad anticipation on his part? false claim by Nat that he is not a cat after clearly meowing at Lily last chapter… i don’t know which girl to root for in all the ships that are possible but it is hard not to hope for Lily after interactions like this.
Jordan Jones
Think of it like a nerf. Nat’s being nerfed, that way he “isn’t able” to confront certain things and people for this tournament, and he must struggle on and find a way to excel despite his unfortunate circumstances. I find it only a little bit contrived. He’s been abusing the system for a while, so in my view he earned this nerf. Arrogant little shit lol.
GloinJr
👶
Brady
She sure does deserve it, but also I think there are far too many progression fantasy stories that avoid romance like a plague, even when it would benefit the story. Gets old after a while. I would much prefer at least a smidge. Cradle had a successful romance, but it was so low-key you’d be hard-pressed to find anyone upset about it.
William Johnson
"I am not a cat" doubt.
Kirin
Thank you for the chappie!
Kevin
Isn’t Nathaniel the definition of a terrible bet. I mean, realistically speaking crazy risks often just end in death. We know he has plot armor and that the risks will pay off but someone like Ruby has probably seen thousands of people less risky and more talented than Nathaniel kill themselves with crazy risks. Nat is probably the worst bet from their perspective.
Edmund Dillon
I want Lis to beat that wanna be avatar's ass✊🏿🤙🏿. Tftc!!!!
Al
Although I’m glad the series is romance free, I do hope that Lilly gets her man[a daddy] by the end. She deserves it. Also that heart breaking line about Nat’s childhood
tishane Imperial MageKiller
I just love Nat as a character I like the way he lives win or lose mentality aslong as I give it my best, but also he knows his limits when he's up against someone he cant beat. He falls back get stronger then trashem and Adrian is funny comparing himself to the OLD Monster lmao 🤣 😂 to me shes peek think if she wanted she could make Nat as strong as Adrian in a month with hand holding but because that kinda hinders growth in away and Nat wouldn't go for it either thats why she trains him the way she does.
Michel Kommers
You guys ignored the most important part of the chapter, NAT got goosebumps.
Reps A
Starting to drag hopefully the wait for this upgrade is worth all the hype :o
zoarian
Regardless of what Adrian does, he will not be a match for Pride. Pride is the most powerful being in the universe - a true monster - he won't be beaten by having a slightly more optimal build or whatever. Even if that materializes in a 200% power increased, it will do fuck all against Pride, since he's way better than the 2nd strongest Ruler. Like orders of magnitude better. The only way he can be beaten is breaking new ground, taking crazy risks and overcoming them, over and over again. It has to be new cause everything "standard" would've already been tried and the ceiling to the standard approaches is known to not be enough. Whereas if an attendee is doing their own thing the limits are unknown, and could be much higher. It's why I think Nat is a legitimately good bet. Like, it's a pretty safe bet his power ceiling will be way higher than standard and it's more a question of whether he'll keep taking the risks to continue on the trajectory and if he'll survive to reach the peak of his potential. Like, he might still die but at least he'll keep taking crazy risks to reach his peak, and his peak potential is unknown.
Farxzay
Man, I love Christoph as a character here! He feels like such a perfect antagonist for Nat. Basically having maximized ‘talent’ since birth, having spent all his life, and into his old age, preparing for the System Integration, then receiving special treatment during the tutorial, he kind of represents everything Nathaniel would hate in a person, and that’s before even getting into his personality. This man had all the advantages going into this, and acts like he is so far above everyone else, that all we readers want to see is him crashing and burning after our hero shows him the true strengths of the humans of Earth. Plus, I just love how much people are commenting about how much they hate the guy, so keep up the good work Cerim!
caeven
yeah I hate that dude. The fact he was even allowed into the tutorial and then spawn killed ACTUAL beyonders with real potential just pisses me off. washed off dude trying to cling to relevance. Daring to compare himself to Lyssandra, wo didn't get to benefit from the tutorial at all and still became the second strongest character in the verse.
granndfunk
What in the good world of Biscuit is going on with this body upgrade stuff? Can we finish it? It's been hinted at and talked about for so much of the past while and I am ready to move on. Hopefully soon
rams
System likely selects those most appropriate for the tutorial + no way it ignores a potential beyond starter. Second, this is Chris' first tutorial. He just happen to have a complete Adrian download at birth or before. Perhaps something akin to LEF where the bodies have to level up. Chris got only 1 clone but kept some/most/all memories.
Need For Read
He just keeps flexing on the noobs fr. Liss never needed to do that
Apollo Greed
We not your lil bros! We don’t have any big bros around here! Only sisters!
Andrew Kluttz
Yeah, alright, we get it. The dude isn't trustworthy. Nat is still stupid prideful. Everyone is using everyone and pulling strings to advance their own agendas. Cool. Can we get back to the core elements that make the series cool? Nat finishing his body upgrade, kicking ass in the tournament. Going to the beyond to find out answers, fixing his constructs or getting rid of them and finding a brand new way isn't stupid? Ya know... Faster paced, progression, protagonist with cool powers kicking butt?
Josh Betts
How dare he compare himself to Nats true master. The only thing he is right about is, he is nothing compared to her god I hate this dude and so would Liz Liz
TwistedVanity
Query. He went to a planet not yet awakened to redo the tutorial. Soooo 1. How did he know he would be selected for the tutorial. Not even 10% of the population is. 2. Why would the system allow it? Im sure it was mentioned earlier the system prevents people doing the tutorial twice.
Rafael Nehou
Glad to see I’m not the only one who can’t stand The First Loser. Still, I really don’t like the concept of the returning Tutorial attendee in itself. I suppose the Rulers did it to have some fun, but is it fun ? Adrian is boring, he barely did anything for 3 years and is now killing some S ranks Beyonder for whatever reason. I mean… Grow up dude. I sincerely hope there is some grand scheme doing this, otherwise, this dude juste wasted his second life and our expectations
Budgie
The more Fraud conversations I read, the more I dislike him. Trying so very hard to flex. Insecure and a Fraud aye lmao
Danny
Holy that guy givs me such a bad taste I hope mana dady teach him he is not even as strong as some Nobel Ladys pet.
Audrey WJ
The more I learn about Adrian/Christophe and his motives the more I dislike him and really want to see all of that arrogance and self assurance come crumbling, he thinks he's so untouchable it pisses me off, definitely the most punchable attitude so far ugh 🙃.
Adrian Rake
Another epic chapter. As always , more info more questions to answer 🙂👍
Skyra
He is curently nowhere near Christoph he is technically catching up, but only one who may be on Christoph's level is Biscuit.
Azril Aditya
He really trying his best to make Nat look up to him, even comparing himself to The cockroach. But i have a feeling the more Nat learn about him the more he going to look down on him.
RJ Barnes
I mean being outclassed by a who knows how long he was an absolute for douche bag makes sense. It would be weird for Nat to be able to outpace someone like that, especially since he’s incomplete
Lance Beam
TFTC.
Val the mysterious Jedi
How is Fraudrian sound like the most punchable person I have read.
Val the mysterious Jedi
Fraudrian is the name for that tool from now on
Erebus
Thanks for the chapter
Melih
People were belittling and mocking Christoph so excessively that it looks like Mirec had to intervene (ಠ_ಠ)
I Is Patron
Greed helping Adrian makes perfect sense. She wants a weapon to kill Pride and has been making hundreds if not thousands of investments over the years. Why would Nat ever care about that? Fraudrian really doesnt understand Nat at all.
Sushitrash
Damn seeing Nat so outclassed irks a bit but it's exciting knowing how much he has to improve. Once he stabilizes his body with all the new power ups it's gonna be insane no doubt. ALSO, the line "Just how it all could have been if his childhood had not been the way it was" hits way too hard man. I love Lily and her outlook on Nat
Erebus
Eeeee
Slapjack
Great analysis
Madje Tobi Marc'Avent Tchona
Who was that again?
Claro reyes
Tftc!!!
Stoney
TFTC! I want to take a week or 2 break so I can gorge on the backlog but I just can't handle that!
Sadyix
"in your eyes and your feelings" It has nothing to do with feelings, it's literally what you did, bitch.
Damian Karis
I’m curious if any of the events will have Kings like the 2nd tournament; presumably Nat would be the King as he won the 2nd tournament.
JTP
I'm more excited to see the effects of the body upgrade, but seeing Nat finally kill off this asdhole is a real close second.
Konrad Pagacz
I got to say. Christoph/Adrian is kind of pathetic. Nice couple of chapters, BTW. Very believable character building and seeing the mentalization efforts of Nats is great! Good job with that one, it really adds depth to the character. The danger of these stories is that the main character gets to be a self insert due to lack of internal monologue that distinguishes the character from the reader. Here we have an example of the opposite - a careful desription of Nats thoughts AND feelings, which makes it harder for readers with a starkly different personality to identify with the character easily. This emancipation is what makes these chapters great. They break slightly monotone descriptions of events and give colour to not only chapters but also our understanding of the character.
frankie doerr
It’s crazy to think even without all those advantages Nat still ranks at a level the cheaters that are restarting need to respect
Rene Duvall
Peak as always
Andrew
Thank you!
firte
Tftc
okatmosphere
Tftc
Sondadir
Elydor !! My old friend, it's so good to see you being referenced in the story again ! 🥹 If there's an avatar event I want him to die again a few hundreds times !
BlackRazaras
Thanks for the chapter
vEnviouz
TFTC!!!
