Cleaver Of Sin

Chapter 740: Wakanda

The cars shot forward at a ridiculous speed that was even faster than Enduron horses, faster than any vehicle Asher had ever seen in his previous life. The world outside the car window became nothing more than a literal smear and blur, yet strangely enough, he felt absolutely none of the effects such speed should have caused.

’This car is moving at a speed only high-ranking Life Rankers should be capable of achieving,’ Asher thought inwardly as he found himself unable to comprehend what type of technology these people were using to generate such speed while simultaneously reinforcing their vehicles against the strain.

At the very least, within the stories and novels he had read back on Earth before his transmigration, technologically advanced fantasy worlds always possessed some sort of monster cores filled with mana as an energy source capable of powering inventions far beyond what ordinary electricity could ever hope to achieve.

But within the world of Crymora, Astra Energy Stones or magical cores were not even concepts that existed.

’Unless things are different within the Thalvorn Empire,’ Asher thought to himself.

Although he wanted to dismiss the idea entirely, he simply could not. The absurd difference between the Thalvorn Empire and the Zarethorne Empire still left him deeply confused. If they were truly this different, then perhaps their own Monsters, Emovirae, and Beasts were also unique to the point they possessed Astra Cores or some similar source of energy.

But at the end of the day, that was merely speculation on his part.

Within the car itself, William, Finch, Vaelric, and Ryaen were already chatting endlessly amongst themselves. Even Ryaen, who was normally not much of a talker, was speaking more than she had throughout her entire year at the Star Academy.

"So this is the surprise you were talking about," Asher finally spoke, his words directed toward FatelessPen, who sat opposite him with a calm smile plastered across his face.

"You are surprised, aren’t you?" FatelessPen replied casually, he paused briefly before continuing, "although it seems as though you are already familiar with the Thalvorn Empire’s technology, which should technically be impossible." His tone was low as he met Asher’s gaze directly.

Asher did not panic, he understood that he had displayed completely different emotions and reactions compared to the rest of the Star Academy students. He was quite literally the odd one out amongst them, and with the perception of a Crownstar Life Ranker, it would have been impossible not to notice.

Asher did not respond to the statement, instead, he simply remained calm, his eyes fixed upon the blurred scenery racing past outside the windows.

"Anyway," FatelessPen continued with a carefree smile after realizing Asher had no intention of entertaining his probing game, "as you’ve probably guessed already, the Thalvorn Empire built the Sky Jet."

As he spoke, he waved his hand, creating a noise-cancellation dome that concealed their conversation from the driver. Not that he was about to reveal some grand secret or hidden conspiracy, it was merely a matter of privacy.

Asher nodded silently, "did the Thalvorn Empire gift the Sky Jet to the Principal, or did the Principal purchase it herself?" he asked calmly as his eyes shifted toward FatelessPen.

"Neither," FatelessPen replied immediately. "The Thalvorn Empire merely loaned the Sky Jet to the Zarethorne Empire specifically for transporting foreigners to and from their Empire." His voice lowered slightly. "If it were truly possible to purchase something like the Sky Jet, then surely lesser forms of technology such as cellphones, cars, and bicycles would have already been bought and transported back to the Zarethorne Empire."

At those words, Asher immediately frowned slightly as FatelessPen’s explanation made perfect sense.

Technology was a marvel regardless of the era, the nobles of the Zarethorne Empire, with all their wealth and influence, would undoubtedly have attempted to acquire even the smallest fragments of such advanced technology if it were possible, yet Asher had seen absolutely none of it within the Zarethorne Empire.

Which only meant one thing.

"As you’ve likely realized," FatelessPen continued while staring directly at Asher, "the Thalvorn Empire does not share its technology with anyone. Not even something as insignificant as their streetlight poles. They are nicknamed ’The Ultimate Gatekeepers’ for a reason." FatelessPen mused lightly. "Not a single piece of their technology has ever left the Empire unless they themselves permitted it." He shook his head afterward.

William, Ryaen, Finch, and Vaelric were already listening attentively to FatelessPen’s explanation. After all, these were things they would never have been able to discover even within the Imperial Library.

’So they’re basically Wakanda, except they aren’t black,’ Asher mused inwardly as memories of the Marvel series surfaced within his mind, specifically the hidden nation absurdly advanced beyond the rest of the world while hoarding its technology.

The Thalvorn Empire was not much different from them. Well... except unlike Wakanda, they did not pretend to be a poor third-world nation drowning in debt while secretly possessing overwhelming superiority.

’The Ultimate Gatekeepers, huh?’ Asher mused inwardly at the nickname.

"Besides," FatelessPen continued without missing a beat, "even if things like cars were somehow smuggled out through Space Rings or various abilities, the lands within the Zarethorne Empire are not suitable for such vehicles in the first place. Unlike the Thalvorn Empire, our own Empire does not possess tarred roads and proper infrastructure."

"Ehhh... what exactly are cars, cellphones, and tarred roads?" Finch suddenly asked as he stared curiously at FatelessPen.

Ryaen, Vaelric, and William also turned their gazes toward the man as they silently awaited explanations, clearly unfamiliar with the terms themselves.

FatelessPen could not even be bothered explaining verbally. Instead, his pen flickered across the air, and in the next instant, four books titled "Technology Terms, Meanings, and Images" materialized from midair before dropping neatly into their hands.

The books contained all the technological knowledge FatelessPen personally knew regarding the Thalvorn Empire, information completely foreign to the people of the Zarethorne Empire.

"I’m guessing you do not require one," FatelessPen stated as he turned toward Asher, not even bothering to hand him one of the books.

"I don’t," Asher replied calmly.

He did not bother pretending ignorance or acting clueless like the other students, if he had been reborn as a mere commoner, perhaps he would have acted differently, but he was a Wargrave, he possessed overwhelming backing and influence.

Would FatelessPen truly dare kidnap him or interfere with his life simply because he did not act shocked by technology? Definitely not.

After all, no sane individual wished to experience the wrath of Azaron or Malrik firsthand.

FatelessPen stared at Asher silently, genuinely intrigued by the fact that Asher already possessed prior knowledge regarding technology, something that should have been completely impossible.

Yet he did not probe further.

He was already aware of the incident involving Duke Azaron annihilating the Assassin Guild and killing their Crownstar Life Rank leader, Valentine, simply because they had targeted the Tenth Sun.

He also knew that Azaron had openly attacked the Imperial Family because the Emperor had dared tamper with the Tenth Sun’s mind.

With so many massive events revolving around Asher himself, anyone possessing even a single functioning brain cell would understand that the Wargraves did not joke around when it came to the Tenth Sun.

Yes, he, FatelessPen, was powerful.

But powerful enough to go toe-to-toe against the Primarch himself?

He was not nearly that naive. Malrik alone was already troublesome enough to handle.