Chapter 666: Sovereign

"What the fuck does that mean?"

Amunet didn’t answer immediately, her eyes moving rapidly over notifications that Grey couldn’t see while the temple continued to tremble around them. Whatever the Genesis System was doing had already moved beyond simply recognizing Earth, and Grey could feel it now, a strange pressure passing through the world beneath his feet as though something impossibly large had finally noticed the planet existed.

Another notification appeared.

—

[World Integration Interrupted]

[Conflicting Sovereign Authorities Detected]

[Earth-Origin Population currently exists beneath 317 recognized jurisdictions.]

[Reconciling claims...]

—

Grey stared at the number.

"Three hundred and seventeen?"

Amunet’s expression had gone pale. "The people taken from Earth weren’t all sent into one region."

Grey had known that much in theory, but seeing a number attached to it made the scale settle differently. Millions of people hadn’t simply disappeared into the Genesis Games, they’d been scattered so widely that more than three hundred separate powers had managed to establish some sort of recognized claim over them.

James leaned closer to the notification even though it wasn’t meant for him. "What does jurisdiction mean here?"

"It can mean a lot of things," Amunet said, her voice becoming quieter. "Citizenship, military conscription, territorial residency, contracts..."

Grey looked at her. "Slavery."

Amunet didn’t respond.

The temple shook again, this time hard enough that pieces of sandstone broke free from one of the pillars and shattered against the floor. Grey’s chains spread around Benn and the others without him thinking about it, catching the largest pieces before they could reach anyone.

Then the Genesis System continued, its notifications spilling forth faster and faster. Grey truly couldn’t remember it ever being so talkative.

—

[World Earth possesses no recognized sovereign authority.]

[Integration cannot proceed without a qualified World Representative.]

[Searching...]

[Primary Integration Authority located.]

[Native Status Confirmed.]

[Authority Threshold Confirmed.]

[Existing Sovereign Qualifications Confirmed.]

—

Grey’s brow rose.

"Existing what?"

Amunet slowly turned toward him.

—

[Grey Temolt has been recognized as the acting Sovereign of World Earth.]

[Title Granted: Emperor of Earth]

—

Grey stared at the notification.

Then his grin spread so wide that Sabrina immediately sighed.

"Finally."

James groaned. "Oh, fuck off."

Grey turned toward the group and spread his arms. "You heard the Genesis System. Emperor Grey Temolt. I believe this is the point where all of you kneel and apologize for the years of disrespect you’ve shown your rightful sovereign."

"Eat shit," Duke said.

"That’s treason."

"Then execute me."

Grey pointed at him. "Don’t tempt me, peasant."

Benn snorted. "Emperor, huh? Still can’t fix a tractor worth a damn."

Grey placed a hand over his chest. "The jealousy in this room is disgusting. First none of you worship me as a God, now you refuse to acknowledge me as Emperor, and frankly I’m starting to think Earth doesn’t deserve me."

Sabrina rolled her eyes, but Amunet wasn’t laughing.

"Grey."

He looked toward her, grin lingering until he saw her expression.

"The title matters."

Grey’s smile faded a little. "Yeah, I gathered that from the whole Emperor of Earth part."

"Not just politically." Amunet stepped closer to the floating notifications. "The Genesis System recognized you as Earth’s sovereign authority, which means every native human who hasn’t willingly severed that connection now falls beneath your claim."

Grey’s eyes narrowed.

Amunet didn’t need to finish the thought.

"The people under those three hundred and seventeen jurisdictions," Grey said.

"They belong to Earth too."

The next notification appeared immediately.

—

[Conflicting Sovereign Claims Confirmed]

[World Earth maintains primary ancestral claim over all Earth-Origin populations.]

[Existing recognized claims cannot be automatically invalidated.]

[Formal Sovereign Disputes Generated.]

—

Grey’s eyes moved slowly across every line.

"How formal are we talking?"

Amunet looked toward him. "Depending on the jurisdiction, anywhere from negotiation to war."

Grey stared at her.

"So I just became Emperor and immediately inherited three hundred and seventeen international incidents."

"Essentially."

Grey rubbed his chin. "That’s kind of impressive."

Sabrina looked at him. "That’s your takeaway?"

"I’m the most hated man in history. Like me or not, I’ll be remembered. This is glory as far as I’m concerned."

Benn’s mouth twitched. "Sounds about right for you."

The temple stopped shaking.

For a moment the sudden silence felt worse than the tremors, and then a translucent layer of pale light swept through the crimson breach in front of them. It expanded so quickly that Grey barely registered it before the wave passed through everyone and disappeared toward Earth.

Sabrina flinched.

"What was that?"

Grey didn’t know, but the System answered before Amunet could.

—

[World Integration remains unstable.]

[Cross-Jurisdictional collapse risk exceeds permitted threshold.]

[Emergency Integration Veil established.]

[World Earth and connected Earth-Origin populations will remain temporarily isolated from recognized Genesis jurisdictions.]

—

Amunet exhaled.

Grey caught it immediately. "Good news?"

"For now."

She walked toward the edge of the temple, Grey following as she looked down toward the sea of chaos. "The System can’t reconcile all of the competing claims immediately, so it’s separating Earth from the wider Genesis System while it finishes the integration."

Grey’s eyes narrowed. "Meaning nobody from out there can come here."

"And Earth can’t reach them either."

That part mattered more.

Grey turned back toward Benn and the others, only to find pale interfaces appearing in front of them now. The screens were crude compared to everything Grey had grown accustomed to, but the Genesis System was clearly registering Earth’s remaining population properly.

James stared at his status. "I have stats."

Duke leaned over to look at his own, then immediately frowned. "Why the fuck is my Intelligence lower than his?"

"Genetics finally catching up with you," Grey said.

"Go fuck yourself, Emperor."

Grey smiled. "You remembered the title. Good boy."

Another notification pushed the banter aside.

—

[Population Registration Complete.]

[World Earth Integration: 71%]

[External Earth-Origin Population Registration: Incomplete]

[Recovery Rights Recognized.]

—

Grey’s eyes stopped on the last line.

"Recovery rights."

Amunet noticed the change in his expression. "The System is recognizing Earth’s right to reclaim its people."

"So I can bring them back."

"If you can."

Grey slowly rolled his shoulders.

That sounded much more like something he understood.

A wider screen unfolded in front of him, swallowing the smaller notifications until a map filled Grey’s vision. Points of light spread across it in waves, first dozens and then hundreds, foreign jurisdictions surrounding Earth until the entire region looked carved apart by borders.

Then the human markers appeared.

Grey’s expression changed.

Clusters covered nearly every surrounding power, some small enough to represent thousands, others so dense that Grey couldn’t immediately make out the territory beneath them. Millions of Earth-born people had been scattered across kingdoms, empires, guild territories and places Grey didn’t even have names for yet.

Sabrina moved up beside him.

"Those are all people from Earth?"

"Yeah."

"Every light?"

Grey’s jaw tightened.

"Yeah."

Amunet was studying something else.

"Grey."

He followed her gaze.

Several territories had begun glowing red.

These weren’t the small jurisdictions packed between larger powers, but enormous regions that swallowed dozens of lesser territories inside their borders. One after another, translated classifications appeared over them.

[Empire]

[Empire]

[Empire]

Grey stared at the map.

Suddenly, the title Emperor of Earth wasn’t nearly as funny.

Every person represented on that screen now belonged to a sovereignty the Genesis System had placed beneath Grey, but many of them also belonged, legally or otherwise, to someone else. Recovering them wouldn’t simply mean finding Earth’s people and opening a door home.

It meant taking them. And some of the people he’d be taking them from ruled empires.

A final notification appeared over the map.

—

[Emergency Integration Veil Remaining Duration:]

[71:59:59]

[Upon expiration, sovereign interaction restrictions will be lifted.]

—

Grey watched the timer begin counting down.

Three days.

Then the map shifted again, red borders flaring around every major power holding Earth’s people as the temporary veil separated their territories from his.

Grey’s eyes moved from one empire to the next.

Three days before every single one of them could reach Earth. And now they all knew who its Emperor was.

Earth’s remaining people had been spread out across the Genesis World, some in locations that shouldnt’ even be breached or touched before the late phase of arc II or even arc III.

And somehow he had to figure out how to save them all in just three days of time.

Grey stood there for a moment, scratching the back of his head. As much as he wanted to crack a few more jokes, he really didn’t have any left. He had not a single clue how he was going to pull this off.