Atticus's Odyssey: Reincarnated Into A Playground-Chapter 1069 Thoughts

Atticus looked at his status in satisfaction. It clearly reflected the power he showed back at the military camp.

Back then, his strength had increased manifold, and so had his agility, endurance, and vitality. He'd felt it all firsthand.

'Looks like my major change is to my stats and elements.'

Aside from his physical stats, the only thing that had clearly changed were his elements.

'Question marks… just like the other one.'

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The art given to him by the superior races had also been unnamed, just like this one.

'Is it because I haven't named it yet?'

All the other abilities in his status had pre-existing names, which would explain why they were already titled.

"Hm," Atticus muttered. "I'll try it out… name it later."

His gaze dropped to his abilities.

'No changes.'

He moved toward the section showing his rank.

'Finally!'

As the word Paragon appeared, his eyes gleamed.

Years and years of effort, and he had finally reached this point.

The Paragon Rank.

It felt surreal… and at the same time, perfect.

Atticus was happy. Genuinely happy.

'Only a few people on this planet can match me now… but—'

His expression hardened. Few still meant some. And that was enough. Enough to remain cautious. Focused. There were still threats.

Flashes of past events flickered through his mind.

'Carius… Drakthanion… the Obsidian Order… the Zorvans… Lucas…'

He needed to take it step by step. First, Carius.

'I was able to kill him… but his actions were suspicious.'

Atticus's thoughts churned. He had found the body of Karn Voss in Carius's space storage. That alone was… off.

'We're only supposed to kill each other. Why was he keeping the body?'

As reincarnators in Eldoralth, the goal was to be the last one standing. Keeping another apex's corpse served no purpose, unless…

'He was collecting them.'

Carius had severed Karn's head and still carried both head and body. Somehow, Atticus had a gnawing feeling he would've done the same to the rest of the apexes.

'He must've convinced Drakthanion to obey him by promising his family back.'

It fit. Atticus drew connections from what he knew, compiling every thread and hint.

'He knows about the core.'

That was the only logical explanation.

'Their bodies contain the core,' he thought. 'That's why he kept the Nullite Apex's corpse.'

Then his thoughts shifted to the Obsidian Order… and their relationship with Carius.

'Knowing his personality, it's unlikely he worked for them. More like a temporary collaboration.'

If Carius had been part of them, the implications would be huge. It would also mean every other apex was worth checking too.

'He must have contacted them after his loss at the Nexus…'

Then something else clicked.

'How did he even find this information?'

Atticus didn't doubt Carius's talents, but defeating Elderish and finding out about the cores was beyond him.

That had to come from an external source.

'The Obsidian Order… or the person behind the scenes.'

The thought slithered into his mind like a snake.

It made sense now.

Just like the Vampyros, the Dimensari had planted imposters within the human domain, and likely within the other races as well.

That alone hinted at something deeper.

Either two separate entities were working in the shadows, one backing the Vampyros, the other backing the Dimensari… or… it was just one person.

Atticus leaned toward the latter.

'It's the same technique… same method of infiltration. That points to a single mastermind.'

And for someone to have influence over not just the Vampyros, but the Dimensari too…

They had to be powerful. Exceptionally so.

Someone like that would definitely know the history of Eldoralth… and by extension, the cores.

'So either Carius found out through that person… or through the Obsidian Order.'

As he reached this conclusion, a realization suddenly bloomed in him.

The Dimensari had six cores.

Seven apexes had died during the Nexus competition. The Vampyros' apex had somehow absorbed the Angel apex's core, Atticus had felt that power in Lirae. But the other six?

They must've fallen into Dimensari hands.

'But none of them have used them yet…'

He hadn't felt it on Carius, Azrakan, or even Eletantron, who were the leaders of their races.

'Maybe they couldn't.'

Unlike Atticus, it was possible they lacked the ability to comprehend the cores. Or worse, they had handed them over to the one pulling the strings.

'In any case… I need to be careful.'

Then, his thoughts shifted to the next looming threat.

The Zorvans.

He had uncovered something insane at the military camp. All his life, the Obsidian Order had been painted as a fanatic terrorist group, one that worshipped the Zorvans, thinking they were divine saviors sent to enlighten Eldoralth.

But that wasn't the full truth.

'The Obsidian Order was established by the Zorvans.' He concluded.

And that changed everything.

It meant the Order wasn't just worshiping them, they were them. Infiltration didn't even cover it. The alliance had been compromised at its core.

'But then… how has the alliance survived this long?'

The thought struck him and he shook his head.

'No. That's not the main point.'

If Xal'zereth, powerful as he was, had been sent on a mission, it could only mean one thing.

'There's someone stronger than him in the Zorvan army.'

And yet… the Zorvans hadn't destroyed the alliance yet. They could have, but they hadn't.

'They're stalling…'

They were waiting for something. And with everything he'd learned, Atticus was starting to understand what.

'The cores.'

The cores could only appear among Eldoralth's native races, and during war, bloodshed could scatter them. The Zorvans obviously didn't want to risk that.

So they waited.

And now…

'They've confirmed the cores have appeared… and they know where to find them.'

'They were never after Eldoralth. They were after the cores. But then again…'

He paused, shaking his head.

'No, that's not quite right.'

Gathering all the cores would make someone a true Eldorian. Which meant…

'The cores are everything,' Atticus concluded.

And if the Zorvans had confirmed their existence… they'd make a move soon.

'I have to deal with the Dimensari, the Vampyros, and whoever is backing them… quickly.'

Atticus resolved. More time wasted on this wasn't good.

Then, his thoughts turned to the last on his list.

Lucas.

'What was that power?'

Lucas had been working for the Obsidian Order, he had already established this fact. He was just an ordinary Expert rank, yet he had trapped Atticus.

That wasn't supposed to be possible.

'They turned him into a weapon.'

And if the Obsidian Order had more like him hidden away, their threat level had just gone through the roof.

'It happened the moment I touched him…'

'I'll need to be careful next time.'

With a deep breath, Atticus turned toward his space storage, extending his hand.

It was time to look through his gains.