Rise Of The Hoarder

[The Corridor]

"The pawn failed."

The Supreme Beings, Monarchs of worlds, had gathered in an assembly.

They all looked the same, having pure white bodies, but something about their brilliant facade seemed gloomy.

It was because their strategy had dipped.

"It seems the Singularity is indeed more powerful than we anticipated."

It would have been simpler if they could just deal with the matter themselves, but there were protocols to be followed.

Such was the nature of the intricate System they had designed.

"We need the pawn to grow even further." One of the Supreme Beings recommended.

They were one and all, so clearly the rest must have thought of it too.

However, there was one fatal flaw with that strategy.

"Time is of the essence. The Singularity will grow stronger too."

That was the issue!

If given enough time, their problem would keep festering until it ruined everything. To ensure that never happened, the Supreme Beings had to nip it in the bud...

... And fast!

"Then... should we send another Archangel?"

For a moment, there was silence.

Archangels were the highest-ranked Executioners.

Singularities and Loose Ends were taken care of by them. However, one problem made it extremely difficult to dispatch these string forces.

"He got rid of Sariel, didn't he? What's to ensure he doesn't do the same to the other three?"

Sariel was without a doubt the most effective Executioner.

While each had their strengths and weaknesses, Sariel was the most efficient in her duties.

In terms of pure combat ability, she was also the highest.

Yet... somehow someone of that caliber was done in.

"How much of (G) Essence do you think he possesses?"

That was the major issue of contention, wasn't it?

Depending on his authority, even they would no longer be able to interfere in his world. Still, considering the fact that they were able to do this much, it showed that their prey was still very weak.

All the more reason why they had to get rid of him quickly.

"He could not eradicate the Pawn, though. It seemed like he had the chance, but he didn't."

Once this objection was made, yet another silence pervaded the vast Corridor.

Comparing the pawn, Paul, and the Archangel Sariel, the latter was phenomenally superior in every way.

Archangels were higher than Humans in the Dimensional Ladder.

They were two Dimensions higher than Gifteds.

No matter how powerful a Gifted became, they could not measure up to one.

It didn't matter how many Skills or Titles or Stats.

They were all meaningless in the presence of someone of a higher Dimension.

Compared to Paul, who was a being of the 3rd Dimensional Layer, Sariel was invincible.

So why did the Singularity have a problem dealing with Paul?

"(G) Essence" The Supreme Beings spoke in unison.

That's right!

They figured the only way to properly care for their pawn was to grant him the same kind of advantage the Singularity had.

Of course, they weren't so generous as to grant him the three components of the (G) Essence, so they simply blessed him with a Skill called (G) Essence.

It basically granted him a boost—improving his EXP collection rate, overall ability, and protection from many things.

Of course, they were restricted by the System, so the Skill could only grow according to the Pawn's Level.

It was due to this very Skill that Paul had been able to grow as much as he did.

The Supreme Beings raised him with one simple goal in mind.

—Extinguish The Singularity!

"Honestly, it's a shame that he still wasn't strong enough to beat the Singularity despite all the help we gave him."

It showed the limits of human capabilities.

The Supreme Beings thought of throwing him away, but the efforts and investment they had placed on his growth—even if it was little—was too considerable for them to let him go at this point.

They would simply have to compromise.

And so, after much deliberation... The Supreme Beings arrived at a consideration.

"The (G) Essence Skill shall be implemented on the Archangels as well."

That way, they would be granted the same immunity Paul had against the Singularity's absurd ability.

With that resolved, the issue of what to do with Paul arose.

"The First Scenario. Why don't we add a System Patch?"

There had to be a considerably good reason for a System Patch, which meant they couldn't do it whenever they wanted.

Fortunately, the Singularity had been going crazy in the Towers, causing the System's estimated difficulty to become nearly non-existent.

"War has yet to be beaten, right? So, why don't we do something about that?"

If they left Jeremy Lewis—their target—alone, he would inadvertently defeat the last Horsemen.

Since they could see the stream of time—at least without the interference the Singularity brought—and so they knew that War would be defeated very soon.

With that in mind, they jointly agreed on the patch.

By releasing War and some Tower Floors to the real world, it would allow Gifteds to actively challenge the Floors, irrespective of their Levels in the Tower.

And...

... It was going to work in Paul's favor.

"He should be able to challenge the Hidden Floor if it manifests in reality, and obtain War's piece."

Even though they knew the Archangels would take care of Jeremy Lewis in the meantime, the Gods decided to keep using Paul as their centerpiece.

If they controlled him well, they could ensure that this world was controlled according to the intended way.

And, if he proved to become yet another obstacle...

"... He too shall be eliminated!"

With their decisions all made, the Supreme Beings summoned the Archangels.

Blue, Red, and Yellow light shine at the center of the Order, and the Assembly welcomed the three bowing beings.

Their pure wings glowed with their respective colors, and the armor they also donned had glimmering aspects accompanying them.

These were the epitome of all Executioners.

"Sariel failed in her mission. I trust you won't disappoint us..."

The three Archangels bowed even deeper, showing their devotion.

"Lemuel. Uriel. Raphael."

Each with their names, they were the last cards the Supreme Beings could currently play against the bothersome Singularity.

"Eliminate Jeremy Lewis."