100\% DROP RATE : Why is My Inventory Always so Full? Chapter 814 - Handover

Clara was next.

She arrived immediately after Lucien requested her presence.

Usually, Clara entered any meeting involving Lucien with enough enthusiasm to make nearby people reconsider their understanding of devotion.

Today she was quiet.

Lucien noticed immediately.

She knew that he might be leaving.

She did not ask where.

Lucien appreciated that.

"I need you to handle several things while I’m gone."

Her expression became focused.

Lucien began with the most urgent.

The Black Mass incursions were becoming more dangerous.

More Monster Emperors were appearing.

Miasma exposure would only become worse once the true war began.

Divine Energy remained one of the most reliable counters they possessed.

"Continue the baptisms."

Clara nodded immediately.

"Anyone suitable?"

"Anyone who can safely undergo it and is willing."

There was no reason to limit Divine Energy users now.

The more people capable of resisting miasma, supporting purification, and functioning inside heavily corrupted battlefields, the less dependent the world became on a handful of specialized forces.

Lucien had another responsibility for her.

The Grace System.

He had already expanded its safeguards and rebuilt much of its internal decision structure.

Now he increased Clara’s administrative authority.

Not enough to override Lucien’s deepest restrictions, but enough to operate the system meaningfully without him.

She could approve and issue quests.

Adjust rewards.

Respond to regional emergencies.

Authorize support for users whose circumstances the automated layers could not properly judge.

Review abnormal Contribution Context results.

Intervene when the Will Layer flagged something that required human judgment.

Lucien watched her absorb the permissions.

For once, there was no bright fanaticism on her face.

Clara looked worried.

Actually worried.

Lucien found that almost more disturbing than her usual behavior.

He reached over and patted her head.

"You’ll be fine."

Clara looked up.

"My Lord, I was going to say that to you."

Lucien paused.

"Then we’re both very reassuring."

A small smile finally appeared.

Good.

Lucien started to leave.

Then he remembered something.

He turned back.

"Clara."

"Yes, My Lord?"

"Don’t go too overboard."

Clara chuckled.

Lucien narrowed his eyes.

That reaction was suspiciously normal.

He had occasionally wondered whether half of Clara’s fanaticism existed purely because she enjoyed watching him react to it.

Today did nothing to disprove the theory.

Lucien sighed and left.

Apparently, Clara only behaved like an ordinary person when something was seriously wrong.

That was deeply inconvenient.

•••

The following days disappeared into crafting.

Lucien created Skill Cards, Spell Cards, emergency tools, and specialized equipment for commanders who would be responsible for regions far from Vivian’s direct reach.

He did not produce things randomly.

Each creation had a purpose.

Skills that improved survival went to those most likely to face Primordial authority or concentrated miasma.

Communication and command Skills went toward officers who would have to coordinate mixed armies.

Defensive Spells were prepared for medical teams and support units.

Mobility Skills went to responders expected to move between unstable regions.

Lucien worked until entire storage halls filled.

Then he worked again.

The blank future remained somewhere in the back of his mind.

Every time he considered stopping, he remembered Aurelia’s projection ending in darkness.

That was enough to continue.

Lootwell had always benefited from Lucien’s absurd supply of Skills and drops.

Now he stopped conserving them.

There was little point hoarding resources for a future that might not exist.

•••

Vivian eventually returned.

Lucien had summoned her because several of the Skill Cards were intended specifically for her.

She sat across from him.

Lucien picked up the first card.

"Don’t complain."

Vivian immediately looked suspicious.

"Why would I complain?"

Lucien pressed the card to her forehead.

The Skill settled.

He picked up another.

Then another.

Vivian’s suspicion became concern.

Several of the abilities improved command awareness.

Others strengthened resistance against mental interference, authority pressure, or battlefield confusion.

One helped her process multiple information streams without losing track of individual priorities.

Another improved coordination with formations and communication networks.

A defensive Skill followed.

Then one intended for emergency movement.

Lucien continued until Vivian finally caught his wrist.

"Brother."

He stopped.

She looked at the remaining cards.

"How many were you planning to give me?"

Lucien glanced down.

"Not many."

Vivian followed his gaze.

There were still quite a few.

She released his wrist slowly.

Lucien decided not to discuss definitions.

He continued more carefully.

Vivian accepted each Skill.

She did not complain again.

That worried Lucien more than if she had.

By the time they finished, her abilities had expanded enough that the difference would take days to properly test.

Lucien handed her another storage ring.

Vivian stared at it.

"This one too?"

"This is the distribution reserve."

That made her pause.

The remaining Skill Cards and Spell Cards would be hers to assign according to need.

Lucien had provided recommendations.

He deliberately avoided rigid instructions.

Vivian would be the one present when circumstances changed.

She needed freedom to make decisions with information Lucien could not possibly possess from the past.

Vivian looked through the contents for several moments.

Then she closed her hand.

Lucien saw the worry on her face.

She was finally seeing the full scale of his preparations.

The Origin Core.

The drops.

The Grace System arrangements.

The transferred responsibilities.

The enormous quantity of resources he had stopped saving for later.

Lucien had told everyone he was investigating something connected to his next step.

Nobody prepared for an ordinary breakthrough like this.

Vivian knew that.

Lucien knew she knew.

Neither said it.

Finally, Vivian placed the ring away.

"I’ll take care of it."

Lucien’s shoulders relaxed.

"I know."

She looked at him for several seconds.

Then she smiled faintly.

"I’ll trust you too."

Lucien fell quiet.

That somehow felt heavier than another question would have.

He nodded.

•••

When Vivian left, Lucien remained alone in the room.

For the first time in days, there was nothing immediately waiting on the table.

The merged Origin Core had someone capable of directing its public functions.

The communication network could continue without him.

Lootwell’s reserves had been distributed.

Clara could manage the Grace System and continue expanding the number of Divine Energy users.

Vivian had the Skills, drops, and authority she would need.

The military command structure had already been prepared.

The Makeshift Universe waited for the recovered worlds.

The accelerated regions were running as hard as Lucien considered safe while there was still time to use them.

He had improved the Big World’s resource production wherever his growing understanding of Time allowed it.

Lucien leaned back.

There were always more things he could prepare.

Another formation.

Another artifact.

Another contingency.

Another Skill someone might need.

If he followed that thought far enough, he would never leave.

Lucien understood that now.

At some point, preparation had to become trust.

He had spent years making the people around him capable.

Now he needed to believe they actually were.

Lucien closed his eyes.

The blank future remained.

The Primordial Incarnations remained.

The Abyssal Arch-Lords remained.

Somewhere beyond the present, people were preparing to open a road into history.

Lucien exhaled slowly.

He had done what he could.

Whatever came next would come.

And when Alanthuriel finally returned, Lucien intended to be ready to leave.