Chaos and Order - A Multiverse Fanfic

Let's do it, Kai thought, making up his mind. It will be one of the biggest gamble of my life.

In the next moment, he took a deep breath and connected to the lone Sponsor with whom he still could.

"Haha! I've been waiting for your call," Shadow Origin laughed. "Kid, you are truly a grade better than even the top Contestants I've seen on the beginning Sets.

"Comprehending and confirming your beliefs amidst battle… Brilliant! Don't depend on Magic too much. Stick with this path, and you will go far."

Kai said nothing in response. After a brief silence, he whispered, "How bad is my situation?"

"Oh!" Shadow Origin exclaimed. "Not getting carried away by momentary achievements? Haha! No wonder… No wonder. It's bad, kid, but not as bad as you imagine it to be.

"Verse Fusion Random Worlds are indeed a monstrosity. However, which King doesn't have them? Not to mention, these Random Worlds can be artificially induced in the Tournament of Worth, if one dares to pay the price."

Kai didn't show any shock at this news. By now, he had already guessed a few things.

"By manipulating a Contestant's Stats, you mean?" he asked.

Silence.

From beyond the realms, the sound of clapping reached Kai's ears.

"Not bad, kid," Shadow Origin commented. "I wanted to trade this knowledge with you, but it seems you have already figured it out.

"Yes, by manipulating Stats, one can artificially induce a Verse Fusion Random World.

"Now, Attributes, Abilities, and even Skills can't be manipulated. At least not enough to bring out such a response from the Systems.

"Items, however, are another matter. Only forces above the 5th Set can afford such expenses.

"Give a Contestant enough absurd Items, that would solely belong to him, and there will be good chances for the Verse Fusion Random World to show up.

"But you know the repercussions of this, right?"

Kai nodded heavily.

"If the Contestant were to die," he said, showing a horrified and betrayed expression on his face, "then all the Items will vanish as well, and being a Verse Fusion Random World, the chances of this happening will be tremendous, because the Contestant's Stats won't match the difficulty."

Shadow Origin laughed meaningfully.

"So," he drawled, "care to share with me who fucked you up, kid? I will trade for the answer, of course. Don't worry, the rest of the Sponsors won't act against you, either. At least not before the Final Auction."

Bingo! Kai roared joyously in his heart.

This question. This very question he had been waiting for the Shadow Origin to ask.

If Kai had divulged the information by himself, then the sponsor, perhaps, might not have believed him. Shadow Origin needed to ask this question by himself.

Because this question diverted the truth towards falseness.

Why had the Systems brought Kai to a Verse Fusion Random World? All knew the answer — There was something wrong with his Stats; a monstrous secret.

But what exactly? It had yet to come out in the open.

Attributes, Abilities, and Skills couldn't be manipulated. So what remained? Items.

Even in their dreams, the Sponsors would have never thought of Glitch being the prime reason. Not at least those who belonged to Chaos, and the ones from Order couldn't Sponsor him, anyway.

Kai's risks depended on these reasons.

Now came the time to toss out the final chip.

Kai's face contorted in false ugliness.

"The Temple of Many-faced God," he answered, his eyes burning with red, hot fury. "It was them, and they didn't even tell me!"

Bullshit! Kai sneered inwardly.

How could he not know that these Sponsors must have already found a connection between him and the House of Black and White, no matter how faint the trail was?

His doubts had been confirmed when Shadow Origin had asked about Viscount's assassination.

A lone gust of breeze whistled by as Kai waited for Shadow Origin's reply to his absurd claim.

"So that's how it is…" the 18th-floor Contestant mumbled. "Well, ask away then."

Kai narrowed his eyes, knowing well that he was treading on thin ice here.

So, without taking any pause, he asked the question that had been dancing on the tip of his tongue for a long time. "Why only 5 sponsors from the 18th floor?"

Meg knew little about the 18th floor, but she did know something.

The City of Colors was a floor where Kings lived in their stupendous castles.

Now, if one followed the Empire's general policy, then customarily only the Set Lord of the 6th Set was to be styled as King.

However, the 6th Set shared a quality with the 1st Set in this case.

In the 1st Set, too many Contestants reached the level of a Baron, creating a surplus of Baron-level Candidates. These supposed Candidates didn't remain on the 1st Set, though, choosing to ascend to the 4th floor instead.

This wasn't an option available to the Contestants on the 18th floor.

Contestants of the 6th Set had huge lifespans, and it wasn't a surprise that one achieved a King-level strength every half a millennium.

This too created a surplus of Kings on the 18th floor.

Unlike the 3rd floor of the 1st Set, it wasn't as simple as just ascending to the next floor to bring down this surplus.

For the surplus Kings to ascend to the 19th floor, they needed to complete a mission, and this mission took place in the World of Cartoons.

From here originated the name — The Graveyard of Kings.

Because most Kings, who attempted this mission in haste as their piled-up Life Halt ran out, got killed at this stage.

Hence, these Kings instead stayed on the 18th floor, preparing for their ascension.

The fear of the Graveyard of Kings could be surmised from these actions.

"Although there are many kings on the 18th floor," Shadow Origin answered, "their strength and influence aren't equal.

"When one reaches such a stage, even the name itself gets divided into realms. That's something beyond your understanding, for now.

"To be straightforward, those who selected you represent the top 5 powers of the 18th floor, who can contend against each other. Rest obviously turned a blind eye towards you."

So that's how it is, Kai nodded inwardly. No wonder only 5 Sponsors appeared. If I am not wrong, then these 5 Code Names aren't kings but represent the kings behind them. Hmm, that's the most natural reasoning.

The next question Kai wanted to ask was what exactly it was that made them take an interest in him.

However, after careful deliberation, Kai rejected this idea.

What? You don't even know what makes you special, and here I thought you were smart. Wait, what questions did you ask before this?

Kai couldn't afford any doubt to take birth in the other party's heart.

If not now, then he would soon find the reason for them choosing him eventually.

Kai didn't have the greatest of patience for things like these, but he wasn't indecisive. So he gave up on knowing about it with a single thought.

Now came the time for the last chip of the gamble; the most precious and absurd.

Sure enough, Shadow Origin asked, "My next question is, what Item did they give to you and its grade"

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