Matthew Atkinson & Natalie Russell
Global Layer of the Supernatural Realm
Grand Magister Russell was absolutely right, but Matthew had already thought it through and added Aria Powell to his team.
Aria Powell might not have been as strong as the other championship contenders. But in the Supernatural Realm, no one could know exactly what would happen. Moreover, the Global Layer had three different formats, and the Champion Challenge Format, which Matthew's team participated in, was just one of them.
But when they went outside, no one would know which format they participated in, which only increased the uncertainty. Given all these circumstances, while Aria Powell leading her team to the championship was unexpected, it wasn't impossible.
And that was enough for Matthew. As long as people didn't see their situation as impossible and didn't scrutinize it too deeply, Matthew would gain the time he needed.
Matthew smiled and said, "We have Ms. Powell in our team. Ms. Powell is also a seventh-rank expert. It's not unreasonable for her to win a championship, right? After all, anything is possible in the Supernatural Realm."
Grand Magister Russell nodded, "Yes. But, after she goes out, Ms. Powell will probably have to endure the most scrutiny and pressure."
Aria Powell said nonchalantly, "I don't care about these things. However, many people are aware of my strength. Even with me as a shield, I'm afraid it still won't dispel some people's doubts."
"It's alright," Matthew said with a smile. "I didn't plan to hide my powers for a long time anyway. If my situation really can't be hidden anymore, then so be it."
With his current strength, he might already possess singularity. So, the same ability was unlikely to appear again in the Holy Land.
Of course, to be on the safe side, he would try to keep it a secret for as long as possible.
At this moment, Aria Powell suddenly came to an understanding as if she had thought of something, and asked, "Matthew, did you anticipate this all along, and were afraid that it wouldn't be right for you to win the championship, so you agreed to team up with me and use me as a shield?"
Although Aria Powell's eyes were not visible, Matthew could sense that she was looking at him intently.
And that was indeed Matthew's plan.
"That's right, Ms. Powell. I'm sorry I didn't mention this when we first spoke, but, as you can imagine, discussing my situation at Blue Marble is risky. It's impossible to know who's listening. But as an apology, I've prepared a gift for Ms. Powell, and I'll give it to you when I return to Blue Marble," Matthew said.
"A gift? There's no need. I'm not angry with you at all. Besides, winning the championship in this competition was something I couldn't have imagined, and that's enough for me," Aria Powell said.
"Don't turn it down immediately, Ms. Powell. I heard from my grandfather that Uncle Powell isn't doing well. I think the gift will be good for his health," Matthew said.
And Matthew's words made Aria Powell's face suddenly serious. After all, what he was saying was more than a gift; it concerned her father's health. "Matthew, are you serious about what you're saying?"
"Absolutely. Don't worry. I'll let you know when we leave the Global Layer," Matthew said.
"But when we get out, won't you forget what happened here? You're not thinking of giving up the Extraordinary Treasure Chest and keeping your memories, are you? If so..." Aria Powell seemed about to continue and tell Matthew not to do that, but Matthew interrupted her.
"It's not what you think, Ms. Powell. You just need to trust me in this," Matthew said.
After that, Aria Powell did not press the matter further. After all, everyone had their own secrets, and Matthew was the type to surpass everyone else in this regard.
"Let's talk about our rewards." Grand Magister Russell said to take over the matter.
Then he continued, "Winning the championship not only brings a large amount of attribute points, but also extraordinary treasure chests. Furthermore, the champion team members can even choose to forgo the extraordinary treasure chest, thus preserving all memories from the entire Global Layer..."
As he said this, his gaze unconsciously swept over the members.
If, among these people, someone chose to give up the extraordinary treasure chest, retain their memory, and then go out, that would be a risky situation.
Matthew's hard work in hiding his powers for so long might be all for nothing.
It could even cause other serious consequences.
Because, currently, Matthew was not the only person in the world with the ability of the Kryptonian Bloodline.
There was also an old man in South Korea.
Just like Director Hart said earlier, once Matthew's strength was revealed, people would soon find out what was going on.
To verify the secret of the Kryptonian Bloodline and even to restrict Matthew, South Korea was highly likely to allocate significant resources to that old man.
Although many countries and powers appeared to get along well on the surface, behind the scenes, all forces were acting to make their own interests absolute.
Otherwise, there wouldn't be bounties on Natalie and Matthew's heads right now.
And Grand Magister Russell, at this moment, having already regarded Matthew as his son-in-law, he naturally had to consider Matthew's well-being.
As for Matthew...
He was thinking about something else at the moment.
As his strength increased, it became increasingly difficult for him to keep a low profile and hide himself.
And he knew that his secrets would eventually be revealed. Because of that, Matthew had no intention of maintaining such a low profile for long.
Therefore, he needed to gradually begin planning for the other Kryptonian Bloodline user in South Korea.
Grand Magister Russell suddenly said, "I hope that everyone here will choose to take the treasure chest and not retain the memories. It's not that I don't trust you all, but the memory you retain of this event isn't particularly useful. It's far less important than an extraordinary treasure chest."
As soon as he said that, everyone immediately understood what he meant.
"Don't worry, Grand Magister Russell, even if you didn't say so, we would definitely choose the extraordinary treasure chest as the reward."
"That's right. Extraordinary treasure chests are too precious. I didn't get any yet, so I definitely won't give up."
"Only a fool would choose to retain their memories rather than accept an extraordinary treasure chest..."
Everyone expressed their opinions, and what they said was entirely true.
Extraordinary treasure chests were extremely precious and rare, and no one with supernatural abilities would be willing to give them up.
In the Supernatural Realm, there were generally only three ways to obtain extraordinary treasure chest rewards.
First, if someone got an extremely high mission rating, that would automatically reward them in the next Supernatural Realm Layer, like Natalie and Matthew's SSS-grade mission ratings.
Secondly, some layers contained an extraordinary treasure chest, which someone might encounter if they're lucky.
Third, there would be special tasks at certain layers, and completing them would reward someone with extraordinary treasure chests.
But people like Matthew and Natalie, who receive an extraordinary treasure chest every time they enter a layer, were purely exceptional cases and did not represent the general situation.
Many supernatural individuals who were less fortunate or lacked sufficient strength could never obtain an extraordinary treasure chest in their entire lives.
And of these three ways to obtain extraordinary treasure chests, only the first one yields relatively good items or skills.
There was another important reason why all the team members chose the extraordinary treasure chest reward.
If they gave up the extraordinary treasure chest and chose to retain their memories, it was very easy to cause misunderstandings in this situation.
Matthew might have thought that their decision to keep their memories rather than receive the reward was a plan to report his situation to others.
At that point, they would have offended Matthew.
And even someone with a dim mind could understand that Matthew's future wouldn't be limited to King-rank.
And if they offended someone with such high potential, would they be able to sleep soundly at night afterwards?
So, what everyone was saying was definitely the truth.
After confirming this, Grand Magister Russell turned to Matthew and said, "Matthew, shall we talk alone for a while?"
Matthew was taken aback for a moment, then immediately nodded in agreement.
Grand Magister Russell must have something to say to him if he wants to talk to him privately.
Matthew speculated that it was likely related to his use of "Galaxy Impact" in the ring. Perhaps Grand Magister Russell had already guessed that he was "Clark Kent".
...
The two went to the dining area next door.
Grand Magister Russell immediately asked, "What is your relationship with Clark Kent? Or rather, is Clark Kent you?"
Now that things have come to this, Matthew has no choice but to admit it.
"Yes, Uncle Russell, I am the Clark Kent."
He originally thought that Grand Magister Russell would be furious after learning the truth.
But that didn't happen.
Grand Magister Russell remained very calm.
He looked Matthew up and down and asked, "Is it those glasses that are some kind of supernatural item that changed your appearance and demeanor?"
"Uncle Russell has such keen insight." Matthew gave a small compliment.
"You brat..."
Thinking about what he had said to Clark Kent, Grand Magister Russell felt embarrassed, and his face fell.
He knew he couldn't blame Matthew for playing him.
Matthew came to the guild for help. So that must have been his daughter Natalie's idea.
"I did misunderstand you before, so please don't take what I said to you to heart," Grand Magister Russell said.
Matthew smiled and said, "Of course not. I understand the father's concern for his daughter."
Grand Magister Russell nodded and said, "To avoid similar misunderstandings in the future, I plan to give up this extraordinary treasure chest and retain my memories. What do you think?"
"Um?"
Matthew was taken aback upon hearing this.
He actually agreed with Grand Magister Russell's desire to preserve his memory. After all, he didn't want to repeat what happened that day.
"Uncle Russell, this is an extraordinary treasure chest. Are you really willing to part with it?"
"There's nothing to be reluctant about," Grand Magister Russell said with a smile. "My potential is limited, and it hasn't been easy for me to get to where I am today. My future development focus will definitely be on the guild. So, a supernatural item isn't that important to me."
Upon hearing this, Matthew nodded and said, "Then I agree that you should retain your memories."
"Oh?" Grand Magister Russell asked with a smile, "Aren't you afraid I'll leak your secrets?"
"Uncle Russell, I know you wouldn't do that," Matthew said. "I have complete trust in you."
Matthew would later become Grand Magister Russell's son-in-law. Unless Grand Magister Russell was mentally unstable, there was no way he could have leaked his secret.
And to put it bluntly, even if Natalie and Grand Magister Russell, father and daughter, become enemies in the future, Grand Magister Russell would have to think twice before leaking secrets, considering the consequences of offending Matthew.
Even if his secret were leaked now, it wouldn't stop Matthew's progress. Maybe it would hinder his progress a little, but that was it.
"Good, Natalie didn't misjudge you," Grand Magister Russell said with a smile.
At this moment, as if he had thought of something, Matthew said, "Uncle Russell, we will all have extraordinary treasure chests, while you will be empty-handed. Even a fool would understand what's going on. After the news gets out, you may face a series of questions. If you don't cooperate, it might affect your career."
Upon hearing this, Grand Magister Russell glanced at Matthew in surprise.
"I'm pleased that you thought of these things," Grand Magister Russell said with a smile. "As for what you said, there's absolutely no need to worry."
"What do you think is the reason I am where I am today? Is it because of my outstanding abilities? No, of course not. The reason I was able to rise from a city branch manager to oversee the entire region of the Royal Guild of Supernatural Individuals is because of my daughter, Natalie."
"If it weren't for Natalie's help and her outstanding achievements, I might still be in the London Royal Guild Branch now."
"As long as Natalie continues to thrive, my position will be as secure as a mountain, and may even rise further..."
Then, Grand Magister Russell concluded, "I guess you could say I've risen in status because of my daughter."
He spoke very frankly, without the slightest embarrassment.
After a pause, Grand Magister Russell added, "Let those people come to me. I can handle them."
But since Matthew brought up the topic, he had his own thoughts.
"Uncle Russell, it's easy to dodge a spear in the open, but hard to guard against an arrow in the dark." Matthew said, "I've heard that there are people among the supernaturals who can read minds? There must be such abilities in some government departments. Aren't you afraid they will use dirty tricks on you?"
Grand Magister Russell frowned. It must be said that Matthew's concerns were indeed reasonable.
Even if the authorities didn't pressure him too much on the surface, nobody could say for sure what would happen in private.
Since he didn't follow the mental attribute path, this kind of ability was definitely impossible to defend against.
Seeing that Grand Magister Russell was persuaded, Matthew immediately revealed his plan. "So, Uncle Russell, you can retain your memories, but you'll have to pretend."
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Next Chapters' Name:
Ch.191: Are We Really the Champions? (End of the Global Layer)
Ch.192: Everyone is Shocked and Suspicious
Ch.193: There's Something You Need to Do