Gabrielle sifted through the links—endless chains connecting every aspect of the world. She sat in the center of it all, surrounded by infinite darkness. Translucent white lines weaving through the void, and a small, bright white dot at the very center. She skimmed through the chains, looking for anything out of place. She moved rapidly, examining each chain one by one.

  A world break? That couldn't possibly happen naturally unless there was a virus.

  Seconds passed as she worked tirelessly. Just as frustration began to set in, just as she started to doubt herself—maybe the king really is lying, or maybe he's insane—she found something out of place.

  But it wasn’t a normal virus. Only a slightly less-white line. It was so subtle, so discreet, that she never would have noticed it if she hadn’t been searching explicitly for it.

  Atrocious.

  Gabrielle gasped under her breath. So it was all true.

  She was going to be invaded in a year.

  An administrator could not attack another world’s administrator without prior notice, in accordance with the rules of fair war and everything.

  But this bastard—whoever it was—didn't directly attack Gabrielle to expand his territory. Instead of informing her, letting her prepare and come up with a counter-defense, he inserted his declaration of war as a message—not to Gabrielle, but to a few of the strongest people in the world.

  Technically, if she’d been thoroughly monitoring absolutely everything at all times, she might have seen the message, but everyone knew no one had time for that.

  A handful of high rank mortals wouldn’t be enough to mount an effective defense. He was waiting, waiting patiently until he could invade her world, leaving Gabrielle completely defenseless and caught off guard.

  With the measures he’d taken, that administrator—that bastard!—would win.

  Gabrielle felt like tearing her hair out. True, she was a newbie, an amateur, but to be tricked like this... even if she wasn’t highly skilled, it was disgusting.

  She wasn’t even sure what insults were rushing through her mind; they were all jumbled and mixed. But if that administrator were standing in front of her right now, she would probably kick him in the nuts—and every other dirty blow she could think of.

  She immediately turned her attention back to Dominic. Yes, if anyone could solve this situation, it would be Mister Dominic. After all, she was his faux disciple—well, not a full disciple or one officially accepted, but he had offered the proposition, paid for her education, and could be considered a mentor figure. At the very least, he would help her, give her advice. If she told him the situation, he was a nice person. So, she dismissed the world editor and sent a message to Mister Dominic.

  Mister Dominic, I found the virus. What the king is saying is true. Another administrator is attacking me for territory expansion.

  I’m not sure what to do. I’m ill-prepared, and I can't do anything in a year. Based on the rules, I should normally have had at least five years’ notice—if not ten—but because he did this so sneakily and unfairly, I’ve had no warning.

  What should I do, Mister Dominic? Please, please show me the way out.

  (ó﹏ò?)

  Surely you know some way to prevent this world from falling into this administrator’s clutches.

  (╥﹏╥)

  There was a degree of selfishness in her desire, yes—she wanted to stay an administrator and didn’t want to be killed—but more importantly, she felt protective of her world.

  She knew the fate of worlds conquered by other administrators. Typically, the incoming administrator, either out of pride or simply because they were more advanced, would wipe the world clean.

  Nothing would survive—no living beings, no non-living beings. The world would be razed completely and rebuilt on the conqueror's terms.

  Gabrielle did not want that for her world. Even if she could negotiate a peaceful surrender and escape with her own life, it would mean abandoning her responsibility.

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  She refused to do that. Not if there was any other choice.

  Mister Dominic didn’t reply immediately. Finally, he sent a message:

  "Would you like me to take care of it?"

  Gabrielle blinked and typed out her query.

  What do you mean, Mister Dominic?

  ( ?? ? ?? )

  A second passed.

  "Gabrielle, you are my assistant. You’re someone I have taken under my wing—someone I will protect. Would you like me to make your world stronger? To take it into my hands and reform it to the point where none but the strongest administrators can directly destroy or take over your world?"

  Gabrielle gulped. Maybe if Mister Dominic had any more pride—or any less attachment to her—she would have hesitated.

  But though he’d only been in her world a few days—albeit more like several years with how much Mister Dominic slowed down time whenever he wanted—she already trusted him deeply. She felt connected to him, a sense of attachment. Perhaps because of his kind-hearted nature, or maybe just because he was someone she admired—someone who knew how to use his powers, who had a lot of power but still never misused it.

  Yes. Thank you, Mister Dominic. If you can strengthen my world, make it into something like a utopia—please do.

  ( ?? - ?? )

  That was something she never managed to create because of her inferior strength and skills. But Mister Dominic could do it if he wished.

  A few seconds later, an emoji popped up on the screen in front of her. When she saw the small, trusting, confident smile that mirrored Dominic's expression, Gabrielle felt a smile bloom on her own face.

  Everything would be all right now.

  But just in case, she would scour the world to remove any other viruses or malware. That was her basic duty as an administrator, after all. She couldn’t just sit around and do nothing while someone else went to war on her behalf.

  Dominic unpaused time.

  The king watched him nervously. With each passing second, his demeanor grew more alert.

  "I see,” Dominic told him. His expression softened, a hint of friendliness. “I’ve just confirmed the truth of what you said, King Nohl. I understand now why you had to do this, but I do think there are better ways to handle it."

  The king didn’t refute or try to argue. "I know, Honored Sage. I’m sure there are hundreds of better ways I could have tackled this, ways that in my limited mindset I couldn’t grasp or simply couldn’t do. That’s why… could you please help me?"

  Dominic tilted his head and then grinned. "All right then, King Nohl. I do like your sincerity. I’ll help you, but I expect you to give me complete authority and not obstruct me, no matter what I am doing."

  King Nohl nodded. He hesitated slightly. "What about my current measures?"

  Dominic smiled softly and, with a wave of his hand, slowed time around them—excluding only himself, King Nohl, and of course his disciple. "Do you feel it, King Nohl?" Someone of his caliber—because King Nohl was truly one of the strongest in this world, however weak that standard was—should recognize what was happening.

  King Nohl stared around him in wonder. He looked at the frozen faces of the Pope, the Saintess, the Cardinals, the Priest, and could even sense the frozen mana. He nodded lightly. "You have frozen time."

  "I have indeed," Dominic replied. "So you should understand now, shouldn't you?"

  King Nohl chuckled, a dry, mocking sound. "Indeed. Nothing I can do can match up to you. It is better to leave everything to you. But do tell me if there’s any guidance you can offer."

  "My guidance for you, King Nohl, is to take better care of your citizens. Strengthen your kingdom. Do not worry. I do intend to change this world—and very quickly, before the year deadline comes up. I will meet with all the kingdoms you've failed to conquer but are basically your subordinates. So wouldn’t meeting you alone be enough?"

  King Nohl interrupted, "No, no. There are faces of rebellion—many are dissatisfied with me. I’ve not managed to conquer the other world races, such as the elves or the dwarves, who live at the edges of the continent. I’ve heard there are even other continents. I am very strong for this continent, I might even be the strongest person in this world. But after receiving that notice, I did significantly stall my expansion efforts as I shifted my full attention to strengthening our Rift Sealers. The control I sought has eluded me with my split focus."

  "Then I will meet with the elves, the dwarves, and all the kingdoms that you did not conquer,” Dominic decided. “I will strengthen and train people who have potential, and create more SS ranks. I’ll do whatever is necessary, King Nohl, for this world’s success and survival. You do not need to worry. Simply strengthen your kingdom and let people live better and in peace—that is something you can do. I trust you."

  King Nohl nodded wistfully, with a faint, almost awed smile on his face—as if in recognition that he looked upon a holy figure, which, in a way, he was.

  Dominic turned toward his disciple. "All right then, Calvin, we’ve mostly dealt with this situation here." He glanced at King Nohl as if asking if there was anything else he wanted to discuss. King Nohl simply shook his head. "All right, so since we’re done here, let’s find the memory sealing mage, shall we?"

  He unfroze time.

  "Hannah, the rest is up to you. You should be able to manage."

  Hannah nodded, wide-eyed.

  Calvin, to his credit, seemed genuinely excited by the prospect, which made him look like an adorable puppy. Humans were such puppies. Calvin was so excited over something so minor compared to the things Dominic had experienced in his lifetime. But that was the beauty of being young, wasn't it? the chance to get excited over small, inconsequential things.

  Before he could even ask about it, Gabrielle pinged the location of the man who had wiped Calvin’s memories after inflicting him with the plague and leaving him to die.

  Dominic grinned at Calvin. "All right then. Disciple, it's time to go get your revenge."

  over on Patreon with chapters up through 55 (around 60k more words!) at the moment and currently posting two a day.