The question pulled the corners of Rhys's lips slightly upward as his hand instinctively went to his waist, where his hidden knives were kept, feeling the old steel's familiar comfort under his palm.

"We have currently finished transferring 100 STF operatives to the Beyond. It is our limit for now, given the limited energy at our disposal." His tone was calm with a tired edge from long shifts and limited resources.

Because each transfer was carried out through a Player's Sanctuary and consumed considerable energy, the Player Headquarters had even opened a new department just for that task, to achieve the highest efficiency at the lowest cost, with rows of monitors tracking usage and loss.

Rhys continued with the same demeanor. "Among them, 50 are strengthened with new-generation exoskeletons and weapons, which makes them equal in power to that world's Rank 1 Practitioners, currently even slightly more powerful."

That was Rhys's personal observation. Against a Rank 2 Practitioner, he knew their technology and second-generation mutant soldiers were still considerably weaker in 1-on-1 encounters.

"We also deployed a total of 6 hoverjets with new weapons and radar systems integrated. Though the communication system for some reason is not working so well, it only works at short distances, and for long distances, we can only send short-term signals. It is still quite useful."

Communication was one of the most important things in the Beyond, especially for a military structure like theirs, so he added the information as he went on.

"One of the hoverjets is in the Velari Region currently, with me and Captain Eren on board. The other 5 are currently operating at the Pacthold, just 2 hours away from the Velari Region."

Adyr nodded, acknowledging the report, especially the hoverjets' distances, since they were the main military vehicles there, as he filed the numbers in his mind for response timing and routes.

He was also very pleased with their work, as transferring that much military to the Beyond without drawing the attention of local Practitioners had been an incredible achievement carried out quietly and on schedule.

Humans were already invading the alien world under the noses of the natives, which by itself showed how strategic and well-planned Rhys and the others operated.

Adyr next turned his gaze to Selina as he asked, "What about Players?"

While Rhys was the Commander of STF, Selina was delegated as the Commander of Players, which made her the right person to give that part of the report, and attention shifted to her.

Selina calmly stood from her seat and began to give her report with the professionalism of a businesswoman. "We currently have 18 active Players in the Pacthold and nearby areas, including me, Captain Victor, and Eren. In total, 5 are Rank 3 Practitioners, and the rest are Rank 2 and Rank 1." Her delivery was precise and direct.

The total count was the same as before they started unifying operations, which meant no Player had died since then, a clear positive.

On top of that, 5 Players already being at Rank 3 was incredible progress in itself, especially since the Velari Kingdom, long-time natives of the Outer Region, had only 2 Rank 3 Practitioners, meaning the Humans had already outranked them.

"Also, we added to our ranks the former Players who died recently, which number 216 at the moment. Though they have already lost their system and the right to be Practitioners, we chose those who managed to increase their stats to certain levels and select the talented ones," she said, steady and self-assured, making sure the criteria were understood.

Even the others, including the 12 City Managers, looked at her with approval, since it had been Selina's own suggestion and plan to recall those failed Players to their ranks.

When the game first launched, there were thousands, even millions, of players who started to play, but the majority died on the first day, a collapse that emptied the ranks fast.

Apart from them, there was 1% who managed to survive another day, proving their natural talent to adapt and survive was a notch higher than most-the ones who adjust quickly and keep moving.

And 0.5% of them were on another league, as they not only managed to survive in those conditions but also managed to find energy crystals and increased their stats, making them special even among those, a small pool with proven gains.

To ignore them, in Selina's eyes, was a waste of potential. With her suggestion to the council, they called them back to the Player Headquarters and began the necessary STF training. That training turned them into a special unit. specialized in adaptability and survival, now under Selina's command, built for unstable grounds.

"They also, due to having increased their energy capacities before, can now, even without being Practitioners, use Rank 1 Sparks to a small degree." The effect was limited but real.

Hearing that, a quiet surprise etched itself on Adyr's face. "That's interesting" His gaze then turned to a considerably old man with short snow-white hair and a shaved beard, wearing a white researcher's coat. "Do you have any scientific explanation for this?"

The man, the head of the Research Department, slowly lifted his aged body from the chair and spoke in a thoughtful, slow tone. "It is a little early to give a definitive scientific explanation, but during our research, we may have found something about the energy inside the energy crystals and the energy in the Beyond's atmosphere, which is the same as the Practitioners' energy, making them able to use Sparks' skills.

What we think is that the Players who consumed energy crystals before dying and losing their systems still carry remnants of this energy inside their bodies and have mutated in a way, making their bodies like containers that can hold energy at a certain level and use it when they wish." His wording was careful

and exact.

Adyr's interest piqued upon hearing this. Seeing that the Head Researcher had more to say but was hesitant due to time, he said, "Go on, please!"

The old man, hearing the permission, became more energetic as he began to explain their findings. "As I said, it is still early to give a final result, but we are close to understanding how this foreign energy type functions and to finding an appropriate way to control it.

Especially thanks to your new sample, the Synergy Crystal, Mr. Adyr, we might achieve a breakthrough in this research in a few days.

We are currently working on a new mutation serum, which we call Generation 2.1, to create mutants. If we succeed, we can start creating new humans with the power to wield this energy and use Sparks like real Practitioners." The Researcher paused for a minute and then added with more excitement, "And in the best-case scenario, we can even find a way to turn people into real Practitioners." His eyes brightened with expectation.

This time, it was not only Adyr who was surprised; everyone in the room looked quite shocked, and the mood tightened.

So far, the only thing that could give them the chance to become Practitioners was the Game Helmets produced by the Mad Scientist, but now they were saying they might find a way to replicate that and give another chance for people to become Practitioners, a second path to the same goal.