In the days that followed, preparations for the excursion began almost immediately, even though Adrian himself had not yet mentioned any specific departure date.
Once the idea was out in the open, no one seemed willing to wait.
The core members began making arrangements, and the rulers soon followed. Adrian watched as administrators shuffled between meetings, and entire departments reorganized their workflows. The desire to join was strong, but reality demanded caution. Leaving the galaxy, even temporarily, was not a trivial decision. Each of them carried responsibilities that could not simply be abandoned.
Adrian himself was no exception.
Standing before a projection displaying Origin Empire's territory, Adrian felt the weight of what he'd built. As the Origin Emperor, his duties extended far beyond personal strength or cultivation. Every world needed governance, every trade route required protection, every citizen deserved stability.
Managing an empire was, by itself, an enormous undertaking.
Over the past fifteen years, Adrian had built a comprehensive administrative framework capable of handling most matters without his direct involvement. Departments that managed planets, sector administrators coordinated resources, and specialized councils addressed everything from infrastructure to education. That system was the reason he had been able to live a peaceful life at all.
The same applied to the other rulers. Ever since the path beyond the galaxy had been revealed, they had known that one day they might leave, at least for a trip like this, and so each empire had quietly prepared for that possibility, ensuring stability even in their absence.
There were also deeper layers of responsibility beyond simple governance. With the Origin Ink freely available and the galaxy finally at peace, discoveries and inventions had surged forward. Formations that once took centuries to develop now appeared within years. Technologies that required rare essence types became accessible to anyone with pure mana. New applications emerged constantly, medical advances, agricultural improvements, spatial anchoring techniques that defied previous limitations.
Adrian had witnessed it firsthand during his visits to the research divisions. Just last month, a team of inscribers had created a formation that could terraform barren worlds in a fraction of the previous time. Another group had developed mana-powered construction techniques that allowed cities to rise in weeks rather than decades.
To manage this explosive growth, the empires had already established a joint system dedicated to cataloging, regulating, and advancing these developments. The Galactic Innovation Council, as it was formally called, operated independently of any single empire. Scholars, inscribers, and researchers from every territory contributed, reviewed discoveries, and ensured knowledge spread without monopolization.
Fifteen years ago, knowledge had been hoarded, controlled, weaponized. Now it flowed freely, accelerating progress at a pace that would have seemed impossible.
Even with all of this in place, careful arrangements were still necessary.
Adrian spent days reviewing contingency plans with his administrators. Varik presented scenarios ranging from minor trade disputes to potential threats from unknown forces. For each scenario, protocols existed. And the Origin Construct's formation was improved and developed much in these years, so that it could defend the capital even without Adrian present.
No one knew how long this excursion would last. It could be months, years, or something far longer. Administrative work continued relentlessly in the background, ensuring that no empire would falter in their absence.
At the same time, preparations for the journey itself advanced steadily.
The most critical requirement was a starship.
Adrian stood in the massive construction bay, watching as thousands of workers assembled the vessel that would carry them beyond the galaxy. The ship was enormous, designed to house everyone who planned to join the excursion comfortably.
Traveling beyond the galaxy demanded a vessel of exceptional capability, one capable of crossing intergalactic voids efficiently and safely. Standard starships weren't designed for such journeys. They relied on stable space, mapped routes, and predictable conditions. Beyond the galaxy, none of that existed.
Here, the Origin Ink proved invaluable.
Adrian personally designed the core formations that would govern the ship's movement, stability, and spatial integrity.
And construction was a joint effort. The rulers contributed resources, expertise, and labor, while mana crystals were supplied without difficulty. Bit by bit, the vessel took shape.
Another matter soon surfaced: the storage rings.
The topic came up during a meeting with the Origin core members and the rulers. They'd gathered to review final preparations, and Kaelith had mentioned bringing supplies for the journey.
"The ship has storage compartments," Adrian said, "We won't lack space."
"Personal storage would still be useful," Kaelith pointed out, "Flexibility matters when traveling unknown territory."
Every core member knew about the purple ring Adrian possessed. It could hold massive quantities of material in compressed space, accessible instantly. Even though the ship itself would include compressed storage systems, having personal storage rings offered far greater flexibility.
"Can we make more?" Alice asked, glancing at Lysandra.
Lysandra's expression shifted, regret flickering across her features, "Unfortunately, the material required to create such rings is extremely rare. I have found only a handful of the base material drifting near the Edge, likely originating from outside the galaxy. Even I possess very few rings."
That was disappointing, though not entirely surprising. If the material came from beyond the galaxy, it made sense that it would be scarce here.
Adrian searched the Edge himself the following week, hoping to find more of the same material or an alternative capable of holding a pocket of space. He spent days drifting through the void, his Source Eyes active, scanning every fragment of debris and spatial anomaly.
But he couldn't find anything.
The Edge was vast, and whatever material Lysandra had discovered must have been extraordinarily rare even in the cosmic debris field. Adrian found plenty of unusual substances, fragments of unknown alloys, even chunks of what appeared to be fossilized essence, but nothing that could serve as a foundation for spatial storage.
He returned to the Origin Capital empty-handed.
The disappointment was shared by many, but there was nothing to be done. If anything, it only reinforced a growing belief that such items might be far more common beyond the galaxy.
Lysandra voiced this thought during their next meeting, "If the material originates from outside, then presumably it exists in greater quantities wherever it came from. We may find it easily once we leave."
That thought only strengthened everyone's desire to depart.
The universe continued to call to them, vast and unknown, filled with possibilities their galaxy had never offered.
And as the ship neared completion, gleaming in the void with white-grey formations pulsing across its hull, Adrian felt that call growing stronger.
...
Finally, after months of preparation, six months passed.
At last, the day came.
Adrian floated before a massive starship suspended in space, watching as people boarded with visible excitement. The list for this so-called "excursion" had grown far larger than he had ever intended.
The core members were all present. The Twelve Celestials moved through the boarding platform, Gary laughing at something Max said, whilst Selric simply shook his head. Elara, Thomas, Selena, Kael, Mira, and also Kaelith, who had long since become a core member in all but name. Aerin, of course, was included without question, darting between groups with boundless energy.
Others, such as Varik, Kai, Seraphina, Ironwood and many, remained behind. Even with the administrative systems in place, the Origin Empire still required capable hands to maintain stability. Adrian could not take everyone.
Varik had accepted his role without complaint, standing at the edge of the platform with a calm expression, "The empire will stand, My Emperor," he'd said when Adrian had informed him. "Go. Learn what's out there."
The five rulers arrived as well, each bringing a small retinue. Lysandra was accompanied by her Archscribe, Morvain, while Alice brought Lady Seris with her.
It was not an army, but for something that had begun as a casual journey, it had become significant.
Adrian released a slow sigh.
Some had argued that they could not allow him to wander the universe alone. He understood their reasoning, yet he also felt the weight of risk in bringing so many together. Still, was this not the path he had chosen? He rejected the easy path offered by the Guardian Spirit and chose to walk forward with others, rather than alone. Since this was his decided path, then he should have to bear the risks that came with it.
With a slight shake of his head, he entered the ship.
The interior opened into a vast central corridor, branching into multiple sections designed for different purposes. Living quarters occupied the upper levels, whilst research chambers and training areas filled the lower decks. The ship could comfortably house everyone aboard without feeling cramped.
At this moment, this vessel was the fastest starship ever constructed within the Milky Way Galaxy. It had been built with a singular purpose: to reach the Andromeda Galaxy in months rather than millennia.
The Andromeda Galaxy lay beyond unimaginably vast intergalactic voids. Even light itself would take millions of years to traverse such distances. For most civilizations, such travel was little more than theory.
This ship changed that.
Rather than relying on brute speed, its core was engraved with an intricate lattice of spatial formations, guided by refined comprehension of the Space Concept. As it traveled, the vessel compressed the distance ahead, folding the void into manageable segments whilst maintaining spatial stability.
Adrian made his way to the command deck, where Kaelith stood reviewing the navigation systems. She glanced up as he approached.
"Everyone's aboard," she said, "We're ready when you are."
Adrian nodded, moving to the central console. His hand hovered over the activation sequence.
"Then let's begin."
The starship began its journey toward the edge.
The vessel accelerated smoothly. Through the observation ports, stars began to streak past as space compressed around them. Conversations filled the corridors as everyone settled into their quarters, unpacked belongings, and explored the ship's amenities.
Aerin pressed her face against one of the windows, watching the void blur.
"We're really leaving," she whispered.
Sentinel stood beside her, his hand resting gently on her shoulder, "We are."