It's been a week since Alex placed a sphere of protection around the empire's borders and life had taken a completely new turn.
People smiled more, went out with their loved ones, business boomed and people went on vacations--some even visiting new star systems.
The most visited system during that time was the Sol system--everyone wanted to see the hunter who changed everything, the hunter who took away their fears, the man who brought order to their lives.
Alexander Gray.
People would visit the planet, find out which city Alex lived in, and even find the exact location of his family home. Things got a bit rowdy as the family had difficulty stepping out.
Some tried to get properties near The Gray's estate. Unfortunately for them, the government stepped in, making the entire area a private space no one could go to.
Things were really hectic as the family feared their lives changing, but Alex was able to convince them things wouldn't remain that way for long.
He had done his part for the people. It was up to them to live how they saw fit as he would only act as a guardian, protecting them from threats they couldn't handle.
But that was unlikely. With many vassals drawing power from him, there was basically no threat humanity couldn't handle themselves.
Hunters could stay at home more than before. They didn't have to always be on edge.
They could go out of the empire to hunt for resources whenever they wanted, becoming more of a job now than a necessity.
A lot of things had changed, and people questioned if hunters were still needed.
Naturally, they did. Void creatures may not be appearing in the empire anymore, but they were sure appearing outside of it.
Also, the cores of the void creatures were very valuable to humanity, serving as their primary energy source for a great many things.
With all these changes happening, where does that leave Alexander now?
...…
"What do you plan on doing now?" William asked over dinner. "With everything now calm and quiet, there should be something else you can do, right?"
Since his return from the centre of the empire, Alex had been home, spending time with his family in the best possible way he could.
He would go shopping with his parents, go on dates with Julia and then help his brother with anything he needed.
"Well, I plan on going to the centre of the universe." Alex casually dropped the boom. "My evolution is incomplete till I reach there. But I'm also not in a rush."
For a moment, his family were confused by what he said. "Center of the universe and your evolution?" Sarah echoed with raised eyebrows. "Is there an issue there?"
"Not exactly." Alex chuckled. "I'm currently at a level where my power is almost at the universal level."
His words surprised the family. They knew Alex was powerful and even knew he was called a god now. But imagining a being at a universal level of power? They didn't know what that meant.
"And when do you plan on getting to that?" William asked a couple of seconds later, seeing no point in trying to grasp the kind of being his son had become. A god was enough to wrap his head around.
"Mm, I'm not entirely sure," Alex replied. "And I also don't know how long that would take."
"Then you can do something during that time." Sarah proposed. "Since you don't want to go hunting, you can try something like teaching the next generation or something. You have valuable experience no one else has… and I think you'll do really well."
Alex pondered the suggestion for a moment, and the more he thought about it, the more he bought into the idea. At this point, he felt like a loser with no job.
"Yeah.. I'll consider that." Alex agreed after thinking things through. "A year or two shouldn't hurt anyone."
Of course, at the back of his mind, he still thought about the visitors who could potentially appear anywhere in the universe, the empire included. Whatever the case, he wanted to be around to see if they'd make an appearance.
It would be bad if he were to be unavailable when they actually appear. With no idea about their intentions, he could only wait.
"That's wonderful." Sarah beamed. "I'm sure your brother would like that."
The family continued their dinner. But then Olivia raised another issue—an important one. It was one that the family had been thinking about for a while, and Alex, of course, knew that.
"Hey bro." Oliver called out, sending a slight shiver down his spine. "When are you going to get married?"
Suddenly, everyone stopped eating and stared at him, waiting for his reply.
"Eh… soon?" Alex replied, not sure how to put that.
Of course, this wasn't the first time having this chat as he had previously had a conversation on this topic with Julia's dad some time ago. However, with how busy everything was, he didn't have time to go any further.
Sarah frowned at his response. "Soon?" His mother was not pleased. "You have no plans, do you?"
"..."
Alex had no reply.
"Listen bro," Olivia said, thinking Alex was feeling down. "No one is rushing you. Just don't forget her…"
Her words had a different meaning, a meaning no one failed to understand.
"I know, sis." Alex replied. "It's just that Julia wants to reach the S Tier before we do anything else."
"Did she tell you that?" Olivia asked.
"In a way, yeah." Alex nodded. "From our connection, I can see through her thoughts."
"Well, that's fine," William said with a smile, trying to change the subject. "You can start thinking about what you want to do as an educator."
"Yeah…"
'Xex, compose a letter and send it to Principal Yiny.' Alex instructed.
[Of course] Xex replied and then asked. [When do you want a reply?]
'Mm, tell her to take her time. I want something that would make use of my combat skills in real-life settings.' Alex said, taking a moment to complete the thought. 'Something like being able to take the students on expeditions to experience things.'
[Right away]
With instructions clearly given, Xex went to work.