The Nanite Swarm Disaster Sixty-Five Years Ago.
The war had continued until now, and it was almost impossible to say what had truly caused it to begin. It was equally impossible to determine which side had first started the flames of war. But there was at least one point on which the world agreed: the uncontrolled nanite swarm disaster sixty-five years ago had absolutely been the deadliest of the many sparks that ignited the war.
After the largest Sea of Nanites in the Northern Hemisphere went out of control, it corroded through the protective barriers and instantly swallowed the three surrounding cities. Even now, the places ravaged by the swarm remained forbidden zones for all life. Since the soil and environment had been completely altered, no plants grew there anymore. The water was filled with deadly chemicals and remnants of the swarm that had not yet lost all vitality. Fewer than half of the adventurers who ventured into that land of death ever returned alive.
Yet, incredibly, despite the nanite swarm corroding everything around it back then, one place had survived: the Northern Ring Tower, located in the center of the Sea of Nanites. No one had been able to explain this phenomenon, and the job Nolan had accepted this time was precisely to go there.
Almost no one wanted to travel to that land of death, and land destroyed by the swarm could hardly have much value. Thus, aside from a few powerful factions with special interest in prewar technology, very few people went to the Northern Ruins. The greatest problem with heading there was finding a guide. Very few people could cross the ruins alive, and Nolan was one of them. Guides like her charged exorbitant prices and were usually unavailable even for money—not everyone was willing to