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Chapter 108: Interrupted Excursion.

  The chamber was as large as it was opulent. Black marble bricks made up the walls and ceiling. Stacked atop each other so precisely that the entire chamber gave off an air of otherworldliness. A feeling that was only compounded by the masterful way in which each brick had been polished. Their surfaces so smooth that my even my superhuman sense of proprioception hardly felt a single uneven bump in the entire side wall that I was touching.

  “You know. I’m always ragging on architects every chance I get. Kinda something me and the other engineering students did for fun. But I have to say, this is one of the most beautiful works of art I have ever laid eyes on.” I told him truthfully.

  “I can feel how much vision went into this project. All the way from the design phase. Everyone who came together to make it a reality had a joint commitment to making something bigger than themselves. I have to say, I love it.”

  “D- Demon!” The king yelled. Wet stains now spreading over his fine silken robes.

  “How are you able to stand here!? The exorcists…!”

  “Incense isn’t going to keep me away, your majesty.” I told him bluntly. “Besides, you’re not in any particular danger. Like I told you. I like your work. It leaves a lot to be desired sure, but you did try your best and you genuinely care about the people you’re supposed to be ruling. I can respect that. You can stop screaming no…”

  “Guards!” The king yelled. “GUARDS!!!”

  I felt Charlie poking my side.

  “Told you.”

  “I’m not done yet.” I told him.

  “Sure looks like you’re done to me.” Monique added. Her eyes following the man as he scrambled about the room. Heading to a discrete side exit covered with a curtain of onyx beads laced together with black silk.

  “Now look. I said I’d try something different and I am. No [Domination] and no [Omniscience] in this dimension. We can do this.”

  “Didn’t we already kill the mutants?” Boris asked. “Why are we even here?”

  “Because the main issue wasn’t the mutants. It’s the fact that they keep throwing sacrifices into the ooze as part of their religion.” I told him. “Also, I’m proving to Prudence that I can, in fact, convince people to change for the better without using Telepath abilities.”

  Monique rolled her eyes.

  “Why don’t we just tell her we did it? Not like she’s gonna know.”

  “It’s the principle of it!” I told them. “The principle! I’m already doing a bunch of shady (Gnome) no matter how you slice it! I’m no one without my principles!”

  I turned to the king.

  “Which is why you and I are going to come to an amicable agreement where you realize you can’t fix the droughts by throwing young people into the oozing pit. We’ve got like, 20 more hours until the time limit is up. I’m sure I can convince you by the time the Excursion ends.”

  Slab rushed forward and interposed himself between the king and the curtain.

  His charge caused a gust of displaced wind to travel through all corners of the chamber. Making the rest of the fine curtains and banner hanging from the ceiling rustle ominously.

  “Look. It isn’t that difficult. Here. I got a survey. From your own library. Showing how many sacrifices were made and the years they were made. I’ve definitively proven there is no correlation between…”

  “Blasphemer!” The king bellowed. Gathering himself, despite his fear. “I am the shield of my people! The herald of the divines! I will not be led astray! I…”

  He swallowed a lump in his throat.

  “I will keep them safe! Even if it kills me!”

  He drew an ornate scimitar from a red sash. Holding it in shaking hands despite the small tears gathering at the corners of his hazel eyes.

  “Come at me! Beast! Give it your worst!”

  Then he rushed me. In spite of all the fear running through his veins.

  Dusty moved to intercept, but I tugged on her arm. Giving her a pleading look.

  She shrugged and stepped back.

  The king reached me soon thereafter. His blade coming down with respectable force.

  The sharp edge bit a few centimeters into my skin. Then, my body clamped on like a vice. My skin and the underlying tissues pressing against the blunt sides and refusing to let go.

  The king pulled and pulled. To no avail.

  “Listen, sir.” I began again. “I am not your enemy. I respect what you’re trying to do. Really, I do. I want to help you. I CAN help you. I want the same thing you do. I want to save as many people as possible. We are the same.”

  “Silence!” The king growled through gritted teeth.

  He let go of the blade and pulled out a dagger with a golden hilt. Stepping back and preparing himself for another charge.

  Monique groaned in exasperation. As if this was a chore she couldn’t wait to finish.

  I disagreed. And judging by the looks on Charlie, Boris, Dusty and Slab’s faces, they too had a different opinion.

  ‘How magnificent.’ I thought. ‘To be completely outmatched, and still keep fighting for the people he cares about.’

  I might have wept, if I still had a body that was capable of reacting naturally to anything around me.

  Instead, I gripped the dagger and activated [Solomon’s Inexorable Presence X].

  Sharing my memories with him.

  He stopped dead in his tracks and shivered violently. Before falling down on his side and gasping.

  I went over to him and held his hand.

  “I’m sorry. I saw that you wouldn’t stand down, no matter how much we talked. But I also didn’t want to hurt you because of a bet I made. That was irresponsible of me.”

  “You…” He gasped. Breathing through his mouth and with great effort.

  I activated [Limited Omniscience] and awoke his Psy, as well as the Psy of all the humans that I could perceive in this dimension.

  “Rest.” I told him gently. “You deserve some rest. Your people need you.”

  He nodded wordlessly and let go of his consciousness.

  I picked him up and moved towards his room. The bed that I had found after rummaging through his memories.

  “Huh.” Charlie said. His voice betraying little of his real consternation.

  “You might as well say it.” I told him. “Talking things out will help. I’m sure.”

  “No. It’s just…” He bit his lower lip. “I never imagined that someone this pampered would actually care about the people he was supposed to be ruling. I, I don’t know if I’ve ever seen it before.”

  He paused again.

  “Definitely not back in my world.”

  “You don’t think you own king cares about their people?” Slab asked.

  “Not if the war is any indication.”

  The mention of the war brought out memories of Mr. Whitmer and of the night he’d sent men to beat him and kill his dog. The only reason Charlie had been targeted in the first place was because the crime boss needed someone to step in in place of their son, after the latter had been drafted by lottery.

  “What’s the war about anyway?” Dusty inquired. Now more curious. “I don’t think I ever heard the reason.”

  “I honestly have no idea.” Charlie said bluntly. “The only thing I heard was that some bloke called Archie Duke shot some ostrich while in a car. Then a bunch of countries got involved because of a bunch of treaties and next thing you know my own Boudica is fighting to the death against Carthage and Rome and Saxony and no one wins over anyone else.”

  His face grew stern.

  “I had a chance to read the papers again while I was back.”

  “And?” Boris followed up.

  “And another 340, 000 people had died in Gaul. Fighting over some field no one knew existed until then. Apparently most of them weren’t even shot. They either died of the runny flux after the rains set in or they got infected after their feet were hacked off due to trench foot or worse, the mud swallowed them. That’s what the papers say anyway.”

  He spat on the pristine marble floors.

  “How in the (Gnome) does mud swallow someone anyway? What, does mud grow cheeks and a tongue and start rolling people up? I’ve been playing in mud my whole life and I’ve never been swallowed.”

  He spat again. More angrily this time.

  “Who was he?” I asked. Already knowing the answer.

  “Half-Blind Johnny.” Charlie sobbed. “He was my mate. I… I watched him grow up. He was a year younger than me. He wasn’t even supposed to fight but, they lowered the age for the draft while I was gone. And they offered money for volunteers. He wanted to feed the little ones. Gave it all to the sisters before he left.”

  He started gnashing his teeth.

  “I’ll kill them.” He swore. “All of them. The king of Boudica. The king of Gaul. The Carthiginean merchants on their (Gnome)ing council. All of them!”

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  His fists were beginning to tremble now.

  “Why couldn’t any of them be like this stupid oaf here!? Is sitting on your fat (Gnome) and living off the taxpayer without getting into wars really so (Gnome)ing hard!? Is having some old fat (Gnome) shot a good enough reason to send so many young guys like me to their (Gnome)ing deaths for a field nobody or their mother’s ever heard of before!? For (Gnome)’s sake! God (Gnome)ing dammit!”

  He kicked the nearby column and shattered the outer layer. Creating the only blemish on the whole chamber.

  “Here you have a world where the earth ripped the (Gnome)ing world apart and sent them all back to the stone age and they have a king who actually gives a flying (Gnome) about the average john running down the street! About what he can afford and about how much he earns per day of work! When was the last time my own king walked outside his (Gnome)ing palace to see how much the average clown paid for their meal or how much his steelworkers were making before some (Gnome) like Whitmer came along and squeezed him dry!? (Gnome)!”

  Boris laid a hand on his shoulder.

  “Don’t (Gnome)ing touch me! Don’t…!”

  Charlie stopped. Taking a deep breath while still quivering.

  I was about to put the king down and make my way to him, when another rush of displaced air travelled through the room.

  I turned my head as soon as I sensed the new minds. My eyes finally settling on…

  “Henry?”

  “Sully!?”

  “THE DEMON!!!” A man next to him cried out.

  “AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!” Another woman screeched.

  “WE’RE ALL GONNA DIE!!!!” Yet another woman piled on.

  Everyone but Henry scattered. Screaming the whole way.

  To the point where they started running into walls and creating even more cracks and blemishes on the pristine marble.

  “Stay put.” I said calmly.

  The all froze mid-panic.

  All except Henry.

  “What the (Sully) Sully!?” He began. Reddening. “What the (Sully) happened to not mind-controlling people!?”

  “Hey don’t look at me! These guys were running into walls and cracking their own skulls open. I’m doing them a favor.”

  I stopped for a moment to assess the damage.

  “Also, I already saved everyone on this planet, including the king, who is a wholesome person by the way. He doesn’t deserve as bunch of randos breaking his very expensive walls because they couldn’t control themselves.”

  I then turned to him.

  “So, emergency Excursion offering tons of bonus Tokens? Don’t you already have enough?”

  He stammered.

  “Did you just read my mind!?”

  “Henry, I read everybody’s mind. These days I have to try very hard to not read everybody’s mind. Don’t take it personally.”

  I looked him up and down.

  “If I were you, I’d be madder about the reason why you and your buddies were sent here.”

  He bristled.

  “The screen said a local wise king was fighting for his life.”

  I turned my gaze to the scimitar still embedded on my skin.

  “Yeah. I guess you could say that. But he wasn’t in any real danger. Look, you can have him if you want. I awakened his own Psy and took care of this culture’s whole sacrifice issue. He knows better now and he’s gonna have more options for taking care of his people.”

  Henry scowled.

  “Did you mind-control the king?”

  “What? No! Of course not! I just shared our memories! That’s not mind control.”

  I turned to my team.

  “Right guys?”

  They all looked at each other.

  “Right.” Dusty and Slab agreed.

  “It is less bad than it sounds.” Monique answered with a heavy sigh.

  “The results are good and they get to keep their freedom.” Charlie followed up.

  “He saved my sister and all the people I know, so I don’t care too much.” Boris finished.

  “Gee. Thanks guys.” I said sarcastically. “Way to help a friend out.”

  Charlie shrugged and Monique gave me the finger.

  I turned to Henry.

  “There, see? I am not just going around mind-controlling people left right and center. My own friends are taking the (Gnome) and giving me the finger. So I can’t be an evil Tyrant.”

  “That’s not what the Excursion descriptions says.” Henry pointed out.

  “Yeah. I know. I saw it in your memories. That description is lying.”

  “So you didn’t massacre a bunch of innocent sick people just now?”

  “OKAY! First of all! I tried healing them first! My [Solomon’s Perfect Vicissitude X] is at 15 and Tier 10! And I’ve got more Psy than most actual old masters out there in the multiverse! I don’t know what was wrong with them exactly but I can tell you, without exaggeration, that even the Seeking (Gnome)ing Drake wouldn’t have been able to heal them for good! That and they were spreading super cancer everywhere they went! That and their own Shifter powers didn’t heal them when I awoke them. That and our Excursion screen said it was the only way to save the planet! I’m not the bad guy here!”

  I turned to my team again.

  “Right guys!?”

  They all looked at each other again.

  Then Dusty spoke up.

  “I love him the way he is.”

  Then Slab followed up.

  “It was the best way out of a bad situation.”

  Then Charlie piled on.

  “At least he cares. More than I can say for most people back home.”

  “Okay, you guys are not helping out my…”

  A flash of blinding light surrounded us and just like that, we were back in the Labyrinth.

  A message telling us the Excursion had been a massive success.

  “Oh come on! Now the Spider’s just messing with me for (Gnome)s and giggles!”

  Yet another flash of light took me.

  This time leaving me alone in a familiar sand-filled arena.

  “Actually, that was me.” Hazimon the Dragon interjected. Standing regally in the middle of the chamber.

  “I saw that you’d used the punishment event to boost a number of other Students and figured I may as well lift some of the restrictions on Excursions so that they met with you on occasion.”

  I blinked.

  More surprised by the words than by the sudden teleportation.

  “You can do that!?”

  “Of course.” He replied. Matter of factly.

  “I am a senior Enforcer, after all. I have far more responsibility than the normal breed of Enforcers out there, but that also comes with a variety of perks and privileges. Including options for interfering with Tutorial that go off-script.”

  He paused to blow some bubbles into the air through his seahorse-like mouth.

  “Though, granted. Most Tutorials that go off-kilter tend to be cases where all but a few individuals wipe out entire instances. Or where all instances but those of Novice difficulty end up exterminated for one reason or another. Savants entering are something that happens on occasion as well, but normal Enforcers are usually enough to deal with them while they are still young and relatively impressionable. I have said this before, but I will repeat it now. You are an anomaly beyond anything else I have ever seen. You were one even before you gained another Type and now you are a being that would send most old monsters running for the hills.”

  He let out some more bubbles while letting out a gurgle that might have been a chuckle, if a human had made the noise.

  “I truly do pity the old gnomish hegemony. They undoubtedly had it coming, but I do still pity them nonetheless.”

  “Why would you send Henry against me?” I asked him bluntly. “Our deal was plenty clear on you not hurting humans.”

  “And I have abided by both the letter and the spirit of our agreement.” The old master stated without missing a beat.

  “I have merely given you an opportunity to meet with some of your peers face to face. Since I figured it would help your mental state, after the whole debacle the Spider arranged for you.”

  He made a noise that might have been a sigh. His pristine scaly skin shining in the dim lighting.

  “In fact, it was you who hurt those people?”

  “What do you mean? I never hurt anyone.”

  The master tilted his head, in a movement that might have been the equivalent of arching an eyebrow.

  “Stay put.” He said. “Those were your exact words.”

  He tilted his head a little bit further.

  “Did you manage to lift the command before being teleported out?”

  “AH! (Gnome) me!” I yelled. Suddenly realizing it. I hadn’t seen the aftermath in my future-sight because it had been a completely different dimension after we were taken, but the old coot was right.

  “You have to send me back!”

  He put up a hand.

  “I will give you another opportunity to meet, after we’ve had our talk. Be assured I do not want a hostile relationship with you. I only had the best of intentions.”

  He snapped his clawed fingers and a pair of luxurious chairs appeared.

  “Now then, sit with me. Let us, talk.”

  I sure as (Gnome) didn’t feel like talking after learning what had happened to those people, but I complied anyway.

  Sitting across from him as he wriggled in place.

  “Why are you doing that?”

  “Hmn? This?” He asked. “Don’t you humans squeeze out the cushions before finally relaxing?”

  “No?”

  “Huh. Well, I guess I cannot fault you for not complying with good manners. Not if you weren’t aware.” He reflected.

  With a voice that was genuinely remorseful, while still sounding full of unintended condescension.

  “Tell me, how have your recent battles fared in terms of your growth?”

  I pulled up my status.

  “I haven’t been able to get a single level in Telepath since our last meeting.” I told him bluntly. “But I have advanced a bit with Shifter.”

  “Yet, not as much as you were once used to with Telepath?”

  I thought about it and forced my shoulders into a shrug. Trying to pass it off as a natural movement.

  “Not really no. It’s all a bit…”

  “Odd?” He offered. “Unintuitive?”

  “Yes.” I confessed. “That would be the word. Unintuitive. When I was leveling Telepath abilities, even early on when I was keeping myself in the dark, I had a deep, familiar connection with [Precognition]. It was like, the golden strings were one with me. I could feel myself and all the future selves the ability made when Psy was running through them and I could tell how each different outcome would play out with next to no errors. I thought that was normal, but Slab and Boris and Monique and all the others who’ve gotten the power tell me the thing is wrong half the time at level 1 and improving the ability makes it chug Psy like nobody’s business while marginally improving the accuracy of predictions. Some people make it easier based on their own training and the… uh… ability to adapt to the ability. Like Kaito. He’s my friend and he’s gotten pretty good and reaching an 80% accuracy rate at level 5. He’s doing really well when you take into account the average. But he’s still worse than I was when [Precognition] was at 4. The thought that the immediate futures I was seeing might be wrong never even occurred to me. I just always knew they were right.”

  He nodded.

  “That is par for the course. I too have had trouble understanding the troubles of others.”

  He blew some more bubbles. But in a more jovial way. As if he was recalling old memories.

  “Unlike you, I never had powers before entering the Tutorial. Once I made it in, my levels went from 1 to 26 in the first day. And from there, to 42 on the second. I had two combined abilities before the week was up. One of them being [Battle Focus III].”

  He paused.

  “Are you aware of the ability?”

  I nodded.

  “Slab got it. Combination of [Enhanced Concentration], [Sudden Concentration], [Enhanced Processing].”

  “Ah. Then you know how much of an advantage it is.”

  I forced myself to shrug.

  “Not really. Slab was a monster, even before he got it. He’s still weaker than his sister and me, but he keep crushing everyone else with the same ease he’s always had. The only difference I can see is in his mind.”

  “How so?” Hazimon asked. “I know myself, but I am curious as to your take on it.”

  “I see through his eyes and I see that it is similar to what happens when I use [Limited Omniscience X] at full power. The universe slows down and becomes a series of interlocking moments, playing out unto infinity. Like a series of pictures forever frozen in time and leading into one another, rather than a continuous experience of normal time as I knew it before then. For Slab, it is localized in his immediate area. For me, it happens everywhere at once and all those moments lead back to the strings on the cobweb. Meaning I can see all the moments that happen everywhere in that dimension. The ones that led up to those moment, the ones leading from those moment and the ones that did not happen because of other choices taken in earlier moments. I do not only see what is and what will be. I also see what might have been. Such as multiple futures when people had children, when they never ended up having any at all in the present. Or futures when important figures might have changed the world if their parents hadn’t gone out drinking and driving before they were even born. I see a lot of stuff like that and it makes it hard. But Slab only sees the here and now and he feels as if he has all of time to prepare his next move. He still cannot overpower Dusty, like I said. But he can outmaneuver her now.”

  I paused.

  “Her and Charlie. Which is a lot more impressive given how much of a natural Charlie is at dispensing violence.”

  “I know the type.” Hazimon snickered. “And I also know where your troubles stem from.”

  “Do tell.”

  “I also have been having trouble as of late.” He admitted. “Guess how many levels in Telepath I have gotten since you granted me that first one?”

  “I don’t know. It’s been little more than a week and I’m sure you’ve got other masters acting as personal trainers. That and I imagine you can just show up at any other System event in the Labyrinth and demand to be left alone with the monsters so that you can grind them. So, I’m going to say, 15?”

  “2.” He replied. As if that were normal.

  It was a good thing that I was so inhuman these days because of my Shifter powers.

  Otherwise, I might have laughed in his face.

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