The demon appeared within milliseconds; his usual joyful smile was completely gone. Alongside him stood Xalla, and she was radiating a tangible aura of anger.
“You are a demon of illusions, yes?” I asked, keeping my tone neutral even through the anger.
“Yes, Lord.”
“And you saw what happened earlier?”
“I did.” He answered.
“Then please kindly educate Aspirant David on why angering a Lord Arbiter is not good for his continued existence.”
“Shall I eliminate him?” The demon asked, tentatively.
“No, there’s no finesse in such a crude solution like that.” I said calmly, wiping the last traces of blood off my face, “You’re smarter than that, Malazel. Use your imagination. Use these 6 days of rest to show me what you can do. Think of it as a test to see if you are worth my time. I do not want him dead.”
I looked at him in the eye, and saw the demon flinch, “Let the Human known as David Moore know the consequences of fucking with me!”
I almost allowed anger to get the better of me there, but I managed to calm down again. I’ve learned over the years that allowing your emotions to get the better of you usually leads to stupid decisions.
Now, was leaving the fate of David to a literal demon a little too extreme, even for my dubious morals? Perhaps, but I was so tired and angry that I realized that I simply didn’t care. I needed to take some control back into my own hands. Plus, I explicitly stated that I didn’t want him dead, so he’ll probably be ok… maybe.
“I want him after the rest period is over,” Xalla said for the first time, her normally chippy tone glacial.
“Perhaps if he doesn’t learn his lesson,” I answered; like I said, I wasn’t so cruel as to hand the guy over to a Xollon, I’ve seen what they do to their captives, and mental pollution or not, I was still human enough to understand that no one deserves that kind of fate.
“Leave his followers alone, though,” I quickly added, “That includes you, Malazel.”
The two Site workers looked like they wanted to protest but decided against it. They saw that I wasn’t in the mood to be argued with.
I mean, I was still angry, although a lot of that has subsided now that I had the chance to reassess my situation, but my rage was still mostly directed at David. His little goons were the type to latch themselves to someone stronger, and I wasn’t so morally depraved to sentence those four to an untimely demise simply because they chose to follow someone else.
Xalla nodded, her tone easing up a little, “You are far too forgiving, Walter. If these Humans weren’t being tested, I would have had their entire civilization obliterated for such an offense. To think they would dare damage your passion project!”
Right… maybe I was a better person than I thought, and more importantly, perhaps it would be a good idea to never get on the bad side of any Xollon. At least it was good to see that Xalla was thoroughly on my side now.
“I know, Xalla.” I answered, “But I am still working for Central, and I will not allow any more loss of resources because of a personal gripe of mine.”
Xalla was a little disgruntled, but Raffiel looked at me with pride.
“You always put your work first.” Raffiel praised, “It is little wonder that you earned such high praise from the others!”
“Go, I need to clean up.” I said, before turning to the Xollon, “And thank you for looking after me, Xalla.”
"You’re welcome, Walter.” She responded, “You can count on me to ensure that your experiments are not ruined. Just let me know if you want me to exterminate Aspirant David and everyone he has ever loved or cared for.”
Right… It’s good to know that Xalla’s taken a liking to me, but the way she shows her appreciation might be a tad extreme for Human standards.
“We’ll take our leave, Walter.” Raffiel said, “You can expect the results shortly.”
Leaving my room once again, this time without being hassled, I was able to finally survey this so-called Rest Area that Raffiel had prepared for us. Honestly, it would be gorgeous if there wasn’t one glaring problem. Sure, the walls were beautifully decorated, the carpets lush, and the ambient temperature and atmosphere heavenly, but there was practically no one around. There were gyms whose equipment went unused, pools with no one swimming in them, and entire shops devoid of all life. It was eerily empty like I was in a liminal space.
I shuddered at the unease.
From the results of the first Trial, there should be at least 80 people here, and while that wasn’t a huge number, it should still be a little livelier than what I was seeing. Where the hell was everyone? They couldn’t have all disappeared in one day.
After walking around the place some more, I finally understood why the halls and various amenities were empty; it seemed that the very few who managed to dominate the first Trial and obtained a decent Class had scared off the rest of the Aspirants. Some were literally waiting in the halls for some poor sucker to come out so they could do what they did to me. Thankfully no one saw me as I made my way, quietly this time, around the facility.
I was glared at whenever I passed by another rare individual, but word must have gotten out that I was broke, or perhaps these individuals were not muggers, because they just left me alone. I did see one other nervous-looking Aspirant sneaking into one room or another quickly, before darting back to the safety of their dorm.
Rest Area my ass, the only people having any sort of a relaxing time were the 15 or so individuals that scored the highest in the first Trial. Everyone else was either licking those people’s boots or hiding in their dorms. Just being out in the open made me feel vulnerable and was despite the fact that I knew Raffiel and Xalla had my back. I can’t imagine how the others who barely survived a week in that hellish cityscape were faring.
Still, I had my goals in mind, and knowing the Regressor and his sister, there was no way they would be hiding. That crazy woman Noel is almost certainly somewhere out here, and I’ll bet good money that the really huge dude I haven’t met is out and about as well. I just had to find them before someone else decided it was a good idea to pick on me.
And found them I did, and all together at the cafeteria at that. It appears that the Regressor also had the same ideas as I did and made friends with the most outstanding individuals in our little cohort. Noel noticed me first.
Before they could bog me down with conversation, I made sure to check them out with my Rookie Arbiter Eyes for any new information, now that they’ve all completed the first trial. And lo and behold, the info did change, with their classes now being displayed.
First up, the Regressor and his class were absolutely ridiculous as expected:
Chronolancer (EX Rank Unique Frontline Support)
Description: Given to the one whose spear has transcended space and time. You have transcended the limits of this life, and your mastery of the spear allows you to manipulate the very foundations of the universe. Your spear will have no rival, whether that be in the past, present, or future.
Above Noel’s head was something equally absurd.
Gehenna's Silent Death (SS Rank Unique Assassin)
Description: You are intimately familiar with Death and Sin, forming a connection with the Underworld. You can borrow the power of Gehenna itself to bring the world to its heels. All will fear the flames of Gehenna’s Silent Death.
The giant guy’s class was also pretty impressive.
Titankin (S rank Frontline)
Description: You are a lost child of Gaia, and the blood of Titans runs through your veins. Take hold of the power that caused the Titanomachia of the lost ages to obliterate your foes, and show the world the might of a true Titankin.
And finally, Yonna’s showed the only class that was sort of normal.
Spiritual Archer (B+ Rank Support)
Description: Your Archery has reached a deep level, allowing you to imbue mana and lifeforce into your volleys.
I mean, I knew these people were freaks, but when I compare my class to even Yoona’s… Let’s just pretend I never saw the information at all.
“Hey!” Noel shouted, waving me over, “If it ain’t my little bro!”
Everyone was seated on a metal table, finishing the last bits of what seemed like a pretty impressive meal. The others noticed me as well, the Regressor nodded in my direction, while the other man I hadn’t met before was eying me up and down. The Regressor’s sister saw me, but a look of concern quickly washed over her features.
“Walter, your face!” Yoona said, getting up from her seat to take a closer look, “What happened?”
The others noticed as well but didn’t react quite as strongly as the high schooler.
“Perhaps it’s a new fashion trend?” Noel said, “Not a good look on you though, Walter, might want to try a new look.”
Once again, I had no idea how to interact with the red-headed lunatic. It seems like she’s just operating at a different frequency. Maybe I can make her the Regressor’s problem to deal with her in the future.
“Um, no.” I answered gently, “I got mugged on the way out.”
“I knew it!” Yoona shouted, before turning to her brother, “I told you we should do something about those bullies!”
“No, no, it’s fine.” I said quickly, “Making trouble this early would do no one any favours. And I’m not really that hurt.”
“No, your face is swollen! Look, I’ll get a healing salve – um, it’s something my brother and I bought at the store - it’s in my room, so I’ll be right back.”
The Regressor went to get up, but a fierce glare from Yoona made him sit down again.
“And I can go myself!” She said sternly, “I got 2nd overall in the world, do you honestly think I can’t handle myself here?”
“But-”
“No buts. Take care of Walter, I’ll be back real quick!”
And with that, before giving her brother another chance to protest, Yoona quickly jogged away. I didn’t even have the time to thank her.
When Yoona was fully out of view, the looks of the other three changed almost instantaneously. Gone was the earlier cheer and aloof atmosphere, and all of them had death in their eyes. I guess there was some kind of unwritten rule to put on baby gloves when Yoona was around? I knew the Regressor’s screwed up in the head having come back from the grave, and Noel was… Noel. But even the bug guy seemed like he was serious trouble now.
“So, want to tell us the truth now?” The Regressor said, tone dark, “There’s no way that you couldn’t take care of a few thugs.”
“Well, I haven’t met you before,” the only stranger here said, “you survived a run in with Noel, so you must be as much of a freak of nature as those two.”
“Um, it’s nice to meet you?” I said tentatively, not quite sure how to answer the Regressor at the moment.
The big man nodded, “You too, the name’s Vadeem and any friend of Noel is alright in my book… Although if you’re friends with her you might not be alright in the head.”
“Hey! What’s that supposed to mean?” Noel interrupted.
The Regressor shushed the two, and spoke again, “You haven’t answered the question.”
“It really was because I got mugged.” I answered honestly for once, “I just didn’t want to make such a big scene after passing out for a whole day.”
“Really?” He said again, looking at me suspiciously.
“I just like keeping a low profile. Thought it would be easier to just fork over a few hundred gold than cause a scene.”
“Ah!” A look of understanding washed over Noel’s face, “You’re into that kind of thing.”
“What?” I asked, genuinely confused.
She gave me a friendly pat on the shoulder, “Hey, I don’t judge. Got some friends into the same kink as you do, so no worries.”
Oh, you have got to be kidding me. How is she able to constantly keep me guessing about her thought process?
“No, it’s not like that-”
“No, no, it’s ok little bro, I can even introduce you to a nice club I know. Real extreme shit there. No safe words, strictly below ground. I’m sure you know what I mean.”
“We’re not even on Earth anymore, Noel. There are no clubs,” grumbled Vadeem.
“Oh right!” She answered with genuine surprise, “I had completely forgotten. No wonder Walter’s so desperate for a little action. It’s been weeks since he’s had a nice-”
“No,” I said quickly, “I’m being honest, I really just didn’t want to cause a commotion.”
The crazy woman raised an eyebrow before frowning, “Alright, if you say so… but if you didn’t do it on purpose, then that means someone actually had the audacity to bully my little bro? Walter, tell me who it is and I’ll have a nice little "chat" with them. No one fucks with my friends!”
Yeah, I can not for the life of me predict this woman at all. Still nice to see she cared about me so much, considering I’ve met her for a combined total of about an hour before this.
“She’s right, you know.” Vadeem said with a fierce grin, “If there’s a problem, we can make it disappear real quick and quiet.”
“Uh, I’m good.” I answered nervously, “Thank you though.”
She nodded in understanding, “Right, you’d want revenge on your own. Understandable. But if you want to know some great techniques to use when you’re having fun…”
“No one wants to learn those “techniques” from you, Noel.” Vadeem answered for me, rubbing his eyebrows in frustration.
“Uh, did you two know each other before?” I asked after seeing how naturally those two interacted.
“Yeah, unfortunately.” Vadeem answered jokingly, “We were in the same field of work before all this nonsense; my old boss and I had employed her services on more than a few occasions.”
I nodded. I certainly did not want to find out what that line of work was.
The Regressor coughed and gestured to the hallway. We turned our attention towards that direction and saw that Yoona was making her way back. He gave me a cold stare, and I knew that he was telling me to keep things PG around his sister. Guess he didn’t want to expose her to the real world quite yet.
Vadeem sat back down and started to wolf down the remainder of his food with a goofy grin on his face, and even Noel put on a perfectly innocent smile as she waved at Yoona.
“Hey, that was quick, best pal!” She said cheerfully, “Let’s get Walter patched up!”
The demon appeared within milliseconds; his usual joyful smile was completely gone. Alongside him stood Xalla, and she was radiating a tangible aura of anger.
“You are a demon of illusions, yes?” I asked, keeping my tone neutral even through the anger.
“Yes, Lord.”
“And you saw what happened earlier?”
“I did.” He answered.
“Then please kindly educate Aspirant David on why angering a Lord Arbiter is not good for his continued existence.”
“Shall I eliminate him?” The demon asked, tentatively.
“No, there’s no finesse in such a crude solution like that.” I said calmly, wiping the last traces of blood off my face, “You’re smarter than that, Malazel. Use your imagination. Use these 6 days of rest to show me what you can do. Think of it as a test to see if you are worth my time. I do not want him dead.”
I looked at him in the eye, and saw the demon flinch, “Let the Human known as David Moore know the consequences of fucking with me!”
I almost allowed anger to get the better of me there, but I managed to calm down again. I’ve learned over the years that allowing your emotions to get the better of you usually leads to stupid decisions.
Now, was leaving the fate of David to a literal demon a little too extreme, even for my dubious morals? Perhaps, but I was so tired and angry that I realized that I simply didn’t care. I needed to take some control back into my own hands. Plus, I explicitly stated that I didn’t want him dead, so he’ll probably be ok… maybe.
“I want him after the rest period is over,” Xalla said for the first time, her normally chippy tone glacial.
“Perhaps if he doesn’t learn his lesson,” I answered; like I said, I wasn’t so cruel as to hand the guy over to a Xollon, I’ve seen what they do to their captives, and mental pollution or not, I was still human enough to understand that no one deserves that kind of fate.
“Leave his followers alone, though,” I quickly added, “That includes you, Malazel.”
The two Site workers looked like they wanted to protest but decided against it. They saw that I wasn’t in the mood to be argued with.
I mean, I was still angry, although a lot of that has subsided now that I had the chance to reassess my situation, but my rage was still mostly directed at David. His little goons were the type to latch themselves to someone stronger, and I wasn’t so morally depraved to sentence those four to an untimely demise simply because they chose to follow someone else.
Xalla nodded, her tone easing up a little, “You are far too forgiving, Walter. If these Humans weren’t being tested, I would have had their entire civilization obliterated for such an offense. To think they would dare damage your passion project!”
Right… maybe I was a better person than I thought, and more importantly, perhaps it would be a good idea to never get on the bad side of any Xollon. At least it was good to see that Xalla was thoroughly on my side now.
“I know, Xalla.” I answered, “But I am still working for Central, and I will not allow any more loss of resources because of a personal gripe of mine.”
Xalla was a little disgruntled, but Raffiel looked at me with pride.
“You always put your work first.” Raffiel praised, “It is little wonder that you earned such high praise from the others!”
“Go, I need to clean up.” I said, before turning to the Xollon, “And thank you for looking after me, Xalla.”
"You’re welcome, Walter.” She responded, “You can count on me to ensure that your experiments are not ruined. Just let me know if you want me to exterminate Aspirant David and everyone he has ever loved or cared for.”
Right… It’s good to know that Xalla’s taken a liking to me, but the way she shows her appreciation might be a tad extreme for Human standards.
“We’ll take our leave, Walter.” Raffiel said, “You can expect the results shortly.”
Leaving my room once again, this time without being hassled, I was able to finally survey this so-called Rest Area that Raffiel had prepared for us. Honestly, it would be gorgeous if there wasn’t one glaring problem. Sure, the walls were beautifully decorated, the carpets lush, and the ambient temperature and atmosphere heavenly, but there was practically no one around. There were gyms whose equipment went unused, pools with no one swimming in them, and entire shops devoid of all life. It was eerily empty like I was in a liminal space.
I shuddered at the unease.
From the results of the first Trial, there should be at least 80 people here, and while that wasn’t a huge number, it should still be a little livelier than what I was seeing. Where the hell was everyone? They couldn’t have all disappeared in one day.
After walking around the place some more, I finally understood why the halls and various amenities were empty; it seemed that the very few who managed to dominate the first Trial and obtained a decent Class had scared off the rest of the Aspirants. Some were literally waiting in the halls for some poor sucker to come out so they could do what they did to me. Thankfully no one saw me as I made my way, quietly this time, around the facility.
I was glared at whenever I passed by another rare individual, but word must have gotten out that I was broke, or perhaps these individuals were not muggers, because they just left me alone. I did see one other nervous-looking Aspirant sneaking into one room or another quickly, before darting back to the safety of their dorm.
Rest Area my ass, the only people having any sort of a relaxing time were the 15 or so individuals that scored the highest in the first Trial. Everyone else was either licking those people’s boots or hiding in their dorms. Just being out in the open made me feel vulnerable and was despite the fact that I knew Raffiel and Xalla had my back. I can’t imagine how the others who barely survived a week in that hellish cityscape were faring.
Still, I had my goals in mind, and knowing the Regressor and his sister, there was no way they would be hiding. That crazy woman Noel is almost certainly somewhere out here, and I’ll bet good money that the really huge dude I haven’t met is out and about as well. I just had to find them before someone else decided it was a good idea to pick on me.
And found them I did, and all together at the cafeteria at that. It appears that the Regressor also had the same ideas as I did and made friends with the most outstanding individuals in our little cohort. Noel noticed me first.
Before they could bog me down with conversation, I made sure to check them out with my Rookie Arbiter Eyes for any new information, now that they’ve all completed the first trial. And lo and behold, the info did change, with their classes now being displayed.
First up, the Regressor and his class were absolutely ridiculous as expected:
Chronolancer (EX Rank Unique Frontline Support)
Description: Given to the one whose spear has transcended space and time. You have transcended the limits of this life, and your mastery of the spear allows you to manipulate the very foundations of the universe. Your spear will have no rival, whether that be in the past, present, or future.
Above Noel’s head was something equally absurd.
Gehenna's Silent Death (SS Rank Unique Assassin)
Description: You are intimately familiar with Death and Sin, forming a connection with the Underworld. You can borrow the power of Gehenna itself to bring the world to its heels. All will fear the flames of Gehenna’s Silent Death.
The giant guy’s class was also pretty impressive.
Titankin (S rank Frontline)
Description: You are a lost child of Gaia, and the blood of Titans runs through your veins. Take hold of the power that caused the Titanomachia of the lost ages to obliterate your foes, and show the world the might of a true Titankin.
And finally, Yonna’s showed the only class that was sort of normal.
Spiritual Archer (B+ Rank Support)
Description: Your Archery has reached a deep level, allowing you to imbue mana and lifeforce into your volleys.
I mean, I knew these people were freaks, but when I compare my class to even Yoona’s… Let’s just pretend I never saw the information at all.
“Hey!” Noel shouted, waving me over, “If it ain’t my little bro!”
Everyone was seated on a metal table, finishing the last bits of what seemed like a pretty impressive meal. The others noticed me as well, the Regressor nodded in my direction, while the other man I hadn’t met before was eying me up and down. The Regressor’s sister saw me, but a look of concern quickly washed over her features.
“Walter, your face!” Yoona said, getting up from her seat to take a closer look, “What happened?”
The others noticed as well but didn’t react quite as strongly as the high schooler.
“Perhaps it’s a new fashion trend?” Noel said, “Not a good look on you though, Walter, might want to try a new look.”
Once again, I had no idea how to interact with the red-headed lunatic. It seems like she’s just operating at a different frequency. Maybe I can make her the Regressor’s problem to deal with her in the future.
“Um, no.” I answered gently, “I got mugged on the way out.”
“I knew it!” Yoona shouted, before turning to her brother, “I told you we should do something about those bullies!”
“No, no, it’s fine.” I said quickly, “Making trouble this early would do no one any favours. And I’m not really that hurt.”
“No, your face is swollen! Look, I’ll get a healing salve – um, it’s something my brother and I bought at the store - it’s in my room, so I’ll be right back.”
The Regressor went to get up, but a fierce glare from Yoona made him sit down again.
“And I can go myself!” She said sternly, “I got 2nd overall in the world, do you honestly think I can’t handle myself here?”
“But-”
“No buts. Take care of Walter, I’ll be back real quick!”
And with that, before giving her brother another chance to protest, Yoona quickly jogged away. I didn’t even have the time to thank her.
When Yoona was fully out of view, the looks of the other three changed almost instantaneously. Gone was the earlier cheer and aloof atmosphere, and all of them had death in their eyes. I guess there was some kind of unwritten rule to put on baby gloves when Yoona was around? I knew the Regressor’s screwed up in the head having come back from the grave, and Noel was… Noel. But even the bug guy seemed like he was serious trouble now.
“So, want to tell us the truth now?” The Regressor said, tone dark, “There’s no way that you couldn’t take care of a few thugs.”
“Well, I haven’t met you before,” the only stranger here said, “you survived a run in with Noel, so you must be as much of a freak of nature as those two.”
“Um, it’s nice to meet you?” I said tentatively, not quite sure how to answer the Regressor at the moment.
The big man nodded, “You too, the name’s Vadeem and any friend of Noel is alright in my book… Although if you’re friends with her you might not be alright in the head.”
“Hey! What’s that supposed to mean?” Noel interrupted.
The Regressor shushed the two, and spoke again, “You haven’t answered the question.”
“It really was because I got mugged.” I answered honestly for once, “I just didn’t want to make such a big scene after passing out for a whole day.”
“Really?” He said again, looking at me suspiciously.
“I just like keeping a low profile. Thought it would be easier to just fork over a few hundred gold than cause a scene.”
“Ah!” A look of understanding washed over Noel’s face, “You’re into that kind of thing.”
“What?” I asked, genuinely confused.
She gave me a friendly pat on the shoulder, “Hey, I don’t judge. Got some friends into the same kink as you do, so no worries.”
Oh, you have got to be kidding me. How is she able to constantly keep me guessing about her thought process?
“No, it’s not like that-”
“No, no, it’s ok little bro, I can even introduce you to a nice club I know. Real extreme shit there. No safe words, strictly below ground. I’m sure you know what I mean.”
“We’re not even on Earth anymore, Noel. There are no clubs,” grumbled Vadeem.
“Oh right!” She answered with genuine surprise, “I had completely forgotten. No wonder Walter’s so desperate for a little action. It’s been weeks since he’s had a nice-”
“No,” I said quickly, “I’m being honest, I really just didn’t want to cause a commotion.”
The crazy woman raised an eyebrow before frowning, “Alright, if you say so… but if you didn’t do it on purpose, then that means someone actually had the audacity to bully my little bro? Walter, tell me who it is and I’ll have a nice little "chat" with them. No one fucks with my friends!”
Yeah, I can not for the life of me predict this woman at all. Still nice to see she cared about me so much, considering I’ve met her for a combined total of about an hour before this.
“She’s right, you know.” Vadeem said with a fierce grin, “If there’s a problem, we can make it disappear real quick and quiet.”
“Uh, I’m good.” I answered nervously, “Thank you though.”
She nodded in understanding, “Right, you’d want revenge on your own. Understandable. But if you want to know some great techniques to use when you’re having fun…”
“No one wants to learn those “techniques” from you, Noel.” Vadeem answered for me, rubbing his eyebrows in frustration.
“Uh, did you two know each other before?” I asked after seeing how naturally those two interacted.
“Yeah, unfortunately.” Vadeem answered jokingly, “We were in the same field of work before all this nonsense; my old boss and I had employed her services on more than a few occasions.”
I nodded. I certainly did not want to find out what that line of work was.
The Regressor coughed and gestured to the hallway. We turned our attention towards that direction and saw that Yoona was making her way back. He gave me a cold stare, and I knew that he was telling me to keep things PG around his sister. Guess he didn’t want to expose her to the real world quite yet.
Vadeem sat back down and started to wolf down the remainder of his food with a goofy grin on his face, and even Noel put on a perfectly innocent smile as she waved at Yoona.
“Hey, that was quick, best pal!” She said cheerfully, “Let’s get Walter patched up!”
