Ch 133

  “No,” Matt stated firmly, his voice unwavering. “I am not going to slaughter-”

  “Who said you would have any choice in the matter?” Tempormr interrupted, his tone cold and unyielding. “It is time that you learned what it means to survive in the universe and put aside any reservations you have about doing so.”

  “You think forcing me to fight for my life against other people is the best way to do so?” Matt challenged, frustration etched on his face. “If I were at least being forced to fight in a war, I could understand, but what you’re suggesting is just slaughter for slaughter’s sake.”

  “That is what is expected of those who wish to stand at the top,” Tempormr stated in a dismissive tone. “To rise, others must fall, and while most seek to grow through the slow and steady path of fighting foes they can easily defeat, the chosen few are put through much harder trials. You need to stop seeing those who stand in your way as anything more than pests to be eliminated. You need to stop seeing love as anything more than a tool to get you to act against your best interest. Taking pleasure when you can and enjoying life are fine, but if you don’t rise to stand at the top, you will have wasted the chance that comes from being newly integrated.”

  “Then find me a way to get the results you’re after without asking me to abandon my humanity!” Matt shouted, his anger intensifying, his fists clenching at his sides. “I will simply lay down and die if this-”

  “You will accept an endless existence in the Tomb of the Restless Defenders?” Tempormr interjected before Matt could declare his intentions. “I am the one who placed that dungeon there, knowing that only someone like you, while at a low level, could clear it. It was created by cursing the soul of the one you replaced with eternal torment. Nothing doesn’t seem too terrifying until you spend a few hundred years just floating with your own thoughts and nothing else.”

  Matt found himself feeling betrayed, though those feelings quickly dissipated as he remembered that he had never intended to trust Tempormr in the first place. He had simply grown accustomed to the aid Tempormr seemed to offer freely, only to now see another side of him. Steeling himself, Matt responded with a hardened heart.

  “Fine, if you wish for me to walk the path of slaughter, so be it. Just know that you’re placing yourself at the end of that path, and this is the last demand you will ever make of me.”

  “We shall see,” Tempormr replied with a cryptic tone.

  At that moment, Matt felt his surroundings vibrate, as if charged with energy, and a new voice joined the conversation.

  “We shall see it done as soon as Radoznaormr declares that he will leave us be.”

  “Ha, leave it to a Godfrey to interject right before things slip out of hand,” remarked Tempormr with a hint of amusement. “You’re lucky that none of your organization is worth any experience to either of us. Matt, pull out the anchor.”

  “No,” Matt stated firmly as he sat down and folded his arms defiantly. “I am not satisfied with where things stand and will use what little leverage I have while I can.”

  “Some things never change. Those with true potential hate when others try to direct their path,” commented the new voice with a slight chuckle. “Very well, what is it that you want?”

  "You've said it. I want to be able to walk my path without others trying to direct it," replied Matt firmly. "Let me return to the dungeon—"

  "No," stated Tempormr. "There is nothing more for you to gain there. The gap between you and the rest of your party has grown too wide, and all that either side would do at this point is hinder the other."

  "You wish for him to return to his world before reaching level 65, correct?" asked the new voice. "If so, I can design a gauntlet that will see him gain one level each time he completes it, and between each round, he can gain something he desires as a reward."

  "I thought I said to leave my path to me," retorted Matt, his frustration evident. "I want—"

  "To waste the time you have by running around without any direction," interrupted the new voice, its tone sharp and unyielding. "I have offered you a compromise, one that will see you get up to 12 requests from my organization when I should be killing you for what you have done. Instead, I will see you enter this gauntlet where the remaining time you have is split into 11 parts, and I will allow you to rest between them. If you survive it all, there will be five days as you know them left before your expected time to return to your world, from what I know. During that time, you will be allowed to discover what happened to the rest of those who came with you, and know that if you die, I will ensure that all of them do as well."

  "What of those who wish to join Scattered Stars?" asked Matt, deciding that he could only push so hard.

  This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

  "They will be allowed to meet with you if you have at least one day between the gauntlets I will create for you and join at that time."

  "Take the deal," stated Tempormr, his voice carrying a warning tone. "Take it, or I will reach out to Greg and tell him that you're being forced to marry a harem of women and impregnate them all."

  Matt's brain took a few seconds to fully process what Tempormr was threatening him with. Part of him wondered how Greg would react, but one thing was certain: the plan would fail the moment Matt reached out to anyone. He was just about to voice this thought when Tempormr continued speaking.

  "Go ahead and try to access your organization's controls."

  Matt attempted to do just that, only to find his efforts blocked as the new voice began to speak.

  "That would be my doing, as you are at the heart of my organization. Here, I can block any other organization from functioning. So, you won’t be reaching out to anyone unless I allow it."

  "This was too well planned," stated Matt, frowning as he realized the depth of the trap. "No matter what happened, this was what I was destined to face, and involving Radoznaormr only complicated matters."

  "No," replied Tempormr with a sly grin. "Attracting Radoznaormr’s attention was one of my goals after you took his anchor. Otherwise, I couldn’t get what I wanted from the Godfreys. I must say, you did quite well. Now, produce the anchor so we may complete—"

  "No," stated Matt, smiling despite the dire situation. "I think I will just die and accept that I have doomed others with me. It is you who insists I should not let the fate of others force me to do what I don't wish to. If you want to force me to face a gauntlet, there's nothing I can do to stop you. But I think I'll leave you to handle Radoznaormr without taking the one thing he wants from me."

  "Very well, it seems that an agreement couldn't be reached," replied Tempormr with a hint of disappointment. "Do what you will with him, as I have no intention of facing Radoznaormr without the anchor as leverage."

  "It seems that this will be your grave," stated the new voice ominously, as Matt felt the space around him start to shrink slowly. "Perhaps it's for the best that someone like you is removed before you can cause any real issues."

  Matt sensed the bluff for what it was; if the voice genuinely intended to kill him, he would already be engulfed by the metal surrounding him. Instead, he chose to examine the path aspects options he had gained by reaching C rank, swiftly narrowing the list down to just five. He felt tension grip his body as he considered each path, aware that his next move could determine his fate as his body was slowly engulfed by the metal.

  Available paths:

  Random Chance’s Hope (Who needs to know the odds, you thrive on working with what you have and can never be written off)

  Hope’s Enduring Luck (Hope can sustain your luck, so long as you still draw breath.)

  Hopeful Counter Killer (Killing counters are powerful but, for you there is always the hope of succeeding where others would fail.)

  Undying Fate Disruptor (Fate means nothing to you as you freely carve your own path and alter the paths of others.)

  Hopeful Lucky Executive (Sometimes succeeding in business requires believing that the next day will be better and a bit of luck.)

  Four of the choices he was focused on were there because Matt saw them as connected to the four paths he hadn't taken at D rank. The last option, Undying Fate Disruptor, was one he would typically have ignored due to its association with fate. However, the words next to it spoke of escaping fate, and his instincts were urging him to choose it, so he did just that. As a result, his durability increased from 2,857 to 3,174, his spirit surged from 82,944 to 94,003, and his hit points rose from 21,324 to 26,853. Additionally, he slipped into what felt like a meditative experience. The world around him seemed to slow, and he sensed fate essence being added to his tools, enhancing his ability to draw skills from them.

  Amidst all of this, Matt found himself envisioning a path forward, even as he continued to remain motionless. The pocket he was in gradually began to close, and he started to slip further into the surrounding metal. At this critical moment, Matt summoned his willpower, envisioning his body being coated in a layer of tooth enamel and filled entirely with blood in every area submerged in the metal. This wasn't a flawless solution, but Matt was banking on it to prevent him from suffocating in the immediate future. His logic was that if there were no muscles to extract oxygen from his blood and he managed to contain everything within himself, he might endure for a significant amount of time. The pressing question, however, was whether it would be long enough for the system to propel him back to Earth, or if he had inadvertently doomed himself and everyone else for nothing.

  Floating weightlessly in the darkness made it difficult to gauge the passage of time. The lack of access to his organization's controls only exacerbated the situation. Despite everything, he was relieved that he had managed to transfer the majority of the merit points to Emily since his capture, hoping she could sustain their operations, at least temporarily. Yet, a nagging worry gnawed at him; had he inadvertently signed their death warrant? He racked his brain for a means of escape from his current predicament. It seemed, however, that he was destined to continue drifting in the mysterious void that surrounded him until he somehow returned to Earth. He pondered how he could perceive anything in his current state when suddenly, Tempormr's voice echoed in his mind once more.

  "You are merely postponing the inevitable. All you need to do is produce the anchor, and this will end. Then, you can begin the first gauntlet."

  Matt decided to ignore Tempormr, a choice he wished he had made from the start, as it ultimately dragged Apricity and Bob into the chaos back in the dungeon. Despite this, he steeled himself, hoping that fate would favor them and all the members of Scattered Stars. Even as Tempormr attempted to persuade Matt into accepting a deal, he steadfastly refused, all the while smiling inwardly and considering the myriad possibilities that lay ahead.

  While trapped in his situation, Matt discovered there was at least one advantage to his current predicament: his base stats in durability, stamina, and mental resilience were all starting to increase steadily. Although none of these attributes were nearing their maximum potential anytime soon, it gave him something to focus on to pass the time. Time, which he keenly felt slipping away, as he contemplated all the opportunities and experiences he was missing out on. Nonetheless, he found some relief in not having to worry about the pressure of an arranged marriage for the time being.