The Fool's Freedom

The walk back was done in a slower manner, giving Alan and Jay some time to talk more. They had changed directions haphazardly, throwing themselves in random directions. It was a miracle that no jadari or other monsters had found them. Alan had certainly done a good job of killing all he met previously, but this was on the side of the valley he had yet to explore. Perhaps it was Jay and his team’s effort that allowed them to pass unbothered.

“Aren’t the monsters here a bit too strong for the group you’re watching over?” Alan asked. The jadari were quite a high level, especially for those in tier one. He would be having major trouble if he didn’t have his curses on hand. The spear used had somehow managed to duel one for a short time, while the resilience of the shield had also been surprising.

If the group reached tier two, they’d be a force, especially as a team.

“Yes, but I help a lot. We had some trouble with a group that had something called a [Screamer]. I weaken them, they contribute and get massive amounts of experience for it. What you witnessed in the valley was an experiment. I don’t for a second believe that we can kill the bosses of this place, and the others will die without me. Honestly, even the two of us will struggle. You’re strong, but unless that strange and scary thing you did to me back then can be done on the boss…” Jay said then hesitated and stopped. His fists were clenched and he looked at Alan as if afraid to say the next words. He still did though.

“Are you a mind mage beneath the shadows and the speed?”

Alan smiled gently. “No. I understand why you might think that way. I have the means to affect the mind, but what I gave you a glimpse of is something different.”

“It’s evil,” Jay said. “We… we had to get rid of quite a few users of mind magic in our Sanctuary. They are dangerous.”

Get rid of? Persecution? Alan still nodded. “I understand. I’ve had my fair share of trouble with mind magic. I’m not a manipulator, nor do I want to become one. However, I can, and will use anything I have available if you try to ‘get rid of’ me. We’re not friends. We’re temporary allies at best.”

“That’s fair. There’s no friendship in this new world we live in.”

Alan saw some tension leave Jay, but the man remained wary. It was very understandable. Mind magic was something quite different than having fireballs flung at you. His curse was definitely in that category, but to some extent, it was even worse. It was a strike below the belt that made use of one's past – a devastating mental blow that could do untold damage if used as he had with Bonez.

It was unwise to run from that fact or deny the danger his heritage skill presented to people. No one would shrug it off and say ‘cool’ unless they were unhinged. But it was a useful tool and perhaps Alan’s strongest skill. Even if tier two could be affected after a simple touch… He knew it wouldn’t be as easy as crushing Bonez or tormenting the ‘witch’. The resistance was there, clear as day, but the dormant curse stood its own. Jay must’ve sensed something to be so worried, although he hid it well.

Some part of Alan wanted him to push it, to unleash the curse and see how far it would go before Jay managed to fight it off. If he was capable of that.

Alan wasn’t sure he would’ve been able to have such a casual conversation with someone who had him in his clutches with a skill of this sort. He didn’t know what Jay had seen in the brief flair-up of the curse. The man was dangerous, and that ghostly miasma covering his forearms was downright scary. Deathly so.

“Words are cheap,” Alan said as they continued walking. “I don’t expect you to trust me, nor will I trust you. My view on humans from before the System might’ve skewed my perception, but believe me when I say that post-System humanity is not that great either. There are gems here and there, but even gems break in time, and the influence our classes have over our personalities is undeniable.”

Jay laughed at that – a throaty sound that seemed almost fake. As if the guy wasn’t used to laughing.

“Tell me about it. For a time, all I cared about was fighting and killing. It was a vortex sucking me deeper and deeper. I am who I am today because of losing myself to my initial class. It was when I tiered up that I sobered a little, and I’m thankful for that. I still have to keep track of my emotions and regulate them, or else I become just another beast looking for a fight,” he said.

That’s quite transparent, but I can relate. Hell, it’s as if the System wants us to fight and grow. What’s the point though? What’s its ultimate purpose?

They met the rest of Jay’s group a few minutes later. The four were wary and Alan could see the tension and worry on their faces and in their body language. The whispering shadows enjoyed the sense of fear he had instilled in the group.

“Who won?” Amir, the fire mage asked.

“He—” Jay began.

“It was a tie. Your leader is a strong man,” Alan interrupted.

There were gasps. Shock and disbelief. They all waited for Jay to confirm, and the man only nodded while glancing at Alan. He was back to his cold and aloof self, with no trace of the chatty guy Alan had conversed with. Holding on to a certain image seemed important to Jay, and Alan saw no reason to destroy that.

Some goodwill went a long way, and while he would never fully trust someone from Earth again, it was a good change of pace.

The group stood silent for a few moments. They were looking at Alan as if he were a monster, and he might as well have been. No one spoke to him, but then again, no one spoke with Jay either.

It was quickly decided to make a camp and have a proper rest before tackling the boss. The group was excited when Jay presented them with the idea, especially now that they had another tier two in their midst. A tier two capable of fighting their leader to a draw.

The strange dynamics made Alan wonder some things. Should I boost some members of the Sanctuary next time I go back there? I’ll probably visit Mr. Muge and leave him some materials before tackling the Blood Fields. It’s a problem I have to deal with, and something tells me it might be quite worth it.

It was not a bad thought. Rosalyn, Emerson, Walter… maybe some of Mr. Muge’s guys? He didn’t want to lose them. Emerson, he cared the most about, but there was also a level of guilt there. Alan had to admit that. He felt responsible for not helping the man sooner.

Training in the Bazaar had showcased what death feels like, and only the fact that it was just a skill’s effect had kept Alan from completely losing it. Even now the memories terrified him more than the torture from the Bone Lord.

“What can you do?” Kehlani suddenly asked Alan, surprising him. The woman was trying to appear quite friendly, although it was very obvious that she was on the edge of running away the moment Alan looked at her. She had dark hair, dark eyes, and tanned skin. A pale scar covered part of her face, where she let her hair fall as if to obstruct it from sight.

“A lot,” he answered. Jay knew enough, and he could tell them if he wanted.

The woman frowned but accepted his answer and kept whatever thoughts she had to herself.

“Those shadows are a bit creepy man,” Thomas, the shield-bearer said.

“You look like a Dungeon boss we have to fight in the end to save a princess or something,” the one with the spear added. Vlad, was it? Alan wasn’t putting much effort into remembering names, but his mind attribute was apparently quite helpful in that regard.

“Perhaps I am part of the story of this place, and this is me invading your little group to sow chaos and disorder, making you turn on each other, before dealing the final blow,” Alan said, then laughed at their expressions. I’m not doing well with integrating myself. Damn, talking to Kalyntha and Zirida was much easier. Then again, they were capable of kicking my ass to the void and back.

“He’s a human, like us. Don’t ask about his skills, it’s rude,” Jay said coldly from the side. He had sat down with eyes closed all this time, presumably meditating.

“If we’re going to risk fighting that giant thing, then we should know what he can do,” Amir countered. “I’m not putting my life in the hands of some unknown guy we randomly found in the middle of this shithole.” He was the most aggressive of the bunch, which was in line with his fire magic, but Alan still found it odd. Did the man not know of self-preservation, or was he just being provocative to try and squeeze some information?

“Wanna spar?” Alan asked him point blank. The man opened his mouth, then closed it and frowned.

“That wouldn’t be fair.”

“Why? We’ve had the same amount of time to level and develop,” Alan countered.

“Amir. You do remember my words, don’t you?” Jay again interjected from the side, ruining Alan’s fun.

Even if the fight’s outcome was predetermined, it was still a good experience. Alan had fought very few people from Earth properly, but learning about skills and classes was one of the best uses of his time. Especially considering human nature.

“Yes, Jay.” The man grumbled, then turned to Alan. “I’m a bit hot-tempered. I apologize if I’ve offended you.”

That’s a surprise. Alan gave him a smile and a nod. The reaction had only made him more wary of them, if anything. He hated feeling like that, but it was necessary. No one could be trusted.

His mind wandered toward the boss instead. This was the second one, but it remained to be seen which of the quests would benefit from its death.

Hopefully both.

***

In the dark abyss of a prison realm, where nothing but a disembodied consciousness resided, Xil opened his eyes. It took him a few moments to adjust, but demons were adaptable. Demons were survivors.

He could feel the strangeness of the energy surrounding him, and for the first time in too long, he had another voice in his head. It was not Alan’s, but something else. Something his.

The human had performed yet another miraculous deed and parts of the energy of the ritual had been absorbed through the cracks of Xil’s prison, harming him but also tearing apart some of the bindings holding him down.

He didn’t mind being caught in the middle if it meant more freedom. Casting [Soundless] and talking only with Alan was getting boring. Xil had to admit the human was growing on him. He was bloodthirsty, and the strange events surrounding him were like a drug to a demon.

The damage to the realm was great and had weakened him a lot, but he was happy. The void was poison to regular mana, especially the one his prison slowly absorbed to keep itself functional. Xil remembered the void. The demon realm was shrouded by it, separated from the other realms and contained by the untraversable patches of death, where things worse than the worst demons lurked. Only ritual summoning was capable of going around that.

Xil laughed and his own voice echoed in his mind like the grinding of blades. Getting found by that human was the best thing that could’ve happened. Broken memories flashed through his mind yet again and some long-forgotten skills echoed in his consciousness. He needed more time, but rebirth was nearer than ever.

He had no body, no vessel, and while cracked his prison was still strong enough, but there was light at the end of the tunnel. Perhaps the human was now strong enough to assist from the outside… Oh, the excitement! Carnage awaited! Glorious battles, glorious thefts, glorious laughter!

And as another memory flashed through Xil’s mind, he smiled.

Glorious revenge too, was on the menu.