It was a slap that echoed across the room, and Damien grabbed his face in pain.He stared at me with tears in his eyes, but I didn’t care, he’d just embarrassed me greatly, he needed to understand the position we were in the family early on.If he didn’t get himself together and man up, it may have been too late for him to realize.Yes, my method may have been harsh, but it was necessary, necessary to shape him into the boy I wanted him to be, the boy who would inherit the Ruby family.“You know how much he hates losing to someone, or coming in second. With Malcolm impressing him so much, how do you think that would affect us? Why would you tell him about you coming in second?!” I shouted at him.The position we found ourselves in was very delicate, and he was just making matters worse.“I won’t lie to him, I refuse to lie to my father,” he said in a calm voice.I calmed down a bit, he didn’t understand the situation properly, he still has so much to learn.“Listen to me Damien and yo
The room was neatly arranged, and he sat on a chair while I sat on the bed.“So Benjamin, I called you in here to speak to you privately because I don’t think I’d be comfortable saying this around other people,” I said.“Whatever it is Master Malcolm, you can tell me” he said with a reassuring voice.He always had a way of putting me out of stress, and hearing his voice put me at ease.I no longer felt nervous, and I suddenly gained the confidence to speak.“Leave the Shade mansion and come live with me Benjamin,” I said.He stared at me wide eyed and in shock when he heard this, it stunned him and took him aback. He definitely was expecting to hear something like that from me, and I kept quiet, and gave him time to process the information.He stared at the floor for a long while, probably contemplating what to do, I would be surprised as well.After what seemed to be like an eternity, he finally responded to me.“I’m afraid I’ll have to decline that offer Master Malcolm,” he said, a
I got home that day in high spirits, my visit to my mansion was a fruitful one.I had finally gained the respect of my father, he would no longer see me the same way as before.I also sent a powerful message to my step mother, a message for her not to mess with me.I could genuinely see the look of surprise in her eyes when she saw me, she was definitely not expecting to see me.Her plan had failed woefully, and it was all thanks to me.I would deal with her later, I had something I needed to do then.As I got into my apartment, I contacted Logan and asked him to meet me at my place, it was urgent.I’d had a new business prospect in my mind for a while now, and it was finally time to enact it.He arrived at my place shortly and I summarized the details for him.Basically, I wanted to get invested in the oil industry.By that I meant I wanted to start digging for oil, and it would require a lot of capital, as well as manpower.At first Logan was skeptical, he wondered how I would be ab
****(Some months later.)We see two people sitting in an office, one at a desk, and the other standing in front of him.We recognize these characters as Malcolm and Logan.It has been some months since we last heard from them, how much has changed?Let’s find out.[Malcolm’s POV]I sat there, at the head office of Blackstar incorporated.I, the owner of the company, sat in the largest office in the building, reserved specifically for me.By my side, was my Chief Executive Officer, Logan.A lot had happened in the past few months, and looking on at the events of the past, I was overly perplexed.“So Malcolm, what happens now?” Logan asked me, as he stood there.“Well Logan, I’ll be resuming school tomorrow, I leave everything in your hands,” I responded and he nodded.‘It’s that time of the year already huh? I can’t believe this is already happening’ I thought to myself.It was crazy how far I’d come, in just some months.“I won’t disappoint you boss,” he said and smiled.“Of course b
I got out of bed very early the next morning.I had mixed feelings toward everything, I was unsure of how the day would be.I couldn’t believe I would have to relive the nightmare called school, I thought I was done with it ages ago.The previous night I was cool about it, and I thought it would be easy for me to adjust, since I’d done it all before, but I was wrong.I could never get used to it, and I curled in my bed in annoyance."Laying down in bed won’t help me out, I guess I’ll just get it over with,” I said to myself, and so I got out of bed.I’d already packed my bags the night before, I also informed my gatekeeper that I would be leaving for school, so I had him leave the night before.My house would be under lock and key during the time school would be in session, as such I really didn't need a gatekeeper.I got out of bed and got prepared, I took a shower, and wore some clothes.I thought about making a grand entrance, but that wasn’t necessary, not yet.I went downstairs
He covered his mouth and screamed again.“Oh my god, my roommate is Malcolm Shade,” he said and screamed again.He began pacing around the room till I grabbed him by the shoulders to calm him down.He was wasy shorter than me, so I towered over him with my large frame.“Calm down,” I simply said.He looked my right in the eye and his face turned bright red.Suddenly he went limp in my arms and fell to the ground, he’d fainted.‘What the heck?’ I thought to myself.First day of school and this was already happening, I lifted him off the floor and placed him off his bed.He wasn’t so heavy, and I couldn’t tell if it was because he didn’t weigh much, or if I was just that strong.“I’ll just let him sleep I guess,” I said to myself.I looked around the room and explored the environment.I expected it to be a small room with a bunk bed, and it was actually small. However, it was divided into two parts, one for each room member.We each had a closet, a desk which had some drawers, and a bed
The next day arrived so fast, and the rays of the sun cast its light into our room through the window.I got up from bed a few minutes after eight, and I was shocked to see how much time had passed.The entrance ceremony was by ten in the morning, and every student was supposed to be there at least thirty minutes before the time.I glanced at my alarm clock and it was some minutes past eight.I jumped out of bed in shock, I’d set the alarm to wake us up by six in the morning.‘I must have overslept’ I thought to myself.I didn’t think I would, but the bed in the room was actually very comfortable, and large enough to accommodate my huge frame.Usually when I was introduced to a new place that wasn’t my home, or that I wasn’t accustomed too, I would have trouble sleeping.But that wasn’t the case here, and I felt a sense of relief in a sense, I wouldn’t have to worry about getting sleep at night.I hurried to the other side of the room and woke Tucker up.He didn’t respond at first til
Most of the event was boring to me, and I found myself yawning most times.Hardly anyone was paying attention to the event, this was until the Vice Chancellor came to give his address.He spoke smartly and everyone listened with rapt attention.He was a very strict person and a disciplinarian, no one would want to get on his bad side.“Now I’m one who always appreciates academic excellence, and I do my best to encourage students to always come out on top. It is my honor and pleasure to recognize the student with the top score in the entrance exams this year, Mr Malcolm Shade!” he shouted and everyone began to clap loudly.They were all confused at first, and looked left and right to see where I was seated.“Alright Tucker, wish me luck,” I said and shook his hand.I got up from my seat and pulled off my nose mask, and I began to walk toward the stage.As I walked past everyone, the applause became louder and louder, and there were screams and cheers from all the students.I carried my
“Genesis, I don’t intend to engage them in a prolonged battle. My plan is simple: I’ll transport them to a specific location in another world, use Starforge to unleash an all-out attack, and then transport myself back to my world before they can retaliate. I won’t give them a chance to regroup. It will be swift and decisive.”I stood firm in my conviction, determined to see this through, despite the risks.Genesis remained silent for a few moments, processing the information.Genesis let out a long sigh, almost as if the system itself was struggling to come to terms with my proposed plan.[Damon, with the potential for so many things to go wrong, I must give you a more honest assessment of the situation. Based on my calculations, I estimate your chances of success at only 10%. This is an extremely risky endeavor. If even one variable does not go as planned, you could be facing a formidable enemy without my support, and your odds of survival would diminish drastically.]I took a deep b
As the garments glowed, Genesis's voice rang out once again, its appraisal clear and concise.[Holy Garments of the High Pontiff (Legendary, Level 70)][Effect: +300 Intelligence, +5% Holy Damage, +15% Resistance to Dark Magic, Spell: Holy Shield, Blessing of the Pontiff]I considered the garments carefully, recognizing the potential they offered me. While I couldn't use the Grimoire, these robes could prove invaluable in my journey.It was from one high level equipment to another, but I couldn't keep this up for long.Considering the amount of damage they could potentially cause to my world, as well as the constant sneak attacks, I knew I had to get moving…quickly.However, there was still one more thing I needed to confirm."Genesis, the skills I obtain each time I'm attacked, are they permanent?” I conveyed my thoughts toward it expecting a response.[Damon, the skills you obtain through the Counter skill are indeed temporary. Cognos provided you with the ability to create these t
[Skill Created: Celestial Shield (Lv. 1)][Skill Activated: Celestial Shield (Lv. 1)]A shimmering, silver-white energy shield manifested around me, just in time to deflect the beam of light with a resounding CLANG!Though I still felt the intense heat, the shield held, protecting me from the destruction of the safe house. My whole line of sight was enveloped in smoke, and my vision was hazy.Suddenly, another panel manifested before my eyes.[Skill Created: Celestial Gust (Lv. 1)]I raised my hands, channeling the power of the wind to clear the smoke around me. With a simple gesture, I activated the new skill:[Skill Activated: Celestial Gust (Lv. 1)]A burst of air rushed through the safe house, scattering the smoke and revealing the aftermath of the destruction.The whole surrounding area was left in ashes, and right next to me was a horrible sight.Remains of Vlasdilav’s body lay there on the floor, a pile of bones nearly burnt to ashes.I felt the anger well up within me, whoeve
As Vladislav shared his experience with the Player Wars, I couldn't help but grin, a spark of recognition in my eyes. "I've been through it too," I admitted, nodding in solidarity."So you know what it's like then," he said, a sense of camaraderie growing between us."Yes. The Player Wars are no joke. They're brutal, but I survived. I'm still here." I said, a sense of pride and resilience in my voice."Looks like we have more in common than we thought," Vladislav replied.Curious about the skills that made him such a formidable assassin, I asked, "So, what are your skills? What's your main specialty?"Vladislav's eyes narrowed as he considered my question. "Assassination, obviously. My skill set includes Shadow Cloak, which lets me become invisible for a limited time. Silent Stalker, which muffles my footsteps and masks my presence. And, of course, Bloodlust. The more enemies I kill, the stronger I become.""Not to mention my enhanced senses. There's also Silent Strike, which allows
I still felt some sort of apprehension at the fact that the other person in pursuit had escaped, but that was beyond my power now.All I had to do now was focus on what came next, and honestly, I had no idea what to do.‘Genesis, if only you were here,’ I thought to myself. ‘You'd know what to do.’Just as I finished that thought, I was startled by a sudden notification in my mind.NOTICESystem upgrade completed. Rebooting.A progress bar appeared, counting from 0% to 100%.The progress bar steadily crept towards 100%, and I couldn't shake the thought that Genesis would once again be available to me. ‘It'll be back, I'm sure of it,’ I thought, and I felt a surge of optimism and relief washing over me. The assassin, sensing my distraction, cleared his throat. "Do you have a plan?" he asked, a hint of concern in his voice."For now, we return to the safe house. I'll need some time to think things through." My response seemed to placate the assassin, and he nodded in agreement.We mad
He then explained the quest log that they all received to me.The assassin, still trembling, began to reveal the contents of the quest log that had been shared among all players. His voice shook as he explained that I had been marked as a target, and every player had been transported to this world with the sole purpose of eliminating me. According to the quest, until my demise, none of the players would be able to leave my world. They were granted unrestricted access to their skills, allowing them to utilize their full potential in their pursuit to end my life. The rewards for succeeding in this quest were immensely valuable, with each contributing player being granted a single wish.This revelation shed light on the relentless pursuit I had been facing from them, as well as the desperate lengths that the players were willing to go to claim their rewards. It became clear that, to them, my life was nothing more than a means to an end, a stepping stone to fulfilling their deepest d
“Now it's my turn,” I said.The two men stared at me in horror, before making their moves.The assassin threw out some pouches to the floor which generated a dark mist, preventing me from seeing them.I brought out my wings and flapped them with so much might that it generated enough wind to disperse the mist.However, they were nowhere to be found.I closed my eyes and heightened my senses, searching intently for any hint that they might have decided to give away.By combining my Draconic senses with Thought Acceleration, I was able to comb the vast expanse of land in mere moments.Suddenly my ears picked something up to my left, it was the assassin, using yet another camouflage skill.I flew toward him at top speed and crashed into the ground right in front of him.I got up and paced angrily toward him. “Give me one good reason why I shouldn't kill you right now,” I said.The assassin, realizing he had been discovered, quickly activated a skill that shrouded him in an aura of dark e
A wave of confusion swept over me as I watched the two men recoil back in fear of me. "What's going on? Did you feel that too?" the assassin asked, a hint of uncertainty in his voice."Yes, I did," the other man replied, and he locked his eyes onto mine. "I don't know what he did, but he feels like an entirely different person from when I first faced him."I couldn't help but ponder their reactions. ‘Huh? Why did they suddenly back away from me? I don't feel any different from before, so what's wrong?’ I thought, perplexed by the situation.I decided to try contacting Genesis again, hoping to shed some light on the matter. ‘Genesis,’ I thought. However, once again, I received no response.The silence was as puzzling as the men's reactions, and I couldn't help but wonder what had changed. ‘This all began after my meeting with Cognos, what did he do?’ I thoughtDespite the lack of communication from Genesis, I knew I had to press on.“Tch, you snooze you lose, I'm about to steal my p
Cognos looked at me with a mix of understanding and concern. "You must understand, young one, with great power comes great responsibility. The pursuit of power alone often leads to a dark and destructive path."I felt impatient, my mind was simply fixated on the quest he'd entrusted me with. "How am I supposed to carry out the quest you gave me then?" I asked, and the frustration was clear in my voice.Cognos paused, then reluctantly nodded. "Very well. If power is what you seek, I shall grant it to you. I will give you the power to counter anything that stands in your way."I stepped closer, with a look of curiosity mixing with anticipation. "How?" I asked."Come closer," he said. I complied, and he placed a hand on my head. A comforting warmth spread through me, soothing and invigorating at the same time. It felt like pure energy was flowing into me. When he finally removed his hand, the sensation remained, leaving me feeling stronger and more capable than ever before. I didn't kn