11.7

Eve was satisfied. Purple was either smart or out of the loop, but she was willing to bet it was the former. He seemed like the kind of person to weigh all his options before committing to a course of action. Granted, he was still a horny teenager, and the glances he gave both girls were anything but hidden. Those desperate urges from a young man were not really a problem though, as Eve planned to take both the boys to a high-class brothel in the future. If basic training had taught her anything, it was that men performed better if they had their ashes hauled on a regular schedule. She wasn’t worried much about moral decay, her job wasn’t to keep them on the straight and narrow.

No, Eve’s job was to raise a batch of lethal and decently loyal minions.

Morality was a great thing in a society where strength was mostly capped. It fell apart though in a world like this where a single person could accumulate enough power to wipe a city off the map unless they were countered by an equally strong individual. Here, in this place, morals were a crutch at best. They were something to be spoon-fed to the weaker part of society to keep order among the masses. Anyone with half a brain knew that those at the upper Tiers would merely pay lip service to such things. Well, lip service unless they had a Perk or something that allowed them to benefit from upholding such morality even when no one was looking. Something like that would be rare though, Eve was willing to bet.

The point being, morals were flexible, like a good courtesan. They weren’t however something Eve required in her future minions. These four teenagers were long-term investments, to the tune of a thousand years or so. When they realized that they could no longer gain experience at Tier Six, she knew that Purple, if none of the others, would take a closer look at the contracts. Specifically, the part that promised to help them reach Tier Seven in return for a period of servitude.

In the time between when they hit Tier Five, and when they realize experience stops at Tier Six, I’ll take my vacation. Eve thought. As long as I can get Purple, Glitter, and White as minions things should work out. Red is a nice addition but he’s a bit too much of a blunt instrument for my tastes.

She made a few adjustments to the talismans attached to the teenagers to remedy them less detectable while checking the logs each one had. Each talisman had eliminated just under ten separate individuals for each person. It was a disturbing number, likely the result of kill teams working in tandem. Eve shrugged, whether a rival Clan lost their shadows, or a group of professional assassins failed, neither really affected her. She grinned internally, those talismans were the reason she knew that all four had been ordered to test her power by their respective Clans. Looking at the exhausted White who had just attempted to laser beam her to death Eve flashed a grin before she said, “We are done for today. Rest up, get a good night’s sleep and be ready for tomorrow. We’ll be heading directly to the Sand Tower. Bring whatever you think you need to stay alive in there for an extended few months.”

After receiving nods of understanding from all three conscious teenagers Eve said, “Purple get Red healed up and then explain the situation to him. Attendance isn’t mandatory if your Clan Elders decide to keep you back. However, if they do so I am no longer obligated to continue training you, per the agreement with the Guildmaster.”

Glitter said, “Are we allowed to bring servants with us?”

Eve smiled before she said, “Yes. They will be automatically covered under the contracts you all signed as long as they are part of your retinue. However, be mindful, they will have a blank spot in their memory for the elapsed time."

As all three teenagers nodded in understanding Eve checked Witch’s Dust to ensure the normal cleansing process had finished on each of them. It wouldn't do to have trackers, spy scry spells, or worse attached to her people. Once she was certain that everything was well in hand, she gave a wave to her future minions before teleporting back into the city. While the loss of daylight caused quite a few places to close down for the night, there were just as many businesses that remained open. Looking down at the lights from the top of the guard tower spire in the inner city Eve pulled the information from Eternal Memory that had recorded each talisman’s information. Eight separate and distinct groups had attempted to murder her future minions. Eve found the casual disregard of these groups to be abysmal. In a world where might makes right, it was necessary to send the same sort of message she had been tasked with sending countless times back on Earth. Like all good messages, this one was simple.

Retaliation.

A simple concept for simple people. Eve thought as she pumped mana into the Ritual of Detection to detect the DNA traces left by attackers. If I thought there was a possibility of negotiation, I wouldn’t go this route. However, I’m well aware of how such people think. Unless they are given a clear understanding of the situation, they won’t stop.

Eight locations burned brightly in Eve’s mind as she stopped feeding Detection with excess mana. Spatial Step carried her in a single bound to directly in front of a massive sprawling mansion. Looking at the architecture of the first location made her understand this was likely a rival Clan. A vindictive smile lit her face as the entire place was enveloped within the Library of Dust III.

There are worse things than death. Eve thought as she used Spatial Folding on the perimeter just outside the wards in place. With ever-more efficient haste a cube of folded space boxed the entire Clan estate. Once the sealed box was complete, Eve transferred a tiny portion of Witch’s Dust inside the created container. Some lessons need to be reinforced multiple times to get the best effect.

The fragment of Witch’s Dust left within the Clan’s compound began multiplying rapidly as Eve monitored it. Anyone looking would see sand rapidly increasing as if elemental magic was at work. She had imbued three specific commands into her creation. First, all organic material that wasn’t a sentient humanoid was to be consumed. Second, all metallic substances were to be cleaned of traces and pulled into Storage via Looting. Third, and most sinister, any humanoid that had contact with the sandy dust substance would be cursed with a horrific itch. As long as they didn’t wear clothing the itching would only drive them to the edge of insanity. If any infected individuals attempted to wear clothing though, well, that person would be a lesson to others.

Shame works wonders that even death cannot. Eve thought as she finished monitoring the first location. Worse, my creation is almost like a parasite. It won’t be easily removed by healing magic, nor will it be possible to kill easily, since it isn’t alive.

Certainly, a strong enough dispel would work, but mana dispelling of such strength would wreak any other magical effects the individual might have. If the dispelling mana user wasn’t careful, it was possible they could do more harm than good. Eve could only imagine the chaos that would ensue as her little present ran its course. Nodding in satisfaction at the effects, she quickly moved to the other seven locations.

Two assassin’s guilds, one additional Clan, and four separate merchant companies received presents one after the other.

After finishing up, Eve decided to treat herself to another slice of chocolate cake at Le Goût D'or. The restaurant appeared to never close, which was just fine in her book. Ordering was a snap, and her food appeared within moments. Raising her spoon she was about to take the first bite when the space at the table edge opposite her fluctuated. A moment later, the ceramic annoyance appeared, radiating smugness.

“Are you…stalking me?” Eve asked as her eyes narrowed before her spoon descended upon the cake before her as she kept a careful eye on the ceramic intruder. It wouldn’t do to fight within the same location she could feed her addiction at, if it came to blows Eve use Folded Space to pull them both out of the restaurant before engaging in combat. What if the cooking staff got injured by this brick? That would be a true travesty of the highest order!

The brick was motionless after her question before it stood upright with a long rectangular surface facing her squarely. On the visible flat side facing her the demonic creature’s form rippled showing a miniature of Eve like a brick version of television. She watched with a dumbfounded expression as the brick used the elemental ability it had to enact a miniature play featuring her actions with seamless skill. It was clear the brick had been spying on her for quite some time after suffering a loss in the bank.

Eve chuckled as the small screenplay finished before she took another bite of chocolate and said calmly after swallowing, “That’s not a threat.”

The brick tilted at her as if saying, “Lady, are you sane? This is a threat. Believe it.”

Ignoring the fact that she was talking to an animated inanimate object Eve shook her head as she took another spoonful and said, “No. That’s not a threat. Trust me.”

The brick titled the opposite direction someone conveying the message, “Lady. It’s a threat. I swear on my solidity, I am threatening you! Pay up! Now!”

Eve put her spoon down before crossing her fingers and looming over the table to say, “No. That wasn’t a threat. Do you want to hear a real threat?”

The brick tilted forward at an angle and said without words, “Bring it!”

Eve pulled a scene from one of her favorite movies, an old one, but one she enjoyed watching in the past on Earth, and said, “I know you are looking for ransom, and I can tell you I do have money. More money than you could ever spend in a lifetime, yes, even if you are immortal. However, I also have a very particular set of skills. Terrifying Skills that I have acquired as I rose higher in my Class Tier. These wonderful Skills make me a nightmare for creatures like you. If you teleport away now, that'll be the end of it. I will not look for you. I will not make it my life’s work to utterly and completely turn your existence into an example of abstract art.” She paused to take a sip of her peach ambrosia wine before continuing in a calm unhurried tone, “But if you do not teleport away, if you do not make good on proving you desire peace, I will hunt you down through all the dimensions of existence. I will rip your soul from the container it currently enjoys before subjecting it to horrors that could break even a brick. Doubt not, for I will succeed. In the end, you will become nothing more than a mindless remnant example for future generations to learn the mistake of attempting to blackmail me.”

The brick instantly played dead. Eve gave a dead fisheye stare at the creature, there was no doubt it was waiting for the chance to escape. She couldn’t point to exactly what clued her in, but it could easily be chalked up to female intuition. It was the same instinct that allowed her to semi-understand what the brick was saying. Moving to take a sip of her coffee, Eve’s eyes pretended to look away from the ceramic stalker for a moment. When she glanced back the brick was gone without a trace.

Success? Eve asked via mental speech to the group chat.

Mana signal deciphered. There is no escape now. Felix replied in the mental group chat.

Eve’s evil smile was hidden by her coffee cup as she took another sip. The brick had played their hand one too many times in front of a true master of space. Now the tables had turned on the creature. Eve was in the shadows, while the ceramic shorty was in the searchlight-laden crosshairs.

Let’s give the little guy some rope. Eve thought as she took another spoonful of heaven to her mouth.