Chapter 369 – Day 790 (Part 2) – Thoughtfully Waiting
Added 2023-02-14 00:00:04 +0000 UTCThe acid shot out rapidly one after another. Two multi-cast upgrades allowed me to spam the skill like I hadn’t before. Even the mental trigger took a bit of time. Like pulling the trigger on a gun one bullet at time.
This let me go to full auto on the skill. The energy cost was immense, but I had enough Spirit stat to spare. The Mistress with me dried to dodge away, but I followed her even as she disappeared. You couldn’t alter your trajectory in mid-air, and I had aimed around her first, so as to not trigger her danger sense and hem her in.
I had learned that trick from her. Not targeting a person, but where they could move. Danger sense was fickle and weird like that. Not the monolithic ability I had put so much trust in all this time.
“Ahhhhh!” There was a brief scream as she was melted and killed. Several women appeared and various energy blasts and beams shot at me. Aqua Sphere. The attacks were intercepted, none of them strong enough to punch through my defenses. I moved towards the closest woman.
They did not have the stats to even think about escaping. Acid Shot. She died screamed as her torso and legs melted away. I moved from one assassin to the next. They had thought themselves so clever. But one thing I learned from the Divine Empress, is that absolute power is absolute power at the end of the day.
You can do tricks and strategies, but just overwhelming power and a lot more stats was impossibly hard to counter. With the women dead I raced back towards the city. Cries went up and then city shield appeared around the city.
Acid Shot. The attack just slid right off the glowing white outer shield. It made it hard to see the monochrome environment inside. But it was not a problem. It was unfortunate the shield had been activated, but it was always a possibility.
I wanted my soldiers and the knowledge to get away and I would end this threat before it got out of hand. They might have even been expecting this or had a City Shield building near each gate. I would have to talk to Clarissa about that when we rebuilt Purgatory.
One City Shield seemed like too much of a point of failure. Having four or five instead seemed like a much better idea. Have the main one that we would upgrade in the city center, then a lesser one at each gate in the event of an emergency.
Still, I didn’t think these women had multiple City Shields. Instead, it was most likely the Avatar meddling once again. It was exasperating. But she clearly had an agenda I didn’t understand. The fact she wanted me to go to the Astrologer was getting into my head.
Best thing to do would be to ignore her, but I wanted to unravel the trickery she was trying to pull. While I thought on how many levels deep, she was thinking, I retreated out of sight of the city walls. I could barely see the glowing dome as I began patrolling and killing anyone I could find in a zig zag pattern between the retreating soldiers and Normandy.
There were men out her grinding. Really a completely female controlled society but they loved the Astrologer? That was weird and there was clearly some backstory there I was missing. But my thoughts soon went back to the Avatar even as I continued to scan my surroundings.
To communicate at a distance like that was concerning. I hadn’t seen any airships, so if this Fifth Caliphate had arrived, they had to do so on foot. That was a shame, I would have loved to have captured an airship. Clarissa would have loved it as a present.
I mean I would want it back once I got out of the tower and would use it before then, but the ability to hide up in the air at a height would be quite useful. But the Avatar had probably guessed I would steal one. If there had been an airship I would have just stolen it right away with the information in hand.
That was when it hit me. I was stupid. I couldn’t believe how stupid I was being. I hadn’t noticed it before, but the Avatar could talk to multiple people at once and she probably didn’t say the same thing. Another distraction and misdirection that had fooled me.
It had made no sense for the Council of Shadows to hand over the knowledge and not get the Astrologer’s location. Only that one woman who had followed me insisted. It was a conspiracy, or a mistake.
I hadn’t cared at the time, happy to be out of there. The Avatar had played me again. I considered the woman following me. She had been real, but the rest of the Council was alive, and I would probably not find them. Even when the City Shield dropped, they would hide in the wilderness just like my forces were doing against the Divine Empress.
That meant they would be the future rebels to my possible empire. I let out a sigh as I killed some more grinders who were camped outside the city, while looking for any pursuit. I scanned the sky, no airship.
I had been tempted to go for the tower after this, but the Avatar was no longer just an annoyance. She was actively conspiring against me and had a separate agenda. I didn’t like that at all.
It would be a hike to get to her nation, but it was something I felt should be done. That was what the Divine Empress had probably done and it could be a trap. The Avatar would see me coming ahead of time. If she could communicate at that precise moment in the Council Chamber then her claims about seeing what the Almighty System could see were probably true.
I was stuck into precisely the situation I had wanted to avoid. Confronting a schemer who I didn’t understand their goals or objectives. I shook my head as I raced through the forest looking for people towards the Southwest.
The best option and course of action was to pick the one that benefited me the most and not going after the Avatar or taking her words into consideration at all. I wanted to kill off the city of Normandy and the New United City States before it could become a threat.
The City Shield would only last a few days at most, but that was a long time. I would check back in a day to see if it had dropped and then I would either kill everyone in the city or leave and focus on my skills. The Astrologer could wait in his tower.
His deadline was the one that mattered and rushing off to deal with it was not going to happen. I wasn’t worried about the Divine Empress showing up either. The preparations Clarissa had taken were immense.
The Divine Empress would have to scour zone by zone to try and track her down and she would be moving as well. I had no doubt she had fall back points in level 3 zones.
Clarissa would be fine along with Qi Ji Long. Research might be an issue, but they could be moved as well. There would be deaths, but the Divine Empress was one woman. She could kill everyone, but she could not be everywhere at once. Even her demonic babies weren’t that much of a threat. Since I could handle them before my upgrade.
They were dangerous in large numbers, but she couldn’t make more of them with the Forbidden City being destroyed. That meant she might come after me, but good luck finding someone running around in the wilderness.
It was impossible to track someone down like that. I had considered the problem myself and the headache with the Ritualist had proved that searching for someone was exhausting and time consuming. Even if the Divine Empress had a map, hiding out in the wilderness was an effective strategy.
In fact, I wanted her to look for me. Waste her time running about and not getting more powerful. It would be a blood bath, but how long could she go around murdering everyone she found? I mean eventually she would get mentally tired as new arrivals showed up with no idea why this old Asian lady was blasting them into the stratosphere.
The Divine Empress was a threat, but I just had to avoid her, which I had confidence in doing. What would be more annoying were these other factions, which is why I had wanted to kill them off. So after a day, if the shield hadn’t gone down, I would level up my skills in preparation for going to the tower in the area.
After that I would enter the city and kill everyone once the shield dropped and then be on my merry way. Then I would deal with the Astrologer. I had no idea what he had done to me, but I was thinking it was most likely a bluff of some kind.
To put a living bomb inside of me without my noticing? Possibly, but to time it so precisely just seemed off. I would assume there was a possession kind of thing that was waiting to happen in that tower. Perhaps some enchanted blankets would not be out of the question.
I nodded to myself at that idea. Just as another surprise in my pocket to teach the Astrologer a lesson. When his spirit or whatever nonsense he had cooked up leapt out to posses me, whip out a blanket and disrupt his form and then unleash Acid Shot everywhere.
If anything I was more concerned about the tower and the monsters and traps inside. The Almighty System was a lot more devilish than people. Its Avatar only confirmed this in my mind. I saw my soldiers running away in the level 2 zone in the distance and they were all fine. I nodded at this.
I scanned more of the terrain for anyone chasing them or nearby and there was no one. Well, the shield would stay up for a day, so I would follow them at a distance. Perhaps the Avatar would send someone out to get the information.
It was like a lightning bolt in my brain. Tell the women to rush me away, I was dangerous and unstable. They give me the information, but they are idiots. The Avatar would know that her making her presence known would annoy me and I would lash out.
The shield was to delay me and might not even be part of the Avatar’s plan. But if I was her, I would go for the most valuable item. That chest of books. Her faction had airships and her people had much higher stats than mine.
She could swoop in and take all that knowledge. If I followed my soldiers she would notice and just not have her airship go after them and ‘rescue’ the Council instead. I just had to think what a conniving person who could spy on everything would do and I got my answer.
The trick was to not lose no matter what. I would follow my soldiers behind them. Perhaps the Avatar might take her gaze off of me or she might have some kind of limitation. Regardless, the best ambush spot would be the level 3 zone with the stonelands.
And if my troops were ambushed, she would just point the finger at the assassins. Before I was Champion, I was a fat asshole who thought a lot. I hadn’t been working my brain too much lately, but the Avatar was making me stretch out those brain muscles. The one nice thing was that I couldn’t be personally countered, so she had to plot around me.
No wonder why the Divine Empress just went around on her own. It would be impossible for anyone to plan against and drive people to madness.
***-***
My apologies, but there will only be one chapter today and three chapters tomorrow. I found a major plot issue in the next viewpoint chapter and proceeding chapters, and have to rewrite a lot and rethink things and it is taking me longer than expected.
Comments
He viewed the knowledge as the most important thing to get. Everything after that was just a bonus. Sure he could have killed the women, but they are assassins and use traps. Trying to protect that information while killing everyone would be a hassle. Escort missions are the worst, even if it is just a chest. No one wants an escort mission. Better to get the information away and make sure it is safe before going back. EDIT: Also good insight about his mentality. I can't see replies in the administrator thread notifications list until after I respond which is annoying. But your point is dead center. People don't easily change unless they have a major life changing event. Even then, there personality is still there.
Mister Vii
2023-02-14 23:59:55 +0000 UTCThank you. I just realized I had messed up something with the Avtar's viewpoint and I needed to think it through properly. Rushing and trying to get it done in 10 minutes and retconning it the day after is something I didn't want to do. But never fear, my writing won't slow down. ;p
Mister Vii
2023-02-14 23:57:47 +0000 UTCChannelling gives a lot more control over expelling energy. A LOT. Which is what allows for active enchantments to be used. The Homunculus had no idea Michael would get all these stats or the Channeling stat. The top of the tower is going to be maximum drama, that I can promise you.
Mister Vii
2023-02-14 23:56:30 +0000 UTCYeah its kind of become a bit sus, and with how the NUCS was, im becoming really suspicious Astro put same/similar thing into MC and in some other people (hope Clarissa was not, did she was one of the first arrival? but we can expect surprise on some peon not seen before on the MC side) and the Avatar can push this button on MC and activate it as of now when she appear/act/move, seem to me MC rush to fast each time because of that part getting activated/influenced and when they are too much simple and obvious thing to gain for MC and when he basically risk nothing and is in "control", that seem strange in my point of view with how MC think and etc that he act so rushed and etc, suspicious "What the Astrologer’s Homunculus had done to those people after the calamity was depraved, but I would take his plan and make it my own and use it to kill the Divine Empress." Chapter 352 – Day 773 (Part 5) – Viewpoints 33" They both are master schemer and pupeter
Zarik0
2023-02-14 19:19:43 +0000 UTCWhich hint they are maybe a partial function of the thing put into the brain of MC that can be activated (resonance/energy wave) and bzzz (or influence) a bit his thinking process/decision making when activated (special situation or stress or word activating it), its really suspicious that each time she appear and talk and etc MC go full rushed shit decision when logically they are no need for him in his own point of view to do it like that (still benefice to get and basically freely one) and he can take his time (he is more or less in control) and can milk everything he can out of the situation in a solid/stable way Here that she say "i will take his plan" can say a lot, maybe she push this Astro button as of now, MC is too out of character for me and keep messing up in some bizarre thing (and seem its each time she appear/act
Zarik0
2023-02-14 19:11:54 +0000 UTCSpeculation on the astrologer: maybe he has some way to affect emotions We’ve already talked about possibly changing Michael’s emotions/personality could be what he did on day 0. Made the whole wave he came in all brutal paranoid and kill each other. Michael lives with his don’t give af about other people attitude and grinds. Maybe this manipulation was the plan to try and create someone that was good at grinding and could eventually free the astrologer. The women of this NUCS also seem suspicious. The harem protagonist. Kind of hints that these women just came to like him. But the mistresses in this city it sounds a bit weird how fanatical they are about him. And they hate other men so much that they make them grind slaves? Maybe this is another support for the hypothesis if the astrologer did some energy manipulation on these women as well to make them obsessed with him? Similar method to the emotional manipulation of Michael (if that’s what actually happened lol)
E
2023-02-14 11:51:01 +0000 UTC"Sorry Champion Michael, you saved me and did so much, but you would have to suffer a bit more. Consider me distracting the Master Fleshcrafter and letting you get those points as an apology and with the hope you might survive. What the Astrologer’s Homunculus had done to those people after the calamity was depraved, but I would take his plan and make it my own and use it to kill the Divine Empress." Chapter 352 – Day 773 (Part 5) – Viewpoints 33
F100D
2023-02-14 10:16:08 +0000 UTCYou should reread her viewpoint chapter.
Arsenii
2023-02-14 08:02:17 +0000 UTCI reread everything the avatar said to Michael and never once did she say anything about what the astrologer did or didn't do to Michael let alone say it was depraved. In addition I didn't see anything remotely close to resembling pity for Michael. She only talked enough to make him watch after the DE's kid and taunt him to throw her away. The next time they talked was at the shadow meeting. I think you are reading too much into it but if you have a specific case example then tell me the chapter and I can reread it again for clarity but as of now the avatar has no redeeming features. Just like michael, she has only been doing things for herself or against the DE. Which, by proxy, is also for herself and her nation. As for Michael, he was personally attacked, his best friend was killed, and his city was destroyed. Rage and anger is appropriate, yea? His way of grieving for naran was to piss on the DEs bed and wreck her city like she did his. To reference a quote from god of war (2018), "Do not mistake his silence for lack of grief."
Grey Kylia
2023-02-14 04:53:28 +0000 UTCMichael has what I personally call the "fat person mentality". He's timid, petty, and absolutely vengeful toward those who threatens his comfort zone. He's willing to suffer for the things he likes but absolutely refuses to put in an ounce of work for the things he dislikes (like exercising. The fact that he's unwilling to exercise for even some time to test if he can get abs that way proves it). Even his discipline is only toward things he likes, like grinding to get stronger. That's why it's so easy for the Avatar to manipulate him, especially since she could just "see" the future. Michael may think a lot, but he absolutely refuses to think when you make him do something he doesn't like. All the Avatar needs to do is to him the "easy" path, and Michael will run it down like a Husky without ever considering the thorny one. If anything, the Avatar's greatest obstacle has always been the Almighty System itself. She always needs to work around it no matter what she tries to do. You complain that it's out of character, but in my opinion it's perfectly in character. Michael has not had ANY personal growth since the very beginning when he was forced to exercise (via killing monsters), commit murder, and brave the unknown dangers. In fact, one might say that he's become perfectly static since he encountered Death. With each success Michael accumulates, and the more power he gathers, he's only become more and more set in his ways. He's basically the counterpart of the Divine Empress, except less murderous. He could never learn to be a better person anymore. He doesn't NEED to. The world literally rewards him for being a "fat person", a person who sees themselves getting worse each day but not only doesn't care, but would do anything to remain fat.
Craxuan
2023-02-14 03:13:19 +0000 UTCMaybe not a psychopath, but compared to his other emotions, anger and rage are way up, in addition, I don't think he is capable of crying anymore. As for the avatar, I didn't get the feeling that she hates Michael and he needs to die, just that he is easily manipulated and predictable. In addition, she thought what had been done to him was by the astrologer was depraved.
Gio
2023-02-14 01:53:52 +0000 UTCMaybe the astrologer did something to Michael on day 0 but I kinda doubt it, just that it's something he knows that Michael doesnt. I kinda just figured based on the information that the cataclysm started/finished on day 0 before/during the new arrival time and due to the "turbulence" of the energy the system was prevented from bringing new arrivals and defaulted to bringing them on the next noon available, aka day1. I'm making assumptions there but it seems right to me. As for the avatar feeling pity, I never once got that impression so I won't talk about that. However I don't consider Michael a psychopath. You can kill people without that label, even in reality. Is a soldier a psychopath because he killed the enemy? Are you a psychopath if some piece of shit breaks into your house and you defend yourself? No. Michael was put in a situation where killing is an appropriate defensive response. After he killed that first group of 3 he broke down and cried, a psychopath wouldn't have cried. They lack that empathy. Michael is significantly closer to a soldier than psychopath. He is at war in the systemic lands against those lands itself and others who also reside there and sometimes it needs a drastic response. The DE is an example of someone being more of a psychopath than soldier. That's why they are so similair in alot of ways. They are both on the same scale just at different points, neither full psychopath or full soldier.
Grey Kylia
2023-02-14 01:28:31 +0000 UTCYeah i have my doubt now that something is done to his mind and influence him (emotion/decision making) when he get exited or pressure/stress/specific situation/thing happen, no way with how repeated he mess thing who seem to obvious and simple to not do if he simply not rushed them and when he don't really need to do it at the moment and can take his time to do it well in the first place
Zarik0
2023-02-14 00:48:14 +0000 UTCOh man, yes seemed rushed again of MC when he don't seem to really need it and have time.... lot of info to take out of them too by just talking a bit more (like the Mistress of Shadow thing she have done and see into the forbidden city when MC rushed out of it fast) or info on the Astro and how he was and have done in the past (the Mistress of Shadow was so messed up and MC have seen that i don't see why he not tryed to learn and get all he can out of her and this city Also want to clean their city and all of their people and destroy them, the obvious thing is to activate the shield by himself when he is also into it, so he can chase and hunt everyone for 1 day with his sense stats into the city, basically no escape of them, going out of the city and engage here like he did? plz Also did he really not take the chance to fuck every woman leader of their council? when they appeared together? very zzz to not assure that he kill them all, walk away out of city and this meeting and let some of them walk away? the second one of them (leader) started going out of the group was the second he needed to start killing, let a leader of them chance to get out alive was unaceptable when he know they can hide and run so well, he get a mega chance to really cut all the heads of this group here.... Also with how thing turned out, Clarissa need to send mass people that she can and right now and take control of the city fully and clean it all (food control and etc) (by doing that just some of them will survive and they will be disorganized and so Astro will have no real force behind him when he appear, just some isolated individual) MC going around and left with shield up and will come back alone in a half way is just a nono, bring people, control the thing, clean it well, wait for it, the lost of some days for doing that is nothing to loose vs let most of their group and organization leave in a organized manner the moment the city shield disappear and he is not here and have not enough people to block thing better (leaving time for them) (the problem for the future are zzz if he do that, better to loose some days and do it the max he can and pressure them well here to destroy most of them and they become well disorganized This is becoming a bit too much how MC keep messing thing with rush decision and etc who seem a bit to "simple" and obvious, moreover when it seem he have no pressure to think and take his time for doing it "well" Feel a bit forced in my view, maybe the astro thing in his brain and the Avatar influence him because its becoming a bit too much and out of character/forced in my view with how repeated it keep happen
Zarik0
2023-02-14 00:45:39 +0000 UTCOh nice. Double multi-cast gives a full auto option, I wonder if that is only viable with silent & gestureless. Without having both would it even be physically possible to "cast" again faster than the cooldown from just 1 mutlicast spec? Aside from that, it's super cool that multiple buildings of the a same type can be bought. I thought it was a one and done kinda thing but I may have missed it. That also means once they get settled they can just make many crafting/alchemy buildings to mass manufacture that stuff. Maybe a mass prison city if it's needed. No worries on taking a day, the plot comes first. I'd even be fine if you need to take a whole day tomorrow to reconfigure things, I'm sure it would be worth it. Your story has been consistent and that's important to maintain.
Grey Kylia
2023-02-14 00:43:18 +0000 UTCAlso, I'm starting to suspect that the Astrologer's homunculus did something other than just plant a bomb in Michael on day 0. I think he also did something to his mind, turned him into a psychopath somehow. This is why the Avatar felt pity for Michael. I wonder how Michael will feel about this when he finds out.
Gio
2023-02-14 00:42:16 +0000 UTCHey, I've got a question. To free the astrologer, Astrologer's homunculus gave the instruction of "absorbing ambient energy"(absorption stat) and immediately "expelling it"(channel stat). But when he asked this of Michael, did he expect Michael to upgrade the city to level 5 to get the channel stat? Was it clear at the time how Michael could expel absorbed energy? Or was expelling always possible, the Channel stat just allows you to do it in significant quantities?
Gio
2023-02-14 00:22:56 +0000 UTC
