BXBX NOVEL Chapter 102: I am Limitless
Assassination relies largely on the element of surprise. If your target knew you were coming, they would take steps to make sure you failed. In retrospect, the plan they came up with was frighteningly good.
The hundred Rank Fs would keep Krishna\'s army busy. While the Imps and the Corpse Eater wouldn\'t even get involved. This meant that the Reapers were effectively sealed in the zone, and the only ones who could get in were the Death Seekers.
Using a failsafe for survival as a means to murder people was very despicable. Krishna and I co-signed a report that would let the Nightmare know that the Saviors were out of control. Playing the snitch was bad, but when lives were at stake, I had no choice.
"The main reason is that I am not strong enough to do anything yet," I lamented.
Two more sirens followed immediately after the first. Not knowing what it meant, I asked my partner.
"Aira, there were two more sirens. What do they mean?"
[My Lord, Machiavelli has two known {Vassals}, one named Kid and another named Gramps. The following sirens were for them. Being a {Vassal} of a Death Seeker means being able to assist them in missions.]
"Huh? So if I can get Scott and the others to be my {Vassals}, we can kick ass together."
[Yes, my lord, that would be the case].
"Okay, sounds good. {Thief}. Lets have a look at what they would do."
As I chatted with my AI, the Brute continued to follow me with slow steps. I didn\'t want to engage yet, not knowing what Machiavelli and his thugs were up to.
But something unexpected happened. The D rank suddenly stopped moving and stood still. It turned and faced the Savior\'s Reapers like a watchman. At that moment, a childish voice came across the sky.
"JOHN SMITH! ARE YOU HERE?"
\'Shit, they really came for me,\' I couldn\'t help but exclaim inwardly.
I stopped running and cautiously approached. There was nothing to be gained by fleeing. And since I was only P4, I couldn\'t escape even if I wanted to.
Three figures traveled through the sky, one was flying in a floating chair, the other two were running across the rooftops, like cultivators in Eastern novels, they leapt like leopards, lithe and powerful.
The Zone itself looked like a post-apocalyptic city. Numerous dilapidated skyscrapers dotted the battlefields. Intersections grouped the tall structures into sections. It looked like a modern city that had survived the end of the world.
I ran, using the buildings and cover as I approached the Reapers of the Savior. Finally, I saw what they looked like.
Kid was an Asian-looking boy in a martial-arts outfit. He would be harmless if not for the evil-looking polearm in his hands.
Gramps was a bald Asian elder with a white beard. His body was bare, but his rippling muscles would put most bodybuilders to shame. He had a pair of black shades on his face, yet he moved with ease.
The floating chair had the Machiavelli Dominic Maegester. His face was smiling for some reason as they approached the Brute. From the moment they arrived until now, the D-rank undead remained still.
"I guess it is safe to say that Dominic\'s {Instigator} helps him either tame or control the undead like puppets," I analyzed from a distance.
Before I could think what to do next, the beast turned and pointed at my position. All three reapers saw me and approached.
Dominic was the first to speak. "Hahaha, the Brute has the ability to detect souls within a thousand kilometers. So you won\'t be able to hide from it, and therefore from me."
Unable to think of a way out, I just walked out into the open while addressing them.
"Well, you got me, what do you want?"
The fat bastard got up from his seat and bowed before introducing himself.
"Pleased to meet you John. Dominic Maegester, Priority 1 Mercenary. I have come to offer you a deal."
"Deal?" I repeated.
"Yes. You see, two reports you filed have put our operations in quite a predicament. Our organization would greatly appreciate it if you would withdraw them."
He smiled and snapped his fingers. Kid and Gramps came down and took out what looked like soulgems and placed them on the floor.
"We would like to give you 10,000 souls and a soulgear of your choice for your acquiescence. An excellent deal, if I may say so myself."
The first report was about Julius Caytiffe. The bastard was using Adventurers as bait and wanted to bury them with the undead. Probably because he was stupid and didn\'t know about demolition, the cave-in didn\'t happen.
The second report was the one where Robert Acwellan used his Mercenary warp privileges to assassinate the defender of Zone 1081-1, Krishna Sangan. Krishna and I couldn\'t pinpoint the use of the undead, but we were sure he had something to do with it.
While in the first case there were no casualties due to my intervention, the second one did. Of the 81 Reapers who died, 60 were killed by the Slayer.
Personally, I had nothing to lose by retracting my reports. But what if Julius and Robert turned on other Reapers? What if I became their target one day?
This was the classic dilemma of cops and criminals. Should I resist Dominic\'s offer? I would not only have to fight him, but also two Wraiths and a D-rank undead.
"Chop chop, decide quickly, my friend. I do not have all night. Take this deal, I know you are Formless. That is why you use firearms, correct? It would be difficult for someone like you to amass such a fortune. You even get a B-class Soulgear," Dominic continued.
Sweat ran down my brow as I carefully considered what to do. Accepting was the easy choice. But what would Mike and Santiago say if I accepted? What would Krishna think?
I used to think I didn\'t care what others thought of me. But somehow knowing I was going to betray those who trusted me tore at my conscience.
[My Lord, I advise you to accept this deal. Death will be a certainty if we fight the four of them].
I knew that. I wanted to change Hellsgate, but I needed to be alive to do anything. I still had over an hour before I had to leave this place. Could I survive to fight not only the Brute, but Dominic\'s group at the same time?
Why was I even debating this? I owed Mike, Santiago and Krishna nothing. They were just acquaintances I had met that night and I had already saved them. If they were in my position, they wouldn\'t hesitate, would they?
My pulse quickened as my heart worked overtime from the stress. Visions of my death began to enter my mind as I considered what to do. My breath began to feel ragged and my muscles stiffened.
Despite all the logic telling me to accept his deal, my heart remained fixated on refusing. It felt like if I accepted, I would lose a part of myself. Would I be able to truly trust anyone if I went around betraying others?
Unconsciously, my body began to shake with fear as I looked at Dominic and his thugs. The shadow of the Brute also appeared like a hunting dog, waiting for the command to attack. My mind, which was trying to think of a way out, began to go blank at the hopelessness of the situation.
\'What am I going to do? Why are they doing this to me? I never wanted any of this! All I wanted was to shut down Hellsgate! It was a noble task, why are you preventing me from doing it?!
\'Am I so special that you have to harass me like this? Who the hell do you think I was? I was just a nobody!\' I shouted inwardly.
But then that single thought silenced all the noise.
Who was I?
I was John Smith, and I was a nobody. But hadn\'t John Smith already died?
If I was no longer John Smith, then who was I?
My body suddenly calmed down as if it had been doused with ice-cold water. All the fear, tension, and anxiety began to fade away. And in its place a fighting spirit awoke.
"I am Limitless," I murmured softly.
I was no longer human. I was a Reaper, a Death Seeker, and in the future, the strongest Revenant.
Sure, John Smith was a coward and trash. But Limitless was not. No. Limitless was a tough as nails bastard who fought to the death without fear.
Limitless killed over a thousand zombies in a single night. He saved over fifty people and kept six zones from falling.
Then who the fuck were these bastards supposed to be? A single Phantom, two Wraiths, and a 15-foot Rank D? That was it? And they were going to challenge Limitless? These fuckers must be dreaming.
Yeah, Limitless was everything I wanted to be. What would he do in this situation? John Smith would definitely accept the deal. But if it was Limitless?
Fuck that. Limitless would never bow to anyone.
Not even a Revenant.
At the thought of North America\'s would-be superhero, my body began to tremble again. Not because I was afraid, but because my body was twisted into knots by my desire to fight.
Even a monster like David Thomas recognized my worth. According to Lily, the data about my abilities was under a gag order. So like me, these bastards probably couldn\'t see what my {Fate} was even after seeing my mercenary profile.
\'If they knew I was weak, they wouldn\'t have even bothered to offer me a deal. They would have just killed me outright like Robert did,\' I concluded.
They knew I was someone they couldn\'t mess with because of the Revenant\'s gag order. So they could only try to bribe me into silence with a small fortune and some equipment.
If so, I was the one with the upper hand, not them. Suddenly, the whole situation seemed rather funny. Unconsciously, my laughter began to slip out.
"What seems funny, John?" Dominic asked politely.
Even from this distance I could see his annoyance by the tightness of his face.
"You seem to be misunderstanding something you fat bastard." I arrogantly declared.
"And what mistake did we make?"
"What makes you think those reports were because I wanted Nightmare to know?"
Hearing my words, Machiavelli and his floating chair began to retreat.
"Then why did you file them?" He asked nervously.
I replied with a smile. "What if I just wanted a war with the Saviors?"