Rise of the Apex Predator: A LitRPG Adventure

Chapter 18 – Unfettered

Aenon listened in silence to Jenny’s side of things. She came from a broken home which was all too common back on Earth. Her parents got divorced right around the time she was born, and her mother had gotten full custody. Hearing her glorification of her mother with a straight face was a testament to his patience. She had placed the older woman on a pedestal, and no one came close to such greatness. Her older brother and father were nothing but trash, all because they chose to follow non-academic fields like her oh-so-great mother. Finally losing his patience, Aenon snapped.

“OK that’s enough. I don’t think I need to hear more about your mother’s accomplishments. I got how great she was after the first fifteen minutes of your detailed explanation” he said sarcastically. But the oblivious woman didn’t really pick up the sarcasm and looked pleased instead.

“Wow. I thought her companion might have broken her mind. But this makes me think, she was broken long before they met”, Allie said incredulously.

Aenon closed his eyes to think about how to proceed before he got an idea. He had a mental conversation with Allie before opening his eyes and looking at the still smiling red head.

“Alright, Jenny. You said your mother is a forensic archaeologist?”, he asked.

“The very best in the field. She was awarded…”, the woman started explaining with a broad smile, but Aenon cut her off.

“Yeah, I know about her awards. So, do you think she knew that our planet was part of an intergalactic conglomerate, and they were merely raising us to be slaughtered when we grew to a certain population size?”, he asked in a neutral tone.

For the first time during their conversation, she was speechless when asked about her mother. She was struggling to even maintain a facial expression, and an outside observer would have thought she was having a seizure. But Aenon pressed on without letting her recover.

“Of course she couldn’t have known, since the much more advanced civilization had covered their tracks well. But how do you think your mother is faring right now? You know, with this new System governed reality of ours?”

That brought the fire back in her eyes, as she defended her mother fiercely. “Of course she will be doing well. She is the smartest woman there is, and I am sure she must have figured out this new System within minutes. If I was not separated from her, I would not be in this mess.”

“Hmmm. I see. And what about your brother? You said he was a game developer? So, adjusting to this new world must come naturally to him, right?”, he asked while maintaining his clueless façade.

“Ugh. Of course not. He is a good for nothing…”, she said with an expression of someone who had smelled something nasty.

“Enough. I need you to give me a reason why he would have failed. Not parrot the words your mother has been feeding you”, Aenon said in an icy tone.

His sudden change in demeanor threw her off for a second. She had finished her food a while ago and was starting to get comfortable. But this shift brought back her nervousness a bit. Aenon didn’t wish to exploit her trauma, so he was being very careful about his words and tone. But he couldn’t have her falling back completely to her comfort zone.

“I… ummm… he is never successful in anything. So of course he will not succeed here…”, she stammered.

“Well in that case, this might come as a surprise to you, but I do know your brother. Half the people back on Earth do”, Aenon said in a decisive voice.

“Well… that’s… that’s not possible. My mother said he…”

“He is the lead developer of the most successful game in the world. He is also the youngest recipient of multiple prestigious game design awards. And most importantly, he is the role model for millions of aspiring game developers. And I know this because I used to game back on earth, and I loved his work.”

She seemed lost just like the first day they had entered this world. Aenon pitied her because she was obviously raised to be this way by her manipulative mother.

“And fun fact about your father. Your older brother looks up to the man. He said so in an interview in one of the largest Comic-cons. He was not the drunk old fool your mother made you believe. He was a Pulitzer award winner, an award given to him for exposing rampant plagiarism and corruption in the Academic field. I’ll give you one guess as to which field he exposed and when he did it”, Aenon said in a mocking tone.

All the facts he told her were true, but he lied about the way he had gotten them. He didn’t know about her brother or father before today. He was accessing all this information from the shard that Harley left behind. Apparently, she had downloaded a database of the entire internet which included wiki pages and personal social media profiles of everyone. Allie was combing the database for all the information and passing it on to him.

“You… you are lying”, Jenny covered her head in her hands as she turned way.

“I am not. He exposed the field of forensic archeology, and he did it 2 months before the divorce. He didn’t reveal any names in his article, but I am sure your mother felt wonderful when the article was published”, Aenon egged her on further.

“NO. YOU ARE LYING. MY MOTHER IS A GREAT WOMAN. YOU ARE JUST TRYING TO SLANDER HER.”

Aenon watched her stand up with balled up fists on her sides. Her eyes were bloodshot, and she was breathing heavily. With half his plan executed flawlessly, he decided to bring out the big guns.

“Well, why don’t we ask her directly. You remember the Arbiter? She saved you from Erwin’s torment a few days ago”, he pointed to his side as the trinket transformed into an elf. Jenny’s eyes went wide she took a step back in surprise.

“Hello again. It seems each time we meet, you keep getting worse, instead of improving. Honestly, looking at you now, I am not sure why I even saved you.”

Aenon gave her a cold stare with narrowed eyes at that remark. He had explained her role very clearly, and this was off script. She got the message, and so cleared her throat and continued as per his plan.

“Ahem. Well, I can contact your mother. It will be brief, and you cannot physically interact with her. But you can see and hear her quite clearly. So, here goes”, Allie waved her hand in a complicated gesture as Aenon saw and felt the mana in the air twist in a complex pattern.

A dense cloud of mist erupted from her hands before coalescing into a female figure. A frail old woman in tattered beginner gear appeared before them. Looking at the expression on Jenny’s face, he thought maybe Allie contacted the wrong person. But eventually Jenny recognized her mother and tried jumping in for a hug, only to pass through and crash to the ground.

Allie clicked her tongue in disapproval but stayed silent. The older woman looked confused as she looked around the room, before she too recognized her daughter. Both women collapsed on the ground next to each other, sobbing and talking to each other incoherently. Aenon looked on in amazement as he saw the two somehow have a full conversation in the utter gibberish nasal language.

Suddenly a fifth figure appeared, a young male elf with a disapproving look on his face. Allie, for her part, gave the other man a brief glance before ignoring his presence altogether.

“Communication between the participants of different regions is restricted till travel has been established by the Player population. You know this…”, the well-dressed man spoke in anger.

“An exception to that rule applies when the mental state of players is in critical condition. And an Arbiter is present for the interaction so they cannot exchange restricted information. Yes, cousin. I am aware of the rules and have not broken any”, Allie said with indifference without giving a second glance to the now fuming guy. He merely harrumphed and stood to the side.

Aenon looked from one elf to the other. As this wasn’t his concern in any way, he decided to ignore them and focus on the two women on the ground. They had gone silent at the appearance of another elf, an Arbiter too if Aenon was guessing it correctly.

“Anyway, now that you two had time to bond and catch up, I need some questions answered, miss…?”, he looked questioningly at the woman in her late thirties.

“Karen Smith”, she replied hesitantly.

“Your name is Karen?”, Aenon did a double take at that.

“Yes, it is. Is there a problem with that?”, Karen replied rather defensively with some heat in her voice.

“Oh. No, not at all”, Aenon replied quickly. “Moving on, your daughter and I have some things we’d like to know. Firstly. What is your current level?”

The woman shrunk back at the question and looked at her daughter. Looking at the expectant look on her face, she proudly raised her chin and replied, “Level 20”.

Jenny turned towards Aenon smirking in triumph. But before anyone could say anything the male elf yelled in anger.

“You dare lie in the presence of not one, but two Arbiters? I guess those 3 weeks in the cell haven’t been enough for you.”

The woman paled instantly, as she started bowing down in fear.

“I am sorry sir. I was merely trying to give my daughter some hope. I didn’t mean anything by it. I am level 2”, she trembled as she spoke.

Jenny’s expression went from pride to shock at the revelation. But Aenon turned to the male arbiter and gave a bow, which earned him a scowl from Allie.

“Sir, could you please tell us why she was locked up?”, Aenon said politely. The male Arbiter looked pleased but tried to maintain a professional demeanor.

“Well, the first time she was locked up for a day. She tried to steal some free rations from an elderly couple, who had their free ration period extended owing to their health. Threw quite a fit claiming unfair treatment of a great scholar and demanded she had a right to those free rations.”

The older woman was looking at the ground, away from her daughter in shame. The look of shock turned to disbelief, but the Arbiter continued regardless. He had an extremely loathsome look on his face.

“She expertly skirted the rules after that for a while. Almost didn’t get caught too. She was essentially in cahoots with another problem player to lead innocent players to their deaths, the ones with resurrection tokens. The maniac wanted no other player to have a resurrection token except him. He gave her food and protection in exchange. But her latest scheme was the most heinous one that I have ever witnessed. I will not soil my honor by repeating such vile plans. You, speak. Let everyone know what you had planned”, the Arbiter commanded in disgust.

The woman cowered in silence, looking around to find some escape from her predicament. But the two Arbiters unleashed the same mysterious pressure Aenon had experienced back during orientation. And if one was bad, two felt as though an entire mountain was pressing them down. Aenon barely managed to steady himself, thankfully being seated on the couch.

“Speak. I will not repeat myself”, Allie whispered icily.

“The… m… man I worked for. He… liked this girl and wanted… wanted her. He asked me to bring her out… out of the village”, she stuttered on in defeat.

“Don’t forget to mention how old this girl was”, the male Arbiter added. The woman started shaking like a leaf before uttering a single word.

“N… Ni… Nine.”

Aenon’s blood froze in his veins. All sounds from the outside world seized as he felt a cold fury bubble to the surface. Everyone in the room was staring at him in shock for some reason. But he gave them no thought. He couldn’t. His entire being was focused on the terrified woman before him. He slowly stood up and walked towards her. He studied the mana and the wisps floating around the projection of his target, his prey. As he stood before her, Jenny backed off to a corner. The old woman looked terrified but didn’t move, couldn’t move. He locked her down with his gaze.

“Why is she alive, Arbiter?”, he asked the question without looking away from the horrified gaze of his prey.

“Well, ummm, guess they didn’t know that underage Players are protected by the System. They couldn’t have done anything no matter how much they tried. And since no crime was committed…”, the male Arbiter’s voice was subdued for some reason.

“And what of this other player?”, he asked while still studying the mana and wisps.

“He… he is still locked up. He will be for the next three months”, the Arbiter answered.

“Contact him”, Aenon commanded.

“You are in no position to…”, the Arbiter replied with some anger.

“Now”

Aenon felt it this time. He had done something, not sure what. But he could feel the very air around him charged with something. He used his soul sense to study his surroundings and noticed that both the elves were struggling to stay upright. The male elf eventually complied, and a man appeared right next to the old lady.

Aenon studied the process much more closely this time while studying the man. He looked to be in his mid-twenties and looked quite handsome. But something was off, he detected a tiny veil covering the man, so with a casual flick and some carefully controlled mana, he tore it off. The man was replaced by a middle aged and balding man. For the first time Aenon accessed the shard himself and scoured the database for this guy’s info. He dug deep, searching his social media, hidden emails, foreign bank accounts. Everything. Each new find made him sicker, and his fury rose to new heights.

After he was done, he did the same to the woman. He could now write a detailed biography of her life if he wanted. And although her history was much tamer, it didn’t erase the fact that she had decided to work with this animal and had attempted to do what he had done quite often back on earth. Aenon didn’t think about what he was about to do next, he didn’t plan it. He just did it.

To the shock of everyone else in the room, he grabbed the two by their throats and hoisted them up. He could vaguely sense that there were some words being said in the background along with another presence. But he couldn’t hear them. His entire focus was on the two writhing worms in his hands. With a firm twist he snapped their necks and tossed their bodies to the ground. All that remained on their lifeless faces was the look of utter horror.

A notification popped up in his vision.

System Notification

Skill ?? (Unfettered) used. Target eliminated.

Skill ?? (Unfettered) used. Target eliminated.

Aenon swiped the notification away. It gave him no information, and he had bigger concerns to deal with. He turned to the two Arbiters, who were staring wide eyed between him and the two lifeless bodies. Their projection dissolved into a mist before disappearing. The male elf then vanished for a few seconds before materializing again with a baffled look.

“How did you…”, he began to point his finger at him accusingly.

“The knowledge of this incident doesn’t leave this room”, a much older male voice spoke as the Overseer appeared. He was wearing his mask this time.

The two younger elves snapped out of their shock before eventually giving a bow and staying silent. The Overseer then turned to face Aenon, and with the mask on, Aenon had no idea what kind of expression the wiser old man had.

“Tell me, do you regret what you have done just now? Snuffing out two lives, one of them in front of the victim’s child”, the Overseer asked calmly.

“No”, Aenon replied plainly.

“And if I was to end your life in judgement of your actions? Would you still not regret it?”

“My answer will remain the same, no matter the consequence to my person.”

The ancient man nodded in acknowledgment before starting to turn away, when he was interrupted by the male Arbiter, who kneeled in respect.

“Honorable Patriarch. Do you want us to detain or eliminate this threat? Surely, what he has done cannot be forgiven.”

The Overseer clasped his hands behind his back before facing the kneeling man.

“My vision must be failing with old age, but tell me young man, do you see a red marker above his head?”, he said in a stern tone.

“Ummm, no, honorable Patriarch”, the man replied sullenly.

“And that is all you need to know. Am I being clear?”

“But venerable Patriarch, the victims didn’t have markers either. And he was able to bypass the System’s protection somehow to kill them. Surely, he has found a way…”

The young elf was interrupted when the old man pointed a finger at him, making him float in the air while struggling to breathe.

“Sigh When did my own flesh and blood get so brazen and unmannered”, he stated calmly before the young Arbiter’s neck snapped and he dropped to the ground.

Aenon’s eyes narrowed at the scene, but he stayed silent. Not out of fear, but confusion. Allie on the hand gasped while she stared at her cousin’s body, while Jenny had eyes glued to the spot where she had seen her mother’s corpse.

The Overseer stared into Aenon’s eyes, probably expecting him to ask something, but when he stayed silent, he nodded again and vanished. Aenon looked at Allie and knew that a long conversation was on the way, so decided to address the more immediate concern first.

“You… you killed my mom”, Jenny said blankly while still staring at the spot.

“Complete that sentence”, Aenon replied.

“What?”, she finally looked at him with tears in her eyes.

“I said complete that sentence. I killed your mother because…”, he said plainly.

Tears started gushing out as she stared at him with hatred in her eyes. Her anger was starting to overwhelm her fear and she lashed out.

“YOU HAD NO RIGHT. YOU ARE NOT THE LAW. YOU ARE…”

Her voice seized up as Aenon vanished and appeared right in front of her, with a dagger to her throat.

“I asked you to say it. Say what your mom did.”

Jenny trembled, biting her lips in frustration and fear. She was warring internally about the facts before her, so Aenon decided to drive in the point.

“Your mother was doing to others what Erwin did to you, to make them lose their resurrection tokens. Even then I would have shown her some mercy, but what she attempted with the child, that has no forgiveness in my book. I initially started this to knock her off the pedestal that you so lovingly placed her on. Not even in my wildest dreams did I think how low she could truly fall. And if you still hold such a person in high regard, then I have nothing more to say to you”, he lowered the dagger and walked away.

“Get out of my house. Do not dare to show me your face again, unless you are willing to accept what kind of person your mother was.”