The Systemic Lands (Dark Progressive LITRPG)

Young Michael

"Purgatory," I muttered as Hendricks, and I approached the city. We had been pretty far out in the wilderness for quite a while, grinding monsters. I was getting close to the point where I would be able to handle level 4 monsters, but Hendricks said I still needed more stats and skills.

"No guards," he said as we entered the city late at night. Buildings were burnt out. Shops were closed. In the distance there was the occasional scream that was heard.

We reached the inner part of the city protecting the governmental buildings and the plaza. "Halt. Hand, the cart over," a guard said.

"Under whose authority?" Hendricks asked slowly as he looked over the four men that had moved to block our way in the middle of the night.

"Ours you idiot. Michael and Clarissa are dead. We have a new Supreme Emperor now-"

Hendricks gestured and they all began to scream as they melted away. "You can take your new Emperor and shove him up your ass," he replied, clearly upset. "Let's go. We cash out and leave," he replied. We made our way to the plaza and no one stopped us. Gone were the rows of carts and lines of people that came here to purchase goods.

We quickly exchanged our points, purchased supplies, and left Purgatory. "What if this new person in charge sends people after us?" I asked Hendricks once we left the city. He let out a scoff.

"They were low level 3 fighters at best. Weaker than you. It was a joke and a scam. It might work on people grinding level 1 or level 2 zones, but not on me. There was no one else there either and their gear was poorly maintained. Why should I feel threatened by people like that?" he asked.

"That makes sense," I replied.

"Fighting people is different than fighting monsters. The first person to make a move will usually win, if both sides are equally matched. Or it let someone stronger, like me, take out multiple people at the same time by acting decisively. I wasn't about to give up our cart no matter what," he said.

"Agreed. I can't believe everything has fallen apart," I said heavily.

"Don't get yourself down kid. That's the nature of how things work. Also, it is easier to destroy and steal than build and create. If the person ruling was smart, they would be rolling out the red carpet to high level grinders like myself."

"I hope my mom is okay," I said quietly. The buildings that used to house the kids had burned down. I had been hoping to stop by and get her out of the city once I saw how bad it was, but she wasn't there.

"My condolences Michael," Hendricks said. He only used my name when he really meant it.

"It is fine. We both knew the risks. I just don't get why Emperor Michael left," he replied.

"This isn't something you can fix by killing people, unless you kill a lot of them. The government has fallen completely apart due to terrorism. No one intelligent is going to build a government and risk being killed. That's why things have devolved. We just got to keep doing what we are doing. Grind up enough stat points and combat experience so you can help me clear level 4 zones," Hendricks said.

He was right. Emperor Michael had talked about being responsible for yourself. And the best way to decide your own fate was personal power. If Emperor Michael wasn't coming back, then I would just have to step up.

"I agree. I do know of some easier level 4 zones we could take a look at," I said.

"Oh, how do you know that?" Hendricks asked.

"I got access to the high level maps one time and asked Emperor Michael about the best level 4 zones to start off with. He gave some recommendations," I replied. Hendricks grinned at me.

"Keeping things to yourself?" he asked.

"They were all claimed, but in the chaos, we can take a look at a few of them. If no one is using them, well I might be able to kill level 4 monsters," I replied.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

"That information is public, unless you know something I don't?" he asked.

"The descriptions and maps, sure. But the personal combat experience of fighting these specific monsters is a much more useful insight," I replied, grateful that even though he was missing, Emperor Michael was still looking out for me.

"After another level 3 run, then we can take a look. You need more stats kid. Level 4 monsters are entirely different than level 3 monsters."

"There are two zones we can check," I then listed out their coordinates and Hendricks considered the information.

"They are on the way to our regular spot," Hendricks said. I hoped I could handle one of those level 4 zones, so I could get stronger as quickly as possible.

Clarissa

I drank poorly made wine in my deep underground bunker at the edge of the Systemic Lands to the far West. I was hiding out in the Holy Kingdom, the last place anyone would bother me and far from where the sphere had emerged.

The Blessed Pope now worked for me by proxy. It was nice to be like Michael. Have someone else do the heavy lifting of government. My personal guards were more than powerful enough to crush him easily. I just had to sprinkle a little bit of enchanting knowledge his direction, and I had my little corner to operate out of.

Not that he knew I was here. This was technically a research outpost. I wanted to stay up to date on the news, so I had made the deal to get my people free transit through his little nation. He probably didn't realize how big of a group was out here and that we had a portable store.

Already, we were expanding underground and clearing out level 3 and 4 zones up above at a rapid pace to bring in more crystals and points. I looked at the report one of my agents had passed through my spy network and given me. Emperor Michael had showed up in New Kochi. Spotted but remaining hidden were Michelle and another woman.

Looking over the full report allowed me to fill in the blanks. The enemy who had done all of this was Qi Ji Long, the Divine Empress's child. I knew I should have arranged an accident to happen to him, or not allowed him to leave Purgatory. I couldn't even blame Michael either, since he saw letting past grievances go with the Divine Empress and not visiting them upon her child. That had been the wrong decision.

Jacob was dead and no airship, meant that everyone else on board had died. That meant Captain Francis and the Avatar. The first was sad, but the second was a huge boon. She had been a cantankerous sore we were stuck dealing with the longest time. It was good to finally be rid of her completely.

Since Michael hadn't announced the death of Qi Ji Long, that meant he was still out there making trouble. That was annoying, but at least Jacob was dead. Good riddance to that man.

It was better to just hide away like this and accumulate strength slowly. My people had been heavily screened and only the most loyal had been brought with me to my secret underground bunker. They were either out grinding up points or expanding the base slowly. I wasn't going to risk any zones higher than level 5, but hiding out under one of those types of zones, did seem like a good idea once we dug that far. Also we needed the room for food production. I was not going to live on just raw fruits and vegetables.

Multiple fallback points, traps, twists, and other obstacles for anyone attempting to invade or locate me. In that time, we would get more points slowly and surely. If Michael ever died, then I would have the most elite army ready to go. They would be nothing but a few seconds delay in front of his power. But compared to most other people, my soldiers were incredibly powerful.

All of them had been around from the time of the Divine Empress. Interviews, loyalty tests, subtle energy manipulation of their minds, it was a long and carefully thought-out process to ensure there would be no betrayals. I had made sure to bring most of them with me when I had fled the sphere's effects when leaving Purgatory.

Sure, Michael at combat level 7 was scary, but having a hundred people at high combat level 4 was the premier force. I hadn't been able to boost them higher due to costs and bringing too much suspicion. Soon they would be combat level 5, and then 6. Each of these soldiers would have easily been a mercenary back on Earth. Killers and fighters who enjoyed doing what they had done before. With their loyalty tweaked towards me.

I wasn't weak either by any means and as long as I didn't make any major missteps they wouldn't question my orders. Deploying this force to counter Qi Ji Long was never going to happen. This was my insurance and trump card against the unfairness of the Systemic Lands. And it wasn't one I could easily replenish. Each of their lives was beyond valuable, just based on future earning potential.

That was why it was a slow process. The one thing the portable store didn't do was regenerations. But we followed the slow and steady approach to development. The fact that our base was out in the wilderness cut down on travel time by a large amount.

I sipped my poorly made wine, savoring my position. If Michael triumphed, then he would do his own thing, paving the way. If he fell, I would have a super army ready to go. The hard part was getting them to the necessary strength first. Just as he used the Empire to help improve himself, I had used my time as Supreme Governor to plan my exit strategy as well.

Once I had enough strength, I could dominate everything with food products. The chaos that was happening right now would see almost all the production facilities ruined. That was also why I was producing goods, comparatively cheap bribes. Food production just required a stable location, research, and distribution. All three things I had.

In addition, my people would see how they ate compared to everyone else. While we are living in a luxurious underground bunker, the rest of them were dying in war torn cities. It would provide a clear contrast between following me and not following me. I would need to increase my spying efforts in the coming years and ensure lines of communication.