Ch 63

  Marking their new path as they proceeded, Matt focused intently on healing. He hoped that the maneuver would force any pursuing attackers to split up when confronted with two diverging routes. Although a part of him wanted to forge additional false trails, his exhaustion got the better of him. Thankfully, others had already taken the two captives off his back, so his immediate concern was to keep moving until the sun dipped below the horizon and they could at last stop for the night.

  Despite his deep longing to collapse into sleep, Matt had two captives to manage. They had recently awakened, both still gagged, and it was clear they would not be easily pacified. With a resigned sigh, he sat down opposite them, taking a moment to study their expressions. First, he turned his attention to the woman and removed her gag. Although her eyes burned with anger and hints of pain from being tied up and carried, there remained a stubborn spark of defiance in them as he addressed her.

  "Alright," he said evenly, "I understand that you hate me—even though it was your group that attacked first. So, explain to me what made you think that was a good idea."

  She responded coolly, "Standard protocol. Any group we encounter is either absorbed or eliminated, and absorbing your group wasn’t an option."

  "So, all that talk about needing time to vote was merely a ruse to gather reinforcements?" Matt pressed.

  "Yes," she answered, her tone steady. "We had already called for them, and Paul rushed over immediately while the rest gathered."

  "Is Paul the leader of your group?" Matt asked, his skepticism clear.

  "No, he’s simply effective at gathering intelligence on any new groups," she clarified.

  "And where do you stand in leadership?" Matt inquired further.

  "I was the leader of the camp you passed," she stated firmly.

  "You seem so willing to answer my questions. Why is that?" Matt wondered aloud, his eyes narrowing slightly.

  "I already know that any lie would be quickly discovered, especially since you have Paul here. I’d rather survive and avoid torture than face death outright," she admitted.

  "Are you sure I'm going to kill you?" he asked, arching an eyebrow.

  "No," she replied cautiously. "My hope is that your fort has a cell where you can lock us up. Otherwise, you might just eliminate us to avoid wasting resources—though at least Paul is valuable even as a prisoner."

  Matt frowned, mulling over her words, and then gestured toward Paul. While Paul's gag was being removed, Matt locked eyes with him and instructed, "When that gag comes off, I want you to ask me what my intentions are if you two cooperate."

  As soon as the gag was off, Paul inquired, "What are your intentions if we cooperate?"

  "To take you to the fort and show you what it's like before releasing both of you to do as you please," Matt explained.

  The woman retorted sharply, "Don’t think we can’t see the trap. With just the two of us, trying to move through this forest is practically a death sentence."

  "Then you underestimate me," Matt replied calmly. "I move freely in these woods and could even reach your group before needing to rest if I chose. Now, Paul, ask how many wounded there are in your group."

  Without hesitation, Paul asked, "How many wounded are there in our group?"

  "Before today," the woman answered, "there were around 60."

  Matt frowned before pressing forward with the interrogation, confirming that the woman—named Zhihao—had been truthful from the start. Before he could finish his line of questioning, he learned that there were a total of 50 groups that had either merged together or had been handled in segments by their respective factions, and together they boasted around 400 members. The smirks on both Zhihao’s and Paul’s faces, as they nonchalantly revealed that their group’s notoriety would inevitably invite the vengeful pursuit of their leadership, made Matt feel profoundly ill. Apparently, their group was now under the command of individuals who viewed individual lives as expendable, and while this policy had certainly created some internal complications, most of the members had resigned themselves to it. In the end, the only response Matt received from Paul and Zhihao was that as long as the group agreed that their actions were for the greater good, the status quo remained unchallenged.

  After that disturbing conversation, Matt couldn’t shake the feeling that he was dealing with a truly deranged organization—a group where mob rule had been taken to a twisted extreme. Although they weren’t indiscriminately killing everyone who wasn’t a member, it was clear they intended to prevent any alternative power structures from emerging. What disturbed him most, however, was learning from their own words that at least 200 people had perished in their internal conflicts. That on its own was terrible enough, but what troubled him even more was the revelation that they treated people like objects to yield experience points, valuing them more than monsters. This notion weighed heavily on him and compelled him to reach out to Tempormr.

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  “Care to explain why we are worth more than other things?” Matt demanded.

  “The world you were sent to is designed for your kind to reach level 5 with relative ease and then gradually progress toward level 9,” Tempormr began. “It is populated by lesser monsters that generally start with less than half the total stats of your kind. Yes, that explains how you managed to stand up against a goblin many levels and tiers your senior.”

  “And where do humans fall on this scale?” Matt pressed.

  “Don’t worry about that,” Tempormr replied dismissively.

  “Tell me,” Matt insisted.

  “Fine. The maximum base experience is 100 points, and humans rate at only 25 on that scale. That is why I intend to help you truly evolve using your bloodline—once we determine what it is—because only those worth 50 and above on the scale have ever even reached A rank. Everyone else gets harvested for experience far too quickly.”

  “Fuck, what kind of freak show are you planning to turn me into?” Matt protested.

  “Don’t get it wrong,” Tempormr clarified, “the form you’re in now—or at least something similar—will forever remain your natural state, unless you become one of the rare fools who sacrifices it without considering the consequences.”

  “Are there no bloodlines that force such an alteration upon me?” Matt asked nervously.

  “Not ones that wouldn’t make even me eliminate you on sight,” Tempormr answered coldly.

  Matt frowned as he absorbed the sheer cold hatred in Tempormr’s tone and decided not to press for an explanation right away. Instead, he shifted his focus to another matter.

  “So, when will I learn more about my bloodline?” he asked with a mix of curiosity and trepidation.

  “It should be evaluated at rank E, but it won’t be fully determined until rank D. Only after it consolidates at rank C will you truly understand it and be able to evolve using it. That’s typically how it goes, although there are risks you might take to force its evolution as early as rank E,” Tempormr explained, his voice measured yet firm.

  “You’re planning to force that on me, aren’t you?” Matt challenged.

  “You desire to be as powerful as possible, don’t you?” Tempormr replied dismissively.

  “Are you going to do the same to everyone who comes with me?” Matt inquired, his tone laced with concern.

  “No, unless I deem that they warrant it,” Tempormr answered coolly.

  “Great. Out of curiosity, will Bob have a bloodline too?” Matt pressed, curious about how rare it was to have a bloodline.

  “Everything has a bloodline, some just need more work to coax them out. Even if it reaches back only to one of its ancestors from your world’s history, Bob should have a path to becoming something fiercer than he is now,” Tempormr replied matter-of-factly.

  “Who says I want him to be fiercer? He’s Bob, and his laid-back attitude is what makes him great,” Matt retorted with a fond smile.

  “You truly are a strange one,” Tempormr observed, a hint of warmth softening his tone despite the tension. “Now, tell me, what will you do about this new threat emerging from your own kind?”

  “Threat? All I heard is that about fifteen percent of their force is injured and that they have no healer. I just need to hold them off as the number climbs while tending to my side, and we’ll win,” Matt explained confidently.

  “Or you could start culling their numbers and grow in power as you do so,” Tempormr suggested.

  “I’m not a murderer,” Matt declared firmly, resolve clear in his eyes.

  “You need to move past the morals of your old life. That’s why goblins exist in this world. Or are you suggesting that, if something can communicate with you but isn’t human, it’s acceptable to kill it?” Tempormr pressed.

  “The way you’re framing this is terrible—it just sounds like a trap,” Matt objected, his irritation evident.

  “It is, Matt. You must stop viewing people as inherently better than every other living thing, for all have the potential to evolve and gain true sentience,” Tempormr stated, his conviction unwavering.

  “So, you’re saying those damn vegans are right?” Matt joked, though the underlying tension was unmistakable.

  “No—my statement even applies to plants, though for them it takes special circumstances and a world on a much higher level than the one you’re in now,” Tempormr explained.

  “Yggdrasil? Don’t tell me something like that is possible,” Matt said, his voice full of disbelief.

  “Alright, I won’t,” Tempormr conceded wryly.

  “Bastard! Is that how all of us were transferred here so easily? Tree magic or something connected the worlds and—” Matt began, frustration creeping into his tone.

  “I would appreciate it if you thought before insulting me. The precise details matter little to you at this moment. However, if you must know, those without power like yourselves cannot resist those with power like me—unless you have the protection of someone like me,” Tempormr stated coldly.

  “Got it. I suppose I need to find a second god to compete over me so I’ll be free from your and anyone else’s interference,” Matt quipped, attempting humor despite the gravity of the situation.

  “That sounds like a truly awful plan that will only force you into even worse circumstances than I already envision,” Tempormr warned.

  “I’m never going back to Earth, am I?” Matt murmured softly, caught between resignation and determination.

  "You are," assured Tempormr. "Unfortunately, the rules we are bound by require you to return there once it is ready. After that, the best place for you to be most of the time will be right there, as you aid in its evolution, which will allow you to gain the most power. Now, enough of this. Your body needs rest, and you must overcome the fear of taking the lives of your own kind. Otherwise, someone without such hesitations will cause you to lose what you hold dear."

  "What is it that I hold dear?" Matt asked, more to himself than to Tempormr.

  "An easier question would be what you don’t hold dear. Now farewell."

  With that, Matt felt Tempormr’s presence depart, leaving him with a knot forming in his gut at the thought of having to kill people. He had been ready to do just that in the heat of the moment earlier that day, yet he had still struggled to find a way to avoid it. It was even the reason he had taken Zhihao with him, as he knew the wound to her side wasn’t one that could be healed without complications. He was certain it would get infected and slowly kill her in an agonizing way. Even now, he was contemplating how he could heal the 60 wounded she spoke of, despite knowing it was a foolish thought.

  Thankfully, such thoughts were overtaken by his exhaustion as he found a softer patch of dirt to lie on that night. Still, his dreams were plagued with images of either himself stabbing a blade into someone’s gut or watching as someone stabbed a blade into the gut of someone he knew. The worst was when he saw the faces of his family, whose current fates were unknown to him, as these dreams, more than the others, made him feel utterly helpless. Yet, within that feeling of helplessness, Matt sensed a duty to those he could help build, and a quiet resolve to not spare those who wouldn’t spare him began to solidify.