--This chapter is written in Erik's Pov--
Another city fell today.
Black smoke rose from the buildings as shouts and screams echoed through the streets.
In quick succession, the Army of the Gifted seized the city's military base and hall, taking another decisive step in the long march toward the capital.
Many such steps had already been taken.
Many such steps still remained.
Yet with each passing day, this country awoke to a truth I had long understood.
The mont the Dungeons appeared, the world had entered a new era.
For the past twenty years, what we witnessed was not a valiant struggle to preserve order.
We were instead watching the last days of an empire, desperately clinging to its old glory.
Adapting, rather than embracing, our new reality.
As if their might could triumph over progress itself, they searched for a compromise, thinking it would help them feign their lost control and preserve the established order...
Not the peaceful order.
The hierarchical.
One forged through generations, comfortable enough to be called the status quo.
In their feeble, short-sighted attempt to adapt to this new reality, they allowed power to slip through their hands.
Unbeknownst to them, the power that slipped fed , and I beca the beast that heralded their end, for I could not bear to watch a golden world tarnish.
That I'd stand atop a reborn, lustrous world was, rather than a coincidence, the reward for my great work.
Yet, as I looked out the window at what awaited so many other cities, I felt discontent.
Every domino had fallen as I designed.
Until Maya's survival.
Since then, I noticed a slight deviation in their fall.
While I successfully took over the AOTG, Maya survived.
While the populace's growing discontent with the governnt finally exploded, it happened as a result of the Divine Event's aftermath, making the sparks of revolt I'd prepared unnecessary.
While I accounted for secret weapons capable of neutralizing high and top-tier adventurers, I underestimated their stockpile and effectiveness.
So deviations worked in my favor, others didn't.
They were all botherso.
Maya was my first and worst miscalculation.
Her resistance, aningless or not, was sothing I had not prepared for.
She should already be dead.
I did not underestimate her.
Nor her friends.
Nor her family.
Her parents, while strong, were too preoccupied with their jobs.
Her insolent brother, though largely unknown, couldn't possibly possess the power to help her.
Yet, miraculously, he jamd the gears.
I do not believe him more responsible than her.
It began when she saved herself by escaping Lance, even when her Gift was suppressed.
She was the one who opened the door for the miracle to happen.
For her brother to save her.
Now, no matter how many I send her way, she stands victorious.
Through certain death.
It's ridiculous.
She is smart enough to know which side is correct.
Still, she opposes .
She opposes fate itself.
The tracks of history.
I tried to ensure, ti and ti again, that she would wake up from her utopian dreams, to no avail.
She shouldn't be.
But she is.
Unreasonably.
Undeniably.
Infuriatingly.
Maria: "Can't get her out of your head, can you? That's my girl for you."
She faced
earnestly.
Confident in her words, cheeky in her tone.
Her eyes had no fear.
She made herself comfortable in a room, knowing she'd be alone with her family's sworn enemy.
Despite the abysmal circumstances they faced, she seed certain of their triumph and my fall.
Not too dissimilar from Maya, in that sense.
Erik: "I suppose it's true. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree."
In more ways than one.
For starters, her own survival.
Like her daughter's, a twist of fate I could not foresee.
A pestilent deviation that, while working in my favor, disrupted my calculations too much to be called anything other than troubleso.
After I took over the AOTG, few could pose a threat to .
Maria's ability to create and enforce rules and punishnts put her among the few.
On top of the priority list for elimination.
Had things progressed smoothly, after killing her daughter, I would use the full power of the AOTG to hunt her down before she could break my Gift's contracts using her Gift.
No matter the resources sacrificed, it was of utmost importance for
to take her out of the equation as fast as possible.
Yet, that never ca to pass, and now, she stood by my side, mocking
at every possible opportunity.
All thanks to her foolish challenge.
She ca to
alone, of her own volition.
Proposed that we set the rules and punishnts using my contract and her rules, and then, inevitably, lost.
In the process, she beca the most string-attached puppet in my collection.
Thus, she saved her own life.
If part of her plan, as Maya seed to believe, it was a daring bet.
I contemplated killing her.
Many tis.
Even if under two collars, she was known to be a sly fox.
It was better to put her down before she had the chance to escape, or worse, bite.
However, I decided that would be hasty.
It was not yet ti to discard her.
She was too valuable as a hostage.
I could potentially trade her life for Maya putting down her resistance, if it ever beca a real problem.
Or, if her husband proved more of a threat than I imagined, I could have him change sides rather easily.
Not that I was particularly worried about them.
After all...
Erik: "Maya can't win."
Maria: "She can't lose either."
She wasted no ti in her response.
It should, by all ans, imply she had thought deeply about it.
Thus, worthy of being ignored.
If not for the subject matter.
As ludicrous as that may be, that girl defies my expectations at every turn.
I had no choice other than to revise my evaluation of her.
But even if I started from a blank canvas, I couldn't picture her in her entirety alone.
I was missing sothing, and my only hope to understand was through Maria.
Unfortunately...
Erik: "I suppose you still don't rember what her Gift is?"
Maria: "I told you, I must've wiped it off my mories before our battle."
A smart decision.
Through it, she managed to protect her daughter, her husband, and her son.
Such a problematic family.
Her husband's Gift is claid to have ten different effects, of which not all are known.
And he, of course, chose to side with the governnt, integrating one of the few adventurer teams they created.
No matter how many resources I wasted on her daughter, her ability remained a mystery.
The only thing I was sure about was her determination to oppose .
She went as far as to create an organization solely for that purpose.
As for the son...
He had my interest.
His Gift was as mysterious as his sister's, but it allowed him to amass imnse power in a short period since obtaining it.
The group he defeated Lance and faced
with was also noteworthy.
While not enough to challenge the AOTG, the presence of that demon and the abilities she showed during the first days of the Divine Event were enough to make them a target for elimination.
As a hostage, the son works better than Maria.
If I had him, I could off her.
I couldn't see Maya and Marcus standing against
after witnessing such consequences.
Four birds, one stone.
While he had obtained Lance's ability, his version was weaker.
Harmless, as long as I kept my distance.
His group would be overrun.
However, without finding him, I couldn't put this plan into motion.
His house was destroyed.
He wasn't hiding there.
His group was spotted leaving its ruins.
He wasn't with them.
I tried to use the Gifts of multiple high-tier adventurers to track him.
Nothing.
For all intents and purposes, he vanished.
Still, whatever he had done, it didn't rit a revision.
Erik: "He pales in comparison to Maya."
The smoke outside started to bother .
I closed the window.
Such is the finality of things.
It's the obvious path, cause and effect.
Reality.
The very concept that didn't apply to Maya.
The reason I couldn't read her.
The reason she kept getting away.
Miwen wasn't so lucky.
To corner him was just a matter of finding him.
Once I had closed the windows, he would have no miraculous escape.
I was certain of it.
Maria: "Pfft. Ahaha! If you want advice, focus on your fight against the governnt; leave them alone."
Erik: "...Worried?"
A resounding laugh.
She looked at
as if I were oblivious to a simple truth.
It felt like a blatant lie.
Worry, anxiousness.
Perhaps I had found a weakness in her armor.
A soft spot, reserved for her son.
The youngest one, the weakest.
Quite motherly.
Maria: "Yeah, I'm worried. Maya will be sad if Miwen gets to you first. She probably thinks she can turn you around. If they fight because of it, as their mother, I'll be in a world of trouble."
She held her tummy from laughing so hard.
Her words echoed the sa sentint as before.
Confidence in her family.
However, I noticed a difference in the way she treated her son and daughter.
She treated her son more like a mother should, though not in the way I'd expected.
I couldn't understand.
What made her think the son would get to
first?
Did she not know her own daughter?
I demanded an explanation.
Maria: "I can't predict what Miwen will do. He has changed a lot. Maya is too earnest, but capable enough to afford it. So, what I can say is that... Miwen is trouble. Maya is not. To people like you, they are both poison. One is just sweeter~"
Erik: "...I'll take it into consideration."
Basically, she believed I should surrender to Maya without facing Miwen.
Outrageous.
Neither could afront
directly.
I could never predict luck, but one thing was for certain.
Luck runs out.
For everyone.
The miracles protecting them were soon to end.
Whenever they did, the son, less capable than the daughter, would be easy prey.
Erik: "What about your husband. Is he also poison?"
Maria: "No. He's a musclehead. But you know... Muscleheads tend to band together, for so reason."
I did not know that.
Muscleheads rarely, if ever, catch my attention.
The ones I kept around, I did only because of their usefulness.
As long as they did as I told them, they found success, despite their shortcomings.
So, what they did, with whom, never caught my attention.
Lance was the exception.
But he was more of a mad dog than a musclehead.
He was intelligent, but saw little value in it, opting instead to focus on his strength and his value in battle.
In itself, a smart decision.
With
guiding his actions, he did not need to think.
Maria: "Being forced to tell the truth is really annoying... I'll be less harsh with Miwen next ti."
Erik: "Out with it. I'm busy."
Maria: "Kids these days always seem to be. Look, Marcus and I have good friends. And to old folks, that's enough of a call to action. I can tell you never expected Pip to join this, right? But if Marcus asks her for help... I believe she might."
...Pip.
Not a na I had heard before.
Most certainly, however, it was Maria's nickna for Piper Williams.
Also known as the Witch of Narrations.
I had contingency plans prepared for her already.
In fact, I personally built Mars with mbers capable of countering the known usages of her Gift.
I imagined she wouldn't interfere, though.
She never displayed an interest in ideological topics.
Her philosophy was simple.
She'd do anything that benefited humanity, and she saw herself as one of its strongest forces.
Thus, she also acted to preserve herself, image, and health.
Even holding back from using the entirety of her powers.
News of her joining either side had not spread.
But if Maria's words were true...
I would have to revise Mars.
They were only capable of defeating a self-restricted Piper.
One who was by herself.
Erik: "The woman who can destroy the world. Is it true?"
Maria: "Who knows?"
As expected.
The sa answer she gave
regarding her family.
Erik: "The news says that the AOTG currently holds 12% of the national territory, and about 7% of the population. Millions. Out of them, thousands have signed contracts, feeding
power."
Maria: "Good for you."
She hadn't listened.
For her to care, I had to cut to the point.
Erik: "Between Piper and , who do you think would win?"
I wasn't happy to have Maria help .
But I intended to make as much use of her as I could.
When it ca to a battle between the Witch of Narration and , she was the most reliable source to predict the outco.
After all, Maria had known the witch for a long ti, and just recently, had faced
in battle.
Maria: "...You would win."
Finally, her mocking smile disappeared.
She even fixed her posture.
Stared
straight in the eye, too.
It did not suffice, though.
I needed to know how.
Maria: "If you two were to clash, the world might not survive. I think that's Pip's limit. She wouldn't put the world at risk just to win."
She would surrender, then.
A part of
wanted to believe it, but I couldn't take Maria's words as a guarantee.
In the unlikely event that Piper Williams had truly joined a side, I'd have to reconsider what I knew of her personality.
Still...
Erik: "I'll have Venus search your son. You're integrating Mars now. Co."
Maria: "So you trust
to fight? Just saying, I can't defeat Pip."
Erik: "Don't get ahead of yourself. I have no trust to give anyone. And while you can't defeat Piper, I believe you can neutralize Marcus. That man doesn't seem like the type to raise his hand against his wife. Right?"
Maria: "I want to lie so bad... But yes, he wouldn't resist if you forced
to kill him. He would probably accept his fate with a smile. That big dummy."
Good.
One by one, I was starting to see how to deal with her family.
Whether they'd fall before the governnt or not, it wouldn't matter.
They'd fall all the sa.
Mysterious powers, unwelco miracles, and idealistic dreams...
One way or another, Maya would learn the truth.
Those were all futile.
Fragile.
Over.
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