Double-Blind: A Modern LITRPG

Chapter 108

Chapter 108

The vagueness caught my attention first. It was hardly the first time the system under-described a skill or item with the intent to obfuscate its true purpose. If I hadnt undergone the trial and received from the Matriarch, and had the chance to observe how intrinsically worked, I probably would have passed on cascade, given the vagueness of the description and the strongly worded warning at the end.

But I was done worrying about alerting the wrong entities.

The Overseer, or whoever was running the game, already had it out for me. According to the Allfather, most gods, would have nothing to do with me at best, actively work to hinder me at worst.

After learning more about my situation and receiving the mask, Id taken the path of least resistance, tried to stay out of the spotlight, hoping theyd lose interest if I didnt interfere. Only, that hadnt worked. Pieces were still being moved in the background, slowly arrayed against me.

The Ordinator class was feared because it represented disruption. It wasnt hard to put that together. and alone pointed to what the class would eventually become, doubly so now that I knew those core skills could evolve. Along with the mask, it gave me all the tools I needed to drastically affect any group I was a part of. To guide them to victory, or bring them to ruin.

Now, the Adventurers Guild was turned against me. And though I couldnt work out exactly how yet, theyd gotten to Ellison. My brother. My family. My blood.

I was done playing nice.

Hes casting something! Someone yelled. Saras whip unfurled and lashed out towards my neck. When Id first watched her fight against the lizard men, her speed had intimidated me. Now it was like I was watching a slow-motion breakdown.

I shifted backward, feeling the razor sharp tassels come within an inch of my neck. She struck out twice more as Tyler was raising his sword above his head, dashing forward.

So close. I grinned at her. If you were a little faster, you might have kept the arm.

Saras face screwed up in rage. Up to that point, her strikes had been methodical, carefully calculated to chain into a follow-up. She launched a wide sweep. I ducked under it, laughing as the whip lashed around Tylers leg and stuck there. He stopped himself before he could slip, giving Sara a dark glance. Watch where youre aiming, dammit!

ImOof Sara stopped talking when I drove a knee into her stomach at the perfect angle. She crumpled to the ground. Her whip, still lashed around Tylers upper calf, was the only leverage she had to break her fall, and she held on to it instinctively. Tylers leg slid forward a few inches before he toppled.

I made minute adjustments to keep them tangled and kept walking.

Beyond them, approximately twenty members of the Adventurers Guild watched in horror. It was easy to guess why. Id left their leaders on the floor, and walked past them like they were nothing more than an afterthought.

Any second now, one of them would rally and charge, shocking the others into action.

To be honest, the slow pace I was taking had nothing to do with intimidation, though it worked to that effect. It was more that I wasnt confident I could run. There was a deep feeling of wrongness throughout my body, a jittery feeling of illness that threatened to overwhelm me at any moment. Still, I had a minute at most. There was no way I could get to the end of the street before wore off. was still useful without it, but not on this scale.

I needed to go bigger.

An arrow flew towards me. Poorly aimed, it went wide, a foot from my face. I didnt flinch. More arrows, projectiles, and spells followed. I weaved between them, ignoring the ones that wouldnt hit, using to subtly alter the trajectory of the ones that would. Countless impacts landed all around me, passing harmlessly.

Finally, one of their melee fighters grew a pair. A man wearing a gambeson and wielding a simple claymore rushed forward. I mentally raised the setting on the mask to maximum, ensuring anyone who hadnt had contact with me previously would be more likely to lose track of my movements.

The man with the claymore continued his rush, but doubt crossed his face.

Supporting hands too low.

He choked up on the ricasso of the blade, his hand moving just a bit too far up. He slashed downward in a fierce diagonal that set the air on fire, and probably would have cleaved me in half if it hit. His blade cut through the air behind me, striking the ground with a resounding clang. The bounce back retained enough force to cleave into his palm.

Fuck!

I outwardly ignored him and kept moving forward, adding insult to injury as I stoked his frustration, whispering to him with the suggestion that he was ruining this chance to prove himself. When he reversed course and charged me, I pivoted, sending what was effectively a large projectile wielding a sword into the oncoming crowd. Most of the Users along the edges managed to get out of the way, but he still took three down with him.

One of the cars at the far end was laden with vibrant golden threads, drawing my attention. I probed with and found a User inside, dripping with fear. I capitalized on the emotion, slowly melding it into something else.

They cant stop him. They cant land a single hit. Their weapons arent working. Whoever he is, hes a killer. If he gets through, it's my life on the line. But I cant just leave, I have to do something.

I let him fill in the blanks, and couldnt help but smile when the headlights turned on, a distant engine roaring to life. I merged into the group, using the confusion from the mask to disappear in their midst as they tried to both attack me and avoid hitting each other, generally failing at both.

It was harder than dodging the ranged attacks, but still manageable. essentially gave me eyes in the back of my head, and as long as I was using frequently, I had a solid foundation for predicting what anyone in my vicinity would do at any given time.

Confused yells and screams rang out into the night, as blades found purchase in the wrong targets, pikes and spears stabbing deep into legs and lower bodies. Some panicked and retreated, intending to reposition. I tended their fear, encouraging them to keep running. A few of them did.

Others who lost line of sight were panicking trying to find me again. I gave them false memories of what I looked like, wearing clothing identical to guild-mates standing nearby, and watched as they lashed out in panic and their friends recoiled away, screaming obscenities and half-heartedly defending themselves.

The skill usage was catching up to me. Id regained some stamina from the level, but it was draining fast. I couldnt keep this up for long.

I was already halfway up the street, leaving most of the Adventurers Guild members present tangled up and scuffling among themselves. But now I was in a dead zone. It was only a matter of time before they realized their target was already gone and regrouped.

Tyler and Sara had already recovered and were racing past the mess, dragging people with them as they quickly closed the distance. Hes right there. Stop him! I heard Tyler yell.

The rumbling roar of an engine drowned out everything. A barricade carthe gray explorer with a plethora of chipped paint whose driver I messed withwas racing down the short street towards me, pushing seventy.

Someone shouted a warning. Even as the Users behind me scattered, trying to get out of the way, I reached out a hand towards the car, the gesture more showmanship than anything else, picturing exactly what I wanted to happen. Then, I sent the driver an image of a body strewn out on the ground.

He jerked the steering wheel to the side to dodge the non-existent figure. The cars left front wheel caught a pothole. The driver panicked and over-corrected, yanking the steering wheel one way and then the other. It caught a curb at the right angle and popped up on two wheels, giving me a detailed view of the undercarriage as it blazed past.

I turned around and smiled at Tyler, who looked paralyzed, unsure whether to push forward or get the hell out of the way of the out-of-control car.

All around, the threads between began to fade, the world uncharacteristically blue in the new absence of red.

I swooned on my feet, nearly blacking out. A grinding, pounding headache thundered through my mind. I fought through it, and cast

Is it left or right? Its definitely right.

The car shifted to the right violently, finally tipping the rest of the way over, rolling multiple times before it came to a shattering halt. The driver was hanging upside down, unconscious, hands reaching toward the ground as the engine chugged out black smoke.

I risked one final use of to keep it from exploding.

At some point, Tyler must have dropped his sword. Hed moved quickly, rolling out of the way of the car and sprinting directly towards me. Hands nearly twice the size of mine wrapped around my throat. Tyler began to squeeze, grimacing with the effort.

Where is it, He snarled. Wheres the lux?

I spit blood in his face. He recoiled, then redoubled his efforts. Vision narrowing, I raised a finger and pointed at the car. Everyone had scattered, giving the wrecked vehicle a wide berth. It wasnt that they were cowards. Just the bystander effect.

I was right that gathering lux was all you cared about. You must really want me gone if youre willing to let one of your people die to make that happen.

The smoking car caught fire.

Tyler glanced back and forth, expression torn, before he finally decided. Ill find you. No matter where you hide.

Who's hiding?

Suddenly, I was plummeting downward. I covered my head with my arms to protect my head, colliding hard with the asphalt. Stars exploded behind my eyes as a savage kick scrambled my guts. But there was no follow-up. Just the sound of heavy footfalls as Tyler ran to the car and began to pull the driver free, yelling at the others to stop standing around and get him.

It was too late.

I staggered back to my feet, pulling the motorcycle out of my inventory and dragging myself onto it. A handful of arrows and magic projectiles peppered the street as I rode low, twisting the throttle to maximum and flying past the remaining car at the end of the street, getting a glimpse of the drivers panicking face. Just as quickly, he was gone.

/////

I peeled out of the street and into the main thoroughfare. Once I saw enough of my surroundings to know where I was, I lowered the setting on the mask to disguise only my voice and appearance. One by one, I chugged potions, leaving a trail of corks in my wake. The warm fluid blunted the pain, but the feeling of jittery hollowness never receded. Eventually, I reached down to grab one and realized I was out.

There were headlights behind me. I hadnt even noticed. The world around me was swirling and gray. I came to a slow stop, dismounting the motorcycle and nearly falling over, going to my knees.

Holy fuck, youre a mess, Kinsley said. But there was a shakiness in her voice, tainting the snark. She helped me to my feet, and we limped towards the car.

I stared at the vehicle she was guiding me towards, not sure whether I was hallucinating. The supple curves and sleek frame were unmistakable, capped off with a vibrant blue coat of paint. Kinsley, please tell me I have brain damage, and your dumbass didnt buy a Bugatti.

Okay. You have brain damage. And sue me, I have more money than god and I needed something fast. Stop being such a choosing beggar. Kinsley scowled. She guided me into the passenger seat. The drivers side was modified with a padded seat, pedals raised high off the ground.

The seat was leather, softer than anything Id ever felt. I leaned back against the headrest and closed my eyes, just for a moment.