Double-Blind: A Modern LITRPG

Chapter 194

Chapter 194

At this range, I barely had to adjust for drop.

A notification popped.

Tower Assignment: Slay Mandrakes (10/10)

Time: 32:41

I closed the window and turned to Keith. My prior estimation of him had dropped significantly. Accuracy was by far his best qualityit was actually kind of impressive, he could nail almost anything he was looking at, regardless of movement or range.

The problem was Keiths kit was utterly devoid of stopping-power. And when I say devoid, Im not exaggerating. His performance when wed found the first mandrake wasnt a fluke. No matter the spell, a magic missile, a wave of fireit accomplished nothing more than knocking the small monsters off their feet. The three hed killed had been accomplished by using that knock back to his advantage, then dealing the killing blow with a small utility knife.

And the mandrakes werent strong. When I snuck hilt out of my inventory to check for weak points, both varieties of mandrakes lit up like a Christmas tree. Literally every part of them was susceptible to damage.

Done with mine. I announced, spotting another cluster of flowers in the shade of a vine-ridden tree. Lets finish yours.

Keith followed me, eyes fixed on the ground. The only reason this isnt a disaster is because these things are weak. We both know itd be better if we run my timer out.

Probably.

The order didnt recruit you out of charity. I said, dropping to one knee in the shade, gripping the flowers close to the root.

Just good old nepotism. Keith sighed.

That piqued my interest. It smelled like possible leverage and actually explained a lot. The worst monsters in the world had friends, family. People they cared about, even if sometimes their methods of caring were utterly twisted. It made sense that theyd want them on the ground floor of Hasturs utopia, and that theyd segregate them from the larger threats. Maybe that was what Zero-team was. A bunch of golden-parachute recruits stuck together. But if it was true, that begged a bigger question. What the fuck was the Orders leadership doing, putting Nick in charge of them? They were practically handing him leverage. I didnt know what Hastur offered Nick, but it had to be huge, considering theyd effectively placed a colony of rabbits in the lions den.

I shrugged. So youre related to someone important. They wouldnt put you in the field if they didnt think you could hack it.

Keith was staring down at the mandrake, his face drawn, waiting for me to pull it out. His wand trembled in his fingertips. Its easy to forget that youre new. Everyone contributes. Thats how it works here. You contribute, or you die.

Look, were not playing league. Im not gonna prep each one for you and let you finish it. If you cant kill these lemmings, go back before shit hits the fan.

I know. Keith stared at the ground.

But Im gonna make you spend every second of this last half-hour, proving to me you cant. I yanked the mandrake free, holding it out to my side and gesturing to it. There had to be a reason Nick brought Keith. It didnt matter what the expectations placed on him were, or what side he was really playing for. Nick wasnt the kind of person to sandbag his team.

Keith pointed his wand at the mandrake, cringing, and mouthed a word. Bolt.

The spell landed, shockwave passing over me as the mandrake spun in my grip like a loudly complaining helicopter.

Frustrated, I knelt and stuffed the mandrake back in its hole head first. Its diminutive legs bicycled helplessly through the air. Okay, no. I ran a hand through my hair. Ive seen someone use that spell before. Concentrated fire. Completely obliterated the target. Whats your level?

Six. Keith admitted.

Low, but not that low.

How much INT do you have?

Twelve, Keith said.

Again, not low enough for the absolute lack of effectiveness we were seeing.

Is it your equipment? I eyed the wand.

Keith looked like he was about to explode. Its my stupid frigging title. He pulled up his UI in a series of angry swipes, and I received a notification.

In classic system fashion, it mentioned nothing about spells spoken without conviction being borderline useless.

I raised an eyebrow. Have you uh tried...

Keiths face flushed. He looked away. Yes, I spent days screaming out my spells like a badly dubbed anime character. No, it didnt work.

On some level, that was a relief, though it didnt fix the problem.

You were better when we fought.

When you back handed me like an afterthought? Keith asked.

I shook my head. Still, those spells had more oomph behind them. What was different then?

I dunno. Keith rubbed his arm. I was scared.

And you wanted to prove yourself.

Right. And for some reason my magic works better in User duels, anyway. Sparring, at least. The Ceaseless Knight thinks the flavor text is mostly bullshit, and my magic abilities dont really kick in until Im in the shit.

So this was a stress test, trying to draw Keiths abilities out. That seemed uncharacteristically risky for Nick, but I could see him doing it. Several other simpler possibilities crossed my mind that Nick must have been too preoccupied to catch. I settled on one.

They bring in someone new, pit you against them. Do you ever win the first spar?

Keith looked up, suddenly attentive. No.

Lets try something. Whats the worst thing thats ever happened to you? I asked bluntly.

My grandpa died of cancer last year. Keith shifted uncomfortably.

Hospice or home-care? I asked.

Hospice. It was terrible. Keith shuddered.

Perfect. I nodded. Now I want you to put yourself in that moment. Sitting in the hospice room, smelling the antiseptic, looking at your grandpa.

Keith seemed uncertain, but his eyes glazed over and his expression grew somber as he recalled the memory.

I continued. Now I want you to imagine a cop comes in. He sits down, all grim and resolved. Tells you its not cancer. Theres a coverup. That a bunch of these motherfuckers I pointed to the still struggling Mandrake broke in and scared the hell out of your grandpa. That he tried to run, but they caught him unbolting the deadbolt and screamed at him, bursting his eardrums and ruining his balance. And once he was down, they swarmed him. Stomped him into hamburger with their stupid stubby feet

Keiths mouth moved, trying to form words, taking several attempts to do so. He couldnt run. He was in a wheelchair.

Then he rolled away, and the mandrakes tipped it over and laughed at him.

And who was trying to cover up grandpa being curb-stomped by mandrakes? Keith asked, but he was staring at the Mandrakes flailing legs. His lip curled.

I let my temper flare. It doesnt matter. What matters is that they did it, Keith! They killed your fucking grandpa, and you know who picked the house? This pathetic screaming motherfucker right here. I yanked the mandrake out of the dirt, switching my grip to the stem and dangling it right in front of the mage. Are you gonna take that Keith? Are you just gonna let him get away with it? Or are you gonna give him what he fucking deserves!

A shadow dropped over Keiths face and he set his jaw. I reached into his mind with amping his emotional state. Keith pointed his wand at the mandrake, his hand steady, his expression cold.

Eradicate.

shouted a warning last second. I dropped the mandrake and dove out of the way as a black and orange beam larger in width than many of the surrounding trees overtook its body, reducing both the mandrake and the tree behind it to ash.

Holy shit. Keith said. He turned to me, slack-jawed. How...?

Ive seen this shit before. I stood, brushing bits of dirt and grass off my armor. Titles take precedence over everything. Once you narrow it down, its just a matter of playing Monkeys Paw with the wording, trying to figure out what, exactly, the system is using to screw you over.

Keith nodded slowly. The result clearly shocked him. This was probably the peak of what hed accomplished. He removed his glasses and cleaned them, chuckling nervously. I uh. I feel like I should pay you, or something.

I shook my head. Just a favor to a teammate. Nothing more.

Excited to move on, Keith ran ahead, and I followed him, watching as he chewed through the remaining mandrakes in a matter of minutes. He never quite captured the power of that initial blast again, but it was still overkill. Night and day from how hed been a half hour earlier.

My concern grew.

What Id left out from my explanation, was that Id been able to solve the problem so quickly because it wasnt that complicated. Keith didnt strike me as an idiota little slow, maybe, but it was more that he was too close to the issue to see the solution. It just needed an outside perspective.

Nick should have seen it.

No. Not should have.

He saw it. And instead of fixing it, fed Keith a line of bullshit.

So, why?

Considering the potential, I wasnt sure I would have helped him at all if I wasnt one-hundred percent confident I could shut him down if needed. was Keiths kryptonite. It helped make him, and if necessary, could break him just as easily. Deaden his emotions. Fog his memories, make them difficult to access. By aiding Keith, Id created a lowly placed but eventually powerful ally within the order. One that was easily controlled.

But Nick didnt have my abilities.

Was it that simple? He didnt want to create another powerful User within the Order?

That felt too easy, somehow.

Hey guys.

I jumped at the sound of Nicks voice. He was holding back a canopy of vines, surveying the overturned trees and other damage around the clearing. Jesus. A rampaging elephant come through here?

I chucked a thumb at Keith, watching Nicks reaction carefully. His face might as well have been carved from stone.

Keith ran over to us, breathing hard. He stopped in front of Nick. I broke through.

Good job kid. Nick fist bumped him. With style, from the looks of it. Knew you could do it.

Keith looked away. Cant take full credit. Or any, really. Myrddin figured it out.

Thanks for the assist, new guy. Nick gave me the same strained smile, thinning by the second. Yall done with your screeching carrots?

When we both confirmed that we were, Nick pointed back the way he came. Good. Because Im pretty sure we found our first ripple.