Gacha Kingdom Building

-This chapter is written using Lance's POV-

This was supposed to be an easy mission.

Ever since Erik helped the AOTG's leader, everything has been going smoothly for him.

That idiot had a natural charm and gift for attracting people, but he didn't really have the best eye or the nature to cut off others, so it was easy for Erik to manipulate him into entering a contract, and from then on, it was just a matter of slowly consolidating power in the AOTG from the ground up.

With the strongest card right off the bat, there was no way for him to fail, and any bump that got in his way... well, he could just use an old friend.

Frankly, the guy didn't even need to pay me for this job. Putting some thick-headed idiots on the line? I'd do it for free.

Erik still managed to trick most people into entering his contract willingly, and while sometimes he needed to pull a more audacious trick so that they didn't notice the trap they were falling into, only a few gave him trouble until the end.

And for those cases... a little threat went a long way. Sometimes we had to get our hands dirty, but Alan, Jess, and I always had the skills for this type of job.

It might actually be the only thing I'm truly good at, so our little system went perfectly and everyone was happy.

I wasn't expecting us to rise so quickly, but as long as we left the troublesome parts to Erik, everything tended to work out greatly.

Well... at least for the most part.

There was just one thorn on his side that he never managed to get rid of no matter how much he tried.

Maya... that girl is too outspoken and honest for her own good. She believes in others and brings the best out of everyone she works with, much like the old leader of the AOTG.

She's unafraid when backed into a corner, and even when she is standing alone against everyone else, she'll not be intimidated, instead, she'll work hard to prove her point and bring others to her side.

And with her smarts, tricking her is way harder than it was with the old AOTG leader.

Her skills are also top-notch, the girl has no blindspots anywhere, It's no wonder that she rose so quickly under the old leadership, and if not for Erik, she might've taken the whole organization under her thumb.

Now, with just that brief description, I could already tell that I was going to hate her, but once I received the job, I knew I had to go until the end.

Erik wanted to expand the AOTG and bring a revolution to this world. All so that he would reach the position that is rightfully his.

A simple organization wasn't going to be able to contain that man's greed. He needed his own country at the very least.

Toppling the government wasn't going to be easy, but if there was one organization capable of doing that, it was the AOTG.

Since that girl was against it, and was basically the only one in a position to still do something about it, she had to go, one way or another, and I was tasked with resolving the issue.

Erik told me not to underestimate her, but he usually says that about everyone, so I needed to check for myself.

And yeah... she was as ridiculous as the rumors said.

A single encounter in a corridor, a passing moment, and when her eyes laid upon me... it felt like my entire soul was being searched, all of myself was laid bare before her without a single chance for me to fight back or hide.

Her eyes said everything, without uttering a single word I understood what her reaction meant.

She looked at me... and she felt pity.

She saw in me a man beneath her, one who had to improve and do better.

That obviously wasn't going to happen, no matter how bad I was in her eyes, I had no desire to change... but those eyes... they were a type I recognized. She had the look that only the strong could show to the weak, one I had seen countless times.

The girl was a monster... so much so that she looked uninterested...

I thought that she would at least be scared once she recognized that I am a beast too, but she never did.

I couldn't believe it, but that was enough for me to become competitive with her... for some reason, I wanted her to recognize me.

It was the thought a weak person has to the stronger... and I couldn't accept it.

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I still feel shivers every time I remember...

She is the type of person I hate the most. Instead of being afraid of me, she expected more of me, as if everything I've been dedicating my life to has been wrong.

As if all I needed was to ask for help, and she would solve all issues for me without having to put in any effort of her own.

My own existence was devalued by hers.

To be so ahead of everyone else, and yet, look back at others with grace, waiting for the opportunity to change and improve others...

I think I never wanted to crush someone more. I wanted to destroy those eyes and make her realize that stopping to even look at someone like me was a mistake.

But... Erik was right... I couldn't be reckless with her.

Even while simply walking through a corridor, she had no openings.

It was a nauseating feeling as if her eyes were everywhere and there was nothing she wasn't keeping a watch on.

By all means, she was inside of a trap. Deep in enemy territory, and yet, it felt like she was in complete control of everything.

This meant that it would probably be best to get some leverage first, but... Going after her family wouldn't be advisable.

She's the daughter of Maria and Marcus, two top rankers... their protection should extend even to her little brother... furthermore... involving any top ranker would be too much of a problem under the current circumstances of the AOTG.

I had no other option but to go after her directly... so I followed Erik's advice and got a team together.

10 people should be enough to kill one unsuspecting girl and potentially her boyfriend.

I wanted to be sure of it, so I even brought Jess and Alan since those two never failed me before.

I knew Loyd was a freak for blonde chicks so I promised him he could get a chance with her if he participated.

It was also a good opportunity to test the power of Erik's contract, so I brought the prominent water mage, Cassy, much to her dismay as her loyalty still lies with the old leadership... Even though such a thing has not existed for a while now.

Still, I even went as far as to bring an unknown like Tristan... the guy is a total creep, but the rumors about him were as bad as mine, so I thought he'd add at least an interesting factor to the team...

With Abraham and his Gift of teleportation and a few others... we were basically going to war.

And even though I knew not to underestimate her... even the universe seemed to be on her side as we got extremely unlucky.

Her boyfriend appeared, making things more problematic instantly... not to mention... out of the whole group, she managed to knock out 3 guys in a second.

Granted, I wasn't expecting much from the fillers, but still, we were all attacking her together and she refused to go down. I had put her into a bad spot too, and that freak looked like she could still go on.

But no matter how much they struggled, there was nowhere for her to hide, and no way for her to win. Not as long as I was still alive and kicking.

I was sure of that, and when she couldn't move anymore, it should've been over... but she got saved by someone.

In front of my eyes, she and her boyfriend disappeared, and Alan confirmed a third presence had just taken them out of the room.

I couldn't let the chance to finish her go like this...

She was just a pebble, but there were no doubts that she could provoke a rockslide. That girl knew too much, and unlike the others, she wasn't in the contract, so she could still talk about everything going on in the AOTG openly.

Left without a choice, we gave chase.

We still had the numerical advantage, and the girl was hurt, so we should be able to win still.

There was only the unknown factor that saved her, but if he was alone, he'd just become another fatality.

But then, while following their tracks... her brother and a bunch of weirdos appeared.

Seriously... what are the chances of this happening... It was like fate was trying to tell me to give up.

Not that I had any intention of listening... or was able to.

His face told me everything that I needed to know. That boy is not normal.

He is her brother alright, couple of beasts I tell you.

But at least he was a more recognizable type. The same as I am, a man with no interest in others.

For him, people and trash are all the same, if they stay in his way, he'll kick them out.

The complete opposite of his sister, but still a man who looked at others from above.

I liked him way more. I understood the language he spoke way better, and I had my fair share of encounters with men like him.

Always dangerous, but they follow the same rules as animals. The strongest takes it all.

This trash with no redeeming human quality, one without consideration for anyone... resolving things with him should be simple. I just had to leave him in the blink of death.

Once he understood who was the strongest, he would abide.

It's no wonder he came at me too... monsters recognize one another. And from the beginning, I was the only one with the guts to look at those eyes directly.

The others all instinctively looked away... well, they are all weak, so I couldn't blame them.

Those eyes looked fully committed to hurting... the warm coming from them was to signify how pissed he was that someone was standing up to him, and if by instinct, his body moved to remove what was standing in his way.

As for me... I was very happy that this job had finally brought something fun.

If I knew her brother was like this, I'd have gone after him a long time ago.

Still, before we could start, the girl that was with him offered to fight in his stead.

This was annoying as hell...

I could see in her something similar to his... but... she was disappointing.

Like I had done to Alan before... she was a caged beast.

Her poison and fangs had been removed for the most part, and she looked like she followed him without any doubts.

A tamed beast wasn't something I was looking for to fight, even more so when there was a much better prey right in front of me.

I did get scared when I saw her Gift, however...

[Infinite Mana]... how the hell did this guy manage to tame a monster like her?

I swear, does this family not understand the concept of impossible?

...Since I had already used my [Hollow Destiny] to take away Maya's Gift, I only had one more use, but there was no mistaking between these two.

While the guy seemed way more dangerous, his Gift read like a book, while hers was straightforward. And too powerful to be left alone.

So, I decided to take hers.

It came off as a surprise to them, and I took the opportunity to start hitting the girl.

Seems like because of her Gift, her mana pool never increased, so she was completely defenseless, like a little kid that had yet to earn her Gift.

She still had a surprisingly high resistance, probably a product of her being high-leveled, but she sucked at fighting. She didn't know how to move or throw a punch, and just stood there taking hit after hit until she was reduced to a bloodied mess.

Not once did the guy step in to help her, if anything, he seemed to be enjoying a show as I gave the girl a good beating.

Still, this confirmed things... his beast had eaten hers. It was the reason why this girl felt so strange... she was both determined and cold. She definitely used to step on others.

But now, she was leashed... she had become weaker... such a shame, it feels like otherwise she would do for a good challenge. Even more so considering her broken Gift.

After a few more minutes, the girl looked like she couldn't take much more, so I kindly kicked her in his direction.

He should understand that I was tired of playing with her now, but he still didn't turn his head to me and chose to pay full attention to her.

For one like her, who seemed to once be filled with way more hate, poison, and fire, to follow so readily... my anticipation and curiosity were so high that I allowed them to talk.

This guy was strong enough to rule over another beast. I wanted to see what he had to say. I wanted to confirm if he was in the same league as I am.

It was the complete opposite behavior I'd expect from his sister... I'm sure that girl would jump to protect someone no matter their strength, and she would everything in her power to prevent them from getting hurt, even if it meant sacrificing herself.

But for him to not give me any attention... I was being underestimated. Unlike his sister, he didn't expect anything from me. He didn't see any potential or possibility for change, all he saw was someone standing in his way.

But this mindset was going to prove a mistake. No matter how confident he was in his inner demon since it was going to clash with mine, he needed to pay attention, or else, he would easily end up being hunted down.

Miwen: "So much for having it covered, eh?"

Elizabeth: "I am....sorry..."

Miwen: "Hm... I'll give you a chance Liz. In the spirit of the Infinite Hotel, if you can guess what I'm thinking about, I won't punish you."

Elizabeth: "You... thought that... you could use this... that you could let him kill me, and blame it all on their organization... so that the Merchant... killed them....

for you..."

Oh... I see... so the girl has backing from someone else...

Gotta say, the guy is cruel. She looked so determined to prove herself to him, and all the while he was considering if he should let her die or not.

Props to the girl for realizing all of that too, I knew I was right about her, she must've been quite dangerous when she still had her fangs.

Maybe I should take her from him... I always wanted to train a guard dog, but I never found anyone with potential.

As for this Merchant guy that they're talking about... I'm certainly curious, but... if he expects the AOTG to fall against a single guy, he might not be all that good, eh?

The Army Of The Gifted has members all over the country and even some outside of it.

Not to mention, a lot of high-rankers scattered all around...

Do you think we would plan a revolution without the power to do it?

We are getting ready to fight the entire army of this country, no single person can defeat us.

Miwen: "Haah... You and Bea really underestimate me... this guy too, it seems.... I guess I'll have to punish you all, after all."

He made me wait too long.

I was starting to get restless.

Playing with his toy was fun, but there's an excitement that can only be felt when hunting a guy like him.

As soon as the girl retreated behind him and he looked straight into my eyes, I began to understand him.

They were completely empty. It was like he was bothered that he even had to lay his eyes on me.

But there was more than that... they felt empty as if his mind wasn't there...

He had become a monster that followed a single intention. No feelings or morals are to be found in there.

I don't know if he was even capable of reasoning anymore... it looked like he had discarded anything that he couldn't use to kill me.

Still, much like a human, he had his guard up and even provoked me to approach him.

I was expecting him to charge at me mindlessly from the beginning but it seemed like I was mistaken, there was still a speck of reason inside him.

Good, this meant that I was going to be able to scare him. All I needed was to prove who is superior... once that animal had been beaten enough, he would understand who calls the shots.

Between him and his sister... I was going to have a lot of fun making them kneel and cry as they looked at me from below begging for their lives.

Their attitude, their refined abilities... I was going to make them regret everything about themselves.

I was going to beat them until they never again dared think they were above someone else. I was going to make her the pitiable one, and him the trash not worth looking at.

And when they think that they have earned my forgiveness... I'm going to kill both, side by side.

The brother first, of course. I want to see if Maya gives up on thinking that I can improve after she sees what I made of her little brother.