Chương 144: Chapter 220: Master Exploder

William Oh once tried to give a fellow Climber some friendly advice. He showed the man a few of his techniques, to help the man learn his own Abilities better. Unfortunately this had the opposite effect, because as soon as Will finished giving his demonstration, the man's head exploded. Jason Salazar, level 50 Prophet of Ouroboros"So Mr. Fontaine, you and your Party will be in charge of organizing the smooth entrance and exit of people in the town square tomorrow.

Make sure to properly label each of these channels with color-coded one-way signs so that everyone can figure out the path that they're supposed to take at a glance." William Oh straightened up from where he was staring down at the map of the town square near the outskirts of the palace. It was a place that was usually reserved for the top brass of the stronghold, but had been opened to the public for this particular event.

None of that mattered to Kyle, as he was climbing the walls inside his own mind, desperately trying not to let any of it show on his face. Amy and Bess were similarly pale, while Roger looked inches away from drawing his bow and trying his hand at killing Will. Does he know or what!? Kyle thought manically, searching the young Lords face and mannerisms for any sign of the swift retribution that was surely coming their way. It was nearly five years ago. He was a gangly kid. did he forget? Or does he misremember?

Kyle himself hadn't had much insight in the world of adults until his twenties, so it was possible that William Oh had simply assigned all blame to his friend. Young minds were simplistic like that. Did he never find the boy's body? How could he not? Did a monster drag it off or… what? Why isn't he-"Ahem," Kyle cleared his throat in between William Oh's suggestions for how to keep the foot traffic of the wedding going smoothly.

"W-why did you choose us, specifically?" Kyle asked. It was a blunt thing to ask a Lord, but if they were going to be killed here anyway, then Kyle didn't give a shit about manners.

"I just recognized you guys off a list of people available to help and thought I'd rather work with some people I know, you know?" Will pointed between the two of them.

"That way I don't have to establish a rapport with strangers."

"…Right."

"Check out this corner right here." Will said, his map focusing on a small alley.

"This alley is too narrow and cramped, and it makes a double blind turn here that'll cause traffic to get jammed up." Will said, peering down at the alley.

"It reminds me of back home, actually."

"How so?" Kyle asked.

"Well, sometimes the older kids at the orphanage would help the local farmers during slaughter season for a couple coppers. We'd throw up these wooden panels to make a narrow passageway that the sheep could only go through one at a time. The path would twist in such a way that the sheep never saw the other sheep being slaughtered." Wiliam Oh met his gaze.

"It's bad business to let beasts see the knife before it's their turn." He definitely knows. A wave of dread slammed into Kyle and he nearly went for his weapon right there, before he managed to muscle the reaction back. So that's his game, huh? He's going to torment us until one of us tries something, then he'll kill that person. A cat with a mouse. If Kyle reacted and attacked now, he was dead, which was exactly what this bastard wanted. Kyle swallowed the fear.

The boy wanted to get his revenge toying with them and was playing head games. That was good, actually. They longer William Oh toyed with them, the greater the chance he would make a mistake. And I suppose that's the game, isn't it? Kyle thought, meeting Will's gaze. He wants to prove he's better than us.

"We should block off the alleyway the day of," William continued without missing a beat.

"otherwise people could get hurt if they try to use it as a…" The young Lord's gaze drifted to Mark, his expression turning into a frown.

"Shortcut." William Oh's gaze lingered on Mark for longer than Kyle would've expected, drawing Kyle's gaze to the golemancer. Mark looked… uncomfortable, but nothing stood out. you couldn't even see his face through the slats of his helmet. Matter of fact, I'm not sure William Oh ever saw his face. Mark was one of the injured ones that stayed behind in Ashwood while the rest of us fleeced those kids as a side-hustle. Did William Oh forget who he is?

The young Lord glanced back at Kyle, and looked like he wanted to ask something for a moment before thinking better of it.

"Anyway. Mark, I want you to build temporary blockades here, and here…" The meeting went on and not a single one of them died. Eventually William Oh dismissed them for lunch, reminding them to meet him at the palace square afterwards. Yeah, he's toying with us.

"We should run." Bess said as soon as they arrived back at their rented crystal hovel. The barrier mage was hyperventilating, her eyes bloodshot.

"That's what he's waiting for." Kyle said, keeping his voice neutral.

"He's poking us to see who flinches first. You can go ahead and run if you want. It'll buy the rest of us some time." The brat wouldn't have let them leave if he didn't have some way of keeping tabs on them. Kyle needed to suss it out before he could affect an escape. Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author. Calm. Stay calm. Bess seemed to draw some strength from Kyle's tone, taking a deep breath and letting it out, flopping back against the wall.

Mark on the other hand… The golemancer suddenly shot to his feet.

"Where are you going?" Kyle asked.

"…Lunch." Mark said, pointing at the door over his shoulder.

"Well, if you're planning on running, let us know so we can get our own food." Kyle said.

"I'm just getting lunch. I'll be right back." Mark said, striding out onto the street beyond the door. He was not, in fact, right back. William Oh, on the other hand, had a different view on things. Will was sitting on top of a crystal arch that loomed over the square where the wedding would be performed tomorrow, eating a star-filled sandwich. The meat and the blood of the constellation monsters still looked like a starry night, so Will felt like he was actually eating the void of space outside.

He put the bun back down on top of the meat and took a bite. The meat had a poison that made it tickle on the tongue like champagne. It was safe enough to eat over one hundred resistance. So this is what stars tastes like, Will mused as he masticated, scanning the square blankly as he reviewed the conversation with Kyle Fontaine… and Party. They were all guilty as Abyss. He only had to prod them the tiniest bit and fear gushed out of them like an artesian well. Except for that golemancer.

The man in the waterproof smock… Mark, was his name. According to the profile he'd received from the foreman, Mark was able to shape mud into clay automatons that were harder than steel… but he couldn't create mud. The man had kit on that allowed him to summon and control ultrafine silt and water, allowing him to create his constructs without any need to rely on outside circumstances. It was messy, hence the waterproof smock covered in dried clay. It was an interesting build, but it wasn't revolutionary.

So why wasn't he scared? Does he think he could take me? Will mused. Or is he convinced of his innocence? Or… is he immune to fear? Will wouldn't think someone who makes automatons to take your risks for you would be the kind of person who was immune to fear, but he'd been wrong before. And it wasn't like everyone got to choose their classes. Will himself was a case-in-point.

Having one of their group be entirely fearless was throwing a wrench in his plan to spend the rest of his Acclimation period terrorizing them. I should ask about Mark. Will thought, finishing his sandwich. Without making it too obvious. Although… is he trying to run? Will had labeled each of them with his map's legend. A cantrip that allowed him to track them on his map… as long as they were within twelve miles. The four of them were approaching the square, but Mark was… hiding in an alley?

But he wasn't afraid of me. The others were afraid, but they understood the rules of this game they were playing, so they showed up anyway, radiating lakes of delicious, gratifying terror. But the one who wasn't afraid… was the one who ran? This is weird. Will was a little hesitant to kill the golemancer right away. The man had been resting in Ashwood with the priestess while Kyle, the ranger, and the mage were the ones who actually tried to kill Will.

Will had been hoping to figure out exactly how culpable those two who had stayed in Ashwood had been before he wantonly started slaughtering them. did they know anything? Did they take part in it? Would they have been willing if they were uninjured? But, if Mark wants to volunteer to be the first example of what happens if they try to run, who am I to argue? Will hopped off the arch and fell fifty feet to the ground as the four members of the Party approached down the main thoroughfare.

Will hit the crystal road, absorbing just enough shock with his knees that he didn't damage the road. He kept Phantom Hand hovering right beside their mage in case she tried something.

"Good afternoon!" Will said with a bright smile, acting significantly less murderous than he felt upon seeing those wretched faces and feeling their guilty fear pooling around his ankles.

"I see you're all-wait…we seem to be missing one." Their delicious fear redoubled as they imagined what kind of punishment he would visit upon them for allowing one of their own to escape.

"No problem at all! I'll go fetch him!" Will said, picking himself up with Phantom Hand and shooting into the sky. It took less than thirty seconds for Will to narrow in on the label he'd slapped onto Mark's chest, currently hiding under a pile of shipping crates in the back of an alley. Is he trying to catch a ride off the Stronghold, or… what? He might've been able to hide for two weeks if it had been any other Lord. Will's recent Attrition upgrade to Map made that an impossible proposition. Could be an ambush…

Will thought, taking a little extra time to scan the walls of the alley as he lowered himself to the ground. He might've lined the walls of the alley with wall-shaped golems and have them attack Will the instant his foot touched the ground. Will's toe hit the ground, followed by the rest of his foot. … Not an ambush? Will thought, scanning the pile of crates. They weren't whole crates like will had thought just from studying the map.

They were actually damaged crates that had been tossed here haphazardly by merchants looking to ditch some dead weight. The golemancer was hiding in a garbage dump. I suppose no one would want to search here, but it'd be a pain in the ass to lie still under this mess for an entire two weeks. Technically possible, though, with an Advanced Classer's Resistance. Will sent Phantom Hand out to the pile. He was on his last fancy suit, and if he got it dirty, Brianna would probably string him up.

Not to mention, Will didn't want to be up close and personal when whatever half-assed trap was sprung.

"Alright, Mark, I'm not sure what you're thinking," Will said as Phantom Hand began tossing aside broken and rotting boxes.

"-but if you come out now and do it without getting any muck on my clothes, I'll consider only breaking your legs a little b-" Will froze as Phantom hand uncovered a bit of flesh. He stared at the exposed bit. No pulse, no breathing. Will couldn't feel any heat from this distance either, which he should've been able to do. Will turned his senses outwards, making absolutely sure he wasn't in an ambush. Nothing. Will tossed aside the rest of the shattered crates and revealed the golemancer… or what was left of him.

The clothes were the same, and Will could see his 'Mark-Golemancer of Fontaine's Party' glowing in Will's vision, as though the corpse were wearing a name-tag across it's chest. The head though… Mark's head had been savaged beyond what Will would consider 'reasonable'. Beyond overkill. There were only bits of skull remaining at the base of the neck, and the man's helmet was scorched and scattered everywhere.

The remains of a platter of food were scattered around the ally behind the trash pile, as though he'd been carrying food back to his party before he'd been murdered. He wasn't expecting it. Did… Zodiac snuff this guy out? Zodiac was well known for having powerful Nuker Abilities and telekinesis strong enough to drag the entire Stronghold around. I don't think Zodiac gives a shit about this guy, though, so… what the Abyss is going on here? Will thought.

Will returned to the four targets of his revenge waiting for him under the great crystal arch.

"Did um…Mark have any enemies?"

"Other than you?" Kyle asked. Will wanted to put the warrior back into the 'plausible deniability' script of their game, but the murder demanded answers, so he didn't correct him.

"Yeah, other than me." Will said. The four scumbags glanced at each other and shrugged.

"Not really, he just does his job. Never really started any trouble with anyone."

"Is he particularly brave? Aggressive?" Will asked.

"No? He's pretty timid. You remember how afraid he was of asking that girl out in Dawnshire?" Amy asked, to which the rest of the Party chuckled, their fear dwindling. I didn't come here to have these assholes wax nostalgic, Will thought, eyes narrowing.

"Yeah, well, someone blew his head off and hid his body behind a trash pile in an alley." Will said.

"You sure he didn't have any enemies?" The laughter died while the fear reasserted itself.

"No enemies. Just you." Kyle said, staring at Will.

"I didn't do it!" Will said, putting his hand on his chest.

"Believe me. I'm just as upset as you guys! I wanna know who's out there breaking my toys!"