Crafting Death: A LitRPG Cultivation Series (Towers & Rifts Book 2)

by Nephilim Night

  “As you wish, sir. That beast over there will take you to the general,” he replied and pointed at a Humvee.

  It was heavily armored and glowed slightly. I noticed several crystals embedded in the sides of the vehicle. The military must have come up with new and inventive ways on how to use crystals and Enma. It would only be a matter of time before they started catching up. Edge and his people sure sounded good right about now, and it got me thinking. Having a group of awakened behind me would become most beneficial, but this was becoming the same thing as with Kang and his group. Space, food, the time I’d have to spend on opening their meridians and then even gearing them.

  We arrived some twenty minutes later at the same government building where we’d met with Kade. Absolutely nothing had changed other than that the security seemed laxer. The number of soldiers had dropped significantly, and instead, several patrol cars and cops were standing around. Were they trying to establish a semblance of normalcy around town? Showing people everything was under control?

  The secretary met us outside and spread her arms as if to hug Melina, but then she stopped and frowned.

  “That… isn’t Lana, right?” she asked and put her arms down.

  “No, this is my wife, Melina. She and Lana look eerily alike.”

  “Then… never mind, I’m sorry. It’s none of my business.” She flashed Melina a smile and offered her hand. “Linda Matos. I’m General Kade’s wife and secretary. Welcome to Sylmar.”

  “Oh, I’m from here as well, Miss Linda. I’ve lived here all my life, unlike Viktor.”

  Linda sent me a look that asked if I’d told Melina everything, and I nodded.

  “Yeah, she knows everything, don’t worry. But please, take us to Kade. I need to speak with him.”

  I looked around, remembering Mark wasn’t there. I found him and the specialists milling around next to the Humvee, chatting and swinging their weapons around.

  “Mark! I leave them in your care, alright?” I yelled over to him.

  He lifted his hand up and nodded. Linda turned about and strode into the building. We followed her up to the same elevator as last time and entered. To my surprise, she remained quiet as we rode up and all the way until we entered Kade’s office. He had a strange expression when he saw Melina, one similar to Linda’s, and I told him the same thing as I’d told her several minutes ago.

  “Linda, will you pour us a drink? I think I need one,” Kade said as he flashed me a smile.

  “We’ll need more than a drink, Kade. I’m quite worried about several things, and I need your ear right now before we do anything else.”

  “Oh? What’s wrong? Did my men do anything to displease you?”

  I shook my head and took the drink Linda offered me, gulped it all down, and returned it for a refill. She did so without asking and placed it on the table in front of me.

  “No, they haven’t, but I’ve been thinking. See, you’ve got a big chunk of the Sylmar market after the Green Dragon Gang was chased out, and only have to share it with the Apocalypse Association. Am I right?”

  He nodded and frowned. “Where are you going with this? I thought we had a deal.”

  “We have one, don’t worry. I want to start a group of my own, and if you play the game, you’ll have your own benefits as well in the long term.”

  “Oh? What kind of group? And where would you operate?”

  “We would have a single store inside Sylmar. Maybe somewhere near the government building? We could pay a protection fee through… goods?”

  Kade first frowned but then smiled and nodded his head. “You’re trying to bribe me, aren’t you?”

  I shook my head and crossed my arms as I held his gaze. “I don’t bribe. I give my thanks, nothing else. As for the rift, well, what I do in there is up to me anyway.”

  Kade opened his mouth to reply but stopped before he said anything. “If we’re going to do this, make it official and in cooperation with Sylmar, don’t you think it would make people believe in you? That you’re doing it for the greater good?”

  Now it was my turn to sit there with my mouth open. “I never said it was for the greater good, General. Don’t try to put words in my mouth.”

  He narrowed his eyes on me and opened his mouth to speak but stopped for a second, obviously gathering his thoughts. “What are you saying, in that case?”

  “That I’m doing this for myself and for my people. And for the ordinary man.”

  He let out a deep sigh, as if knowing what I was about to say, and shrugged. “I have no idea how you plan to make this work. The mayor and the ruling elite won’t like it,” he whispered and gulped his drink down. “Not at all.”

  “And who is to stop me? Besides, what’s more important to you? Serving some bastards who sit and do nothing while leeching off society, or the people and yourself?”

  “If you asked me that question before all this went down, I’d have told you it was the prior, but now it’s the latter.”

  “Then do it. Send your forces out, round them up, and execute them. Put yourself up as the leading man in Sylmar by showing you care about the people. Make it a public execution. Every single corrupt bastard out there.”

  Linda coughed her drink up and spilled it all over her chest while Melina smirked. At least I had some support in favor. I waited for him to gather his thoughts again and tapped my fingers against the table.

  “Over seven million people live in this place, Viktor, even after the mass deaths during the last weeks. The city used to be as corrupt as they got, and still is, but as you see, the military is in command now. They blame us for… a lot of things we had nothing to do with and couldn’t do anything against. How would it look if we rounded up the voices of the ‘people’ and executed them?”

  “A dictatorship. Isn’t that the best possible outcome for you and the military? You have me on your side, and I’ll be someone you can build your name on.”

  “Dear Lord, you’re serious,” Linda whispered barely audibly, but I heard her with ease.

  “Let me tell you something, both of you. When those who did all this to this world spoke to me, they said something interesting. The only way this game is going to end is when everyone is dead. What does this tell you?”

  “That if this information became known, we would have a lot of shit to deal with,” Kade growled. “This isn’t good at all.”

  “No, it isn’t. See, my people know, but I can trust them with my life. Can you say the same about your people and those you work with?”

  He cursed under his breath and looked away. “No, I can’t. And I can trust the politicians even less, but they’re a necessary evil!”

  “Alright, then let me ask you another question. How long will it be until they start demanding personal protection? Until they start demanding tribute and free crystals, gear, and other things?”

  “They already are,” Linda replied instead of Kade.

  He frowned, and I could see something snap between the two, but I didn’t care. Humans were mostly interested in self-preservation and power, nothing else, so if they had the chance to abuse others to get to their end goal, they were going to do that for sure.

  “Round them all up and tell them I want to show them around inside the rift. Maybe offer them a monopoly on some trade goods. See how they react, and if I’m right, we can have this conversation for the second time.”

  He closed his eyes and shook his head slightly, obviously not having thought something like this could have happened today. It was better to get used to things like this, though. And truth be told, this was a last-minute offer I made him after realizing that what I told him was correct, or at least that was how I saw it.

  “Any other bomb you want to throw? Might as well get it over with.”

  “Two things. The first is that I need some information on Edge and the people being held near my rift. The second is that I’m going to take care of the tower entrance right now. You might want to come along so people see you and yo
ur soldiers participate. Get some cam crews to record all of it. Interested?”

  His eyebrows shot up. I’d caught him off guard yet again. “Linda, get in touch with Fowler and have him make a list. We need info on who they are, their criminal records, their families, anything that might help Viktor come up with his decision on them.”

  “I’m on it,” she replied and immediately started calling someone before Kade had even gotten to his feet.

  “Shall we?”

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  The convoy consisted of four Humvees and six APCs. A total of eighty people, including us, drove down the streets from the government building and straight toward the tower. We had a ways to go, at least half an hour at the speed at which we were going. Sure, we could get there in half the time if no cars got in our way, but I wanted the fanfare.

  People from several news stations were already present when we got there, waiting and recording us as we drove across the gigantic parking lot. Well, it wasn’t technically a parking lot but rather a block of buildings the earth had swallowed, but after the seven-day kobold quest, most of it had just grown back together.

  A large group of awakened milled around. The first things I noticed were the red head- and wristbands they wore. Apocalypse Association, huh? Why were those guys here? To hog the glory? There was no way in hell I’d let them do that.

  “Did you call them?” I asked as I nodded at the group through the window.

  “No, I didn’t, but their leader is also there. Maybe it’s a good thing they’re here, though. If you let them leech off the glory, they might help you in turn.”

  “Oh? How so?”

  “Maybe the rifts house different kinds of monsters?”

  I let out a sigh and opened the door, then walked out and stretched. Mark and Melina followed; only then did Kade get out as well. The specialists made their way over to us as the soldiers set up a cordon between the onlookers and our group. Barriers were quickly erected, and very efficiently at that. The APCs held them on their roof, and they were quickly assembled, which made it easier on the soldiers.

  The Apocalypse people finally made their move, and three of them walked our way. I activated my armor and pulled out my halberd, holding it to my side as they stopped in front of us.

  Kade offered his hand to the man in the middle and grinned. “Pelos! Who the hell tipped you off this time?”

  The tall, thin man shrugged and shook his offered hand. His eyes were bright green, and his body covered with tattoos, mostly calligraphy.

  “No one, General. We wanted to give it another try today, so that’s why we’re gathering here. What are you up to?”

  “Mr. Viktor here,” he replied and nodded at me, “well, he’s one of the three people who got into the rifts. He’s already near SS rank most likely.”

  Pelos’s eyebrows rose, and he took a step back. “So you’re the famous awakened? It’s a pleasure seeing you here on our turf.”

  I snorted and slammed the butt of my halberd into the pavement beneath my feet. It cracked and flew in all directions, but no one flinched.

  “Turf? I don’t think you should use that kind of word in my presence,” I said coldly. “Just look at the Green Dragon Gang.”

  He frowned and nodded, but obviously lost on what to say, at least not until someone I recognized spoke up.

  “Viktor, it’s good to see you,” Kang said as he pulled his hood and mask down. “Any chance we can talk like friends? Without the armor and weapon?”

  I didn’t respond but, in turn, canceled my armor and stashed away the halberd. I could take them on even without it if the need arose.

  “Kang, it’s good to see you. How have you guys been?”

  He shrugged and offered me his meaty paw. I took him up on the offer and even pulled him in for a brief hug. Fuck it. The man had been there for me when I needed him, and I was never going to forget that, even though they betrayed me in the end.

  “Speak, but be brief. I have a lot of things going on in the rift, so I can’t stay long.”

  “Direct as always,” Kang replied and tried to smile, but wasn’t quite managing to. He felt for my Enma signature, and I could see he was uncomfortable after being bashed. “Pelos here is our leader, and I’m his right-hand man. Especially for this raid. Is there any chance you could join us and help?”

  Now it was my turn to smile. “Are you for real?”

  He nodded. “I am, just like when we met.”

  “Well, I think I repaid my debt for that matter. Now, if there’s nothing else, I have a gate to bash in.”

  “Wait! Don’t do it this way. We can co-exist and cooperate in the future. I’m sure if you give us a chance to show what we’re capable of, we’ll be able to prove our worth to you.”

  “Your worth? Oh, I know your worth, but you made the wrong decision, Kang. Are you regretting it now?” I stepped up into his personal space and got up close. “You abandoned me at my worst, and you want to be friends again at my best. Isn’t that right?”

  Kang gritted his teeth, and just as he was about to reply, Pelos held his hand up.

  “Enough, Kang. Don’t embarrass yourself in front of this… man. He harbors no ill will toward us, and I’ll take that happily. Maybe we can work on our cooperation sometime soon?”

  “Maybe, but I’d prefer it if you stayed out of my way, and out of the military’s as well. We’ve become quite friendly since the rifts opened up, and have some projects in mind.”

  Both Kang and Pelos turned to stare at each other and then back at me.

  “Mr. Viktor, I thought we were starting to get on your good side after we helped with taking down the Greens. What changed?”

  “The fact that you’re calling the tower your turf. If anything, the tower belongs to the strongest man or woman in Sylmar, which is me. Don’t you agree?”

  His face turned into a neutral, cold expression. I was sure I’d hit a nerve there, but that was the whole point. I wanted to see his reaction and what he’d do if pushed. Who knew just how much the tower could help a group of people if it dropped loot. Any kind of loot.

  “I see. Yes, you’re probably right, but that doesn’t mean you have to make an enemy out of us,” Pelos replied coldly. “See, if you want us gone, we’ll go. I’m not risking any of my men to you or the military. I want to co-exist in Sylmar and have a place to call our own, but yes, I can see how it looked to you. I’m sorry if I insulted you, Viktor. Please accept my apologies.”

  I snorted and spat next to my feet. “It’s not even fun picking on you since you’re so mild.”

  “And this was just a test?” Kang asked in equal surprise.

  “Yes and no. See, if you guys insisted this place was yours and tried to insult or force your way on any of us, you’d have died here. Since you guys are trying to do it the right way, from what I can see, I’ll let you in on the glory. What do you think, Kade?”

  He nodded and grinned. “I like Pelos. He’s a man of his word, from what I’ve seen so far.”

  “Good, but make sure you remember something, Pelos. Keep your people in line, or the same thing can happen to you like with the Greenies. I’ll help, and even allow Kang to teach you something once I say the time is right, but everything depends on you.”

  He deflated visibly and then stopped, staring at his right-hand man. “Something?”

  Kang shrugged. “It was a promise, sorry.”

  “Enough. I trust you won’t do shit until I tell you to, Kang?” I asked, stopping the two.

  “Just as I said, Viktor. I made a promise, and I intend to keep it.”

  “In that case, the military can take the left half of the bridge while you guys take the right half. I’ll attack the gate myself. You can keep whatever loot you get. How does that sound?”

  Pelos bowed slightly, obviously misinterpreting my heritage, but then again I wore a kimono most of the time.

  “I accept and pledge to help the best way possible.”

  “Good, g
ood,” Kade boomed as he patted him on the shoulder. He pulled the tattooed man away from earshot, but they had no idea I had abilities that negated that fact. “Don’t fuck with him. He’ll do what he said he would. I trust him with my life, but that doesn’t mean that I’m not afraid of him. You should be very afraid, Pelos, trust me. The man is a monster.”

  “Oh, I do trust you. I can’t even remotely put my finger on his power signature.”

  I looked away and took Melina’s hand, then pulled her toward the tower. It was truly immense and easily reached the cloud layer above, disappearing from sight. The width was that of a city block but with a single entrance, one that could only be reached by going up a ramp and then crossing a bridge. The entrance itself was a massive iron gate that shimmered, just like the dome back at the inn. Everything was dark beyond that point, almost as if something was keeping the light inside. If there was any in the first place.

  “Mark, you’ll take Melina and the specs to take up a position on the center of the bridge. Make sure she doesn’t die. That’s an order. Don’t provide any support unless she’s safe.”

  “Sure thing, Vikt,” he replied, pulling out his lance and equipping himself.

  He now wore a full suit of armor made from grazlitaur bones, but it didn’t register as I stared at it. Not that it mattered. Melina’s suit was made from bone as well, but not even nearly as protective when compared to his. She noticed me staring at her bare legs and arms.

  “I think they’ve taken our games and copied the whole culture around it. Even the nudity for women while wearing any type of armor.”

  “Mel, I didn’t say anything. I think you look to die for in that suit. I honestly do.”

  “But you don’t like everyone staring up my skirt?”

  I shrugged. “I don’t like it, but not much I can do, right? I prefer you wear the damn armor.”

  She leaned in and planted her lips on mine. A wave of bliss washed over me the moment she let go, and the buffs appeared one by one. To my surprise, they weren’t just her buffs, but those from Samantha as well. I stared at the buff icons and checked them to make sure what I was getting from the girls.