The Real Predator

Multiple strong conflicting feelings invaded Kyren as he remembered his past thoughts and actions. He nearly killed someone of such monumental importance?! That was way too close a call for his liking. Sure, he could handle the backlash if he actually went through with it, but it would set back his plans big time, while also increasing the possibility of things getting beyond his control.

If what Fabian said was true, he could safely speculate that the three major Grandmasters and other great powers were the only people keeping the church from taking over. He always wondered why the church wasn't as dominant over the continent with all the power they supposedly had. Now he's finally discovered the balance of power in Lumeria, at least for the human race that is.

To counteract the church's might, the three Grandmasters, allied countries, and other hidden powers acted as a mutual deterrent for the church.

They were the reason why humanity wasn't filled with the church's zealous and fanatical freaks, they were the reason the church hasn't wiped out all the non-humans, and they were the reason why the world hasn't plunged into the darkness and despair under the suffocating oppression of the church.

He could also inwardly confirm that the balance of power between the people and the church was becoming thinner and more feeble by the day. This could be determined by simply observing society from a distance. Even Kassio, a humongous fortress city on the outskirts of the Empire and the continent, was feeling the pressure from the church.

When they did that door to door search for Kyren, no one was able to stop them. This spoke volumes for how dire the situation was when concerning the balance of power. The church was still gaining superiority rapidly, most likely for something big.

In the history books Kyren read a long time ago, he learned of the tragedies and atrocities of the Eternity War. The entire world was still recovering from the unfathomable devastation that everyone experienced for thousands, if not millions of years. Because of the existence of magic in this world, the scars of war weren't all too visible, but everyone was still suffering greatly. Again, this could be surmised by observing society.

For some reason though, when the war ended, the church was the least affected and somehow maintained most of its power. It's as if they hardly participated in the war. Due to the sudden unexplained difference in power between the people and the church after the Void Armageddon went down, many great powers united together out of fear. But nowadays, the balance of power was dwindling and the church was surging in strength, aggressiveness, and cruelty. Who knew how long the world had until something tragic happened by the church's hands.

Although the situation was depressing and intimidating, Kyren couldn't be happier. This growing fear of the church was just what he needed to hear. Did the Goddess of Luck happen to overhear his plans and create the ideal setting for his monstrous ambition to run wild in this world?

It was certainly plausible but slightly unrealistic considering that this was only a game. None of these gods were real divine beings... if any gods do exist.

Fabian continued to ramble on about the Grandmasters and the duo learned quite a bit. All three had unique backstories and were powerful in their own right. The information he was giving out gave Kyren a solid understanding of the three which would help him later on.

"Due to personal reasons, the three Grandmasters reside within the Alvestine Empire's borders. This is also because this country is the largest and most powerful human controlled territory on this continent. They seem to have a close relationship with the Royal family and the grand nobles so they form a tight social circle of the major elites.

Even if they live close by, it's still unbelievable that the two strongest grand nobles and the three Grandmasters are all personally participating in this event..."

"Grand nobles? I thought there were only nobles, true nobles, and high nobles?" Maya was slightly alarmed by this new information. If she was going to entertain the nobles alongside Kyren tomorrow, she must know the basic hierarchy of the Empire. The fact that she missed an entire level of the social structure was a rather big mistake on her part.

"No, you're right about that. Grand nobles are just the leaders or representatives of each level of nobility. There is only one Grand Duke family and they will always have Royal blood in them, meaning they are the excess family members of the Royal family. The Grand Duke manages and keeps track of all the other dukes in line, along with the Royal army when the Emperor isn't able to.

Currently, there are three Grand Marquess families in the Empire, with one, in particular, being considerably strong. Every level of nobility you go down will have more grand nobles to manage them. It gets to the point where Grand Barons are close to hundreds in number.

I shouldn't be telling you this, but Krista is the eldest daughter of the most powerful Grand Marquess family, the Randell family, and the heir to the clan..." Fabian assessed their reactions, expecting astonishment, disbelief, and speechlessness. This was an unbelievable chunk of information he was giving them but he felt like they were trusted.

Maya reacted in the way he predicted, with her mouth agape. Kyren, however, looked completely calm as though he's known for a long time. Although he was surprised by his lack of reaction, he quickly concluded that Krista must've told him already. A wholesome and heartwarming sensation filled him as he thought of Krista, 'That silly girl must really like him if she told him already.'

Fabian has never had children of his own so watching Krista grow up and start her own life gave him this indescribable joy and satisfaction.

Maya pinched the bridge of her nose as though she was trying to process something absurd, "Wait, wait, wait... You're saying that prideful training maniac comes from high and grand noble birth?! I just can't see that happening... I liked my theory that she was raised by a pack of lions better."

Both Fabian and Maya burst out laughing with even Kyren faintly chuckling.

As they were laughing for a few moments, Kyren abruptly went silent and his expression became serious. The other two's voices gradually died out as the mood in the room shifted.

Kyren stood up and looked in the direction of the closed window behind the Guild Leader. He grinned under his mask as a malicious greedy light shown in his eyes, "*whisper* Seems like the party can start with everyone present now....."

Fabian connected the dots and he went into a cold sweat. It was obvious by his statement that they were probably surrounded by hostiles. But what made him truly anxious was the fact that Kyren could use his senses within his office without breaking or getting detected by the magical arrays in the room.

"Maya, you wanted to talk to Fabian about Krista right? Chat with each other until I get back."

With that being said, Kyren pulled up his hood and calmly walked over to the door. It was as if he was going to take a simple stroll and he didn't have a worry in the world.

Although they were both slightly bewildered, they didn't ask any questions and started talking, completely ignoring the fact that a one-sided massacre might occur outside.

.....

There were only two reasons why Kyren was even bothering to do something as trivial as this.

The first reason was that he didn't want to be annoyed or pestered in the future when he planned to do adventuring. While he took on the role of an adventurer, he would find his dragon brethren across the continent, involving himself with the player society, gather more rare materials for Genesis to sell, increase his progress on Transcendent's Honor, and just enjoy the game for a little bit before the real chaos happened.

The problem concerning Transcendent's Honor needed to be resolved as soon as possible and what better way than taking adventurer jobs to earn both fame and use monsters as target practice. Right now, he could only use his power at one percent or one hundred percent, making fighting risky. Even with his luck, it would be difficult to get anything in between.

He also wanted to experience the game's adventuring element and play like a normal player for once. Things would get pretty hectic later on so it was now or never. This event was only a small taste of what was to come.

The second reason why he was dealing with these pursuers was to prepare for the future. Currently, he sensed quite a few imperial soldiers and even more church Templars patiently waiting for him outside. He was even surprised to see two S~grades among the Templars. The harvest this time would be plentiful, to say the least.

He didn't plan to kill anyone because that would be wasteful. Just capture and imprisonment would suffice. The reason why he needed Fabian's help was just to lure them all into one place. But before he could capture them, he needed to make real sure that he got the right people and not some civilians.

Kyren waited a couple of minutes to confirm that there were no stragglers before walking out into the main lobby. Quite a few glaring eyes were instantly trained on him the second he came into the busy crowd of players, adventurers, and civilians. He swiftly navigated through the mob and exited through the front door as though he were in a rush to get away from something. His demeanor was calm, but anyone with a trained eye could tell that he was slightly frantic.

<You have discovered the proficiencies, [Acting], [Emotional Fabricator], and [Emotional Emulator]. The proficiency [Acting] has upgraded to [Advanced Acting].>

'Hehe, it's time for the predator to become the prey...'

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Within a classy restaurant on the same street as the Adventurers Guild, Denmark sat at a table with grim looks on his face as he picked at his food. His bodyguards stood at attention close by with equally grim complexions. They were next to a window that had a perfect view of the guildhall's front entrance, which was surging with people going in and out.

To onlookers, he looked like an arrogant high noble child that was being picky with his food. Since this was the Common District, this wasn't a high-class establishment so everyone was perplexed as to why he was here in the first place. They were also unsettled by the overly buff bodyguards stationed around him, making them too nervous to have an appetite.

Inside Denmark's head, a swirl of complex emotions and thoughts made it hard for him to focus on his meal. He had no idea why he was doing something so idiotic, but he was eavesdropping on the conversation within the Guild Leaders office using the special bug he planted there earlier.

He didn't know exactly why he was doing something so risky but he couldn't stop himself from listening. This was probably because he felt like he was going to die anyway so he might as well figure out what was going on.

He was an unnaturally curious person at heart and one could say that a majority of his major and minor life choices were based on this insatiable curiosity, whether it be becoming an adventurer or his marriage to his loving wife. He was itching to understand more about the situation he was currently in before he was put six feet under.

There was currently a long silence in the Guild Leader's room. He knew that Kyren and his partner walked inside but it seemed like no one has talked yet. It took an uncomfortably long amount of time for the first words to be spoken by the old looking Guild Leader he met earlier.

:::.....So you're aware?:::

:::Yes.:::

Denmark could tell that the first male voice belonged to his Guild Leader so that must mean the second voice belonged to Kyren.

:::How aware...?:::

:::There are currently five professionals in and around the building, quite a few within your staff that seem to be in on it, and one suspicious person with still unknown intentions.:::

A shiver went down Demark's back as he reckoned that those last words were aimed towards him. But judging by what Kyren said, there might be a chance that he could clear himself up if Kyren was only suspicious. He would've liked to contemplate on his chances of survival, but the conversation continued.

:::Then do you have a plan? I thought you went into hiding because of the people hunting you.:::

Denmark flinched in surprise, 'Him?! Hiding!?! What kind of bullshit is that!?!?! Does my ignorant Guild Leander not know of his true strength?'

:::I guess you could say I was temporarily hiding, but I can deal with them now. I wish to avoid any annoyance in the future. As for my plan, I need some double agents and capable manpower... and now they've come knocking on my doorstep. Sorry for using your guildhall as a staging area in advance.:::

:::!!!:::

'Wait, so he was using my guildhall to lure in these pursuers and trap them? Is that his plan? So that means that he already set something up so no one could escape...' Denmark was right not to run, otherwise, he would've seemed more suspicious and he still wouldn't be able to escape if Kyren truly set up a trap or barrier to block them in.

He listened even more intently compared to before, completely blocking off his surroundings so he could hear every little sound that was going on. There was still too much information missing for him to know what was going on, and the information he did have just generated more questions, creating a vicious cycle that made him unable to guess if he could live or not. When he saw Kyren in the guildhall, he was pretty sure his life was over by that killing intent he released, but maybe there was still a chance?

It was small, but a little ray of hope was shown on his child-sized heart and he vowed to never get involved in other's matters ever again.

His mind went back to four days ago when the mysterious transcendent bodyguard repeated the words that would most likely haunt him for the rest of his life. The bodyguard was right, his curiosity nearly got him killed then... and it might get him killed now.

Realizing that he zoned out, he immediately strained his ears to listen again. It seemed like there's been an eerie silence this whole time so he probably didn't miss anything. This silence, however, was going on for too long and he couldn't help but feel uneasy.

:::Guess there's no need to have him listen anymore.:::

He then heard a chair move and then the rustling of clothes and loud footsteps getting closer. His heart began palpitating as every little sound amplified his anxiety. The shifting of leaves, the static-like thuds that told him his bug was grabbed, and then... the whisper of Kyren's voice that seemed to penetrate his very soul.

:::*whispering* Wait right there until I deal with you.:::

Then there was static that indicated that the connection between him and his eavesdropping bug was severed...

Not once in his life has he ever felt so hopeless before. Not when the demonic armies were pushing the overworld closer to extinction during the war one hundred and fifty years ago, not when the Void Armageddon occurred and humanity went to the brink of extinction yet again, and certainly not when he fought the creature that cursed his body this way.

His hand reached behind his ear and pulled out a bug that was similar to the one he planted in the Guild Leader's office. He placed the insect into a special container on his side as he let out a heavy and defeated sigh.

His bodyguards noticed his distress and they moved closer to ask if there was anything they could do.

Denmark stopped them before they could do so and he looked at them solemnly, "You are all dismissed. Immediately return to the ships and never speak of this day to anyone."

The bodyguards went into bewilderment before they adamantly voiced their objections.

"We cannot leave you, sir!"

"Our sole objective is to protect you and we can't go back without you."

"We can just seek the help of the other Grandmaster's if we aren't enough to protect you."

"Yeah, we'll hold off any pursuers to buy you some time!"

Denmark's tiny fist landed on the table with a loud thump that silenced them. He glared at the four while saying in a low voice so the people who turned their heads didn't hear, "This is an order! You are to leave immediately and collect payment for today's work from my secretary on board the main vessel. If I don't return before the end of the main event tomorrow, please direct my secretary to go into my bottom left drawer of my office back at home. You are sworn to secrecy so don't tell the other Grandmasters anything about this no matter what they do to you... okay?"

The bodyguards reluctantly nodded as they bowed respectfully to him and swiftly left the restaurant.

Lying down to roll over and die wasn't how he usually operated as a seasoned adventurer. He would usually like to go out fighting, but what was the point in this case? If he was truly going to perish, he shouldn't bring the others down with him.

He leaned back in his chair and relaxed for the first time in a while as he waited patiently.

.....

He's been waiting for a while now but he didn't get his hopes up. He already paid the restaurant for his prolonged stay, and with the bodyguards gone, the atmosphere was slowly returning to normal. No one no longer bothered with Denmark with a vast majority of them hardly even noticed him because he erased his presence.

He stared out the window towards the guildhall's front entrance, waiting to see the hooded figure that would act as his grim reaper. It didn't take long for him to notice Kyren exit the guildhall alone and indescribable loneliness invaded him.

'It's here, huh? I didn't even get to say goodby to my wife and friends or get revenge on— Eh?! What is he-'

His overdramatized last moments were interrupted by an odd sight that baffled him.

Kyren was acting like a normal person who was being chased as he frantically looked in all directions of the street, trying to decide on which way to run. He might've looked calm and steady as he tried to integrate and hide within the crowd, but Demark could tell there was a slight nervousness and disorganization in his step.

'What is he doing?!'