Tainted Crown

"Seth! Good to see you!"

"Thanks, Robert." Seth grinned as he rubbed the back of his neck.

"It's no problem. I'm just sorry we haven't been able to secure more white towers, you know?"

Seth nodded as he studied the younger man. Robert was in his early twenties but looked around sixteen. However, his muscles bulged beneath his blue t-shirt, and even his grey jeans looked too tight for him.

He was one of those guys girls tripped over themselves to talk to. His raven black hair, blue eyes, and superior physique grabbed their attention wherever he went. Robert was currently the darling of the Office of Darwin Affairs.

His job was leading those who had recently received their Evolution Systems into the lowest-ranked Darwin Towers to gain experience. Seth shook his head as he glanced at the twelve teenagers pointing at him.

"All right!" Robert shouted as he clapped his hands together. Seth winced at the loud sound produced by the power behind the simple gesture. "Everyone's here now, so shall we begin?"

"Sir, this is a white tower, right? So the boss shouldn't be higher than class 1B." A girl said as she raised a hand.

"That's right. Is there a problem?" Robert replied as he gave her an encouraging smile.

"Why do we have two instructors?" The girl asked as she looked at Seth. "The law says we must be accompanied by one class 1B or higher instructor for safety. Is there something wrong with this tower?"

"Ah, about that," Robert glanced sideways at Seth. "Mr Rice here won't be acting as an instructor. He'll provide healing in exchange for a share of the gems."

Seth groaned as he saw the bright eyes staring at him. He couldn't help but avert his gaze in shame at their expectations.

"Before you get too excited," Robert quickly said to draw their attention. "Mr Rice's healing is limited. It's only effective against those with a body stat lower than eight. It must also be a physical wound."

The excited gazes from moments before quickly turned to deep frowns. Seth could guess what they were thinking.

"What class is Mr Rice?" A boy near the front with a haughty expression.

"1C." Robert replied hesitantly. "The same as all of you."

There it was. The disapproving glares Seth had become so used to. He couldn't blame them. He had been aged twenty-four when the towers and system appeared. That was five years ago. By anyone's logic, he should have left the classification of 1C behind by now. Especially if he was actively challenging the towers.

"Even so, I ask that you treat him with respect. Ok, let's not waste any more time. Let's go." Robert declared as he strode up to the glowing white rectangle hovering mid-air. "See you on the other side of the gate!"

Seth smiled awkwardly at the group as he gestured for them to go first. He inhaled, counting to three as he ran a hand through his dark brown hair. This was it.

His dark eyes narrowed as he stared at the gate. The nearby agents from the Office of Darwin Affairs chatted as they kept excited kids at bay. A truck rumbled in the distance, but then the sounds were gone.

Seth squinted against the bright light as he stepped into the clear meadow. The gate was behind him now, and the eager teens from before were studying the change in scenery. It was always interesting to see the landscapes inside the towers.

"Ok folks, we've got a meadow. Keep an eye on the grass and the sky for movement. Let's identify what we're dealing with as quickly as possible. Yeah?" Robert called out as he moved to the side with Seth.

"How do you think they're doing so far?" Robert asked as the pair watched the teens spread out.

Seth shrugged as he watched them a bit longer. "They're watching the grass too much. The sky is clear, so they're ignoring it."

Robert clicked his tongue as he raised an eyebrow at Seth. "It's such a waste you're classed as 1C. You've got a solid head on you. That'd be handy for any group exploring the towers."

"It's nothing special," Seth sighed as a smile played at the corner of his lips. "I've spent so much time exploring different white towers that I've experienced almost everything that can go wrong. Are you ready to help them out?"

"Oh? You really did notice, then?"

"Yeah, Ghostwings," Seth replied as Robert nodded.

Screams suddenly filled the previously serene meadow as shallow cuts appeared on several teens. Seth could only shake his head at the panic they devolved into when dealing with the unknown. That was how people died inside the towers.

He watched as one girl shot energy beams from her hands at seemingly nothing. However, a shrill squawk sounded as they collided with something unseen. A moment later, a sparrow-like bird became visible before falling to the ground.

"It's Ghostwings!" The girl shouted to her comrades.

Seth noticed it was the same girl who had questioned his presence outside. 'At least she has the presence of mind to communicate with her team.' He nodded at that as the other teens stopped panicking.

"Form a circle! Tanks to the outside, damage dealers inside, and any support powers to the centre!" The same girl shouted, and the teens were quick to react.

'I guess they've found their leader for now.' Seth smiled as he remembered his first tower raid. It had been a disaster since nobody knew what they might come across back then.

"Looks like they won't need me for this floor." Robert chuckled.

His hand snapped out as he snatched a Ghostwing out of the air. He studied the blurry creature as it used its ability to bend the light to render itself almost invisible. Seth watched as Robert tightened his grip, and the small bird popped as its insides were squeezed out like a tube of toothpaste.

"Here," Robert said as he dug inside the mangled corpse with his fingers to retrieve the white gem. "I don't need it, and every little helps, right?"

Seth nodded with an awkward smile as he took the gem and cashed it in for points through the system. It was gestures like this that made Seth respect and have gratitude toward the young man. If it weren't for Robert, he would barely be able to explore towers. That was how it was before.

Robert went out of his way to get permission for Seth to join his newbie groups. Otherwise, he would have to join one of the guilds. However, none of them wanted someone with such weak stats. Of course, that would change if he could level up and gain more stats.

Seth grinned as the teens finally brought an end to their battle. Although the Ghostwings were tricky to find, they were physically weak. They couldn't last long in a direct confrontation once they were exposed.

A blonde-haired girl with icy blue eyes silently approached him. She had several cuts on her arms, face and neck. Her blue summer dress had been ripped, revealing thin red lines on her pale skin under it.

"Um, could you heal me? Please?" The girl asked as she avoided his gaze.

Seth could tell the others had put her up to it so they could test his healing for themselves. Now they had experienced a battle for themselves, the teens wanted to know the limits of the healer with them. 'Robert even explained it to them.' Seth sighed as he glanced at them. 'They probably want to know how my ability works.'

"Sure. How much damage did you take?" Seth smiled at the girl to put her at ease.

"Um, two points." She replied as she clenched her fists.

"Don't be frustrated with yourself. Nobody is perfect on their first raid." Seth replied as she looked at him. "Now, what's your body stat at?"

"My body is at six points."

Seth nodded but cursed in his mind. 'She's just started, and already she's physically more capable than me.' That was the unfairness of the system. A person could have between three and twenty-nine starting stat points across the board.

He wasn't as unlucky as some people he had heard about. But it had still been a bad hand he'd been dealt. With ten starting points, his body had been weak. Then his power had been too high for his energy to keep up. Which meant he couldn't display the full power of his ability.

The ability to heal others was rare and well sought after. However, nobody needed someone who couldn't heal injuries at their level or hold their own in a melee. Seth sighed as he raised his hands to fill the girl's request.

"Stay still, ok?" Seth said as his expression became a mask of seriousness.

The girl nodded as Seth drew on his energy. 'Divine Threads!' Golden threads came out of each of his fingertips, and under his control, they slithered through the air to stitch her wounds back together! The girl's eyes went wide as she felt the slight sting as they pierced through her skin.

When Seth was done, she could no longer feel any pain, and there was no sign of scarring or the stitches anywhere. She nodded as she checked her stats before thanking him. Robert chuckled as the girl walked off to rejoin the group of teens.

"What is it?" Seth asked as he cocked an eyebrow.

"She didn't even notice." Robert chuckled. "Why'd you fix her dress while you were at it? She never asked for that."

"It would've been a waste if I hadn't." Seth chuckled back. "How long do you think it will take them to find the next floor?"

"Shouldn't be too long." Robert rubbed his chin as he thought about it. He shot a concerned glance at Seth. "You need to recover, right?"

"Yeah, I just hope nobody else asks for healing for a while."