Rebirth: Rise of the Slave Master

Chapter Twelve: A Pleasant Exchange

It had been almost half an hour since Theo was forced into the small room.

It was sparsely furnished, but what was there was posh and comfortable. Dim lights showed off a few tasteful, if macabre, pieces of artwork on the walls, and the rug that covered the rough stone floor was soft and refined. Like a classic office scene, a sturdy dark-wood desk sat in front of a pair of tall chairs. On the back wall was a row of bookshelves, seemingly half organized and half cluttered.

“Does your boss always keep his guests waiting like this?” Theo called as he absentmindedly reclined in his seat.

He’d always wanted to ask somebody that.

Although he looked like the hot-headed type who would fight at the drop of a dime, Kruger was actually fairly composed. While he didn’t seem to enjoy Theo’s flippant attitude about the situation, his responses were carefully measured.

“You don’t seem to understand the gravity of the situation, ad-”

“Theo, my name is Theo,” he interrupted, having grown tired of everyone referring to him as an adventurer.

Kruger gave him a look that seemed to say, ‘and why should I care?’

“A man with nothing to hide has nothing to fear, right?” Theo said.

Kruger grunted, “Fear keeps a beast sharp.”

Theo smirked, “And a man wise?” he finished.

The phrase that brought Theo’s memories rushing back had caused him to speak without thinking, but the reaction from Kruger was far from what he had expected. At the sound of the huge man reaching for his weapon, Theo had already pushed himself out of his seat, and the [Steel-Edged Partizan] was unsheathed and appeared in his hand with a single motion. Even if Theo knew he wasn’t a match for Kruger in a fight at the moment, the NPC’s AI would act as if he was still a threat. NPCs weren’t able to comprehend things like levels and skill proficiencies, after all.

A guttural growl rumbled in Kruger’s throat as the falchion was drawn, “Where did you hear those words, human?”

Theo suddenly found himself in something of a pickle. Humans weren’t able to enter the Beastman city of Ga’Yarl until they completed numerous quests to build up their reputation, so there was no reasonable explanation for why he knew the words of the old hunting dog.

Odist One-Claw... he was First Shaman, Hunt-Master, and Great Chief to the United Beastmen Tribes, and these were the words of wisdom he imparted on all Beastmen when they became true warriors of the clans. It really was years ago when Theo had trained there…

As much as he would love to reminisce at the moment, he had more pressing concerns. If he got into a fight with this guy right now, it would ruin his attempt at the class quest and he would have to walk all the way back to First Point Cape and farm the [Serpent King’s Left Eyestone] again. He quickly racked his brain, trying to come up with some kind of excuse that would get him out of this situation.

Kruger was already trying to sniff out the best way to separate Theo’s head from his neck.

A somber note escaped Theo’s lips, “Why does the beast hunt?” as he spoke, he dropped his guard, letting the spear head droop to the floor, and continued, “For pride? For love? For family? These are not why the beast hunts. These are why I hunt. For my pride, I hunt for my love. For my love, I hunt for my family. I will never forget the plains of my home. The plains will never forget me. Even though I can no longer hunt like the beast…”

The half-beastman had already lowered his weapon, his pointed ears shaking visibly while a deep pain loomed in his eyes. He was listening without a word, as though lost in a far away place.

“I will hunt for what I believe in. For pride. For love. For family,” Theo finished.

Beastmen were a deeply spiritual people, and their love for poetry was known far and wide. They believed that words were a sacred thing, the very thing that brought them to exist in this world in fact. This was why they used their words sparingly when they spoke, a trait that led many to believe they were slower or less intelligent. In many cases, it couldn’t be further from the truth. Well, putting aside their system bonuses, that is.

“That… where did you hear that?” Kruger asked, his voice distant.

Hook, line, and sinker! Theo let out an internal sigh. A light had appeared at the end of this tunnel. Theo made to wring everything he could out of the tiny scrap of Charisma he had to work with.

“When I was young, before I had ever picked up a weapon, my village came under attack by a vicious monster. We were simple folk, farmers and craftsmen, with no way to defend ourselves. It was a wandering hunter, a Beastman, who taught me these words and those of the Chief. It was also that Beastman who first taught me how to use the spear.”

Theo’s words were sweet like honey, and he felt like he could fool even himself at this rate. Whatever he had to say, he would say it! The class quest came before anything else.

What he hadn’t expected to see was the incredibly dangerous guard in front of him trembling faintly. Although his features weren’t easy to read, the urgency in his voice was easy to hear.

“That hunter!” Kruger’s voice had mixed in shades of hope and emotion, “his name, was his name Galen!?”

“Eh?” Theo almost let his act slip for a moment.

Galen was certainly the name of the NPC Theo had quoted, but that character was one he had met on a totally different continent. The wandering hunter who traveled the world seeking worthy prey, the Heroic-tier NPC who would prove to be integral in the final conflict of first content update… what connection could he possibly have to this random back-alley bouncer in Oasis?

Theo quickly played up his own suspicion, “Indeed, his name was Galen, why do you ask?”

Kruger didn’t seem interested in answering Theo’s question, and looked almost as if he was about to draw his weapon again when he shouted, “Where? Where did you see him last!?”

Hearing this, the crazed-gamer’s sixth-sense for potential quests was going wild. Could this possibly be an undiscovered quest chain? Galen was an NPC that hadn’t even been added to the game yet, and wouldn’t appear until far later. It was impossible to know about his existence at this point in time, so how could bringing up his name trigger a quest? Theo’s mind was filled with questions, but he sadly wouldn’t have the time to ask them.

“Kruger? Are you quite finished?” a voice like wilting grass called from the door.

Old Man Snake Eyes was standing in the open doorway, revealing an impressive stature that had been hidden by his previously drooping posture. His gave off the aura of a king wreathed in shadows as he stepped forward. Although his eyes weren’t focused on any one thing in particular, that uncomfortable feeling of ever present vigilance hadn’t subsided.

“M-master, this…” Kruger stumbled for words.

“A bit of posturing between two respectable fighters, I don’t doubt,” Snake Eyes said dryly, “I’ll let it pass… this once.”

Kruger bowed his head and quickly took a step backwards, placing his large frame against the wall as though he wished to become a part of it. Theo, who took a bit longer to read the atmosphere, returned the [Steel-Edged Partizan] to his inventory. He didn’t have to worry about the NPCs noticing its sudden disappearance.

Old Man Snake Eyes was flanked by a tall woman with pointed ears, dressed quite modestly for this place in a long, lavender dress. Her rich auburn hair fell to her waist, and a pair of big green eyes that should have radiated vitality scanned the room with a dull light. She followed silently behind the crime lord as he crossed the room. His every motion was measured and stiff, as though worried any slight misstep could be his last. When he sat, he did so slowly and carefully, with the Elf woman helping him into his chair the entire way.

“Theo, was it?” the man’s thin lips hardly moved, and his tone was nothing but cordial.

Knowing a power-play would be unwise in this situation, Theo bowed his head slightly as a show of respect, waiting for the old man to wave him into a seat. Kruger quickly stepped forward and righted the chair that had been knocked over in the previous scuffle, and Theo sat down without giving him another look.

“I’m sure you know why I’ve asked you here,” said Snake Eyes, crossing his hands gently and placing them on the desk.

“Cheating, isn’t it?” Theo said.

Old Man Snake Eyes gave a thin, unnerving smile as he nodded, “We run a business here, I’m sure you know, and a winning streak like yours is…” he paused to check a scroll of parchment that the Elf was holding, “uncommon.”

Theo held up his hands, turning them back and forth slowly, “My hands are clean,” he said.

The smile faded from the old man’s face, “It’s not your hands I’m most concerned with.”

At this point, Theo already knew what was coming next, but he showed an expression of mock interest. He was playing his part as the impregnable con-man quite well.

Old Man Snake Eyes carefully waved his hand, “Bring him in.”

A moment later, the sweaty man who had been running the dice game was forced into the room. Behind him stood the oversized Dwarf from earlier. The expression on the man’s face was one of shock, confusion, and utter fear. He couldn’t even hide the shaking in his legs as he stepped forward slowly.

“B-boss,” he sputtered.

“Alin,” Old Man Snake Eyes stared coldly at the man. “Tell me, this adventurer,” he motioned to Theo, “where have you seen him before?”

Theo couldn’t help but be impressed by the old man’s ability to lead others, carefully gauging the dealer named Alin as he racked his brain trying to recognize this man’s face. Unless he was truly a gifted actor, it was clear from his expression that he had nothing to go on.

“I’m s-sorry sir,” Alin shook his head, “I’ve never seen this man before in my life.”

Old Man Snake Eyes nodded, seemingly satisfied, and turned to Theo. The look on his face seemed to be the only prompt he would offer. It was a show of respect for another shrewd businessman, if anything.

“I saw him for my first time today,” Theo shrugged.

Clearly, this was a test to see if the most plausible solution, that is Theo being in cahoots with the one running the game, was true or not. From whatever way one looked at it, that just didn’t seem to be the case, though.

“I don’t suppose you’d mind proving it?” Old Man Snake Eyes asked politely.

The big Dwarf softly shut the door behind him, taking up a flanking stance on either side of it with his partner, Kruger.

Theo sighed internally. This was why it was so important to be of the Neutral alignment when you tried to take on this quest. If you were Good, Old Man Snake Eyes would simply let you go with a warning. It was a little out of character, but even the original Slave Master himself was only a pawn of the system that operated Dream World Online. He couldn’t break his programming or that would interfere with the quest.

Theo stood from his chair and turned to face the dice dealer, Alin. The [Steel-Edged Partizan] reappeared in his hand, and he took a step forward. The sweaty man wasn’t so stupid as to not understand what was going on, and he quickly dropped to his knees. His hands were slapped together over his head in an instant, his eyes closed in fear and deference.

“Please, good sir, please I beg you. We’ve never met… we’ve never met! Spare this life of mine, I have a wife, sir! I have a wife!”

Theo’s expression was cold as the reaper.

“Any kids?” he asked.

Alin gulped, but he couldn’t ignore the question, “N-no sir…”

Alin, Bitul, Heath... it didn’t really matter what this NPC’s name was or what his backstory might have been. He was a construct of the system, a plot point in the quest that was meant to test the player’s mentality. He was 1’s and 0’s. The NPC would be replaced immediately, forgotten, as if he never existed. This was what Theo told himself.

“Good…” Theo smiled, and Alin smiled back, “that means less clean up after.”

Shik!

The spear burrowed into the man’s throat, and as if things like HP and Defense didn’t exist, the light faded from his eyes and he dropped to the floor. Like monsters, NPCs’ bodies would hang around for a short period before being deleted from the world. Theo couldn’t see the look on the face of the man behind the desk, but he was certain it was smiling.

You have killed a Neutral aligned NPC! Alignment: Evil +50

You have committed an act of great cruelty! Alignment: Evil +100

“Leave us, take the body with you,” Old Man Snake Eyes waved his bodyguards away.

Kruger and the Dwarf retrieved the corpse, with the half-beastman taking another long, hard glance at the player with the spear. Theo would have to remember this man whether he wanted to or not, especially if there was a quest involved.

After the number of occupants had been reduced to just three, Old Man Snake Eyes spoke again, “Quick and clean, your consideration is admirable.”

Theo shrugged, disarming himself, “I’m sure the upholstery is worth more to you than a single employee… is there anything else?”

[Beginner Persuasion] was used successfully! Slave Master Pryce Wrenfield’s attitude of Player Theo improves slightly!

Pryce Wrenfield, the true name of Old Man Snake Eyes.

“Just one more thing,” he said, “Siobhán dear, if you would.”

The Elf woman regarded Theo disinterestedly as she held up both hands. A series of words in a language that Theo recognized immediately as the language of the Gods began to pour from her lips. Her hands shone with a soft light.

“What game are you playing?” Theo snapped, drawing his spear and taking a defensive stance.

It was an act, since it would be odd if he just stood there and let someone cast a spell on him. Theo was already aware of what magic she was using casting, though.

“Don’t worry, Theo... just a simple detection spell,” the old man’s smiling face was far from comforting, and came with the sinister air of a cat cornering a mouse.

The Elf, Siobhán, was a Priestess that looked after Old Man Snake Eyes like a nurse, and what she was casting was the spell [Detect Curse]. Each type of magic had a language unique to it, and in the case of Holy magic, it used the language of the Gods to borrow from their strength. Players who wanted to learn magic didn’t need to memorize these languages of course, they would just naturally speak them when casting a spell.

Theo held back from attacking, but didn’t let the spear drop, as if he was ready to strike at any moment. After she had finished her spell, the Elf’s eyes flashed with a brilliant gold color, and Theo’s body began to emit a pale fog. As the fog brushed against his skin, it took on a foul red and purple color, like a festering wound, and began to roil about. It formed into the shape of a ghastly face which howled in silently agony.

“Midas fasciitis,” the Elf said coldly.

A fleeting, sinister grin flashed across her master’s face, but just as quickly faded when he saw Theo mirroring the expression. The look said more than any amount of words could have.

“So you were aware of everything,” said Old Man Snake Eyes, his frown deepening, “you played a truly convincing cheat, Mr. Theo.”

“So it’s Mr. Theo now?” Theo laughed to himself.

An old wretch like Snake Eyes could easily tell when he had been played, and his cordial tone was replaced with a harsh rasp as he spat, “Who are you?”

Of course he would be angry when he found out the shiny new plaything he picked up wasn’t going to be any fun. There were few things that put him in a worse mood than being on the uninformed side of a business negotiation.

Theo ignored the question, “Pryce Wrenfield, aka Old Man Snake Eyes, you live up to your reputation! As the local Castle representative, tell me, is Albrecht doing well these days?”

[Beginner Persuasion] was used successfully! Slave Master Pryce Wrenfield’s fear of Player Theo increases slightly!

Theo’s [Persuasion] skill was still quite low despite grinding it up, arguably a bit too low to force this quest line. Theo could only make up for that by using the NPC’s weaknesses against him. Of course, he could also take advantage of the small effect bonus he got from being the same race as the target.

With the two bonuses added together, dropping the name of a higher up in the old man’s organization should be enough for Theo to bluff his way through. Even if Old Man Snake Eyes considered it to be a lie, the careful old goat couldn’t risk killing this man until his background had been thoroughly investigated. He couldn’t afford to piss off the man called Albrecht.

“How much do you know?” the pair of beady black eyes narrowed as he spoke.

Theo leaned forward, his expression smug, “Enough,” he said, “Enough to get what I want, anyway.”

Old Man Snake Eyes motioned to his aide, informing her to release the detection magic.

“Leave it,” Theo said, “you’ll want to see this.”

The Elf looked to her master tentatively, but he had her continue with Theo’s request.

“What do you want?” Snake Eyes asked.

“Information, specifically, information in exchange for information. I have no intention of robbing you today. In fact, I think you might be interested in what I have to offer.”

Theo waived his palm, and in it appeared a small, round pellet.

“T-that is!” the old man rarely showed much interest in his surroundings, but his reaction to the pellet was immediate and startling. He practically threw himself over the desk at the sight of it, but before Snake Eyes could open his mouth to call for the guards, Theo swallowed the [Serpent Queen’s Right Eyestone].

The room was gripped in eerie silence before Theo spoke.

“Midas fasciitis, it’s an interesting curse, isn’t it? Although it can bring untold fortune, the side effects leave the victim… Slow? Withered? Sounds like a life worse than death, honestly, and I’d be afraid to so much as bump my elbow without a Priest by my side,” Theo’s eyes fell on Siobhán, who turned her gaze to the floor.

Old Man Snake Eyes was a moniker earned from two distinct features… a middle-aged man with the appearance of a withered old sack of bones, and an unprecedented gambling luck!

In truth, Pryce Wrenfield was nothing more than a street urchin who grew up into a petty thief. He stole for a small time gang, and one day he stumbled upon what he thought was a valuable gemstone in the pocket of a traveler. In order to hide it for himself, he swallowed [Serpent King’s Left Eyestone] and contracted the curse that would dictate the rest of his life. At first things were alright, he made money for the gang by using his curse to cheat, and they would hold on to all the winnings for ‘his safety.’ Life seemed to be looking up for the poor thief, but his immense greed was what had gotten Pryce into this mess in the first place.

Theo didn’t know the rest of the story, but the little gang seemingly disappeared overnight, and Wrenfield went with them. When he returned to Oasis years later, he was already the Old Man Snake Eyes that was sitting before him. Using that godly luck of his, and a group of slaves as enforcers, he had taken over the Oasis underworld and handed it over to Castle.

There were several ways to get this information out of the old man, with most including bribery and favors. A lengthy quest chain would eventually lead the player to the Withered Ash Hollow and the battle with the [Desert Serpent Queen], but Theo really couldn’t bring himself to grovel before a piece of trash like this. In the end, he was forced to fashion his own, more expedient, route.

As soon as the pellet hit Theo’s stomach, the nauseating mist that had been swirling around him from the [Detect Curse] spell began to wail even more vigorously. It shrieked and thrashed violently as the sickening color drained from its ghostly face. After only a few moments had passed, it had returned to a gentle white color.

“Teach me the secrets of the Slave Master,” Theo said simply, “And I’ll give you the location of the cure.”