"Mom?"

"Awkwaaard, you know what that means, do you?" Loony said, voice filled with glee.

Vladimir's face paled even more than it was before. His stomach churned and for a moment he saw red. "You killed him..." He stated after a moment with a grave tone.

"Well, yes. After all, it was my mission," she said and realized something "Oh... shiiit. It appears like the truth serum is still in me..."

"Hahahaha! All those years! All of the 23 long years! I was FUCKING RIGHT! HAHAHAHA!" Loony roared in laughter.

"Shut up, shut up, shut up. Let me think!" Vladimir screamed in his panicked mind. He closed his eyes and used a technique learned from the Tai-Chi master to calm himself.

"Fiiine, you are no fun right now anyway... Still, do you have some popcorn? This will be a fascinating conversation! Did you hear that? Truth serum! Opportunity! So ask! HEHE!" Loony 'sat' back and silenced.

Vlad's mind heavily spurned for a few seconds. In the end, only one question came to his mind; "Why?"

"Well, son," she put a slightly derisive emphasis on the word, "I was trained for that. He was my mission."

"Who gave you that mission?" He asked, but a certain family emerged from his memories.

"Rotshields. I was just a low-grade family member and he was an important figure. His..." She confirmed his fears.

"His name, my father's and your husband's name was David..." A sad tone crept into Vlad's voice.

"Fine, David's theorems were important enough to catch the eyes of everyone. You have to realize that teleportation would allow us to explore the galaxy. Plus the power and riches it would bring. The possibilities were endless," she explained without an ounce of emotion.

"Did Rotshields know that we wanted to give it to the rest of the world?" Vlad asked with angered undertone.

"Well, yes. And that was the problem. The Matriarch wanted it for the family and to control the distribution. It would secure us for the rest of eternity..."

"Fine, okay, but why kill my dad? Wait a minute…” He paused as the ramifications of her ‘us’ caught up with him, “I AM A FUCKING ROTSHIELD?!" Vladimir cried out with horror.

"Daaamn! We are Rotshields? That is a good joke! So many years you were fighting them. Oh, boy... This is rich!" Loony could not stop laughing.

"Shut your dick-trap!" Vlad yelled into space.

"Oh, he is back," she immediately understood the problem, but ignored it and continued the explanation, compelled by the remnants of the truth serum, "Well, technically, yes. From a branch... However, you are technically a bastard."

"Wait... That does not make sense... We are 229 years old. At least, that was what the system said. I trust it more than her," Loony said something surprisingly helpful.

"But why kill dad?" he asked after a while of thinking, after the decision he will leave it for now.

"Well, his usefulness ran out, and my last mission was to break you. I was supposed to bring you back after you were diagnosed with that pesky cancer. You would work out the last details with the teleport, sign a few papers to give everything back to your family. You would die, the Matriarch would acknowledge your existence, they would gain your tech and money. Clean job. Well... Supposed to be a clean job," she glared at him.

"Why didn't they acknowledge me before? Helped me? Why fight me at all?" Vlad incredulously asked.

"Because you weren't supposed to be born," she scoffed. "But when you showed signs of a genial mind, the talks restarted. Some were against you, some were for your sake. However, when you were six, killed that girl and was diagnosed with DID, the talks went off the table. The most important thing was that the girl was your superior in the family's hierarchy. She was the daughter of the Advisor and he holds a grudge," she shrugged.

"What... What are you talking about?" Vladimir asked.

"Aaaw, someone does not remember our first night out... So sad. Sniff!" Loony chipped in with false grief.

"You don't remember? Whatever..." Vlad's mother dismissed it. Vladimir's mental shields slowly crumbled. It was too much for him. So he suppressed everything with a deep breath.

"What do you mean give everything back?" He asked something... less damaging.

"Well... Do you really think you would gain so much money just like that? Have you ever considered that someone can actively help you with your money? Greasing the system cogs? Scarring of the sharks? Threatening or bribing the politicians? That little company of yours... It would be dead in a year if not for Rotshields. They wanted you to work on the teleportation with your father and it was decided that you having freedom would be more beneficial than being in some underground hole. It would be the golden cage, but still. Yeah, yeah, you got a few lucky shots at the stock market, but who didn't," she snorted. "You and David were not exactly the best with the money. Or even adequate when it comes to that..."

"Oh..." Vladimir started to shiver and hyperventilate.

"Oh, for fucks sake. Stop being such a pussy," Loony mentally rolled his eyes, "Like it matters anymore. You are in the chains, in a metal cell, in some god-forsaken world filled with beings that can rip you in half with a snort."

"You are not helping much..." Vladimir said, while slowly regaining his calm. He closed his eyes and for the first time used the [Meditation] skill. It was… Normal feeling, however, he was able to enter the state much faster. Normally, it could take him even an hour.

"A person can't please you, can he?" Loony asked sweetly.

"Will you two be quiet? Trying to sleep here," the goblin interrupted them with his gruff voice.

"Well, it matters... Do you know how to get out of here?" Adele chirped.

"Grrrrr..." the goblin growled, annoyed and laid back down.

"You can understand him?" Vladimir asked with interest, still in the meditative state. He was wondering how. He knew his mother was no genius nor language expert. Especially after World War III, English became the official language in Europe and the US, Mandarin in Asia and part of Africa, and Indian in Australia and the rest of Africa. Just three languages and you could speak everywhere with it. Of course, some minor languages endured, but it was more from curiosity or extreme cultural reasons.

"Well... Yes," she answered, nervously fidgeting.

"How?" Vlad pressed.

"Tche... Fucking serum!" She swore at her situation. Vlad could see she did not want to answer, but the compulsion was too strong. "It's my perk. Language Interpreter... They called it innate ability. Sou'Rek has something like that too, even though he won't say what. I can't even access my system, thanks to this stupid choker," she complained and showed her neck with the same choker Vlad had.

"Well, isn't that interesting," Loony and Vladimir thought together.

"Will you two be quiet already?! I want to sleep here..." the goblin yelled, clearly annoyed. He just wanted to sleep until the first death came. Was it so much to ask?

"Don't mind him... He is just grumpy because he got sentenced to triple death in the Coliseum, whatever that means," she said with a cheery voice. "On the other hand... He is right, some more sleep would not harm. Nighty night, Vlad," she wished him as she always did when he was young, the effect of the truth serum clearly wearing off. Then she turned her back on him and fell asleep like a soldier.

"Hey! I have more questions!" Vladimir shouted as his meditation broke. No reply came back, only a light snoring.

"QUIET!" A loud, deep voice came from the outside of the cell.

"Well... That was fun!" Loony came back. "Now, knighty-boy, let's look at more of those tasty descriptions. Looks sooo interesting!"

"Shut the fuck up... My life was a fucking joke. My dad is dead, murdered by my mother. I lost fucking everything! Trapped somewhere... Fucking I don't even know where!" Vladimir started to fall into despair and depression. He could not believe...

"As I said, stop being such a pussy!" Loony rolled his imaginary eyes again. He definitely did not want to die here, and for that, he needed a functional Vladimir. "So fucking what? We are alive! Yeah, yeah... Prospects are a bit bleak right now, but the opportunity will show itself. Plus, that system... Read it all."

"You are annoying, you know that, right?" Vladimir grumbled at Loony. He sighed and hinted at ailments, wanting to find something else to focus on. He was incredibly hurt, even more so than when the orc interrogated him.

[Answer...

"Onyx, stop with that Answer," he interrupted the system in the middle.

[Ailments:

Dissociative identity disorder (mental)

A mental disorder characterized by the maintenance of at least two distinct and relatively enduring personality states. The disorder is accompanied by memory gaps beyond what would be explained by ordinary forgetfulness. The personality states alternately show in a person's behaviour; however, presentations of the disorder vary.

Can lead to unexpected results during Class Up.

The cause: Unknown.

Treatment: Unknown.

Pancreatic cancer (4th stage - 123 days left) (body)

Pancreatic cancer is a corporeal disease in which malignant cells form in the tissues of the pancreas. Signs and symptoms of pancreatic cancer include jaundice, pain, and weight loss.

Heavily impacts your VIT.

The cause: Genetical interference - artificial manipulation in the prenatal stage.

Treatment:

Alchemical - Cure Disease potion

Magical - Arcane healing

Divine - Cure Disease spell

Devil - sell soul for overall perfect health

Scientific - unknown

Magic-less/Ki-less (body/soul)

Not an ailment per se. This system recognizes it as such as controlling energy, either outer or inner, is essential for evolution and rank-ups. Without it you are nothing more than a mere peasant and cannon fodder.

Cause: Birth plane

Treatment: Unknown.]

"The most pressing matter is the fuckin' cancer. Well, I will find a way. I have to if I want to survive," Vladimir thought with a shudder. Death by cancer...He hated just the notion of that. Just no...

"See, I told you so. Now we have a way! Just find the opportunity..." Loony interjected with his unwanted opinion.

"Uh Huh... Now silence! Next. Onyx, perks!" Vlad ordered, his face unknowingly wet with tears. He was silently sobbing, feeling like an idiot. The immense feeling of betrayal and anxiety were overwhelming him and he was desperate for any kind of distraction.

[Perks:

Centennial Genius

You are once in a century genius. Your ability to learn and comprehend is greatly enhanced, especially with Science. Your MPA is always at maximum (except artificial changes) and has increased maximum value for your level by +0.5 per level.

Unknown origin

Not even this system recognizes your own origin. Impact is unpredictable. ]

"Oh yes... Onyx, level," Vladimir liked these perks. His MPA would be always at maximum if there was no limit, which he had to admit was highly possible. From what he understood, MPA was coagulated intelligence, wisdom and perception into one attribute. The ancient DND tables became useful once again.

[Level

Quantifies the amount of Essence you can use for rank-up.

With each level, your attributes’ limit increases by LVL + 1.5. (If your level is 1, you are able to enhance your attributes to 2.5.) It can be cheated with technology, artefacts, or by other means, but for a permanent change you need to cultivate through absorbing energy and refining it. When you level up, it also unlocks more in your Class, be it skills, passives or just higher limits.

Essence

Many are arguing what the essence, or ‘experience’ in some cultures, is. You gather this energy through life-and-death battles against other beings. After you reach a certain point, you level up. However, some, like the Dark Titan Mo’Rask, learned how to manipulate this energy. Each level, except the first one, you can decide if you use your gathered essence to level up or cultivate it to increase your skills. However, to increase the skills above beginner-grade, you need magic, ki or divinity, bar a few exceptions.]

"Hmm, so kill or be killed world?"

"Me likey!"

"Shut up. Onyx, system modules."

[System Modules:

Enhanced Evolutionary System {EES}

A masterpiece of the Dark Giant, Mo'Rask. This system is able to support your evolution infinitely. The more knowledge you have in Encyclopaedia, the more precise it is. Works in tandem with Encyclopaedia. It tries to predict the pathways for you to choose from, so you always evolve in the best way possible. If you feed it energy during your rank-up, it will enhance it with a price of slight unpredictability.

Analyser — basic sense-grade

This module is able to analyse everything in existence. The more powerful you are, the more powerful is the analyser. Works in together with the whole system. Can be attuned to magic and tools to administer serums to counteract any foreign agents automatically. Right now, you can analyse only through your five basic senses - sight, smell, hearing, touch, and taste.

Encased Soul

Your soul is encased in a metaphysical shell but still connected to your body and mind. It does not protect you from destruction but gives you immunity from divination magic and scrying. Also, protects your soul from direct attack of certain metaphysical beings.

Encyclopaedia

A library of all knowledge you encounter. Gives you eidetic memory. Can be enhanced with mental disciplines. Eliminates the need for a spellbook. Works together with other systems.]

The moment he finished reading, the cell door opened and an armoured goblin entered. He unlocked his and Adele's cuffs and led them upstairs. Vladimir looked around for an opportunity to escape, but the hall was dark, damp and seemingly endless. A few occasional screams, sound of sex and torture reverberated in the whole complex. He tried hard not to look at his naked mother. He rather turned his attention to the hallway to think about something else.

The whole hallway was encased in metal. The ground was warm. The steam pipes must have warmed it, but he could not see a single screw, joint or connection. Everything seemed like it was made from one piece. He observed it more closely and examined it with the [Analyser].

[Analysis completed: Brass steel. Encyclopaedia updated.]

"Well, that was helpful..." he thought and used it on the armoured goblin.

[Analysis completed: Goblin. Encyclopaedia updated.]

[Goblin-guard

Level: 5

VIT: 13.5 (CAC x (3+1)) {Racial bonus + first-class bonus}

CAC: 2.7

ISS: 2.0

NSS: 3.1

MPA: 0.9]