Chapter 30

Wil brushed pass the woman in the scarlet dress, moving towards the blue potion resting on the pedestal, while releasing the flame he had been building above his hand. Despite himself, the offer swirled around his head. The woman couldn’t be trusted, that much was abundantly clear, but in some small part of his brain, he couldn’t help considering it.

Picking up the potion, he lifted it up to the light, seeing the azure blue liquid within swirl with the movement. Sparkles of silvery mana were hidden amongst the blue, and Wil could feel the power contained by the glass container.

Whatever he thought of the woman and her offers, he was convinced that the potion in front of him was real. He could feel its energy, and a small part of his own mana seemed to resonate with it. When he had stood on the Owl, close to the Dragon Turtle’s mana formed image, he had felt a similar thing. That vibration, a faint connection between the two of them.

With the potion in his hand, the vibration was back, stronger than ever. His body thrummed with power as he stared at the liquid, knowing that if he ingested it, it would provide him enough power to easily break through to the next Rank, and the one after that, until he could possibly be Markus’ equal in strength.

It wasn’t just immediate, quick progression he would experience. The Dragon Turtle was a natural demigod. A portion of its talent would be passed to him, making his ascension that much easier.

He would be a liar if he said he wasn’t tempted, anyone would be, when handed an item that could provide them with their heart’s desire. But Wil had walked down this road before, he knew exactly where it led. He remembered the feeling that power gave him, how it twisted his mind and soul.

Despite it being nothing more than an illusion, a vision of a possible future, he still knew that it provided a truth about who he really was. There was a not insignificant part of himself that would seize whatever power he could, to lord it over others.

If he gained strength too quickly, without the experience to ground him to his Rank, he couldn’t guarantee he would be resilient enough to resist the impulse to take whatever he wanted, to make the Crown’s vision he had seen in the North, a reality.

Popping the cork from the bottle, the air was filled with the smell of the ocean. He could picture white sand beaches, the crashing waves against the surf. He recalled the memories the Dragon Turtle had gifted him, of being massive and powerful as he swam below the surface, the Lord of the Azure Sea.

Stifling a small sigh of regret, Wil tipped the bottle over, the thick, blue liquid pouring out onto the deck beneath his feet. Turning his head slightly, he could see the woman frown at his actions, shaking her head in disappointment.

As the last drop fell, Wil chucked the empty bottle over the railing, before turning back to the woman with a grin and a shrug.

“Like I said, not interested.” Wil announced, crossing his arms as he waited for her response.

“Well... I must say, Wilhelm, I am incredibly disappointed.” Her frown slowly turning into a smile as she mulled things over.

“But now that we have the ‘Carrot’ portion of our conversation out of the way, we can move on to the ‘Stick’. It was always my favorite part anyway.” The woman said, smiling widely as she walked over to the pedestal, her hip’s swaying seductively from side to side, her tight dress accentuating her perfect, hourglass figure.

With a flash of light, the pedestal was gone, the wooden deck of the Drake clear and empty.

“Can we fight now? I’ve been getting antsy at all these pleasantries. I must say, I preferred your counterparts, much less chatty.” Wil said, his mana swirling around him as he prepared to attack.

“Fight! Nonsense! I’ve already told you Wilhelm, I’m completely unable to fight you. And besides, why would I even bother? You will not be able to leave without meeting certain…conditions.” She said, placing on hand on her hip as she stood across from him.

“Conditions?” Wil growled, the mana swirling more swiftly around him, the first traces of a Tier 3 spell matrix building around his feet.

“Of course! It wouldn’t be much of a ‘stick’ without consequences. I know you love Runes, Wilhelm, so I will explain what will happen next in terms you will understand.” The woman said sarcastically, gesturing to the world around them.

“Like any good warding scheme, this world is built on several ‘anchors’ or linchpins, as you may call them, that keep this creation operating. To leave, you have two choices…accept one of my offers or destroy those anchors. And since I am a good host, I will even show you where they are!” She offered, smiling widely as she pointed.

From a flash of light, Annabelle Quentin appeared. Wearing a simple white dress, the sunlight shone on her long, blond hair. To Wil, she looked more beautiful than ever, but he knew she wasn’t real, not in this place.

“So, you anchored this world to a false image of my friend? Is that supposed to impress me, or frighten me into submission?” Wil scoffed, shaking his head at the display.

“Heavens no, Wilhelm.” The woman said, walking behind ‘Annabelle Quentin’ and running her hands through the shorter woman’s blond hair. The false Quentin looked unnerved by the other woman’s presence, and Wil could see tears forming in her blue eyes. Despite himself, Wil felt concerned for Quentin’s safety, even though he knew she wasn’t real.

“No…I don’t mean to frighten you at all. I’m actually assisting you in leaving! It’s simple really, all you need to do to escape…is kill this one.” She said, leaning forward and placing a kiss on the side of Quentin’s cheek.

“What?” Wil whispered, his mana stilling in shock.

“It’s fine Wilhelm! As you said, nothing is real in this world anyway, correct? So, what does it matter if you murder this lovely young woman? Although…as I told you, things are just as ‘real’ here, as the world you have come from. For example…”

The woman smiled slyly, gripping Quentin’s pale white cheek with one of her hands, her long, red painted nails digging into her flesh, the woman stared Wil in the eyes as she raked a sharp fingernail from her other hand across Quentin’s face, leaving a trail of bright red blood to drip down.

“She can bleed here…and feel pain.” The woman said, releasing her grip and stepping backwards. Quentin, now free, collapsed on the ground in tears, the marks from the woman’s hand vivid on her pale skin, the line of blood dripping from her chin.

Logically, Wil knew that this wasn’t his friend, that it was an elaborate illusion created by the corruption to control him. But his heart couldn’t help clenching at the sight of one of his closest friends sobbing on the ground, the sight of the blood dripping from her face creating a rage in his chest.

“You sick son of a bitch!” Wil screamed, unleashing his magic against the woman. Laughing, she exploded in a flash of white light, her laugher still ringing in the air.

“Tut tut tut, Wilhelm! That wasn’t very nice! I told you I couldn’t attack you here, but neither can you attack me! Its time to choose! Carrot or the Stick!” The voice echoes across the empty deck, and Wil stood panting in rage as Annabelle Quentin sobbed quietly where she knelt.

With another flash of light, the treasures, the half-naked women and the blue potion reappeared, and the choice was returned to Wil.

“Do you really think that some illusion of my friend crying will keep me here!” Wil roared, his magic swirling around him violently. Hardening his heart for what he had to do, he kept telling himself that it wasn’t real, that it wasn’t Annabelle Quentin he would be hurting.

“Oh dear, I think I forgot something. I did mention… Anchors, correct?” The woman reappeared next to him, her grin still in place as she leaned towards him, her generous cleavage on full display in her tight fitting dress.

With another flash of light, Mara appeared next to Quentin. Looking confused for a moment, her face lit up as she saw Wil. Waving at him, she took a step forward, before frowning at seeing Quentin kneeling on the ground.

“Boss, what’s wrong?” The young warrior asked, kneeling next to her, and wrapping her arms around her friend. In a moment, Bell, Garman, and Martin appeared, gathered in a group as the tried to help Quentin. Even Erinn and Gunther, wearing the same armor they had in Aachen, stepped out of the white light, joining the crowd assembled in front of Wil.

“Go ahead, Wilhelm. If they are just illusions…kill them. Although, can you truly say they aren’t real? Maybe I did bring them here, from the real world, and you will be murdering the only people who ever cared about you… Do it, free yourself from this illusion…and damn yourself for doing so.” The woman said, laughing as she slowly faded away.