Rise Of The Godking

Unable to stop himself, Daneel asked this question. From the capabilities that the system had shown so far, it almost seemed silly to have him do something so simple.

[Responding to host. System is capable of data collection, but situations need to be brought about to facilitate the task. Host"s mission is to make this happen. So far, only the general location of host is known.]

"And what is that, exactly?"

[Host is situated on a vast land known as the Mainland. Host was supposed to arrive at a certain location, but due to an emergency event, the location was changed to one which would arouse least suspicion.]

"And—"

"I said that it was a first when a slave asked me that question, but it is also a first to see someone so rudely ignore me while I risk a lot to be here. Tell me, young man, should I leave? Am I disturbing you?"

Detecting annoyance in the old man"s tone, Daneel turned to him and realized that he had left him hanging while absorbed in his inner monologue. He hadn"t been able to help it; the system"s mission had taken him by surprise, and apart from that, that word that had made him feel such intimate emotions had made it so that it was difficult to pay attention to anything else.

Shaking his head apologetically, he said, "Pardon me! It"s just that… something you said made we think about something I heard long back. Please… pray continue."

The old man humphed. "And what is this thing that you were reminded of? This tale is closely guarded, so much so that those who have been found with it have been hanged mercilessly. There is no way that you could have heard any part of it anywhere else, so stop lying. I hate liars, and if you don"t change my opinion of you right now, I"ll write off the expenses spent on you so far as a wasted investment and leave right now, never to show my face again."

Daneel c.o.c.ked his head, taken aback. He had told the first lie that came to his mind, but he couldn"t have expected that it would land him in such trouble.

Even in the dimness of the cave, he could feel the old man"s eyes boring into him. From the way he had acted when they had first met, he had thought that he was just some kind character who would take anything that was thrown at him without a single comment, but he saw now that he couldn"t have made more wrong.

The situation was dire. He didn"t know much about the life he had landed himself in, but he was convinced that he needed this old man, much more than he probably needed him.

He scrambled for something to say, and thankfully, the same innate faculty that had helped him to escape death before arose to the challenge now, too.

"I heard of a tale that was told between slaves, and I heard my friends say that it was just trash that you all believe in to live on, while hoping for a better future… so I was shocked about how life had come full circle."

He saw the old man bristle when he heard him, and secretly, he smiled.

"There"s nothing like targeting a man"s confidence and hope to make him forget everything else. Well…it could still backfire. But wait… how am I so cunning? Was I a conman in my past?"

He got no answer, and he stopped thinking about it when the old man began to speak pa.s.sionately, with his arms gesticulating to prove his point.

"Trash? How dare you call something so precious that has been pa.s.sed down at the expense of so many lives "trash"? It"s one thing that you said this to me… but if any of the others who also know of it heard you, they would have risked the hangman"s block to kill you. Hear me, and hear me well. This is our past, and you"re right… it is also what will take us to the future we dream of. And what did you mean by saying "you"? Did you forget that you"re one of us, now? Keep acting like this, and I guarantee that you will go to an early grave! Now, keep your mouth shut, and just listen!"

He heaved when he was done, and at the same time, Daneel heaved a sigh of relief. He had brought the man back on track, and this time, he was determined to hear him out without being interrupted by anything.

"The enemy came and took everything. They took our land, our home, and our very ident.i.ty… but we remember. And as long as we remember, there is hope. People like you underestimate the value of memory. Someday… it will be your downfall. That is all I would like to say to you, right now… you will have to earn the rest."

Getting up, he stormed out of the cave, leaving Daneel with the face of someone who didn"t know whether to laugh or cry.

"I don"t know the value of memory? What a joke! Oh, if only I could find out everything now…"

He mused dejectedly for a few seconds, but he perked up when he remembered the thing that he still had yet to ask the system.

He wasn"t comfortable with doing so right away, and repeating what had just happened with the old man. So, he looked around in the cavern, wondering whether there was any way to ensure some privacy… and his eyes soon spotted a cloth that was hanging at the side of the entrance, lying hidden on the rock and almost melding into it due to how dark it was.

Getting up, Daneel squinted and saw that it was a thin muslin that was clearly intended to act as a curtain. He yanked it, expecting it to travel along a rod and cover the cave, but when it fell to the floor, he scratched his head.

"Now why did I think that that would happen? It"s almost like I did it so many times that it became second nature to me…"

Shrugging, he put away the thought and picked up the cloth before noticing that there were two nails hammered onto two spots above the opening of his cavern. In the narrow corridor that lay outside, he saw many such openings, half of which were covered by the cloth.

Getting the clue, he hung the curtain on the two pegs and sat on the rock bed, moving constantly to find a comfortable position but giving up soon after realizing that no such thing was possible.

Taking a deep breath, he finally gave the command in his mind

"System? a.n.a.lyze… my body."

This was the first time he was telling it to do something instead of asking politely, as if it had feelings. For a breath, he wondered whether it had been foolish to do so, but when it answered normally after that, he leaned back against the wall with relief and listened.

[Scanning host"s body. Outputting results.

Power system of host"s present world unknown. Hence, results will be given in comparison to the strength of an untrained human.

Body condition: Recently injured. Recovering.

Body potential based on memories unlocked: Sub-optimal.

In host"s memories, only four vague categories were found: Unfit, sub-optimal, optimal, suitable, genius. The last is called so due to its rarity. Host was valued due to his sub-optimal potential, which is not very common in host"s present location.

Magic potential: locked at birth.]

Daneel recalled the memory of being cla.s.sified with sub-optimal potential when the system spoke of it. It had been a happy one, celebrated by his family as three of his brothers had been deemed "unfit".

The last statement made him feel puzzled.

"Locked at birth? What do you mean by that?"

[System has detected a fleshy outgrowth above the location where one"s organ that enables the capacity for magical abilities.]

This was news to him. He had heard of no such thing anywhere, so he asked, "Is it possible to remove it?"

[a.n.a.lysing. Affirmative. Would host like the system to carry out the unlocking process?]

He hadn"t been expecting an answer. From his memories, he knew that magic was an esoteric topic that was closely guarded. He felt exhilarated that it was even possible that he might be able to use such mystical power, so he gave the command immediately.

"Yes! Quickly!"

[Affirmative. Beginning process.]

The excitement remained even when the system controlled him like before, and made him stand up. Yet, as it made him walk in front of the wall beside the bed, he suddenly felt that something was wrong.

Alas, it was too late.

Cursing, he closed his eyes as the system made him bend back…and send his head flying into the wall.