Chapter 49: New Override
The warmth of the bathwater had done little to calm the turmoil in my mind. I stepped out, the cool air of my room sent chills down my body. Grabbing a thick, plush towel, I began to dry my hair, the friction served as a small distraction from the relentless waves of my thoughts. Herald. His demands. His seamless power. His insistence that I become his disciple and him, my mentor.
I needed to tell him no. But how? How did you tell a centuries-old warrior, a man who could effortlessly shatter A-tier artifacts and casually erase guards from existence, that you didn’t want to join his personal crusade? And how did you do it without sounding like you didn’t trust him, without provoking him? It was a delicate move, one I felt utterly unprepared for.
My reasons for declining were clear, at least to me. The risk, as I saw it, far outweighed the reward. Going to the Academy was supposed to be a path to stability, a way to find a sense of peace after the chaos that had erupted in my life. It was a chance to integrate, to blend in, to perhaps even build a new, safer existence as Kai Lorne. But acting as Herald’s "hand," his "infiltrator," would utterly sabotage that goal. It would plunge me headfirst into the very conflict I was trying to avoid, turning the Academy into a battleground, not a sanctuary.
And the cult. The Face of Asmodeus. My analysis, based on the novel’s lore, suggested that since Theodric wasn’t the head of the cult anymore, their immediate lethality might be less than what the original story depicted. Theodric, with his ruthless ambition and his demon artifact, had been the driving force behind the cult’s most aggressive actions in the novel. Without him at the helm, the cult might be less organized, less immediately dangerous. It would be unwise, I reasoned, to follow a man filled with primal rage, a man whose vengeance had already led to such widespread destruction, especially when the enemy might not be as potent as he believed. My strategy was about calculated risk, about minimizing exposure, not about charging headlong into an apocalyptic war.
Mid-way through drying my hair, a sudden, sharp ping echoed in my mind. My vision blurred, and the familiar blue interface of the Narrative Override Engine materialized before me, its light pulsing with a familiar intensity.
[DRAW AVAILABLE]
[You are eligible to participate in an override draw.]
[Cost: 24 Override Point]
[Chance of success: 15%]
[Reward: Unlock 1 random potential override]