MM - Chapter 56 - CLASS FOUR EXPERT

Raine jolted up, unclipping his headset with shaking fingers. He couldn't contain himself, speaking aloud with short, enthusiastic breaths, “I unleashed bloodlust! It has to be the ReGen. I knew it did something to my brain. Wait… Is this the real reason they diluted the dosage in the past? What if they only did that for the general public and still sold the original formula to the highest bidder? There might be other side effects I’m not aware of yet. I should really get back into the lab and see if someone is willing to run some test on me. If there’s nothing wrong, and this is repeatable… wouldn’t I be able to create the most powerful guild by keeping the supply in house?”

Raine was pacing as his thoughts raced. He stopped himself, then flowed into a complex and challenging set of Qigong motions. What would have had him heaving for breath and coated in sweat just a day ago was now as simple as blinking. His muscles zinged with untapped strength and flexibility so he kept pushing them. Internal force fueled his every twitch and his blood quickly heated to a boil, yet he knew he could go further.

If I can go this far, and use bloodlust… does that mean?

Falling into a state of cognizant inspiration, he sat in a lotus position, his heels tucked gently atop his knees. Starting with his feet, he targeted and activated specific muscles one section at a time. From his toes up to his pelvis, everything went as expected. When he reached the multifidus in his lower back—small, deeply-seated muscles—his eyes shot open. He’d never been able to isolate them before, but they responded to his call with ease.

More excited than ever, he pushed on, quickly gaining mastery of the posterior deltoid and deep neck flexors. Eyes watering, Raine placed a hand over his heart. With a burst of intent, the organ stuttered to a stop. He started it again, forcing it to beat madly, then slow to a single beat over ten seconds. With a gasp, he released his hold and allowed it to resume its normal function.

I’m doing it. This is really happening… All those years of effort and I’m finally a class four martial. 

With another burst of intent, Raine activated every muscle in his body simultaneously. He’d done the same exercise thousands of times in the past, and for the first time, he felt connected with parts of him that had always remained elusive. His ears twitched, subtle muscles in his torso and abs flared to life, and even his brain responded to his call for action.

He flexed again, targeting just the right muscles to bolt to his feet. Had a regular person been there to see, it would have appeared as though he teleported. He stretched his fingers wide and stared at his hands in amazement.

They were right about taking ReGen at a younger age. If I'd only gotten it a few years sooner, I wouldn’t have struggled in vain for so long.

The gap between class two and three martials—beginner and adept internal force users—was one any normal person could eventually cross with enough training. The same couldn't be said for class four, which was considered the first true wall of the martial world. Only those with natural talent had a chance of progressing onto what was in truth, the first step of the world stage, where war competitions were held.

A class four martial, with absolute control over every facet of their bodies, was a monstrous being that normal people had no chance of defeating. Any city without one at its head would quickly find its resource allocations reduced to nothing. Businesses would be choked out, and the citizens would be forced to relocate. Afterall, land and proprietary disputes were incredibly common amongst corporations, territories, and even nations. 

In his last life, he could only dream about joining that cut-throat life and death arena. Lacking the raw talent to unlock his brain’s full potential, and spurned by his master and peers, he had stagnated, consigned to mediocrity.

A mechanical voice from the hallway interrupted his fun, “Master, how long are you going to play with yourself? Don’t you have somewhere to be?”

“What? The auction!”

Time had gotten away from him and Raine dressed in a flash. He headed outside to the waiting taxi he’d ordered in advance. The drive to Shillids was short, one of the many benefits to living at the edge of downtown. He was escorted to the elevator and stopped at the fourteenth floor. Raine was fitted and groomed by seven staff, each a peerless expert in their own way.

On his way out, he stopped at a jewelry case conveniently located near the elevator. Not knowing what color dress Shillids sent her, Raine bought three distinctly different necklaces and matching sets of earrings. The total for five armored suits and the jewelry came to a staggering twenty million. He didn’t blink an eye as the credits left his account. His personal safety, and the much cheaper tokens of appreciation were well worth it.

On the way to the hotel, Raine thought about sending her a warning. A malicious grin pulled at his lips and he shook his head.

Nope, live reactions are the best.

Mel wasn’t in the expansive lobby when he arrived. Looking up through the center of the skyscraper, he scanned the fifty square balconies, unsurprised when he didn’t spot her. He knew her room number since Morty was the one who originally made the reservation. Using the code included in the welcome message, he took the elevator to the thirty-second floor.

He spotted Mel as she was leaving her room. She wore a sleek turquoise jacket over a shimmering, golden dress. Between the clothes and her bright pink hair, she clashed so spectacularly that it was impossible to ignore her. And with her freckles on full display, Raine was prepared to beat off a dozen men before they even got to the street.

She turned to double check the lock, then walked his direction without recognizing him. He waited patiently as she rushed to the guardrail overlooking the lobby far below. She nervously ran a hand through her hair, her eyes scanning for the man who was only meters away.

Raine cleared his throat, the same cheshire grin plastered on his face. She glanced at him, then turned back to the lobby with an annoyed expression.

Yup! Definitely more fun this way.

Raine was about to call out to her when she suddenly spun toward him with wide-eyed shock.

Her mouth opened and closed, unable to form words as he drew closer, “Shillids did great. You look amazing. Not that you need an expensive dress to pull that off.”

“What? How? But. Ohmygosh! Is this one of those rich people stunts? Pretending to be someone else or poor to see how people treat them?” She walked around him, biting her lip while trailing fingers over his new suit that snuggly fit his muscular frame.

Raine threw back his head and roared with laughter, “You’re so cute. Nope, that was the real me, and so is this. And I was broke as I looked when we first met. I know there’s some weird things about me that don’t make any sense, and I won't ever explain all of them. That’s how being around me is going to be. If you can’t accept that, we should end things here.”

[Weird things?! Don’t make any sense, my tooshie! Bucket-full of impossible is more like it. Maybe… he’s an alien?]

The words formed on her tongue before she could think better of it, “Are you—”

“Yes. I’m completely serious. Just like I was about that job offer. I’ll never lie to you, Mel. There will be things I don’t say, but when I speak, it’ll be the truth.”

Thankful for the save, Mel cheerfully hooked her arm in his, snuggling close, “Trying to dump me already? You’re going to have to try a lot harder than that!” She dragged him toward the elevator, “Let’s go. I’ve wanted to see inside Romaxillions since… well, since you told me we were going!” With a huff, she blew a loose strand of hair from her eye, “Don’t look at me like that! Why would a regular girl like me ever assume I’d get to go there?”

Raine chuckled at her antics, allowing himself to be guided at her pace for a moment. Inside the elevator, she couldn’t help but sneak glances at his chiseled jaw and sharp eyes, her heart beating faster each time.

[Ugh. He’s too pretty now. This is so not fair! How did he change so much in a day? Maybe if I ask him-nonono. That’s such a huge invasion, but I’m already with him knowing I can hear his thoughts. Am I a terrible person? But he’s rich, powerful, charismatic, and entirely out of my league. Can’t a girl have one teeny-weenie little advantage?]

Emotionally torn, Mel didn’t realize what was happening until they were in a hovoursine and he was snapping something cold around her neck. She looked down and gasped upon seeing the reflection of decadent jewels nestled against her skin. It took her several stunned seconds before she realized he was also holding out a small box. 

She took it in a daze, removing the cover to find a matching set of earrings, “Thank you, Raine. These are beyond beautiful. Uhm… Please don't take this the wrong way. You know I'm not the type of girl who needs gifts like this, right? I'm really not saying I don't appreciate them!”

He smiled ruefully, subtly shaking his head, “And I'm not the type who spends money without reason. These aren’t for show. They’re a combination ARD, (Augmented Reality Device.) Once they sync with and replace your LinQ, they'll be unhackable and untraceable, not to mention having significantly more features. LinQ's aren't safe. I'm not regurgitating some luddite nonsense, either. This is one of those things I can't explain so I hope you'll trust me. Do you know what model you have?”

Taken by surprise from the rapid shift, she tilted her head in thought, then nodded, “Yes, MRX2452.”

“Not a gen one, that’s a relief. Once the earrings attune to your brain waves, your LinQ will go dormant and your body will break it down naturally. So at least you don’t have to worry about getting it removed.”

[I know that already. Mom always said men like explaining things. Since he's giving me such an amazing night, I should let him have his moment.]

“Wow. That’s super neat. How does that work?” She asked innocently, blinking up at him and enjoying the deep rumble of his voice as he animatedly explained in further detail.

- Meanwhile -

Soulgen HQ

A lithe figure in a pitch black, light-absorbing suit slunk down an empty hallway. Her steps were silent as an egyptian grave, the one camera in the hall failing to sense her presence, despite being aimed right at her.

She reached a hermetically sealed doorway and placed her palm over its center. The device embedded in her thin glove bombarded the thick metal with refracting pseudo-electromagnetic waves that forced the molecular structure of the metal to temporarily and undetectably loosen. A pulse from the same device took a scan through the door. The room beyond was revealed, its dimensions populating into a holographic representation via her subretinal AR display.

Seeing only the one expected security personnel, she placed her other palm on the door. The devices in both gloves pulsed together, this time forcing a complex mixture of gases through the metal. They quickly wafted throughout the room and she watched as the man slumped against his console.

She withdrew another device from her belt and held it up to the LinQ scanner. With a soft beep, the door slid open and she crept inside. One wall was dedicated to a host of AR and VR displays which she deftly manipulated, bringing up recordings of events from earlier that day.

In them, she saw a brown-haired pharmacist stealing a sealed vial of brown and green liquid from a room she shouldn't have access to. The woman brought the vial to Dr. Krillian McLeary's lab, where the two began furiously taking samples and notes of the vial's contents.

She fast forwarded the footage until a large man in an expensive suit barged into the room. She adjusted the angles of the recording to see him offloading a virus to the mainframe before he swiped the vial from the thieving doctors.

She rewound the footage further, jumping from camera to camera within the facility, retracing his steps. Finally, she heard what she was searching for when he was in the lobby.

“Got you, Mr. KongRu.”