Arthur sat inside the spacious room he had been told to wait in, marvelling at the casual display of wealth around him. The couch he was sitting on probably cost as much as he would make working half a year at Julia Addams’ hospitals.

Looking at his shoes, he saw that they had been worn ragged. Whilst his body could keep up with the incredible speeds they’d run at during the 220-mile journey, his clothing sure couldn’t.

I should’ve just run barefoot, he thought wryly. His absurd constitution and health meant that he didn’t have to suffer from rocky roads or literally any dangerous terrain at all. Despite running for four hours straight, he hadn’t broken a sweat at all.

Maybe if Selena maintained the pace she set for the first fifteen minutes of the journey... She had slowed down for some reason. Perhaps she’d thought he wouldn’t be able to keep up.

Arthur smiled. That hadn’t gone too well. By the time they had arrived here, she was pale and Arthur had noticed that her legs were shaking. Selena had gone off to ‘inform her boss that she had arrived’ as she had put it, leaving him alone in the guest room.

He had only seen a single person in the intervening time, some sort of maid or servant who had come in to bring him some tea and biscuits; a very British tradition if Arthur wasn’t mistaken and perhaps a form of Japanese hospitality too.

Arthur looked at the grandfather clock that took up most of the space above the fireplace. A beautiful piece of work that Arthur was certain was adorned with pieces of real gold instead of just painted. It was quarter past four.

Fifteen minutes since he’d been left alone in this room. Arthur was getting tired of waiting. Surely it didn’t take this long to tell someone that an EXPECTED visitor had arrived and he was starting to think that Toshiro had some sort of childish power-play thing going on.

He briefly considered just going off to explore the place on his own but quickly dismissed it as a foolish idea. He wasn’t so impatient that he’d risk antagonising such a powerful man because he was bored.

Sighing wearily, Arthur began to reminisce about the days when his only worries were whether or not there’d be enough zoos in the city to fulfil his ether collection quest. At least then he didn’t have to worry about other humans; they had after all been the most dangerous creatures on the planet, having almost ruined it mere centuries after the industrial revolution.

His meandering thoughts were thankfully interrupted by the sound of someone opening the door. Arthur looked up expectantly, to see that Selena had finally returned. She looked much better after the fifteen minutes of rest she’d gotten, but Arthur could still see the odd spasm in her calves as well as the wary look she gave him.

The Zaibatsu woman finally found her business smile before she announced in a formal voice, quite unlike the crude swearing he had come to expect from her in recent times.

“I'm very sorry for the delay. Certain delicate issues needed handling. Toshiro is ready to see you now.”

She didn’t wait for his response, and instead just turned around and walked out of the door, making it obvious that she wanted Arthur to follow her. Quickly standing up, Arthur rushed after the woman. She had already made it halfway through the hallway, seemingly having no intention to slow down her pace, only glancing back to see that she was being followed.

Arthur carefully committed the route they were taking to memory in case he needed the knowledge when making an escape from the villa. He wanted everything to go well and had no intention of partaking in violence of any kind involving the CEO but one could never be too cautious.

It took them two minutes of walking through long corridors, up winding stairs, and several twists and turns before they arrived at their destination. Selena stopped in front of a large oak door that seemed to radiate its own source of pressure. Arthur was sure it had been infused with some ether skill of some sort to improve its molecular structure.

Selena too seemed to be able to feel the strange atmosphere around the door as he saw her shoulders tighten with caution and her eyebrows furrow in concentration. She took a deep breath, seemingly preparing herself before opening the door, not announcing their presence in any way.

But then again, Toshiro probably had some way of knowing where they were at any and all times whilst they were in his residence. Selena glanced back at him beckoning him to enter the room.

Arthur took a step forward.

~Selena Williams~

Selena tried to calm her racing heartbeat as she saw the two monsters face off at each other. Toshiro, with his silver-grey hair, looked like an old beast far past his prime, yet all the deadlier with his wealth of experiences, whereas Arthur looked like a challenger just coming into his true strength.

Screw that, he’s already bloody overpowered. What do they feed 'em here in America?

Selena’s aching legs painfully reminded her of the long journey they had taken to get here. Is he even human? How does he have such high stats whilst at a lower level than me? She asked herself these questions but no answers were forthcoming.

She was quickly pulled out of her thoughts when Toshiro began to speak. “Ah, it’s nice to finally meet you, Arthur Ward. I’ve heard a lot about you.” The air seemed to almost thrum with power as he spoke, and his voice sounded like it was somehow coming from all directions at once. I still don’t know how the hell he does that. Or why.Still creepy as hell though.

Arthur’s reply, when he answered, cut through the dominance Toshiro exerted in the room like a knife through butter.

“It's a pleasure to be here, sir,” he spoke respectfully.

The little bastard. He never talked like that when he was with me.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Toshiro didn’t say anything for a moment, letting the silence drag out as he steepled his fingers and observed Arthur over them, the classic pose of every villain worth his salt. It seemed he liked what he saw. Whilst Arthur appeared to be a normal, if attractive young man, Toshiro knew he was anything but.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

His muscles were surging with strength and vitality and his relaxed stance held the promise of tamed violence. Controlled and leashed, but present all the same. His blood also appeared to be quite special, sweet, and intoxicating. It’s like a part of him is diffused throughout it; his stats? Or maybe his soul? Toshiro licked his lips, cutting his tongue on his pointed teeth in the process. The wound healed in a second, not even registering in his mind.

He’d have to ask the boy if he could sample some of it later. For a price of course. If there was one thing that Toshiro had learned in his long life of business, it was that money could buy everything. You just needed to have enough of it, which he most certainly did.

Arthur meanwhile was trying to not let his shock show on his face as he stood in the blood mage’s presence. He hadn’t tried to identify him, knowing that the man would most likely have a way to feel the skills usage as his subordinate had done, but just by standing in his vicinity and feeling the pressure he exerted, Arthur knew that this man could do him some serious damage if they came to blows.

Heck, the man was certainly as strong as the Draconic Liverthion had been. Well, maybe not that much, But Arthur was certain that the man was at least level 140 with an elite class. Strong enough that one day he would rule much of Earth and yet sadly not amount to much more than the planetary domination of a newly evolved world.

Still, at least for now, Arthur knew the man he was in front of was his better, maybe not in a one and one confrontation, but definitely, with all the resources he had at his disposal. He would treat the situation with caution appropriate to its level of danger.

Which translated to a shit-ton of the stuff. Considering his actions, Arthur chose his next words carefully.

“So sir, I've come a long way to meet you at your request. I hope I can finally be told what you want from me.”

He couldn’t help but let a bit of curiosity leak into his voice. Why did such a powerful man need his assistance? Toshiro chuckled for a moment before deigning to reply.

“You’re wrong, Arthur. You see it was never me who called you here. I have little need for your services if I’m being honest, though that particular opinion of mine is quickly changing now that I’ve met you in person. Your services, however, are required by my foolish son after he made a grave error. It's at his request that you were brought here, not mine.”

That piece of information threw Arthur for a loop, and he saw that Selena too seemed to be a little worried about that revelation. What did he mean his son called him, and if he did, where the hell was he? Arthur was pretty sure Selena said they needed his help killing a monster. Things weren't adding up.

Arthurs already cautious demeanour only intensified further as he realized that things were going on behind the scenes that he just wasn’t privy to. What kind of game are the father-son duo playing and how does Selena tie up in all of this?

He had absolutely no idea what was going on here but what he did know for sure was that he wanted no part in it. Arthur was quickly realizing that it may have been a mistake even coming here. He’d let greed blind him and now he was pretty sure he was in over his head.

Looking briefly at Selena, he saw that she now looked nonchalant, with none of the earlier surprise on her face.

She knows something, but how much? Who’s she supporting here? Toshiro or his son? And if she knows, Who else does? Am I even going to be told?

Arthur took a deep breath, trying to calm down his racing thoughts. Panic and worry would get him nowhere and he’d somehow allowed the strange situation to almost overwhelm him. He had never been so weak-willed before coming here; heck he had 190 stats in the attribute for god’s sake which lead him to believe that Toshiro was somehow responsible for his strange reaction. And yet he hadn’t felt the usage of a skill of any sort, which meant that Toshiro could somehow bypass his senses or it was something else altogether. Maybe it had something to do with the aura thing Mira had told him about. The ability she claimed her own charm was caused by.

Arthur’s instincts were telling him that was the case for some reason and he had no reason to distrust them. They hadn’t failed him yet. Arthur mentally took a step back and tried to catalogue everything he had learned so far about the current situation.

1) Toshiro’s son needs my help, not the man himself, apparently for the ‘grave mistake’ he made. But something tells me it’s not really his son’s fault.

2) Selena seems to know more about what is going on than she lets on. Does Toshiro know, or suspect how well-informed she is? Is betrayal in the works?

3) Toshiro’s bloody strong as hell. Maybe even more than me, with all the cheats I have going for me. He seems to have abilities other than ether skills to draw on and his power seems divergent from the stats mine currently rely upon. Is it the traits Mira unlocked with her evolution?

His speculation only left him with more questions than answers and told him how little he actually knew about the delicate situation. Arthur would have to rectify that as soon as possible.

“So Toshiro- I can call you by your name right.”

When the blood mage nodded his head, Arthur continued speaking.

“What you’re telling me, is that your son somehow messed up and requires my specific skills to help him heal?”

His question was quickly answered by Toshiro. “That is what he has told me, yes.”

Something was wrong with the way the man had phrased his answer, Arthur realised.

“You don't really believe him, do you?” Arthur probed.

Toshiro just looked at Arthur with a weary look on his face before sighing.

“It seems you’ve seen through me so soon. Perhaps I really am getting too old for this position of mine.”

He had answered his question in a roundabout way and Arthur waited in anticipation for him to continue speaking.

“You may not know this,” Toshiro began. “But I used to have a daughter a few years older than you. I say used to because she decided to leave us a few years before the system's arrival. She wanted emancipation from this family of hers.”

Toshiro stopped talking, seemingly using the moment to control his emotions, but more likely, Arthur suspected, to collect his thoughts. Arthur had no idea what this had to do with the current problem that was plaguing the CEO’s son but he continued to listen with rapt attention for any details to the puzzle.

“I tell you this not to bore you with my tales of woe, but rather to help put my next words into context.”

He paused, looking at Arthur, who nodded his head to show he was paying attention. The blood mage continued talking.

“You see, my son blames me for his sister’s running away, claiming I was too forceful and harsh when raising her. Perhaps he is right, perhaps he is wrong. In any case, it is far too late to do anything as I lost track of her whereabouts a few months before the system's integration.”

Arthur was getting confused now. Why had the blood mage gone off on a strange tangent to tell his sad story? He was interested nonetheless. It appeared that some of his confusion must have shown on his face, as Toshiro began to chuckle.

“Ah, you wonder why I tell you this. It is to make sure you understand my next words. You see, I truly have no idea what is going on with Tamo. It’s been years since we’ve had a proper conversation as father and son, and believe me when I say that I have tried. I truly have. He really has told me nothing at all.”

Arthur just stood there, taking in all of the information he had just heard and trying to decide how much of it was true.

“You can’t even begin to understand how happy I was when Tamo approached me to talk a few days ago, and how my hope came crashing down again when I realized that he only wanted my help and connections locating someone to heal him.”

He paused for a moment as if trying to collect himself and not break down. He’s a pretty decent actor at least, I’ll give him that.

“It broke my heart, I tell you.”

Toshiro’s anguish was almost a physical manifestation of his words, that’s how strong his grief seemed to be. Arthur didn’t buy it for a moment. The blood mage looked down at his desk before continuing.

“I’ve been a poor host it seems, but I can’t help myself. You reminded me much of what my son once used to be like.”

He was silent for a moment, pausing for dramatic effect.

“Selena will take you to my son’s room. Maybe he will tell you what he didn’t tell me. I only hope you don’t believe all the lies he will speak of me.”

The man made a dismissive gesture with his hand, and Selena grabbed Arthur’s arm, leading him out of the room, leaving behind the grief-stricken CEO of the Zaibatsu corporation.

Arthur left, with much more questions than he had when walking in, unsure of what to believe from the web of half-truths the blood mage had no doubt wove around him.

It was time to meet the second spider.