Arthur looked out of the window as the scenery whizzed by. He was sitting in an armoured vehicle with Bryan on the seat beside him. They were currently on their way to meet the Murker siblings, the special duo Bryan had told him he worked for just a few hours ago.

Arthur also suspected that this was where Alyssia's predictions would come to fruition. The existence of the superior core she'd detected with her aura, all the coincidences that surrounded his employment as a special healer, his imminent demise and the salvation these people apparently held; it all pointed to the existence of a puppeteer that wanted something from him.

Now he was on his way to said puppet master, answering the invitation he'd been given. Well, calling it an invitation was a stretch. It was more a demand than a request, his compliance an expectation set in stone, not a variable to be considered in their dealings. A powerplay? Or maybe I'm reading into things too much. I can't be asked dealing with underhanded bullshit after that catastrophe with Alyssia.

The car began to slow down, pulling Arthur out of his inner ruminations. Much to his surprise, they'd stopped outside a high-scale restaurant that was open to the public, instead of the secure fortress he'd come to expect from powerful forces. He didn't waste the brainpower trying to understand why they'd chosen to be so different. It wasn't worth the time.

"Arthur, I know you don't like dealing with authority too much, but the people you're about to meet weren't raised under the same values that we consider normal. They're a little eccentric." Bryan said with a slight grimace on his face.

Arthur nodded his head. He'd expected as much, though he had hoped they would have subverted them. Sadly, it looked like that wouldn't be the case.

"That's not to say they're bad people," Bryan quickly added when he saw Arthurs frown. "They just take a little while to get used to. Think of it like a culture clash. they're good people."

Except their culture might expect me to kowtow before meeting them or something equally absurd. Arthur tried to reserve judgement until he met the pair but his initial interaction with Alyssia and her misguided attempts at respect gave him very little hope for this encounter.

"This way please, Mr Ward."

Upon entry to the upscale establishment, they were immediately waylaid by a waitress dressed in a sharp white dress shirt, though calling the level 63 warrior a mere serving woman was a disservice. Bryan tried to follow but the woman raised her hand to stop him.

"Miss Murker asked only for Arthur. You will remain here." She said dispassionately.

Bryan looked affronted at the cold dismissal but swallowed his words, turning towards one of the many empty tables.

"Remember what I said, Arthur. They're good people. Strange but good. Cut them some slack." He called out behind him before walking off.

If the serving woman was annoyed by his rude words, she didn't show it.

"They're waiting for you on the second floor, sir. The last room on the left. You can't miss it." She offered him a short bow before walking off and returning to her serving duties.

Arthur just shook his head in amusement at her hasty departure. It looked like she wanted nothing to do with the man who'd garnered her superior's attention. At least he assumed they were her superiors. Everything so far lead him to believe that the siblings most likely owned this establishment.

Leaving no room for indecision, Arthur quickly made his way to the stairs. It was blocked by a level 50 guard who let him pass only after he confirmed who he said he was via a quick call to the initial server he'd been welcomed by, who he learned was called Margret, a very old-school name if he did say so himself.

The woman was not pleased having to interact with him so soon after she'd tried to distance herself from him, though she did an admirable job of hiding it. With all the delays, it took him a few minutes before he arrived at his destination, a large wooden door that practically screamed opulence. It was also drenched in ether, in ways he had never encountered before. A ward? Or is it some other form of defensive magic? Before he could identify it, he was interrupted by a voice coming from within the room. It was clear and loud, seemingly unhindered by the thick wood it had to travel through and distinctly feminine.

"Come in. And don't try to inspect the wards. Unless you've evolved the basic skill the system's given you, it'll give you a raging headache."

Did she read my thoughts? I swear skills like that are insanely rare. Or was it my aura? But Alyssia said that her reading abilities were highly specialised. Maybe my control is really that shit.

This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

"Stop dilly-dallying."

The same voice interrupted his musings, though it did sound a tad impatient now.

"And no, I'm not a mind mage or anything. It's just the last three people that came here were knocked out when they tried the same. You people are far too curious for your own good and you lack the caution knowledge brings."

The woman's tirade left Arthur feeling sheepish and he scratched his head in embarrassment.

"Though, judging from your aura, I'll say you'd only be left with a mild headache instead," she grumbled.

"Maybe if you finally come inside, I can explain it to you. I'm sure Sarah here is dying to see you. She's practically bouncing on her feet."

The voice was faintly amused now, though the impatience within it couldn't be made any clearer than if she'd just slapped him in the face. Well, she sorta fits the profile of a spoiled rich kid, I guess, though she seems alright. And why's that policewoman here? Is she being held hostage? The woman's words suggested she was fine but Arthur couldn't be too sure. Still, he tried not to jump to conclusions as he entered the room.

The first thing that stood out to him, was the young man passed out on a couch, a puddle of drool slipping out of his mouth. Then it was the old man standing behind the young missus who'd obviously been talking to him. He was level 205. And he was glaring at him.

"Maxwell, can you stop trying to scare our guest."

As if she had eyes on the back of her head, the young Murker heiress called the old man out. A guard? That left only one more person in the room. Rachel, the police officer he'd met what felt like months ago, rushed up to him and surprisingly hugged him in a crushing embrace. Arthur awkwardly returned the gesture. What's gotten into her?

"You can save your theatrics for later, Sarah. I don't pay you to act like a fool?" Murker interrupted them.

Arthur let go of the now red-faced woman and took a seat at the table opposite the Arabian woman. At least that's what Arthur thought. She certainly looked Arabian to him, or at least middle-eastern, but he could be wrong. He doubted it though.

"You're probably wondering why I called you here." She began. "My name is Ayesha Murker and that's my idiot brother sleeping over there. Maxwell here is a bodyguard dispatched by my parents to ensure I don't come to harm."

Arthur nodded his head. He'd figured as much out already and her name confirmed that her origins, at least her earthly ones, came from somewhere in the middle east.

"I'm not one to beat around the bush," Ayesha continued. "So I'll get right into it. A friend of mine, a dabbling diviner, can read the memories of an object, so lo and behold, after taking a short vacation off-world during the tutorial, I return to discover the corpse of an apocalypse beast in my territory. You can hardly blame me for the investigation I launched into its killer."

"That leads me to you. Miss Crowfield over here, I picked up along the way, though I must say she did try admirably to cover up your tracks."

"I was wondering why you were so interested in me. So the dead panther outed me. I really should have cleaned up better." Arthur said with a tired smile on his face.

This at least answered a few of his questions and Alyssia was apparently right in her suspicions that a diviner had been tracking him. It turned out he still hadn't learned his lesson of assuming things so fast.

"No Mr Ward. That is only the tip of the iceberg. Though your ability to kill an apocalypse beast is admirable, you were simply lucky to find a cub so fresh from its mother's womb. No, what intrigued me, was the discarded flask we found at the scene. One used to create a quality of elixir rare even on my homeworld."

Arthur felt his hackles rise. This was far worse than he'd expected. Had they figured out his ability to consume monster cores? Were they going to try and detain him? Force him to answer some questions. Thankfully, Ayesha's next words set him at ease.

"Do not fear, I am not asking you to reveal your secrets. Judging by the mess that is your aura, I hardly doubt they would be of use to me anyway." She smiled reassuringly at him, but it was anything but.

"I am not your enemy. We, the Murker family, have nothing to gain by acting against you. Quite the opposite, I have called you here in the hopes of cooperation."

She pulled out a wooden box from her handbag. Like the door, it was drenched in ether, only dialled up to eleven. Arthur was certainly trying to identify it would give him far more than a headache.

"Why do you want my help?" His voice sounded gruff, even to him.

Ayesha chuckled, raising a calloused hand to cover her mouth.

"Don't be coy, Mr Ward. It ill-becomes you. We both know just how powerful you will become, perhaps I even more than yourself. I am not looking for obedience, Arthur, not even your employment."

She paused for a moment.

"I'm looking for a mercenary. A super-soldier born on this planet that I can call upon when in need. Maxwell here is great. I and my brother are no slouches either, but rules prevent us from acting on this tier-one planet as we wish. Despite our mother's earthly origins, my father is not from here"

"As such, we must operate under certain restrictions. Restrictions that do not apply to you as an Earth-born. What do you say?"

Arthur took a moment to digest what he'd been told. When he spoke, it was with due consideration.

"I thought you said you didn't like to beat around the bush. We both know why you're so confident right now. So why don't you open that box of yours? Your diviner must have let you know I need that, right?" Arthur said.

He knew he came off as standoffish, but the look of surprise on the woman's face was worth it. Guess she didn't expect me to know so much. Thank you Alyssia. She recovered pretty quickly though, but she did look a little annoyed.

"I'm guessing that Alverin must have told you something." She said eyes narrowed in suspicion. "No matter, I'll get around to talking to her eventually. Sorry for the delay, but I was hoping to get to know you a little before getting into the meat of things but it looks like you're not the most patient of people."

Arthur chuckled. Damn, she's sharp.

"I will not ask why you need this item so badly. Frankly, I'm a little afraid if I'm being entirely honest. This is something rare even on a tier-four planet and I cannot fathom why you'd need something so divine to save your life." Ayesha grumbled whilst shaking her head.

She opened the box.