Chapter 21: Everyone Hates The Privileged, Right?

Trint’s first step into the level 22 instance proved full of surprises.

System Message: Sovereign Status Confirmed

i9 Iteration Level 22: Privileges Available

You may choose from the following:

Each modifier increases rewards and Exp gains.

1: Increase the level of enemies by five levels

2: Increase the number of enemies by a multiple of 3 and double the number or difficulty of the Boss

3: Lock out the use of skills

Bypass Options:

1: You may bypass the challenges and gain half the Exp of an average completion but lose future access to this instance.

2:

Time dilation parameters enforced: 1 System day will pass outside while inside iteration regardless of time spent in iteration. Internal instance time will equal no longer than one system month (40 Days) unless the instance is complete and the exit opened. Crafting and profession benefits double while in instance time dilation.

‘Wow!’ Was the only thing Trint could manage. His recent repeated shock and confusion were only growing. Things were changing so fast. He felt like this changed everything, and he was beginning to grasp that even the all-knowing Pneuma was in over his head.

‘Trint, I don’t even know where to begin,’ Pneuma’s exasperation and anxiety were showing. ‘I am feeling a little sick by what you are doing. I suppose I should be excited. At my age, I thought I’d seen everything or at least heard of all the possibilities. Then you go and get access to the system as I’ve never heard of.’ Pneuma went from being concerned to excited and opportunistic as he said, ‘Trint, do you know what this means?’

‘Well, I suppose…taken at face value, I can increase the difficulty and get greater benefits from this instance. Likely more than just this instance. Or if I’m lazy, I can bypass the challenges and get some Exp.’ Trint was processing as he communicated this to Pneuma. ‘I am leaning toward bypassing from now on.’

‘What?’ Pneuma shouted into Trint’s mind. ‘You clearly don’t see the opportunity here. Why in the iterations would you even consider that as an option. Half of normal exp with zero effort will only make you weak in the long run, and you haven’t figured out crafting, so…why would you even…’ Pneuma was basically at a loss for words. He thought Trint wanted to take advantage and get the most experience and thought he would be willing to work even harder. Now it seemed like he was ready to revert to his earthly laziness.

‘Pneuma, you clearly can’t read my internal thoughts,’ Trint said as he laughed. ‘I’m sorry, buddy, I was just joking. I most definitely want to up the difficulty. “I wish I could choose all the increased difficulty modifiers if it also increased the Exp?” Trint was still processing as he joked.

“I would definitely choose all of the difficulty modifiers,” Trint repeated.

All Iteration Difficulty Modifiers Selected:

1: Increase the level of enemies by five levels

2: Increase the number of enemies by a multiple of 3 and double the number or difficulty of the Boss

3: Lock out the use of skills

“No, wait, I take that back. Please cancel that request.” Trint shouted out.But the system was silent to his request.Choices like that were final, and he couldn’t back out now.

‘Trint, you need to be careful with your words.’ Pneuma spoke as if they were facing a bear and needed to whisper, fearing the bear may charge. ‘Well, no sense worrying about what can’t be changed.’ Pneuma decided to be practical and get ready.

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

‘Listen up! The enemies are now at least level 27, three times as many and two bosses, and you can’t use your skills,’ Pneuma summarized. ‘Try using our Alpha form.’

Trint agreed with the change in attitude.In his mind, he pictured the form they slaughtered the killers in.Almost instantly, he transformed into the eight-foot towering master of death.The form was also a little different. Where there had been mist washing around him before now, there was a flowing black liquid around him.It matched the color of his form.He felt the liquid, too, like an extension of his tail, which was also there.The liquid flowed like a swirling river around his body. He watched as it circled and twisted around him.

Sovereign Acknowledged: Creator Class Initiating information packet:

‘What?’ Trint was surprised by the system message.

But he received another download of information. He immediately knew that his form could now be something more. At that moment, he knew instinctively he could control the liquid, vapor, or whatever he chose it to be. It also would respond to his thoughts. He reached his arms wide like he was stretching out his back and chest. As he flexed his new body form, he also flexed his Spirit. The instant he willed his Spirit to move, it stretched too, the liquid circling him spread out like bladed wings mirroring the stretch of his long arms but to an exaggerated degree. He thought about making them change from liquid to solid. They immediately grew rigid and looked like black wings. Then he tried flapping them. They moved quickly, but he realized he couldn’t fly. At least not yet. Next, he thought to change the wings to solid blade-like arms. This time he felt the blades flow from solid to liquid and back to solid. They rose from his shoulder blades and out around his arms. He looked like he had four arms now, and the Spirit ones were huge, wrapping around and slightly dwarfing the already significant form. I don’t need another set of arms; let’s make them into blades and keep my main two hands free.’

‘I wonder if I can make the form more like a spider with another two legs?’ Trint thought to himself.

Trint flexed his spirit again, and even more, liquid poured from his chest and flowed around to his back, and then within a second, he had another set of appendages. He shaped them with his thoughts, picturing them more like a spider but ending in the three-pronged foot with sharp talons at each claw. Each foot had one talon at the heel, and the other two were facing forward and fanned out, forming a v. The feet were about 18 inches long, but the talons on each of the three digits were another six inches, so in total, they were two and a half feet long and 18 inches wide at the front. They reminded Trint of a giant bird or if Wolverine had claws in his feet instead of just ones in his hands.

‘That is more stable,’ Trint thought. ‘Now I look even scarier. Like a spider with a scorpion tail surrounding an 8-foot black nightmare. Kind of like a creepy spider version of his former Alpha version.’

‘This feels good and powerful, but I need to see this in action before we name it.’ Trint could feel each of his nine appendages like the ones he was born with. They didn’t feel new or foreign. And in that realization, he smiled. His physical Alpha form’s smile revealed the rows of long teeth that tapered to needles and the rows of saw-like teeth a shark would have.

‘Pneuma, what do you think?’ Trint was smiling and was excited. ‘Let’s see what we can do to some level 27 monsters.’ Trint didn’t even wait for a response as he decided to run. The new longer foot appendages moved around from his back to his hips. They lifted him from his Alpha form feet and raised his head from eight-foot to almost 12 feet. Then he took off at a run. The new appendages were strong. He was running fast before, but this was a whole new level. With his stats at level 21 being around three each, he could move about three times the speed and power of when he arrived in the system.

Truly super human speed, agility, and the intelligence to process the increased speed and stimulus. This new form was like multiplying the power and speed, and he didn’t know how he was able to process the knowledge and use of the additional four appendages. But he felt good and dangerous. Like a wolf, not starved but eager to hunt for the pleasure of a good kill. He realized he could also sense the nearest monsters with his Spirit. At first, they were like a smell. He picked up on the wind then, after a few more giant steps, he covered a mile in 30 seconds. But after 10 seconds, the scent became hearing, and hearing became sight when he was a half-mile away. He could see everything around him for 800 yards. He had moved so fast and was unused to the available powers and senses that he had run into the middle of 38 enemies, no wait, 40, 45. They kept coming into his range. He stopped abruptly, and although his speed was much more incredible, the gravity did not seem to impact him even though he was accelerating faster than a race car and stopping even quicker. The gravity and momentum change would have liquified his body pre-system. Even though his agility and strength allowed him to stop in just two strides, he was still surprised at this new level of power.

The surrounding enemies were not immediately aware of the predator in their midst. The 40-plus enemies Trint saw were human-shaped monsters. He said monsters because they were the general shape of humans, but instead of the face of a human, they had formless humanoid faces, as if humans had a plastic bag over their heads. There were 10 of these faceless creatures within a dozen yards of Trint. They felt the ground shake as Trint stopped and turned towards the sound. Had they been truly intelligent, they would have run from such an imposing and monstrous form. But these were system-generated monsters. So they instinctively rushed towards Trint. Claws extending from their four-digit hands and feet. Their formless heads split sideways as mouths opened to reveal sharp teeth like wolf canines. Their wide maws showed rows of flesh-rending teeth. They were not made for chewing vegetables.

Trint immediately shaped the new large arm appendages into bladed spider-like jointed legs.He reached forward and to the sides with them to skewer the closest monsters.With his tail, he sliced off the head of one rushing up behind him.Trint didn’t even bother to look at each monster.His head remained still while his three longest appendages worked around him like whips cracking and cutting in the air.Trint could sense the monsters die, and as he began his slaughter, he used his long legs to propel him toward the next closest grouping of enemies.He was about 30 yards from the group of 10.He jumped and landed with his primary feet on the shoulders of two monsters. He was crushing them to the ground and their deaths.With his other seven appendages, four arms, if you can call them all that, plus his tail and talon-tipped legs protruding from his hips, each individually dispatched an enemy, with his tail being the one to take out the tenth and final enemy in this area.

‘Huh, 20 level 27 monsters in no time,’ Trint considered his new power level. ‘This is amazing. Hey Pneuma, what do you think of all this?’ Trint asked as he moved on toward the next group. He continued slaughtering the monsters as Pneuma responded.

‘Trint, I don’t know what to think. This is not i9 appropriate power. I wouldn’t be surprised if you are as powerful as some several iterations higher: your speed, agility, especially your adaptability, and deadly efficiency. You could compete with low-level i7 fighters or monsters. If that is true, you are fighting five times your current level.’ Pneuma said with a hint of shock and wonder.