“Who?” I asked Naran. I was pretty sure it was one of the previous lords of Truth, but I wanted to be sure.

“One of the previous lords in charge of Truth. He only ate people with stats. It must have been giving him some kind of boost,” Naran said.

“Dead?” I asked just to be sure.

“Yes. He was killed because of the cannibalism. But with this…who else knows?” Naran asked.

“Just us three and Doctor Katz, which is how it is going to stay. No one else,” I replied.

“Why tell me?” Naran asked.

“I trust you. I don’t believe it is a valid path forward, and there is going to be some kind of evil genie type drawback. I believe that summoning will hit a wall at level 4. The same for producing hybrids,” I replied.

“The increased intelligence and power,” Naran said.

“Exactly. With the mental feedback and the physco reactive nature of energy and crystals, and the weakness of summoning to carry mental attacks, there are real risks,” I said.

“That means the plan to strengthen one person’s sleep skill is pointless,” Clarissa said and let out a small sigh. “I had been thinking we had a counter, but with the upgrade to the Mind stat, it will be impossible to target the Ritualist like this.”

“Unfortunately. But in the end, we just need to buy time. Or I can go with plan death,” I said. There was silence at that.

“It will be risky, very risky,” Naran said.

“Plan death?” Clarissa asked.

“To find a level 4 monster, or multiple level 4 monsters and aggro them, and then pull them into Truth,” I replied.

“You know there are too many unknowns. The risk of them coming after you and running that far, isn’t simple,” Naran said.

“I know. But it is a possibility. If death or that silver golem entered, Heaven, it would be a massacre. They also have some form of auto targeting. Perfect to hunt down the Ritualist and end him,” I said. There was silence as all three of us thought through the idea.

“I think I will hold off eating hybrid meat,” Naran said. I nodded at that and didn’t blame him.

“Why announce a top-secret project at the council?” Clarissa asked.

“I know it would better to keep it under wraps. But people will have questions. By tying the power increase of our future super soldiers to what he did, it will make the process questionable in people’s minds. I want to begin cementing that, before it leaks out,” I replied.

“To shape public perception beforehand. Well, it would be easier to station the group in another city completely. For safety reasons and so people don’t discover what is happening,” Clarissa said.

“Maybe, once they have enough stats to fight level 2 monsters. But for now, we need to consolidate our power within Purgatory. We can think about a hidden external research base once we have trusted super soldiers. But for now we need them hear. To counter high level monsters that the Ritualist may use,” I said.

“Why the large increase?” Naran asked. “Hybrids have to eat to stay alive. They aren’t like regular summons that are getting energy from the summoner to exist. They need to consume. So why aren’t the hybrids getting a power boost?”

Now that was an interesting question. “I would guess it is the same reason they can’t use the system store. There is something about energy that is compatible with humans and not hybrids,” Clarissa speculated.

“That makes sense, but then what is the trap at the higher levels?” I asked.

“Well, the regeneration cost, will not make it simple. But a lot cheaper compared to gaining stat points the regular way. The real risk is losing access to the system store or hybridizing oneself,” Naran said.

“Losing access to the store or hybridization while keeping one’s mind, both would catastrophic,” I said.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

“Once you lose access, there would be no way to regain it either. It appears to be a pass or fail type check,” Clarissa said.

“But could that happen. The test subject didn’t experience physical or mental changes, just stat increases, which were separate from regular stat increases. Also, the increased regeneration cost,” I said.

“There could be compounding costs to regeneration. Like a hidden multiplier. Since the person wasn’t in pain, but the regeneration was fixing something. There could be side effects at a certain point if the system isn’t handling things. Since it is clearly changing how a person’s body works and the brain functions,” Naran said.

“Like if you had 1,000 Body stat points and then used consumption, the damage would be too severe and cripple a person,” I said.

“Possibly. The long term testing idea is valid. As long a people know the risks,” Naran said.

“I will make sure that every step of the way they are informed as much as possible. Michael already made that clear,” Clarissa said. Naran nodded at that.

“That means the Ritualist could easily be packing 1,000 in Body,” Naran said.

“Yes. But the more concerning thing is that he would be able to summon ten level 3 monsters with 1,000 Regeneration. Or a level 4 monster. But I think he would go quantity over quality,” I said.

“That would be a tough battle. A very tough battle. I don’t think I could win. Escape, maybe. Going to visit, it might be a trap. Heck, he might not know about consumption,” Naran said.

“He has no reason to poke us. Summons have a limited a range. He hurt us, we hurt him. While we are a threat long term, he can’t kill me. He would only attack if he felt he could crush the city and possibly fight me as well,” I said.

“Your plan to use people to counter his summons, he isn’t an idiot, Michael. He knows we are building up an army as well. And figuring out consumption isn’t a huge leap,” Clarissa said.

“It isn’t but time favors us. Not in the short term, since he can individually use the power boost, but long term. If he is going to attack, it will be in the next few days,” I replied.

“That is why you are sending me, since I can escape and send up the alarm,” Naran replied.

“Exactly. If not, then we delay and stall. Clarissa can still send me an alert by damaging my property. So, if you rush back and send up the alarm, I will know and rush to return. It will be tight. But the attack on Truth is also the best time for the Ritualist to act and to figure out his long term plans. Aggression or bunkering up,” I said.

“If level 4 isn’t the barrier you think it is, then we could fall further behind. If he has a 1,000 Body, can you win?” Clarissa asked me.

“It would be hard, but with my skill, maybe. We are reaching the point, where combat between high level people isn’t cut and dry anymore,” I let out a sigh at that. It wasn’t just a matter of stats, but also technique, skills, and various other factors.

A boosted Ritualist, would have higher Perception, which would increase his danger sense. A higher Mind, allowing him to react more quickly to my attacks.

“I wouldn’t lose, but I might be forced to retreat, or he might be forced to retreat. Either way, it isn’t simple. I won’t die though,” I said.

“I am more concerned about the combo effect. He creates hybrids to boost other people, then turns them into higher level hybrids, creating a domino effect. He could step ladder his way up to level 4 or higher,” Naran said.

That was a very good point and something I had missed. That was a big reason I kept Naran around besides his charming personality and terrible singing. He had a different perspective and could see angles I had missed.

“There is a risk, that the person would try and break free, instead of submitting to be hybridized. He would also need to get a level 4 crystal in the first place. But he could easily create an army of level 3 hybrids with no upkeep,” I said as my mood plummeted.

“That could be something that has compounding issues. Like how crafting crystals can only be upgraded once. Using consumption to make hybrids, to then consume them ad nauseum sounds like something that would end horribly,” Clarissa said.

“But consumption is possible. Terrible things aren’t rule out just because they are terrible. That would one area with the Ritualist has an advantage compared to us. First the super soldiers, then we can look at taking over a city to turn it into a research base,” I said.

“Really Michael?” Naran asked.

“Unless you have a better idea? If we aren’t doing someone else is. Just like nuclear weapons, once discovered, the genie can’t be put back in the bottle,” I said.

“You are condemning an entire city, just so you know,” Naran said.

“I know and I have already have.” I looked between my closest two companions. “If we aren’t winning then we are losing. We need to win. Let’s plan to go after the Ritualist on day 505. That gives us another 2,500 people,” I said.

“I will work to arrange to have all the Union teams recalled at that point. The RMPF should be up to around 500 people by then. We can deploy an army of 400. If you take another person for Radiant Beam and then one or two more, that will be a full team of skill users with that skill,” Clarissa said.

“It would be useful to quickly clear an area. But assaulting the city, will be tricky. Or are you planning a siege?” Naran asked me.

“A full siege, then we would grind the Ritualist down. He has to sleep eventually. We keep up the pressure and eventually end him through attrition. Even with higher stats, I doubt he can stay awake for 10 days straight,” I said.

“Maybe we should hold off if he isn’t aggressive and not make the first move,” Clarissa suggested. I looked at her.

“You said it yourself. If he doesn’t attack, we will gain an advantage over a long period of time. Also defending is easier than attacking. Next time he attacks, we will move in to cut off any path of retreat,” Clarissa said.

“Fine, no planned battle with the Ritualist, and let him come to us,” I said, feeling frustrated about the entire situation.