Vaughn Astor

At the front of the queue was also a cloaked individual that seemed to be checking the systems of these gang members to check for if they had stolen anything.

Rhys wasn't so sure if his system was going to work the second time, since he could tell from his general physique that this wasn't the same person that he had met before.

'Will I resist this guy's ability again?' Rhys asked his system, hoping for some reassurance.

[The ability for the user's system to resist system skills is based on how strong the skill is and how strong the user is. The powers of his skill are unknown so it's impossible to make a judgement.]

The system's reply made sense, since there was no way for his system to detect how strong his skill was. If that was also what allowed him to resist the skill, then he really just wouldn't know.

It also made him realise that no matter how helpful his system was, it couldn't do the impossible. It could only give him advice and answer questions from its own understanding.

However, he had hope in himself, and that was all he could have at this moment. Looking up to the vertiginous walls of this underground base, he felt like it would be impossible for him to escape.

If this didn't work, he'd be trapped in here.

While being overwhelmed by the thoughts rushing through his head, he had reached the front of the queue.

Handing over the near empty bag of his, another cloaked individual arrived ahead of him to check his system once again.

[Party Joined!]

[Party Leader: (???)]

[Forced Analysis Ability Detected]

There was a slight pause as he gazed at this cloaked man, who pulled back his arm in reaction.

'Please work!' Rhys said in his mind, as his heart started to race.

The guards who were ahead looked on edge, just like they had done before.

[Forced Analysis Ability Resisted]

'Phew...'

The tension in the air had faded, and Rhys could finally breathe again. He was allowed to leave and received a payment of 50 shards that entered right into his account. Seeing this, he felt completely cheated.

He could easily sell on those crystals for way more money from just taking them and placing them on the Ethereal Emporium. It was clear they were just utilising these people's naivety to command them like they were pawns.

As he was allowed to leave, Rhys wondered about keeping the crystals that he had attained. If he kept them in his inventory or even sold them on to someone that he knew would simply hold onto them for him, he could utilise the crystals himself.

Strong weaponry was made of not just materials found from within these dungeons but also fragmented forms of these crystals themselves. If he could make weaponry with beast crystals tailored to his own needs, it could accelerate his own advancement. Even if it wasn't made from the crystals of beasts, they could house beast crystals in their true form to empower the user even further.

However, he had no clue how he would even go about doing that. It seemed like quite the impossible task and felt like sticking to acquiring more and more shards was a more reliable way forward.

****

The following day, in school, Rhys was simply going through his day as usual. This afternoon, they were going to meet with a new teacher, that was going to help them begin their weapons training.

They were just going through a few weeks of these training sessions, because the teachers were trying to vet out the students. Once this vetting period was done, the students would be split and assigned specialised teachers, for general class duties.

For the extra details, the students weren't entirely sure and would be informed when the time came. Military training wasn't just heavily publicised and that was done on purpose, to keep their training regimens from being acquired by enemy states.

After finishing a beginning military lecture, Rhys exited out into the empty paths of his school campus. He just stated to his friends that he wanted to check a new weapon out by himself, then he would return to them.

However, he had realised that he was getting rather peckish again. His belly was feeling hollow and his desire for human blood had crept up on him again.

Seeing his friends around him, images of him grabbing them and feasting on their blood flashed in his mind. Thinking about the death that had been caused to his friends Lukas and Raymondo, he wanted to get as far away from them as possible for their own safety.

Arriving near the fountain at the centre of the school campus, he decided to reveal his special blood container once he had reached far enough away from the campus' centre.

Taking a whiff of the alluring scent that it gave off once he removed its cork, he began to try and drink. Just as he did this, he could feel his mouth being filled by the warm, sweet goodness of human blood.

[-50ml human blood]

[-50ml human blood]

[Blood Container: 167/400ml]

*tap*

He was near the side of one of the armouries that the school had, and sent this golden orb straight to his inventory. Turning to see who was behind him, he was surprised to see Vaughn Astor.

Vaughn was son of the school's general, who was a captain within the Grelcis Armed forces.

Being a powerful, high-ranking individual, Vaughn was destined for the same future, and Rhys only had a bad feeling about why he had arrived ahead of him.

The two stared off, and Rhys was starting to get not just uncomfortable but confused as well. Vaughn was not just a privileged prodigy, but an entire year above him. He wondered what he was doing trying to talk to someone of his age and class.

"So, it's you. Your name is Rhys Arkwrighte, right?" He asked, with a bold tone.

He was slightly shorter than Rhys, standing at 6'0, and had an athletic but lean physique. He didn't have a lot of muscle on his frame like Carson, but still looked somewhat muscular. He had piercing blue eyes, with blonde hair that was parted into curtains.

"It's me?" Rhys replied in surprise.

That was quite an odd statement to open with, and it just bewildered him completely.

Vaughn took a few seconds to awkwardly stare at him, before giving his own reply.

"Just follow me. I'll explain myself inside." Vaughn stated, turning.

He hadn't even asked if Rhys was willing to follow, and he could tell that his power meant that people weren't willing to defy him. It was likely that he could get what he wanted whenever he wanted.

Rhys decided to do as he asked and didn't feel the need to decline his order. It didn't seem like he meant any harm, but he just felt a bit bad leaving his friends on their own.

However, he was sure that they would understand the situation he had been put in. Arriving at one of the towers on the campus, they entered the dormitory for the second year students. Once one had done intensive military training for a year's time, they had the opportunity to permanently live on the academy campus in these dorm rooms.

This wasn't any ordinary dorm room, though, as this was the tower selected for the more privileged academy students that had rich enough families to afford higher quality, more expensive dorm rooms.

As soon as he entered, the other students look puzzled as this random student just followed Vaughn, who was well known between them. He was a year below the students that he could see around him, so they didn't give him looks of disdain, only confusion and perplexion.

It was a new experience, to see people not look at him with those contemptuous glares that he was used to. The only time he had seen this happen before was in the training area when he showed off his new skills.

Arriving at a floor near the middle of this tower, he was directed to a suite that was located at the very end of this long hall. As Vaughn opened, he revealed a cluttered, dusty dorm room that was filled with the stench of metal and oil.

These smells were only intensified even more as soon as Rhys entered, and he couldn't believe that this student was supposedly living in this cramped space. The only empty part of the room was the king bed located next to the door.

"What did you want to talk to me about?" Rhys asked, watching Vaughn walk past him to close the door behind him.

"Your name is Rhys Arkwrighte and you've been selling a bunch of crystals for insanely low prices on the Ethereal Emporium, correct?" He asked.

Rhys' eyebrows almost reflexively rose as he heard this. The Ethereal Emporium was known for its convenience but also lauded for its near impenetrable security. One could seamlessly buy an item from a user but could not know more information about the user than was required.

Even the seller's name could be kept totally anonymous, and Rhys had made sure to do that when selling on such marketplace himself.

This had to be the only way he had found him out. Even if he was aware of someone undercutting other sellers on the ethereal emporium, how could he have linked it back to him?