Kyle headed back to the Oracle chamber himself. While he was seen leaving the pce, he still kept in contact with Orisa, exining to her what she needed to do in sequence.
Pacifying the entire goblin poption here in the Culdao Peaks was not going to be easy – but with the advanced capabilities of the A.I. and the puppet head that was Sahusa the Great, it made it easier for Kyle to implement an agricultural revolution.
However, first on the menu was stabilising the local area first. The rebel army was still upying many parts of the valley, being the main domineering force that was still unaware that their leader Osir had already fallen.
Kyle decided to leave the cleanup to Orisa and Sasha. As for heading back into the Oracle Chambers, there was a few good reasons.
<table> <tbody> <tr> <td>
<strong>[SYSTEM MESSAGE]</strong>
<strong>Sub-ss Announcement</strong>
</td></tr> <tr> <td><strong>[Sub-ss Upgrade (Level 20)]</strong></td> <td>
<em>Congrattions, sub-sses will be unlocked now</em>
Please wait
</td></tr></tbody></table>
<table> <tbody> <tr> <td>
<strong>[SYSTEM MESSAGE]</strong>
<strong>ss Announcement</strong>
</td></tr> <tr> <td><strong>[ss Upgrade (Level 25)]</strong></td> <td>
<em>Congrattions, Unique ss will now be upgraded</em>
Please wait
</td></tr></tbody></table>
Thest time he had done a ss upgrade was when he was level 10 – and it was an extremely painful process. If Kyle wanted to get the upgrades right now, he needed to do it somewhere out of sight andpletely safe from any possible enemy attacks.
Kyle returned to the researchb, sighing as he sat back down in the chair. Now that he had seen how the hobgoblins and goblins had been experimented on, a burning question began to nag in his mind. <em>How is the System conferring the skills onto me?</em>
Regardless, the moment he thought about the sub-ss upgrades, a new system message appeared.
<table> <tbody> <tr> <td>
<strong>[SYSTEM MESSAGE]</strong>
<strong>Sub-ss Announcement</strong>
</td></tr> <tr> <td><strong>[Generating Sub-sses]</strong></td> <td>
<em>Please Wait</em>
Please Wait
</td></tr></tbody></table>
<em>It better be good this time, and before I make a final choice, I should ask for the skills first. </em>Kyle tapped his fingers impatiently, waiting for about a minute before the sub-ss windows appeared.
<table> <tbody> <tr> <td>
<strong>[SYSTEM MESSAGE]</strong>
<strong>Sub-ss Announcement</strong>
</td></tr> <tr> <td><strong>[Sub-sses Generated]</strong></td> <td>
<em>All subssese with one ss-unique skill at the start</em>
Please choose carefully
</td></tr></tbody></table>
<table> <tbody> <tr> <td>
<strong>[SYSTEM MESSAGE]</strong>
<strong>Sub-ss Generated</strong>
</td></tr> <tr> <td><strong>[Tycoon (Basic)]</strong></td> <td>
<em>Money makes the world go round</em>
Active Skills revolve around business acumen, persuasion and leadership
</td></tr></tbody></table>
<table> <tbody> <tr> <td>
<strong>[SYSTEM MESSAGE]</strong>
<strong>Sub-ss Generated</strong>
</td></tr> <tr> <td><strong>[ve Driver (Basic)]</strong></td> <td>
<em>Seize the means of production into one hand</em>
Active Skills revolve around intimidation and maniption
</td></tr></tbody></table>
<table> <tbody> <tr> <td>
<strong>[SYSTEM MESSAGE]</strong>
<strong>Sub-ss Generated</strong>
</td></tr> <tr> <td><strong>[Drug Cook (Basic)]</strong></td> <td>
<em>Mixing nature to get people high</em>
Active Skills revolve around the increased quality of drugs and a higher chance to learn new recipes
</td></tr></tbody></table>
Kyle nced through all of them, his face frowning. None of the subsses generated seemed to be useful to him. He had learnt how powerful the System was when utilising his Crime Lord skills duringbat – if he did not have such skills, he would have progressed much slower than he would have originally.
As such, neither of the three sses seemed to offer something that Kyle could not actively work towards himself. <em>Weird. The Tycoon sub-ss is entirely revolved around making money. Can the System manipte rakels directly?</em>
<table> <tbody> <tr> <td>
<strong>[SYSTEM MESSAGE]</strong>
<strong>Skill</strong>
</td></tr> <tr> <td><strong>[Rich Man’s World (Basic)]</strong></td> <td>
<em>Reduce the opposition people have towards your deals</em>
+50% Persuasion Sess Chance
Duration: Five minutes
Cooldown: One day
</td></tr></tbody></table>
<em>So it seems that the skill is simr to the Intimidation Aura except inversed. </em>Kyle did not find any interest in selecting such a subss – he did not need the help of the System to persuade anybody. What he needed was a sub-ss that actively boosted things that he was sorelycking.
As such, the other two subsses of ve Driver and Drug Cook were also dismissed by him. If he really needed the System to support him in those areas, he would prefer to work towards a title instead of taking up a subss slot. As of now, he had no idea if he could even revert any of the choices he has made or will make in the future.
<table> <tbody> <tr> <td>
<strong>[SYSTEM MESSAGE]</strong>
<strong>Sub-ss Announcement</strong>
</td></tr> <tr> <td><strong>[Regenerating Sub-sses]</strong></td> <td>
<em>Please Wait</em>
Please Wait
</td></tr></tbody></table>
Another minute passed before another three windows appeared in front of him.
<table> <tbody> <tr> <td>
<strong>[SYSTEM MESSAGE]</strong>
<strong>Sub-ss Generated</strong>
</td></tr> <tr> <td><strong>[Inventor (Intermediate)]</strong></td> <td>
<em>Breaking the norm, one patent at a time</em>
Active Skills revolve around an increased chance to optimise new blueprints for invented parts
</td></tr></tbody></table>
<table> <tbody> <tr> <td>
<strong>[SYSTEM MESSAGE]</strong>
<strong>Sub-ss Generated</strong>
</td></tr> <tr> <td><strong>[Revolutionary (Intermediate)]</strong></td> <td>
<em>Move the people with a wave of your hand</em>
Active Skills revolve around crowd control and persuasion
</td></tr></tbody></table>
<table> <tbody> <tr> <td>
<strong>[SYSTEM MESSAGE]</strong>
<strong>Sub-ss Generated</strong>
</td></tr> <tr> <td><strong>[Poisoner (Basic)]</strong></td> <td>
<em>Mixing nature to kill people</em>
Active Skills revolve around poison and its applications
</td></tr></tbody></table>
Kyle was not impressed with any of these sub-sses either. Why did he feel like the System was looking down on his capabilities and background as a former Gctic Era Crime Lord?
For one, he already knew how to improve many of the current inventions of this era - it was more of an issue with secrecy rather than with the inability to make new stuff.
Kyle also prided himself on his ability to lead or at least to use fear and power to control people. <em>I used to rule an entire star sector! Why would the System think I need help persuading a small crowd?!</em>
Lastly, poison was also nothing new – Kyle could already think of a few chemical mixtures that could kill someone with a small drop, no sub-ss needed.
<em>Seriously, can you show something more useful? Something I can’t do myself. And maybe show more than three this time.</em>
<table> <tbody> <tr> <td>
<strong>[SYSTEM MESSAGE]</strong>
<strong>Sub-ss Announcement</strong>
</td></tr> <tr> <td><strong>[Regenerating Sub-sses]</strong></td> <td>
<em>Please Wait </em>
Please Wait
</td></tr></tbody></table>
<table> <tbody> <tr> <td>
<strong>[SYSTEM MESSAGE]</strong>
<strong>Sub-ss Generated</strong>
</td></tr> <tr> <td><strong>[Serial Killer (Advanced)]</strong></td> <td>
<em>Once you start, you can’t stop</em>
Active Skills revolve around increasing stats the more you kill within a given timeframe
</td></tr></tbody></table>
<table> <tbody> <tr> <td>
<strong>[SYSTEM MESSAGE]</strong>
<strong>Sub-ss Generated</strong>
</td></tr> <tr> <td><strong>[Pact Maker (Legendary)]</strong></td> <td>
<em>Enforces written contracts to a certain level</em>
Active Skills revolve around applying debuffs to signatories who do not adhere to the contract
</td></tr></tbody></table>
<table> <tbody> <tr> <td>
<strong>[SYSTEM MESSAGE]</strong>
<strong>Sub-ss Generated</strong>
</td></tr> <tr> <td><strong>[Tamer (Advanced)]</strong></td> <td>
<em>Even the animals shall be exploited</em>
Active Skills revolve around subjugating animals for various uses
</td></tr></tbody></table>
<table> <tbody> <tr> <td>
<strong>[SYSTEM MESSAGE]</strong>
<strong>Sub-ss Generated</strong>
</td></tr> <tr> <td><strong>[Mind Controller (Legendary)]</strong></td> <td>
<em>Manipte the thoughts of others at will</em>
Active Skills revolve around the maniption of thoughts and emotions
</td></tr></tbody></table>
Kyle began to take more interest in the sub-sses shown. He immediately dismissed the Serial Killer subss, which he considered useless. He did not need extra help killing multiple targets - he could easily invent a machine gun for that.
The Pact Maker subss looked fairly interesting. Kyle was clear that the underworld contract was enforced by strength and reputation – many of the contracts served as proof of justice in the event one party decided to renegade on the terms. However, if one party had an overwhelming power advantage, the contract waspletely unfair.
<em>I could definitely use this to my advantage… </em>Kyle decided to keep the Contract Dealer subss in mind while he explored the others.
<em>Tamer… sounds interesting.</em> Kyle was not a human nor humanoid supremacist in anyway – the Gctic Era had taught him a simple rule: if it can work, it can be exploited. However, domesticating animals was not exactly extremely hard as well. Humans have been doing it for a long time, so Kyle did not see a clear need for it just yet.
Mind Controller had the most interest from Kyle. <em>The ability to influence emotions… sounds simr to the First Apocalypse.</em> Kyle would like to have this sub ss, but it felt too simr to how he currently used the intimidation aura as well. <em>Let’s keep this in mind first. </em>
<em>Store Pact Maker and Mind Controller as possible sub-sses. Show me the next set.</em>
<table> <tbody> <tr> <td>
<strong>[SYSTEM MESSAGE]</strong>
<strong>Sub-ss Announcement</strong>
</td></tr> <tr> <td><strong>[Regenerating Sub-sses]</strong></td> <td>
<em>Please Wait</em>
Warning: Last Three Sub sses for Selection
</td></tr></tbody></table>
<table> <tbody> <tr> <td>
<strong>[SYSTEM MESSAGE]</strong>
<strong>Sub-ss Generated</strong>
</td></tr> <tr> <td><strong>[Shadow (Legendary)]</strong></td> <td>
<em>From the shadows you strike</em>
Active Skills revolve around infiltration and self-concealment
</td></tr></tbody></table>
<table> <tbody> <tr> <td>
<strong>[SYSTEM MESSAGE]</strong>
<strong>Sub-ss Generated</strong>
</td></tr> <tr> <td><strong>[Manufacturer (Unique)]</strong></td> <td>
<em>Lead the Industrial Revolution</em>
Active Skills revolve around mass production and assembly lines
Unique ss – Single Upgrade Track
</td></tr></tbody></table>
<table> <tbody> <tr> <td>
<strong>[SYSTEM MESSAGE]</strong>
<strong>Sub-ss Generated</strong>
</td></tr> <tr> <td><strong>[Arcia Mystic (Unique)]</strong></td> <td>
<em>The flow of arcia energy is in your hands</em>
Active Skills revolve around the maniption and understanding of engravings both physically and remotely
Unique ss – Single Upgrade Track
</td></tr></tbody></table>
Kyle was sitting on the edge of his seat now, his mind racing through all the possibilities now. The three sub-sses provided were clearly attuned to what he intended to achieve.
He recalled the n he set out to achieve when he first arrived in Raktor:
<ol> <li>Build a solid base/group of people to perform menialbour and reach a position preferably on the same level as his previous titles. Remain hidden from the big powers as much as possible.</li> <li>Find a niche market to sell, preferably illegal, so as to exploit profit margins. Scale up and dominate the market, as well as ensure nopetition.</li> <li>Figure how the hell did he survive/woke up in another person’s body</li></ol>
Points 1 and 2 could have been said to have been slightly aplished, with the addictive potions still being circted through the Seven Snakes businesses along with their legal aboveground businesses of construction and media, with an uing weapons industry.
If he were still intending to follow the same n, then Pact Maker or Manufacturer would be the best option. However, the Arcia Mystic ss was far too alluring to give up simply. <em>What’s the unique skill of the Arcia Mystic ss?</em>
<table> <tbody> <tr> <td>
<strong>[SYSTEM MESSAGE]</strong>
<strong>Skill</strong>
</td></tr> <tr> <td><strong>[Negation Field (Basic)]</strong></td> <td>
<em>Disable all engravings in an area around you</em>
Disable all engravings in a five-meter radius
Upgradable
Duration: Ten minutes
Cooldown: Three days
</td></tr></tbody></table>
<em>WHAT?!</em> Kyle nearly lost his mind at how broken the skill was. It was a perfect duelling skill –bined with the skill This is My Turf, would he not be invincible for the ovepping duration?
Kyle calmed himself down, checking the Manufacturer’s unique skill.
<table> <tbody> <tr> <td>
<strong>[SYSTEM MESSAGE]</strong>
<strong>Skill</strong>
</td></tr> <tr> <td><strong>[Mass Production Drones (Basic)]</strong></td> <td>
<em>Instantly gain knowledge on how to construct arctech drones</em>
Able to control up to five drones remotely
Upgradable
Duration: One hour
Cooldown: One day
</td></tr></tbody></table>
Kyle immediately selected the Arcia Mystic ss as his subss. The ability to create said drones could be easily developed from the ground up – Kyle already had a working example of a general-purpose A.I. such as Orisa to simply duplicate.
<table> <tbody> <tr> <td>
<strong>[SYSTEM MESSAGE]</strong>
<strong>WARNING</strong>
</td></tr> <tr> <td><strong>[Sub-ss Integration Beginning]</strong></td> <td>
<em>Please find a safe location</em>
Please find a safe location
</td></tr></tbody></table>
Before Kyle could even brace himself, the familiar sharp, sudden jabbing pain erupted at the nape of his neck. The fiery pain shot through the nerves, spine and bones like lightning, causing him to wince and fall off the chair, writhing in pain. <em>How is this as painful as the main ss upgrade?!</em>
As he rolled around the floor, a million needles prickling his skin, he could feel the same foreign object in his body slicing away at his internal organs and underlying flesh, as though it was rearranging his vessels and blood flow, albeit in a brutal gruesome fashion.
[Sir, you seem to be experiencing severe distress.] Orisa’s holographic image appeared. [Symptoms include talking to oneself and undergoing extreme cramp cycles. Do you need me to y you some soothing music?]
Kyle grunted unintelligibly, unable to reply in coherent words as the pain continued to envelop his entire being. He began to struggle to keep awake, the continuous waves and bouts of pain nearly making him lose consciousness.
“Ti..tis is nuthin…” Kyle tried to speak to Orisa, nearly biting his own tongue off. The spasms caused his body to convulse on the floor, making him involuntarily hit his head against the edge of a gas tank before falling unconscious.