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Chapter 960: Incompetence All Around

“I greet the Chosen of the Malefic Viper,” the scalekin World Leader bowed politely, his wife and others following suit despite their reservations. “We humbly welcome you to our planet.”

The human quickly regarded the scalekin, and it felt as if his very soul was laid bare as the man responded. “You’re the World Leader, I take it?”

“That is correct, my lord,” the scalekin said, his respectful tone now even more genuine.

“Good, then let’s not waste more time than necessary and head straight for the Prima Vessel,” the Chosen continued, speaking in a matter-of-fact tone.

“That is…” the scalekin muttered.

“What is it? If there are no teleporters nearby and we have to travel a bit, that’s fine, I just hope you aren’t a slowpoke,” the human continued, still speaking so casually it was truly shocking. Perhaps… didn’t he know?

“The… the Prima Vessel is not currently under our control…”

A second passed before the human scratched the back of his head. “Alright… it’s pretty clear there’s a story here, so let me hear it.”

Jake would definitely come to regret hearing their story, as it was not only cliché but also pretty boring.

Warring factions, lots of racism because of the many different races who didn’t like how others looked, century-long blood feuds between different clans because some chick married one guy over another, and so many damn twists and turns around who different clans allied with at different times. Honestly, it was a shitshow.

All of which Jake, quite frankly, didn’t care about. He did care about the last part, though.

“They have invited other World Leaders from planets that have already cleared their own Prima Guardians and did this before the teleportation permissions were locked down… and while the lockdown does mean they can’t bring in more invaders, we remain severely outnumbered and have cause to believe these World Leader brought along powerful allies. With me being the World Leader, we are also disproportionately targeted by the Primas and are struggling,” the scalekin World Leader explained, Jake surprised at and only really noting the presence of two other World Leaders.

He didn’t even need to be told where they were from either, as the answer was obvious. Still, the scalekin told him.

“These World Leaders are allies of the Celestial Child and are sent here to claim the planet. I… was also approached by the Chosen, and we had an agreement, which was why I kept teleportation open for all from the alliance, but…” the scalekin admitted, though he didn’t look like he felt good about it.

“But you were betrayed. What a shocker,” Jake sighed. He had already released a Pulse, and… he wouldn’t even say he was in a city. It was just flatland with a few thousand tents and very temporary-looking buildings spread about. Clearly, this wasn’t the most stable of factions.

The part about the teleportation circles was at least a bit understandable. The scalekin wouldn’t have believed those who teleported there from planets part of the alliance would join the enemy, but here the guy was, very much regretting his prior choices.

From Ell’Hakan’s point of view, siding with the other coalition of factions who fought the scalekin and his tribes probably made the most sense. They had more people, a stronger fighting force, and likely also a better leader than the scalekin Jake was looking at because the guy really didn’t give off leader vibes. His level was pretty good, though.

[Scalekin – lvl 280]

In fact, the levels Jake saw when he briefly scanned people in the tent were pretty good. It turns out that being on a planet going through constant war with other factions ever since the integration was a great way to gain a lot of levels, even if it also meant the planet had pretty sucky population numbers.

“Yes, I was fooled, betrayed, and taken advantage of,” the scalekin nodded in shame as he clenched his fists. “I believed the words of the Celestial Child, that he would-“

“Why do you keep calling him that when he fucked you over?” Jake asked, raising an eyebrow. “No reason to show such respect for some manipulative sack of shit.”

The scalekin looked about to answer as someone from the back decided to get involved in the conversation. A large horned man who looked a bit like a minotaur stood up as he stared daggers at Jake. This minotaur-looking beastkin wasn’t the only one either, as several more looked uncomfortable with what Jake had said, including even the queen at the World Leader’s side, but it was only the minotaur guy who was dumb enough to yell loudly:

“How dare a mere human disrespect the Celestial Child! Your pathetic kind belong only in-“

Jake looked at the man, his eyes glowing for a second as he decided to be nice and only froze the guy. With a low sigh, Jake silenced the room entirely as he spoke calmly.

“One more interruption, and it won’t end with a warning. That goes for all of you.”

The scalekin did react quickly as he seemingly sent some telepathic message, and two people grabbed the frozen and drooling minotaur and dragged him out of the tent. With him gone, the scalekin went as far as to go down on one knee, the shock from many of those there not something they could contain.

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“I sincerely apologize for the disrespect from both myself and the representative of the Iron Bull clan. While it is no excuse, we have a less-than-positive history with the human race who once lived here before they all died out a few decades before the integration. They had enslaved much of the planet a very long time ago, with our history books emphasizing the evil nature of man… of course, we now know better, and I can only beg for your forgiveness,” the scalekin said, clearly trying to gather some sympathy points with his historical explanation.

Again, Jake seriously didn’t care about the history lesson, he just wanted to get things moving and not have anyone and everyone interrupting him. Maybe he noticed Jake’s disinterest, but at least the scalekin had the sense to continue without any prompting.

“As for the matters regarding the… other Chosen… I truly meant nothing by it. It’s simply the title we referred to him as and the one he introduced himself with. That, and I cannot rule out the existence of Bloodline manipulation from his side, still controlling my mind and the minds of many others who have met him.”

Okay, that last part was a bit bullshit. Ell’Hakan didn’t control people’s minds, just their emotions. Simply being aware of the Chosen’s ability made it several times less effective, and often the negative emotions born from being told you had been manipulated into having a positive view of the orange fuck overshadowed any others, amplified or not. But Jake really didn’t want to enter an entire conversation about that as he steered the topic toward why he was there.

“You said the Prima Vessel was under the control of these other clans and the two World Leaders helping them, correct?” Jake questioned.

“Yes, they are guarding it, so I cannot approach and enter,” the scalekin nodded.

“Are they afraid you will release the Prima Guardian?” Jake asked, trying to get a feel for how strong these two World Leaders who had arrived were.

“I do not believe that is what they fear. They instead don’t want me to hide in there and make it impossible for them to gain my key. I have heard they possess the ability to take the keys from other World Leaders if they slay them, and I fear that is what they plan to do. Afterward, they will likely release the Guardian, slay it, and… then I do not know their plan,” the World Leader admitted with a sigh.

“And why are they not just hunting you down?” Jake kept pressing.

“They have tried to a few times, but we move around and attempt to make ourselves difficult to pin down. Also, they do not appear to be in any kind of rush, as they keep gathering more unaffiliated clans and tribes under their banner as they slay Primas. Once more, I do not know the cause for their lack of urgency.”

Jake had a good theory of why they were not in a hurry… why would they with such an incompetent and cowardly World Leader? Shit, maybe they were even trying to… oh, yeah, that orange fuck would totally go for that kind of story.

There was a very good chance they weren’t necessarily aiming to even kill this World Leader but would instead wear him down until he surrendered and willingly submitted himself before them to save his own hide. Ell’Hakan was going for a story as the one who united the galaxy, and making a warring planet come together would definitely track. Also… being known for killing other World Leaders and “stealing” their planets would likely make it harder for Ell’Hakan to keep recruiting.

It also explained why they hadn’t just killed this group if they were truly that much more superior. Of course, it could still be that the people Ell’Hakan had just sent were incompetent, but Jake liked his own theory better.

Not that any of it ultimately mattered. If Ell’Hakan’s plans interfered with what Jake was there for, there was no way they could avoid getting into a scuffle.

“Let’s not wait around any longer until they decide to come for you again, then,” Jake said, seeing no reason to stay around any longer. At this point, he really just wanted to get moving… but life had other plans.

Jake saw the winged beastkin queen beside the World Leader shift a little, and he was pretty sure she sent some telepathic message to the scalekin, which made the guy hesitate. “Are… are you sure it’s wise to not make a proper plan for our approach? Assess the situation properly first?”

For a second, Jake wondered if this entire thing was really worth it. Why was he even helping some clearly unpopular and untalented World Leader in the first place? He wouldn’t kill the guy as that was one of the things he’d agreed with Kindroth, and Miranda would fuck up all their future plans as convincing a known killer of World Leaders to visit would be hard. Actually, this fitted well with why Ell’Hakan didn’t just kill the guy, huh? Either way… man, did Jake just want to knock out the guy and drag him to the Vessel at this point.

“We do have a proper plan. Me. Now let’s go,” Jake insisted… yet the damn scalekin kept hesitating, and Jake was pretty damn sure he knew what caused it. More accurately, who caused it.

Turning to the winged beastkin woman, he stared straight at her as he caught her attention. She stared back, and Jake easily saw how damn nervous she was. She was way too nervous for this conversation, almost as if she didn’t want any of this to be happening.

Not only is the World Leader incompetent, his own damn wife isn’t even fully on his side, Jake sighed internally before she spoke in an accusatory tone.

“Or is there a reason people here wouldn’t want you to go for some reason… now why would that be?” Jake said with a smile as he looked at the wife. “I do find it bold of you to try and hide in front of me so openly. Did you really think I wouldn’t notice? I’m a hunter. I specialize in sensing clues and uncovering truth. So, do you want to take this opportunity to fess up yourself, or would you prefer my interpretation of what you’ve done?”

To be clear, Jake had no proof and was one hundred percent bluffing; he just knew she had done something shady. He wasn’t even sure exactly what she had done, and outright accusing her of something specific could give away the fact he really had no idea. Luckily, the queen wasn’t smarter than her dear husband. Jake’s staredown probably also helped convince her.

Turning to her husband, who looked at her with utter confusion, she practically screamed her explanation.

“I… it was the only way! How long has this war been going on? How long can it continue? We need to unite, or this damned system event will be our end, and we have clearly shown we aren’t capable of coming together without outside help. You know they promised stability and safety! Help with the Prima Guardian! Why are you so stubbornly resisting when assistance is offered!? You said they betrayed us first… nobody betrayed anyone. The Celestial Child made a deal with everyone, not just you! He made a promise to this planet, and you’re the only one still refusing to see that! I… I will not raise our child in this kind of world!”

The scalekin looked at her with wide eyes. “You… you’re with child? I…”

Watching this family drama unfold before him, Jake regretted his decision of not just kidnapping the World Leader and dragging him to the Prima Vessel. His patience was truly being tested, but he had to resist the urge to do anything.

Jake couldn’t help but think about who the “good” guys truly were on this planet. One side had the majority of citizens and was still expanding, with more clans joining them all the time, while the other was ruled by a World Leader desperately holding onto what little power he had despite the popular opinion of the population.

But… all that wasn’t really his problem. He looked on as the scalekin and winged beastkin were talking in a hushed tone, half of the conversation clearly also happening telepathically, as emotions were running high. Jake decided to give them a choice, as he cleared his throat, making the two of them shut up as they stared at Jake in fright, seemingly having forgotten he was even there.

“All of this strikes me as a waste of time, so let me offer you one of two options. Both include freeing the Prima Guardian. Either the two of you go to the Prima Vessel and meet these other World Leaders to reach some agreement, or he and I head off to the Prima Vessel. The first option also includes me coming along, but I will remain hidden unless I have a reason not to.”

The two of them looked at Jake for a moment as the scalekin clenched his fists. “If… if there is a peaceful solution…”

“First option it is, then,” Jake smiled. It was time to show that Ell’Hakan couldn’t be the only scheming sleazebag around.