Chapter 233: Complacency
byTravis Oilton
Master Illusionist Level 56
68 + 12 Strength
168 + 32 Resistance
168 +4 Kinesthetics
99 +117 Acuity
112 +132 Focus
Primary Abilities: Center of Attention***, Taunt***, Mirage****
Secondary Abilities: Better than Real, Barrier
Tertiary Abilities: Breath of Life
Primary Ability Upgrade Available!
Item Abilities: +45% Eidolon Potency, Resurgent illusionist*, Ghost-step, +30% range of Abilities.
“Travis?” Mabel’s voice came from a few inches away from where his face was smashed into the luxurious silk sheets with thread counts that mere commoners couldn’t hope to comprehend.
“Eh?” Travis groaned. Her voice was only a few inches away, but moving his head to look at her was a task reserved for heroes of legend.
“There’s a man in the bedroom.”
“Meh.” Travis grunted into the mattress, whose material was so soft and conforming that he could plant his entire face into it without a hint of discomfort.
Wait…
“ACK!” Travis reflexively flung himself out of bed, created a duplicate overlapping himself, then turned invisible. They landed on the ground and the decoy skittered side-to-side aggressively while he took some distance.
Who the hell would –
“How’s it going Travis?” William Oh asked, staring at him past the decoy.
I’m still invisible, right? Travis thought, glancing down at himself. He sure was. I covered my scent, heat, and sound, so how…
“The Abyss you doing here so early in the morning?” Travis muttered as he straightened, creating some clothes before he dismissed the invisibility. “Don’t you know it’s rude to intrude on a man when he’s in bed with his girlfriend?”
Will glanced at Mabel for a moment and frowned.
“…You’re single.”
Mabel gave an offended huff regarded Will an angry glower from under the sheets.
“Wait, aren’t you supposed to be at the wedding right now?” Travis asked, grabbing the pitcher of water on his nightstand and rehydrating.
“A nasty bastard showed up on the eleventh Floor. I was hoping to have you go there to lend a hand.”
“And why can’t you do this yourself?” Travis asked.
“Acclimation sickness.”
Yeah, he does look a little under the weather. Travis thought.
“Why me?”
“Because Mason is on the 16th Floor and you’re here…wallowing in self-pity.”
“Does this look like I’m wallowing in self-pity?” Travis asked, gesturing to the opulent surroundings. Everything was clean and tidy. Not a single empty bottle of booze or speck of dirt out of place.
“Mmmm…Yes.” Will replied.
“Everything I own is lined with black opal, rich velvet and gold. My freaking shower has heated walls. I’ve got a dozen sexy maids who ache to please me.”
“Wow, that’s all really impressive.” Will said.
“Right?”
“…If any of it were real.” Will added, glancing at the bed.
Travis paused. “I mean…a bed is a piece of furniture you can sleep on. Even if it’s an illusion, if it serves this function, and it’s more comfortable than any other bed in existence, then how is it not a ‘real bed’?”
“Do you have any complaints about your bed?” Will asked.
“Nope.” Travis said, puffing his chest.
“My bed had a little splinter sticking out of the frame that poked the shit out of me one morning when I was getting up. If my Resistance wasn’t so high it would’ve put a nasty splinter through the back of my leg. I spent the next hour pouring over the entire frame with a sanding cloth to make sure it didn’t happen again.”
“Sucks to be you.” Travis said, his guts fluttering with some unknown apprehension, like an animal slowly realizing it was being cornered.
“My sheets don’t fit perfectly right, and for some reason, the corner next to my head is always the first part to come untucked. It just pops off and starts crumpling up under me while I sleep, while on Brianna’s side, this never happens. Even when we switch sides, my side comes untucked first. I wonder if it’s because I roll in my sleep too much or something.”
“What the fuck is your point?” Travis demanded, his stomach turning queasy.
“No complaints about your bed?” Will asked.
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“None.”
“How about your maids, or your girlfriends? Any complaints?”
“Nope.”
“It doesn’t have to be a big complaint. Could be the tiniest little thing. Bored with their hair color? Not enough of them, maybe? You could change them up, or make some more.”
“You’re one to talk,” Travis muttered, the defensive feeling turning ugly and spiteful. Will had nailed him to the wall and he didn’t like it.
“Hah!” Will barked a laugh.
“Shows what you know. If I could make Brianna someone who hadn’t gone through everything she has, I’d do it in a heartbeat. But I can’t…
Because she’s real.” Will finished, his gaze boring into Travis’s.
“Uuugh…fine, tell me what the situation is.” Travis said as Mabel wrapped the sheets around herself and scampered out of the room.
Will gave Travis the situation, to his growing horror.
“So there’s a Lord-level body-hopping parasite out there who matched an actual SET with it’s ideal Class, just…wandering around, and nobody knows where it is?”
“It might be on the 12th floor, but I suspect Zodiac might be trying to kill it by himself to steal the set.”
“And what do you want me to do, steal the set first?”
“I don’t really have any strong feelings about who gets the set.” Will muttered. “I was hoping you could go and reinforce Zodiac. I get the feeling the old man is out of his depth.”
“And what do you expect me to do against a creature with access to fire that can literally burn through illusions?” Travis demanded.
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