The silence in the dining hall was no longer just quiet; it was heavy, pressing down on the Elders like a physical weight. I took another bite of my toast, the crunch sounding like a bone snapping in the stillness.
"You... you're bluffing," Silas hissed, though the shimmer of his 'Iron Wall' aura was flickering. "Offshore accounts? Hero Association? You've been locked in this mansion playing video games and reading comics for years. You don't have the reach to know those things."
I set the knife down with a slow, deliberate 'clink.'
"That's the beauty of being 'Unseen,' Silas," I said, leaning forward. My golden eyes locked onto his, and I activated the [Psychology King] passive skill: Micro-Expression Analysis. "I watched you. While you thought I was staring at a screen, I was staring at you through the security feeds I hacked six months ago. I saw the way your hands shake when you receive a message from the Association. I saw the ledger hidden behind the portrait of my grandfather—the man you helped murder."
Silas's face went from pale to a sickly shade of grey. The other Elders began to whisper, their eyes darting toward Silas with suspicion. The "Council" was a nest of vipers, and I had just dropped a hot coal into the middle of them.
"Is it true, Silas?" Elder Marcus, the youngest of the three, demanded. His hand moved toward the hilt of his blade. "Are you selling our bloodline to the 'Heroes'?"
"He's lying! He's a system-less brat trying to sow discord!" Silas roared, standing up so fast his chair toppled over. "Guards! Remove him! Use force!"
The two guards from the hallway rushed in, their spears leveled. But they hesitated. They looked at me—sitting calmly at the head of the table, a handgun resting under my palm—and then they looked at their trembling 'Master.'
"Guards," I said, my voice barely a whisper, yet it filled the room. "The moment you take a step toward me, I will reveal the location of your families to the creditors you've been dodging. And Marcus," I turned my gaze to the younger Elder, "if you draw that sword, I'll tell the Council exactly who poisoned your brother last spring to secure your seat."
Marcus froze. The guards lowered their spears, their eyes wide with a terror that no 'System' could protect them from.
[System Notification: Fear harvested from 'Elder Marcus.' Fear Tickets +30] [System Notification: Fear harvested from 'Guard A & B.' Fear Tickets +15]
I stood up, the movement fluid and silent. I walked around the table, stopping behind Silas. He was breathing heavily, his 'Iron Wall' aura now completely gone. He was a Rank 7 user, but in the face of a man who knew his every sin, he was nothing.
"The 'Hero Association' doesn't want partners, Silas. They want tools," I whispered into his ear. "And tools are meant to be used until they break. You thought you were the one in control? You were just the first sheep they planned to shear."
I reached out and patted his shoulder. Silas flinched as if I'd struck him with a whip.
"Now," I said, turning to the entire room. "This is how it's going to go. Silas is going to sign over his shares of the Cain treasury to me. Marcus, you're going to give me the keys to the underground vault. And the rest of you... you're going to kneel."
"Kneel?" one of the Council members scoffed, though his voice wavered. "To a kid? System or no system, you're still just—"
I didn't let him finish. I pulled the trigger.
BANG.
The bullet didn't hit him. It shattered the wine glass in his hand, spraying red liquid across his expensive suit. He fell backward, screaming, clutching his chest as if he'd been hit.
"The next one won't miss the glass," I said, the smell of gunpowder filling the air. "I am the head of this Clan. Not because of a bloodline, and not because of a Hero's certificate. I am the head because I am the only one in this room who isn't afraid to be the monster this world deserves."
One by one, the guards dropped to their knees. Then the Council members. Finally, with a broken sob, Silas fell to his joints, his forehead hitting the marble floor.
[System Notification: Massive Fear Event Detected! Total Fear Tickets Harvested: 450] [Gacha Draw: 4 Spins Available. Would User like to spin?]
I looked down at the broken men before me. The 'Timid Michael' was truly gone. I felt a cold, dark satisfaction blooming in my chest.
"GTAS," I thought, "Spin the wheel. Let's see what other nightmares I can bring to this world."
The black-gold light of the System flared in my mind, the wheel spinning faster than ever before.
[Spinning... Results:]
[Black Gold]: The Joker's Laugh (Active Aura: Causes mass hysteria and paralysis in enemies within 50 meters)
[Black]: High-Frequency Vibrating Blade (Weapon)
[Purple]: Stealth Camouflage Suit (Technology)
[White]: A single, cold French fry.
I smiled. The "Heroes" of the Association thought they were the only ones with a System. They thought they were the apex predators.
They were about to find out that there was something much higher on the food chain.
"Clean this up," I commanded the maid who was still shaking in the corner. "And bring me a fresh coffee. I have a world to terrify."
The silence that followed my command was absolute. Silas remained pinned to the floor, his dignity shattered into as many pieces as the wine glass I'd decimated. The Council members, men who had spent decades plotting and backstabbing, looked like terrified children in the presence of a ghost.
"The coffee, Sarah," I said, glancing at the maid. She scrambled toward the kitchen as if the devil himself were chasing her. In a way, he was.
I looked at Marcus, who was still trembling. "The vault keys. Now."
He didn't hesitate. He fumbled in his pocket and produced a heavy, biometric keycard—the lifeblood of the Cain Clan's physical assets. I took it, the cold plastic a reminder of the power I now held.
"Silas, get up," I said, my tone bored. "The floor is for dogs and failures. You have three hours to transfer the digital assets. If a single cent is missing, I won't kill you. I'll simply leak your browsing history and your Association contracts to the rival gangs you've cheated over the years. Let's see how your 'Iron Wall' holds up against a thousand hungry hyenas."
Silas scrambled to his feet, his face a mask of pure, unadulterated fear. He didn't even look me in the eye as he bowed and practically ran from the room.
[System Notification: Fear harvested from 'Council of Elders.' Fear Tickets +150] [Total Tickets: 600]
The maid returned, her hands shaking so violently the fine china clattered against the tray. She set the coffee down and sprinted away. I took a slow sip. It was bitter, dark, and perfect.
"GTAS," I thought, "integrate the Villainous Genius and Stealth Camouflage rewards."
A cool sensation, like a drop of menthol in my brain, washed over me. Suddenly, the chaotic mess of memories from the original Michael began to organize themselves. Names, faces, dates—everything the 'Timid Heir' had overheard but ignored was now categorized and analyzed. I didn't just have a gang; I had a roadmap of the city's corruption.
I stood up and adjusted my cuffs. "Driver. Prepare the Rolls Royce. We're going for a ride."
Ten minutes later, I was sitting in the plush leather interior of a black-on-black Phantom. The driver, a man named Leo who had served my grandfather, kept stealing glances at me in the rearview mirror. He knew something was different. The boy who usually hid in the backseat with a tablet was gone. In his place was a man who radiated a quiet, terrifying stillness.
"Where to, Young Master?" Leo asked, his voice respectful for the first time in years.
"The Hero Association Headquarters," I replied. "The Central District branch."
Leo's hands tightened on the steering wheel. "Sir? That's... that's a high-security zone. After what happened with your parents, the Association might not welcome—"
"I'm not going for a welcome, Leo. I'm going for a look."
As the car glided through the streets of the city, I looked out the window. This world was a neon-lit dystopia. Everywhere I looked, I saw the 'System' at work. Above the skyscrapers, holographic billboards displayed the 'Rankings' of the top Heroes.
Rank 1: Apollo. Rank 2: Aegis. They looked like gods. The public adored them. But through the lens of my [Psychology King] talent, all I saw were high-level predators hiding behind marketing teams.
We pulled up across the street from the Association's massive glass-and-steel monolith. It was a fortress of 'Justice.' Heroes in spandex and tactical armor moved in and out, surrounded by adoring fans and cameras.
"Stay here," I commanded.
I didn't get out. I just rolled down the window slightly, letting the ambient 'Fear' of the city wash over me. I activated [The Joker's Laugh] passive effect—not the hysteria, but the subtle aura of unease.
Passerby began to walk a little faster when they passed the car. A low-level 'Hero' walking a dog nearby stopped, his animal whining and tucking its tail between its legs. The Hero looked around, confused, feeling a cold chill that shouldn't exist on a summer afternoon.
I watched a group of Rank 4 Heroes laughing as they stepped out of a private transport. They were the ones who had 'rescued' the city during the mission that killed my parents. To the world, they were saviors. To me, they were targets.
Soon, I thought.
[System Notification: Subconscious Fear Detected in 50m radius. Fear Tickets +5... +5... +10...]
I closed my eyes, the [Criminal Mastermind] talent already drawing blueprints of the building's ventilation and security blind spots just from the external layout.
"Leo," I said, my voice cutting through the silence of the car. "Drive. I've seen enough."
"Yes, Master Michael."
As the car pulled away, I looked at the Gacha screen in my mind. 600 tickets. It was time to stop being a "victim" of this world and start being its nightmare.
"GTAS," I whispered. "Prepare for a mass draw. Tomorrow, the city learns what it truly means to be afraid."