Mission Complete and a Disasterous Privilege

They were given a clean place to rest until the ceremony demanded their presence at dusk.

Kai barely spoke a word after entering the venue, and Item-M seemed to have noticed the absence of expressions on his face, their hands still together, and their fingers still entwined in each other. This was a dangerous place, and any moment of relief and lapse would cost them their life.

They weren't foolish enough to think that they were the only Contestants attending this wedding.

For now, they must act as if they were some unmentioned in-world characters. A lord and his lady. And, yes. A young, sly steward.

'The moment we will present those Dragon eggs,' Item-M had discussed with him and Petyr one night, 'all Contestants will get to know that something's wrong. Now, as your main mission is about Daenerys herself, then we can concretely assume that she doesn't have any top-floor guard protecting her, and by extension, there wouldn't be any guard for Drogo or any main-storyline character worth protecting in the wedding those who are related to her. So our enemies will be hundreds of 3rd-floor Contestants, and dozens of 4th-floor ones. But like us, they wouldn't get to use their powers in the open as well. We must use the clamor after Drogo and Daenerys departure to teleport out of this world.'

The plan seemed flawless at one glance, but there were tiny loopholes that would only emerge while putting it in action, Kai knew. Still, no reason to discard the plan itself. There was no plan completely perfect in this world, Kai had learned in his previous life. The entire game was about marginal errors and allowances, and how impressively one would improvise once they would show themselves.

The rest of the afternoon burned away as Kai gawked at the vista of pure carnage going on under the raised earthen ramp. Women were dancing, and then a warrior lunged at one of them, having her then and there like a beast. Then another warrior came into the circle, claiming the same woman for himself. A jape, a shove, an alien curse, and soon, their arakhs were out, long razor-sharp blades, half sword and half scythe, a weapon that Kai found quite fascinating to behold.

Kai licked his lips as he saw the two warriors dance around each other, his blood boiling. They leaped at each other, whirling the blades, and spat insults at each clash. No one interfered, Kai noticed. Another thing he noticed was the movements of their feet as if they were dancing in a rhythm. An Ability!

He exchanged glances with Item-M, who was looking down at where Kai's fingers had tightly gripped her own. -/Is there a movement Ability hidden among the Dothraki?/- Kai asked telepathically, ignoring her dazed expression. She lifted her eyes, misty like oiled pearls.

"Uncountable," she replied.

Kai's heart pounded, and he looked back. It ended as quickly as it had begun. One Dothraki missed a step, Kai saw, his eyes squinting, and the other swung his blade in a menacing arc. Steel kissed the flesh just above Dothraki's waist, and opened him up, spilling his entrails into the dust. As the loser died, the winner took hold of the nearest woman, and not even the one they had been fighting over… and had her there and then again. Kai felt a rush of heat in his loins. Now, this was how it was meant to be. This was how one meant to enjoy. Feast, fight, kill, blood, slaughter, and at last, sex.

He wanted to kill, too. Maybe there was a benefit hidden in there somewhere. An unmatched Skill or Ability.

The Demon was making him mad, and the strong fermented milk befuddled his mind.

Kai stole his attention away, and took a deep breath, calming himself. His hold on Item-M's hand softened, and only then did he let out a breath.

Today he must not lose focus, he repeated to himself. Too much was at stake.

Slaves carried off the dead body, leaving behind a trail of blood and dangling flesh, and before the time of the gift ceremony came another dozen men had died.

Now, Khal Drogo clapped his hands together, and all sounds came to a sudden halt. Both the bridegroom and the bride stood up to receive the bridal gifts. Kai saw as the prince, dressed in red silk with a dragon on his chest, gifted his sister three handmaids. A knight approached her then, leaving his seat that was just below the prince, and gifted the bride a collection of old books.

It was time, Kai knew, as he saw the knight stepping off the ramp. Their moment had come.

Both Kai and Item-M stood up, eyes adjusting to gawk at them, at Item-M's unworldly beauty, and the immense chest, now being lifted by the servants. But before the clamor could die, Kai ordered Petyr to disappear, taking shelter in his body. He couldn't afford someone recognizing the young man once they had gone up there, no matter how low and ridiculous a possibility it was. The translator followed them, his head bobbing around in search of the sly steward, but one bloody look from Kai showed him his place too.

They stepped towards the ramp like two celestials ascending the stairs to the heavens. Not even Khal Drogo and Daenerys seemed to match them in the picturesque scene they seemed to portray in thousands of eyes, and only the power and status of the Khal and Khaleesi were keeping everyone from comparing these two couples to each other.

As they neared the bride, from the corner of his eyes, Kai saw the prince, Viserys, eying Item-M with two eyes filled with pure lust and hunger. The beggar king leaned towards Magister Illyrio, whispering something, but never took his eyes off her.

The world was already shaking for Kai.

Once again, the book was shaking, trying to rip apart the fabric of space and lunge at Daenerys' tale, he knew.

But Kai had no desire to devour her tale now. His path was set, and he wouldn't budge from it. Come storm or a god's wrath, it didn't matter.

The translator came running forward, followed by the servants who put the enormous chest in between the two couples. Kai felt hundreds of ill-intended gazes on him through his Perception and instinctively knew that the Contestants had finally sensed something was awry about all this.

Kai had no leisure to think about those gazes for long, though. He was eying the Khal, the monster of a man. Even at this distance, he could feel the heat coming off Drogo, making his Perception shiver. Drogo didn't seem bigger than Andrik to him, but there was something about the Khal that screamed he wouldn't win against the long-braided man without showing his Skill, in which case he would die either way.

The translator introduced Kai and Item-M as the heir to some distant kingdom and his queen, while the servants threw the chest open. A gasp escaped the girl's mouth, and for once, Kai put all his attention on her.

'She is young,' Kai realized, forgetting that he was a 16-year-old youth himself. '13, the system mentioned her age. Even younger than the young Cersei.'

As the bride fumbled with the eggs, Kai couldn't help but think of the fate that awaited her tonight. He looked at Viserys over his shoulder and felt a deep disgust for the man who had sold his own sister to this barbarian. Oh, no. If it was in Kai's hands, he would have sold Daenerys too for power, but not if she were his family. A hypocrite the world may call him, but the world could go fuck itself in his eyes. Never had he claimed to be honest, to begin with. Even Demons had some things they cherished as they thirsted for power.

Family, killing without benefits, and risks without reasoning. These were the points where Kai drew his line.

Dare someone who suggests that he cross it?

"What are they?" the girl with golden-white hair asked.

Item-M replied with a smile. "Dragon eggs, from the Shadow land beyond the Asshai," she said, the translator turning her words in the alien Dothraki for the Khal. Then she pointed at Kai. "My lord husband had gone to great lengths to procure them. Three dragon eggs, though the eons have turned them a stone, are the only things that can justify a Targaryen beauty, he had told me."

Their eyes matched. Kai smiled at her, thinking what would he have done if he was in Viserys' shoes. "An honor to see you, princess," he said, gently. "Three dragon eggs for the three heads of the Targaryen Dragon."

The little girl seemed confused, but passed thanks meekly, anyway.

Kai noticed she was shivering a bit, as he bowed in acceptance. Then they backed off, stepping down. Meanwhile, hundreds of magical gazes tried to decipher if Kai and Item-M were Contestants or a product of the timeline's deviation.

As they stood aside, the notification came like a knock Kai had been waiting for too long.

[

Side Mission: Mother of Dragons

Side Mission Status: Success

Side Mission Rewards:

1. 165 Mission Credits

2. +2 Attribute Points

Warning: You have completed your 1st Set's quota of Attribute Points

]

[

Congratulations Kai Stormborn…

You have completed the Main Mission

Mission: Three heads of the Targaryen Dragon

Mission Status: Completed

Mission Time Limit: 5 months

Mission Difficulty: E+

Side Missions Attempted: 9

Side Missions Completed: 9

Hidden Missions Attempted: 1

Hidden Missions Completed: 1

Calculating Mission Clear Rate…

Mission Clear Rate: 79%

Mission Rewards:

1. 1760 Mission Credits

Warning: You cannot leave the random world before the Main Mission's Time Limit is over.

Time Left: 49 days

]

Kai felt a tug on his sleeve and found Item-M looking at him meaningfully. This wasn't the time to stare at the notifications, she seemed to imply.

Yes, this was the time to use his privilege.

A hush rippled out from the center of the camp as the moment came for the Khal to present his gift to Daenerys. This was the last opportunity they would get, Kai knew. Once the Khal and the Khaleesi left the camp to consummate their marriage under the blanket of stars, a slaughter would happen here if they hadn't gone by then.

'Which Character will have the honor of being your first companion on your fresh path, master?' Item-M had prodded once.

Kai had no answer then. Since the moment Item-M had told him about Multiverse Interdependency and had given him the list of Characters that suited the path he had chosen for himself, he had been thinking about who would be his first target. It can't be anyone stronger than Kai himself, otherwise, finding such a Character and surviving would be a futile case. It was then Kai remembered the profundity of an event that had made him feel helpless.

The time paradox!

Kai had reflected that using the Act, Blood Prophecy, he could pry the secrets of the future, even if he couldn't use it himself for some time. And if he could pry into the secrets of the past as well, then wouldn't he be walking onto a supreme path? Mastery over his Time!

Now that thought had bubbled up a dangerous hunger within him.

It had also pushed him towards a decision, a target, who suited his needs more than anyone else.

And if he were to make a Side Mission about the Character himself, then he wouldn't need to worry about any top-floor Contestant guarding the character either.

'Chaos,' Kai thought. 'Create a Side Mission to punch Character Rintaro Okabe.'

Simple and to the point. That was what Kai had aimed for. And, yes. The World of Steins;Gate, for that as well.

[

Processing Contestant Kai Stormborn's request…

Eligibility for the privilege confirmed

Creating the Side Mission…

You have triggered a Side Mission

Main Mission: Not Applicable

Side Mission: Punch Rintaro Okabe

Side Mission Summary: Rintaro Okabe has forgotten to bring the drink, Dr. Pepper, from the market. He must apologize to Mayuri Shiina for this blunder. Punch him before he reaches his lab, and apologizes, creating a momentary rift between the two characters.

Side Mission Objective: Knock Rintaro Okabe out

Side Mission Time Limit: Not Applicable

Side Mission Hint: Organization

Points to be noted for this Side Mission:

1. A Time Difference will be enforced depending upon the two different Random Worlds (1 hour World of Steins;Gate = 13.5 days World of Game of Thrones)

2. A one-time fee will be deducted based on various criteria applicable to the Contestant while accessing the privilege (Fee: 10000 MC for 1 hour. 100 MC for every subsequent second for 1 minute. The amount will double with every next minute spent in the Switched World)

3. Only Party Members may teleport along with the Contestant.

4. The Contestant can return to the Random World relevant to the main mission anytime. The Mission Credits will not be refunded.

Do you accept the mission?

]

'Do I accept the mission?!' Kai's teeth almost clattered as he saw the points related to the Time Difference and the Price.

Time was running out. Daenerys had already sat on her newly gifted silver filly. Soon she would gallop away, followed by the Khal. Kai felt a pit had replaced his stomach, his heart in his mouth. That's why he had been avoiding knowing about these points, as they might have differed any other time. And now, he must act.

'Chaos,' he again barked inwardly. 'Calculate the Mission Credits I would need to compress the remaining time after returning from the Steins;Gate World in 1 hour.'

This request cost him 500 MC already.

[

500 Mission Credits deducted

Analyzing the Contestant's Stats…

Calculating future scenarios…

Analyzation Complete

Result: 18000 Mission Credits

]

'This?!' Kai's eyes widened. 'It would just leave me with 520 MC. I wouldn't be able to afford even a minute over 1 hour.'

Item-M tugged at his sleeve again, sweat running down his forehead. The Contestants were closing in on them from all directions. Daenerys' filly had broken into a trot, the Khal following her on his humongous stallion.

It was now or never.

"Yes, damn it! Yes. I accept it," he muttered under his breath, his face becoming ugly.

The sea of Dothraki people erupted with a million voices, and from all around, men and women were rushing at them, danger crawling up on their spines like spiders. Item-M had heard his voice, and using the commotion, threw two Origamis out of her Inventory, as they both backed up using their overpowered Agility.

The two Origamis looked exactly like Kai and Item-M, holding hands, and smiling nobly as they saw the married couple leaving the camp.

As the blue light shone around them, Kai saw the faintest hint of several glints of steel approaching their paper forms.

A hand grabbed paper Item-M's blazing red hair, pulled them, and then her face crumpled like paper. A woman saw this; an insignificant in-world character.

A darker than dark, fouler than Kai's Dementor-form, and incomprehensibly grotesque-shaped rift, opened up like a maw over the head of the Contestant to whom that hand had belonged. The spatial rift engulfed the man whole, and the woman continued her joyous screams as if she had seen nothing.

It was another reason for them to present themselves as ordinary people, as no in-world character would relate any supernatural phenomenon to them, even if it were to happen in front of their eyes.

The fate that should have belonged to Item-M now became someone else's. It wasn't the first time for Item-M to use this kind of treachery, either. It was just that only lower-floor Contestants were naive enough to succumb to such tricks.

Kai was stunned, in awe of the horror. 'What if she had used such methods against me?' He asked himself.

And, at this moment, they both vanished.