Man…this rain is really something...

-Eight Years Post Saturation Completion. CONT.-

Understanding that I was working on my end to bring down the other guilds, he opted to leave the other Leaders and vice leaders out of the official report, causing those still alive to breathe a sigh of relief. 

However, they were unaware that the sword of Damocles now hung over their heads, as I had never forgotten their identities. 

Although I was working alone, I had gained so much information from the shadows and mingling with other villains that it was only a matter of time before I acted. 

With the knowledge of how far advanced my stats would become, all I needed was a little bit more time before I could enact my plan. 

Meanwhile, Brenden had been amassing resources, waiting for the day I would show up at his doorstep, and the number of coins and materials he withdrew from his inventory caused my jaw to drop. 

Elixirs that increased specific stats by a small amount, materials that could be used to upgrade my gear; hell, he even tossed in several weapons and armor pieces just in case I wasn't able to complete the upgrades myself.

Then, there was the bag filled with Low-Delta and High-Delta coins that practically made my head spin. 1000 Low and 200 High Delta coins, it was a fortune unlike what I had ever seen, and he knew that with this amount of money, I would be able to do whatever I needed to be prepared for our revenge. 

Apart from training, I hadn't been idle in my research, and to some extent, I was relatively adept at most trade skills. With my high Intellect stat, I could devour and retain so much information that it wasn't difficult to pick up a hobby or two in my free time; thus, things like smithing or tailoring were not outsourced to professionals in those fields but instead done by me. 

That was the beauty of the many Arkadia Shops, more specifically, the Upgrades and MISC shops. 

No matter what rank of Shop you accessed, there was bound to be a handful of different books or tomes that gave detailed instructions on specific trade skills. Although Arkadia didn't recognize rudimentary classes like in video games, that didn't mean they were non-existent in name. 

With billions and billions of beings each having Talents, there were bound to be more than a few who had a Talent revolving around specific skills such as forging, alchemy, or tailoring, so there needed to exist some resource that would help those people grow, and that was where the Shop came in play. 

Of course, that didn't segregate the laymen from picking up those resources and learning, only that there would be a specific peak of knowledge they could achieve that would be overshadowed by someone with a Talent allowing them to excel at the task.

Regardless, what I had learned from those different tomes was more than enough to learn a trade skill or six heh, depending on how bored I was. 

Gathering up the resources and wishing my brother and sister-in-law farewell, I headed south, back down to Orlando, where I stopped off at BarkLawn. 

It had been two years since I went to my father's Grave, and standing before it caused my heart to ache. I missed him dearly, more than I thought possible.

Arriving at the well-kept graveyard, I used the cover provided by a typical Florida thunderstorm, made my way over to the family plot, and walked up to the headstone with my father's name. 

Kneeling down, I left a tribute in the form of some black licorice jelly beans and kettle corn popcorn before standing up with a smile. 

Those were his two favorite snacks, and even if I wasn't particularly fond of them, I had been eating them in his memory. 

"Hey Dad…I know you'd probably be pissed at me for the things I've done…but I'd probably get off with a few stern words and a smack in the back of the head. Well, that is, if it were the older you and not the hell-raiser you had been when I was a kid, haha." Making my way to the giant oak tree in the center of the family plot, I sat down on the granite bench dedicated to my grandmother and looked at the cloudy sky. 

"Things are going to get pretty dicey soon, but your sons are well and thriving. Brenden and I never stopped training like you taught us and have become quite strong, both of us…fooo." Near the end of the statement, my voice quivered a bit, and I found myself taking a deep, shaky breath while my eyes began misting over. 

"Man…this rain is really something, isn't it, Dad…" Feeling the tears sliding down my cheeks, I made a corny joke, one that would have made the old man laugh. 

"I miss you, Dad, more and more every time I see something that reminds me of you. My whole life, you were always there, and suddenly you're not… it's been rough, hah, to say the least, but I know what I'm doing, so you don't have to be too worried."

"I don't know if you've talked to Brenden lately, but still no news on the Grandkids front; it seems that he and Emilia have decided to wait until after our revenge is done for that." Wearing a sad smile, I wiped my tears and got up off the bench. 

"I've got to go, Dad; I promise not to let two years go by before coming to see you again…I hope it's nice wherever you are and that you got to see Grandpa, Nanny, Uncle Gideon, and Aunt Penelope; I know you missed them." 

"I love you, Dad…" With that said, I took one more look back at his headstone, then made my way over to the bell and did my customary task of ringing it for all my deceased family members before setting off. 

Setting my emotions in check, I got onto my hoverbike and sped off…back into the hell that Earth had become since the descent of Arkadia.