"Holy Heavens, what on earth did I miss? What in the hell?" Thus spoke The Wanderer.
"Oh, my poor child. You've finally taken the time to check back on your protagonist? Well, do you know what you did wrong?" In came High Heaven No. 4, via the mental channel.
"N... No? What went wrong?" Wanderer was confused. He'd been busy, okay? No one had the time to constantly monitor someone, right?
High Heaven No. 4 continued. "Once you've chosen your MC, you have to watch over them. It's very easy if you still had your rights as Heaven, but you don't. That's the whole point of your punishment."
The Wanderer looked at the wreckage of the battlefield, where the Border once stood.
"Who knows what might happen to your MC once you've chosen one. You need to be there, in order to constantly shape and mold their story." High Heaven No. 4 finished.
"... Fine. But! I was doing something super important! I'm preparing the MC for the next continent." Wanderer finished as well, before cutting off the mental link.
It was true. He'd been busy preparing for the future. After all, The Wanderer would have to make 6 stories, not just one. So, he'd travelled from the Central Cities all the way down south, into the Thousand Isles. Then from there, he'd travelled all the way up north to the Ice Caves. Finally, he'd made his way back, preparing to implant a goal into Cane's mind using Mind Control.
But what had happened while he was gone? Wanderer had no clue. He was burning up with curiosity, but he knew it had to wait.
First, The Wanderer needed to clear up the aftermath.
...
He'd already turned the upper echelons of the City into his puppets, directly killing them and replacing them with his disguised clones. No one knew that there was anything wrong.
Using his power, he quickly discovered the info he'd missed before. Knowledge about Noelle, Abel and Chuck showed up. There were no official records of Cane or Krouse, but some of The Wealthy Ones had already gathered info about the two. It wasn't anything worth looking at, according to them, but they did it anyways - in fact, they had records of almost everyone in the Central Cities, including non-citizens.
Knowledge is power, after all.
Wanderer directly went through the battlefield, painting a story which didn't exist. He made it seem as if General Ren had joined in the fight and died, firstly. Secondly, he made it look like everyone died. There was no one left - Cane, Abel, Krouse, Chuck and Noelle all died. Third, he made it look like the Mech Beast had fought with the Border, facing off against the Sky Serpent and ending in mutual destruction. Finally, he tracked down and killed the others who'd fought at the Border, but fled. He brought the bodies to the battlefield, and cremated them.
Then, he waited for the government to investigate, preparing to distort the subsequent reports as he deemed fit, using his power as a Wealthy One. If he even needed to distort the reports.
The Wanderer also set off to look for Cane, but he wasn't too sure where he went.
Hopefully, the aftermath can be cleaned up nicely.
...
Abel felt as if he was flying through the air. The moment he'd exploded, his body was almost completely eviscerated. But his soul remained.
During that time, he felt a tugging sensation. He flew about in confusion, finding Chuck as well. Chuck's soul was seeping into the metal of his mech, similar to a possessed animatronic.
Taking Chuck with him, the two of them flew about, finding Krouse, Noelle and Cane respectively. Chuck also took the time to find his parents one more time, though they couldn't see him.
Mr. and Mrs. Clements would wait for their son forever.
After some time had passed, the gaseous clouds inside Abel's room billowed once, twice, three times. It escaped his room, permeating into the air and collecting the two of them.
Chuck was confused, but Abel knew. They were heading off to Flower City.
Chuck's parents would only meet him again in many years. But for Abel?
The pair moved past glowing lights, strange sounds, stranger sights.
They entered the gates, welcoming, warm. Flower City awaited.
Mom... dad. I'm coming home.
...
"Holy sh*t. This can be called a battlefield?" The government investigation team entered the Border, eyes wide at the destroyed sight.
"Enough chatter. Everyone, split up and search for survivors. I'm going to check the traces of the fight and try to create a narrative of the events." The lead investigator ordered the rest of the team.
While the lead investigator left, one of the members entered a room. Coughing, he swept away at the strange smells in the air. Noticing a pile of manuscripts on a desk, he moved forward to check them.
"What the f*ck..." He couldn't help but gasp as he read through them. "This... this is like a diary of a dead wizard."
It was the Tales of Flower City. The top page still showed an unfinished story about the Rat-King.
Thinking quickly, he called for others over the intercom.
These stories are obviously fake, but still. They'd be a great addition to the Library, right?
"I wonder who made these stories. They're beautiful."
...
Meanwhile, another member had entered a different room, filled with spare mechanical parts and blueprints. He scanned the room, noticing the blueprints lining the walls, the member had a slow realisation.
"Are these... mech blueprints?" He studied them closer, and what he saw shocked him.
A Mech, built for fighting under the City. Yes, that's not original, people think about those all the time. But... is this cost-effectiveness real!!!
He had just witnessed what looked to be one of the cheapest Mechs ever designed - if the machine could actually work. That required further testing.
"Captain? I think I've found something revolutionary."
...
Finally, the team had managed to create a timeline of events, based off of the traces of the battle.
"First, General Ren seemed to have visited. We also know that Captain Noelle and General Ren are father and daughter. This seems to be one of the reasons for the visit." The lead investigator began.
"Another reason for his visit also seems to be delivering this Bear Mech. It's not on any records, so we can only assume it was a personal gift." Another member interjected.
"Right. After that, we have records of a level 4 alarm being activated. This is further corroborated by the remains of a charred Sky Serpent." The lead investigator continued.
"Thus, the two parties fought, and, with the only Rank 4 battle power on the Border Team being that Bear Mech, the others couldn't hold on in the fight."
And they died. Those words went unspoken, but everyone knew.
"Finally, the Bear Mech and the Sky Serpent seemed to have fallen in mutual destruction."
The investigation team grew silent.
"Let's inform their remaining family."
"Well, as far as we can tell, only one member of the Border Control team has any remaining family..."
...
Mrs. Clements was startled out of her reverie when she heard a knock at the front door.
Chuck?
Mr. Clements rushed to the door, opening it with a grin.
"Eyy, look who's back! Come on in, my... son..."
Mrs. Clements stared at the people, situated outside her door. They wore military uniforms. They held their hats at their chests with a sombre look.
"Mr. and Mrs. Clements. We regret to inform you that your son, Chuck Clements, has passed away in the line of duty."
The words barely registered. Mr. Clements staggered as if he'd been punched in the gut. Then, he turned, pale-faced, and found a seat to collapse in.
Mrs. Clements' eyes stared blankly at the men. Chuck... my baby boy... he- he's DEAD?
The two parents grieved silently. Though they wished to wail in pain, they could only feel an injustice, an unfairness of sorts.
A sense of waste, or perhaps of regret.
Mrs. Clements slowly began to sob, tears streaking down her face. Mr. Clements was no better, hoarsely yelling in anger.
"MY SON! You devils... demons at the Border. To hell with justice. To hell with protecting the people." He groaned, sounding like a wounded animal. "You and your damned Border. WHERE'S MY SON???"
He rushed at the group of men, who silently restrained him. It was tough on them too.
Almost every day, they had to inform families of their loved ones' deaths. For families like the Clements household, it felt worse, especially when they could see the abject poverty the family had lived in.
The worst part of it all?
They wouldn't have time to grieve. For a family so poor, they'd need to work every day - all day. Just to survive. Day in, day out. Life would have to go on, though life - for one man - had ended.
As the men left, a single thought plagued their minds.
What a hellish world.
What a hellish life.
This City. What a hell we're living in.
All of us.
...
Meanwhile, Wanderer had finally found Cane.
He was wearing a mask and cloak, perhaps imitating a certain someone he once received strength from. The two of them were on a rooftop, with Cane staring down at the ground.
The Wanderer was invisible, peering at Cane through the mask. His eyes looked dull and lifeless.
This time, I definitely won't leave your side.
With this thought firm in his mind, Wanderer resolved himself, and - with one use of Mind Control - he implanted within Cane a desire.
A desire to own everything. The City, the people, the laws and the properties. All of it.
As for Cane, he'd been looking down at the bustling people below.
Contemplating suicide.
He'd half made up his mind, when, suddenly, like a bolt of inspiration, Cane knew what he needed to do.
I need to own the City.
No more will the laws favour citizens over "non-citizens". In fact, EVERYONE will be citizens.
No more will people have access to dangerous weapons, no more will the City prioritise profit over people.
I will buy this entire f*cking City and change it by MYSELF.
He then glared into the distance, his eyes penetrating through The Wanderer's invisible face and startling him.
"But first... I am going to take revenge on the man who sent that mech."
And once I find him, I will tear that man limb from limb.