System Within: Rise Of Frank Williams

CHAPTER 4: THE KING’S DECREE

Morning came red and loud. Bells clanged through the capital like warnings from the heavens.

Frank woke on the floor of an abandoned inn, muscles aching, mind still humming with echoes of last night’s battle.

He whispered, “System… status?”

[Vitals stable. Energy reserve: 62%. Warning: Multiple distress signals detected across the city.]

“Distress? From what?”

[Royal announcement in progress. Source: Central Plaza.]

 He pulled his hood up and slipped into the streets.

 The plaza was overflowing , merchants, soldiers, beggars, everyone pressed close around the marble stage. At its center stood King Alaric Vorn, draped in gold armor, his crown glinting beneath the rising sun. His voice boomed across the square.

 “Men of Draefen!” he declared. “Our numbers dwindle. The frontlines devour our strength while our homes overflow with widows. I will not watch my kingdom rot.”

 The crowd murmured uneasily.

 Alaric’s eyes, cold and fever-bright, swept the masses. “From this day forth, every man above eighteen will take a wife within one month. Those who refuse shall serve the crown on the eastern front,or forfeit their heads.”

 Gasps spread like wildfire. A woman cried out, “You can’t force marriage!” Guards silenced her with a single swing of a spear-butt. Frank whispered, “This is insanity.”

 [Observation: Population control masked as ritualistic policy.]

He frowned. “Ritualistic?”

 [Cross-reference: energy readings beneath the palace match traces of Ascended Court signatures.]

“So the king’s connected to them?”

[Probability: 84%.]

 On stage, Alaric raised his sword. “This decree ensures balance! Every man shall contribute life to the realm!” Frank’s stomach turned. “He’s feeding them lives,” he murmured.

 A voice beside him whispered, “You understand more than most.” He turned. A woman stood in the shadows of a pillar , tall, cloaked in silver. Her eyes, pale violet, studied him with unnerving calm.

“Who are you?” he asked. She smiled faintly. “Someone who listens to voices too. You hear them, don’t you? The system.” Frank stiffened. “You know about it?”

 “I know it isn’t human,” she said softly. “And I know the king’s decree is only the beginning.”

[Scanning… Identity: Elara Vorn. Relation: Royal bloodline confirmed.]

 Frank blinked. “You’re his daughter.” She held a finger to her lips. “Not so loud. I’m not here to defend him. I’m here to stop him.”

 “Stop your father?”

 “He isn’t my father anymore,” she said. “He’s a vessel. Something ancient moves inside him,something that smells like the power inside you.”

 Frank’s pulse quickened. “You’re saying the Ascended Court possessed him?”

 “Not possessed,merged,” she whispered. “He believes it’s guidance from the gods. In truth, it’s devouring him.”

 The plaza erupted as soldiers began marking men with crimson seals,brands of forced engagement. Chaos spread; people shoved, screamed, fled.

 Elara grabbed Frank’s wrist. “If you stay here, they’ll mark you too. Come.”  He hesitated. “Why help me?”

 “Because whatever’s inside you is fighting the same war I am.” 

[Alert: Multiple hostiles approaching.]

Three guards spotted them. “You there! Stop!” Frank cursed. “System,options?”

[Recommendation: Evade using Enhanced Perception.]

 Time slowed again. He saw every movement before it happened,each guard’s footstep, each swing of a blade. He ducked, twisted, slammed one man’s helmet into another’s.

 Elara’s dagger flashed, cutting the third’s belt, dropping him unconscious.

 She looked at him, impressed. “You’re faster than rumor said.”

 “I’m still new at this,” he panted.

 They dashed through the side streets until the palace bells drowned the chaos. Finally, in the narrow safety of an alley, Frank pressed his back to the wall. “So what now?”

 Elara pulled back her hood. “Now, you listen. There’s an archive beneath the palace,the King’s Vault. It holds records from before the first war. If you want to know what your ‘system’ is, that’s where the truth sleeps.” 

[New Mission Unlocked: Infiltrate the King’s Vault. Reward: Access to Class Upgrade Protocol.]

Frank exhaled slowly. “Breaking into the palace. Great.”

 Elara smirked. “You’ll get used to impossible things.” He met her gaze. “You’re serious about stopping him.” She nodded. “And you’re the only one who can.”

 A sudden tremor rolled through the ground,deep, resonant, like a monster stirring beneath the city.

[Warning: Massive energy surge detected under the palace.]

Citizens screamed as cracks split the plaza stones. From each fissure poured faint golden light. Elara’s face went pale. “He’s starting the ritual early.”

 Frank grabbed her hand. “Then we don’t have a month.” 

“No,” she whispered. “We have a day.” The air filled with the toll of the great bell, heavy and final.

[System Update: Global Event Triggered , ‘The Binding of Men.’]

 Frank looked toward the palace, its towers glowing like a cage of suns. “Guess the game just changed,” he muttered.