At that revelation my pace grew pale, I walked into my mansion, silently considering arson. The head maid talked me out of it, proposing insecticide instead.
In the evening, I bid Mr Plates farewell as he left an enlightened man.
Additionally, the insecticide I ordered earlier in the morning arrived, a truck load of it. After issuing the maids instructions to cover every single room with insecticide and pour a few gallons down the hole for good measure I left to sleep in the guest mansion.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The next two days I stayed a comfortable distance away from the roach spawn point in the guest mansion.
I was informed by the head maid that far more than a 100 roaches emerged from the hole within these two days. Her estimates were a 1,000 roaches yesterday and 10,000 today.
TEN THOUSAND!!
Arson seems more and more like the most reasonable choice every day. If the trend continues and the next day 100,000 roaches appear from that damn hole I'll genuinely burn down the mansion if it means death to all those disgusting bugs.
Wait… if the roaches are coming from that hole, surely it means their nest is located within the hole. How about I just burn down the hole instead?
Sometimes my genius truely amazes me.
Don't you worry father, your daughter dearest will protect your hard earned mansion from these bugs!
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Same day, midnight.
300 kilos of TNT.
20 miles from my estate is a town and 20 miles from the town is a marble quarry. Twenty thousand dollars in hard cash and the watchman personally hauled the mining supplies to my estate.
The TNT is already set up, when I give the word it'll all go boom!
*Bringggg* My phone rings
"Lieutenant Anna, requesting approval to go boom, over." The head maid's voices comes from the other side.
"Supreme commander emperor general Jean, request approved. Show them hell Anna." I responded.
3…2…1… kaboo-
— BOOOOOM!! —
Damn the explosion was louder than I thought it would be.
Wait.
Why the hell is there a mushroom cloud?! I thought those were only for nukes. No, nonononononono at this rate… the main mansion is totally… destroyed.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Day 9
Apparently I fainted outside last night, the mansion being destroyed was quite the sight. Thankfully none of the staff were injured, all the animals were frightened but they've calmed down now.
I personally went to check with and apologise to all the people and animals of my estate. I also visted father's grave on the hill, I had a lot of apologies for him especially.
After I settled everything I gave my attention to the thing that's been bothering me the whole day since the moment I woke up. A message written with light, floating in thin air. It sounds like an impossibility yet it's visible to no one but me.
[ Congratulations, You've cleared all 8 waves of the first round.]
I've made my way around the Internet, I know what this is, it's a system message. It's either that or hallucinations, maybe brain damage from fainting last night?
Nah I'm probably fine, it's totally normal to see disembodied words floating around.
If anything it's likely that damned hole that's the cause of this.
"Ohhh divine system of the chosen, what doth thou hath to say to this fool you've appeared before" I took a bow before speaking to the system message.
Woah, the system message did really change!
[Human No: 6,510,880,156 Jean D. Choppafeller. You have inherited the Ether's Challenge : Exponential Tower Defence.]
[Round 2 begins in 17:34:02]
[Monsters Incoming: 1]
[Goal: Protect your territory.]
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
So I asked some more questions to the system and learnt that this Ether thing I got is a superpower of sorts. I can't say I feel anymore powerful than I did yesterday but I'll believe it.
This power of mine is also only exclusive to my "property". The system wasn't too clear on that. Did it mean only the occupied territory of my 200,000 hectare ranch where my residence is? Or did it also include the unoccupied territory of the whole wilderness that I don't live in but still technically own?
And did it also only mean this ranch? Will my penthouse in Cali also be infested with roaches?!
A lot of questions with not a lot of answers.
Anyways that night I slept and alerted the head maid to wake me up at 5 am, an hour before the first monster appears.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Next morning, 6 am.
The hole is still there, untouched as ever. The explosion didn't do much to change its appearance, all it did was blow over the surrounding soil and collapse the mansion.
My pristine yard now looks more like untilled farmlands. And it's all because of that damned hole! (I shall take no accountability for the consequences of my actions).
I switched off the safety of the shotgun as the last minute counts down, my father had hunted many-a-bucks with this beauty and now I'll be using her to defend my property.
5
4
3
2
1
BANG!!
I pulled the trigger the moment I saw a silhouette emerging from the hole.
BANG!!
A second shot just to be safe.
[Round 2, Wave 1: Cleared]
[Next wave begins in: 23:59:56]
[Monsters Incoming: 2]
It's rather small, I wonder what it was. I asked Anna to bring me the flashlight.
"It's a gorey mess, it seems like it had grey fur, a dark fleshy tail and uh."
"I believe it was a rat, Lady Jean" Anna assisted.
… A rat. Am I going to see a hundred… a thousand… ten thousand rats during the coming days?
Oh hell no.
"Anna get some more explosives before tommorow."
"On it, Lady Jean."
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
By the evening more explosives were ready, a 1000 kilos this time. Head maid Anna sure is reliable.
I know she'll support me regardless but I believe she needs to know what's happening. So I had a talk with her over some tea. I told her about the system and that we were expecting two rats to pop out of the hole tommorow.
She was the least bit surprised, infact she informed me that the world is facing a modern day catastrophe where seemingly everyone in the world recieved a unique superpower of their own.
Anna and the rest of my aides however did not get any power of their own, when i questioned why, the system spoke.
[Human 6,415,405,425: Anna Quincy Adams]
[Human 6,103,302,204: Barth…]
…
…
…
[ Are all indentured servants of Human 6,510,880,156: Jean D Choppafeller]
[ As such they are all considered property of Jean D Choppafeller and so are exempt from recieving an Ether of their own until their servitude is fulfilled]
Huh, the system is rather old minded on what's considered property.