[Book 1 Completed] Industrial Mage: Modernizing a Magical World [Kingdom Building LitRPG]
B2 | Chapter 13 – Double Trouble

Rufus POV

This was not what he had planned. Yes, he had planned for everything else so much he was confident it would work. He would go so far as to say he was even arrogant about it. He was certain that Velka would remain behind and put up explosives in the tunnel, which would detonate when he gave the signal. It had been a relatively straightforward strategy. After attacking the slime and acting as though it was too much for them to handle, they would flee with Roland and Theodore in tow, leaving everyone else behind to become slime meal.

Because Rufus required a witness other than those he controlled, only Theodore and Roland were expected to live.

Everything was in order and had been accounted for... except for the spell formulation, which wasn't Rufus's idea at all. Additionally, he disliked surprises that he didn't include.

So Rufus naturally looked for anyone but himself to blame for this. But there was no one else to blame but the slime.

Setting up the explosives, guarding the tunnel's mouth, and stalling any rescue crew in case things went wrong before he could return were the three main tasks of Velka.

She does what she's told, most days. And when she doesn't, it's only because she's found a better way to do what I wanted in the first place.

But this situation… this was not better.

He realized that things had gone wrong when the slime started to cast its spell and the runes flashed. He knew his plan had been butchered the moment that spell started replicating every one of them.

At that point, things really started to go awry.

It was already awful enough that for a second it was simply throbbing, creating pressure, and casting something. Then the chamber exploded with light, the runes glowed as if they had been engraved on the walls since the beginning of time, and the next thing Rufus knew, he was facing another Rufus.

It was made of slime, for sure, there was no way to deny that, yes, but it was also undeniably Rufus. And there was not just one slime clone being made.

Slime clones of every individual in the room were produced by the skill, the spell, or whatever it was. Spells were byproducts of magic-type skills. Everyone had a copy now. It was the same build, same stance, same damn weapons. But they looked wrong enough that it was very apparent they were slimes.

They had a deadly look in their eyes as if they were ready to kill.

"WHAT THE HELL IS THIS?!" one of the White Fang men screamed.

"This wasn't in the plan, Rufus! These things—what ARE they?!"

"They're us! They're slimed versions of us! Gods, they're mimicking our skills!" someone else answered.

"No way! That's impossible! The slime's not supposed to be this strong! RUFUS—WHAT IS THIS?!"

Rufus clenched his jaw, but he chose not to respond because it would be pointless.

He had thought that the slime was an infantile Rank 3 and that it had not acclimated to its power yet. He was wrong because it apparently had. That alone wasn't concerning, though, the concerning bit was that this slime somehow had access to a skill or spell like this and now it was throwing a wrench in his plans.

The plan was to stage a retreat with Theodore and Roland. Make it seem like a close call. Say the slime was stronger than expected, collapse the shaft, and let the beast feast and grow until they had what they needed. Since Theodore was a prince, it was crucial that he remained protected. He would've been safe. Rufus would have been exempt from suspicion. He could then easily redirect the slime and release it in a controlled area however he wished.

But now it really was too strong. In addition to being stronger than expected, it had outperformed expectations and was playing a completely different game.

His brother was not here to deal with his problems this time. The plan had been that his brother would deal with the Rank 3 slime but now Rufus had to retreat to safety somehow, think of a new plan, or abandon this mission entirely.

This thing had spellcasting and cloning abilities. It was a trap and the slime had been waiting for a group like theirs to walk into it. It wasn't reacting but it had actually baited them. It was far too intelligent, it had suppressed its mana and now it was showing its true colors. It had outsmarted Rufus and now the trap had snapped shut.

"FALL BACK!" Rufus shouted. "EVERYONE—WE'RE RETREATING! I'LL COLLAPSE THE SHAFT ONCE WE'RE OUT!"

He had no other cards but that one.

But retreat only works if your people follow you. In actuality, they didn't. It was not because they didn't want to follow Rufus to safety but because they couldn't follow him.

The clones moved way too fast and most of the White Fang grunts got swarmed immediately. Some locked into combat with their doppelgangers while others simply tore down by secondary slimes rushing through gaps.

Some of his men screamed.

"I can't win! It's me, it's me—it knows what I'm doing before I do it!"

"RUUUFUUUUS!" another one yelled as Rufus sprinted past him toward the exit tunnel.

He kept going.

Theodore and his clone were engaged in a fight. Different elements lanced across the chamber. He had never witnessed such a display of magical violence... Not from Theodore, at least. The spells colliding with one another and seemed to be equally matched. Or at least that was what he thought. In actuality, once he looked close, Theodore's expression was blank and he was calmy testing waters.

There's no way there was anything even worse than that, right? Wrong, because there was something worse and that was Roland. He wasn't just fighting his clone, he was fighting his clone and Rufus's.

And what's more, he was winning. No, he was dominating the fight and obliterating both the clones.

Rufus watched for maybe four seconds since that was all he could afford. Roland used his clone's arm to impale his own clone in those four seconds after disarming Rufus's clone with a move too quick to follow. All the while the man appeared to be grinning. In fact, he seemed to be having fun and was not sweating at all.

That was the moment the panic hit… He was too strong. Rufus thought maybe Theodore would be a problem if he got suspicious. Maybe he'd have to isolate him later, make it look like an accident. But Roland? Rufus couldn't even calculate him into the equation anymore. He was a whole different variable.

With a loud curse, Rufus took off running as if his life depended on it. Explosives detonated behind him as he entered the shaft. A flip of the pulse seal on his bracer activated them all. Dust flooded his lungs and the tunnel trembled. He hurried without turning around, but the sound of the stone crumbling was like thunder on top of thunder.

Fuck fuck fuck fuck—

Not part of the plan. None of this is!

He was supposed to feed the slime, help it grow, then control it. That was the brilliance of it. That was the pitch he sold to his brother. By the time he hit the upper tunnel, his lungs were burning, he was soaked, and two of his men had managed to make it out behind him, barely. One was missing an arm and the other didn't even realize his gear was on fire.

Velka was waiting for them at the entrance. With explosives arranged in tidy little rows and a composed expression, she was crouching against a rock.

"What happened?" She frowned and asked when she saw him but he didn't answer.

His hands were on his knees as he fell against the rock, gasping for air as he considered his next move. He was gasping not because he was tired but because he had overexerted his mana.

She moved in close.

"Where's Theodore?"

Rufus didn't look up and she didn't push, either. She was a smart girl. He couldn't answer her… Because the answer was complicated.

If Theodore dies down there, that's bad. Because he's too valuable. Because he's the prince. Because the whole reason I didn't kill him earlier was that it would've raised too many questions.

But if he survives? That was worse. Because Rufus left him behind and collapsed the tunnel. Which meant his only play now… was damage control.

And that means if he does survive… I have to make sure he doesn't for long.

Rufus let out a long sigh while Velka was being briefed by the other two survivors about what had transpired.

"It was him—it was me—it had my sword, my stance, everything. Gods, I stabbed myself…" One muttered.

"We can't fight that. We're all dead. We're all dead, Rufus. We were never supposed to fight that thing. It knew us…" The other said.

Rufus looked at him blankly, thinking that he couldn't tell them what really happened.

Velka looked at him, "You didn't know about the runes, did you?"

Rufus looked at her and said nothing because that was enough of an answer.

Her mouth formed a thin line.

"What do we do?"

What do we do? We pray Theodore dies. That's the best outcome now. A tragedy. A noble sacrifice. I can spin that. Use it. Maybe I'll survive. If he doesn't? I'll have to finish the job myself when that Roland isn't around. Rufus fingered the ring on his finger with his thumb. Brother Marvin gave me this ring and he said I will be able to make myself far stronger than I currently am for a few minutes. I think I won't need to use it, but if I have to this should be enough to deal with Theodore.

He'll need witnesses first, though. Those who saw him overwhelmed. Who noticed Rufus attempting to help. That's what the story would be. If he wanted to live, he'd have to start telling that version of the story starting today.

"Velka, send a runner and tell Ashton we lost contact, tell him the slime was a mimic-mana hybrid. Rank 3. Tell him Theodore fought to the end."

She raised an eyebrow.

"That's the story?"

"For now."

"And if he walks out alive?"

"Then we bury him before he talks."

One of the surviving men let out a strangled gasp.

"You think he'll let you live?" Rufus asked. "You think after what you saw, what we all failed to do, he'll let any of you walk away without a memory check? Without punishment? You saw his clone. You saw Roland."

They were silent, so Rufus got up slowly and cleaned himself up.

"No one's coming back from that mine, not unless we clean the pieces ourselves." He said.

Velka nodded once. "Understood."

That was when the fact that Rufus was fucked truly set in. Whether Theodore lived or died… either way, he was on borrowed time. Scowling, he spat onto the ground.

"Let's go."

***

Theodore POV

So that was your plan, Theodore thought as he took one look at the collapsing exit.In fact, he wasn't surprised at all by this development. The fear with which Rufus exited the chamber was quite unexpected. So to Theodore it looked like something had not gone according to Rufus's plan and Theodore could bet all his money that it was the clones.

It seemed Theodore had overestimated Rufus a lot, but in reality the man was nothing but a coward.

…To think he was looking forward to fighting the man. It looked like he wasn't worth it at all.

Sighing, his eyes snapped back to the thing in front of him. This was a version of himself that was made of slime. It had the same face, same posture, and it was even mimicking his stance with insulting precision. It had his sword, too, and it also had his magic and his skills.

At the moment, it was hurling javelins at him which Theodore promptly blasted aside. For a moment, he considered just ending it quickly and efficiently to get it over with because he wanted to get to the Slime King already. After all that slime will be his Body Familiar. But then he stopped and thought about it for a moment. When was he going to get an opponent like this again? One that matched him blow for blow, that knew his exact movements because it was him?

He was never going to get such an opponent. So… He let go of his mana and let it ripple out of his center and focused his gaze on the enemy. Theodore considered this as a very good opportunity to not only test his limits but also develop his fighting style.

***

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