A Game With No Rules (Perimeter Defense Book #4) LitRPG Series

by Michael Atamanov

  "Attention, all ships! This is the Crown Prince Georg royl Inoky ton Mesfelle, ruler of the Unatari State and your future Emperor. Yes, I had to personally come to the capital of the Empire and declare my rights, because the so-called vote that took place was a total fiction. I should have won that election with fifty-two percent. The results you all saw were a sham, orchestrated to leave the crown in Julius’s hands..."

  Unfortunately, I was not allowed to finish speaking. A vile screeching and clamor rang out on the channel, some especially mettlesome person trying to drown out my speech. At the same time, a call came in from the planet. Grand Duchess Violetta wanted to speak with me.

  "Katerina, arrange for the broadcast of my conversation with my sister on all the main news channels of the Throne World and the whole Empire!"

  As soon as my advisor told me she was ready, I gave a wave, indicating she should be put through. But my sister did not appear alone on screen. Next to Violetta, warmly embracing the Grand Duchess by the waist, there was a tall dark-haired thin man, whose family resemblance to the late Emperor August was obvious.

  "Crown Prince Georg, it's very impolite on your part to show up uninvited to our wedding," Julius said, beginning the conversation. I immediately interrupted the aristocrat and, parodying his speaking style, answered:

  "Well Duke Julius, it was impolite on your part to fudge the results of the Imperial elections and try to take my crown for yourself!"

  "How dare you throw out such unfounded accusations?!" The fop boiled over instantly, but I just smiled acridly and replied:

  "What's the problem? Let's check right now before all the people of the Empire! Shall we use my Truth Seeker or yours? Or shall we take a neutral one, for example, Krista? You have my word as a Crown Prince, if the Truth Seeker refutes my accusations, I will personally beg forgiveness from you Duke Julius and swear allegiance to you as my Emperor. But, I demand you give me something back — if the Truth Seeker confirms that I really should have won the election, you swear allegiance to me as your legal ruler."

  Julius began drawing air into his lungs, preparing to answer me with something hateful and emotional, but faded rather sharply and answered in a quieter voice, choosing his words carefully:

  "I do not know how much the results of the Emperor elections correspond with reality, but I give my word as a Crown Prince of the Empire that I had nothing to do with any meddling that may have taken place!"

  "And well done. Why should a future ruler blacken his own hands when the Imperial Secretariat and Secret Service can take on all the dirty work for him. Then answer me this control question, Duke Julius, but I warn you in advance — it will be evaluated by a Truth Seeker. So then, the question: if you declared new elections right now, who would win? I'm sure that you know the answer."

  The man preferred to keep quiet, and that looked like an admission of defeat, which everyone understood at once. My sister, seeing how obviously the conversation was going in an unfavorable direction, hurried to intervene:

  "Georg, let me be so bold as to remind you that you are a recognized criminal both in the Empire and the Grand Duchy. Obviously, you’ve forgotten that, seeing how you had enough impudence and thoughtlessness to show your face here in the Throne World. And what's more, to demonstrate the pitiful remnants of your fleet. What happened? Did the Aliens wipe the floor with you? Was the myth of Crown Prince Georg's invincibility left in the past?"

  I smiled happily, as Violetta, despite not wanting to, had played right into my hand. Taking advantage of the opportunity, I told the whole Empire that the threat of Alien invasion had been totally neutralized. Two armadas of the ghastly invaders had been ground to dust by my fleet, and the third decided not to repeat the mistakes of its compatriots and capitulated. The Aliens had been left with six planets in Sector Fifteen where they already had colonies before the war even began. All the other systems would be liberated of Aliens within two months' time.

  It was hard to imagine what happened after I said the Alien threat was no more. What could I say? Even Duke Julius and the bodyguards behind him couldn't hold back enthusiastic shrieks. Before my eyes, there began an unending series of standing-increase messages from all kinds of factions, nations and individuals. My fame reached +100 in less than a minute, the maximum possible, meaning that Crown Prince Georg was known by absolutely everyone alive. My global standing approached +200, and I now had a very weak idea of how a personage that was very nearly considered a saint could at the same time be a known criminal.

  I was also overjoyed to see two new achievements in my personal profile:

  Achievement unlocked: Savior of Humanity

  Achievement unlocked: Drove Back the Aliens

  When the flow of messages died down slightly, I turned to Violetta:

  "My dear sister, you just mentioned the 'pitiful remnants of my fleet.' I suspect you were basing that on the very first messages about Unatari ships arriving to the Throne World. Ask your military advisors about the present situation in orbit and discover the true meaning of power. The gigantic God of War. Three Queens. An Executioner. Twenty-eight carriers, of which eleven are huge Mammoths. Two hundred Behemoths. Two hundred forty battleships... And I'm only telling you the part of my fleet that is already here. Thousands and thousands of ships are still on their way, just pouring into the system. By the way... as for the lost Blue House fleet, I found those bastards. They fled in their entirety to join the Antagonists. Now though, they realized that I am the legal ruler of the Blue House, and are asking to be taken back..."

  Violetta shook her fashionable hair decisively and interrupted me sharply:

  "That doesn't matter one bit, brother. In two hours, the marriage ceremony and coronation will take place, and I will be Empress. You then will be forced to either bow before me, or be branded a criminal for the rest of your days!"

  "Is it really for you to judge who is a criminal? I was declared a criminal by the late Emperor August, who clearly didn't understand the situation and thought that the Unatari State was fighting on the side of the Grand Duchy. But I'm interested in whether your subjects know that you killed the ruler of the Gold House by refusing medical aid to a sick old woman, who just so happened to be your grandmother? That you killed every single member of the ruling family of the Purple House? That you murdered all Green House rulers you could get your hands on?"

  "Georg, that was just a typical struggle for power. One might think you did otherwise," my twin sister snarled. But I shook my head judgmentally in reply:

  "And they'd be right to do so, dear sister. I always try to act honorably. I have never killed without very good reason. I have never betrayed the Empire. Despite all my lovers and favorites, I have maintained common decency and never allowed myself to plan a wedding with one person while still engaged to another."

  "What?!" Duke Julius pushed his not-yet-bride away scornfully and demanded an explanation.

  And although Violetta tried to justify herself and say that it was all rumor and insinuation, I cut into their argument in elevated tones and said that I had fulfilled my sister's request and found her lost fiancé, the father of her future child.

  That was the straw that broke the camel's back. The Grand Duchess lost her mind and, covering her face with her hands, ran off camera. An alarmed military man with space-major patches ran up to Duke Julius then and quietly whispered something, turning on the screen of his tablet and pointing at some data. The late Emperor's son's brows shot up in surprise. He turned toward me:

  "There's an Alien armada in the Throne World system. Was it you that led them here, Crown Prince?"

  "Those ships are no threat to humanity. I simply invited the Aliens to come to my coronation. Right after the end of the ceremony, they will fly back to their historic homeland. But just in case, there is a group of Alpha Iseyek on every starship high enough in number to prevent any potential excesses."

  Duke Julius, now going a bit slower, said:

  "The Imperial Fleet has ma
de its choice. More than half of the ships have already come to your side, Crown Prince Georg. Clearly, the time has come to recognize the obvious." The Duke went down on one knee and said in a ceremonial tone: "Crown Prince Georg royl Inoky ton Mesfelle, I officially recognize that the Emperor's crown should rightfully belong to you and swear loyalty to you as my future Emperor. The coronation is scheduled for two hours from now in the Silver Palace, and I suggest you not cancel it, simply change the schedule so Your Highness can make it on time."

  "Two hours? Silver Palace?" I asked with a chuckle, remembering my first visit to the Throne World. "There's no need to reschedule anything. I've made it in less time before."

  * * *

  Nevertheless, the coronation was put off for a day. Time was needed to change the names on the signs and rewrite the poems and songs. What was more, my Butler Bryle demanded that all palace servants be replaced, as ancient custom demanded. Well, what could I say? There was a certain sense in that. Truth Seekers and security services wouldn't have enough time to check all servants. It would be simpler to just take people I already trusted, whose loyalty no one doubted.

  The old man Bryle himself, abnormally proud to have the honor of being made official master of the coronation ceremony, methodically paced around the Silver Palace and fastidiously checked into every minute detail, forcing the servants to run their legs off correcting every little imperfection he pointed out so that everything would correspond to the highest Imperial standards.

  I then, accompanied by my favorite Astra, looked over the rooms and corridors of the huge Silver Palace. To be more accurate, Astra showed me the wonders of the ancient Imperial Palace which, for seven hundred years, had traditionally served as a location for the most important ceremonies and receptions.

  It seemed that Astra knew everything here. She told me the history of many pictures and statues. She commented on a luxurious malachite stairway to nowhere. It was a caprice left over from an Emperor who wanted to rebuild the north-west wing of the palace. He hadn’t lived long enough to see out the construction, and his successor decided to restore everything to the design of the first palace architects. But the unfinished malachite staircase had been left as it was, as a philosophical symbol of the vanity of the path of excessive luxury, walked by many aristocrats.

  There were crystal water basins in the internal garden. The amazing arboretum had specimens of plants from a hundred planets. There was a spire for watching the sunrise. A special room for solo performances of actors for members of the Emperor's family... The Silver Palace really was a sight to see. In the famed Nook of Kisses in the south wing of the palace, where Astra led me, we unexpectedly spooked a surprising couple. Duke Julius royl August ton Akad was standing in embrace with my tactics officer, Valian ton Corsa. I had no idea where and how the ravishing red-head had managed to acquaint herself so closely with the former Emperor's son, but we didn't stop them and hurried to get away.

  In the space-history room, which contained rare artifacts from ancient, long gone civilizations and trophies from a great many of humanity's wars with other races, we met Bionica and Baroness Nicole ton Savoia. For the first time in my memory, the Queen of the androids was wearing a golden crown in her snow-white hair to symbolize her status. Nicole then was wearing a white ceremonial admiral uniform with gold epaulettes and so many military medals and orders on her chest that it looked almost encumbering.

  "My Prince," said the android, addressing me, "we’re having a disagreement we want you to settle. Nicole thinks that the political situation has reached a dead end and cannot stay like this for long. But I say everything will come together better than ever before. What is your opinion?"

  The young admiral gave a slight bow to me and led her hand over the exhibitions in the room:

  "Crown Prince, all of the history of humanity is one of ceaseless conflict. People are warriors by nature. We need an enemy to spur our progress. At first, we fought amongst ourselves. After that, humanity entered the cosmos and met an external enemy for the first time. We eliminated over thirty extraterrestrial races and subdued another twenty opponents, thus expanding our territory. The armed forces have always been honored. It was their blood that provided us with a secure future. But now, the wars are over and there are no enemies left. Yes, we are stronger than ever before. But why should the Empire have a huge space fleet of almost six hundred thousand ships that needs constant expensive upkeep, if it has nowhere to use them? A few years of peace will pass, then a voice will grow stronger with every year saying that it is an excessive luxury and the fleet must be reined in. What's more, a military that stagnates and does not fight actively and constantly will inevitably degrade. I think it was a very good decision not to stop the Grand Duchy ship group that fled The Throne World, taking Duchess Violetta with it. The Empire needs new Antagonists!"

  I didn't have time to answer Nicole, because the room grew abruptly dark. Then, when the light returned to normal three seconds later, I saw Miya standing a few steps away. My wife was wearing the long bright crimson dress I often saw her wear, but the wide blue ribbon thrown over the dress was strange and went badly with the rest of the clothing.

  The Red Queen didn't come alone, either. Twenty other Truth Seekers had come in a densely packed group and were standing in the doorway. What was more, though I had seen the group of her students dressed in black cassocks before, there were also four wrinkled old ladies I was seeing for the first time. In front of the group of psionics was Ayna, the nanny of my younger children. But recognizing her in the armored suit with laser assault rifle in hand was no simple task.

  "What a smart girl!" my wife said, pointing at Nicole ton Savoia without any words of greeting. "She said the very thoughts that have been tormenting me so long. And what is more, she is also talented. Becoming a famous admiral at such a young age must have come at a high price. Perhaps she'll come in use to me in the future."

  I didn't understand how my wife did it, but Nicole collapsed to the floor senseless. Ayna walked up in silence to the body on the floor and unclipped the holstered laser pistol from the admiral's belt.

  "Now for the guards and chameleons..." the Truth Seeker said, and at that very second, the two guards standing at the door had their guns torn from their hands and were being clenched by the throat. A second later, four chameleons appeared and collapsed onto the parquet floor, their appendages twitching in pre-death convulsions.

  "The android is not dangerous, and neither is that dumb doll," Miya said, pointing at Bionica and Astra. "There should also be an invisible praying mantis milling about somewhere as well, but he has been removed from play. I stopped both of his hearts. Florianna is in a crystal dream and, unlike me, is not capable of sensing anything or acting in any way during it. But the paralyzed girl is the only one who will be able to recognize the consciousness substitution, so she'll have to be found and neutralized before the coronation is over. As you see, Georg, it is all very simple. Literally thirty seconds and your time will be over, while a person under my control will become Emperor."

  The conspiratress really had caught a successful moment and removed all my guards quickly and effectively. I had no choice but to admire her efficiency. And although I was afraid of some dirty tricks from Miya before, I had no idea she could turn it around so quickly and flagrantly.

  "Don't worry, Ruslan. It will all be quick and painless. Ayna will inject you with a sleeping medicine, and we'll trade out your consciousness in the usual way. The war with the Aliens is over, your goals have been achieved and the time has come for the true Crown Prince Georg to return to his body. I see you're surprised. Yes, Mr. G.I. is alive and well, exasperating me with his constant whining. He’s suffering from lack of activity in the very same little pocket outside time that I showed you. You though, cannot go anywhere, because your body decayed long ago. But don't you worry, Ruslan. You will not die. Your consciousness will be kept alive. A brilliant fleet leader may come in handy one day. Humanity is on the doorstep
of a great cosmic expansion and who knows what kind of difficulties we may encounter..."

  Miya fell silent and looked attentively at me, not hiding her surprise:

  "How can this be? I simply have no understanding of your emotions. You're ambivalent and calm? What? this doesn't worry you in the slightest? I guess I was expecting resistance from a fighter like you, maybe some foolish attempts to physically attack me or my companions... What is this? Have you made peace with it?"

  "Nothing of the sort," I objected with a calm voice, not reflecting any emotions as I pulled a chair out of nowhere and sat down on it.

  Miya didn't say anything and didn't express surprise in any way, but was still watching me with her eyes peeled wide. I then continued my speech:

  "What's to worry about? Everything is going fairly predictably. In any virtual game, there is a final boss, who must be overcome in order to achieve victory. I'll be honest. At first, I thought the third Alien Queen was that boss, and that I would have to take her down without your help or that of any other powerful Truth Seekers. A very serious opponent. But no, the unified superconscience of the Elvinian race turned out to be peaceable and a talented conversationalist. I learned a lot from our chat. I even gained some new abilities..."

  I waved my hand and the four old ladies standing behind Miya in black clothing lit up like torches, turning to ash in a matter of seconds. I allowed the corners of my lips to curve up into a satisfied smirk, when Ayna went gray in fear, and the pack of student girls took a step back.

  "After that, I thought a battle in the Throne World system would be the final test. The ghastly initial balance of forces, and also enemy space citadel with its gigantic deadly cannons... If my opponents from the Grand Duchy and Imperial fleets had been a bit quicker on their feet, the battle in the orbit of the Throne World would have been epic and found its way into the history books. I don't even know who would have won in the end of that meatgrinder but, in any case, it would have been a serious test of my abilities. But still no... Fifty thousand combat starships came over to my side without a fight. As the future ruler, I was very glad that I managed to retain such might for whatever trial the future had in store for me. But as a fleet leader and keen player, I was deeply disappointed that the legendary battle didn't come to pass. So that's why I'm glad that a real opponent has finally come to light. After Krista died, you became the strongest Truth Seeker in the galaxy, so you’ll make a great final boss!"