Chapter 67: Voice Within

**Maybe recording this is not a bad idea after all…**

Alan glanced back at his pursuers just a few feet away from attacking him. He then jumped toward Clara, carried her over his shoulder, and escaped with Bella following him closely.

Clara cried, desperately swinging her legs. “What are you doing, you–! Wait, no, this is perfect! Cam-bot, make sure to capture this!” She cleared her throat. “See? This is what I was talking about! This selfless hero is always thinking about the safety of others!”

“Clara, can you pause the transmission?”

“I have a better idea. There, I muted it.”

“Explain this to me, can anyone be a streamer?”

She sneered. “Pfft! Only if you have the talent, charisma, and one of these bad boys!” She pointed at the drone camera following them. “Why?”

“Are those expensive?”

“Not for a level 50 like me!”

“Are you level 50?!”

“52! Hey, watch it, you almost dropped me! And don’t say it like that! I used to be in a Guild, remember?! My Sister’s. But…”

“You didn’t like it?”

“That I suck at fighting would be more accurate… Not everyone can be a glorious warrior and reach level 100 like your pyro girlfriend. My Sister for instance, even though she has kept going at it, she’s not even level 80 yet…” She wept. “I’m a failure, that’s why I returned to Unus Town, the only place where I could feel important…”

**Is this why you have a fascination for Battle Streams?**

“Cheer up, Clara. You did well! I bet our enemy never thought there would be a person capable of capturing this on video. Maybe an Administrator will see this and help us.”

“So… was I really helpful?”

“Yes!” He landed and put her down carefully. “Keep up the good work, Mayor!”

Clara smirked. “You have seen nothing yet! Fabio!”

Her good-looking NPC jumped down from a sunk building, carrying Sloochie in his arms.

“At your service, Miss Clara.”

**A punchable face appears…**

“Is it done?” she asked.

“It is done,” Fabio replied, snapping his fingers. Then, a group of NPCs came out of the still-standing buildings and kneeled in front of him.

+”How can we be of service?”+

Alan looked at the group, astounded, and noticed that Bella was not kneeling. **Since she’s no longer part of Unus’ staff, she doesn’t respond to him, huh.**

Clara put both hands on her hips and laughed out loud. “Muahaha! How about that, Alan ‘Comatose’ Warden?! That’s the power of Unus’ Mayor for ya!”

He grimaced. “Yeah, another brilliant move, but this isn’t your ‘power’ per se…”

“Huh? Of course it is. I’m Unus Mayor, remember?”

Alan glanced at Fabio, who was ordering the NPCs to equip themselves. **Amelia was right. As long as an NPC works at the Townhall, they become the Mayor.**

“Attention, everyone!” Clara yelled at the reunited group, grabbing Alan’s left shoulder. “Listen to our current commander, here. He’ll tell you what to do!”

“Loud and clear, Miss Clara,” Fabio said, snapping his fingers again. The ten NPCs under his command then turned their gaze to Alan.

“I thought you’d enjoy giving orders,” Alan whispered.

“Nah. I can’t give commands and record at the same time, dummy.”

“Fine…” Alan exhaled hard. “Guys, listen! There are currently five Users affected by an enemy spell! They have been brainwashed, so they’ll attack you as soon as they see you. So please, help me restrain them all without killing them!”

“Can I recommend starting a Party Team?” Fabio said, stepping forward and smiling brightly, which made Alan wince. “That way everyone will hear your orders.”

**He looks just like a gentle version of Marco Souza…**

“S-Sure,” Alan replied, looking away. “Just don’t get too close to me, alright? Um… How do I initiate one?”

**I have to send a quick message to Ricardo about what’s happening too.**

“Unmute!” Clara ordered her drone camera as she jumped to a rooftop. “Now, armed with reinforcements, our Hero will do everything in his power to capture and eventually break the curse tormenting this town! They’re not only his neighbors, he considers them his long-life friends, and… even family!” She covered her face and pretended to sob.

“Hey, don’t dramatize too much! After we’re done with this, we’re going to have a long conversation about the way you use my public image!”

“Here they come!” Bella cried as Paul and the others affected charged against them.

+”We are one. We act as a unit,”+ they said in unison.

+++Party Team initiated. Have fun!+++

“It is done, commander,” Fabio said, handing Sloochie to him. “Now you can buff us.” He bowed his head and dashed towards the group.

“Yeah, a buff… right…” Alan murmured.

**The real Marco thought of me as garbage, and this one overestimates me… Or does he know something I don’t?**

Alan jumped where Clara was, from where he could see an eagle view of the battle, and opened his Status window. **Sometimes Anastasia knew about my Passive Skills without me telling her.**

++++Minion Master Lvl 2 — Passive Skill

Grants a 5% increase status to your minions.

++++ Puppet Master Lvl 1 — Active Skill

Gives you the ability to control a single minion and see through their eyes.++++

He opened a secondary window and opened the Guild’s tab, from where he could check Bella’s stats.

++++Active Buff: Rally & Destroy

3 minutes 21 seconds remaining

**They’re considered ‘bots’ by the system, just like Anastasia, but neither of them is my ‘minion’, and I gave Bella to Amelia. My skills are useless on them…**

He examined the possessed User’s movements, noticing that they did not fight like savages. **Instead, they fight exactly like the NPCs… A calculated, emotionless fighting style…**

Serenity’s words still bothered him.

**She mentioned something about her partner’s human side being her downfall… Right after telling me that her goal was to ‘help’ humanity reach a new evolutionary… She even mentioned ‘we’ this, and ‘we’ that, multiple times. Why? Maybe the answer is that she’s not working for The Singular… Maybe, the Singular infected her, just like she ‘affected’ these people. **

He gasped, getting Clara’s attention.

“Are you okay, Commander?”

**The Singular entered The Novus through a Cryopod, right? But its situation is not the same as Ashely’s, because…**

“They were still conscious…” he muttered without realizing it, making Clara frown.

**The person inside the Cryopod was still conscious when The Singular entered through it… If the real Serenity and her partner are being controlled by the Singular, or if they accepted it willingly is irrelevant right now, what matters is that a human mind has… oh, god, help me…**

He sat after feeling that his legs faltered.

**They have fused by now! Serenity, or the Singular, or whatever new entity is right now, has learned how to copy herself inside the System! She will spread through other Users! Just like the virus it is!**

“That shouldn’t be possible! This is clearly a glitch, Ricardo! Where the hell are you so you can fix this?!”

“What’s wrong, Alan?” Clara asked, grabbing his shoulder, but he was too absorbed in his thoughts.

**Argh! For the first time in my life, I hate being this analytical! He pulled his hair and gritted his teeth. Alanytical… That’s how Abigail used to call me… Oh, Isabella I, Ashley, Amelia… Astrid… This situation is worse than I thought!**

**Although my NPC allies outnumber these Users, their level is lower. We’ll inevitably lose the battle.**

“What can I do?”

++”What would you like to do?”++

“I want to be of help… but I’m too weak…”

++”Even the weakest can be helpful.”++

“If I don’t do something, the people under Serenity’s control will remain like this forever…”

++”Do you want to save everyone?” Is that the power you desire?”++

“YES! I want to–Wait… Who am I talking to?”

He opened his eyes and turned to Clara. It’s not her voice. He then looked down to Sloochie, resting in his arms. **Was that you?**

++”No, Alan. I am your Anima!”++

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