Chapter 40: Enemy of the world?

’Kill the Shadow of Victims? What the hell did I do? I get that I am a Boss and all, but to single me out like this is a bit weird. I should finish reading the entire thing first.’

And he did.

His eyes moved to the next paragraphs of the system announcement, scanning the text that had just damned him to be the enemy of the entire world.

[Before any of us noticed the strange virus that had infested the game, we firstly noticed the abnormal being that had somehow managed to move beyond its coding limitations and was acting solely on its own. This being is called the Shadow of Victims, and I am sure many of you already understand and know who this particular person is.]

[It warned us of what is to come—a threat, if you will—in languages we spent time trying to understand. The Virus would take over the world, and there was nothing we could do unless we shut the game down. This was the message given to us by this creature.]

[We are led to believe the Shadow of Victims knows more about this than we initially thought. The harsh truth here is, in order to find your way back home, we believe killing the Shadow of Victims will in turn eliminate the Virus.]

Kai, with a calm look on his face, swiped his hand to the side, and the screen immediately disappeared into motes of blue light.

He then put his hand under his jaw, thinking hard about everything he had just read from the inbox.

’This is actually crazy to think about if I am being honest. For starters, I do not think I have ever spoken to any of the Devs, other than the one time I applied to be one of the main Beta Testers in my past life. Still, even then, we did not speak much.’

So how could they have linked these messages to him?

Just when he assumed the moderators were onto him and were going to kick him out of the game for being a glitch, they came along with something like this.

Could that also mean they have no means of killing his original body if the entire virus thing was true? That would explain why he hadn’t died yet despite living alone without food or water for who knows how long.

’But to link me with some virus in the game? What the hell is up with that? I do not even know anything about the codes, let alone enough to go as far as to put a damn virus in the system.’

Kai sighed out loud, the sound echoing in the large, luxurious room.

“It seems like the game has decided to make itself my enemy. If that is the case, I feel no reason to hold back as well.”

He paused, initially oblivious to the sudden spike of fear his words had caused Emilya.

She was trembling on the bed, her eyes wide as she realized the man standing before her was the very target the entire world had just been ordered to kill.

’No, wait. Even if the Devs say so, I doubt that many players will swarm here and start thinking of slaying me immediately, especially after all the rumors of how hard the dungeon is. I expect a few to come, but certainly, it can not be that many.’

Looking back at it, when he found out he was a Boss rather than a player, he made up his mind to strengthen his dungeon in order to stop other players from killing him.

Back then, he was not too serious about it. He treated it like a side project.

But now, it was a matter of survival.

“Lyra.”

Instantly, the air in the room shifted. Lyra appeared right beside him, her form glitching into existence from the shadows.

“Yes, my Lord, you called?”

Though he summoned her, he didn’t say anything immediately, as there were still thoughts swimming in his head regarding the war that was coming.

As for the girl, the moment she saw Lyra, the woman who had ripped out hearts with a smile, she immediately went to her knees on the mattress and bowed her head, pressing her forehead against the sheets.

“Oh please, Lord Kai, have mercy on me!!! I know I am a player, but I have no wish to harm you whatsoever. Please do not kill me!”

’Kill you?’

Kai looked at her, his expression unreadable.

“Do not be ridiculous. Human as you may be, you will serve as a vital informant. Whether I kill you or not is a decision I will make later on. For now, you will remain under me.”

“U-Under you?”

“That is correct. You may not have noticed, but the Red Players that attacked you in the forest only let you go for one reason.”

He pointed at her left arm.

There, faintly glowing under the sleeve of her tunic, was a small magical sigil.

“They already have a tracker on you.”

Emilya gasped, grabbing her arm.

“It is quite rare for Red Players to lose their target so easily. They let you run so you would lead them to a safe zone or a base, which they could then raid. I reckon they will be here in a few moments.”

Kai walked to the window, looking out at the dark expanse of his dungeon city.

“Before anything else, I would like to take care of them first.”

Kai stood up straight, his aura flaring slightly.

A look of surprise played on Lyra’s face following that statement.

“Of course. That was why you had me gather all the monsters on the First Floor.”

“Partially. If I am to have an army under me, I would like to check their strength for myself.”

’I did not plan it from the start, and I only just noticed the tracker on her arm. It looks like an artifact, which is strange since I did not know this game had any tracking artifacts of that caliber. Still, it is a good opportunity. The sooner I wipe out the Red Players the better, and with this, I can see for myself if my army is strong enough to handle an invasion.’

As the thoughts settled, he turned around and began to walk away toward the door. Lyra did not need to be told; she already knew he was headed to the gathering at the main plaza.

However, before she took a single step to follow him, she stopped and looked back at Emilya.

And it was not with a friendly look whatsoever.

“Emilya, was it?”

“Y-Yes.”

“How dare a human like you offer yourself to my Lord? What are your plans? Are you a spy? I find it strange that you have not attempted to escape from this place seeing as we intentionally added no security whatsoever inside the room.”

Emilya, afraid, looked to the side to find her answers, stammering.

“I… I…”

“No matter. I doubt someone of your level would be able to deceive my Lord in any way. He is far smarter than your puny brain can comprehend.”

“…”

“Say it.”

“Say… it?”

“Yes. Repeat what I said. And do so with a huge smile, and your hands at the side of your head like a cat.”

Emilya understood what she asked of her, but the fact such a beautiful woman could have a twisted look like that on her face was way too concerning.

“L-Lord Kai is smarter than me… I d-don’t hold a single candle to his wisdom.”

She repeated as instructed, her face flushed with humiliation, her hands raised to the side of her head like a cat’s paws.

Seeing this, Lyra was instantly amused. She smiled, satisfied with the submission, before turning around and walking out of the room.

“Remain here until you are summoned.”

And with that, she was gone.

Emilya collapsed back onto the bed, staring at the closed door, wondering what kind of nightmare she had just agreed to live in.

….

[A/N]

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