Chapter 313.

[A motel in Suwon Area A]

“First of all, I don’t know why I’m here either . ”

Kaita continued his explanation in the motel room full of wires . He was telling the truth, but his audience found him untrustworthy as evidenced by the look on their faces .

Kaita shrugged, feeling somewhat helpless .

“It’s true . I’m too great to be stuck in this shabby past . ”

“…Why don’t you free us first?” Kim Suho suggested . He seemed calm as opposed to Shin Jonghak who was still struggling to find his way out of the wires .

After a moment of silence, Kaita nodded . “Fine . But only you . ”

Tak—!

Kaita snapped his fingers . Of the countless wires that covered the room, only those that had bound Kim Suho were sucked back into Kaita’s gauntlet .

Kim Suho stood straight and looked around .

The silver wires stretched like a spiderweb .

Under normal circumstances, Kim Suho would’ve easily destroyed these wires… but here, inside virtual reality, he found it difficult to control his magic power .

“…Secondly, you guys were pretty lucky,” Kaita continued, “I’ve lost count of how many damn years I’ve spent in this fake world . But you, you only just got here, no?”

“…What are you talking about? The time of arrival is different for everyone?” Kim Suho asked with a frown .

“That’s right . Apparently the time outside flows much slower than the time inside . It took me two years to figure that out . Other people say this whole situation has something to do with brain science, virtual reality, dimensional systems, blah blah blah… but I really couldn’t care less . ”

Kaita sat on his wires . With a smirk, he said, “Would you like to work together?”

“…Work together?” Kim Suho frowned in confusion . That really didn’t sound like something Kaita would say, which led Kim Suho to doubt Kaita’s intentions again .

“Yeah, I just wanna get the fuck out of this place as fast as I can . I’m sick and tired of idiots who’d settle for a fake world . I’d kill them all if I could . ”

Immediately, chwaaak—! Kaita withdrew all his wires .

Freed at last, the party took a minute to calm down, then shifted their attention to Kaita and Kim Suho .

Everyone was silent, trying to figure out what to say .

Yoo Yeonha was the first to break the silence .

“We’d have to hear more, but…” She smiled at Kaita and asked, “You’re a member of the Chameleon Troupe, no?”

“…Hm? You shouldn’t mention that name so casually . ”

Kaita was obviously disgruntled but Yoo Yeonha didn’t falter . She knew that no matter how heinous the Chameleon Troupe might be, they were fundamentally a group of thieves . And, she could always bring up ‘Black Lotus’ if things took a turn for the worse… .

“Anyway, we need more information . About this world and how to escape from it . We’ll cooperate if we find it necessary, is what I’m saying . ”

‘The time outside flows much slower than the time inside . ’

Thanks to this crucial piece of information, Yoo Yeonha had regained her usual confidence .

Kaita nodded with a smirk .

“Okay, but I’m only gonna say this once, so listen carefully… . ”

**

[An office building on the outskirts of Seoul]

Cheok Jungyeong and I left the church . With the two friends(?) we met at the church, we moved to our new base, an abandoned office building near Boss’s nursery .

“Clean this place up, and it’ll be decent enough for us to use for the next couple of days . ”

The building had three floors, each about 640 sq ft . It was full of spiderwebs and mold, but I was fully satisfied .

“…It’s too damn filthy to clean properly . ”

Cheok Jungyeong, on the other hand, looked irritated .

Believe it or not, he was quite strict about hygiene .

“It’ll only take about an hour . ”

“Excuse me… Hyung-nims?”

At that moment, one of our new friends spoke . They had been beaten so badly that if was hard to tell who was who by their faces . But their hairstyles were different, so I had no problem distinguishing them . One had a mohawk and the other had a shag .

“What do you… plan on doing from now on?” Mohawk asked carefully .

“I’m not sure,” I answered softly . As the one responsible for the current situation, I couldn’t be harsh on them .

In my defense, it was Cheok Jungyeong who beat them up, not me .

“What have you two been doing up until now?”

“We were… just trying to survive . Our base is ‘GTA’ . ”

“Base? GTA?”

“Yes . ”

I couldn’t understand what they were saying . Cheok Jungyeong and I frowned at the same time .

Fortunately, our friends were quick-witted .

“Oh, your ‘base’ refers to the game you were playing when you first got dragged into this world . Our base is ‘Grand Theft Auto’ . ”

“Hmm… could you explain from the top? From the very beginning?”

“…Ah, of course,” Mohawk answered, “So, about 300 days ago, wait, is it 300? Anyway, we were playing a game at a capsule cafe in Paris… . ”

…They had been playing ‘Grand Theft Auto XS’ at Capsule de Mars when they suddenly received a system message saying [You have been disconnected from the game] . They immediately lost consciousness, and when they opened their eyes again they were here— Korea in the 2000s . They soon found out that a game-like feature, called ‘privilege’, existed in this world .

However, users’ privileges depended solely on the genre of their base games . And their base was GTA, the worst possible game of all .

“The privileges of the GTA-based users are stealing, mugging, things of that sort . The reason we chased after that sedan was to rob them… . ”

The two friends were honest .

“I see . ”

“So that’s our story . And… what are your bases?” Shag asked .

“Huh? Oh… we’re… . ”

After a moment of hesitation, I shook my head . Mohawk just told me that his base game had reduced his physical abilities and gave him certain talents called ‘privileges’ .

But there was nothing different about the way Cheok Jungyeong moved half an hour ago . He was a little bit slower than usual but by no means weaker .

“I don’t think we have a base . We weren’t playing any games at the time, so our base must be reality, so to say . ”

In other words, we came into this world without any limitations, and with full physical strength within ‘the limits of the capsule’ .

“Wow… . Oh, but the fact that new players are coming must mean that this is an actual game that’s being hosted somewhere . ”

“No, you’re probably wrong about that . ”

I shook my head . It was also because of me that each user had a different time of arrival .

When I plugged the flash drive into the capsule, my Stigma must have spread out from me . So those who were around me arrived at a similar time frame as me, and those who were far away from me probably traveled further back in time . Cheok Jungyeong was an exception because he was a member of my party .

But I couldn’t tell them all this, so I decided to change the subject .

“So, there must be a lot of users here, then . ”

Mohawk remarked, “Oh, no . The playable area covers half of the Korean Peninsula, but the number of users is only about a thousand or so . ”

“Mm . And, are there different factions?”

This time Shag answered, “There are, but only a few are worth noting . There’s the Gladiator Union, made up of players from [Gladiator of the Century], and the Church Union, made up of players from [Holy Magical Battle] . But the strongest is Silver Flash . ”

“…Silver Flash?”

“Yes, he’s terrifying . Nobody knows which game his base is . He uses silver thread as his main weapon and that thread-”

“Silver thread?”

I frowned, and so did Cheok Jungyeong next to me .

“Yes, it’s a thread made of steel,” Shag confirmed .

Cheok Jungyeong and I looked at each other and soon broke into smiles .

“What’s he doing here?”

“I wonder . ”

I stretched myself with a grunt .

The unexpected emergence of an ally—though not exactly reliable—made me feel more comfortable than before .

“Anyway, it’s our first day here,” I continued with a sigh, “So let’s clean this place up . ”

Though the building was a mess, I believed an hour would be enough for us to clean this place up .

Right then, Cheok Jungyeong turned his gaze to my right arm and asked, “Can you do it with just one arm?”

“One is more than enough . ”

“…And we’re not gonna do anything about Boss?”

Cheok Jungyeong’s voice was filled with worry and sympathy .

With a bitter smile, I held up a broom and a dustpan .

“We have no choice, at least for now . We’ll be extra nice to her when we return . ”

We spent the next two hours cleaning the office . It was definitely hard not being able to use one arm, but thanks to the help of our friends, we finished quickly .

“I appreciate your help . ”

“No problem . And like we said, you can talk comfortably around us . ”

In the meantime, Shag and Mohawk had become our loyal supporters . They seemed to have realized instinctively—or through Cheok Jungyeong—that their chances of survival would be better with us .

“Then, could you go outside and get us something to eat? Maybe a pot and a burner, too . I’m a bit hungry . ”

“Of course!”

“We’re on it!”

Just like that, the two friends left, and I looked outside the window . It was already dinner time, and the burning glow of the sunset poured in through the window .

It was then that Cheok Jungyeong asked, “So, do you know how to get out of here?”

I nodded with a smile and said, “I do . ”

“How?”

“It’s simple . ”

The way to log out was surprisingly simple .

The moment I got dragged into the virtual world, the co-author sent me a message . I just discovered it a bit late because I was unconscious when I first received it .

According to the co-author:

[This is a message from the co-author to you, who I assume will be very confused]

[This is a side arc, a phase in which we take a closer look at Boss’s past . ]

[Therefore, the logout feature will be reinstated once you observe at least one of the ‘events’ that Yoo Jinhyuk has prepared for you . ]

[Try your best to witness the events . ]

And the very first ‘event’ was to take place today .

I read over Yoo Jinhyuk’s message I just received .

=Yoo Jinhyuk’s message=

[Tonight at 9 PM, track down the parents of the girl . ]

===

“After we witness the relationship between Yi Yeonjun and Boss, we’ll be able to return to the outside world . ”

The event that Yoo Jinhyuk wants me to see— Once I witness it, this world would cease to exist .

Of course, there was a possibility that something could go wrong if the users intervened, but that was unlikely . I even had Cheok Jungyeong by my side, after all .

“Their relationship?”

“Yes . It’s five o’clock now, so we’ll just have to wait four more hours . “

“…Yeah?”

Cheok Jungyeong nodded nonchalantly and slumped down on the floor next to me .

Kooong—

Even the simple act of sitting down was loud for a giant like him .

Slouched on the floor together, we looked up at the sunset outside the window .

Soon Mohawk and Shag returned with food and a burner .

**

Later that day, we were chasing Boss’s parents like we had been told to do by Yoo Jinhyuk . Their expensive sedan drove smoothly across the highway and we ran after it . Mohawk and Shag were following us on a motorcycle .

“Look, they’re stopping . ”

An hour flew by .

Boss’s parents arrived at a building in Seoul . They drove down to the underground parking lot, and Cheok Jungyeong frowned .

“Do we need to follow them down there?”

“No, let’s not take a risk and watch them from here . ”

“But I can’t see them from here . ”

“I can . ”

“…What good is that for me?”

“Shh—”

I calmed Cheok Jungyeong down and opened my eyes wide .

‘Master Sharpshooter’ seemed to work in this world, and I could see through the walls of the building .

Boss’s parents parked their car and took the elevator to the top floor .

Ding—

The elevator door opened, and there was a man in a robe in the penthouse where they arrived .

I recognized this man right away . I’d seen him many times before— it was Yi Yeonjun .

Boss’s parents approached Yi Yeonjun with a big smile .

—We’re back, Elder .

They bowed to Yi Yeonjun, calling him ‘Elder’ .

But at the next moment, Yi Yeonjun, without even a simple greeting, said something very cruel to them .

—…!

The parents froze in shock .

But they soon regained their composure and nodded, as if they had heard him say this before as if they had been preparing for this day to come .

I clenched my fists . And my teeth . My heart started racing .

…Soon, I received another message .

=Yoo Jinhyuk’s message=

[At first, the girl’s parents were faithful devotees and benevolent philanthropists . ]

[They tried to understand their daughter’s dark powers . ]

[But Yi Yeonjun brainwashed them . His lies and schemes led the couple to believe that their daughter’s powers were, in fact, a curse . ]

[He ruined her family . ]

[And today, Yi Yeonjun ordered the couple to kill their daughter . ]

[Yi Yeonjun realized the girl’s huge potential and planned all this just to win her trust . ]

[The couple will now try to murder their daughter as instructed, and you’ll soon witness the consequences of their actions . ]

[Now, please watch until the end . ]

「Nothing is impossible — Yoo Jinhyuk, Investigator」

===

A cruel story like this wasn’t in my original setting .

—We’ll get rid of her today .

The couple answered, and I swallowed a sigh . The breath traveled down my throat and mingled with rage . I disheveled my hair with trembling hands .

“…Cheok Jungyeong . ”

“What?”

Cheok Jungyeong responded nonchalantly .

With my eyes still fixed on the building, I announced, “Looks like we might have to kill someone . ”

Meanwhile, Boss’s parents traveled down to the parking lot and got in their car .

Yi Yeonjun just told them, ‘It’s time to kill that child . ’

They would now go back to their daughter to carry out his orders .

“Will you help me?”

“…Sure, why not?”

Cheok Jungyeong nodded casually .

“Really?”

“Really . You’ve always been right . I believe in you . ”

At that moment, I saw the couple’s sedan leave the building .

“Let’s follow them . ”

“Okay . ”

We put our hoods on and chased after the car .

Wooong—

The car moved with the roaring sound of the engine .

We ran after it .

And, chwaak—!

A silver wire stretched out from the right side of the road and twisted around the sedan .

“…Huh?”

It was sudden . We stopped in surprise .

KOOONG!

The wire crushed the car and slammed it against the ground .

KWAAANG—! The vehicle, thrown upside down on the ground, exploded .

“…?”

After the devastating car accident, silence filled the air .

I might have thought this was what actually happened in the past if it wasn’t for what happened next .

Suddenly, a man fell from the sky .

“What the… What’s he doing?”

Cheok Jungyeong chuckled in disbelief .

The Chameleon Troupe’s Seat of Silver, ‘Kaita’ gracefully landed on the destroyed car . With a smile, he withdrew his wire . Then he leaned into the car seat and started whispering… .

“Oi—!”

It was then that Cheok Jungyeong’s thunderous cry rang out .

Startled, Kaita turned to us and widened his eyes . In a daze, he muttered, “Cheok Jungyeong, and… you too, Black?”

Because he called me ‘Black’, I knew this Kaita was from the present era .

“Yup, it’s me . What are you doing here?”

However, as Cheok Jungyeong approached Kaita… .

KWAAAAANG—!

A magic power explosion occurred at Yi Yeonjun’s building which we just left .

This magic power wasn’t pure but made up of multiple magic powers . The sudden explosion caused Cheok Jungyeong and me to look back in surprise .

Tip: You can use left, right, A and D keyboard keys to browse between chapters .