Volume 1, Chapter 88 – Unexplainable Anger

“What’s going on?”

The players who had been part of the Stronghold and Kingdom Factions were completely caught off guard when the sudden System notification sounded in their ears.

No, calling it “surprise” wasn’t quite right. They were utterly dumbfounded.

But there was no time for them to stand there in shock, because at the very moment the faction switched, the NPC soldiers who had just been their allies suddenly turned their weapons toward them.

“It’s an Undead ambush!”

The instant their faction was forcibly reversed, the players were attacked by the NPCs beside them.

Some players were killed before they even realized what was happening, while others managed to dodge in time.

At the same time, behind the Stronghold, the Dread Knights of the Headless Knight had clashed into the fray. Because of the Dread Knights’ nature, the orc soldiers who first faced them fled in terror when they heard their piercing shrieks.

In just a moment, the defensive line of the Stronghold was torn open.

“Rooaar!”

After another blast of frost breath, the colossal blue dragon in the sky let out a thunderous roar. It attacked again, but this time, its assault was no longer just a breath attack.

Mystical runes began to circle around the dragon’s massive body, spinning slowly under the gaze of everyone below.

“Dragon Language Magic—!”

As a veteran Paladin, Karl instantly realized what the Frost Dragon was doing.

But stopping a dragon’s spellcasting was no simple matter.

Sure, the silence magic existed, but dragons were innately immune to magic.

And to interrupt the casting by force, one would need overwhelming strength.

“…Haa, I absolutely cannot let that dragon finish casting its Dragon Language Magic…”

Karl clenched his longsword unconsciously. Watching the glowing runes grow ever brighter in the sky, he knew there was no more time to hesitate.

“My Lord, eternal and ever-living.”

“The Holy Light shall always… drive away the darkness…”

Muttering words that sounded like a prayer, golden light began to radiate from Karl’s body.

“Holy Light—Judgment!”

As a Paladin, his most proficient skill was indeed 【Holy Light Judgment】.

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And as the captain of the Holy Hand Knights, Karl’s 【Holy Light Judgment】 had long reached the level where it could instantly annihilate even a high-ranking demon of equal level.

Karl’s level was as high as 200, and his NPC template rank was orange, one step below red.

He was undeniably strong.

But the Frost Dragon before him was a Throne-ranked being.

After all, only those of the red tier could be called Thrones.

And the difference between ranks was vast beyond comparison.

……

Meanwhile, inside the Northern Fortress, Tianyin helped the frail Mengyao to a relatively safe corner and sat her down.

“Xiaomengyao, are you alright?”

“Master, I’m fine…”

Though she said that, her weak tone made it hard to believe she was fine at all.

“Really fine?”

“Really, Master, don’t worry about me. But speaking of which… Xiaobingxue… that Frost Dragon up there… is that really her?”

Mengyao’s expression grew very complicated.

“Yeah, that’s Xiaobingxue… I wasn’t lying to you… but, in a sense… she isn’t Xiaobingxue anymore, either…”

Tianyin’s voice grew heavy. Even now, she still couldn’t accept that Bingxue had suddenly turned into something else.

“Master…”

Seeing Tianyin so downcast, Mengyao instinctively reached out and patted her head.

“Geez, if Master believes that’s Xiaobingxue, then it must be! Even though she attacked us earlier, I think… she must have had her reasons for doing that! Well, of course I’m still not forgiving her!”

Though she had meant to comfort Tianyin, Mengyao’s face puffed up angrily by the time she reached the last part.

“Hmm… but Xiaomengyao, now that Xiaobingxue’s become a Frost Dragon… do you think she can turn back?”

Turn back?

At least deep down, Tianyin still held on to a tiny sliver of hope. After all, humans, be they lolis or adults, always had that instinct to cling to hope.

What if she could turn back? What if everything would be alright?

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With that faint, trembling hope in her heart, Tianyin asked Mengyao, wanting to hear an answer she herself already knew.

Because deep down, she knew the truth. But still… what if?

“Master… what’s done is done. But you’re still hoping Xiaobingxue could turn back… That’s impossible…”

Yes, impossible. Compared to Tianyin’s fragile hope, Mengyao was surprisingly calm.

“Really? Xiaobingxue…”

Seeing Tianyin’s blank, lost expression made Mengyao’s heart ache.

“Master… Xiaobingxue really can’t come back anymore…”

“I… I see… She really can’t come back?”

In the end, Tianyin still hadn’t come to terms with it.

Some people, when faced with unbearable truths, instinctively choose to run away, and Tianyin was clearly one of them.

But no matter how much one runs, facts remain facts.

That quiet Undead girl, whose subtle emotions could be read from her eyes, was gone forever.

“Wuu… why? Why did this have to happen?”

When the harsh truth finally sank in, Tianyin couldn’t hold back her tears.

Really now, she thought, even though I used to be a guy, why can’t I stop crying?

She had sworn to herself long ago that she’d never cry from pain or sadness again.

But this time… it just hurt too much.

“Xiaomengyao… why did this happen? Xiaobingxue just disappeared, all of a sudden? Why did it turn out like this?”

“Eh… why? I don’t know either… maybe… because of the war?”

Mengyao thought and thought, but couldn’t find any better reason, so that was all she could say.

“The war?”

“But what does war have to do with me? With Xiaobingxue?”

Yes. Every faction fought each other, but what did that have to do with Tianyin?

That was how she saw it. How she understood it.

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But to a player like Mengyao, that understanding was wrong.

Because in a game, story progression was inevitable. And to move a story forward, there were few methods more effective than changing the state of the world.

Especially in a fully open-world role-playing game.

For a game to continue and keep players engaged, the story had to keep moving. And for that to happen, war was a necessary element.

“…You know, Master, maybe some things really are decided before they even happen. Xiaobingxue becoming a Frost Dragon… I think that was inevitable too.”

Based on her understanding, Mengyao wanted to tell Tianyin how she saw it.

Because this world… they were in a game.

“Eh… what do you mean?”

Tianyin didn’t understand.

But for some reason, she suddenly felt furious.

Yes, furious, without knowing why.

“Master, if a person’s whole life were written as a script, maybe some endings were decided long ago… Xiaobingxue turning into a Frost Dragon, us meeting her… these things might not be coincidences at all. Maybe they were predetermined…”

Predetermined.

“I see… so that’s how it is…”

What Mengyao said made sense.

After all, Tianyin knew the truth of this world.

It was a game.

Whether it was herself or Bingxue, it didn’t matter. A game was a game. In the end, she was just data.

She remembered the moment she first entered this world. That glowing orb that called itself the System had told her the same thing.

‘Your loli identity has already been calculated. It cannot be changed.’

Yes. Even she couldn’t change that. So what hope did Bingxue have?

But… was this ending… this outcome, really right?

In Tianyin’s mind, she saw once more that quiet little Undead girl suddenly clutching her, trembling like a frightened kitten, those eyes filled with something called “fear.”

She had been afraid.

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Xiaobingxue… back then, she had been afraid.

Yeah… that time, Xiaobingxue was clearly terrified and clinging to her, and yet Tianyin hadn’t even realized it.

“How… stupid of me…”

As she understood that, Tianyin’s sorrow turned into guilt.

And with it, an inexplicable anger began to rise within her.

“Master?”

“It’s nothing. I just… figured something out.”

Tianyin’s voice was soft.

But only she knew what she was truly thinking.

If the beginning couldn’t be changed, and the ending was already decided, then surely the process in between couldn’t be interfered with either, right?

Then maybe, even if the outcome was fixed… there was still a chance to change something.

Thinking that, the fire inside her heart burned even stronger.

And in that very instant, a strange voice, yet so familiar, sounded in her mind.

“Oh my, you’re awake. You seem quite angry, aren’t you?”

“Who? Who’s speaking?”

Logically, this kind of voice should have come from the System prompt.

But the voice in her mind was clearly that of a girl.

“Really now, I only took a nap, and you’ve already forgotten me?”

The voice sounded exasperated.

“Don’t you remember? I’m Samael. Samael~”

Samael?

Tianyin was speechless. She had no memory of any girl by that name.