“Ahhh! Holy shit! The killer vampire bugs are coming this way! Somebody do something!”
Leimia screamed at the top of her lungs, thrashing against her restraints. Panic jolted through her, her body twisting and jerking in a frantic attempt to break free.
Pandemonium’s grip on my hand loosened so suddenly that I nearly lost my balance. I stumbled back a step, caught between confusion and wariness. His nonchalant tone only made it worse.
My mind went blank.
What the hell do I even say to this guy?
Another wave of cold sweat hit me.
This bastard clearly sees anyone who isn’t a player as a disposable NPC, someone he can just kill without a second thought.
Wendrick exploded. The change was instantaneous, violent beyond comprehension, leaving Seojun’s mind reeling in stunned silence.
The invisible noose around my neck dissipated the second my identity was confirmed.
I stared in disbelief. That was it? That’s all it took?
Pandemonium’s face crumbled after hearing about the reliquary’s tracking function.
Flustered, I rushed into an explanation. I told him about how I’d discovered Bishop Andrea was a servant of the Distorted One, and how Athanas, worried about my safety, had given me the reliquary to protect me during those private doctrine lessons.
“…What?”
“I’m talking about Insanity. If an Othergod can’t bring in more than one player, he has to be the ‘Lord of Nightmares’ player. It adds up, don’t you think?”
“…So what?”
The moment Leimia confessed he was a man, Charles’s easy smile vanished, replaced by something cold and unreadable. He took a step back, his whole body stiffening, jaw clenched tight. Lost in a haze of panic and tears, Leimia didn’t notice the subtle retreat, her words spilling out between ragged sobs.
Right off the bat, I knew who’d barged in.
A player. And not just any player either.
Probably that strategy game nerd, I thought, instantly annoyed. Of course, this had to be Reyes’s fault.
At first, it was just sound. Ragged, desperate gasps reaching through the fog in Seojun’s brain. Each rattling breath sounded like a damn battle for survival, as if it might be someone’s last. The floor beneath him buzzed – a low, constant hum that vibrated right into his bones.