Game World 0: The Obelisk (4)

{ "To sum it all up, none of you can leave the Obelisk, even if you choose to forfeit your lives. Only the system can intervene." }

{ "It is a method of prevention, so to speak." }

{ "As for the people who are in the know of your existence, they will simply lose their memories in connection to your identities." }

Most of Aectaeon's question was given an answer, hence he ought to be celebrating. However, that was the last thing he wanted to do upon hearing them.

The reality terrified him.

His mind went blank. He couldn't breathe.

Aectaeon's lips began to quiver. He desired to refute Luluwa's words, scream at her and tell her she's demented.

Whatever she had said was downright unfathomable.

As someone who only believed in what he could see, Aectaeon couldn't grasp the concept of souls and other worlds. Withal, he had no choice but to force himself to understand such notions. He had already told himself that he would play their game.

'D*mn it! That Luluwa! What is she trying to do by answering my question?!' He thought as he clenched his fists.

Having achieved her aim, Luluwa returned to having a poker face before addressing the players once more.

{ "Now, for the regulations." }

{ "Regulation Number 2, Follow all of the directives that the system is showing you. It might range from visiting floors to finding an artefact hidden in a particular game world. Failure to comply with this rule will result in time-related penalties. The player will still have to accomplish the directive no matter the circumstance." }

{ "If the player fails to accomplish the directive within a specified duration or stubbornly refuses to comply, the player will be sent to the basement of the Obelisk." }

{ "Regulation Number 1, Respect the areas inside the Obelisk. It is not allowable to attack the elements of the Obelisk out of hostility. The instant that a player violates this rule, they will be immediately transmigrated to another game world. However, the system will not be of aid to them in that particular world. As usual, the player will have to fulfil the requirements of the system. }

{ "If the player fails to fulfil the requirements of the system before their eventual resummoning to the Obelisk, the player will be sent to the basement of the Obelisk." }

{ "Regulation Number 0" }

Prior to continuing her speech, Luluwa roamed her eyes around the crowd of players afore her. She could still see the varying expressions on their faces, most of them persisted in believing that they were dreaming.

It was not for her to quell their doubting hearts. Her sole job was to brief the players as to how they should cope inside the Obelisk.

Be that as it may, she had some reservations apropos the last regulation. Luluwa had never been in favour of the said regulation, yet the other guardians and those above them refused to remove it. Their reasoning was that it was a necessary step to preserve the identity of the Obelisk.

She didn't feel sorry for the players who would be devastated upon hearing the last rule. Although, it didn't mean that she couldn't sympathize with them.

{ "Regulation Number 0 is the most important rule that you have to bear in your minds. You can disregard the first two that I've relayed but not this regulation." }

{ "The system, Manus Celer Dei, cannot function without a pause. But, remember that the system is detrimental to your survival. With that in consideration, you will have to feed the system with its energy source." }

Luluwa heaved a deep sigh as she choked on her words. She couldn't bring herself to say the last regulation. It wasn't because she deemed it to be immoral. It's because she was angered that she had to share an energy source with the system.

That was her true nature.

{ "When you've failed to clear a game world, you will have to capture a player and let the system absorb their body and soul. If you managed to fulfil that condition, you will be eligible to stay in the Obelisk and have another chance to transmigrate to a game world." }

{ "The only way to fulfil this condition is to guess the full name of your targeted player and enter it in your systems." }

Her declaration was met with a sonorous silence. The people who were mourning their circumstances gave Luluwa a terrified look. Meanwhile, the ones who were keen on listening were no less than outraged or nauseated or horror-stricken.

{ "Failure to comply with this regulation within a day of your return to the Obelisk will not result in imprisonment to the Obelisk's basement." }

{ "It will be a matter of survival for the system. That being so, the system will absorb the body and soul of the player who failed to supply it with energy." }

For a short while, Luluwa didn't say anything. She recognized that the players would be overwhelmed by her barrage of information. Instead of watching how the players would deal with the situation, Luluwa closed all of her eyes and shut her senses.

On the other hand, Aectaeon had an ambiguous expression on his countenance. Rather than being overwrought, he was just speechless. His life was turned upside down after a strange dream, and now he was being forced to kill people? That was not something that Aectaeon had ever expected.

He loosened the tension in his body, his lips trembling as he did. He had to sort his thoughts out, or else he would be totally disconcerted if Luluwa spoke again.

Aectaeon closed his eyes once more and regulated his breathing. He had become efficient in doing this routine since it's what he had been doing from the start.

'Alright, alright, three regulations. Simple enough, aren't they? I have to survive. I was not a moralistic person from the start. Why would I hesitate now?'

Upon opening his eyes, Aectaeon surveyed the expressions of the people around him. He could understand why some of them were less than welcoming of the existence of Regulation Number 0. However, what interested Aectaeon more were the players who didn't lose their composure.

'Monsters are among us, huh. If I want to come out of this Obelisk, or whatever it's called, I will have to face those monsters.'

Focused on his surveillance, Aectaeon didn't notice that he had gained composure similar to the players he dubbed as monsters. Composure wasn't directly associated with one's resolve. But for Aectaeon, it was.

'Those who continue to reject their reality are often the first ones to be killed. Then I better swallow this nonsense until it kills me from the inside.'