1 1.1 It's Fine
"To be or not to be… Bastard, answer me!"
Lam Thanh Van stared at the severed head weighing down his hands, waiting for it to answer him from beyond the grave.
Seconds trickled away. Ash fell from the static grey sky, and hell - no one left to answer his question, was there?
Bloody strands of blonde hair curled above the straight brows. Sapphire eyes that had brimmed with excitement still gazed at Thanh Van with awe. Moist lips were left parted as if to whisper sweet nothings, the expression frozen in time, a film on pause.
Clumpy blood dripped on the dry and cracked earth below. Only one second of miscalculation and no one remained to try and oppose Lam Thanh Van, no one to end this miserable life.
Thanh Van's wide lips twitched, a hideous smile curling the edges.
Is this all that an S-ranker could do? What a pathetic waste of a handsome face.
Lam Thanh Van dropped the head to the ground with a tortured sigh. It rolled next to the bloody mass of flesh that once upheld this head towards the Heavens, proudly claiming to escape these hellish conditions, the infinite flow of death. And once, Thanh Van had believed him. It was human nature to hold hope for better days. If only they knew sometimes things won't get better.
They end abruptly.
What a disappointment this scenario was.
With a last longing look at what remained of his latest rival, Thanh Van kicked up dust as he turned on his heels, walking down the hill of this barren land that no longer served a purpose. Tortured, sizzling rocks spiked upwards, clawing at the sky along his path.
Ash fell like snow, burying the mangled bodies littering the landscape under a comforting blanket of grey. Soon enough, the rivers of blood snaking alongside his path would be covered too. And so he mourned his chance to lay rest in this godforsaken scene, unable to cover his existence with the tumbling ash.
No, eternity was far too unforgiving.
His slow descent down the mountain slope ended when the air suddenly hummed - then stilled. Ash hung mid-air, and Thanh Van too stood in waiting, watching the inevitable scene repeat itself.
A mechanical voice echoed in the stillness.
[System calibrating…]
[Calculating results…]
[Calibration done. Remaining survivors: 0]
[Mission: Failed]
[Creator, please prepare for the return to base in 3… 2…1]
Light flashed, and as Thanh Van gazed up to the now blinding white sky - darkness fell, swallowing him and this world whole.
***
The next time Lam Thanh Van woke, it was to a searing pain in his chest. Blood dripped from between his lips, filling his lungs at an alarming speed. His dove eyes thinned on the figure hovering over his body, white-gloved hand twisting the knife nuzzled in his chest like a damn merry-go-round.
The greying man simply stared down at Lam Thanh Van with a serene face akin to that of a Buddha statue.
"F…" Lam Thanh Van gurgled a curse and the NPC butler straightened at once. The dagger was pulled out in his retreat, blood painting streaks of crimson on the white walls.
Thanh Van was certain his heart was in pieces and not in the tragically romantic kind of way.
"Good morning, creator. Are you dying or should I go for the throat now?" The NPC had a polite smile on his emotionless visage, pale, unblinking blue eyes set on Thanh Van. His clean black attire, straight, honourable posture, and far too-pale complexion seemed unreal in the current situation.
It hurt like hell - promising. Thanh Van lay still, hoping death could finally pick him up from this sterile room that resembled a prison cell. Bright tube lights blinded him from above, the sheet below him soaking up the crimson, clinging to his skin.
When the butler raised the knife again a little too eagerly, Thanh Van waved his hand as a sign for the butler to wait. Let the pain subside.
The NPC slowly lowered the knife, a sense of disappointment lingering in the air.
A familiar burning sensation bubbled from the gaping hole in Thanh Van's chest, spreading through his shredded heart. The tissue twitched as it grew, stitching itself up. Gradually, the bleeding ceased, the skin growing over the wound, leaving no traces behind. Even if the NPC ripped his heart out, a new one would grow in its place. Thanh Van already tried.
More than once.
"Waste of time. It will heal itself back, it always does." Thanh Van groaned as he moved his heavy limbs to a seated position, eyes fixated on the tray in the butler's left hand.
The guy stabbed him and juggled the tray at the same time. Impressive. Even the knife had disappeared from the NPCs hand, the white glove spotless.
Two glasses sat in a neat row on the tray, one held a green concoction, the other filled with a suspiciously clear liquid. The system went all out every morning trying to surprise-kill him. Tears pricked at the edges of Thanh Van's eyes, and for the life of him, he couldn't tell if he cried from pain or gratitude.
Truly, the system was too thoughtful!
As if reading Thanh Van's mind, the butler chirped, "I have your morning drinks, sir. Which one would you like to try first?"
Thanh Van motioned at the green liquid, hoping it was as deadly as it looked.
"Great choice, creator," The butler said as he placed the glass on the extended, bloody hand.
"What's in it?" Thanh Van twirled the liquid in the glass. Thick, like runny, deadly jello, jiggled with his every movement.
"It is a mixture of cyanide, tetrodotoxin, and strychnine among others, sir." The butler placed a complimentary piece of lime in Thanh Van's glass. "A little zest to make it fresh as it burns through your gut and hopefully kills you."
"Cheers to that!" And with that, Thanh Van chucked the entire drink down his throat.
The glass slipped from his convulsing fingers, smashing on the cold tile floor. Tiny shards skidded across the room unnoticed by the two.
Pain and poison cut through his throat like a paper knife, clawing his insides apart with reckless abandon, and briefly, Thanh Van thought that this time for sure, he would die. Living was overrated anyway. But despite his every orifice bleeding at the same time, turning this sterile white sleeping quarter into a literal bloodbath - Thanh Van wouldn't die.
"Ok," Thanh Van mustered after the pain became tolerable, his body quick to stitch itself back up for the millionth time. "G-give me the other one."
"Another great choice, sir." The butler hummed as he offered the second glass to the man. "Fluoroantimonic acid, purest that we could cook up for you. I hope this will leave a lasting burn, sir."
"No lime?" Thanh Van joked before gulping this one down with renewed enthusiasm.
"I believe it should be acidic enough as is, sir."
The butler watched as Thanh Van grimaced, eyes bleeding profusely. If the NPC could feel emotions, he would have felt pity, but as is, Thanh Van merely resembled a squirming earthworm, and impossible to kill - like a cockroach. Indeed, a worthy challenge for the program.
"It's nice," Thanh Van rolled his tongue that had been burned through, returning the empty glass to the butler as if it had been orange juice. "But not enough to end this… life."
The NPC stared at him silently, like the calm before the storm. It seems his mission had failed miserably once again.
Thanh Van almost felt terrible for surviving as he blinked the tears and blood away. The system did try its best to end his life by his request. Who would have known that this useless body was so indestructible?
"Would it help if I tried stabbing you some more, sir?" The butler insisted. The knife already in his hand, aimed and ready to maim. "Perhaps some rat poison?"
"It's fine." Thanh Van waved the knife away, done with all this killing intent for now. It appears the system was out of ideas for today. "Fetch me a clean pair of clothes… and a cup of coffee, no sugar."
The butler's eyes brightened, and Thanh Van scowled.
"And no rat poison!"
"… I will leave it on the side if you happen to change your mind, sir."
