2 Chapter -2 (Return-2)
Ding!
[Wake Up]
Glitch rubbed his eyes, stretched his arms, took a yawn, and peeked outside the window.
"Last night, I couldn't see it very well, but this place is in ruins. Looks like no one has been taking care of this place for years."
[Collect supplies from Room 21- A]
"Supplies?"
A map flashed out as Glitch rubbed his chin with interest, "Supplies? Someone left these things for me, knowing I would be here. Was it Agnus?"
After carefully examining the layout, Glitch left the room and headed towards the elevator.
Press.
"The elevator isn't working either."
Glitch took the stairs; walking down the stairs, he saw posters plastered on the walls.
(Help us fight against Medibots)
(Do Medibot even understand the value of life? Can you trust them with the lives of you and your loved ones?)
Glitch slid his fingers across the posters as he let out a sigh.
"They ran out of business."
Glitch continued and reached the ground floor; his jaw dropped wide as he witnessed what had happened before.
The reception was gone, now replaced with a blood-stained desk and with a broken monitor. The floor had cracks and stains all over; big ineligible letters covered the four walls, and a barricade tape sealing the exit as well as the entrance.
Glitch stared at it for a while and left with an obvious realization of what had happened.
[Room- 21A]
Glitch walked into the room, but it was unlike any other he entered before.
The table was neatly arranged, with the cupboard showing no signs of damage.
[Please take the keys from the drawer]
Glitch grabbed the keys and opened the cupboard.
"Woah!"
It was full. It had nearly every emergency supply one could have imagined.
One row had a stack of canned and liquid food, while the other two had stacked first-aid boxes and a few men's clothes along with a backpack.
"I don't need this many kits," Glitch took a kit and left the rest inside.
"Do I leave now?" Glitch recalled the letter he had found earlier, "I need to meet Agnus as soon as I can. How will Mercy and Hannab react?" Glitch wondered as he opened the window and jumped outside.
Ding!
[You are outside the safe zone]
"What?"
Glitch frowned as he bit his tongue, 'I don't like this feeling of being controlled by someone.'
A map replaced the previous layout, with Sector B-12 marked with a red dot.
"I am not that far away from it!" Glitch's eyes gleamed as he found his location, but soon it turned gloomy and pale.
[Sector B-12 has been locked. Please complete Escape-2 to unlock it]
Glitch felt his blood boiling, but he didn't say anything and just quietly scrolled down the contents of Escape-2 as if he accepted his faith. "I am not in a position to do anything."
Glitch had no idea of how he got into this mess, but there was one thing he knew for sure.
'Agnus...he definitely knows something.'
Glitch took out the letter and asked himself with a doubtful expression, "Why are you involved in all this?"
*** *** *** ***
"Megumi, are you sure about this?" Kai couldn't understand what had happened to Megumi overnight when she told him that she wouldn't change her class.
"Yes," Megumi replied with an unusual conviction in her eyes.
"Didn't you want us to play together?"
"I wanted to play together with you and have fun just like we used to have in the past, but..." Megumi paused for a while.
"But?"
Megumin flustered as she was the one who asked Kai, who had no interest, to play Oasis with her.
[You will unconditionally be hostile to the legends of the previous era and their successors. You may get a bonus by killing them]
Megumi shared the screen, "My gut keeps telling me that we shouldn't take it."
"If that's what you want." Kai sighed as his eyes dropped in disappointment.
"I get it. Barking at the top dogs will bring nothing but trouble."
[You have canceled class change to Illusionist's Associate]
"Don't make that expression."
Kai rubbed her hair and replied with a teasing smile, "Didn't I say to you that I will follow you no matter what?"
"Now come on." Kai pulled her cheeks wide, "Now decide how to deal with this."
Kai took out the book from his inventory.
I overheard your conversation.
"..."
Are you scared of the successors ganging up on you?
"..."
I am tired.
"What? Why?" asked Megumi.
The book shook and fell over to Megumi's hand.
You really don't want his power?! Just because no one knows who he is, doesn't mean he is any weak.
"I~"
This man, your brother, will protect you.
Kai scratched his face with an awkward smile, choosing not to say anything.
Fear truly is a shitty thing! Do me a favor.
"What favor?"
Throw me away in the river; someday, someone brave will become the successor.
"What?!" Megumi squeaked. She couldn't believe her ears.
It's a simple request.
"But~" Megumi flustered as she looked at Kai for help.
"We will do it." Kai took the book from Megumi and headed towards the bridge.
[You have acquired x4 random legendary skill page]
"What?!" Both Kai and Megumi dropped their jaws as they saw the book heading towards the blue stream.
Consider this as a parting gift.
"???!"
Kai and Megumi were utterly confused. They didn't know how they should react.
"Big Brother~"
"Let's log out for now."
'Even by god's standards this is way too generous.'
Kai glanced at the spot where the book had fallen earlier as if he was waiting for something to happen.
"Big Brother?!" Megumi felt his staring uncomfortable. She shook his arm with a troubled look. "Is something wrong? I don't under just why~"
"Pass me the pages." Kai's eyes didn't move as if they marked the book.
"Here," Megumin took out the pages and handed them over.
"Brother, what happened?"
"Ahh! Brother! What are you doing!!!"
"Don't interfere." Kai shook away Megumi's hand over his and continued lighting up the pages one by one. "We have played enough for today. We should log out."
"But~" Megumi still didn't get any explanation as to why Kai acted in this way. After all, everyone knew the potential of a single legendary skill was enough to make even the high rankers go crazy.
Kai didn't bother to reply. After serving the law for over five years, he developed a strong sense of perception and knew something was wrong.
'Even the system tried to warn us.'
When Kai first saw the class, one thing stood out the most to him.
[You will become hostile to every legend and their successor. Killing them will help you increase your skills twice as fast, and the chances of them dropping an equipped item will increase by 100%]
Kai melted into white light while Megumi kept getting troubled by his expression and the following silence.
*** *** *** ***
"Is this it?"
Glitch grabbed a bamboo pole and took a breath. He had been walking for over three hours, and now he finally saw a settlement.
[Sector X-12 (Moonlight City)]
His weary face glowed neon as a man in uniform lit up his torch. "Did you come from the outskirts? Show me your identity now!"
The man pulled up a gun towards Glitch, "Hands at your back now!"
"Ehh? I am not a~"
Buzz.
Before Glitch could continue, he fell as the man pulled the trigger.
"We have an unknown person at the back gates. I will be apprehending him now."
Glitch laid unconscious as the man cuffed his hands and dragged him into his car.
Flash. Flash.
"Who are you?"
Glitch's drooped face rose- he opened his eyes as beads of water trickled down.
"Where ~am I?"
Glitch lost his balance and fell from the chair. His vision was blurry and spinning. He could see everything around him revolving in loops, mixing into a jam of colors.
"Hey?!"
"Administer him,"
Glitch felt a sharp pain. His vision turned back to normal, and so did his senses.
"Where am I?"
"AIPD"
Glitch turned his face up and asked, "Why did you bring me here?"
"You came from the outskirts, and you are asking us why?!"
The man slammed the desk.
Flinch
"!!!"
Glitch muffed away from him and the broken desk.
"Seems like you know how to behave," the man glared at him, "I will give you ten seconds to tell me why you were carrying a fake id."
"What?!"
Glitch glanced at the id and asked in utter disbelief, "That is fake?"
'Did the system really give me a fake id of all things?!'
Glitch cursed himself as he very well knew the punishment for it. After all, in all his past life, he had multiple fake ids.
"You have four seconds left," the man took out a headset from the desk near the walls and turned it on.
"You know what this is, right?"
A chill crept down his spine as he recalled what happened to those convicted of forgery.
[System is updating]
Glitch bit his lips. He saw the same notification ever since he landed in the city.
[Reconfiguration complete]
Ding.
Glitch closed his eyes as he muffed back, watching the man grow larger and larger as he approached him.
'Ehh?'
Glitch didn't dare to open both his eyes. He was scared and barely opened his one eye.
'Did it just shut him down?'
Glitch wondered as he saw the still metal body.
'Ehh!' Glitch flinched as the man's eyes rolled at him.
"What?"
The man uncuffed Glitch and scratched his face, hiding his awkwardness. "It looks like our database wasn't working. I am sorry for the trouble."
"It's okay," Glitch replied with a similarly awkward smile, but his eyes which once looked timid now looked at the man with disgust. 'Trash. Garbage.'
"We will release you in a minute. Do you know anyone around here?"
"No,"
"We tried to contact your wife~ but she didn't respond to our calls. Officer Waine will take care of you for the time being until you are unable to return back to Sector A-10, if you have no problem with that."
"___"
"Sir? Are you okay?"
"Sir?"
"Huh?!"
Glitch woke up from his confusion and replied with a nod, not thinking much about it. "I don't mind."
'Did he just say wife?' Glitch quietly followed the man while his mind screamed in confusion.
'Is this body someone else?'
'No, that would've been too crazy to even think of, but it is possible. If not, then when did I get a wife?'
"Officer Waine, this is the man I was talking about."
The man gave a firm handshake and continued, "Servie is about to deliver, so I will be on leave. Please look after him."
"Don't worry about this mister here. Worry about your future daughter. Now hurry, Nabe!" Waine smiled and patted his back. "Goodluck!"
Nabe hurried his way out, leaving Waine and Glitch alone in the corridors.
"Stop staring. It's rude. Don't meddle in others' private affairs."
"!!!"
Glitch felt as if Waine was staring at his soul, reading his mind. "You are~ Glitch, right?"
"Yes,"
"Officer Nabe must've told you, but do you want to contact her? We tried, but we couldn't reach her."
"Yes,"
"Okay, follow me."
'Just who is she?'
Goosebumps crept on him as Waine handed him the call.
'Why is she labeled like that? Is Mercy also involved in all this?'
Glitch's hand trembled as he saw a familiar name flashing on the screen. Waine grabbed his shoulder and asked, "Are you alright, Mr. Glitch?"
"Ah. Yes~ I am fine." Glitch recovered from the shock as he stared at the floating screen.
"Looks like she is quite busy." Waine commented, but Glitch kept staring and didn't reply.
'Looks like I need to hurry.'
