Control

It was raining non-stop, and above the library seat near the window, Aoi was still very focused on playing with his cellphone.

"Next, I want to let "Nightblade" fight for the first time." he thought to himself.

In the Tower of Babel, each Operator must complete a mission after being summoned to officially join the team.

The main quest in " Tower of Babel " is to save the world, and there are also many daily, weekly, and side quests available.

In quests, enemies often possess supernatural powers, such as Familia, Cultists, monsters, otherworldly visitors, and foreign civilizations.

The method for defeating them is unusual, difficult, and always offers a new experience for players.

Aoi chooses "Nightblade" and proceeds with the mission, observing a visual similar to gaming titles like "Soul Knight" and "Dead Cells".

Pixel-style artwork depicts a hunter girl struggling against a large monster with tentacles.

"Count your sins carefully!" After reads the Enter Battle voiceline and "Nightblade" slowly unsheathes her greatsword.

In the game, Nightblade's attack method is straightforward close-combat, swinging her great sword with two hands. Each attack blesses her with a Mysterious Power called "Demon Hunting Bloodline · Dark Color".

The monster roars, expelling a plethora of tentacles as its power far surpasses "Nightblade." Aoi, controlling his in-game avatar, can only rely on skill to fight and never daring to use her sword.

"Nightblade" is a newly acquired core Operator with exceptional qualifications, however without training resources, her Stats are considered to be rather disappointing.

"The character's inherent attributes are rather unfavorable, making the beginning of the game quite unpleasant" Aoi remarks.

Aoi pilots "Nightblade" with adeptness, frequently weaving in and out of enemy tentacle attacks. Each time she successfully evades a close-range attack, she immediately swings her blade and quickly closes the distance again. If she can maintain a distance between herself and the enemy, even despite a large gap in attributes, gradual victories are possible.

However, during a specific attack, Aoi neglected to be cautious, resulting in "Nightblade" sustaining two serious blows from the tentacled black monster.

Upon seeing the screen's sudden stagnation with the subtle impression of shock, Aoi noticed a red mosaic, comprised of the fractured body of "Nightblade."

From the cellphone, a young girl uttered a voiceover, moaning, "No, don't forget me..." This is the Core Operator's defeated death voiceline.

The difficulty of the " Tower of Babel " challenges was exceedingly high, prompting Aoi, who already mentally prepared, to take a sip of hot water while nodding. He favors consuming hot water than other drinks.

As he views the "Save" or "Restart" options appear on the screen, he immediately selects "Restart" to resume the match. If Save is chosen, "Nightblade"'s status will be set to "Dead." To reuse her, he will require a significant quantity of resurrection resources, which is not a favorable situation.

Most individuals would choose to restart the battle, but due to the one-hour time limit to complete each mission, infinite retries are not possible. If the time limit for completion is exceeded, the " Tower of Babel "quest's status will automatically be set to "Save." Aoi, once more, controlled "Nightblade" to fight, observing the small pixels of the character repeatedly flying above and below the screen while taking turns dodging and attacking until being struck, then starting anew round. Restart!

Aoi paid close attention, growing increasingly familiar with the enemy's attack method. Through repeated deaths, "Nightblade" eventually overcame the trial for the sixth time, achieving a perfect victory. The flying pixels, dodging and swinging their sword, succeeded in killing the monster in the end, causing the monster to scream and disintegrate into ashes. The water from the rainfall soaked the great sword, lightning flashed across the sky, and the darkness transformed into a short, temporary period of daylight.

In the display, pixel "Nightblade" retracts her large sword while opening her mouth to deliver the victory statement, "Mission completed."

"In the screen you look quite stunning, but you've actually died five times on my monitor" Aoi observes, exhaling quietly as he sees the next game prompt.

"First battle reported victory, Tower of Babel reputation +50," he reads. "The body of the newly discovered monster 'Dark Photography' has been acquired, enabling the investment of resources for the development of novel catabolism technologies."

"New player reward: Mysterious Power: Dark Blue · The World has been obtained."

After spending excessive time on the fight, Aoi finds himself mentally fatigued.

The rewards awarded to new players are typically worthwhile, and this time is no exception, as his luck is impressive with the acquisition of "Dark Blue · The World"—in his assessment, an extraordinary Mysterious Power from early to endgame. He gazes at the bloodied "Nightblade," which still stands in the same position, then stretches out both arms around his waist.

He hold "Mysterious Power" and without hesitation, grants it to the Operator in the list, "Nightblade" to use.

The power of Dark Blue will provide a beneficial boost to "Nightblade"'s strength in the early game, and despite her initial weak attributes, Aoi chooses to employ the power to further mature the character.

Saving in the game " Tower of Babel " is a necessity, as the game world automatically progresses on its own even if the player is not present to complete tasks.

If Aoi refrains from saving the game, "Nightblade" will initiate the quest to confront Familia Dark Photography after a few hours, regardless of the player's activity.

Based on Aoi's experience, this kind of situation will definitely have "Nightblade" death as the outcome. 

"Save game."

——————

[You were chosen by Destiny, Nightblade.]

Suddenly, Kaytlyn hears a young man's voice in her mind, causing her to be caught off-guard and unsure of how to proceed.

She mechanically walks forward, her translucent purple-red gemstone eyes filled with terror.

"Where do you want me to go?"

The distraught young girl proceeds to slowly navigate the street, rising anxiety surging from the depths of her heart.

Kaytlyn is unable to control her own body, being manipulated by the young man's voice in her head, walking on the streets like an apparition. With her transparent purple-red gemstone eyes, she resembles a toy puppet.

[Wait for orders, Nightblade.]

"Yes, my master." Kaytlyn opened her mouth, and a white mask suddenly appeared on her face.

Due to her lack of control over her facial muscles, Kaytlyn utters an "extremely empty" sound, as if the girl's spirit has departed.

Obeying the will of the young man, the young girl involuntarily squats down and slowly kneels on one knee, bows her head, and remains in the middle of the intersection, awaiting further instructions. The encounter causes her to feel a mixture of dread and shame.

Renowned as the esteemed Sin Hunter of Melthis and the only remaining descendant of a Legendary Family, she was previously called noble, elegant, and powerful by her adversaries. However, the present situation, Despite her prior prominence, Kaytlyn now finds herself as a slave, subservient to the young man's directives. The current predicament strikes her as inconceivable, even though she entertained the idea of being under a spell.

Kaytlyn wonders about the true identity of her unseen manipulator. Considering the possibility of demonic control, organizations such as Eyes of the Empire, Death's arms, or Time Theocracy, or even the potential presence of an illustrious personality, the Queen of the Scarlet Moon or The Pastor, she acknowledges a glaring lack of understanding. The girl catches a semblance of a strong existence, incomprehensible to her.

Reflecting on the futility of remaining in stasis under the guise of "Waiting for orders," Kaytlyn poses the question: What purpose does such a strategy ultimately serve?

As the cracks on the ground gradually expand, tentacles pierce through the ground. The black eyes on the end of the appendages slowly open, and Kaytlyn's face is filled with apprehension. The girl realizes the overwhelming disparity between her strength and her opponent's power. Realizing the necessity of flexibility, she calculates the tiny possibility of triumph, while acknowledging the substantial potential for death if hit by the enemy. Even though there exists a minor chance of victory in battle, it is likely exceedingly narrow.

Kaytlyn wishes to flee in order to salvage her life, but her body remains motionless, despite pulling out her black sword from her back as her lips move involuntarily.

"Count your sins carefully!" the girl exclaims while almost being desperate, contemplating the option of shouting, though without control over her mouth. Ultimately, she desperately wants something to close her mouth, knowing that she possesses no authority over her actions.

The evil Familia Dark Photography emit a deafening roar that nearly shatters the sky, creating invisible sound waves that blanket the entire rain-soaked route, shattering all the crystals near the location. Tentacles extend and shoot through the downpour, resembling massive black fists.

In her heart, Kaytlyn clearly knows that if an attack makes contact with her, she will incur significant harm.

She attempts to move in earnest. However, she realizes that it is not her who is in control of her body.

Kaytlyn maneuvers in a graceful and fluttering manner, quickly surrounded by numerous tentacles.

The girl leaps to avoid the tentacle, jumping over ten meters before engaging in swift blade strikes against the massive "Dark Photography".

Despite the tentacles' imposing power, capable of crushing a carriage and ravaging a road, they fail to make even a single contact with Kaytlyn.

Overwhelmed with surprise, the girl feels her body surging with power, exceeding her previous level of strength.

While Kaytlyn is unaware of her manipulator's true identity, the individual's mastery over her body is undeniable.

Kaytlyn repeatedly engages Black Photography with her sword, compensating for their disparity in strength and inflicting progressively severe damage.

The monstrous opponent is unable to effectively retaliate against her swift strikes, and the tentacle eventually crashes to the ground with a loud sound, spraying pure water foam and red blood.

The maimed remains roll and move on the soil for significant time, and her slender body struggles to prevent her own body from collapsing.

With the black sword slowly retracting, Kaytlyn covers her chest and sways, only just managing to maintain her poise.

The young girl hears her own voice yet again stating, "Mission completed."

Strange black smoke erupts from the ground and covers the barely alive creature, causing it to vanish without a trace.

Even though Kaytlyn was certain of her demise, survival has proven to be her reality.

However, the girl remains highly confused and finds it difficult to believe in everything that has occurred until this point.

Kaytlyn ponders the true identity of the supposed deity that supported her during the battle - is it good or evil? Despite her immense fear, she requests for her freedom.

"Can you set me free?

The girl is extremely fearful — if the manipulation was merely temporary, she would accept the act.

However, Kaytlyn dreads the notion of becoming an indefinitely bound puppet, an individual treated as a living toy for the remainder of her existence, unable to even enact suicide.

The monotonous voice arises once again in her mind, causing her to tremble involuntarily.

[I am the Savior.]

[Everything is to save the future, because this world is about to collapse and destroy.] 

[Nightblade.] 

[From today onwards, you are a member of Tower of Babel.]