Chapter 8

Hajime's POV:

Rye landed on his feet next to me.

"What's wrong, Hajime?" He stared into the room.

It's gone. As if it's completely vanished from existence leaving nothing behind. There is no body. No blood.

I'm not seeing things.

Suddenly, I hear the sound of shattered glass. Rye punched the window open with his bare fist.

He proceeded to pick off the shards embedded to his hand.

"Damn, that hurts like hell." He complained.

I remained calm. Why is it here? What is it doing here? No, these are useless questions.

This is a terrible idea. Breaking in after seeing that thing would only be done by an insane person. I can't. I can't wait to see what's inside. This is exhilarating.

Rye walked in first, scouting out his surroundings. I proceeded after him.

"It's exactly what I expected to see, man." I could already feel the disappointment in Rye's voice.

I looked around to scavenge for anything out of place only to end up with nothing.

"To think you'd break it even after seeing me,"

A voice echoed the room.

"Who's there?" Rye reflexively moved his head around to find the origin of the voice.

The skeleton appeared in my face without notice.

"How daring."

Rye took a stance, he was ready to fight.

I maintained eye contact with this abomination of a being, not looking away.

"My, are you simply brave or just cocky?"

Rye threw a punch at the skeleton's face while it was conversing with me.

His detached arm flew into the air and fell with a thud. A strong gust of black wind had sliced it off.

"How frustrating. I'm even trying to hold myself back and have a civilized chat here. Just an arm wouldn't teach you a lesson."

It took a second before Rye realized his injury and screamed in pain. However, before he could scream, his other arm came off.

Rye screeched at the top of his lungs, as if trying to suppress the amount of pain he's feeling.

Rye hasn't passed out yet. He have a high tolerance for pain as shown by the stunt we did back then. That doesn't mean he won't feel pain, though.

The skeleton turned his gaze back to me.

"Do you want to be taught a lesson, too?"

He didn't give me time to answer. A deadly wind sliced half of my neck, leaving a deep wound behind.

"Magnificent! Not a single movement. Do you not feel pain?" The skeleton sounded fascinated.

"You've been standing there quietly for a while now. Did you pass out? Don't tell me I've been talking to an unconscious person this whole time?" He brought his face closer to mine.

Rye regained his balance and charged at the skeleton.

The skeleton averted his gaze away from me and prepared himself to attack Rye.

I wasn't gonna let it do that.

I ducked to make it lose vision of me and kicked its abdomen, aiming to crush its bones.

The kicked landed but was stopped. Its attention is completely on me.

A blast of wind surrounded my legs and tore every part off like paper in a shredding machine.

A raised my fight fist and aimed for its face. My raised arm got cut off immediately. I reacted by grabbing my severed arm with left arm and swung it at the skeleton with full force.

It landed! But it did nothing.

"You insolent fool!" It made a loud cry.

That soft smack with my severed arm on its face must've made it felt greatly humiliated because it's really angry now.

Before I could land on my feet, hundreds of wind blades cut through my body slicing me into multiple pieces. Everything was cut to pieces, except my head.

~~

None's POV:

Hajime's cut pieces fell to the ground. All that's left of him is a pile of sliced body parts. His head fell last and rolled to the side.

However, he was able to achieve the feat he desired.

While the skeleton was busy with Hajime, Rye was able to close the distance between him and the skeleton.

Rye leaped up and performed a flying kick. An attack charged with momentum and performs the best with his type of body.

Surely the skeleton won't be able react on time.

"Don't underestimate me!" He cried even louder this time.

The humiliation he's received from these two weaklings have greatly damaged his pride. How could two mere humans try to challenge him when he went out of his way to avoid fighting?

He turned around at lightning quick speed and sent a powerful roll cloud that shredded every part of Rye's body. From his feet, to his thighs, then finally his entire lower body is gone.

Rye bit hard on a huge shard of glass he's been hiding inside his mouth this entire time.

He let out a loud battlecry muffled only by his teeth and aimed for the skeleton's forehead.

His head and torso dropped on the floor with a hard thud from the momentum he gathered up from the previous flying kick.

He puffed in exhaustion as he strived to balance his body, which by now has zero limbs.

'Did I get him?'

The huge piece of shard was deeply rooted into the skeleton's forehead. The glass would have completely shattered and his whole plan failed if he had pierce it at the wrong angle.

The skeleton stood there, unmoving.

Suspense filled the air as Rye waited for a reaction.

"HAHAHAHAHAHA!" A thrilled laugh resonated the whole room.

"Damn, we didn't get him." Hajime's voice came from the severed head next to the pile of sliced up pieces.

"Amazing! Just amazing!" The skeleton exclaimed with excitement.

"Such perfect teamwork! Such beautiful execution! Marvelous use of your bodies! Wonderful! Truly wonderful!"

"Shut up, old bones. We're going to have another round after my body heals up." Rye spoke out.

"Is that so?"

"Yes! I already know your pattern! You only go for limbs and never the head! You underestimate us so you won't think much of our actions. You're also provoked easily! When that happens, you focus on inflicting more pain instead of knocking us out. It won't be easy for you this time!" He exclaimed out.

'Rye...' Hajime thought, 'you just revealed your whole strategy...'

The skeleton laughed louder this time.

"Splendid! That's the spirit! You're completely honest and you have guts! I like you! And for you..."

The skeleton turned to Hajime's direction. "You kept a cool head this whole time and executed the distraction perfectly! It's almost like you two planned on this single attack before hand! Beautiful! How beautiful!"

"What's he on about?" Rye appears annoyed with the fact that he can't stand up to give that old bonehead a fist to the face.

"Very well. I'm in a good mood now. What is it that you two desire of me?" He bent his head inhumanly.

"Just sit your ass over and wait until I beat you up!" Rye's showing some spunk.

"I don't think that's a good idea at the moment, Rye." Hajime commented.

"He'll just destroy us as easily as he did earlier. Besides, you told him our entire strategy. If we continued to fight him, we'll be crippled time and time again."

"Ah, shit." Rye just realized he had said his strategy out loud.

"That's right." The skeleton joined in.

"Just as he said, it will be a better idea for us to have a civilized talk for now. And I'm quite interested in you two... that's not something anyone can just do."

"You asked if we wanted something, right?" Hajime verified with the skeleton.

"That's right! Whether you want power or information, just speak up!"

"What kind of power?" Even this got Rye's attention.

"Let's see, the power to control death."

"Pffft. You can't even kill us, how are you going to control death?" Rye laughed out.

"I'd be a waste if someone of your talent were to die so easily." He said.

"Assuming you can control death, what are the benefits to it?" Hajime cut in.

"Contrary to what it sounds like, you can't actually summon zombies or raise the dead back to living." He made sure the two knew that first.

"Huh? That's so boring." Rye seems to have lost interest.

"However, it grants you the ability to kill immortals. Not only that, you also obtain the Death Commandment that allows you to slice through EVERYTHING! It is an ability that lets you freely alter the rules in your surroundings. And most importantly," he paused.

"It grants you the ability to die." His voice held meaning despite the obvious information he shared.

"Why would I want the power to die. That's so stupid." Rye remarked.

"Oh, trust me. Death is a beautiful thing. More people than you ever expect would trade anything for the sweet taste of death. I, myself, long to finally rest for eternity one day."

"Then just come here and let me kill you. Why don't you come here, you scared?" Rye is unnecessarily trying to provoke him.

"I'm afraid I can't do that. I still have a task to fulfill. And I cannot let my Mistress down." He simply stated.

"So what's the catch? Surely you're not just gonna gladly give this commandment thing to the one of us." Hajime asked.

"Oh, it's very, very easy. You simply have to kill me." He said. It's easier said than done. Afterall, the skeleton is an immortal himself.

"You don't have to tell us." Rye said with confidence.

"I've been meaning to ask... what are you?" This was Hajime's question.

"Hades... that's my name. I am one of the 15 game masters of Worlds and also the current holder of the Law of Death."

"Game masters? Law of Death?"

"That's correct. What you are currently experiencing right now is under operation by fifteen of us. As for the Law of Death... it is the power that I spoke of. If you wish to know more, you'll have to try your luck in taking me down."

"How long is it until the next launch of Worlds?" Rye asked a question Hajime was meaning to ask.

"Exactly 81 more days." Hades answered.

"What's happening in Worlds?" Rye pressed on with his questions.

"I can't tell you that."

"Then what about the corpse from earlier?" Hajime asked.

This caught Hades by surprise.

'He saw the corpse?!'

Rye seemed lost on the topic.

"There is no corpse here. I do not quite understand your question." Hades lied.

Hajime stayed silent as he think back to what he saw.

"What happened to the owner of this room?" Rye asked.

Hades stayed silent for a while.

"She's alive." He answered.

'She?' Hajime thought.

"You're awfully cooperative for someone who has power." Hajime pointed out.

"I look forward to what you two can do with the information, that's all."

"I'll make you regret underestimating us." Rye extended a fist towards Hades.

By this time, the two's injury have healed significantly enough for them to stand up and walk around.

"Looks like your wounds have healed up. Will you try to attack me again?" Hades questioned.

"I'll listen to Hajime." Rye turned to Hajime for his answer.

"No, we'll end up limbless again if we try right now." He answered.

"Very well, I shall take my leave now."

"Wait." Rye called out.

"Since we're going to kill you, does that mean you'll be staying here?"

"No." Hades answered simply.

"Then how are we supposed to do that?"

"You'll know soon enough. Specifically in 51 days' time. I look forward to seeing both your improvements and what strategies you've thought up to defeat me."

With that, Hades was completely engulfed by black mist and vanished.

"Let's check the room for any hidden objects." Hajime's body completely healed, and so has Rye's.

"Hm? Is there something we can find?" Rye was intrigued by Hajime's suggestion.

"Hopefully."

~~

None's POV:

Hades stood on the 118th floor as he admired the sun rise.

"He saw you, Master." Hades appeared to be talking to someone, though no one else was in sight.

A white figure came within sight. She had the body of a small child's. There was nothing else distinguishing about this person other than the black choker on her neck.

"I'm surprised you didn't kill him." She spoke.

"It would have gotten messy if he pried any further. He was bright enough to understand that."

"Good. Because if you had killed him..."

A strong aura emitted from the small figure. This even sent chills down Hades' entire body. Despite that, he kept a calm front as his life isn't at an immediate danger.

"I will end you."

The aura subsided as she finished her death threat.

"Is he the person that made Master go all the way to kill herself for?"

"That's right, Hades. You better know your place well and not do anything to him."

"I'm afraid that's impossible, Master. The Culling Operation devised by the Superior Alphabets, including you, will start soon."

"That won't be a problem. If he's incompetent enough to even fail that, he deserved to die."

"Understood." Hades bowed his head.

The small figure disappeared as quickly as she made her entrance.

Hades let out a sly smile inside. He hadn't mentioned the fact those two will be challenging him on the day of the operation.

'Master can't blame me if he's the one who approaches me, can she?'

~~

Hajime's POV:

"Man, I was so sure there would be something beneath the drawer, too." Rye supported his head with two hands as he walked alongside me.

"It was worth trying." I commented.

"I still don't believe Hades could kill us whenever he wish. He would've done so from the start."

"We can't be sure. We know too little about the lobby. All the things he said are too detailed to be made up on the spot."

"That's true." The ended the conversation as we walked into the elevator.

We were silent on our way down. Each of us taking the moment to process what just happened. Game masters, Law of Death, and 51 days? What will happen in 51 days?

The elevator door opened as we both walked out.

We headed to the cafeteria and did a check out.

"Where will you go now, Hajime?"

"I'm thinking of visiting Kenji and quitting the clan."

"Damn, okay."

"How about you?"

"I'll go meet up with Mea. She's probably mad that I'm late."

"This is where we part ways then."

"Yeah. See you later." He walked away with his head up, probably still thinking about Hades.

I was able to successfully talk it out with Kenji and explain my reasons. He regretfully accepted it and officially announced I'm no longer part of the clan.

It's already 6:50AM. I should head back to the library and check out the archives. It's been making me curious since flat chest won't stop bringing it up.

I soaked myself in a nearby fountain and jogged my way towards the spawn point. That fight on room 5543 still lingering in my head.

By the time I reached the library, I was greeted by flat chest. She's been waiting near the entrance.

"So, are you finally going to check out the archives?" She's appears to be more excited than usual.

"Yeah, let's see the reason you boast about it so much."

"I don't boast about it! It's a fact!"

She tilted the book at that exact angle and the bookshelf slid to the side. It vibrated a little as it was sliding.

We both head in. I haven't been in here in a while.

We were greeted by the same classic door. That bell is still there.

She opened in and welcomed me inside. It's different from last time.

Everything was neatly arranged unlike last time. The scrolls were stacked upon each other neatly and the books were placed orderly.

A strange furniture caught my eye in the corner of the room. Rugs. A lot of rugs placed on top of each other, with a big round object on top.

She sat on it and motioned me to sit beside her.

"Is that where you've been sleeping overnight?" I asked.

"Sleeping? No, no. I just lay on it as I read my books. It's super comfy!" Saying that, she laid down and stretched her arms.

I stared at her figure. She's pretty defenseless.

"For starters, I suggest reading that one over there."

I'm assuming she's referring to the book neatly set on the table next to this "bed."

I picked it up. There was no title, instead, it was replaced with runes I don't understand.

I opened it. Luckily the contents weren't written in runes.

I begun reading it.

~~

Hajime's POV:

"Are you done?" She asked me for the fifth time as she drew circles on my back mainly for the enjoyment of it.

"Not everyone can just read a page in 20 seconds like you, you know." I tried to defend myself.

"Even a normal person would've finished it by now." She said.

"I'm done. I'm a normal person."

She sat upright and tilted her head slightly.

"How was it?"

"I must agree, it's very useful."

"Right? I readied the complete order for you."

She bent her knees to grab another book from under the table and handed it to me.

She then grabbed the scroll she had been reading and laid back down next to me.

The book she had handed me contained all the information on stage 1. That was the first part, the other book she gave me include the second part.

The informations were all very accurate according to me experience. Not to mention they also contain even more than what I know of. Everything about a specific species were written there, from how they fight to how they survive. What they drop upon death. And where we can find them.

Unlike those books I've been skipping for the general idea in the library, these ones I had to read completely. Every information was regarding Worlds. I wouldn't dare skip any of it.

Besides, they were interesting enough to keep me going. Every page is a brand new experience. It's as if I am actually in the adventure. It still remains a fact that a book take me at least 6 hours to read, while a scroll is an hour.

And so, time passed by. We would repeat the same thing everyday. Check out then read all day, we would return back in the evening to check in and come back to read overnight, then check out again in the following dawn.

During this time, I would occasionally see Rye inside my room discussing our plans in 51 days. He would also share his information regarding the happenings and the recent arriving dead players.

Me and flat chest got pretty comfortable during this time. We would sometimes lie down on the same direction side by side. We would also take breaks together and take a walk outside. I also explained what happened in room 5543 to her during this time.

I couldn't find any information regarding game masters and the Law of Death. I asked my partner but she doesn't seem to know, either. It's even harder to tell if Hades is speaking the truth, now.

However, my overall experience in the archives was very fruitful. I managed to read a total of 145 books and 168 scrolls. Even then, there's still more. The books are about monsters and locations, even hidden dungeons and class temples. While the scrolls are more focused on runes, class abilities, and item properties.

And with that, 43 days have passed. I counted the days in order to prepare myself for when 81 days passed. This leaves only 38 more days to go. If so, why did I start here?

You see, a very big event happened today that I cannot skip.

"Hey, remember that egg you gave me?"

Flat chest called out to me one day while I was resting on the library, taking a break from the information overload.

"Yeah, what about it?" I was curious, she brought a book with her.

"I think I know what it is!" She flipped her book excited and showed me the page.

Stage 15. Disaster level. Three-tailed Phoenix.

"It doesn't show here, but I believe that's egg is directly related to this phoenix."

A disaster level. Let me explain what it is.

Starting from stage 10 and beyond, disaster level monsters begin to show up. These disasters are just as dangerous, if not even more dangerous than the stage boss itself. It's main reason being it can happen at any specific moment in time.

These disaster level monsters all have something that makes them extraordinarily powerful.

Take this Three-tailed Phoenix from stage 15 for example. As it's name implied, this phoenix possesses three tails. It flies around the stage, destroying anything it wishes, even monsters.

What makes this phoenix so powerful is that it cannot die. If you manage to weaken it enough, it will split into three individual phoenixes and scatter throughout the stage. These phoenixes aren't as powerful as it's full form but are still destructive nonetheless. The worst part is that these phoenixes cannot die no matter what you do. Your safest bet is to clear the stage boss and move on. When the three come into contact again, they will combine and restore it's original form.

Is she telling me the egg I possess belonged to a stage 15 monstrosity? Seriously?

"Look, I have evidence and a logical explanation!" She pointed a finger out.

"Remember when you said you and Haruto found three eggs on top of a totem about a month and a half ago?"

"Yeah. That's correct."

"You also mentioned it was a miracle they didn't crack when you two fell together, right?"

I thought about it. What she's trying to say...

"You mean the egg was actually one but then split into three upon falling?"

"That's right! And that's not all! This egg is immortal, too." She spoke with confidence.

"How do you know that?"

"I tried destroying it, it went back to it's original state after a few minutes. Just like our bodies."

"What if it didn't regenerate?"

"W-well, you gave it to me! You should have no complaints, right?"

"You're actually just clumsy and dropped it by accident, didn't you." I gave her a suspicious stare, though she can't see it.

"Wait, how did you know?!" She blurted out by accident and covered her mouth upon realization.

"You would have done it earlier if you knew instead of waiting for today." I made a simple deduction.

"I didn't drop it, okay?! A shell just broke off when I sat on the bed!" She exclaimed.

Even though it's by accident, she was still able to figure it out. And listening to her explanation actually makes sense. It's plausible to believe this is the egg of a disaster level monster.

"I never thought about that. You're actually pretty amazing aren't you?" I complimented her.

Upon hearing it, she blushed and turned around.

"Of course, I am! I'm pretty smart, you know?"

"Yeah, yeah. I believe you."

Though she's smart and memorizes things in a heartbeat, she's awfully clumsy when it comes to everyday menial tasks.

"Hajime..." her voice was low.

"Hm?"

"Wh- what is that... in the distance?" She pointed out the window.

I stood up to see for myself what she was talking about.

It was almost 5:00PM but the clouds were strangely darker than usual. What I don't understand was the pattern. The clouds are slowly swirling around a specific point, like a slow tornado. Lightning could be seen from the distance. The location directly under the center is the spawn point.

That's right, the big event I mentioned isn't about the discovery of my egg's identity. No, it was this.

Because on that day, in Worlds, the number of remaining survivors dropped from 1,322

to four.