First Performance [5]

The crimson sky was the first thing that caught my attention as I awoke from my slumber. It was as if the heavens themselves were bleeding, casting a sinister hue over everything.

"A... dream?" I muttered to myself.

It was a dream, filled with bittersweet memories of my parents and childhood, fleeting glimpses of a girl I couldn't fully recall. Her face was blurry, lost in the gray fog of time. I couldn't even remember when I met her.

Could it be the Faceless Girl I had heard people talk about online? What an interesting phenomenon.

Ack!" My head throbbed, and the memories rushed in like a tidal wave.

Death. Destruction. Monsters.

The Song of Nightmares had turned into reality. I had almost perished. But someone had saved me. I couldn't see her face clearly, but I had an inkling of who it might have been.

I slowly rose from the ground, stretching my limbs, feeling the healing effect from my sleep. My wounds, including the gaping tear in my stomach, had all closed.

Honestly, I hadn't expected to survive.

But why had that person let me live?

Maybe she thought I would die regardless. But that didn't make sense, considering she knew about the healing effect.

[A few constellations wonder how you were able to survive.]

[A few constellations are amused your will to survive.]

[500 coins have been sponsored.]

[The constellation '??? ???' looks at you with interest.]

[100 coins have been sponsored.]

[The constellation 'Jugde of War and Wisdom' admires your spirit.]

[100 coins have been sponsored.]

[The constellation 'Architect of Destruction'' admires your tenacity.]

[100 coins have been sponsored.]

The multiple system messages popped up infront of me. Some were the shock messages of the constellations while some were the sponsorship of a few interested constellations.

A strange feeling rose in my chest. If I had chosen one of these constellations for help, I might have avoided all this unnecessary suffering. But oddly, I didn't feel regret.

After surviving this near-death encounter, I was certain of one thing: surviving the nightmares without the aid of the constellations was possible.

To reach the end of the narrative, I needed more than their support. I needed to become the strongest walker of the nightmare.

"I wonder how many Night Crawlers I killed."

I recalled taking down a large number of them before the Second Fable ended, but I wasn't sure how many.

[Rewards for defeating enemies are being distributed.]

[Enemies defeated: 1517]

[151,700 coins has been given as compensation.]

[You have achieved an unbelievable feat.]

[500 coins will be given as additional compensation.]

[The achievement 'Undead Slayer' has been achieved.]

[The Third Fable will start soon.]

A flood of notifications.

"I sure killed a lot," I muttered, impressed by the number.

Everything had gone according to plan. If I had fought the Night Crawlers head-on, survival would have been impossible. But with careful planning, the rewards were worth the risk. Though I disliked the fact that I almost died before my strategy could be fulfilled.

[Coins possessed: 153,500]

A ridiculous amount of coins.

For each individual night crawler I killed, 100 coins was gainedbas compensation. 500 coins for an unbelievable feat and the coins gained from the sponsorship of the constellations.

Everything in total sums up to 153,500 coins. This amount was unheard of for a Player (Walker) in the early stages of the Fables. It was nearly impossible to kill that many, even with a powerful skill. The only reason I survived was my preparation and knowledge of their weaknesses.

'I should have enough coins.'

If I wanted to become the Strongest Walker of the Dreamscape without the support of a Patron Deity, then preparations would have to be made.

I I glanced around, then called out to the fairy from before.

"Aurora."

Silence. I cocked my head to the side in confusion.

Did she not hear me? Wasn't that fairy supposed to hear everything or was I being ignored?

[Damnit, who is calling me now? How annoying.]

Despite the complaints, Aurora appeared in front of me.

[Huh?]

She tilted her head and looked at me with a strange look. She seemed she was shocked to see me alive and well. Did I disappoint you?

[You, aren't you supposed to be died? How did you survive?]

I shrugged. "I was just lucky."

[Whatever. What do you want now?]

Her tone was sharp, and I could tell she wasn't happy to see me. Even so, this fairy was rather rude.

Should I teach her a lesson?

"I want to use my coins."

[You want to use the shop?]

"Yes. But first, I'd like to pay for the VIP membership."

[... What?!!]

Aurora froze like a statue. Her eyes widened in disbelief.

[You, you, you... How did you know about the VIP membership?]

It was because I was a reader of Song of Nightmares. Of course, I couldn't tell her that. Instead, I played it off.

"Oh, is there something like that?"

[Huh? So you didn't know?]

I shrugged. "I figured it was something like a video game world. You know, like an online virtual reality, so I just assumed there'd be a VIP membership."

[Bullshit! That's... Wait, now that I think about it, it makes sense.]

Aurora stopped and thought for a moment. She was still floating mid-air, and flapping her wings.

[A few constellations are intrigued by the term video game.]

[The constellation 'Master of Foreshadowing' smiles slyly at you.]

There was no way the constellations from the older eras would know what a video game was. The excuse seemed to have worked.

[Is that why you chose to hunt the Night Crawlers?]

"Yeah. That's right."

[You... are suicidal! Not even the strongest Walker in the second round would do something like that.]

She wasn't lying. The overall stats of all Walkers were stuck at 40, so fighting an endless horde of Night Crawlers was practically impossible.

"Maybe. Anyway, let's proceed with the payment."

Aurora shook her head.

[No.]

"Huh? Why not?"

[You can't become a Golden VIP.]

"I heard you the first time. Why can't I? Make sure to explain it properly so that a monkey like me can understand."

[VIP membership is only for Constellations. Are you a Constellation?]

It was true. VIP membership was reserved for the Constellations and Great Stars.

[Do you understand why you can't have it now? Breaking the laws would be a problem.]

The cheeky fairy said this as though she hadn't already broken the laws countless times.

I was sure she enjoyed herself when she was killing all those people and watching their screams.

"You're wrong. You won't be breaking any laws."

[Huh?]

"It's true that VIP membership was for Constellations. But there's no rule that says a Runner can't be a VIP member."

She narrowed her eyes. [What are you trying to say?]

"Why are you asking me? You should already know. Check the manuel."

[How did you... You know what, nevermind.]

Aurora sighed and pulled up a manual. After a quick glance, she froze.

[Are you sure you're human?]

"Do I look like a penguin to you?"

[Fine. But you'll still have to pay coins.]

"How much?"

[150,000 coins.]

I looked at the coins I currently possessed.

[Coins Possessed: 153,500 C]

I couldn't help but smile. This stupid fairy was messing with me.

To get the Golden VIP Membership, I only needed 100,000 coins. But this fairy was charging me 50,000 extra.

As if it was not enough, she wore this mischievous smirk that ticked me off.

"That amount is very unreasonable."

[Not my problem. If you can't pay, then that's your issue.]

"I'll pay you 50,000 less."

[Eh? Didn't you hear what I said? It's 150,000 coins! Why must you waste my time like this? Do you want me to blow your head apart? Ah! The temptation is really strong right now. Do you want to me to go ahead and do it?]

Aurora moved her fingers in a threatening manner.

Authorities.

They were ultimate powers bestowed by the Root of the World, the very essence of the «Tree of Mysteries». If skills were the supernatural gifts granted to Walkers by the system, then authorities were the powers of divinity, capable of reshaping or defying the very laws of the world.

Simply put, authorities were the Miracles of God (神的奇迹).

Aurora wielded the Authority commonly used by the Administrators to punish sinners before the First Fable began. This power was known as the «Execution».

It was a terrifying authority that ignored space-time, delivering an instant and unavoidable death to its designed target.

No form of resistance or defense could withstand it. It was a devastating force, akin to a demonic judgment, that obliterated its victim without delay or reprieve.

If Aurora used that power on me, I would be ruined. However, I was calm in such a situation where she was playfully threatening to use that power.

There was no need to be afraid.

I summoned the system window and began scrolling through it. It was then that Aurora started eyeing me with raised brows.

[Hey, what are you doing?]

"Requesting a meeting with the administrator."

I said it as casually as possible, but I could feel the fairy beside me trembling. It was the mention of the word Administrator that caused her reaction.

[W-Why are you s-summoning the Administrators?]

"What? I just want to ask them a question, that's all. By the way, why do you look so pale? If you haven't done anything wrong, there's no reason to be afraid, right?"

I smiled at the fairy, Aurora, who was trying to hide her panic.

In the grand scheme of the Fables within the «Soul Link», there were two types of beings that held authority: the Lackeys and the Twelve Zodiacs, or the Administration Bureau.

The Lackeys were the servants of the Twelve Zodiacs, and they came in various forms, like the cheeky fairy in front of me.

[W-Wait! Please wait. There's no need to involve the Bureau! Is it the price that's upsetting you? I'll lower it to 100,000. How about that?!]

"50,000," I said flatly.

[Eh?]

"50,000 coins, or I'll call the Bureau."

[You... Are you threatening me right now?]

Aurora's expression faltered, and the cheeky grin vanished. Her fury bubbled over, and the air seemed to heat up with her anger.

"Look at that. You're smarter than you look," I mocked.

[Why you...]

In the blink of an eye, bursts of destructive power erupted from Aurora's tiny fists.

The punches were so fast, they broke the sound barrier multiple times over.

But none of them landed on me. Each explosive blow stopped mere inches from my face.

I smirked, watching her futile attempts.

"C'mon, why'd you stop? Weren't you going to hit me? What's wrong? C'mon, won't you hit me?"

[Th-That...]

I laughed. "Ha ha ha! You can't kill me, can you? You can't afford to. If you did, you'd be breaking the Buseau code. Still under the penalty effects of it, aren't you?"

Aurora immediately flapped her wings and backed away, several meters in a panic. Her face betrayed the realization that her weakness had been exposed.

The universe was governed by countless laws, too many to enumerate. But one truth stood above all:

Higher-dimensional beings, such as the Buseau and Constellations, were forbidden from directly interfering with the Lesser Worlds. Any violation of these laws invited the wrath of the System.

These immutable principles were known as the "Laws of Probability".

Aurora, the reckless fairy, had defied one of these absolute laws by killing several people before the Fables began. Now, she was suffering the consequences of her actions.

Moreover, her divine authority remained unusable unless I made the first move to harm her.

[You... What in the seven heavens are you?]

Aurora's voice trembled with fear.

It was an unbelievable sight. In the Fables, beings like the Buseau and their servants had absolute power over all other races.

But now, one of those absolute beings was trembling in fear in the presence of a novice actor like me. If the channel weren't blocked, this would have caused an uproar among the watching constellations.

"Well, isn't that a strange question? Can't you see I'm just a normal human you could find anywhere?"

It was a strange thing to say. Even though I had the advantage of being a reader, I was still human. And humans, as greedy creatures, could be very dangerous even in the farthest reaches of the vast Universe.

"Now, how about you reduce the price of the golden membership to half? Actually, scratch that—make it 20,000 coins, or I'll report you to the Bureau."

Without realizing it, a wicked smile spread across my lips, one that screamed pure malice.

Yes, I was human. No mistake about that.