The New Boss

"Virtual Reality Massively-Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games", or "VRMMORPG" for short, have taken the world by storm, almost entirely replacing real life interactions for people/ Even people who were once unfamiliar with games have found their own virtual reality environments that cater to them. 

In this era of virtual reality, gaming has become one-and-one with stardom; players that possess top-class skill are treated like celebrities, and given large opportunities for success, making gaming more competitive than ever. 

In the grand, virtual world of Abyss, ranked the hardest VRMMORPG of all time, this is no different. It is infamous for its unforgiving environment, forcing players to have to maintain hunger and hydration levels and have to learn how to fight without the guidance of auto-tracking systems. 

A single death means your account is erased, forcing you to restart if you slip up even a single time. Countless professionals from other VRMMORPG have tried beating the game, but most end up sticking around the low-level areas. 

No player has come close to reaching its end. 

That is, until now. 

[The Abyssal Keep Outskirts | Level 85]

After a complete year of the infamously difficult VRMMORPG being out, the final dungeon was finally located and a raid composed of the top guilds challenged it headfirst. 

It was located in the midst of the "Sin Kingdom"--a dark region with unforgiving environmental hazards and high-level monsters everywhere, with the dungeon itself having its entrance found by a colossal skull leading into a mountain tomb. 

"Uwaaah—!"

"Gah—!"

Outside of the endgame dungeon, the entire raid of players found themselves crushed by the very first enemies awaiting them. 

"Supreme Fire bolt!"

"Shield of the Colossus!"

As magical attacks spanning from fiery lightning strikes to flashes of fire were sent by mage-class players, and a tank-class slammed down his shield, constructing a mystical barrier, it was all proven to be fruitless. 

A single guardian of the penultimate area swept by with speed too fast to recognize, using shadows to cleave through the magical attacks. 

[Sinful Sentinel | Level 90] 

A man with blonde hair and crimson armor huffed, barely managing to stand as he faced the hunched-back demon that wiped out most of his party.

All around the man, the players he came with dissipated into particles, meeting their "Game Over."

[Player: Juriel | Level 80]

"It's not fair…this dungeon isn't—!" 

As the blonde-haired man exclaimed in detestment to the high-level dungeon, the monster swept by, instantly striking the player down.

[In Abyss Online, there is no respawning. One death and your account is voided, forcing you to buy another headset if you wish to try again. Most give up after one try.] 

—

[The Abyss Keep | Level 120] 

Spending every waking hour of the past few months in preparation, a solo player prepared to be the first to reach the end of the game first. 

In Abyss Online, it was heavily recommended for players to form parties, as the difficulty of the game was too much to manage alone. 

However, some believed otherwise—"solo players": so-called challenge-seekers who progress alone. 

In a fortress made of black steel, a player walked through a corridor filled with ominous statues on either side of the hall, alone. 

He wore white-and-red armor, having messy, snow-white hair and sapphire eyes, carrying an exuberant greatsword as he approached the final set of doors within the fortress.

Left behind him on his path were slain monsters, all disappearing into particles of light upon being defeated. 

'Name is Jonathan Fuldry, but I'm known by another name in this game. College dropout, full-time gamer. I've spent every waking hour dived into Abyss Online–all for one purpose: show these soft players who are way too damn scared of a real challenge that it can be done–by one player: me. I'm about to reach it,' he thought. 

[Player: Zero | Level 100] 

'Nobody has made it this far—not even entire raid groups of endgame players. I'll prove it right here: guilds are useless. All they do is make you compliant and exploit the hard workers, leeching off of them,' he thought. 

He stopped in front of the pitch-black door, looking at its form of thick steel that was engraved with the faces of demons. 

'This is the final door. I've made it—the ultimate boss of Abyss Online. All by myself,' he thought. 

Placing one hand against the door, the solo player watched as it opened automatically with an ominous creaking sound meeting his ears. 

What awaited him was a pitch-black room, to which he entered, hearing the doors shut behind him just as green torches spawned around him. 

"—"

He raised his guard, holding his weapon up as the torches revealed an abyssal arena around him, and across the room, the final boss he was expecting:

A demonic colossus dressed in pitch-black armor, possessing four arms, with two wielding greatswords, one holding a spear, and another using a shield. 

[FINAL BOSS | "Sin Incarnation: GOETIA" | Level 120+]

Though the figure was terrifying in appearance, a smile crept up on the solo player's lips as a magical aura exploded around him, "Hell yeah."

In response, the demonic giant in black armor did the same without a word, releasing a potent aura of darkness that shook the entirety of the fortress. 

With a quick glance at the final boss' stats using [Ultimate Sleuth], he found himself unsurprised by how monstrous they truly were: [ATK: 50,000] [DEF: 80,000] [AGI: 50,000] [MAG: 60,000] 

Preparing for the final encounter, he used every buff spell at his disposal: 

[Heavenly Strength EX] [Heavenly Agility EX] [Heavenly Defense EX] [Hyper Reflexes] [Regeneration EX] [Holy Infuse] [Lightning Infuse] 

All at once, he became magically empowered as golden light shrouded him, with azure electricity coiling around his body as he pointed his sword towards the final obstacle in the MMORPG. 

"Let's do this!"

A battle unlike any other unfolded; singular swings of the boss' weapons erupted with dark winds that cleaved through the arena. Repeatedly, the solo player unleashed holy blasts from his sword swings, attacking the boss with its elemental weakness. 

For the man who dedicated his life to gaming, and tens of thousands of hours to this one VRMMORPG, the climactic clash was exhilarating; a true challenge that forced him to use every skill at his disposal, having to perfectly manage his health and mana in the long, drawn-out battle against "GOETIA". 

"Hyaaah!" 

Sliding past a haunting slash of the demonic lord's blades, the solo player evaded it before jumping to his feet, raising his hand as he found an opening for a "SSS-RANK" spell to be unleashed. 

Light gathered at his hand before manifesting in a heavenly seal above the arena, shining down like a glimpse into a utopia, "Cast: The Ultimate Meaning of Life and Death!" 

All at once, a massive, unavoidable shower of light rained down upon the sinful arena, eroding the concept of darkness itself with impunity. 

"Grrrh–!"

The final boss released in agony as the God-Rank spell did its job, releasing the last blow that completely reduced GOETIA to nothingness. 

Landing back down on his feet, the sole player slowly breathed out, looking at his remaining health and mana:

[HP: 1800/20000] 

[MP: 500/40000]

"I did it," he exhaled in relief. 

[FINAL BOSS | "Sin Incarnation: GOETIA" | DEFEATED!]

[EXP: +1,000,000] 

[MAX Level Already Reached] 

[New Item(s) Obtained: Sin Reincarnation] [SSS+]

Standing there for a moment as he took in the aftermath of the climactic battle, he noticed the singular item obtained from the boss. It was odd–for a raid boss, there would at least be a dozen item drops, but he only received one. 

'"Sin Reincarnation"? What is it?' He thought. 

Opening up his menu through a swipe of his hand, he cycled through his digital inventory before clicking on the unique item, allowing it to manifest in the palm of his hand. 

It was a pitch-black, abyssal orb that gave off an ominous aura. A salty smell exuded from it as he slowly poked it, causing a prompt to appear in front of his eyes. 

"Huh…?" 

[Become The New Final Boss of Abyss Online? (Upon confirmation, your class will be changed)] 

[Yes/No] 

It took him by complete surprise, the prompt that appeared; to say it was expected would be a lie as he stared at the prompt. 

'There was nothing like this mentioned online–none of the developers talked about this being a part of the final raid. I mean, they completely hid how to even reach this area, but still…Become the "Final Boss"? Well…What's the worst that can happen?' He thought. 

Deciding to take the dive and figure out what truly awaited on the other side of accepting the choice, he tapped "Yes" on the prompt after brief thought. 

[Confirmed] 

[Player "Zero" has accepted the [Sin Reincarnation] request.]

[Changing class from [Holy Knight] to [Dark Emperor] now.] 

"Woah!" 

Just like that, he watched as the armor he wore completely changed: its white-and-red colors shifted, darkening before becoming black-and-silver, with an illustrious, crow-feathered cape descending from his shoulders. 

"Status," he invoked. 

As he suspected, his stats went on a complete overhaul, being boosted in every category now: 

[ATK: 50,000] [DEF: 80,000] [AGI: 50,000] [MAG: 60,000]

'Hold on, these really are the same stats as the boss–holy crap, that's insane!' He thought. 

Appearing in front of him, an ethereal entity bore itself in the form of a mysterious, black-robed man. 

Jonathan was immediately on guard, lifting his sword, only to find it changing before his eyes.

"Huh—?"

With a single point of its finger, the ethereal entity conjured black-and-purple butterflies that flew across the man's sword, causing it to be altered.

[Holy Harbinger Changed.]

[Sin Harbinger Obtained.]

The blade was now as dark as obsidian, with the handle being silver-and-black. 

"Who are you?" Jonathan asked.

The ethereal figure seemed to look towards him, with only its pale-white eyes seen beneath its hood, "Who I am is not of importance. It is who you are, or rather, who you will choose to become, that matters."

"What're you talking about?" He curiously asked, wary of the figure. 

"You have inherited the will of the Dark Emperor, but that is only the first step. It is through the action of the heroes of this world that the Abyss has been weakened," the mysterious figure told him, "If you wish to take this world and make it your own, as its sole ruler, you must take initiative: eliminate the heroes and extend the reach of the Abyss." 

Though the ethereal man spoke to him in such words, the meaning was entirely different, but clear to the seasoned player of the MMORPG: he knew well what was being asked of him. 

'I get it. The developers are pretty ballsy for putting a feature like this in: if I "PK" (Player Kill) then I'll grow stronger and stronger, probably with pretty awesome rewards for myself. Not only that, imagine the girls I could get with this sort of power? Chicks dig the strong, right?' He thought. 

Almost as if reading his mind, the cloaked figure continued speaking, "With your [Abyssal Contract] skill, you can convert others to your faction, if they so choose." 

"Really? I can bring other players–I mean, "heroes", into the Abyss?" He asked. 

"Yes, that would prove to be more beneficial than wiping them out completely. However, the choice is yours, Dark Emperor Zero," the man told him.