Chapter 4: Accepting

According to the log, the smaller ones are Level 11-13 [Fiery Ape] while the big one is a Level 25 [Fiery Ape King].

It's really fire attributed...but I didn't expect it to be 15 levels higher than me...no matter, I'm already lucky enough that they're fire types.

"Ryz, you go to the convenience store, grab everything you can. I'll distract these monkeys." (Will)

"Leave some for me to defeat. I need to level up." (Ryza)

"Alright." (Will)

"Stay safe." (Ryza)

I was about to start but after I heard Ryza, I paused.

I looked back and nodded to her while smiling.

"I'm more worried about you. Alright. You be careful." (Will)

After that, I turned back and rushed forward.

If you ask me, if I see myself facing a 3 meter tall monkey on fire in the future? I'd say you're insane. But this is reality.

I am really about to face a 3 meter tall monkey on fire! Oh, and let's not forget the 6 little flaming monkeys around it as well…

This is a whole 15 level difference. When it comes down to it, it's all about timing...

...Alright, let's start!

[Flame Aura]!

I don't need to defeat all the lower level monkeys...I just need to focus on the big one!

In novels, the key point in defeating those who are way higher leveled than you is surprise, weak points, and openings. Head on fight doesn't work and you will only lose!

But how do I create an opening? First, I need to scare him.

20 MP was just reduced from [Flame Aura], I still have 400 MP left.

I activated [Wing Transformation] as my cape turned into a pair of fiery wings, burning with brilliance!

The [Fiery Apes] were surprised to feel a similar presence of a phoenix and turned to look but I was already in front of the first [Fiery Ape].

"[Devour]!" (Will)

The jet black sword in my hand turned into a black snake and directly devoured the stupefied [Fiery Ape].

The scene cause everyone to be in shock and fear started to creep in their hearts.

300 MP left!

I ignored the item drops notifications and continued to rush forward.

Time to strike while it's still hot!

[Blackest Might]!!!

I roared in my mind and a new sense of feeling rose in my heart.

Anger, rage, wrath, destruction, chaos, it was hard to describe as it feels like all these negative energy slowly started to control me.

Thankfully, I managed to snap out of it somehow and focused on the problem at hand.

As a terrifying aura emanated out of me, the [Fiery Apes] and the [Fiery Ape King] also felt it.

An opening!

I no longer have any MP left so I need to stake it all with this strike!

The world seemed to slow down as I flew nearer to the [Fiery Ape King].

Quick! Before he comes back to his senses! I need to stab his eye and through his brain!

However, reality was cruel as the [Fiery Ape King] managed to snap out of it as it angrily roared to defend itself.

Shit, you really can't underestimate these guys!

The [Fiery Ape King] swung its arms to my right, sending me flying away, coughing out blood.

*Uroaaaa!!!*

It roared and lunged towards me immediately.

I didn't lose any time to get myself together and immediately flew upwards to dodge its attack.

Seeing me fly away, the [Fiery Ape King] roared in anger. As it opened its mouth wide, directed at me, a shiver went down my spine as I thought of the possible outcome.

Sure enough, a fire pillar shot out of its mouth, firing at me!

Holy shit mother of fuck!!!

Even if I do get hit and only get 40% damage, I'm confident that I will still turn into ashes if I get hit by this!

Thankfully, I already somewhat predicted this and managed to dodge by a hair's breath.

Damn! I think I almost saw the light!

If this thing has such an OP skill like that, then the plan from before to have the survivors run inside the building is definitely not possible! Otherwise, the whole building will collapse!

How the hell am I supposed to deal with this!?

I bitterly looked at my [Blackest Heart] and couldn't help but curse.

Why does the most OP skill have to have a cooldown of 99 days!!!???

Graahhh!!!

In annoyance I threw the sword towards the [Fiery Ape King]

I didn't mind it much. Since it was personalized, then I can instantly recall it back.

I was going to do just that but what happened next stopped me from doing so as I was too shocked at what just happened.

Well, it seems the [Fiery Ape King] was about to shoot fire out of its mouth again. But I happened to throw [Blackest Heart] and umm...somehow, the sword was swallowed instead…

The [Fiery Ape King] choked, swallowed the fire it was about to shoot. And…

*Boom!*

Exploded…

…

"Haha! How do you like me now you damn overgrown monkey!?" (Will)

Since the whole thing was so absurd, I laughed out loud while flying in the sky.

You have leveled up!

Oh, I actually leveled up...though it's only once…

You have gained:

Fiery Ape King's Hide x3

Fiery Ape King's Fang x2

Flaming Monkey Gloves x1

G Points x150

Hmm...I dunno what these hide and fang do but I seem to gain money and equipment, that's good.

Suddenly, the scattered carcass of the [Fiery Ape King] became dots of light as it scattered away along the wind.

…So the corpse really does disappear…

Ah! I still have to take care of the little ones! They can't run away!

Remembering about the remaining 5 little monkeys whose level is only a bit higher than mine, I immediately flew down.

Due to their leader being killed, the 5 [Fiery Apes] were all panicking and started to run away. I have no way to restrain them so I can only resort to cutting their feets to stop them.

The minute from the beginning where I used [Blackest Might] is nearly over but I was still able to use my powered up strength to easily cut these monkey's legs.

At some point, Ryza appeared, still looking cold but I can see a hint of excitement in her eyes.

"Ryz, let's see how much you level up after killing these guys." (Will)

Ryza nodded and didn't stand in ceremony. She held her laser gun and pointed it one by one towards the head of the [Fiery Apes]. Seeing her movement was as if she's experienced in firearms, I raised a brow.

Ryza seemed to have noticed it and explained.

"My father was a cop, I learned how to shoot from him time to time." (Ryza)

"Ah, the return of the father complex." (Will)

"Nnnngg..." (Ryza)

Ryza started to pout but then she suddenly smiled.

"Are you jealous?" (Ryza)

"W-why would I be jealous? *Cough* anyway, how much level did you gain?" (Will)

Ryza let out a triumphant smile before going back to normal.

"I got 3 levels. They were all above level 10 so it was fast." (Ryza)

I nodded and turned to look at the group of survivors who were holding each other while shaking.

I looked back to Ryza who didn't seem to care as she started to ponder about what to do with her new status points.

Sighing, I walked towards the group of survivors. There were 5 of them, 4 of them were middle aged while one of the middle aged women was hugging a small girl about 8-9 years old, maybe.

"Are any of you hurt?" (Will)

"W-we-we're..."

Their voice stuttered as they talk so I wasn't able to understand it. I then remembered about the other skill of the [Soul Crown], [Soul Soothing].

I patted a man's shoulder and activated the skill.

Suddenly, a warm feeling flowed out of my body, into the man's shoulder and the man's expression gradually became stable.

"How are you feeling?" (Will)

"Ah, I...I feel great? Like a huge burden was lifted...You...what did you just do?"

"It's good that you're okay." (Will)

I then proceeded to pat everyone including the little girl's head as they all gradually calmed down.

"There doesn't seem to be any Outsiders in the area anymore. You guys should get inside the building for shelter. In a while, me and my fr-" (Will)

"Wife" (Ryza)

"...*Cough* the two of us will go get some food and necessities to accommodate everyone." (Will)

I can only smile wryly at Ryza's correcting me and guided the survivors into the building.

"Is...is it really safe?"

Before I answered, I double checked with my [Soul Eyes] and confirmed that there are no more Outsiders.

"Yes, at least, I can be sure that there's no Outsiders in this building." (Will)

"I see...thank you very much!"

After sending them off, me and Ryza returned to the convenience store. Seeing as there are still a lot of foods there, I gave Ryza a questioning look.

"I was worried about you so I kept myself hidden at the side." (Ryza)

"But I said-" (Will)

"You can't stop me from being worried about you." (Ryza)

"...Sigh, fine. Come on, let's quickly grab everything we can." (Will)

Sighing, I started with the canned goods and just took them all in my [Inventory].

It seems that stackable items are included as '1' in the [Inventory]. I still don't know up to how much I can stack in a single item though.

After emptying the canned goods, I still have plenty more room so I went and stocked up on the drinks. Since there are also wines and beers in this convenience store, I also took those as there are just moments where you need to drink up and get wasted.

After that was the ready made lunch boxes which we only need to heat up. Instant noodles, and that's it, I'm all full.

I walked towards Ryza and was about to ask her if she's done stocking up on the necessities front but before I could speak, I saw her took a certain thing and almost died from heart attack!

"R-Ryza, why're you taking all the condoms!?" (Will)

"I said call me Ryz. Also, in this kind of situation, it would be troublesome after all to get pregnant. But of course, if you want a baby, that's also fine." (Ryza)

"Hah!? O-oi! You..." (Will)

"What's the matter? Aren't we husband and wife already?" (Ryza)

"But..." (Will)

"I see, so you really want a baby. Ok then, I won't be needing these." (Ryza)

"No! No! No! Take them! It would be troublesome if you get pregnant!" (Will)

"Fufu, so my husband already planned to push me down tonight." (Ryza)

"That's not what I meant!" (Will)

Geez...I can never seem to win in an argument with this girl…

...She's not really planning on pushing me down tonight...right?

Like that, I listlessly followed Ryza back to the company's building and we started to go up.

On the way, we met the 5 survivors from before and handed them some of the foods, waters, and necessities that should be able to last for two days.

Anyway, this is simply temporary. These kind of foods aren't exactly healthy so this will need to be considered tomorrow when we plan to search for our main base.

I also explained that to them and they agreed to follow us.

After telling them about the [Menu], we went back to our own room.

"Will! We heard a loud noise outside! Did you fight an Outsider? Did you get hurt?" (Sam)

"Eh? Ah, I'm fine, don't worry." (Will)

"Haha, I've been looking at the [Leaderboard] and saw that you just rose a rank. Nice job. Ryza's rank had also gotten higher and she's actually already level 3!" (Nicholas)

"Yeah, we met a level 25 and six level 11-13s along the way. We also rescued 5 survivors, they're in this building now and there seems to be some more that are currently hiding in the building." (Will)

I explained as I released all the foodstuff in my [Inventory].

Each of them took their picks and lined up on the microwave to heat it up.

"Hm? There's wine here too?" (May)

"Ah, yeah. Thought it might help, you know, ease up the sorrows and worries for a bit." (Will)

May, who was usually always smiling now has a sad smile on her face so I can tell that she's still hung up on her grandmother who didn't answer her call.

She smiled sadly again and looked at me with gratitude.

"Thanks." (May)

"No problem." (Will)

Hn? May's light pink soul...I think it just became a bit clearer?

However, before, it was wavering for quite a bit but now it's become a bit stable yet the sadness still remains there.

Well, at least she's a lot better now.

"Ah, right. Ryza, did you manage to get some soap?" (Will)

I asked but she seemed to have not heard and continued to ignore me...ehh, is this jealousy?

"Ryza?" (Will)

She's still not answering...ah…

"...Ryz?" (Will)

"Here you go, Will." (Ryza)

...So it was her name after all…

After taking the soap from her, I proceeded to the washroom to wash my hands but when I turned around, I saw everyone looking at me strangely.

...Ah, come to think of it, in their minds, Ryza's cold nature is natural and if anyone dares to make a move on her, they will only be refused harshly but now...I actually called Ryza with a nickname...and it was one that sounded so intimate! And to top it off, Ryza also stopped calling me William and started to call me Will!

It's no wonder they would look at me, no, at us strangely!

However, even though I understood, admitting it is another thing! I'll just pretend I didn't notice! Right, pretend!

I awkwardly walked into the washroom and awkwardly washed my hands, then picking a food, I heated it up in the microwave and waited.

…

...Come on! Faster!

Uuuu...these guys are staring at me like I'm some weird exhibition or something! It's annoying!

*Ting*

With that finally done, I took it out and set it on the coffee table nearby to eat.

Ignoring everyone's gazes, I sat on the floor and started to eat.

But before I can even start my peaceful eating, someone sat next to me and took my spoon.

Ryza took my spoon as if it's natural and started to blow on it...then, she held it in front of my mouth…

"Aaah." (Ryza)

"..." (Will)

"Aaah." (Ryza)

"...Aaah..." (Will)

Feeling that it would be bad if I continued to ignore her, I sighed and opened my mouth to let her feed me…

"Is it good?" (Ryza)

"...You didn't even cook it..." (Will)

"Is it good?" (Ryza)

"Y-yes..." (Will)

Sighing again, I deduced that it's useless to argue with this ice queen so I gave up.

"You two..." (Michael)

"W-Will? Eh? Y-you two...are dating?" (Sam)

Here it goes...how am I supposed to answer this question!?

Actually, we're husband and wife...not like I can say that!

"We're husband and wife." (Ryza)

Oiii!!!

Hearing her say it so straightforward made me almost spit out my food.

...As expected from the ice queen, there wasn't any hesitation at all…

"W-wha-!? Since when!?" (Van)

It wasn't Sam or the others who shouted but was actually Van. I guess to him, who was trying hard to woo this ice queen, to suddenly hear that she's married to me, was too much of a shock.

"Sigh, since after a few minutes since we left earlier..." (Will)

I explained them about the [Relationships] feature that was suddenly unlocked and they were all surprised.

Ryza also shared her information saying that she also have a [Relationships] window and that even though I didn't need to propose as well, I am already categorized as her [Husband].

After a while, Brook thought it would be good if everyone does it as well with me as the leader. There was a category on the list that says [Friend] so everyone agreed to choose that.

Then, I started receiving the notifications.

It's all good when it comes to Brook, Michael, and Nicholas but the problem is with the remaining two…

Samantha Setti has proposed to be your wife. Do you accept?

Yes

May Park has proposed to be your concubine. Do you accept?

Yes

.........…..HAH!?

"Oi! You two-!" (Will)

"H-hmph! You can accept her but not me?" (Sam)

"But-" (Will)

"Accept it!" (Sam)

"...Fine...but May, you..." (Will)

I can only sigh and accept...in any case, it's just something in the system and does not really need to be real.

As long as I don't sleep with them, then isn't this just a name? There was no need to completely get caught up in it.

But this May...she actually asked to be a concubine!?

"It's all your fault so accept it." (May)

...What an unreasonable thing to say...and she's smiling as she said that...really scary...whatever, as long as I don't treat them differently from before, then accepting is fine.

They're just names...just names...just names…

I repeatedly told myself as I accepted such ridiculous relationships…

But there's still one more missing.

We all looked towards Van who had an ugly look on his face. He knows that his name will turn red if he were to harbor any malicious thoughts and as he knows himself quite well, he knows that he will be recognized instantly and now, he's in a dilemma on what to do.

Everyone knows what he was thinking so no one talked. They also want to see what this guy will do in this situation.

In this kind of situation, everyone knows what will happen if they started falling out on each other so Van's decision on this is really important.

After a while, Van clicked his tongue and stormed out of the room.

"You brat, you better not let me see you again or else-! I will make you all suffer!" (Van)

Hearing his threats, I closed my eyes and steeled my heart.

When I opened them again, I dashed outside and followed him. With a swift swing of a blade, his head fell off immediately, rolling to the ground with a stiff unbelieving expression on his face.

You have gained:

Blood Moon Blade x1

Overseer's Robe x1

666 Ring x1

G Points x100

I ignored the window that popped up and simply watched Van's corpse disappear right in front of me.

...I killed him.

I killed a man.

I killed a human…

I may have killed Outsiders but it still feels different when you kill a human. After all, Outsiders are monsters.

But humans are…

I closed my eyes, making sure to remember this ugly and disgusting feeling.

I can only hope...that this will be the first and last human that I kill…

But...I know that's just my wishful thinking.

Hearing steps behind me, I turned around and saw Ryza, still with her emotionless look.

"...Did I do the right thing?" (Will)

"There is no such thing as right and wrong. You killed him to protect us. It was simply that." (Ryza)

"...I see..." (Will)

I said so but I was still unconvinced.

Ryza walked up to me and tightly embraced me without saying a word.

I allowed myself to remain in her embrace, controlling my emotions.

After a few minutes, I separated from her.

"Thanks, Ryz." (Will)

"I already said so before. No matter where you go, be it to hell and back, I'll follow you no matter what." (Ryza)

"...Why?" (Will)

She already explained before but I really can't accept such an answer.

Her liking me...I really don't know how that came about.

Have we met before I started internship here

"I told you, if you kiss me, maybe I'll tell you." (Ryza)

Right now, my relationship with Ryza as husband and wife is really just in name and it could be considered as friends fooling around but...once I kiss her, then that would confirm our relationship.

...But...I guess that's not bad as well. I didn't really have someone I liked. At most, it was just a crush on Sam or them.

However, some feelings seem to sprout after just getting to know Ryza a little more...it wasn't spontaneous but...more like recalling.

As if I had felt this way before towards her...but I really can't remember.

...No matter, I've always trusted my instincts. Otherwise, I would literally not be alive right now.

Then, it's decided.

"Hmph, you really think I won't dare to?" (Will)

Ryza smiled and closed her eyes.

I held her face with my hands and pressed our lips together.

We remained that way for about a minute. My hands had already moved down from her face to her shoulders to her waist as I embrace her tightly.

Towards this girl who selfishly decided to follow me to hell and back, I've decided to give it my all to protect.

After separating, I held her hand and remembered something.

"Ah, right...uhh, a while ago, Sam also proposed to be my wife and May wanted to be the concubine...at first, I thought to just accept it since it's just in name but since I already decided to be your husband for real, then as I thought, I should convince them to change it." (Will)

"Don't worry about it. I'll talk to them." (Ryza)

Eh? She didn't seem shocked at all...did she already know?

Well, let's just leave it to her...I, am in no way, really experienced in dealing with girls…

"So, can you tell me now?" (Will)

"Later, during our bed talk." (Ryza)

"Oi." (Will)

This girl...already wants to do it immediately?

"Hmph, look at you, thinking of dirty things. Bed talk is simply talking while sleeping together in bed. But if you want the other kind, I'm also fine with it." (Ryza)

...I'm afraid that if we really slept in the same bed, it'd be hard to endure…

As we talk while holding hands, we already reached the office.

"Will, are yo-" (Sam)

Sam was the first to ask worriedly but she suddenly paused and looked at my hand that was currently holding Ryza's

Without saying anything, Ryza removed her hand, walked towards Sam and May and dragged them to one of the rooms.

I'm really curious on what she'll tell them but as it's a girl talk kind of thing, I stopped myself and looked at the others.

"I killed Van." (Will)

I know it's obvious but I felt the need to say it myself.

"Yeah, we know." (Brook)

"Sigh, I'm not saying he deserved it, but he really deserved it." (Michael)

"He was already supposed to die before, yet he actually had the nerve to bring us all down with him when he lured that Outsider here. Thankfully, Will managed to defeat it and saved us. But not only did he not thank you, he even wants to deal with us in the future. There's no need to be hung up on it Will. Ryza was right, in this situation, a decisive leader is needed." (Nicholas)

I was prepared for a falling out but after hearing them, I exhaled deeply in relief.

"No matter what, I wish I won't do that again in the future..." (Will)

"That's also fine. There's the [Relationships] feature anyway. If any of us were to have any malicious thoughts on anyone, then they'll instantly know." (Brook)

I nodded and looked towards the stock of foods that was still in the corner.

"There are other survivors still in this building. Let's gather them all to this floor so they can eat. Then, we'll look for a new base. A big place with a great vantage point, access paths, food, and beds. Just from this description, we can either go to a mall, hotel, or a hospital" (Will)

They all nodded and Michael started to assess the situation.

"If we go for the hospital we'll have plenty of rooms and beds. But the paths are too simple and in the case of an emergency, it would be hard to have everyone evacuate using the stairs. However, a hospital at least has a lot of health equipments and medicines." (Michael)

"The hotel is also similar but it won't have any health equipments and medicines, or maybe just a few but not that many. However, the hotel rooms are good for comfort and would ease everyone." (Nicholas)

"No, though those two are great, they have limited food supplies. In a mall, there would be about 3-4 floors only and a wide area which would make it easy to evacuate in case of emergency. If you want comfort, there are plenty of beds and mattresses and entertainment. Though there aren't much health equipments, it isn't that needed at the moment. There are also medicines for sale there. Not to mention the many more supplies we can get, I think a mall is a better choice." (Brook)

Right, a mall would really be the best bet but I doubt we're the only ones who thought about that.

...We need to move now.

I don't know why but there seemed to be few Outsiders at the moment. Maybe BR haven't really been finished uhh uploading? Installing? Releasing? Whatever, it's best to make use of this situation.

"Brook, please call your ex-wife and ask what's the situation in the mall. Since that mall is closest and we're planning on going there anyway, we'll make that into our base." (Will)

"Are we moving now?" (Brook)

I nodded and told them about my [Soul Eyes] skill which allowed me to see through walls the soul of every being and that there doesn't seem to be too many Outsiders at the moment.

Brook nodded and dialled on his phone.

"Sarah? It's Brook, how are you?...What? Wait a second, I'll put you in loudspeaker." (Brook)

Brook's complexion changed as he put the call on loudspeaker for everyone to hear.

#Brook! Y-you need to help! After you told us about the [Inventory], some of the guys started acting weird and now they took control of the group! Anyone who disobeys them will not have food for a week and even if you refuse, if you're a woman, you'll only get raped! Thankfully, I got a good equipment and managed to escape with my friends. We're now hiding in the janitor's room in the third floor...Brook, please hurry! They...they're about to find us!# (Sarah)

Sarah, Brook's ex-wife, spoke while in panic.

Tch- this is what I meant. People had started to take advantage of this new world's rules and something like this was bound to happen soon or later.

"Don't worry, we're on our way!" (Brook)

#B-Brook, dear, how many are you bringing? There are 20 or so guys here...Brook, it's fine if you don't go. I...I can deal with this somehow.# (Sarah)

"Haha, you already said I should hurry up, now you don't want me to go?" (Brook)

#I- I just said that in a moment of panic! I don't want you to get hurt...# (Sarah)

I saw Brook smile wryly then turned to look at me.

I nodded in return to reassure him.

Hmph hmph, in this country, let's see if there's anyone who can defeat me.

"Sarah, don't worry. I might not bring a lot of people, but I'm bringing the world's top 4th ranker with me." (Brook)

#Top...4th? That William King?# (Sarah)

"Haha, right. Don't you think the name's familiar?" (Brook)

#William King...King...Ah! It's the same as the kid you told me about! With a surname King!? It's him!?# (Sarah)

"Haha, that's me. Please rest assured, I'll definitely bring Brook to rush there as fast as I can!" (Will)

#Then...thank you very much for helping my husband, sir King.# (Sarah)

Sir King…

"Just Will or William is fine. Anyway, please stay put and hold on. We're on our way." (Will)

Status

Name

William King

Level

Mana Points

430/430

Ranking

Strength

Wisdom

Agility

Stamina

G Points

400

Status Points

Skills

Flame Aura