Against The World

Leaving the bounds of the Abyssal Keep, he looked upon the bright, azure skies, seeing cities in the distance as he felt like a renewed man.

'With this new class, I feel invincible–I feel like I can do anything. I want to go to one of the major cities now–it's time to test this out,' he thought.

Opening his inventory, he manifested an item stored: [Teleport Scroll], holding it up as he invoked it:

"Teleport: Marudawn!"

Using the transportation item, a beam of light was summoned, taking him from the exit of the boss keep and straight into the desired city. He found himself in the middle of the bustling city; humans, demi-humans, and even dwarves walked around in abundance, with a lot of players occupying the city as well.

'Marudawn is a hub for endgame players, since it's so close to the Sin Kingdom. Usually, you're not allowed to attack other players or really cause any trouble. But…I'm not exactly a normal player anymore, am I?' He thought.

Putting a hand to his chin with a small smile, he noticed the lack of a familiar icon on his personal display. Usually, there would be a crossed-out sword icon when in a city, which represented the inability to harm other players or NPCs, however–that was not present for him.

'Interesting,' he thought.

Deciding to take his time before revealing his hand to the rest of the playerbase, he paid for a room in an inn to think over his first move. As he sat on the cushioned bed, he opened up his player menu, scrolling through the list of information provided to him.

There was one thing he had in mind above all else, one thing he always wished to do:

'Guilds. It's where the weak gather to surrender any hope of their own individual abilities. They always say it's impossible to compete as a solo player, but it's all just lies to shelter their own ego. I'm living proof that you don't need a guild. That's first on my objective–if I'm the new "Final Boss" of this game, then there's no better way to show the world than to take out a high-ranked guild,' he decided.

He had unpleasant memories of his own when it came to the guilds within the game, specifically with how they treated solo players like himself.

As he sat there, looking down at himself as he was still enamored with the blackened armor he wore that represented the shift he had undergone—

KNOCK. KNOCK. KNOCK.

A few knocks came to the door to his room, surprising himself.

'A maid?' He questioned.

"—"

He didn't say anything in response to the knocking, nor did anybody say a word beyond the door.

Rather than opening it, he instead set his gaze on the doorframe before his irises suddenly were taken over by a cerulean glow:

[Pale Eyes of The Hidden]

It was a skill he chose to obtain from the [Thief] skill tree, one that he found valuable as a solo player. With it, he saw through the door and into the hallway of the quiet inn, witnessing who had knocked on the door.

Certainly, it was not a maid; the person wore a black cloak and light, chainmail beneath, holding a curved, obsidian dagger in one of their hands.

'Another player? They seem ready to strike the instant I open the door. Weird. I don't have many friends here, but it's not like I've made many enemies, either,' he thought.

He was careful in his approach, slowly standing up from the bed as his boots made no noise against the wooden floorboards. Even when taking careful strides with his heavy, black-steel boots, no noise was made.

This was thanks to another skill picked up from the [Thief] skill tree: [Feline Step].

He kept his see-through ocular enhancement active while approaching the door, watching as the cloaked figure flipped their dagger, getting into a stance ready to strike.

As he got closer to the door, he clenched his fists, activating a few skills to ready himself:

[Ultimate Strength] [Hyper Reflexes]

There wasn't any need to summon his sword, especially since he had another priority besides instantly killing the stranger.

'I'll subdue them and get my answers,' he decided.

Finally, he grilled the handle before slowly turning it.

As soon as the door opened—FWOOSH.

He stepped to the side, leaning out of the way of the dagger that had lunged straight for his throat. As the figure missed their strike, he was able to see their status with another one of his skills:

[Sleuth]

"Huh—?" The dagger-wielding player let out in shock at their missed surprise attack.

[Kiwi Shine] [Level: 75] [Class: Thief] [Affiliation: World Hunters]

'A "World Hunter"? Makes sense why they can attack me in a safe zone. Must mean I have a bounty,' he realized.

After the failed strike, the person stumbled before their hood rolled back, revealing their short, blonde hair, pale skin, and amethyst eyes.

'A girl?' He realized.

The blonde-haired huntress, shorter by an entire head than him, rushed him to go for another strike.

Using his enhanced reflexes, he caught the bounty huntress' wrist, spinning her around and holding it behind her head.

"Ahh—hey! Lemme go!" The girl yelled, struggling to escape.

Of course, there wasn't any way she could budge her arm even an inch when in the grip of the player of much superior level.

"First off, tell me why you attacked me. Is there a bounty on me?" He asked.

"Huh?! You don't know? Well, figures…It just came up," the girl huffed, seeming to accept her position.

"What're you talking about?"

Before getting any further answers, he summoned one of spells to more feasibly bind the player:

[Shadow Binding]

Ropes of darkness bound the huntress' wrists and ankles, leaving her sitting on the floor, with a pouting expression as the man closed the door.

"So spill it, what's going on?" He asked, looking down at her.

Kiwi exhaled slowly, "World Hunters got early dibs on it, but—"

[!!ANNOUNCEMENT!!]

Suddenly, the feminine voice of the game system met his ears, demanding his attention.

It was given to all players, causing the streets to freeze as everybody stopped to listen to the game-wide announcement.

[A player has defeated the final boss.]

The news caused an eruption of noise throughout the cities around the vast, virtual world.

"What?!"

"Just one player?"

"It wasn't one of the top guilds?"

The reveal of the final boss being cleared reached the ears of every player, having the most effect on those closest to beating it as well.

[That player is "Zero." After overcoming the final boss, he has inherited the position of the Dark Emperor. Players of Orelius Online, "Zero" is your new final boss.]

"Zero? I think I've seen him around the hub a few times."

"Total mood killer. Dude rejected my party invites every time."

"Heard he practically lives in the game."

This announcement echoed through the ears of the solo player, who stood in the center of the room with an expression of disbelief.

'I knew what I was getting into, but an announcement like this…?' He thought.

Nothing could prepare him for the next words that permeated through the voice of the game announcer, however.

[The player that is able to eliminate "Zero" will receive a grand prize of $1,000,000.]

"Huh?!" Zero let out in shock.

[Additionally, if Zero manages to wipe out every current player from the server or overthrow the Kingdom, he will win the grand prize for himself.]

[Best of luck, players of Orelius Online.]

The announcement echoed through his mind as a new weight fell upon his shoulders now. It wasn't just a contest of pride or fun for him anymore; there was life-changing money on the line.

'One million dollars? Did I hear that right?! A million—?! I'd never need to work a day in my life—I'd be set! But…' He excitedly thought.

There were enough cheers and roars of motivated players beyond the walls of the inn, resounding throughout the entire city, that it sounded as though a parade was happening.

'…I'm not the only one thinking that way. A million dollars? That's enough to make everybody my worst enemy,' he realized.

Even though he stood with four walls comfortably around him, it fell as though all eyes in the vast, virtual world were on him; a target had been placed on his back.

"Get it now?" Kiwi asked, still bound as her wrists were kept close to her knees, "The World Hunters got that announcement early–I happened to see you pass by earlier when you checked in, that's all."

He took a moment to take in everything that was just announced, calming himself as he thought for a moment.

'With how Orelius Online works, one death means your account is erased for good. You have to start from zero. The developers are crazy for putting an event like this in–but, I'm in. Problem is, "logging off" is going to be a problem–in this game, when you log out, your avatar still exists, it just goes to sleep. That's bad–real bad,' he thought.

Looking up at him the whole time, the youthful girl yapped, "Are you going to PK me or what?! Get it over with!"

"Thinkin' about it," Zero responded.

Though there was another idea he had in mind, remembering one of the things that the ethereal assistant told him upon his evolution into a [Dark Emperor].

'He said I can bring players to my side. She's not a bad level, and she's a World Hunter–that faction gets access to a ton of exclusive information. It might not be bad to bring somebody like her in,' he thought.

"Hey, you," Zero said, looking down at the captured player.

The blonde-haired girl huffed, "It's Kiwi. What is it?"

"Well, Kiwi, how about joining me?"

"Huh?! Why would I do that? You have a million dollar prize on your head, ya know." Kiwi told him.

He nodded slowly before looking to the side, looking through the window at the bustling city, "That's true, but you'd never beat me in a million years. My defensive stat would make you deal less than one damage a hit. Even if you did damage me, my passive regeneration would heal faster than you could attack."

"You–ugh…" Kiwi clicked her tongue, seeming to know that it was the truth.

He squatted down in front of the huntress, looking at her, "But, I'm willing to make you a pretty nice offer, instead of PK'ing you right here: I'll give you a cut of the prize once I win. How does ten thousand sound?"

The offer made the cloak-wearing girl's eyes glisten as she gulped, "T-t-t-ten thousand? Did I hear you right?"

He nodded, "Yup. You don't even need to do anything crazy–just be my scout: get information for me when I need it."

Kiwi was quiet for a moment, thinking it over before finally nodding, "...Sure. I'll do it."

"Great."

[Abyssal Contract]

Summoning the unique skill granted to him as the [Dark Emperor], he summoned a nebulous contract from the Abyss that extended itself to the huntress. The bindings were released, breaking into particles of darkness as the girl rubbed her wrists afterwards.

"A contract…? Oh, I get it," Kiwi read it over as she ran her finger along the fine print, "It's like a faction. Never thought they would let players join the Abyss, though."

"Pretty neat, huh?" Zero asked, "You're not one of those players that is totally loyal to the main kingdom, right?"

Kiwi sighed, "I've never cared one way or the other about that kind of stuff. I'm the kind of person that will choose the side that seems the most fun–and well, it seems like that's with you."

'That's right. I can't act as just a solo player anymore. If I'm going to be the "Final Boss" and win that prize, I need to act like one. That means building a force capable of combating the entire server,' he thought.

Though as he waited for the blonde-haired young woman to sign the contract, something was off to him–a subtle vibration met his ears as if the wind had begun to quietly hum. It was thanks to his [Enhanced Senses] that he was able to detect it, no matter how minuscule the odd sound was.

Kiwi finished signing the contract as it transformed itself into a diamond-shaped, black tattoo that etched itself onto her hand, "Well, guess it's official now. I have class in the morning, so I'll need to log out soon–"

Zero was still looking at the window, silent as the noise continued meeting his ears, reaching a crescendo as he finally realized what was happening as a flash of orange appeared in front of the glass.

"Get down!" Zero warned.

Just then–BOOM.

The window shattered as an explosion collided with the side of the inn, causing the curtains to rip off of the walls and the wood to peel from the force.

Just in time, Zero had raised his hand, summoning a spherical, dark barrier around himself and his newfound companion: [Black-Lock Shield]

"How did they find me already?!" He asked, yelling over the explosion of fire.

Kiwi held her arms up as the entire building rattled, wincing from the sudden shock, "It's probably another World Hunter!"