53 Long-term

While going downstairs to have breakfast with his family, Alexander came across his father, Nador, who had deep, dark circles under his eyes.

"Hello, Dad!" said Alexander.

His father answered, "Hey, Alexander! You'll never guess who reached Level 3 last night—even getting blasted in that nuclear strike recently!"

Alexander gave him a grin. "Congratulations, Dad!"

His father added, "Honestly, it wasn't that hard. With the radiation mutations, monsters give a lot more EXP. And you know your dad. He's the best at what he does! But tell me, Son, what's your level? I hope you're not too far behind after getting blown up in that damn Federation attack. But don't worry, I'll happily help you catch up!"

Alexander's grin twisted as he answered with a superior air, "As of yesterday, I'm Level 12!"

His father was so shocked that he didn't answer at first. Then he approached Alexander and grabbed his shoulder. "What? How the hell did you manage that?! Tell me, Boy!"

Alexander, very amused, answered, "Just a little willpower, Dad. Don't worry, ten more sleepless nights and I'm sure you'll catch right up to me!"

He finally went down to have breakfast with his mother, Fedérica. She looked really beautiful, having bought new clothes and quality makeup!

Alexander had entrusted his mother with the 50,000 credits remaining from his previous GC selling, so the whole family was quite comfortable financially. As an example, their breakfast was a real feast, much better than they'd been eating before! Instead of the lowest-cost food they usually tolerated, the table was arrayed with fresh-squeezed orange juice, chocolate bread, croissants, and the famous baguettes from the local bakery.

The family's morale was really high. Everyone had stopped working overtime and had the freedom to do things they loved instead.

Yet, Alexander knew this new standard of life was just an illusion. He couldn't just rely on selling credits forever, even if the GC/credit ratio would eventually go back up. He could give his family some money for a little while, but at the moment, couldn't give them a steady income that would last them for years.

Not with his mother's health. She was already dying inside, even if she didn't know it.

And, of course, the average power level of Horus players was rapidly increasing. More and more players were gaining classes, and the biggest guilds were poaching every talented player they could find, offering them huge financial benefits. As everyone else grew better at the game, the margin of Alexander's dominance shrunk.

He himself had received offers of six-figure salaries from several large guilds. In his original life, he would've accepted any of these with his eyes closed. That had been his dream, in fact.

But in this new life, he knew better. He knew that the guilds took more and more and more until you were their slave, and only the players who were so powerful that they didn't even need the guilds were strong enough to break free of this curse.

Emma had been right in this regard. Though he still looked back on their previous separation with deep bitterness, her judgment of those who submitted to guilds had been truly wise.

And that was why Alexander wouldn't make himself a stooge again. He would prove to himself that he had the potential to be the self-sufficient, talented player Emma had said he could be. No one would take advantage of him now!

If Alexander ever joined a guild…

No. He wouldn't join it.

He'd make it himself. He'd be its creator, and then he'd lead it to become #1 in the whole game, putting all the despicable SuperGuild bastards to shame!

If he did this, Alexander could provide his own guild with incredible advantages. Not only could he give them knowledge of all the quests, Dungeons, and Raids in the game, but he also knew about many hidden planets in Horus which were full of precious resources!

Under Apophis's command, his guild could become divinity.

The first step was to ensure this guild would have reliable staff, people Alexander could count on to do what he needed. He contacted all the players he'd formed connections with so far and who he knew would be useful: Chocolate, Hulk, Lotus, and White. He didn't bother sending an invitation to Ceasar, knowing that he was fervently committed to Renovatio Imperii, though he'd have been a fantastic addition to this new guild

His message to the four players asked them all to meet him in Omeya in three hours, informing them that he had a huge project he wanted to present.

Alexander also sent messages to other Federation-aligned Eternals who had fought underneath him recently and asked them to PM him. Understandably, most of them were dedicated solo players and preferred to remain that way.

Alexander gave his parents a couple of last hugs, then went back upstairs and reconnected.

System: Welcome to the Galaxy of Horus!

Apophis entered his system menu and clicked the option to create a new guild.

System: Please enter your new guild's name.

Apophis thought about it for only a moment before the perfect name came to his mind. "Eclipse."

System: Creating a guild costs 15,000 GC. Do you want to continue?

He accepted.

System: Congratulations, you are now the founder of the "Eclipse" guild.

Now that he was a guild leader, it was time for Apophis to recruit his first four members!