68 Startling truth?

'Dafuq??'

I blurted, somewhat flabbergasted and somewhat amused as to what caused this sudden "reveal."

[… I'm sure you must be confused and scared… It's understandable. It's a lot to take in. But know that—]

'Oh screw you, Iris! Did you seriously think I wouldn't notice you're telling me the plot of "My cheats are OP, but my system is Sus." web novel? Nice try. But you can't get me with just that. Use something that's NOT from one of the most memorable novels I've read, if you want to mess with me next time.'

I snorted, amused. In reality, though, she had almost managed to spook me. She had me in the first half, not gonna lie. Up until she started talking about Creation God and me being his entertainment and whatnot. That was a dead giveaway.

[…]

[Whatever. The point is- stop thinking of pointless things. This isn't some cliché novel. It's real world. The real Creator God has better things to do than mess with you.]

While she spoke normally, somewhere in my soul or head or wherever she resided inside me, I knew for a fact Iris was a little irked that her prank failed. I chuckled internally, smug at her poor but cute attempt to try and fuck with me.

"True."

I nodded. A being of his level will probably be above such petty things.

Speaking of that web novel.

The novel had a pretty crazy story. And the final fight between MC and the Creation God for MC's free will was fucking awesome. Too bad MC actually lost though.

Well, he did technically win, but it was all fake in the end. An illusion created by the Creation God. The ending was a strange one, but MC still lived happily ever after in that illusion, unaware of his fake reality. Poor guy.

It was crazy enough to make me write a heated review on the online forums and the comments section of the platform where it was posted. And I wasn't the only one. Everyone was shocked and heated by that ending. Some loved it for its uniqueness, and some hated it. Others, like me, were simply flabbergasted.

Anyway, coming back to reality.

I shook the distraction and spoke seriously, in my head.

'You know, you're actually right, Iris. I'll cross the line when it comes to it. I won't hesitate when it matters, otherwise, I'll get myself killed.'

The demons and cultists and other villains were mostly vicious beings. A lot of them wouldn't think twice before killing someone. Hell, many people here were okay with killing and death. It was just that kind of world, even though there WAS a law against indiscriminate killing. But even in terms of legality, the law was vague and morally loose.

'But hey, I don't have to get blood on my hands just yet. At least not the human blood.'

[Yeah, you don't. And, don't worry. If you think killing is too much for you, your hidden talent might be helpful in that regard when it comes down to it. :) ]

She spoke casually like she hadn't just given me a spoiler about my hidden power.

'Wait, what? Seriously, what is my hidden talent?! You've been keeping it a secret for 2 damn years! Just tell me already! Why spoil parts of it and leave me to make assumptions.'

[And I'm not telling you now either. Find it out on your own. ;p]

'Ugh, you're annoying me. Keep your mouth shut if you don't want to tell me."

[That's what you get for acting like a smartass with me. (¬_¬ )]

"…"

Her rather immature comment took me a little by surprise, but I quickly got over it.

'Whatever. I just have to get to level 5. I was planning to do that soon anyway. So, you keep your stupid secret. It'll be out soon, anyway.'

[So, what's your plan about that demon?]

She casually changed the topic again and asked the obvious, even though she knew the answer already. But I didn't bother pointing it out. I knew she was still a bit annoyed that her prank failed. I couldn't read her mind, but I had spent enough time(2 whole years!) with her to know her almost as much as she knew me. Her growth from a robotic monotone voice that was initially formal and polite to this casual prankster of a chick I considered my best friend.

What did it say about me that my best friend was a game system's AI inside my head?

Well, Iris was much more than that, I had realized. She wasn't just a simple AI, but a person of her own. She still acted as my guide/assistant when needed, but otherwise, she was a friendly voice in my head.

Deciding not to antagonize my soul buddy, I replied.

'Tragloth? No way. I know I said he was a small fry, but that's by the standard of the mid and late-game. Not the early game. He's still a ranked demon. He's probably a Foundation Tier-6 or something if he's the same as in the game. I'll need to be at least Tier-8 to safely get rid of him and his minions. I would rather not take any chances before then. I'm still a noob when it comes to fighting actual battles. So, the first thing to do is obvious level up.'

I remembered how I struggled to beat him in the game as a Tier 4. Though, that was only in the first playthrough. In the subsequent rounds, I beat him like the fucking small fry first boss that he was. But now that he was real, and I didn't get chances to respawn in case I messed up— Iris made sure to tell me that clearly 2 years ago when I asked her out of curiosity— I didn't want to risk my life when I was a mere Foundation Tier-3. Still a small fry, in terms of the power scale, but with some extra tricks that only gave me an advantage over my peers, but would be ineffective when facing absolute difference in power.

And besides, killing the demon didn't really give me any benefit right now. Instead, it would alert the higher tier and higher ranked demons, and that is IF I managed to do it in my current state.

'Yeah, fuck that. I don't want them making moves this soon. I'm not fucking with higher tier beings until I'm at least a Monarch Tier or get 'that' and learn how to wield it.'

Iris huffed when I talked about it, but didn't bother voicing it out. Thankfully, she was understanding about 'that.'

Demons, in particular, were powerful and tanky for their Tiers when compared to humans and other similar races.

'Let's stick to leveling up for now.'

[Good decision. Your current motto would be: Get OP first, kick asses and claim waifus later.]

'Yeah, I guess.'

I chuckled.

I felt much better now.

Finally climbing up, I reached the outside; my eyes straining a bit from the sudden light after spending a fair while in the dim underground.

"You're finally here~ I was starting to get worried, you know~"

Sharon's playful voice made me look at her. Seeing a strange scene in front of me.

She was sitting on a broken wall, with children surrounding her. A bit away, the goons were still tied and unconscious.

I threw Garl in that pack, not caring at all for his wellbeing or the ones he landed on top of. They didn't matter.

"I'm back now. So… what are you doing?"

I had to wonder if she used some of her magic on the kids. They seemed too comfortable with the S&M suit and cloak-wearing woman. Maybe they were too scared and felt reassurance from her. But I had to check a few of the kids to make sure there was nothing suspicious going on.

There wasn't. The kids just found her presence comforting.

If only they knew her true self. Actually, scratch that. That would've been bad.

"So, how long will it take for them to come? Can you stay and deal with them? I'm done here and want to leave."

"Hmm? Leave where? Do you not plan to go back home with the knights? I'm sure they'll be more than willing to escort you. They'll be here any second now."

"I'll get back home on my own (later). Please just make sure the kids are safe until the knights come and take them back. Especially her."

I looked at the catgirl sleeping in Sharon's lap.

I couldn't risk letting anyone find me out, so I had to leave now.

"Hmm, sure~ If you say so. I'll listen to your 'extra' request. But I'll take extra 'payment' the next time we meet. Take care~ Don't get kidnapped again or I'll have to come 'save' you again. Fufufufu…"

"… You speak as if you're planning to meet me again."

"Maybe~? But I'm sure we'll meet again~ So, until next time, my dragon darling~"

I didn't know how to reply to her in front of the kids about that "remark," so I gave her a deadpan stare and then left in the direction of the city's outer walls.

My work here was done. The kids will be taken care of. Even Kara, who lay sleeping on Sharon's lap, would hopefully find herself in an orphanage. Part of me wanted to help her till the end, but I had my own worries that if the knights or any authorities saw me, a guy with a mask, there was a high chance they'll make me take it off to know my true identity.

And also I didn't want to get too attached to her. She had an uncanny resemblance to my previous life's imouto. But she was not her. She was just a random girl. I saved her life. But I couldn't save her any more than that, not without risking my own plans, which I wasn't quite ready to do.

Iris's words only solidified my thought process.

[She'll be baggage in your future endeavors. You can't go monster hunting or dungeon exploring with a frail and frightened little girl.]

Until she said the next line.

[It would have been different if you were going back home.]

I sighed.

'But sadly, I'm not…'

For a moment, I walked in silence, pondering.

'…Should I send her to my house? Maybe if I write a letter and tell them to keep her until I come back, they'll take care of her—No, I can't. I can't just send a fucking letter home and then not go back for a while. They'll think I ran away from home or something. I can only imagine the shock and hysteria it'll cause. It's probably better this way. But on the other hand... argh! fuck it!'

I looked around, found a flat enough place, brought out a parchment and ink, and wrote a note, which turned into a letter. I also made sure to include something that proved it was indeed from me. But I wasn't fully sure if it'll be enough. The reason was pretty much a BS on my part.

This was still a terrible plan— leaving my family in worry, the validity of the letter and more— but better than the even worse alternative of making them think I was still kidnapped, hurt, or even worse, killed.

'I'm really sorry to them for doing this, but this is necessary.'

I reassured myself more than anyone, and with that monologue, I made my way back to Sharon.

"You're back~? Couldn't stay away from me? Are you already in love~? Fufufu..."

Holding back an annoyed groan, I spoke.

"I know this is too much to ask, but can you hand this letter to one of the knights that come? I need to make sure they know I'm safe, in case I can't reach them before the knights."

She stared at me with an unreadable look, then smiled.

"Sure~ Anything for you, my love. I'll add the cost to the due payment box for the next time."

"... Sure."

And with that loose end tied, I left. I doubted she and I will meet again, and even if we did, she won't be in any position to make such demands out of me.

[So… where exactly are you going?]

I halted my steps.

'That… is a very good question. Where the fuck AM I going?'

[…]

"…"

[…]

'What? It's not like I have everything planned. Sometimes, you just don't think and walk down the path ahead of you—'

I had to stop messing around when I felt a nonexistent and scrutinizing gaze boring my soul, judging me harshly.

'Ahem. Jokes apart, I was heading towards the city's south main gate, assuming my guess about which way is south is right.'

From there, I'd make my way to the nearest town, since this city was a no-go for obvious reasons. The closest town was only a few KM walk from here from what I remembered from the map I saw of this region.

From there, I could get a carriage to my first destination. I had funds and other necessities, donated kindly by a repenting Garl… yeah, I took his storage ring and by extension, the contents within. I now had a decent amount of initial funds for the time being. Everything he owned in it— which wasn't a lot, admittedly— was now mine by the laws of video games and looting.

'You gotta love that mechanic in the game. Easy money.'

[I believe it's called theft in the real world.]

'…'

Realization hit me quickly. I did the right thing… and ignored her.

Looting is looting. He deserved it anyway.

…

It was finally about time I started my leveling up.

An unexpected, but still necessary adventure lay ahead of me.

***

A/N: First of all, the novel "My cheats are OP, but my system is Sus" is, obviously, a fictional novel(within a fictional novel; It's fiction-ception!) I made up on a whim, in case that wasn't clear. It doesn't exist in the REAL world, a.k.a ours. At least not as far as my knowledge goes. So, I haven't spoiled some awesome ending of some really great novel. Hopefully.