Warning: This chapter contains scenes of violence that may be disturbing to some readers. Reader discretion is advised.

<<This NPC is really intense! >>

“What did you say? He’s dead?” Karens shot up, his face darkening. “Didn’t I say not to use overly aggressive methods?”

The person on the other end of the phone sounded aggrieved. “We didn’t use any extreme measures! We just beat him for a few minutes, didn’t even break his limbs. He offed himself! And the strangest thing is that his body turned to ashes!”

Karens paced back and forth anxiously, his expression constantly changing.

That’s right, he was the one who gave the order to kidnap the players. However, he was very cautious. Not only did he have the players’ eyes covered, but he also instructed his subordinates not to reveal the identity of Black Poker. It wasn’t for any other reason; it was simply to verify a certain suspicion he had.

And now, it seemed everything was heading toward the worst possible outcome.

Karens had ordered his subordinates to kidnap five players from different locations and interrogate them in separate places.

He originally thought that at least some of these five people could reveal Ranen’s true identity or something about their own origins, but things didn’t go as planned.

This kind of loyalty… this kind of fanaticism… and his strange behavior after death only confirmed Karens’s growing sense of unease.

“…Before he committed suicide, did he do or say anything?” 

“Yes, yes, he did,” the voice on the other end of the phone hesitated slightly. “He seemed to say that Ranen is a god…?”

Karens’s heart sank completely.

—-

The tattooed man was still interrogating Matcha Green Milk, and because he couldn’t get any useful information out of her, he was gradually becoming irritable. He figured that using some means wouldn’t get him in trouble with the boss.

Just then, he noticed that the avatar of Matcha Green Milk was a rather attractive woman. His gaze swept over the blindfold covering her eyes and then wandered down to her figure, growing increasingly lewd.

“So, you’re still not willing to talk, huh? Looks like I’ll have to try some other methods.”

As he spoke, he moved closer to Matcha GreenMilk. Since she was blindfolded, she had no idea what was happening.

She was enthusiastically browsing the forum, engrossed in all the absurd threads and posts, when she suddenly heard the sound of a door opening from outside.

The tattooed man glanced toward the doorway, a look of surprise crossing his face. “Kar…” Karens boss

He didn’t manage to finish the name because Karens saw the movement of his lips, and a flash of ruthlessness crossed his eyes. He quickly stepped forward, covering the man’s mouth before he could say the name aloud, and then violently slammed his head against the wall.

The man let out a wail, but Karens remained unmoved. He turned his head to look at the others present, who were clearly too scared to move, and tilted his head, signaling to them.

Immediately, the room filled with the screams of men, leaving the blindfolded Matcha Green Milk utterly bewildered.

What’s going on? What happened?

After a while, Matcha Green Milk’s blindfold was finally removed, and she could see what had happened.

On the floor lay several burly men, one of whom—a tattooed guy—had his head smashed. His condition was unknown, whether he was alive or dead.

To avoid suspicion, Karens had been ruthless; blood was splattered everywhere, making the scene look like several people had died. However, Matcha Green Milk had her vision protection on, so everything she saw was pixelated. She remained quite calm, looking at Karens with mild curiosity.

Wow, not bad-looking. This handsome guy’s rating would be at least an eighty.

Karens was waiting for the victim to speak, but after a long time, the young girl just stared at him with bright eyes without saying a word. He had no choice but to speak first:

“Come with me for now. There’s a chance they have others around. Don’t worry, I’m here to save you.”

“Mm-hmm, thank you!”

After being untied, Matcha Green Milk stretched her arms and legs, then happily followed Karens out of the room, completely unaware of the fear in Karens’s heart as he walked ahead of her.

Still that indifferent attitude towards life and death…

Karens observed Matcha Green Milk coldly, noting her reaction, which matched what others had reported. It seemed that none of them were afraid of this kind of danger. If it were just one or two people, it could be explained, but a whole group…

He had only ever seen this kind of response from those brainwashed fanatics.

Matcha Green Milk had no idea what Karens was thinking. After being rescued, she happily followed behind him while live-posting her current situation on the forum.

So, this is really getting into the plot, huh!

Matcha Green Milk realized she could move around freely and marveled at how realistic the game was, allowing players to actively participate in the storyline. Without hesitation, she asked, “Who are you guys, exactly? And why did you save me?”

Finally, she asked. Karens, walking ahead, felt slightly relieved. He had been worried that this woman was truly indifferent to life and death, to the point where she didn’t even care who saved her. If that were the case, wouldn’t all his acting have been for nothing?

With that in mind, Karens pretended to stay alert to his surroundings while trying to sound casual as he smiled, “Don’t worry, little girl, we’re not bad guys.”

Karens’s initial plan was simply to hide the gang’s identity, capture a few people for interrogation, and figure out what was going on with that Psychotherapy Room and Ranen. But who would have thought that group of people would be so unafraid of death?

After someone actually died, he quickly realized that things were spiraling out of his control. If they were really residents of that hidden world, possessing extraordinary powers, then they would surely come back with a fierce retaliation.

Now, there was only one way to salvage the situation.

And that was to shift the blame for the kidnapping onto another faction and position himself as the savior.

In the process, Karens also planned to use the rescue as an opportunity to further confirm his suspicions. Although all the evidence so far pointed to these people likely being cultists, with Ranen as their god, Karens was an extremely cautious and distrustful man who didn’t rely on others’ judgments; he had to see for himself.

Choosing his words carefully, he appeared to be on guard against their surroundings, but his peripheral vision stayed fixed on Matcha Green Milk’s face, not missing a single micro-expression. “We’re on the same side as you. I, too, have been inspired by that one…”

“That one?” Matcha Green Milk tilted her head.

“Yes, the owner of that Psychotherapy Room, Ranen…” Karens said, silently forming the word with his lips.

GOD.

Deity.

Matcha Green Milk’s eyes lit up, and she nodded eagerly. “Are you all His followers?”

Karens: “…”

He forced a smile. “You could say that. I deeply hope to serve at His side, though it’s a pity that He might not deem me worthy. But whatever His will is, we will do our best to fulfill it…”

However, Matcha Green Milk didn’t catch Karens’s hint and was excitedly thinking: As expected, she knows it! Black Cat’s guess was correct!

Here it is, the force belonging to Ranen. They must have been caught up in the faction struggle just now!

Later, Karens asked Matcha Green Milk many questions about herself and her companions. Knowing that he was a follower of Ranen, she naturally answered all his questions thoroughly.

The more they talked, the more alarmed Karens became.

They were all from different places.

All came here to meet Ranen. (Players cannot use terms like “game,” “player,” or “NPC.”)

When he mentioned that he had also been to another location, but unfortunately hadn’t found any other kidnapped people like her—possibly having been silenced—she showed no reaction to death at all, not even a flicker of a smile fading away.

Karens’s vigilance was at its highest.

It was as if the one walking beside him wasn’t a little girl skipping and jumping, but some kind of prehistoric beast.

In fact, that was exactly how he felt.

He would never forget what those religious fanatics had done in the past. One couldn’t approach these zealots with a normal mindset. Even the slightest hint of disrespect toward their deity in speech could trigger them.

As a result, Karens spoke with even more reverence, boasting about Ranen as if he were a true believer.

This repeatedly caught Matcha Green Milk’s attention.

Wow, this NPC is really fanatic; no wonder he’s a cultist.

They hadn’t walked far, having just left the abandoned warehouse where Matcha Green Milk had been held, when a large group of people armed with weapons hurried over and asked, “Where are the people who kidnapped you?”

“They’ve been dealt with by this gentleman; it’s all taken care of now!” Although Matcha Green Milk couldn’t see the surroundings, she had long since posted her coordinates on the forum, and the players had come rushing over.

Karens greeted the group with a smile, though inwardly, he was alarmed. The blonde woman has just escaped, and she is right under his nose. He is certain she hasn’t sent a distress signal; he has also searched her and confirmed there are no tracking devices. How has this group found them?

Seeing there were no enemies left to fight, the players were quite disappointed. One of them, possibly the leader, looked at Karens with curiosity and asked, “Who is this?”

“Oh, he’s the one who saved me; his name is Karens,” Matcha Green Milk said, giving a suggestive wink. “He’s on Ranen’s side.”

[Player Channel:

Matcha Green Milk: It might be the force mentioned on the forum, belonging to Ranen!]

The leader of the players looked at Karens with curiosity after hearing this.

[Player Channel:

Player A: Is this a new NPC?

Player B: Very likely. Should we ask if we can get a quest from him? (Eager)

Player C: With the force appearing, it means Ranen’s identity as the evil god is confirmed, but shouldn’t the investigator organization be the first to show up? (Scratching head)

Player D: Could it be that we players can choose to join the evil god’s side?

Player C: Awesome! I’ll switch sides right away! I want to be the god’s dog!]

What are they… talking about?

Karens’s smile was starting to freeze. The blonde woman he had rescued and these people who had suddenly appeared from who knows where were now silent, staring at each other as if exchanging information that only they knew.

Is it some sort of mental communication? Or a special method only cultists use? Have they discovered his scheme? Are they discussing how to deal with him?

Unease gnawed at Karens’s heart like ants. He felt like a defendant waiting for the verdict in court, hesitating between fleeing immediately or fighting to the death.

At this point, Matcha Green Milk and the others finally stopped their discussion and turned their attention to Karens.

“Mr. Karens, we plan to head back and look for clues since some of our companions were attacked,” the lead player asked friendly, “Would you like to come with us?”

Karens maintained his composure. “No, I have other matters to attend to… Aren’t you worried they might come back for revenge?”

“Well, isn’t that even better?” The lead player said matter-of-factly, with other players nodding and smiling.

After all, they had come to this location to fight monsters. Unlike most MMORPGs, this game didn’t have outdoor monster spawn points, so it was hard to find opportunities for combat.

“… Is that so? Then I wish you all the best,” Karens said, unsure of what else to say, but relieved that he had wrapped up his work well.

Fortunately, he didn’t directly encounter these lunatics.

Let them investigate if they want to; he had already prepared a scapegoat. Once this matter was settled, Karens decided to immediately withdraw his Black Poker personnel from this block and would persuade the boss to abandon the protection fee for this area. If he couldn’t afford to offend them, at least he could avoid them.

As the two groups passed each other, Karens finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Suddenly, the players stopped, and Matcha Green Milk opened a newly released quest.

[Daily Quest: Ranen’s Request.]

“Please wait a moment, Mr. Karens,” Matcha Green Milk turned and said.

“His Excellency Ranen wishes to see you.”