Around the time Kamishiro and the rest were fighting the Field Boss, in a certain dark, dusty warehouse somewhere near the wharf, a shady group had gathered.

The one sitting atop a tall pile of sacks looked down on those below him, smiling gently. It wasn’t a threatening kind of smile, but still, those below were trembling beautifully—like lambs about to be offered up to a wolf.

A white long-sleeved shirt with a puffy chest accessory matched his pale-blue eyes well. Eyes that stared right at the other party, cold and penetrating. He looked no older than Kamishiro. But the aura he gave off was beyond common sense.

"So... This Kamishiro guy... said he’s a member of my Ares?"

The man, whose hair was well-maintained like a wealthy businessman’s son, crossed his legs as he asked. "He’s got guts, at least... And he even pulled it off against someone like you, Mokuro..."

"Y-Yes...!"

The other guy, Mokuro, nodded like a broken bobblehead figurine, slamming his forehead against the dusty floor.

"Yes, boss! His strength was beyond reason, so I believed his claim that he’s part of Ares, boss... I have his picture and address with me... So please..."

As he spoke, blood kept dripping down his head.

Not from the wound he got from smashing his forehead against the floor, no. Rather, from his thoroughly beat-up face. His eyes, cheeks, ears—everywhere was bleeding, almost as if he’d been put in a blender for a bit before someone changed their mind.

"Hmm..."

With a twist of his chin, two men in black suits moved forward, grabbing Mokuro’s battered body—one that they themselves had caused—and inspected his belongings.

Soon, they found a picture with a note on the back, indicating a specific address in downtown Tokyo. After confirming it was "safe," they passed it to the man with a respectful bow before silently backing away.

"So it’s this guy..." he whispered, his smile widening. "Someone whose strength was enough to convince you they’re part of my Ares, huh..."

He scanned the image, burning it into his memory. Then he threw the picture away as if bored of it.

BANG!

A hole appeared clean through it—right through Kamishiro’s forehead in the photo—before it landed on the ground.

The man, still holding the pistol he’d fired—one engraved with a dragon—in the firing position, grinned. "Looks like I need to pay this fearless guy a visit... and teach him what true fear is."

The warehouse was quiet save for his sinister laughter.

Only the five men in suits, and Mokuro still kneeling with his forehead to the floor, felt the cold wind brush the backs of their necks.

They knew that soon, another life would vanish from the face of the earth.

’How dare he deceive me...’

Mokuro grinned, feeling victory already within his grasp. Enough that getting beaten up over it felt well worth it.

’That brat... is dead!’

---

"Tee?!"

I gasped, catching a familiar name visible in the camera before me.

She’d been gone for a good chunk of the stream, so I’d figured she missed it entirely. But here she was.

"Tee?"

My voice came out a little louder than intended, causing Miyabi to turn her head toward me. Her gaze felt a little unsettling, making me blurt something out by reflex.

"Ah, she’s a benefactor and a friend. It’s just been a while, so I raised my voice in surprise..."

W-Would that excuse hold up?

Just as I was wondering, Miyabi turned to face Tee’s camera. Tee’s camera turned toward Miyabi in return. The two held a long silence between them, their "eyes" locked onto each other.

[Anon19960509: You girl... Really...]

[Anon78440705: Leave her be. We owe her for leading us here. 😔]

[Anon49201131: Still caught up in her forbidden romance, it seems. Well, she’s well past her prime so it wouldn’t—]

[Anon49201131 has been forcefully logged out.]

Just as I was wondering what was going on between the two, more familiar names started popping up.

"Dee, Zed, Kay?!" I called their nicknames immediately. "You guys are here too?!"

[Anon78440705: Well... the blabbermouth Kay just got knocked out, but yeah. 😅]

[Anon19960509: It’s been years, WhiteGod! You look younger than I remember!]

Well, Kay did try to diss Tee, so I supposed that was a given. Those two had always been close in that weird way—close enough to beat each other up constantly.

Anyway, I steered the conversation back, glancing around the nearby cameras. "So Tee called you all here? What about the rest?"

Other than the four—no, three of them, I didn’t see any other familiar names. Were they late?

[Anon00010101: The others are busy right now. They can’t make it yet.]

Tee responded.

It seemed the stare-off with Miyabi was over.

I wasn’t sure what had happened between them, but Miyabi was looking at me with a pout now. Did I do something?

"Busy?" I asked, just to confirm. "You guys can get busy...? That’s news to me."

[Anon19960509: Kid, we’re still G**s. Of course we get busy.]

Just as we were jabbing at each other—

[Anon49201131 has joined the stream.]

[Anon49201131: Ugh... that smarts... I was knocked out for an entire century, you bish!]

Kay was back.

And from the sounds of it, he’d been knocked out for a full hundred years.

I guess Tee didn’t hold back.

Although we weren’t all together yet, the banter felt so nostalgic. It had only been two days, but to think I’d miss these lazyasses so quickly... Not that I’d ever admit that out loud.

While the chat around me was getting lively, Kay suddenly addressed me in a serious tone.

[Anon49201131: Anyway, Whitey, it seems you’ve tampered quite a bit with the timeline already... Be careful. The bigger the wave you raise, the stronger the correction force gets.]

"Correction...?" I raised a brow. "You mean... the butterfly effect?"

[Anon49201131: That counts too. Anyway, be careful. Fighting against the world itself, no matter who or how, isn’t gonna end well.]

"..."

Butterfly effect...

Had my actions really changed the timeline that much already?

But if I didn’t change the timeline, the ending would stay the same.

This is... a dilemma.

After that, we spent all our remaining hours clearing quests across three zones—the Teru Plains, Mushi Forest, and Gura Mountains. It went faster than expected thanks to our higher-than-recommended levels and the extra headcount.

Although Mushi Forest did delay us considerably.

Who would’ve thought Kiki was terrified of those big, black, speedy insects? Especially the ones the size of a basketball. Though what surprised me more was how Eri kept her composure against them the entire time.

She’s just as tough as a ramen shop owner’s daughter...

I’d been hoping we’d make it to the Howling Forest, but time ran out on us.

[Warning! You have been logged in for 7 hours and 55 minutes. You will be forcefully logged out in five minutes.]

The notification hit just as we finished cashing in all the side quests we’d cleared.

Of course, Kiki, Eri, and Miyabi got the same warning, albeit at slightly different timings. Kiki being the first.

"With that, today’s long stream is coming to an end! Don’t forget to check the archive too, okay~?" Miyabi emcee’d, closing things out.

After that, she shut off the camera and switched herself to private.

Nobody would be watching her anymore.

The rest of us did the same.

"Whew... that was fun!"

Kiki wiped her forehead with her arm, smiling from ear to ear.

"Who would’ve thought I’d reach level 30 in just eight hours? I’m definitely bragging about this on my group chat!"

Eri smiled, bowing lightly. "I had fun too. I hope we can party up again tomorrow...?"

Her gaze drifted toward me as she said it, as if asking for permission. Well...

"I don’t see why not. Same time tomorrow?"

"Yes!"

Eri gave the brightest smile she’d shown the entire day.

After that, we were all forced to log out one after another. Since we’d already added each other as friends, coordinating for tomorrow would be much easier.

"Phew..."

I breathed out as I removed the Dive Ring, tired but satisfied.

"..."

But right after, I noticed something strange.

The air felt... electrifying.

I could sense the danger in my skin.

"Ram, Gwen?" I whispered.

[Yes, Master.]

[Gwen at your service, Master.]

Both their virtual figures appeared on either side of me. I was used to it by now.

"Can you two check the surroundings of the apartment? I think there’s danger nearby."

The moment I finished speaking, both androids vanished. I wasn’t sure how they conducted reconnaissance, but after ten seconds, they returned at the same time.

[There are 15 armed individuals surrounding the building, and three more coming up the stairs. From their pace and direction, they appear to be heading to your room, Master. ETA in 30 seconds.]

[Gwen has confirmed that the residents in other rooms seem to have noticed the situation and are holding their breaths, trying to stay away from it.]

"I see..."

Looks like my senses were still sharp enough. Though not detecting it while still inside the game is a fatal flaw...

"What do the three coming up look like?"

[Displaying portraits.]

Three figures appeared.

One was a familiar face... no, make that two. The first was my little bully, Kael. The one behind him, battered as he looked, was Mokuro—leader of the Red Axe Gang. And the last one...

"Who’s that?"

A face I hadn’t seen before.

But for some reason, just looking at him made my blood boil.