Summoner Online: I Became the Tutorial Boss with a 999+ Villainess-Chapter 44: All for a glitChapter

’This just made me confirm something.’

Kai kept a firm gaze on Thomas, his attention completely oblivious to the two summons flanking both his sides.

Lyra and Carlotta were practically fuming at the fact such a weak human would dare give orders to their Lord, treating him like a common mob.

But they were tame and cautious.

Even they knew better than to speak in such a moment without permission.

As for Kai...

’It seems the dungeon is really changing me. I noticed this during the second raid of players that waltzed in here trying to kill me, but I really don’t feel any kind of sympathy towards anyone that is not under my direct rule.’

He paused, looking down at the battered forms of Alex and Sofia on the ground.

’I was painfully aware that this party helped me solely for their own benefits, but to think it had to do with them wanting to sacrifice me to the Red Players? I could sit here and think of all the reasons why that is. Maybe they were threatened, or promised a rare item. Either way, it pisses me off when I know I was deceived by these humans.’

Before long, a loud sigh left his mouth.

He could easily order his monsters to go on the attack right now, but there were still things he needed to know from the players themselves.

"You kill players to level up faster, is that correct? I am guessing you have High-Grade Artifacts that help you with this task. Is that the reason you were so adamant on killing your fellow players?"

As he spoke, Kai noticed the annoyed look that played on Thomas’s face.

"For a Boss, you sure do know a lot. And it’s really starting to get under my skin. But yes, you can say one of my Third-Grade Artifacts allows me to steal a player’s EXP for myself, which I can use to level up faster than normal. I am a Red Player. I kill players for my own benefit. What of it?"

Kai leaned back a bit, ignoring the cheeky grin on Thomas’s face.

"So when you heard the three players your people could have killed went missing, you got angered by that, simply because as a Red Player, you have a reputation to uphold. No one ever sees a Red Player and leaves to tell the tale, isn’t that right?"

"How do you—"

"But of course, you had a tracker on one of your victims, which made it easy for you to track her all the way here. If that was the case alone, you would have turned back the moment you noticed the tracker was leading you all the way to the Nameless Dungeon. She is a Level 5 player, and rumors of the dungeon difficulty have been going around, so surely there was no way she would have survived in there alone."

"Wow, for an NPC Boss, you really do know your stuff. Close enough. I almost thought you were a player like myself." Thomas rested his blade on his shoulder, looking relaxed.

"From what I can see here, it looks like you are trying to understand why I stand here, ready to kill your ass with all my high-ranking members. Well, it’s simple, really- Control. Why else would a man strive for power?"

"Do enlighten me. If you kill me, the Virus ceases to exist. Is that not right? What control do you hope to achieve with that alone?"

Every dungeon monster, including Lyra and Carlotta, was rather confused as to what the conversation was about.

At the same time, they were not surprised that their Lord was able to communicate about it with no stress whatsoever. His wisdom was infinite.

Looking bored, Thomas gawked at Kai.

He wondered why he was even having this conversation with a Boss to begin with. Then again, he had this urge to engage, almost like seeing a talking dog and feeling curious about what it had to say.

He grinned.

"Very well, I’ll indulge you for the sake of it."

He continued, pacing back and forth.

"When news about the Virus launched, and people soon realized there was no way to log out of the game... I felt happy. Joyful. Excited! It was a rush to see players run for their lives trying not to get killed. Before, it was just a game. But now? It is fear. Because they know getting killed might be their last day ever."

Thomas spread his arms apart as if embracing the new world.

"The power to decide who gets to live or die... isn’t that something everyone wants? To feel like a God in that moment? But of course, then I learnt that if the so-called Shadow of Victims died, the Virus would cease to exist, and people could then log back out of the game. Such a show-stealer. No one likes heroes."

So imagine my oh-so-wonderful surprise when I tracked down one of my preys and it led me directly to your lair. Normally I would have just sent my boys, but by killing you myself, I would further increase my fear factor. I get to decide who gets to die or not, and no one else."

His words were heard by all, and for the monsters, hearing that someone was so arrogant and adamant on killing the Shadow of Victims... it truly made their blood boil.

Especially since Thomas kept on going.

"If I killed you and allowed you to respawn, that would be a reset, meaning the Virus would be erased. It’s just how the programmers designed the Bosses. But... if I killed you, and chose the option to make you never respawn, then I can summon you at will later. I can keep the Virus hostage. It’s a win-win situation for me."

’I see.’ Kai leaned to the right.

’Seeing as he knows a lot about the game mechanics, it proves he had some connections with the developers, which would of course explain why he had Third-Grade Artifacts of this magnitude.’

Still...

"Hilarious."

"Huh?"

"Hear my words. This is where your story ends. Death for your people."

Kai’s voice dropped an octave, resonating through the stone floor.

"For some of you, the ones who had walked in here with no ill intention—I see a chance of freedom for you, if you drop to your knees and beg for forgiveness."

He looked directly at the battered party of Alex and Sofia.

Mana began to leak from his form, turning the air cold.

"However, for most of you, dripping with malice at the foot of my throne... you have walked into the darkest pit of hell, and death has only seen but your life flashing before your eyes. Allow me to indulge you as well."

He smiled behind the mist.

"Just how hungry do you think my monsters are?"

"Kill them."

One by one, the monsters all rose to their feet.

Skeletons rattled their boney blades. Imps hissed from the rooftops.

Slowly, they turned to look at the intruders who were standing only several feet away from them. 𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

The Red Players didn’t seem scared at the very least.

Their HP bars began glowing a bright red light, hinting that they had all activated their defensive artifacts. It was likely an invulnerability shield or a massive defense buff linked to their hitpoints.

That said...

After the dungeon got to the B-Rank status, it offered Kai four major abilities: One Authority, the highest rank of skill that is absolute and can never be disrupted unless by another stronger Authority; and three Blessings, second only to Authority.

And one of the first Authorities he received was quite simple.

[Authority: All Shall Glitch]

[Description: This Authority allows every monster in the dungeon to bypass every status effect, nullification, artifact alignment, and any other external source used by the enemy.]

[Condition: As long as Kai himself is present in the dungeon.]

Thomas raised his sword, laughing.