[Loading minigame prologue...]
[NEW PLAYER DETECTED!]
A sudden message from the neon-lime system abruptly interrupted the formation of a scene for all players. Aside from Chen Mo, the other players, each within their own respective endless voids of darkness, stared at the floating screen that now displayed: [Waiting for new player...]
Whereas for Chen Mo:
[Tutorial for newbies!]
[Your AE, Arcane Energy, is fully charged upon entering a game! (120/120). However, you are not permitted to check your AE mid-game.]
Interesting. Chen Mo thought. Even if he wasn't allowed direct access to the value, he still knew he could easily calculate it himself. Five minutes for one AE, twenty AE for his Tier 1 AA, Ragebaiter. That wasn't difficult mathematics by any means.
The system continued:
[You will have 100 hitpoints, the same applies to every other player, regardless of rank and power. However, the rate at which hitpoints deplete depends on a player's durability level.]
[Your slaves may participate in minigames as your servants or minions. To maintain fairness, all slaves share identical stats. They are all of E+ rank, with every attribute fixed at level 5, amounting to 25 Power total.]
So... even the average slave was stronger than me... Chen Mo sighed inwardly, a trace of resignation surfacing.
[Slaves are compressed into portable orbs that the player must physically hold. To summon them, simply shatter the orb. To store them back into portable orbs, simply command them to do so.]
[As your number of slaves is currently low, they will spawn in their human form by default.]
[Slaves that die in-game cannot be revived during the minigame, but will revive if the player successfully survives the minigame.]
[Players that die in-game to monsters will become slaves. Players that die in-game to other players will die permanently.]
[Killing players provides no material rewards. Their slaves will be recycled within the game's system. Their wealth and assets are returned to the system.]
[You will be assigned a personal NPC, similar to *Amelia Cunningham* in your beginner minigame. Keeping her alive allows you to obtain her as a slave in your harem, as well as awaken your tier 2 AA.]
[Is everything understood?]
Chen Mo merely acknowledged internally, and the system telepathically registered his agreement without issue.
[Loading minigame prologue...]
Colours began flooding into Chen Mo's vision. Blurry at first, indistinct and hazy, but gradually sharpening into clarity. His other senses returned progressively as well, far more gently than he had anticipated, rather than the overwhelming sensory overload he had expected.
He could distinctly feel his thighs still uncomfortably exposed, just as before, confirming that he remained in the form of the goth girl even within the minigame.
Before him stretched a crimson pathway that led toward a pristine, crystalline throne, shimmering with a multitude of refracted colours. Chen Mo stood within a grand, majestic hall, adorned with alternating red and blue banners hung upon towering gold-and-white pillars. The ceiling soared high above, its exposed beams forming an intricate yet harmonious architectural pattern.
Seated upon the throne was a heavily bearded old man, dressed extravagantly in flowing white robes, decorated with countless golden ornaments. Among them rested a crown, intricately engraved and embedded with every jewels that can be found on Earth and beyond.
To his left and right stood two obedient female servants, both bearing identical badges — each marked with a downward-pointing arrow. They fanned their king with feathered flabella in synchronized, practiced motions.
The king himself did not speak. Instead, his messenger did. The messenger was a man with a stern expression, and he was also clearly a victim of the Norwood reaper. He wore a knight's attire, notably without a helmet, and in his hand, he held a scroll. On his chest was a badge marked with an upward-pointing arrow.
He began to read: "Southerners! The North has called upon you, requesting your service as exemplary detectives! The six of you have drawn the king's interest through whispers carried by the wind. Should the assigned task be completed within the span of three vermillions, you shall be rewarded citizenship in Northaria."
The neon-lime system flickered briefly: ['Vermillion' was the term for 'Night' in the current universe.]
As Chen Mo's senses fully stabilized, he became acutely aware of the overwhelming presence looming beside him the entire time: the towering, menacing figure of Mikkel Meinhof clad in bronze armour.
His disturbingly hoarse voice echoed: "You're lucky this is only the prologue. Violence isn't allowed, but I think you've already figured that out; you'e already done that back in the lobby."
Indeed, Chen Mo wasn't worried. He was almost certain that once multiplayer gameplay began, all players would be scattered across different locations. Otherwise, someone like the Unawakened Grim Reaper wouldn't have been able to achieve what he had. Still, Chen Mo saw no reason to act arrogant about it. He remained silent as Mikkel continued:
"You think you're smart, disguising yourself as a white girl. But I know who you are; your fuckass name gave it away, you filthy Korean."
I'm fucking Chinese. Chen Mo spat internally, irritation flashing across his thoughts.
"I'll teach you your place, you yellow monkey. I'll take my time with you, perhaps fuck your sexy slave in front of you, then shovel your smart brains out." Mikkel threatened viciously, his tone dripping with malice.
Then, his malevolent glare gradually shifted into a degenerate gaze, checking out the 148cm curvy goth babe, "Maybe even kneel you down before killing you, and have your emo midget ass suck my—"
"So much hostility. Geez..." A cocky voice carrying an unmistakable British accent interrupted him. A tall man in a brown trench coat was beside Mikkel. His grotesque, blood-filled eyes pulsated with the protruding veins around it. "What do you have against her, mate?"
"Hehe..." Mikkel turned to face Jeremy, who stared back with a wide smile and those horrifying eyes. Mikkel laughed, "HeheHAHAHAHA... So you're here too? The infamous reaper. A C rank faggot who's played hundreds of games. The math doesn't quite add up, does it?"
"Well, yeah, duh?" Jeremy shrugged casually, flashing a mocking grin, "I just never used my Rubies, because, well, I don't need them, frankly. And, oh! Oh! Xiao Bai, check my power, check my power!"
Jeremy suddenly turned toward Chen Mo. Standing at an imposing and impressive height of 190cm, he had to bend down noticeably just to meet the gaze of Chen Mo's unfortunately short goth girl form, yet he seemed entirely content with it, still as cheerful and affable as ever, if not for those unblinking eyes.
Chen Mo now understood what the Unawakened Grim Reaper looked like. He extended Jeremy's profile and checked his power as requested:
[Power: 69 (C rank)]
"Hehe. Sixty-nine." Jeremy chuckled at his own deliberately maintained power level, clearly amused. "Hilarious. Yes?"
"I'll take my time with you too, reaper." Mikkel growled, his hostility unwavering, "I'll rape all your sl—"
"I killed all my NPCs before they can become my slaves, you knucklehead, hahahaha..." Jeremy cut him off, his carefree tone wildly unfitting for the statement.
"Silence, Southerners!" The royal messenger snapped, clearly irritated by the bickering.
The three complied immediately; otherwise, the game would never properly commence. Mikkel shot Jeremy a ferocious glare, while Jeremy simply returned it with an innocent smile, showing off his pearly white teeth.
"You are being granted a golden opportunity! You should all show more gratitude!" the messenger reprimanded sternly.
Chen Mo did pay attention to the prologue speech. However, his eyes multitasked, scanning the five other players standing neatly in a straight line before the throne.
He noticed that all of them wore identical badges marked with a downward-pointing arrow. Among them, he also spotted her — his emerald-eyed stalker from the mall, in an assassin's attire.
Then, he refocused on the messenger:
"You will be permitted to set foot in Northaria for the next three vermillions. We have prepared unique badges for each of you, granting access across Klein's Bridge."
Another knight appeared, this one fully equipped with a helmet, completing his medieval iron armour. Upon a cushion he carried with grace rested six badges, each bearing two overlapping arrows — one pointing upward, the other downward.
Chen Mo was the first to take his. The knight then moved along the line, distributing the remaining badges to the other players.
"Ensure that you wear the unique badge at all times. Should our enforcers assault you otherwise, Northaria will bear no responsibility." the messenger declared coldly.
Chen Mo complied immediately. He tore off the previous badge from his left chest and replaced it with the new one. His feminine, edgy leather jacket offered ample pockets, so he stored the old badge securely within one of them.
The others followed suit. Chen Mo even caught a childlike "Thanks!" from the British reaper as Jeremy accepted his badge with both hands.
"As dwellers of the Northaria-Southown island," the messenger continued in a deep, authoritative tone, "you should all be aware of the current werewolf situation.
"Every vermillion, when the blood moon hangs over the scarlet sky, a beast awakens, a creature responsible for seven deaths thus far, one every vermillion.
"Witnesses describe an abnormally large humanoid wolf, with claws thicker than its own skull, and eyes redder than the moon itself."
The messenger cleared his throat before continuing: "Your task is to locate the beast and, if possible, placate it. Although, any new intelligence you uncover will be accepted.
"One among you, based on contribution, will be granted citizenship in Northaria despite your inferior blood.
"Detectives, seize the cerulean and begin your investigations without delay."
The neon-lime system flickered again briefly: ['Cerulean' was the term for 'Day' in the current universe.]
"We bid you good luck, detectives." The messenger furled the scroll, his glimmering yellow eyes locking onto the six players, "If the task remains incomplete... more Southern flesh shall be cleansed."