NPC into Player: Let's Wreck This Game

Things around the big mansion looked suspicious tonight. It was midnight but from the cars that kept coming and the number of youths emerging from each car, it looked like it was midday.

No one had a pleasant look over their faces, as if they were forced to come here, dragged from their beds and threatened to enter the cars.

"They are here," a soft voice came from behind, "but… don't you see this is too much?"

"It's not," Natalie turned to face her friend, Peri while ruthlessly adding, "he started this war and he had to shoulder the consequences."

Peri couldn't help but sigh while watching the two puffy eyes and paled look over her friend's face. She knew how bad the past week was, and she only hoped her friend would return to her sanity, overcome her bitterness and agony and cease all these hostile actions against Dockrey.

But with each passing day she discovered how deeply mistaken she was. she underestimated the grief and sadness, the anger and determination inside her best friend's soul.

"Welcome to my humble place," Natalie walked behind Peri who still acted like her and did what she told her to do, "I've gathered you here so we can start our alliance formally."

"We heard you will pay us a good price for joining up," a fifteen old slim youth shouted all of sudden, "is this true?"

"Is this why you came here?" Peri said in mockery. Just before she could aggressively and properly discipline this rude one, she felt Natalie's hand holding her back.

If not for the people here all glaring at her, she would have turned around and shouted in her face. "Yes, that's true," Natalie answered when she noticed how nervous Peri was, "only on one condition, to help my lady and kill Dockrey in the game back to the hole of level zero and make sure he never climbs up the surface or sees the light of level one ever again."

Her tone showed her hate, but no one here except Peri noticed this. Natalie knew she said enough and so she stepped back and waited for Peri to continue explaining the rules.

"If you don't mind, let's all sign," Peri said as she sat on the head of a large round table brought here especially for this occasion.

No player standing here refused this generous offer. These were the leaders of the top twenty guilds Natalie settled on recruiting under her umbrella.

She wanted revenge, she wanted to torture Dockrey in the game.

As signing started she wasn't much interested in watching anymore, so she moved silently, heading back towards the corridor to enter her most favored room in this huge mansion in the recent days.

"Excuse me, may I check on lady's Natalie from you?"

This voice stopped her all of sudden, just before she was about to enter the corridor. She turned around and a familiar face appeared in front of her eyes.

"Antoan… oh Antoan, it's…" she controlled herself as she thought Antoan didn't know her true identity. "My lady is doing fine, at least on the surface she is strong, resilient, and she swore she won't let the blood of your master spill without a cost… a very hefty cost."

Antoan smiled softly before he turned to glance at Peri, "you know he once dreamt of forming such alliance with many guilds," he turned to her again as he added, "like what he tried to offer that night…"

He also paused but he returned to his calm self the next moment.

As for Natalie, her eyes went soar and red while some tears raced through their familiar path during the past week. "Tell me," she wiped her tears slowly while adding, "are you alright? Did you come here asking for anything?"

"I came answering Lady Natalie's call," Antoan said before pointing towards the distance, "I'm now serving this young player over there."

Natalie felt astonished by his words but she followed his fingers and found a tall youth, in early twenties, with good physique and tanned skin. "Is he… your new master?" she slowly asked in a dejected and disappointed tone that didn't escape his notice.

"He is just a tool," Antoan shrugged, "after my master's death, the next to inherit everything was him."

"He inherited you then," Natalie took a deep breath out of relief for an instant, "but I never heard there were any direct relatives for Terry away from his uncle," she muttered.

"He is a distant cousin who was living abroad but came in after the accident," Antoan said before adding, "at least he swore to avenge my master."

"I hope it's not only words."

"Me too," Antoan sighed, "but from the face of it I could say he is true to his promises. He formed up a giant force and declared his desire for revenge."

Natalie glanced over the youth again before muttering, "what's his name?"

"Sir Henry," Antoan answered.

"Sir? Is he a Sir?" she asked with a surprised look over her face.

"That was also surprising for me as well," Antoan smiled, "I thought his uncle would inherit everything as his guardian, but a lawyer came with a will the next day and there was this Sir's name and contact info inside it."

"Interesting," Natalie muttered, "how fate plays its dirty tricks, take who are worthy from us and give vague people the opportunity in return."

"I agree," Antoan softly said as he glanced over his new master.

"Which village is he playing at right now?" she suddenly asked.

"He plays in a far empire than us," Antoan said, "but he intends to move in the village to help my lady in revenge."

"The village…" Natalie recalled the place she couldn't step in a single time without thinking of him. She entered the game the next day under the persistence of Peri, and in less than five minutes she went to another village, randomly selected, and even ended up in one of the kingdoms there.

"I searched for my lady there but couldn't find any trace at all. Do you know if she entered the game again or not?"

His question distracted her from her thoughts, "I… She moved from the village."

"Moved?" Antoan was surprised before he added, "moved where?"

"Some place where she won't remember him."

The answer was short but Antoan could perfectly relate with her. "I was just in the beginner place when he… sigh, I was thinking about going up and joining my lady but it seems I should go and play with him then."

"He is your current master now," she laughed before adding, "you can't go anywhere without his permission."

"Sure, that's why I was thinking about dragging him with me towards your lady's village," Antoan laughed and his answer made her stare for a moment before laughing as well.

"It's a shame," she sighed, "even I don't know the exact location or even the name of that village."

"Yeah, it's my loss," Antoan softly muttered before turning around as he added, "it seems they are almost finished. I'm sorry to interrupt you, I just wanted to check on my lady."

"It's nothing," she waved her hand casually before asking, "do you know where Sir Henry of yours plays?"

"I currently dunno about that," Antoan embarrassedly said, "it's I came out of the hospital two days ago and was busy playing there since then. I had little time to check on his place… my level also didn't allow to do so."

"Ah, I see," she nodded before adding, "they are finished. It's nice to see someone from… old friends," she stuttered as she recalled Bloom before she recalled something. "By the way, is Sir Henry here strong?"

"In real life?" Antoan asked.

"In the game."

"Well… it depends," Antoan seemed hesitant, "I never saw him playing before. All I know is that he is a sword wielder and he talks a little about his deeds in the game."

"His level?"

"He told me it's around twenty," Antoan said before laughing, "but you can tell he is just bragging and not telling the truth."

She laughed as she agreed with his opinion. "I just hoped he would be strong."

Antoan calmly looked at her before saying, "I promise to test him first, if he is half what he brags, then I'll come and tell you in person."

"Sigh, I used to welcome you coming from his mansion… carrying his words and thoughts…" she couldn't continue and she knew if she stayed there her tears would betray her. "Excuse me," she moved inside the corridor, vanishing behind the short turn there.

"Sigh, I'll make sure he would know about your feelings," Antoan inwardly sighed before heading back to stand behind his new master while everyone was having a nice chat, laughing and celebrating the establishment of this alliance.

And the name of this alliance was simply symbolic... The Blooming Alliance, that was the name Natalie chose to send a direct message to everyone of her enemies.

As the list of her enemies wasn't only limited to Dockrey, but extended to those dirty CEOs the old man discovered during the recent digging and the number is still rising up.