Chapter 100

Chapter 100
Anton just stared blankly at me with his jaw slack, as if utterly incapable of formulating a response to my daring statement about seizing power. To him, I surely seemed entirely unhinged. I had just openly admitted to a high-ranking officer from an opposing faction—and not even Meursault—that my goal was to depose my own father. Naturally, any rational person would react with shock, yet the timing could not possibly have been more advantageous. The period to embark upon the usurpation path had arrived.

For one thing, I held zero inclination to adopt the passive route of merely waiting to inherit the seat after the Commander passed away from natural old age. With the protective barrier now vanished, no one could predict when forces originating from an entirely different zone might flood in. I simply could not afford to sit around idly while waiting for the Commander to grow frail and willingly hand over the authority to me. Naturally, even with the boundary down, Ssapasuble’s submarine hostage scheme had cut off official communication between zones, and every single district remained overwhelmingly occupied with securing its own territory rather than meddling elsewhere. Aside from locations like the Cola Area—where a military clique meant that capturing the Commander’s seat guaranteed absolute dominance—or places like Shin Eun-jo’s sector, where participants had collaborated from the very beginning to inhabit their hosts, everyone would remain in a state of absolute frenzy right up until the Second Apocalypse arrived.

Consequently, my objective was to secure the position of Commander and tightly lock down the zone prior to the outbreak of the Second Apocalypse. Up to this point, my declaration as a regressor had granted me a certain degree of leverage with the Commander, yet I could not rely indefinitely on talking my way out of every single crisis. If he deduced that I was not actually a regressor—that my true identity was a player rather than Haydam—before I firmly established control over the zone, the situation would escalate into complete chaos. That did not imply I intended to execute some video-game hero routine announcing my succession to my father face-to-face. Instead, my ultimate goal was to make the Commander recognize that transferring the authority to me was by far the most pragmatic choice, allowing him to step down quietly and remain as Hayden Goodman, my father, to assist in administering the zone.

For that outcome to materialize, the officers needed to throw their weight behind me. With Yosef, the foremost pro-Hayden officer, out of the picture, the sole individual capable of swaying the remaining personnel was Anton. Furthermore, Anton already harbored a substantial grievance against Commander Hayden himself. He might be standing there with his mouth open in disbelief at present, but the moment he comprehended that I, the son, intended to claim the seat, he would embrace the plan eagerly. Once his rational faculties returned, he would quickly calculate just how advantageous assisting my coup would prove for his own interests.

“Are you completely out of your mind?” Following a prolonged interval of silence, Anton finally spoke, his features contorted in disbelief. “The second you uttered those words to me, even if you are his own flesh and blood, you became a traitor.”

These were words he did not mean in the slightest. I understood Anton far too well; this was merely his way of mentally crunching the numbers regarding the coup while putting on a horrified facade to test the genuine firmness of my resolve.

“Go ahead and report this to His Excellency,” I replied, keeping a steady smile on my face. “Inform him that his son is plotting a rebellion. Whether he chooses to believe you or not is an entirely different matter.”

“I could at least plant the seed of suspicion.”

“Could you?” As I met his gaze directly, I observed Anton swallow hard.

Holding his look for another moment, I adopted a theatrical tone while resting one cheek against my hand. “It could not possibly have been a serious discussion about a coup. I merely voiced it because Anton looked ready to collapse on the spot the moment he was left alone with Platon.”

This abrupt shift in my demeanor caused Anton to flinch and take a step backward, fully aware of what was coming next. “If I frame it that way, do you genuinely believe Father would refuse to credit my version? Right now, you… do not exactly resemble someone with a fierce attachment to life.”

“You cannot simply arbitrate everything however you please, Lord Haydam!” Sensing that his resistance was about to drag on unnecessarily, I cut him off cleanly.

“My apologies, Anton, but you have already lost. The absolute moment I realized how deeply you dote on Platon just now, the contest was over.” Even Anton failed to completely mask the crumbling of his expression as a flash of despair crossed his features.

“Are you implying you intend to use Platon as a hostage… to compel me to survive?”

I nodded without a moment’s hesitation. “As long as you cooperate with my plans, I will not lay a single finger on Platon. I appreciate competent individuals, and I value loyalty even more.”

Anton no longer bothered concealing the calculations running through his mind, openly weighing which alternative would yield greater personal gain. Following an extensive bout of mental arithmetic, he inquired cautiously: “Will you… genuinely appoint my son as your adjutant?”

“Designating Platon as my adjutant is no idle promise.” At this point, I added a softer tone designed to reassure him: “You would much rather witness Platon ascend to the Commander’s right hand while you are still alive to see it, would you not?”

Anton hesitated for another brief moment before delivering his reply. “For the time being… I shall pretend I heard none of this.”

I grinned broadly. “For the time being” acting as though he had heard nothing signified that he would refrain from reporting my treasonous talk to the Commander. In other words, he would not stand in my path. While he had not yet offered active assistance, a man as astute as Anton would never leave Platon in my custody only to side with the Commander afterward.

Thus, the usurpation route had successfully taken its inaugural stride. After all, my original pledge had been to safeguard Commander Hayden, not to preserve the office of the Commander itself. Even if he was not my biological father, he remained the man my mother had cherished. Arranging for his early retirement so he could finally enjoy peace and rest… was that not the true definition of filial piety?

Luna, who had been contentedly receiving affectionate pets from Shin Eun-jo, suddenly experienced a shiver running through her entire body. Looking down at the feline, Shin Eun-jo inquired, “Is something troubling you, Lady Luna?”

I just… get the distinct impression that my little brother is hatching another ominous scheme.

With that remark, Luna pushed herself up and began stretching lazily, as if attempting to shake off an encroaching wave of unease. Shin Eun-jo observed her in silence, reflecting that “Little brother” must undoubtedly refer to Dopamine Addict. Ever since Dopamine Addict had granted her permission to remain within the Cola Area, Luna, acting as the divine proxy, had remained constantly by her side. It was blatantly apparent that he had deployed the cat as a living surveillance camera due to a fundamental lack of trust, yet coexisting with Luna proved to be surprisingly bearable. Part of this was simply because Luna was an endearing white kitten featuring delightfully soft, jelly-like paws, but more importantly, because Luna was universally recognized as Haydam’s cat, the local NPCs neither viewed Shin Eun-jo with suspicion nor treated her roughly. In essence, Luna functioned simultaneously as a monitoring device and a protective barrier against the inhabitants of the Cola Area.

Without Lady Luna, I would not have comprehended half of the things ShutInDarling communicated. Shin Eun-jo had acquired crucial intelligence concerning the Unicorn Area players by trading the Meteorite Pistol to Dopamine Addict. The complication, however, was that the intermediary tasked with delivering that information had been the player known as ShutInDarling. Every interaction with ShutInDarling left her on the verge of exploding from sheer frustration. Possessing an uncanny talent for driving people to distraction without an ounce of actual malice… Fortunately, Luna, who had eavesdropped on every exchange, had declared that her brother’s mischief had crossed the line and provided a concise synopsis on ShutInDarling’s behalf, ensuring that Shin Eun-jo at least obtained physical descriptions of the Unicorn Area participants.

Because of these circumstances, she harbored no genuine grievances regarding her living arrangements with Luna. What continued to puzzle her, however, was the affectionate manner in which Luna referred to Dopamine Addict as her younger brother. Until now, she had bitten her tongue, wishing to avoid appearing suspicious by inquiring about him, but this time she could no longer restrain her curiosity.

“Lady Luna… why is it that you refer to Dopamine Addict as your little brother?”

She had phrased the query as cautiously as possible, yet Luna responded with wide, innocent blue eyes as though the answer were the most self-evident fact in existence.

Because he happens to be my little brother?

It certainly did not sound as though she used the term merely because he was chronologically younger. If that were the extent of it, she would not continually append the possessive pronoun. A player whom an authentic divine proxy addressed as a younger brother… In Shin Eun-jo’s estimation, Dopamine Addict was unmistakably linked to the representative of Cthulhu Games. Their physical appearances bore an uncanny resemblance, as did their overall demeanors and even their speech patterns. Sharing a zone with him had only served to reinforce that conviction. Initially, she had even entertained the notion that they might be the exact same individual. If Dopamine Addict truly operated as the son or an avatar of the Cthulhu Games representative, everything fell neatly into place. The absurd statistical values, the astonishing clear speeds, and the fact that a divine proxy designated him as a younger brother—all of those elements suddenly made logical sense. After all, the representative of Cthulhu Games appeared to function as the very creator of this universe, entity akin to a deity. No, upon reflection, the representative had openly spoken of a “Father” in her presence, suggesting that this “Father” might represent the ultimate god.

That realization also explained why she never questioned Dopamine Addict’s assertion that Luna served as a divine proxy, simply assuming that Dopamine Addict himself was the offspring of a divinity.

“Lady Luna.”

Mrow?

“Do you happen to be acquainted with a man possessing dark hair and matching eyes… someone who projects a subtly unhinged aura?”

Luna blinked twice before replying with absolute certainty.

Dopamine Addict!

“No, no. Not that erratic individual. The one who is slightly less unhinged.”

Commander Hayden.

“Not a local non-player character from this game!”

Meow… both you and Dopamine Addict keep tossing around the term “NPC,” but as far as I am aware, all of you are merely players who have inhabited physical vessels in this realm!

Damn it… Luna had discussed players so casually that Shin Eun-jo had naturally assumed the feline possessed at least some foundational awareness of the external world. Apparently, that assumption was incorrect. Functioning as a divine proxy, she likely possessed knowledge strictly limited to her assigned role. Consequently, she might not recognize the Cthulhu Games representative either.

Nevertheless, Shin Eun-jo refused to abandon her inquiry. “Let me summarize. Dark hair, dark eyes, pale complexion, a perpetual smile, not missing an eye, not a child, appearing to be in his mid-thirties… no, disregard the age, as considerable time may have elapsed since then. In any case, his conversational style closely mirrors that of Dopamine Addict or Commander Hayden, only with a markedly more cheerful disposition! Furthermore, he originates from outside this world.”

Well, that narrows it down to something rather difficult…

Observing Luna struggle, Shin Eun-jo cast about for an alternative descriptor before her face lit up as if she had recalled a vital detail. “His signature verbal tic is addressing ‘Father’.”

What does having a verbal tic of “Father” even signify?

“As though every action he undertakes aligns with Father’s grand design… or stems directly from Father?”

Sounds precisely like Bones.

“That is entirely incorrect!”

So even Lady Luna lacked the answer. She desperately wanted to encounter that man just once more. Originally, Shin Eun-jo had traveled there merely to observe Dopamine Addict, yet she had abruptly chosen to remain within the zone because she suspected that man might manifest again if she stayed close to Dopamine Addict. Half-resigned to her ignorance, she muttered under her breath, “He informed me that the reason I never underwent divine possession was because Father took a particular liking to me… I truly wish to understand what that statement implied.”

It was meant as nothing more than a passing complaint, yet Luna’s ears twitched straight upward at the words.

Ah, that specific Father.

That Father? “You recognize him?!”

I am unfamiliar with the man himself, but I am certainly acquainted with the “Father” who holds a fondness for you.

“H-how is that possible? Exactly what kind of entity is this Father?”

Luna tilted her head slightly. Father is not a physical person!

“N-not a person? Th-then is he a deity? Does that mean he is genuinely the god presiding over this world?”

Not precisely. Father is an Outer God originating from the vast expanses beyond this universe.

The instant the phrase “Outer God” registered in her mind, Shin Eun-jo realized she had stumbled into some variety of cosmic horror narrative. The underlying complication was that she possessed virtually no familiarity with the Cthulhu mythos. Besides, it would hardly be standard for a traditional Korean shaman to double as an expert on cosmic mythology! Even so, the realization that she had inched one step closer to that mysterious man managed to elevate her spirits.

“So ‘Father’ was indeed a divinity rather than a human being. And if a god prestigious enough for a divine proxy like Luna to recognize him took a liking to me and blocked the possession attempt… does that not imply my shamanic aptitude is actually extraordinary?”

…You appeared relatively sensible until now. That statement fully clarifies why you ended up possessed in the first place.

“Just what is that supposed to mean?”

Meow—you would never grasp the concept even if I provided a complete explanation! Just resume petting me.

“Yes, yes, of course…”

Luna collapsed bonelessly across Shin Eun-jo’s lap once more, contentedly accepting the rhythmic strokes. For a brief second, the cat glanced upward toward a shimmering, rippling thread of light stretching inward from the distant cosmic reaches to connect directly with the crown of Shin Eun-jo’s head… before promptly closing her eyes as though she had witnessed nothing at all. When these youngsters eventually matured and comprehended the entirety of the situation, she could only harbor the sincere hope that they would not harbor excessive resentment toward her.

Six full years later.

During the spring of his seventeenth year.

“General Haydam.”

Both Luna and I raised our gazes from the paperwork simultaneously toward the entryway, where Major General Platon, attired in a pristine white military uniform, stood addressing us.

“All players are currently standing by, fully prepared for deployment.”