The explosion was silent.
The Avatar didn't blow up; it unspooled. Without the core, the projection lost cohesion. Viper’s body dissolved into strings of golden binary code, which swirled down my arm and into my chest.
[TARGET DESTROYED: AVATAR PROJECTION.]25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS3j1mUoDu6
[GAINED: MASSIVE DATA PACKET.]25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt3ir0fV0AT
[LEVEL UP!]25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhUblBc95rB
[LEVEL UP!]25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPxWzz37g5L
[LEVEL UP!]
I landed on the pavement, skidding to a halt. The golden skull cane clattered to the ground, spinning like a top before vanishing.
The airship above let out a groan of straining metal. With the Avatar connection severed violently, the feedback must have fried their systems. The massive ship tilted, engines whining as it began an emergency retreat.
"Retreating," Seraphina gasped, falling to her knees. "They're pulling back."
The mercenaries in the courtyard saw their boss get deleted and their ride leaving. They didn't stick around. They popped smoke grenades and scrambled for the exits.
Silence returned to the school. Well, not silence—the moans of injured students and the crackle of small fires filled the air.
I stood there, swaying. The [Soul Combustion] wore off, and the crash hit me. My muscles seized. I coughed, spitting out black bile.
[HP: 45 / 550]25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiuwHYjsqqe
[STATUS: EXHAUSTED, CORRUPTED (LOW)]
I fell backward, sitting on the ruined grass.
Seraphina walked over to me. She looked like a wreck—her blazer torn, her face smudged with soot, her perfect ponytail undone.
She stood over me, blocking the glare of the streetlights. She looked at the black veins fading on my neck. She looked at the spot where a Level 50 boss had just stood.
"You ate him," she said. It wasn't a question.
"Just the Avatar," I wheezed. "The real Viper is... sitting in his office... probably smashing his keyboard right now."
Seraphina was quiet for a long time. She tapped her chin, analyzing me. The logical thing for her to do was kill me. I was weakened. I was a forbidden anomaly. I was dangerous.
She raised her hand. A blue light formed at her fingertips.
I tensed, gripping the grass. Here it comes.
But the light wasn't an attack. It was a healing spell. A gentle, cool mist descended over me, soothing the burning in my nerves.
[HP RESTORED: +100]
I blinked up at her. "Why?"
Seraphina canceled the spell and crossed her arms. Her face was grim, but the robotic coldness was gone.
"The System is broken," she said softly. "It let Viper in here. It let him slaughter students. The rules... the rules didn't protect anyone."
She looked at the retreating airship.
"You are a glitch, Kai Jin. You are a virus that eats code." She looked back down at me, and a terrifying spark of rebellion lit up her silver eyes. "But maybe the server needs a virus to crash the old operating system."
She extended a hand to help me up.
"You said you're going to bankrupt him?" she asked.
I took her hand. It was warm. "I'm going to take everything he has. His Guild. His money. His life."
"Good," Seraphina said, pulling me to my feet. "Because he saw my face. I can't go back to the Admin Council now. I'm compromised."
A blue window popped up between us. It wasn't a System message. It was a Party Invite.
[PLAYER SERAPHINA HAS INVITED YOU TO A PARTY.]25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOwi09fbgOV
[PARTY NAME: REVOLUTION.]
I looked at the invite. Then I looked at the chaotic city skyline of Neo-Hong Kong, waiting to be conquered.
I grinned, blood staining my teeth.
"Welcome to the team, Admin."
I pressed [ACCEPT].
[QUEST ACCEPTED: TOPPLE THE HEAVEN.]25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcURf6FODMW
[OBJECTIVE: REACH THE ADMIN LAYER. KILL THE GODS.]25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjB4wOvjJKM
[REWARD: FREEDOM.]
and then Add to home screen.