After playing games with Celebria, I returned to the village center. It had gotten dark, and I could hear the sounds of insects clearly once again. After everything I had been through, I felt tired, so I decided to go to my room and fall asleep quickly. When I woke up, I realized I had slept for about twelve hours straight.
I got up, took care of my needs, and quickly had breakfast with the food brought to my room. Since I had slept well, I was feeling better. I fixed my eyes on the volcano visible through the window. Lie, realizing I was awake, knocked on my door and then entered briskly.
"Good morning, Rei."
"Good morning."
"What should we do today?"
"After hearing that sound, I've started to get curious about the volcano. I'm going to go near it. There might be an interesting being there, just as I guessed."
"But wouldn't it be dangerous?"
"We need to take risks to find the answers we're looking for. Besides, I'm genuinely curious, so I'm going. Will you all come too?"
"I can come. Wait, let me ask the others."
I nodded in approval and started waiting in my room. Lie left the room and told the others about the situation. A short while later, she came back to my room, opened the door, and looked at me. I was sitting on my bed, waiting.
"They were surprised, but they agreed. We all had breakfast. Shall we go?"
"Sure, let's go."
I got up quickly from the bed. Since I had just eaten, my energy was in good shape. Lie and I left the building together; Haru and Akari were waiting for us in the middle of the village. When we reached them, Haru looked at me and started talking.
"Are you sure, Rei? I'm curious about that place too, but something could happen to us."
"We won't know until we find out. I don't think there's anything else to do."
"Alright, you know best."
After about an hour of walking, we arrived beside the volcano mountain. When we looked at the mountain, there didn't appear to be any ledge that would let us climb—and it was clearly hot as well. When we checked our right and left, we saw an old path that would allow us to reach the top of the mountain. Happy to see the path, we kept moving forward.
"Clearly it's not just a volcano. Let's see what's at the very top."
After another thirty minutes of climbing, we reached the very peak of the volcano mountain. The summit was completely open—when we turned our eyes to the open area, we could see it was full of lava. We were watching carefully, since it could splash into our eyes. It was as if this path had been made just for looking at this spot.
"There doesn't seem to be anyone here. But maybe we need to call out."
I shouted toward the lava as if calling out to someone, but there was no movement.
"Let's all shout together—maybe it'll work."
We all shouted together to summon someone, but again there was no response. Just as we were about to give up and turn back, a tremor came from inside the volcano. We immediately turned our eyes toward the volcano; a loud vibrating sound emerged. From within the lava, a man with long brown hair, pale skin, tall stature, wearing a striking outfit resembling an ancient Japanese style, and radiating an air of wisdom, appeared. He looked at us with brown eyes. We were utterly astonished, unable to comprehend how this man had emerged from the fire without burning.
Seeing that we weren't speaking due to our shock, the man decided to speak himself.
"Why have you come here?"
I was the first to realize I needed to set aside my astonishment. I decided to answer the man's question.
"We came here because of the loud sound we heard when the dark soldiers were attacking. We have no hostile intentions. Who might you be?"
The man had a facial expression as if appreciating my respectful demeanor. His chin was prominent; he resembled a symbolic figure. Anyone could tell he was someone important just by looking at him.
"I am the core of this capsule. I protect the region from certain levels of danger. I live inside this volcano."
"I see. So you maintain justice. That's what I thought when I heard the sound."
"That sound was a warning for the dark soldiers. When they heard it, they understood my warning and withdrew."
"I understand. Thank you for your intervention. I have things I'm curious about—may I ask you about them?"
"Ask away."
"Is having a thousand points enough to leave this capsule?"
"No. You need both a thousand points and to defeat me, the core, in a game. It encompasses the entire capsule as the game area."
I was surprised when I heard what he said.
"So I need both a thousand points and to defeat you. Is that right?"
"You understood correctly. But the order doesn't matter for this. If you defeat me before earning a thousand points, you earn the right to leave the capsule. You can also earn points on top of that. There is no penalty from the system for losing."
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I could tell from what the man said that he was inviting me to play. Clearly, he was aware that I had been winning the games.
"Alright, let's play then."
Lie touched my shoulder, trying to warn me.
"Rei, aren't you rushing a bit?"
"It's fine. He said there's no penalty."
"But..."
I turned my face back to the man.
"Alright, let's begin the game then."
The entire capsule was registered as the game area; the robotic voice was heard once again.
Capsule Transcendence Game!
When the robotic voice fell silent, the man himself began to speak calmly.
"There is no rule in the game. Everything is about adaptation. It covers the entire area."
A gleaming crystal suddenly appeared in my hand. I looked at the crystal—it truly looked beautiful.
"If you can throw the crystal you see in your hand into the volcano, you win the game. Your losing condition will change with each stage."
When he said this, a digital screen appeared in front of my face. Haru and Akari were silent, but their faces looked as worried as Lie's. I looked at the digital screen in front of me—I could see the entire region from a bird's-eye view. Every section was divided into squares.
"Choose any square to start the game. If I guess the square you chose, the game ends."
A digital screen had also appeared in front of the man; he couldn't see my screen. Everyone's screen was private to them. After thinking for a short while, I selected a region. There were over a hundred squares. The man's digital screen turned—it showed he had chosen the square I had selected.
"B7. My apologies. The game ended in the first stage."
"What...?"
The game has ended! Winner: Zepktrum Speleus!
"How is this possible?"
Seeing me lose, my friends had never expected this—they were just as shocked as I was. Akari touched my shoulder. I was aware that after this defeat, I would appear smaller in their eyes.
"Lie told you not to rush..."
"You're not enough, human. Improve and come back next time!"
After my defeat, I stared at the ground for a while, motionless and silent.
So I lost...
This is the first time in a long while. An interesting feeling. But I understand why I lost. He said there were no rules. That means I wasn't obligated to choose any square at all. The moment I chose, I automatically lost the stage. The region I selected appeared on your screen. The first stage was an entrance exam about not falling for deception. I deceived myself because of my own mighty arrival...
When Zepktrum Speleus noticed that I had grasped the situation so quickly, he was slightly surprised and laughed out loud.
"Hahaha! It's intriguing that you understood your mistake so quickly. What do you say—now that you understand, would you like to play again?"
"No. I've realized I need to develop further."
"I understand. But there's one more thing you missed..."
"What?"
"I said the system wouldn't give you a penalty. Not that I wouldn't."
"Ha?"
"Lately, the dark region has been heating up considerably. The greed of the dark region's king knows no bounds. I haven't failed to notice your talents, at least in part. As a penalty for losing the game, I will demand that you dethrone the king of the dark region in whatever way possible. This way, their savagery will cease, and the capsule will be filled with more peace. If you refuse, I will separate your friends from you!"
When I heard what he said, I felt a surge of anger inside, but I forced myself to hold it back and not let it show. My friends, hearing those words, were experiencing similar emotions to mine.
"But you didn't say you would give a penalty!"
"I don't care. You're the one who came here and took the risk, after all. I am someone with authority over the system."
And this man calls himself justice...
"As I said, I'm giving you a short time to think. If you don't accept, I will separate your friends from you."
Haru was on the verge of cursing; he covered his own mouth with his hand.
"Besides, in the dark region, the royalty is organizing an intelligence tournament across the entire region to determine the level of its members. If you win, you can get very close to the king. But the dangerous individuals who come here generally head to the dark region. I'm not the only option to leave the capsule anyway—no one has managed to defeat me yet. The other option is related to the dark region. That's why all the dangerous individuals I've seen have headed there. That place is the darkest part of the first capsule. I'm assuming you'll accept—let me tell you now, the tournament will never be easy. The worst people you've ever seen reside there. So, will you accept?"
I was aware that I was in a position where complaining would be meaningless. I also knew that because of my haste, I had put my friends in a distressing situation. I had to take responsibility.
"Alright. I'll accept. But since you're asking this of me because you think I'm talented, can my friends spend time in the village during this period?"
When they heard my offer, my friends looked at me.
"Hahaha! A courageous request. But I like your courage. Because I acknowledge your talent, and because you accepted your mistake instead of getting angry when you saw your error, I will offer this to you as a reward. So yes—until you survive and return, your friends can continue a peaceful life here. No games will be presented to them."
"Thank you."
"Accept the agreement that will appear on your screen."
A digital screen suddenly appeared in front of me again. I read the agreement—there was no problem. I accepted the agreement.
Lie was looking at me with sad eyes.
"Rei..."
I turned my face to my friends.
"I'm sorry. As Lie said, I rushed. I need to take responsibility. Wait for me, okay?"
Everyone nodded with sorrowful expressions.
"I'll provide information about the area. There's no need for your friends to stay any longer."
A portal suddenly opened.
"They can return to the village through this portal."
All three entered the portal and returned to the village. I looked at the man and began to speak.
"You said you have authority over the system. How does that work?"
"I know what you've done. You broke the first system—the one run by humans."
"The first system?"
"Yes. The main system is located on our own planet. I am one of the individuals with power there. I received orders from my superiors and was assigned to live in this capsule with authority, as well as to protect it."
"I see..."
I began thinking to myself.
So I broke the first system run by humans. That's why the system is continuing so flawlessly. Maybe if it had only been the first system, the permanent self-sustaining function couldn't have continued this perfectly. Because throughout the process, there was no difference. We simply hadn't been directly managed by anyone. Everything makes much clearer sense now. The planet must be the one the elf king mentioned.
"You didn't ask about the planet, so you must have learned about it from somewhere."
"Yes, I had learned about it."
"I see. It would be boring if you had no information at all. Anyway, as I said, you will go to the dark region. Your mission is to dethrone the king of darkness. You don't have to kill him for that—it's up to you. This way, this place will be filled with more peace. As advice, I suggested you join the tournament. You can probably guess what the tournament will be like, but never underestimate those who are there. Everyone who desires to kill heads to the dark region. The people there don't possess ordinary intelligence. You'll pass through the Dark Forest and encounter a bridge. After crossing the bridge, you'll have set foot in the dark region. Have fun from now on. There's nothing else to discuss—be on your way."
I thought it wouldn't be good to say anything else. I nodded, turned around, and descended from the volcano mountain.
Just like in the normal world. Everyone declares themselves as justice, when in reality they're assholes on the inside. He wants to make me do his dirty work...