"Alright then," I turned my attention back to Muriel. "Spill everything and I'll let you go. Don't, and I'll let the boss tear you to shreds."

Muriel's eyes darted around, looking for any way out of this situation. She was a high-level player, but against Levius and my own power, she had no chance. "I'm not going to tell you anything," she spat.

I clicked my tongue with disappointment. I tried to come up with a different approach.

"Will you tell me how many Risk points you have?" I questioned Muriel, pressing the tip of the Soultaker closer to her neck. She winced but remained silent, her eyes still locked on the weapon. "That's okay, I'll find out soon enough."

Since the amount of Risk points increased pain sensitivity on a one to one ratio, if she had at least 100 points, she'd definitely break under my grip. With such a high level and knowing how PKers worked, I was pretty sure she had a vast amount of Risk.

Without hesitation, I swapped out blades, opting for the Silver Serpent. While it wasn't as damaging as the Soultaker, the three traits it had surprisingly made for a good torture weapon. Venomous, Petrifying, and Piercing were a deadly combo paired with the 8 million damage I had on it.

I held the blade in front of Muriel's eyes to let her see its stats. Her eyes widened as she visibly paled.

"What? You're going to kill me?" Muriel's voice trembled, her smugness replaced with genuine fear. "You're no better than me then."

"Technically, no," I replied, using my pendant to shift the bulk of the sword's damage away for the moment. "I'm just going to cut you once with it. Then, as the status effects take over your body, I'll watch as the boss slowly cleans this room up until it realizes you're left. After that..."

Muriel's eyes grew wide with fear, and she finally spoke. "I'll tell you. I'm part of the Arachne's Hand. We've been planting ourselves in groups to push the floors ahead of schedule."

[Jeez... when did you switch to being a sadist e.e]

"Why?" I ignored Sephera's message, pressing my sword tip harder against her neck. "Do you know the implications of what you're doing?"

Muriel swallowed hard, her eyes darting between the sword and the frozen angelic boss. "Survival," she whispered. "We need to be ahead of the curve. The Arachne's Hand isn't just about killing for sport. We have a purpose. The other syndicates are rising in power and it's only a matter of time before mine is consumed. That's why I have to do this. Lure Players in and steal their stats while making them look like tower accidents."

"Why now?" I demanded, pressing closer. "Why start all this now? Were you guys behind the PvP arena incident too?"

"No, not directly," Muriel replied, her voice shaking. "But we knew about it; heard on the black market that another syndicate was gonna do it. We've been waiting for the right moment to make our move. The chaos is perfect for us to slip through the cracks."

She took a shaky breath, her eyes glued to the sword. "As for why, well, it's because of the prophecy. A new world boss is about to spawn. One that's so powerful, it'll wipe the floors clean if we're not ready. We need to be the strongest, to control the boss before anyone else can. If we don't, we're all doomed."

[Oh? Does she mean the 50th floor dungeon break?]

"Are you talking about when the world hits floor 50?" I repeated Sephera's question to Muriel, who nodded as best as she could paralyzed by my flood.

"Y-yes," she stuttered. "We need to be ready. To survive, we need to be the first to slay the boss and claim its power. It's the only way to ensure our dominance over the other syndicates."

Oof. Well, now at least I knew what one of the goals were for the PK syndicates. I couldn't help but feel angered at Muriel's reasons. Partly because the lives of innocent Players were lost, never to come back and partly because I had a deep dislike for gamers who took the easiest path of piggybacking off of others.

"So, you're with Arachne's Hand, then?" I asked, keeping my voice as calm as I could manage. Muriel nodded weakly. "Safe to assume that there are more members around here?"

Muriel's eyes flicked to the side, hinting at the truth without speaking a word. That was all the confirmation I needed. I stood up, keeping the sword at her throat. "And the only thing you guys have done is control Players to push floors without regard for their lives?"

Her silence was answer enough. The rage inside me grew, but I kept my cool. I didn't want to kill her just yet. Not until I had all the information I needed.

[Luquier, are you planning to go even further...?]

I gritted my teeth. Yeah, I had crossed the line back in the Village dungeon, but this was outside in the real world. I wasn't exactly sure how to answer Sephera's message, but my patience was wearing thin.

"Alright, this is your last chance to tell me everything you know," I calmed down and stared at Muriel on the ground, "If you hold back anything, I swear I'll leave you to the boss."

"A fate like that is better than what they'd give me," Muriel spat out, her voice shaking with fear. "The Arachne's Hand will find you, and when they do, you'll regret crossing us."

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. Was I really about to do this? But then again, this woman had done the same thing with no remorse. It was survival of the fittest in this game, and I had to be the one to adapt.

I opened my eyes, glancing back at the angelic boss, still rooted in place by my flood. It'd be easier on my conscience if I left her helpless against the boss, but I wouldn't gain anything from it. That meant there was only one other option.

"Sephera... would you judge me if I went through with this?" I quietly asked, gazing up into the air.

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

[Not if it's for the greater good, Luquier. I'm not one to talk either, since I stood by and watched my fellow Rank 1 Admins get sacrificed as well.]

"Glad we're on the same page," I muttered, restoring the damage I took from the Silver Serpent and plunging it right through Muriel.

Her eyes widened in shock, her body convulsing briefly before she went limp. I held her there for a moment, watching the life drain from her eyes, and with it, the green glow faded away. Seemed like she didn't have 1 million Health to withstand the Silver Serpent. At least she died quickly.

I glanced up at the boss room doors, seeing Levius raising an eyebrow at me. He didn't seem concerned or upset, but rather amused. I guess he wasn't surprised to see me kill another Player, considering he was a former boss monster who did the same to me.

"Is that all you needed?" he asked, his tone casual despite the gravity of the situation. "Should I take the barrier down now?"

I shook my head. "Nah, not yet. Since I'm here already, I've decided to take out the boss. Sure it'll push the floor even further, but without this piece of shit controlling the other Players, I'm certain tower climbing will go back to the same pace."

Levius nodded, his eyes flickering with something that might've been respect. "If you wish," he said, his barrier still up. "But I suggest you hurry. I can't keep this up forever."

"Won't take long," I muttered back, swapping to the Soultaker. It shivered slightly, possibly due to it witnessing what I had done. At level 38, the angelic boss had over 3 million Health. I didn't even need my new achievement to Link as my Soultaker had more than double the damage to take it out in one slash.

In a blink of an eye, I dashed forward, slicing the angelic boss in half. The creature let out a deafening shriek before it crumpled to the ground, dispersing into golden-white dust. The room grew eerily quiet as Levius and I were the only living beings in the boss room.

[System alert: Morderg the Willful has been defeated.]

[Congratulations! Floor 38 has been cleared. Floor 39 has been opened.]

[Main contributors: Player Luquier Vaunt.]

[You have obtained Morderg the Willful's Blessed Hunger (Passive) Skill.]

[No experience gained.]

I made a face as I read the system messages. Due to my overwhelming stats, I gained nothing from the boss save for a passive skill.

"Let's go," I told Levius, turning away from the throne as the portal to the next floor opened up beside it. The barrier dropped, and the room outside was still. The Players, no longer under Muriel's control, were stumbling around in confusion. Tommy, still out of it, was lying on the ground.

I knelt beside him, slapping his cheek gently to rouse him. "Tommy, come on," I murmured. His eyes fluttered open, and he stared at me, bewildered. "You okay?"

"Ugh... what the fuck happened...?" Tommy groaned as he pushed himself up, his eyes darting around the open area.

"You got caught in a mind control spell," I sighed, rubbing my forehead. "You remember anything?"

Tommy blinked a few times, shaking his head. "No... everything's a blur," he admitted, his eyes growing wide as he took in the bodies littered inside the boss room. "Yo, what the fuck?"

"It's... a long story. I'll explain when we get out of here. Come on."

----------------------------------------

"Damn, Luke. What the fuck did you get yourself into?" Tommy murmured as we stepped outside of the tower and into the late night.

"What, it's not like we haven't seen these types of groups and incidents in the video games we used to play," I said, trying to shrug off the weight of what had just occurred. Tommy looked at me skeptically. "Well, maybe not to this extent, but you get the idea."

For a while, he didn't say anything. Then he sighed, shaking his head.

"How are you able to mentally deal with all of this, man? You used to lose your cool whenever any of our teammates made a misplay."

"That's what you're more concerned about? Not the fact that people have died or that I killed someone?" I glanced at Tommy, who shrugged.

"Not the same world we used to know anymore, Luke. That's the thing with survival games," Tommy said, his voice laced with a hint of bitterness. "You gotta adapt to shit or get left behind."

I couldn't tell if he said it out of emotion because of what he was going through, or because he had been mind controlled. Probably both. I didn't blame him for it either, since I was in a similar state of mind.

"Need a ride back to your place?" Tommy asked. I shook my head, giving him a grateful smile.

"Thanks, but I'll be good. You take care."

"Yeah, will do. And Luquier?"

I paused mid-step, turning to look back at him.

"Thanks for coming out to talk. Honestly, not just that, but if you weren't around when that woman was hypnotizing all the other Players, I might've been one of the ones sacrificed on the floors."

"No worries, man. We've been friends for a long time. I got your back," I held out my fist towards him. Tommy smirked, bumping his fist against mine.

"Good seeing you, bro. Don't you dare die on me."

I snorted as I watched Tommy get into his car. "That doesn't seem to apply to me anymore. I should be saying that to you."

Tommy gave one final wave before he drove off. I decided to head back to my apartment, using my Grim Mantle to zip over in a matter of minutes.

----------------------------------------

After washing up, I took out my ring and sat in my bedroom, quietly preparing myself. It was extremely late, yet I felt no exhaustion even after the jam-packed day I had. I guess the higher my stats, the less rest I needed.

I had already checked the passive Skill I acquired from Morderg the Willful, and it honestly wasn't too bad. Some restoration every time I killed something, which would help with my survivability.

[What are you planning to do?]

"You'll see," I replied to Sephera's message, standing up and equipping the Soultaker in my right hand. I activated my ring's ability, relieved that it only took 100 points to use.

Blue smoke wafted from my ring, condensing into a figure. As it finished, I found myself staring into the eyes of Muriel once again, her specter resurrected from the dead.

"You..." she hissed, her eyes filled with rage. "You're the one that killed me!"

"Sit," I commanded, watching her immediately obey with confusion on her face.

Muriel's specter remained kneeling before me, the hatred in her eyes unchanged despite her lack of control over her own body. I walked around her, contemplating my next move. "You're going to tell me everything there is about Arachne's Hand and the other PK syndicates," I said firmly. "And whatever else I want to know. Understood?"

Muriel struggled to refrain from answering, but couldn't stop her head from nodding.

"I want to hear you say you understand," I commanded.

"I... understand, master." She said through gritted teeth, the ring overpowering her will.

I winced, trying to ignore Sephera's messages in response to Muriel's acknowledgement. "Don't call me master."

Muriel's specter glared at me, but remained silent. I sat down on my bed, staring down at her. As much as I wanted to receive the reward from my achievement I grinded deaths for or to use up my extra Stat Points, I had to first get as much information as I could from Muriel before thinking up a plan for the future. This was going to be a long night.

****

[Updating…]

[Stat Points: 34,242,685]

[Skills]

[Blessed Hunger (Passive)]

[Description: Restores 5% of maximum Health when an enemy is slain by user. Effect is doubled against Evil-attributes.]