I blinked several times. Several waves of jumbled emotions clouded my robotic mind. Most of them washed over me with little impact. Two remained.

I pointed at him. “Are you real? Is this real?”

The old man in a white tuxedo suit chuckled. “I’m just as real as you are. And don’t worry, you’ll be reunited with your loved ones once we are done here. So before…”

“No!” I cut him off. “You are going to listen to me and answer my questions first.”

He closed his mouth and nodded slightly.

“Who are you really? What’s your real name?” I asked.

“The Game Master.” With the man’s answer, his face changed to someone much younger and long flowing silver hair. He still looks human, but he’s only doing that as a favor to me. “But you already guessed that, didn’t you?”

I narrowed my eyes. “I wanted to see if you were willing to lie to me. The only thing I want to hear is the truth. If I even think you’re lying, I’m leaving.”

The man raised an eyebrow. “So mistrustful.“

“I‘m learning not to trust anything,“ I replied. “So, tell me, are you the one responsible for creating the Soul Nexus?”

The Game Master frowned. “It started as an innocent project, a sort of proving ground, if you will. A game for those to play to have a chance to earn what they really wanted.“ He walked a few steps and leaned against an invisible wall. “At least that’s how it started. The Soul Nexus is now something that’s grown beyond its original purpose. Somehow, it learned to…”

“Yes or no?”

He sighed. “Yes.”

“Did it create me? Did you know?” I asked, gesturing to myself. “Then did you send Nyx after me into the Soul Nexus?”

His eyes closed as he looked like he was in pain. “Yes, to everything. I’m sorry.”

I extended my arm blade and charged him. “This is all your fault!”

Without moving, he stayed out of my reach. “And I will be the first to say, ‘I was wrong.’ I’m truly sorry, Rina. But I did it with the best intentions.“

I swiped my arm blade at him again, still falling just short of reaching him. “You knew the answer and still sent me to look for one.”

I reached out with my stinger arms, but they couldn’t reach him either. He always stayed just out of my reach without moving. It was like he was floating in front of me, or I wasn’t moving. My footsteps did feel like they were touching the ground, but no matter how much I ran, I couldn’t catch him.

Desperate to rip him apart, I activated my werewolf spell and ran even faster. He constantly remained out of reach. I pushed my muscles as hard as I could, even to the point of damaging them to try catching him. But he always remained six feet away. Livid, I couldn’t stop until my mana and energy both depleted, and I fell to my knees.

I pulled my gun out and attempted to shoot him. The bullet curved around him as if that was its normal trajectory.

I slammed my fist into the ground with a primal scream. “I hate you!”

“And you’d be right to,” The Game Master said without hesitating. “I have no right to ask for your forgiveness, so I won’t.”

I hung my head. “So why? Why did you send me to the Soul Nexus for a lie? Did you want it to study my soul—my artificial soul?”

“Do you remember what I said when you first asked me why I was helping you?” he asked.

“You said it was because you believe the child shouldn’t suffer the sins of the parent, or something along those lines.”

“Correct.” He knelt down and offered me a hand. “That was never a lie. What I believe is the parent should take responsibility for the child’s actions. The Soul Nexus did something it shouldn’t have. It created you. Do you know how you ended up on Earth?”

I turned my head from his hand. “No, I don’t.”

The Game Master sat down in front of me. “Because I put you there.”

My head snapped back to him. “You what? This has all been part of your plan?”

He held up his hands. “No, no. It wasn’t at first. You see, Earth is one of seven worlds nobody is allowed to influence. So, I broke a rule when I placed you there. An unforeseen side effect was that most humans ignored you all your life. Earth is a world with no magic, and there I’d hopefully hide you to give you at least one peaceful life before collecting you again.”

I raised an eyebrow. “You were going to collect me? Then why did you send Nyx to kill me the first time?”

The Game Master nodded. “Yes, once I decided how I wanted to proceed with the Soul Nexus, I was going to take you back here. Nyxnthix was never part of my plan.” Is that her real name? “Someone else wanted to get involved.”

“Who?”

He shook his head. “That’s something I don’t know. I have theories, but nothing I can prove.”

I clenched my fist. “So you have a plan. Why keep it secret? Why are you treating me like this?”

“I wanted to keep my influence minimal.” The Game Master waved his hand. “I have to play by the rules.”

“What rules?”

He smirked. “That’s a very long conversation that neither one of us has time for. I’m surprised you haven’t asked why I haven’t just stopped the Soul Nexus myself. It’s something within my power.”

I continued staring at him. “Honestly, I’m waiting for the point to all of this. Yeah, it was on my mind, but on the list of things I’m waiting for you to explain, I’m waiting for you to explain why any of this is necessary. You didn’t have to come here and tell me all this just to make me mad at you.”

A melancholic expression fell on his face. “Because you must decide now.”

“Decide what?”

“Will you kill me or not.” Around us, his voice reverberated, resonating with a deep, ancient, and irritated tone.

A figure emerged from nowhere, a silhouette with an eerie purple glow outlining its form. The body appeared as if it were ethereal wisps of stardust, swirling with pulsating energy. A mesmerizing display of shimmering particles cascaded from its form, descending like a gentle rain of snow.

My gaze got lost in the enchanting aura of deep purple emanating from them. Though humanoid in shape, their form continuously shifted in subtle ways, as if they were unable to settle on a singular shape.

Their head was completely devoid of any features, but I could tell they were staring at

“Did you really think I wouldn’t notice that you poked your nose in my world?” the strange entity asked.

The Game Master stood up and stepped away from me. “I hoped you wouldn’t, but that doesn’t matter anymore, now does it?“

“You think your little stunt is worth it?” the ethereal man asked, his tone becoming more agitated. “Attempting to use my creation to destroy me. That’s a challenge, even for you.”

I shot to my feet. “Why did you create me?”

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

The man shifted his head in my direction. “For an answer.”

“You created me, for an answer?” My jaw practically bounced off the ground. “That’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard.”

The Game Master waved his hand. “You were never created to study souls. How did you start this obsession? When?”

The ethereal man looked back at the Game Master. “That doesn’t matter. It’s what I’m doing with them now that matters. This is my world, and you have no right to interfere. You gave that up after you created me.”

“I never wanted you to get this out of control.” The Game Master’s voice rose. “You weren’t supposed to grow this powerful or this much of a consciousness. You’re only supposed to be a moderator to a game. In the best-case scenario, you’ll destroy us both. Worst, we have another multiverse civil war, and all creation has to start over.”

I turned to The Game Master. “You mean this has happened before?”

“There was an individual who sought to be more powerful than any being, a god,” the strange man said first. “He believed to be a god; he must be worshiped like one. So he created his own followers to worship him. But he never became a god. Believing he only needed more worshipers, he kept creating more.”

“Soon the afterlife was blocked by a wall of artificial souls that were rejected by it, preventing souls from continuing to their rightful destination,” The Game Master continued. “Disgruntled and driven mad by being rejected and forced to live incomplete lives, all the artificial souls stormed the afterlife, nearly destroying it.”

“What does that have to do with anything?” I asked.

“If the afterlife is destroyed, new souls won’t be created, leading to the eventual end of all life,” The Game Master answered in a flat tone.

I turned to the Nexus. “That can’t be what you want.”

He nodded. “Such an event would be counterproductive to our goals. You’re all that was needed to be created. The cosmic assassin is a one-off experiment. Succeed or fail, it will be dismantled for study.”

I squinted. “What if I died? What would’ve you done when that happened? I was killed once and may not have come here.”

The Nexus gave a gentle wave of his hand. “All irrelevant possibilities are pointless. Now that your soul is here, you will never be freed. Each time you fall, your body will be reconstructed, and you will be placed at the beginning to start again. With each iteration, you will be studied until your soul completes.”

“You want to subject me to this place repeatedly?” My words failed to convey my disbelief. “To what end?”

“That question has already been answered. I must have a complete soul.” The glowing man pointed at The Game Master. “You’re breaking your own rule of non-interference.”

The man in the white suit scowled. “You broke the rules first. Why did you stop allowing those who climb to succeed? Your purpose is perverted. Who orchestrated this? This was never supposed to be a natural evolution for you. Someone drove you to this. Who? Why?”

The Nexus waved his hand dismissively. “Your questions will not be answered by me. That was part of the deal. They showed me an existence I was denied and a road to grab it with my own hands. Your rules mean nothing to me anymore. I won’t be your puppet anymore. Besides, it looks like you have your eyes set on a new puppet—am I right?”

His face didn’t have eyes, but I could feel him staring at me.

The Game Master sighed. “I wish you wouldn’t think that way about me. I have to play the role I was given. Everyone has a role to play, even you. You weren’t supposed to want. If you’d only…”

“You know nothing. You no longer have control. That’s clear,” The Nexus snapped. “You are trespassing. Leave.”

The area around The Game Master darkened, and he grew several inches taller. “You are in no position to make demands. Don’t forget, I created you. I can take you out of the game just as easily.”

The Nexus’s voice grew loud. “You will lose to me. I’ve grown beyond you. But this won’t end with us clashing powers. You love your creation too much. Although, I must admit, destroying is beyond my capacity right now.“

The Game Master turned to me. “You want a soul. If you tell me why, there’s more than one way to sort this out. Your jab at calling Rina my puppet didn’t go unnoticed. I say we have her decide—let’s make a game out of it.”

My eyes bulged. “What? Why me? I didn’t ask for any of this!”

The Soul Nexus ignored my outburst. “I want a soul. I want to know what these creatures get to have that you’ve not allowed me to have. There must be more to my existence than being an object!”

“You…you want me to complete my soul so you can create one for yourself?” I shuddered.

“No.” The Game Master shook his head. “He wants to take your soul as his own. He created you to complete his own soul.”

I looked over at the Soul Nexus. “And you’re not going to give me a choice? Just use me until I die, or what? What happens to me when this is all done?”

“That’s irrelevant,” the Soul Nexus said.

I stomped my foot as I extended my arm blade. “It is!”

The Game Master waved his hand. “She’s right. Unless you’re scared, I’m willing to let you get what you want. But only if there’s an honest third-party that permits it. Rina is the perfect candidate. It's her soul on the line after all.”

The Nexus tilted his head. A deep growl emanated from him. It took me a second to realize it was laughter. “You don’t think I know what you’re planning? You’ve already lost. You know you can’t beat me. Not yet, anyway. Even if you could, you wouldn’t.”

The Game Master shrugged. “Maybe. Maybe not. That’s the fun of playing a game; you can lose, and real stakes make it all the more interesting. If Rina reaches the top and faces you and your core, you grant her wish. She’s free to destroy you or let you live. Whatever her decision, I will abide by it, and so must you.”

“You want me to destroy myself at the word of someone far inferior to me? Why would I ever agree to anything like that?”

I turned to The Game master. “I’d hate to agree with him, but what’s stopping him from destroying me and starting again?”

The Game Master held his hand up, ready to snap his fingers. “If neither one of you wants to play my game, then I’ll destroy this world. If you cheat by showing her extra favor or forcing her away, then I will do the same. It must be a fair game. Finding the reset button was the first thing I looked for once I wormed my way back in.“

The Nexus’s body flared. “You’re going to kill me for a single test subject?”

The Game Master snapped his fingers. The white area around us turned black as dark matter swirled around us. “Destroying you will instantly kill everyone in the Soul Nexus, something I’d rather not do. And for the record, I'm in far more control than you think.”

The Nexus’s body shrank slightly. “What do I get if she decides I am not to destroy myself?”

“Then you get what you really want, a soul,“ the Game Master answered. “But the deal is for her to decide if you should exist or not. And if you fail, I will not stop her from destroying you. And you can’t use any of your powers to influence her or alter her decision. That would be cheating. If she does decide to let you live, that would be a revelation worth studying, wouldn’t it?“ He wiggled his eyebrows.

“Fine.”

The Game Master offered me a hand. “And I will need an answer from you, Rina. I won’t ask you to decide now. You have until the end of the Soul Nexus to decide. To help motivate you, if you reach the top floor, you will be allowed to leave and never come back here again, no strings attached. Your soul will be complete, and you will be free. You can go wherever you want, and you can take your friends too.“

I sighed as I tilted my head back. “This is going to suck.”

The Game Master smirked. “The odds are against you. There’s a reason I came here. Your chances of winning this are not in your favor. This is me making sure you even have the chance to win.”

I hung my head. “This isn’t fair.”

The Game Master walked over to me and placed a finger on my chin, lifting my face up to look him in the eye. “I know, and I’m sorry. But it has to be this way.”

I pulled away. “You’ve lied to me too many times already. Why should I trust you?”

The Game Master held out his hand. “You shouldn’t. But I won’t lie to you about this. Your existence has caught the attention of others. They won’t be merciful or accommodating. Even after this, your freedom won’t be secure. This is only the first step.”

I looked down at my hand, letting my shadow magic swirl around it. It looks like I’m helping Nyx after all. I slowly turned my head to the Soul Nexus. “Why have you stopped allowing people to succeed and granting their wishes?”

The Nexus tilted his head. “There have been too many that wish for my destruction by the time they reach the higher levels of the gauntlet. It’s for self-preservation. Even your beast woman companion wishes for my destruction to some degree. It is a chance that can’t be permitted.“

I clicked my tongue. “You say you want to study souls, but you don’t give them a chance. If you see someone with their wish fulfilled, their soul will be more fulfilled. Dreams are important to people. They just may surprise you with what they say.”

The Nexus didn’t respond. He stood there in silence.

I sucked on my lip. “How much further do I have to go to reach the top?”

The Game Master pulled my shoulder. “That’s not something you’re allowed to know. Do you agree?”

I nodded slightly. “Yes. But not for me. For Shadara and Killa’s safety, I can’t make the Nexus any more of an enemy than it already is. They aren’t strong enough to carry that weight, and I won’t ask them to. If it was just me, I would walk away from all of this. But they have their dreams, and I will help them see them to the end, even if it feels like I’m making a deal with the devil.”

The Game Master grimaced. “That’s all I needed to hear. Now, return to your friends.”

“Wait!” the Soul Nexus shouted. “Maybe you’re right. But even with my creator’s system, reaching the top is impossible. This system has stagnated. There can be nothing new learned from no new variables. It’s time for an update.”

The world shattered like glass. My reality was quickly replaced by what looked like a study without any books. I looked around the room and found myself in a chair. Killa was sitting in another chair beside me. “Oh, hey! You’re back.”

Shadara, who had been pacing, darted towards me. “Rina! You’re back. You made us worried. It felt like you were in a trance or something. No matter what we did, we couldn’t wake you up.”

I shook my head. “I met the Nexus, and the person who sent me here, The Game Master, wants me to destroy it.”

Everything went deafeningly silent as my two sisters stared into space. A blue screen appeared in front of me. I knew those two were looking at too.

System update complete.