“Haaa… I need a break.” I sigh, looking out the window.

  As the sun sets, the sky turns red, and the light reflecting on the sea makes it look like an endless blood pool, which reminds me of the apocalyptic scenes inside some of DMA’s dungeons, especially those related to demons and undead. It’s only thanks to the nearby buildings that I can watch this; otherwise, the sun’s angle would blind me.

  The scene outside clears my mind, but just a bit.

  The match, you ask? Of course, we won. After killing the wereshark player – a feat I could only achieve because he was in tatters, I didn’t even need to fully charge Gluttony to kill him – with the two crazy women fighting each other, and the last remaining member, Spy, having just wasted his ultimate skill on my clone, there was no way I could lose.

  As for how the actual battle went? …I don’t want to talk about that.

  This makes it our second victory. We just need one more victory to more or less guarantee we make it to the bracket eliminations. It should be easy to get there.

  It’s just that nothing went as planned, and I haven’t fully recovered from the shock yet.

  “Haaaa…”

  I almost had a heart attack when that cat-girl, Fer, threw me off my Abohemoth mid-fight – yeah, I think so too, I must find a better name for my monster soon, Abohemoth is too lame. At that moment, I thought everything was lost, but the unthinkable happened, and the two started arguing and seriously fighting among themselves, which saved me.

  It doesn’t make me happy, though. The reason behind their actions further increases my headaches, even if it was what allowed me to turn the match around by switching places with my clone.

  Thank god they were too busy insulting each other, and my clone was very close to me, so they didn’t notice the switcheroo.

  Slowly, the sun sets, and the red gives way to the black, the blood sea transforming into black tar.

  Because of the clouds obscuring the light, but only covering half the sea, the horizon is split by the two colours, red and black, making the outside look like a truly apocalyptic scene. It’s even more beautiful and terrifying than the dungeons I’ve seen in DMA.

  A perfect scene to match my ongoing mood. “Should I go out for a walk to clear my mind? But it’s so late, it’ll be night soon–”

  *Knock, knock!*

  “Yes?” I ask at the sudden knock on the door. “You can come in.”

  Marta opens the door and looks at me, sitting near the window. She takes a single step inside and stops.

  “I heard from Clara that you’ve won the first two matches. Good job. But again, that’s the minimum I’d expect after I personally trained your team.”

  I’m not sure if she’s here to congratulate me or to mock me. Maybe both?

  “Now that you’ve come so far, you must at least reach the knockout matches. Don’t put me to shame. By now, everyone knows you and Clara are my siblings. If you put me to shame after I put a word in for you two, I’ll be really pissed. Maybe I’ll have to retrain you all again… I know how much you love it. At least, don’t get eliminated after the first match, okay?”

  “Yeah, sure… We’ll somehow do it.”

  As soon as I reply, Marta turns around to leave.

  “Ah, right. Clara asked me to tell you that you’re meeting at the usual spot in half an hour, because she was leaving and was afraid you would forget. Tsk. For you to be this scatterbrained that you need your sister to remind you… How lame can you be?”

  *Bam!* The door slams closed.

  Like a storm, Marta leaves as soon as her business here is finished.

  But this makes me ponder. When did we agree to meet? I don’t recall such a thing, even after being reminded about it. I mean, I could understand if I had forgotten, but after being reminded about it, I should remember agreeing to meet, don’t you agree?

  I know we have to plan the strategy for the next match, especially now that our hidden trump card has been revealed, but I don’t remember deciding it would be today. The match is tomorrow afternoon, and we still have time.

  This is… An unexpected meeting, orchestrated by Clara… Furthermore, she has left the scene even before telling me…

  It smells like a trap!

  But… Oh well, there isn’t much I can do about it. What happens will happen. There’s no reason not to go. It gives me the excuse I was looking for to go out for a walk and clear my mind.

  “Haaa… I guess this counts as a break? Kind of?”

  I quickly prepare to leave. Although half an hour is plenty of time to get to the cafe we usually meet, it isn’t like I can't waste it. I don’t like being late if I can avoid it…

  …which doesn’t mean I’m never late. When stuff happens, and the situation is ‘unavoidable’, it isn’t my fault if I’m not punctual. It just so happens that these kinds of ‘unfortunate’ circumstances happen quite often.

  But it definitely isn’t my fault. Definitely not.

  When I reach the cafe, the sun has set, and the sky has become completely dark. As for what time it is… let’s not talk about that, okay?

  I scan the tables, searching for Ricard, Laura, and Clara. Usually, as soon as she spots me, Clara would start jumping around, waving at me. But there’s nothing like that today, which makes my search harder.

  Another day, it wouldn’t have been as surprising, but today I’m late.

  How come all the four-person tables are either free or occupied by people I’ve never seen before? Shouldn’t they be here by now? Am I actually the first one, or did I get the place wrong?

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  “How weird, I’m sure Marta told me it was here… huh?”

  I tilt my head, and my eyes start looking at the rest of the tables. It’s then that I see Laura smiling at me. On a table with just two seats.

  She waves at me to come closer.

  “What were you doing there, standing still like an idiot?”

  “Uh… no. I was just surprised. Where is everyone else…?” I ask, glancing at the empty tables nearby.

  “Everyone else?” Now it’s Laura’s turn to act surprised. “Ricard and Clara? They won’t come.”

  “They won’t?”

  “No. After the match, I wanted to talk to you, but before I could approach, Clara said she’d set everything up, and to just meet you here…”

  “Clara… sigh.”

  I knew it! This was Clara’s trap to make me meet Laura by myself! She was so afraid I would discover her lie if she were to tell me in person that she ran away, using the first excuse she could think of, and implicating Marta in her scheme!

  Just wait for when I come back, Clara. Your brother is going to punish you for your transgressions!

  Didn’t she hate it so much the last time I pulled her cheeks? When I find her, I’ll pull them with such strength that her cheeks will stay red for at least a week.

  And I’m not going to do it once or twice, but a hundred times! A hundred times each cheek!

  But still, this won’t solve the main issue. Why are Clara and Laura always talking things behind my back, deciding what I must do without asking me? Don’t I have the right to decide, or at least know, too?

  Well, it isn’t like I care that much.

  After a short greeting where I discover my sister’s cheeky betrayal, I sit down in front of Laura.

  “Alright, so… Why did you want to meet me? What do you need me for?” I ask.

  Laura makes a suggestive smile. “Me? You’ve got it backwards. It’s because of you.”

  “Me…?”

  What did I do now? Did I mess something up, and she wants me to fix it? But, unlike other times where I know it’s my fault, regardless of my intention or lack thereof of admitting my fault, I don’t remember doing anything this time…

  She waves her hand as if to dismiss my thoughts. “No, silly. You didn’t do anything wrong.”

  Not this again! Since when can she read my thoughts? Or is it true they’re written on my face!?

  “After facing them a few times, I understand that those so-called All Shall Despair players are… obnoxious, to say the least. Annoying, and a bit too crazy. Their actions make no sense, and I wouldn’t like it either if they were to act as if I were my followers, but from what I’ve seen, they aren’t that bad? But I’ve only met them two, maybe three, times…”

  “That’s…”

  That’s kind of true. They aren’t bullies, nor do they stalk me in-game or, thank god for this, stalk me in real life.

  “That’s, this… This isn’t all there is to it…”

  “I know.” Laura locks her dark eyes with mine and grabs my hand. “From your reactions every time they show up, I know there’s more. Tell me, Andreu. Release everything you’ve bottled up. Don’t hide it.”

  “Haa… Fine. I’ll tell you everything.”

  Until now, I’ve been keeping most of this hidden from my teammates. Well, Clara does know a bit more, since she’s constantly pestering me, both inside the game and out of it, and sticking close to me as much as she can, so she has inevitably seen and heard more than Laura and Ricard. I never wanted them to know too much about them, fearing they’d pity me. Or worse, laugh at me because of those guys who treat me like their god.

  And it’s all a consequence of my actions…

  I start recounting everything I’ve been through since I first created my dungeon.

  How I wanted to inflict as much despair on the invaders as possible, rejoicing in their suffering and shattering their hopes.

  How the first players reacted to it, as well as how a group who would later call themselves Mad Cult started to dive like mad into my dungeon because they enjoyed it too much. At that time, I didn’t care. In fact, I welcomed it, as it gave me lots of cp to use to develop my dungeon, as well as free xp to level up.

  But then, after a player who they simply call ‘The Leader’ appeared, their obsession slowly devolved into fanaticism, eventually converting into a cult that worshipped me as their god.

  I recount how their actions made me burst in anger, further increasing the difficulty of my dungeon to make them regret my actions, only to backfire spectacularly. The only effect I got was that their numbers increased exponentially.

  I even tell her how, after the stupid competition I started, to make my dungeon more popular, they ended up winning, and what they asked was for the creation of my statue inside their underground cathedral.

  “You allowed them to create a statue of you in their dungeon?”

  “...Yes. It was the only way to get them off me I could think of at that time.”

  The biggest problem with all this is that I don’t regret creating my dungeon. I do it because I find it fun. But anything I do, they have to come and break it.

  I don’t want to stop doing what I like! I just want them to leave me alone!

  What I fear the most right now is that the spectators, as well as all the other players, will believe I’m one of them, further increasing my headaches as well as giving them the recognition they want, but that will give me even more trouble.

  Laura allows me to talk without interruptions, and when I finish, she nods to herself, as if understanding the truth behind this matter.

  “I see… So, in other words, you’ve been digging your own grave for so long that the hole is now too deep and you can’t find a way to get out of it.”

  I did what!? I don’t remember doing such a thing!

  “No, that’s not… I never did anything that would–”

  “Are you sure you didn’t?” Laura asks, raising one eyebrow.

  I lower my head in shame. “Okay. Maybe you’re right. I brought it all upon myself by not thinking before acting.”

  But it’s harder than it looks! Who in their right mind uses their brain for thinking about the consequences of their actions? That isn’t mad scientist-like at all!

  As I’m absorbed in my pain and self-delusions, Laura thinks for a while.

  “You know… I believe there’s a simple solution to all this.”

  “There is!?” I almost jump out of my seat. Our glasses shake, and the drinks almost spill out when I slam the table.

  “Yes.” Laura calmly nods. “What they want is recognition, isn’t it?”

  “That’s… right?”

  “Then, you should never give them what they want. Ignore them. Treat them like any other invader. Allow them to do whatever they want, and don’t pay attention to the forums. And, if they end up crossing the line, demanding your attention, you report them to the game staff. They should be able to intervene.”

  Wait a moment. Can this… Can this actually work!? Is it really this easy!?

  “Oh, and when you find yourself annoyed by them, don’t bottle it up. Ask for help. I’ll always be there.”

  I’m still not sure about it, but I can at least try. I hope things get better over time.

  “...Thanks. I’ll do that from now on.”

  I guess there wasn’t any reason for me to suffer, was there? I should have talked this out with my teammates a long time ago… If only I had known.

  Laura seductively licks her lips, smiling at me. “And then maybe you’ll open your heart to me...”

  I tilt my head. Absorbed in my thoughts, I haven’t heard the last thing Laura has said. “Did you say anything?”

  “Oh, no. I didn’t say anything. Must’ve been your imagination.”

  How weird. I could swear I saw her lips moving… Oh well. I’m sure it wasn’t anything important.