[Location: Inside the Jester's Mind Domain]
[Time: Unknown]
[Status: Mental Dive]
The spinning bullets of the Pandora Minigun froze in mid-air.
The explosions stopped. The sound died.
Ryan blinked.
The Carnival tent was gone. Grog, Annabelle, and Felix were gone.
His Minigun was gone.
He was standing in a long, sterile hospital corridor.
The lights flickered with a buzzing sound. Bzzzt... Bzzzt...
The smell of popcorn was replaced by the smell of antiseptic and rotting flesh.
[System Warning: You have entered a 'Mental Instance'.]
[Skill 'Nerves of Steel' is fluctuating.]
[The Enemy is trying to rewrite your reality.]
Ryan put his hands in his pockets. He was wearing his old, dirty hoodie again (before he became rich).
"Classic," Ryan sighed. "A flashback episode? Really? Low budget."
He walked down the hallway.
Room 301... Room 302... Room 304.
Sarah's room.
Ryan stopped.
The door was open.
Inside, the heart monitor was letting out a long, flat tone.
BEEEEEEEEEEEP.
A doctor stood over the bed, covering a small body with a white sheet.
The doctor turned around. He had a clown nose.
It was the Jester.
"You were too late, Ryan," The Jester whispered, his voice sounding like Ryan's own inner thoughts. "You were playing games. You were streaming. And she died alone."
The Jester stepped closer, growing taller.
"All your money... all your points... useless. You are just a failure."
This was a Grade-S Mental Attack.
It targeted the host's deepest guilt. Usually, the victim would break down, cry, and their soul would become vulnerable to be eaten.
Ryan looked at the dead body. He looked at the Jester.
Then, he pulled out his phone (which materialized because this was his mind too).
He checked the time.
"Actually," Ryan said calmly. "I visited her this morning. She was eating pudding. And the doctor said she's stable for another year."
The Jester froze. "What?"
"You are using outdated data," Ryan stepped forward, poking the Jester in the chest. "If you're going to traumatize me, at least do your research. This nightmare is factually incorrect."
[System Notification: The Host's logic has destabilized the illusion.]
[The Jester is annoyed. +1,000 Fear Points.]
The scenery shattered like glass.
The hospital vanished.
Now, they were standing in a dark void.
The Jester shed his disguise. He appeared as a giant, swirling mass of darkness with a porcelain mask.
"ENOUGH!" The Jester roared. "YOU HAVE NO FEAR? FINE. THEN I WILL SHOW YOU THE TRUTH!"
"Do you know why you have that System? Do you know who gave it to you?"
The Jester waved his hand.
A giant screen appeared in the void.
It showed the night Ryan got the System. The night the Spirit Era began.
But it showed something Ryan hadn't seen.
In the memory, just before Ryan downloaded the app... a Black Shadow was standing behind him.
The Shadow had glowing purple eyes. It was holding a thread connected to Ryan's phone.
"You are not a Player," The Jester laughed mockingly. "You are a puppet! A vessel! Someone is feeding you points to fatten you up... so they can take over your body!"
Ryan watched the screen.
It made sense. Why him? Why a random broke guy?
The Jester smiled, waiting for Ryan to despair. Waiting for the realization to break his mind.
But Ryan... smiled back.
"So?"
The Jester paused. "So? Did you not hear me? You are being farmed! You are a pig for slaughter!"
"Yeah, but," Ryan shrugged. "Before the System, I was starving. Now I'm rich, I have a dragon, and I own a cool watch. If the price is my body... well, I'm getting a pretty good deal right now."
Ryan's eyes began to glow blue. His own mental energy surged, pushing back the darkness.
"And here's the thing about scammers, Jester..."
Ryan walked towards the giant monster.
"We don't care if the game is rigged. We just cheat harder."
Suddenly, a third voice echoed in the void.
It didn't come from the Jester. It didn't come from Ryan.
It came from Ryan's Shadow.
"Well said."
The Jester shrieked. "WHO IS THAT?!"
From Ryan's shadow, a figure emerged. It wasn't the Butcher.
It was a man in a Black Suit. He had no face, just a swirling vortex of purple energy.
The same figure from the memory. The Unknown Sender.
The figure looked at the Jester.
"You are interfering with my investment, Clown."
The figure raised a hand.
SNAP.
The Jester's Mind Domain cracked. The void turned white.
"NO! IMPOSSIBLE! YOU ARE... THE ADMINISTRATOR?!"
The Jester tried to run, but the Figure pointed at Ryan.
"Boy," the Figure said to Ryan. "Finish him. Use the 'Soul Eater' mode."
"Soul Eater?" Ryan frowned. "I don't have that skill."
"You do now. Check your Pandora."
Ryan looked at his wrist. The black watch was vibrating violently.
[System Override: Admin Access Granted.]
[Weapon Form Unlocked: Pandora - Soul Vacuum.]
Ryan grinned. "Don't mind if I do."
"Pandora... Form Change: Vacuum."
The watch expanded, turning into a massive, futuristic cannon with a swirling vortex at the muzzle.
Ryan aimed it at the terrified Jester.
"Say goodbye to your career!"
VROOOOOM!
A massive suction force erupted from the cannon.
The Jester screamed as his essence was ripped apart. He wasn't just dying; he was being eaten by the weapon.
"NOOO! I AM ETERNAL! I AM—"
SLURP.
The Jester vanished into the cannon.
Silence returned.
The mysterious Figure in the Black Suit looked at Ryan.
"You handle the power well. Better than the last candidate."
"Who are you?" Ryan asked, gripping his weapon. "The Devil?"
The Figure chuckled.
"Close. I am the Developer. Keep climbing the tower, Ryan. If you reach Level 100... maybe we can renegotiate your contract."
The Figure vanished into smoke.
Ryan woke up.
[Location: The Carnival Tent (Real World)]
[Time: 06:45 PM]
Ryan gasped, opening his eyes.
He was back in the tent.
The Jester's physical body sat on the throne, lifeless. It crumbled into dust.
[System Notification: Raid Boss Defeated.]
[Fear Points: +100,000]
[Level Up: 9 -> 10]
[Class Change Quest Unlocked!]
Grog ran over, crying. "Boss! You woke up! You were standing there for 5 minutes!"
Annabelle poked the dust pile. "He's dead. Can I have his nose?"
Ryan looked at his watch (Pandora). It was glowing faintly purple now.
He had met the "Admin".
He was a puppet in a cosmic game.
And he had just been given a weapon to eat souls.
Ryan smiled. A cold, dangerous smile.
"Level 100, huh?"
He stood up and dusted off his hoodie.
"Okay team, pack up. We cleared the dungeon."
"Where are we going next, Boss?" Felix asked, tripping over a bone.
Ryan looked at the System Quest that just popped up.
[Quest: Class Advancement.]
[Location: The City of the Dead.]
"We are going to get me a promotion," Ryan said. "I'm tired of being a 'Novice'. It's time to become a King."