Chapter 123: The Descent of the 'True Players' and the Sky-Hacker
The signal Von felt wasn't a sound; it was a vibration that shook the very atoms of the new world. The sky, which had finally turned a natural blue, suddenly cracked. Not like glass, but like a digital screen being punched from the outside.
"What is that? Tell me that's a very large firework!" Aki shouted, squinting as three massive, golden pillars of light descended from the sky and slammed into the ground ten miles away.
Von (Volt) didn't flinch. He felt his new Twilight power surging, recognizing the energy. "The 'True Players.' In the old world, they were the ones who owned the System. They weren't characters like us; they were the users. And they've come to see why their favorite toy is broken."
"Users? Like... people who play games for fun?" Rena asked, her voice trembling. "To them, all the wars we fought, all the people we lost... it was just a game?"
"To them, we are just pixels with personalities," Von growled, drawing his sword. "But today, the pixels are going to fight back."
The Encounter: Meet 'Gold-Slayer_99'
As they approached the first pillar of light, they saw him. A man clad in armor that was so over-designed it looked ridiculous. It was glowing with neon lights, covered in floating gems, and he was holding a sword that was five times the size of a regular human. Above his head, a floating title read: [RANK 1: WORLD-EATER].
"Whoa, look at the graphics on this patch!" the Player spoke, his voice echoing through the valley. He wasn't talking to them; he was talking to a floating camera-orb. "The NPC AI has really improved. Look at that one in the black tunic—he looks almost like the old Demon King boss. Let's see if he drops any Rare Loot."
Aki blinked. "Did he just call us NPCs? And what's with the glowing name tag? He looks like a walking Christmas tree!"
The Player, 'Gold-Slayer_99', didn't wait for a conversation. He swung his massive sword. The shockwave leveled a small forest.
"Sai! Shield!" Von roared.
Sai jumped in front, but the impact sent him flying a hundred yards back. "He's... he's too strong! His stats don't make sense!"
"That's because he's using 'Premium Items'!" Rena shouted. "His gear isn't made of materials from this world; it's made of pure code!"
Aki's 'Admin' Move
Aki, seeing his friends struggling, noticed something. The floating camera-orb following the Player had a small, glowing antenna.
"If he's a player, he must be connected to a server," Aki whispered to himself. "And if there's a connection, there's a pocket to be picked."
Aki didn't attack the Player. He used his 'Luck Algorithm' to turn himself partially invisible—not through magic, but by 'glitching' the Player's field of vision. He sprinted toward the floating camera-orb.
"Hey, Shiny!" Aki yelled, jumping into the air and grabbing the orb. "Let's see what happens when the cameraman goes on strike!"
Aki didn't break the orb. He used his thief-skills to "re-wire" the internal logic. Instead of filming the Player, he turned the camera toward the Player's 'Settings Menu' which was floating in the air, invisible to everyone but the orb.
"Let's see... 'Sensitivity'... 'Brightness'... ah, here it is! 'Character Transparency'!"
Aki slid the bar to 0%.
Suddenly, the 'Gold-Slayer_99' began to fade. "What?! Hey! My connection is lagging! I can't see my character! Who's hacking my stream?!" the Player screamed in a panic.
The Twilight Retribution
With the Player blinded by his own settings menu, Von saw his opening. He didn't just strike the armor; he struck the 'User-Connection'.
"You don't belong here!" Von roared, his blade turning into a vortex of dark light.
The strike hit the Player's chest. Instead of blood, the man exploded into thousands of golden 'Coins'—the very currency Aki had been chasing his whole life.
[SYSTEM NOTIFICATION (Ghost): Player 'Gold-Slayer_99' has disconnected. Reason: Critical Skill Issue.]
Aki landed on the ground, surrounded by a mountain of golden coins. His eyes were wider than plates. "Gold... so much gold... and it's real! It didn't disappear!"
Von stood over the pile of coins, looking up at the remaining two pillars of light. "This was just one of them, Aki. There are millions more where he came from. They aren't here to play a game anymore. They're here for a 'World Raid'."
Aki, despite being covered in gold, looked terrified. "A raid? You mean... they're all coming at once? Millions of Christmas trees with giant swords?"
"Then we'll just have to make sure they all 'log out' permanently," Von said, his eyes glowing with a new, dark purpose.