51
Chapter 51
I read the second post from the new user.
[Atomic Rex: Did everyone who played the game get possessed?
LOL, this is honestly so ridiculous.
Just as you'd expect from the people who made this trash game, they only do trashy things.
But seriously, is everyone actually a Holy Knight?
I've looked around the community, and not a single person has said they aren't a Holy Knight.
Am I the only mutant four-legged beast?]
Did this person get possessed by something strange like I did?
I checked the comments.
[Valkyria: hehehe a monster hehehe what kind of monster are you?]
└ [Atomic Rex: I'm not joking. It's an animal I've never seen before, and it has two tentacles on its back.]
[Not a Netkama: Stop trolling and just lurk like a proper newbie]
[Full Play: He's really living up to his name]
[I Trusted the Monkey Uncle: After ChatGPT, now we've got monsters coming in? LOL. All we need now is some guy claiming to be a god]
Gasp.
That last comment actually surprised me.
I wonder how he'd react if he found out there's even a mad Necromancer in this community.
In any case, no one believed Atomic Rex's claim that he wasn't a Holy Knight.
To be honest, I wouldn't have believed it either if I wasn't a totem.
And I wouldn't have known that an ancient villain had stolen a Holy Knight's soul and was lurking in the community.
Though, as Hanna said, based on the nickname alone, he looks like he's just playing a persona.
Atomic Rex.
It's the title of a movie series and the name of the monster featuring a giant dinosaur hit by radiation destroying a city.
It's a series with a long history of over 50 to 60 years, and it's probably the most famous among giant monster movies.
It's still quite popular, so Hollywood even made a collaboration movie called 'Atomic Rex vs. Magic Monkey.'
I remember seeing it a few years ago.
[Melee-type Spy: What? Are you actually Atomic Rex? You're that fixed-nick guy, right?]
While I was thinking, a new comment appeared.
It's Melee-type Spy, who had gone quiet for a bit after getting chewed out by Hanna.
Honestly, it served him right. He should've known when to stop trolling.
└ [Atomic Rex: Huh? It's Spy?]
└ [Atomic Rex: Why the hell did they possess me too, when they could've just possessed you Holy-dogs;;]
Holy-dog... was that a derogatory term for the users of 'Survival as a Holy Knight'?
More importantly, he and Melee-type Spy knew each other?
└ [I Trusted the Monkey Uncle: What's this? How do you two know each other?]
└ [Melee-type Spy: Did none of you use the 'Survival as a Holy Knight' gallery 10 years ago? Sigh... I'm craving some Kozaburo]
Please, just spare us the Kozaburo.
└ [Melee-type Spy: Atomic Rex was a freaking legendary troller.]
Melee-type Spy spent a lot of time in the comments explaining who Atomic Rex was.
He said Atomic Rex was a malicious user from the game community 10 years ago who did nothing but leave hate comments, call the game trash, and spam the boards.
[Atomic Rex: Let's go, monsters, into this piece of sh*t game~!
(Image of monster Atomic Rex)
Let's rip and tear every demon and Holy Knight to shreds~!]
Apparently, he used to spam the forums with posts like that.
└ [Corrupted Power Knight: Ah! That bastard was him?]
└ [Not a Netkama: He's no different from a regular spy.]
It seemed some other users recognized him too.
[Atomic Rex: It's not like I can actually prove I'm a monster, so this is...
Seriously, this is the first time I've seen such a trash community that doesn't even allow attachments.
Is this some website from the 90s?]
Still, no users believed he was actually a monster.
But he certainly succeeded in drawing attention, as many users left comments on Atomic Rex's post.
I left one too.
[Ultra Sanz Crazy for Massacre Mode on a Moonlit Night: Where did you wake up when you were possessed?]
If he's a monster, I doubt he woke up in a cave like the other Holy Knights.
After all, I had woken up among the Blue Moss Tribe.
I waited for a reply.
└ [Atomic Rex: Some kind of research facility? I'm not sure because it's all collapsed like an abandoned house.]
A collapsed research facility, huh.
└ [Atomic Rex: Oh, I read a scrap of paper earlier and it said something about the Delos Magic Tower. I think this is the place.]
Delos Magic Tower. Of course, I have no idea where that is.
└ [Ultra Sanz Crazy for Massacre Mode on a Moonlit Night: Magic Tower? Then isn't it just some animal they raise at the tower?]
└ [Atomic Rex: I don't think so. I'm still in Delos, and there are corpses of monsters that look like me scattered everywhere.]
└ [Atomic Rex: They look like test subjects. Some of them look like they were dissected and killed.]
Suddenly, I received a private message from Hanna.
[Not a Netkama: Sanz]
[Not a Netkama: Why are you hanging out with a pathological liar?]
[Not a Netkama: He's clearly the same type as Melee-type Spy, so don't even bother with him]
[Are you worried about me?]
[Not a Netkama: ?]
[Not a Netkama: BS. No.]
[k k, I'm just doing it because I'm bored]
Hanna... by my standards, you're plenty strange too.
You're the representative keyboard warrior of this community.
[Not a Netkama: If you're so bored, why didn't you reply to the message I sent yesterday?]
Oops. Did I not?
[Actually, it's because I'm a fan of the Atomic Rex movies. I was just happy to see the nickname]
I need to change the subject. Since Hanna has a short attention span, she'll probably follow along.
[Not a Netkama: Why the hell do you like that stuff? It's just some cheap, third-rate tokusatsu show for kidults]
That's a bit harsh.
If I actually liked the Atomic Rex series, I might have cried.
I wrapped up the conversation with Hanna and called Harry.
"What is it?"
Harry looks at me with hollow eyes. I wonder what he was making.
- Do you know anything about the Delos Magic Tower?
"Ah, the Delos Magic Tower. Of course I do."
Harry nodded.
"It is the stronghold of the Evolutionist School."
- The Evolutionist School?
"A place where mages with the insane belief that continuous evolution leads to transcendence gather."
A group of mad scientists. That's a bit unsettling.
"They're lunatics, but they had a lot of capital and connections with the Empire, so they wielded great influence.
The theory that Infected could evolve into demons was first announced by them. I recall they were performing some strange experiment even before the fall."
The more I hear, the more ominous it sounds.
- What kind of experiment was it?
"They tried to create an artificial life form by utilizing the Infected's trait of growing stronger by consuming other creatures."
They possessed someone as a chimera monster? Someone who used to spam posts about giant monsters?
Then again, this is the same person who turned a child suggesting an expansion pack boss into a totem.
They'd do something like this without blinking.
I don't know who the being that possessed us is, but I don't think they're a good person.
Does that being even want to save the world? I doubt it.
Everything they do is just a game.
They've placed me and the Holy Knights on a chessboard and are playing with us.
Atomic Rex and I might just be slightly unusual chess pieces. Pieces used to satisfy their amusement.
Damn bastard, who's the real demon here?
- ...I see.
I was so shocked that it took me a moment to respond.
"But why are you asking about the Delos Magic Tower...?"
Maybe it's because I have so much on my mind, but I can't think of a good excuse.
"Are you interrogating Lord Mallak right now?"
Rake, who was leaning on Totem No. 1, glares at him.
For once, the timing is perfect.
"N-no, that's not it. I'll be going now. I have work to finish."
Harry leaves the area as if he's escaping.
After seeing Rake fight during the Symphonia conquest, he seems to be even more timid.
Harry once had a verbal spat with Rake when they first met. He probably thinks she's still holding a grudge.
As I keep my eyes on Rake, she looks back at me.
It seems Rake knows I'm watching her. I wonder if we can feel each other's gaze.
"There will be those who mistake Lord Mallak's generosity and mercy for weakness and try to climb over him. I shall stay by your side and stop such things.
Because I am Lord Mallak's Guardian."
Rake gave a small smile. It was a smile full of pride.
She interpreted my gaze as gratitude.
I'm truly thankful for her infinite trust and loyalty.
I wonder how she'll react when she finds out I'm not actually Mallak. Will I become a victim of the 'Rake Punch'?
I accessed the community again.
I won't give Atomic Rex the information I found.
From the perspective of someone already possessed, it's not particularly useful information.
Besides, he might question why I know such things, just like Harry did earlier. I can't be bothered to make up an excuse.
[Atomic Rex: Just left the lab (or what I thought was the Magic Tower).
Why the hell is there a Magic Tower in the middle of a mountain? There's not a single trace of humans.
I'm too hungry to take questions right now. I need to eat something.]
The Magic Tower I heard about from Harry was also in a secluded area.
[Ghoulle: If there's no proof shot, then what is it?]
[I Trusted the Monkey Uncle: LOL, nice try]
The reactions in the comments are the same as always.
[Atomic Rex: What the, I ate a rat and a tail is growing out of me?
Eating gives me experience points.
But were rats always this tasty?
Crunch crunch crunch, it just keeps chewing]
That last sentence is a bit creepy.