NPC Code: Red Riding Hood

The kid pointed out the wall behind us, telling me that there was something more than that panel. As I walked near the stone wall, cracks greeted my eyes. 

And that only meant one thing. People could actually open this wall and a secret room waited for us on the other side.

I used my fist from strength and punched the wall out of its misery. As the panel crumbled into a million pieces, a sigure of a woman addressed my eyes. She rested on the ground, unconscious and embracing herself like a fetus. Beside her were the tables and chairs decorated like an office.

My feet rushed towards the girl and immediately gave my assistance. Upon inspecting the woman, the girl didn't have any visible wounds on her skin. Fortunately, this woman didn't suffer from anything besides the emotional trauma she experiences.

But that experience would sweep away, since we finally found her alive, together with Friar.

"Hey, are you okay? And are you Katya, Friar's wife?" I asked the woman, as I helped stand.

The woman heard my voice as she lifted her face to meet my eyes. "Yes."

As soon as the woman replied, she met my gaze and grasped my hand. She stood from the ground and accepted my offer, which made my job easier for now. When we exited the room, Friar and Robin raced towards me. The two of them had their eyes sparkling with joy, with their mouths gazing upwards.

Friar rushed towards me and embraced Katya around my hands. I maintained my posture and refused to let the woman go from my arms. But despite my clasp, I slowly gave Katya to Friar and nodded at his fore.

"Katya! Katya, are you alright?! God, look at you! Who did this! Who did this to you so I could him...or her a ton of smacking!" Friar roared, while stomping his feet.

But his half awakened wife weakly shook her head and replied, "No….Asimov...and I….saw this coming."

'Saw this coming?' I wanted to ask, but I left the questions later. 

Interrogating Katya  was not the dumbest thing I would do for our situation. Giving her some time off and cool air would benefit the entire team. 

"But your outfit….It gives it away….And it confuses me…..at the same time," Katya continued, as she held back her shuckle.

Friar's cheek turned red as soon as he heard Katya's voice. But despite his embarrassment, Friar laughed it out like a man and took Katya from my hands.

"She's all yours. Just make sure to keep an eye out for her and the rest of the people, okay?" I said, while heading towards the exit. "Your job is to protect these people from those soldiers and Clement. The rest of you should head for the exit while I look for the obelisks and Warner Asimov."

"I've been meaning to ask this, Wolf. Why are you helping us when you're the player killer of this game? I've seen you murder innocent players before and killed hundreds of those soldiers. Is this just a facade to make up for your mistakes? Or is it because you grew tired from killing the players?" Robin asked, as soon as I gave Katya to Friar.

"Maybe. But I killed those soldiers because they tried killing me….They tried killing a player who did nothing inside the death game. All those people did is to accuse me for something that I haven't done yet. I don't usually kill people. But when I do, I only kill them if they want to kill me first without any reason. And the perfect example for that is Clement. That mad man wants me dead because I am one of the few who could stop him," I replied.

When Robin heard my words, he gave me a nod and answered, "Fine. We will help you. I know you're just a kid down there. And I believe you're not the Fenrir that everyone thinks of. Besides, you saved our lives…. my brother's wife. If he's thankful for you, I have no choice but to express the same gratitude as him.'

"Do what you want. I don't care, actually. You're free to help me or kill me. But I have a sister to protect. So I can't afford dying inside this game."

After our exchange, I went in front of the crowd and gathered their attention. All of them widened their eyes as soon as they saw my figure. The crowd's widened eyes told everything about their expression about seeing me at their fore. Some of the thankful game developers before moved backwards upon witnessing my face.

"Asimov and the rest of us know who you are!" a person yelled, as he shakingly pointed his fore finger at me. "You're Fenrir, the player killer in this game! W-Why the hell are you here!"

When the people heard my name, everyone exchanged looks and slowly walked away. The mass eventually bumped at the wall behind their back as they continued marching backwards, afraid of meeting me.

I wanted to tell the pack that everything would be alright. But since the people knew my identity, they feared me for my actions before and not the moment I saved them a while back.

But before the crowd could even mock my presence, Friar and Robin stood beside me. They all stared at the people as they wrapped their arms around my nape as if I was one of their close friends. Those two brothers flashed me a smile as they waved their hands at the dozen people watching at our figures.

"Do you think this man would harm you when he was the one who saved our asses? This man took out the soldiers and risked his life to save all of you, even though he has something important to take care of? I don't know, like completing the game?" Friar shouted, as he glared at the people's faces. "If you're afraid of Fenrir….Wolf, you should fear us too! Because I am pledging my friendship to this man….Because he saved my wife's life. I am thankful for what he did. And you should also be the same! If it wasn't for him, you wouldn't be alive right now!"

"Your outfit is….a bit weird. But what my brother said is right! You all probably know who we are, since we're popular players of this game. We're part of the Eastern Adventurer's Guild. And we value our people more than ever since the day we built that organization," Robin continued, while rubbing his hands. "I want to make this short. If you want to trust us, you are free to do so. But if you think Clement would give you a better chance to live, you're free to leave this group right now. Fenrir isn't the man you've thought he is. Fenrir saved your lives. That thought is enough to give you evidence about our situation."

Those two speeches coming from two popular figures made the crowd lend their ears. All the people listened to everything they said and considered their options. The crowd ceased marching backwards and eventually came walking towards my fore. Some of them still refused to follow the group, but didn't have any chance to choose the latter.

The only hope these players had was to believe in me. But as soon as trouble would face us, I assumed these people would be the first one to run away.

As soon as the party of players accepted me as their leader, I guided them towards the exit. But my ears suddenly caught something on the right wall, which made me slide backwards. 

My instinct saved my life as the walls on my east shattered into a million pieces. As the clouds settled, Clement's face greeted our eyes. He grinned at us, while equipped with a gun and a sword in his hands.

"Missed me?" Clement uttered, as he looked around. "That was fast….You found the rebels who disliked my work of art. I told the guards to torture them and leave them to rot. But, oh well. I guess I have to do this myself then."

Upon saying those words, Clement aimed his gun at the first guy he saw. The unfortunate man was with the crowd, who was also a game developer of this game. The two brothers and I didn't react on time as the bullet flew through the barrel. As soon as the shell hit the guy, that player evaporated into particles.

"One down, one hundred more to go," Clement mumbled to himself, as he flashed me a smile.

While that happened, there were soldiers catching up from Clement's behind. All those soldiers also had their guns wrapped around their hands, ready to fire if they arrived at our place. The people inside panicked when the man's dusty image came into their sights, which made them run in circles.

"GATHER EVERYONE AND FOLLOW MY LEAD!" I shouted.

Those four obelisks and Warner Asimov would wait for later….