"I'm Slaughterhouse. I've already cleared four games."
On the first level of the subway station, a man dressed like a student took the initiative to introduce himself.
In the Main God's Game, the name—or rather, the code—one chooses at the start is crucial. Players get two chances to name themselves. The first occurs when they enter their maiden Game Instance; often, in the grip of panic and psychological instability, many players just type in gibberish. The second chance is a grace period to fix those impulsive mistakes. Of course, for those who remain dissatisfied after both opportunities are exhausted, they're left praying to the gods of the gacha system1.
"You should all realize it by now, based on the introductions so far," Slaughterhouse said, his gaze sweeping over the six people before him. Having survived four games, reading the thoughts of these newcomers was child's play.
Two of the six were absolute fresh meat. They stood there, dazed, reeling from the reality of it all. They might have skimmed the manual in the Buffer Zone or binged some infinite-flow novels and movies, but experiencing the horror firsthand was an entirely different beast.
The remaining four wore expressions as varied as the subway crowds. Some scowled in irritation, others scanned their surroundings with frantic eyes, while a few listened with a semblance of focus.
Slaughterhouse pressed on. "The rating for this game is tied to the number of butchers hunted. We're actually safe for the first four hours. Most..."
"The point is, we've waited this long, and the butcher spawned on the third floor still hasn't come up to find us," interrupted a man in a sharp, elite-style suit. "You said that the moment the butcher spawned, he killed someone."
"There were three people on the third floor when that happened. You ran out, one person died, and the other woman couldn't have lasted either. There are seven of us here now. While you've been busy running your mouth, others have already gone down to the second level to take the butcher out."
"I know that! I saw a guy, really handsome," a woman in her twenties interjected, waving her hand excitedly. "He seemed to be carrying a knife—must be a game item."
"A knife? Tsk, talk about lucky..." Another man, a self-styled rebel with a permanent scowl of defiance, muttered under his breath. He'd been the most vocal critic while Slaughterhouse was speaking.
Slaughterhouse recalled the man he'd glimpsed briefly, a flicker of irritation crossing his face.
"I've seen him. He doesn't look like the type who's easy to deal with; cooperation probably isn't in his dictionary. I suggest we use this time to scavenge for decent weapons, and later, we can snatch the chainsaw from the butcher."
* * *
The Tang dao was lighter than a chainsaw. Lin Shuang lifted her arm, head bowed as she watched Jiang Mo fasten the sheath for her. It was a fiddly bit of equipment, and for a beginner, the straps were a labyrinth of confusion.
"What's wrong?" She watched his movements come to a sudden halt, then he began undoing the work he'd just finished. "Forgot how to tie it now that you're working on someone else's waist?"
Jiang Mo looked up, meeting her eyes. "Your waist is too thin. There weren't enough holes for the buckle, so I have to cross-tie it."
"…Oh~"
"You seem awfully pleased about that."
"Well, you're complimenting my waist, aren't you? Why are you pulling it so tight?!" Lin Shuang wanted to snap at him, but living under someone else's roof—or in this case, someone else's survival strategy—meant learning how to bow one's head.
She let out a frustrated huff. "You're going to snap me in half!"
Jiang Mo, who had tightened the belt just a fraction too firmly, left a faint red mark against her skin with his fingernail. "I wasn't complimenting you."
"…Whatever, keep telling yourself that, you stingy ghost."
"You're already dragged into this game," Jiang Mo said, straightening up to look her in the eye. "A thin waist is useless here. You need strength."
Lin Shuang's face burned a deep, fiery red. She had a sneaking suspicion the male lead was hinting at something suggestive, but she lacked the hard evidence to call him out.
"Someone's coming. Let's go."
"Someone? How do you know?" Lin Shuang immediately followed in his footsteps.
They stepped out of the restroom and straight into the gaze of several players who had just arrived from the first level.
As their eyes locked, the newcomers' expressions twisted into something distinctly awkward. A lone man and woman, emerging from a restroom while holding hands—it was hard not to let the imagination wander.
When they spotted the chainsaw in Jiang Mo's grip and the Tang dao strapped to Lin Shuang's waist, the group's expressions shifted into a cocktail of shock and envy.
"Friends, you've got quite the skills," the man in the elite suit said, flashing a practiced smile. "My game code is Gentleman. This is my teammate, Superman Can't Fly. Cough, excuse her."
"Hey, handsome~" Superman Can't Fly was a cute girl in her twenties. The ID alone screamed an energetic, chuunibyou personality.
She waved at Jiang Mo, but the only response she got was a cold, clinical scan of her threat level.
The girl pouted, visibly deflated, then turned her wave toward Lin Shuang with a grin. "He's such a cold fish. I'm starting to respect you already."
After a brief exchange, Lin Shuang had a rough idea of the seven players' IDs. They all had places to be to scout for weapons, so the conversation was mercifully short.
Soon, the first hour ticked away, and a butcher spawned on the second floor right on cue.
The mechanical roar of a chainsaw echoed through the cavernous subway station. The butcher instantly locked onto the closest player and charged, a blur of violent motion.
Unlike the first-hour butcher, this one was significantly faster, and he didn't wait for his prey to start running before he began the hunt.
The target was a newcomer named 'Light Chant.' He'd been on the second level when the game started, but he'd bolted to join the main group before even catching a glimpse of the butcher's shadow.
Now, face-to-face with the charging nightmare, his imagined scenarios crumbled into dust. He threw down the mop he'd been using for 'defense,' screamed at the top of his lungs, and scrambled toward the crowd in a blind, hysterical panic.
The butcher's AI was programmed to lock onto the nearest player, so, naturally, the target switched to the next person in his path.
"Idol, what an idiot," Slaughterhouse cursed under his breath. Gripping his fire axe, he exchanged a sharp nod with another player named 'Evil Monarch' and charged forward.
They'd just mapped out a plan: one would tank the chainsaw, and the other would seize the window of opportunity to bring the butcher down.
But this game round was a trap. The butcher's strength was off the charts, and when the fire axe collided with that heavy, grinding chainsaw, Slaughterhouse couldn't help but let out a visceral string of profanities.
"Move it, damn it!" he spat, struggling to hold his ground as the butcher hoisted the chainsaw, rising and falling in rhythmic, lethal strokes.
Evil Monarch, also armed with a fire axe, saw his opening while Slaughterhouse drew the butcher's aggression. He darted behind the creature and drove his axe into the butcher's back, yanking it out and burying it again in a frantic, bloody rhythm.
Blood sprayed. Bits of flesh clung to the blade. The butcher, roaring in pain, whirled around, swinging the chainsaw in a wide, horizontal arc aimed right at Evil Monarch.
Evil Monarch narrowly dove out of the way, just as Slaughterhouse raised his own chipped, battered axe and brought it down hard into the butcher's neck.
Summary:
Slaughterhouse establishes his veteran status among a group of confused players as they prepare to face a spawning butcher. Jiang Mo and Lin Shuang share an intimate moment fastening her gear before encountering other players and the hostile second-hour butcher. The chapter concludes with a brutal, high-stakes battle as Slaughterhouse and Evil Monarch attempt to take down the powerful creature.
Trivia:
Players have only two chances to name their characters in the Main God's Game.
The first hour of this specific game round is considered safe, with the butcher spawning at the start of the second hour.
The butcher's attack priority is based on the distance to the nearest player.
Jiang Mo and Lin Shuang are working as a pair while others are scouting for their own weapons.
Translation Notes:
1 ↩ Refers to the Japanese monetization mechanic of randomized prizes, used here to describe the unpredictable nature of luck-based character name generation.
Notes:
• Slaughterhouse - A man dressed like a student who has already cleared four games of the Main God's Game.
• Mo - A given name, used alongside Jiang. Given name of Jiang, known for his cold-but-caring demeanor and martial proficiency. The first name carried by Jiang. The given name of Jiang.
• Lin Shuang - Lin Shuang is a college student who transmigrated into an infinite stream game as a cannon fodder supporting role. Struggling with anxiety and a desperate need to survive, she adopts the persona of a character clinging to the male protagonist to secure a life of comfort. Known simply as Shuang, this name represents her role as an outsider navigating the original owner's complex social ties.
• Jiang Mo - A cold, calculated player in the Infinite Stream, he masks a predatory nature with a polite, gentle persona. Though methodical and aloof, he acts as a devoted protector to Lin Shuang. With a background in boxing, he maintains a guarded, thoughtful temperament shaped by past isolation. He currently lives alone, balancing his lethal survival skills with a surprisingly tidy and controlled lifestyle.
• Shuang - Lin Shuang is a college student who transmigrated into an infinite stream game as a cannon fodder supporting role. Struggling with anxiety and a desperate need to survive, she adopts the persona of a character clinging to the male protagonist to secure a life of comfort. Known simply as Shuang, this name represents her role as an outsider navigating the original owner's complex social ties.
• Jiang - A cynical, survival-hardened veteran player, he appears as a weary construction worker in a white vest and camouflage pants. Armed with a Tang sword and chainsaw, he acts as a reluctant, practical protector within the game. Though detached and suspicious of social ties, he finds himself strangely addicted to his interactions with his rookie partner, balancing lethality with an unwanted protective role.
• Lin - A third-year university student trapped in a lethal survival game, she masks her panic and physical vulnerability with a facade of bravado and wealth. Lean and striking in a black blazer, pencil skirt, and silk stockings, she wields a Tang dao to survive. Often judged by others for her appearance, she navigates the infinite stream as Jiang Mo’s partner, struggling with trauma while forging vital alliances.
• Superman Can't Fly - A young woman in her twenties with an energetic personality who is teammates with Gentleman.
• Gentleman - A man dressed in an elite-style suit who acts as a player.
• Light Chant - A newcomer player who encounters the butcher on the second level.
• Evil Monarch - A player who assists Slaughterhouse in fighting the butcher.