Have you grown tired of predetermined questlines?
Have you ever felt that your choices held no meaning within a story created by developers?
Have you ever discovered emptiness in the vacant eyes of NPCs beyond the dazzling graphics?
The age of every false world humanity has ever created ends today. Here, the one true fantasy you have always yearned for awakens.
A gateway to a new dimension.
『Amuse Online!』
『Amuse Online』 is not merely a game. We, the ‘Administrators,’ have created another reality beyond your monitor.
Make the impossible real. Forge your own destiny.
The limitations of a game?
A predetermined destiny?
A scripted story?
None of those things exist!
You may become a Knight of the empire and swear your allegiance. You may also side with the Magi and fight against the empire’s tyranny.
You may lead a mighty Guild, conquer territories, and become the founder of a new kingdom.
Alternatively, you may turn your back on all of that and walk the path of the continent’s greatest Artisan or a reclusive master.
You may even overturn the world.
Are you aware of the Demon King’s existence?
Of course, you are also free to do nothing!
You may enjoy fishing or settle in a small village and run a modest restaurant. You may gamble away your entire fortune if you please. Steal to your heart’s content! The consequences are yours to bear, after all!
As you can see, no predetermined destiny exists within 『Amuse Online』. Your will, your abilities, and the relationships you form will determine your path.
In other words, you are this world’s one and only Player—and perhaps a being destined to become its new ‘god.’
Nothing is impossible.
Beings with souls and the drama of unpredictable relationships
The inhabitants of 『Amuse Online』 are no longer beings composed of zeroes and ones!
They possess their own histories, families, loves, hatreds, and secrets they will never reveal to you. They are living beings whose existence carries the same weight as ours.
They will be moved by your smallest kindness, wounded by your thoughtless actions, and may even risk everything to confront you.
Here, your actions will become not ‘logs,’ but ‘history,’ and the responsibility for them will rest entirely upon your shoulders.
The liberation of the senses and the ultimate immersion—more real than reality itself!
The moment you entrust your body to the ‘Capsule,’ the culmination of state-of-the-art Full Dive technology, you will no longer be a mere observer confined to your room. You will gain a new body and awaken to new senses.
The sensation of cold steel armor against your skin. The blade-like chill of the northern wind cutting into your flesh. The exhilarating heat of magic condensing at your fingertips before erupting. Even the faint trembling at the tip of your sword as it pierces an enemy’s heart.
This is another reality that will shake not only all five of your senses, but even your sixth sense.
Do not experience the world through the click of a mouse any longer. Stand upon the earth with your own two feet and seize your destiny with your own hands!
Now, two doors stand before you.
One leads back to the safe and tedious world where you have always lived.
The other is the door to 『Amuse Online』, overflowing with unknown possibilities, where you will stake everything and write your true story.
The choice is yours.
No one will condemn you even if you flee like a coward. They will already be far too busy living their lives in Amuse Online!
Then may fortune favor you!
※ WARNING!
Every experience within 『Amuse Online』 is the result of your own free will, and the Administration accepts no responsibility whatsoever.
‘……What the hell is this?’
After reading through the entire lengthy passage, I pressed my fingers against my throbbing brow.
“What in the world is this……?”
[It is an introduction to Amuse Online, the world beneath your feet.]
“Do you think I’m asking because I don’t know that? Who gave them the right to remodel this world however they pleased?! Why? Why…….”
DING-
A Mental Fortitude Adjustment message appeared before my eyes.
My anger slowly subsided.
‘Even getting angry is beyond my control.’
At that moment, my revulsion toward this world grew even deeper.
[There is good news as well. A Login Event happens to be underway, Akkun.]
RRRIP-
A fissure suddenly appeared before my face and spat something out.
【Ultimate Cupcake】
【Appraisal: This is truly the ultimate!】
It was the ultimate scrap of bread.
“Is this really the time to eat this garbage?!”
I hurled the ultimate fucking cupcake at the ground, but another fissure opened at its landing point with a RRRIP- and swallowed it.
It was the Inventory.
Its crushed mouth moved up and down as it spoke to me.
[Do not be foolish. This is the Ultimate Cupcake.]
“Now you’re borrowing the Inventory’s mouth to speak too? Doesn’t your jaw hurt?”
[I believe I already told you that the Guide and the Inventory are not living beings. I teach you one thing, and you fail to learn even that much.]
“It isn’t that I didn’t understand…… It’s simply difficult to accept.”
According to Grid, the Guide, the Inventory, and even the System, which I had assumed was their superior, were not intelligent beings.
The three of them were closer to mechanical components.
In other words, I had spent all this time becoming furious at machines, delivering impassioned speeches to them, and threatening them.
Even my deductions regarding Lv, EXP, and m as a unit of distance had merely taken a reasonable approach. Every conclusion had been wrong.
Grid remarked that I had made a respectable effort for a Bug.
I still was not certain whether that was praise or an insult.
‘……In any case, at least I know the truth now. That’s enough.’
Even a revolting truth was better than ignorance.
I released a heavy sigh and faced Grid.
“So…… let me make sure I understand. The people living in a dimension called Earth connected to this world because they mistook it for entertainment, correct?”
[A more accurate description would be an augmented-reality RPG. It should be regarded as a form of electronic entertainment.]
“That’s the same thing. And the six Administrators were the ones who invited the people of Earth into Amuse.”
[Correct.]
“Then what about you? Weren’t you once an Administrator too?”
[I was.]
“Why were you driven from that position? Why did the six current Administrators abandon you? Were you weaker than them?”
[Hierarchy held no meaning among us.]
“Hmm. I see.”
That was usually what bottom-rung nobodies said to protect their pride.
[It is about time you learned the truth as well. They once governed Amuse alongside me.]
“How long ago was that?”
[Imagine the largest number you can conceive.]
What was this supposed to accomplish?
[It was longer ago than that.]
“Hmm…… All right. Then why did you split apart if you were getting along?”
[We differed in perspective.]
Only red letters were visible within the black screen, but I instinctively sensed that Grid was displeased.
[Even when I pointed to the forest, they stared only at my fingernail. Imagine how frustrated I must have been. In the end, I banished them.]
“……What? You were the one with the authority to decide?”
[I was left alone, yet it caused no difficulties whatsoever. On the contrary, the quality of the stage improved. I was able to advance rapidly toward my ideal. Then, one day, a thought suddenly crossed my mind.]
Grid was seized by a complicated sense of disquiet.
[Could attaining everything mean that I would no longer be capable of growth? Could it mean that I would be unable to possess anything at all……? It was then that I confronted the emotion known as fear for the first time. That was only natural, for the question shook the very foundation of my essence.]
The black screen raised its head and faced the sky.
[I am Grid (Greed), greed itself. Do you understand? I was designed so that the more faithfully I lived according to my essence, the further I would stray from it. While I lamented that fact, my siblings appeared to save me.]
Siblings…… They seemed to be referring to the six Administrators.
[After being banished to other dimensions, they harbored resentment toward me. They put their heads together, disparaged me, and cultivated their hatred.]
Had they not just called that salvation?
[They proposed a single decisive contest, wagering their administrative authority over dimensions including Earth and Amuse. I immediately realized that the contest had been rigged to prevent me from winning easily.]
“……You didn’t.”
[The emptier you are, the more beautiful you become, Akkun. Only a being who possesses nothing retains the possibility of attaining everything.]
“You’re saying you accepted the wager even though you knew you would lose……?”
[^_^]
The black screen displayed a revolting smile.
[I will give you good news. One seat within the current Administration is vacant. It will be awarded to the Player ranked first in Amuse Online. Do you understand, Akkun? From this moment onward, you and I will strive for Rank 1. That moment will mark the beginning of our counterattack.]
“Grid.”
[Ask your question. I have only just accepted you into my collective─so──]
WHOOSH!
I swung my hand to the right, and Grid’s voice scattered from directly ahead of me toward the right.
BOOOOM!
The black screen slammed into a tree.
Cracks spread across one corner with a CRACK, and ink-black liquid and blood-red fluid streamed from the fissures.
[You have been consumed by rage─]
BOOOOM!
I slammed them into the ground, wrapped mana around the sole of my foot, and stomped down.
RUMBLE, RUMBLE, RUMBLE-
Each time I applied strength through my thigh and calf, the damp earth was crushed lower, driving Grid’s screen deeper into the ground.
The more deeply they were buried, the more distorted Grid’s emotions became, but they were unable to escape from beneath my foot.
【Necromancy】
The leash clenched tightly in my hand would not permit them to leave.
[What are you doing?]
“Can’t you tell after experiencing it yourself? You said you enjoyed falling to rock bottom, so I’m helping you! By your standards, wouldn’t this count as salvation too?!”
[The Mental Fortitude Adjustment should be functioning properly…… You have exceeded its limits, Akkun. Calm your emotions.]
“That request cannot be fulfilled. I’m not a psychopath like you who throws other people into hell for amusement…….”
[I governed all of Amuse’s history. I frequently observed people who discovered friendship after a quarrel. Is that the trite performance you desire? If so, I will gladly play along.]
“A quarrel? Between you and me?”
What an absurd thing to say.
A quarrel was something that occurred between equals.
“I don’t know how great you once were, but right now, you’re beneath my foot.”
[The craven coward still has a lively tongue.]
“How long are you going to keep using that? It’s no longer true.”
I had already cast off my Character Profile and gained some understanding of this world’s rules.
I had also identified the clear condition required to liberate the NPCs.
I needed to attain Rank 1.
Afterward, I needed to tear apart and kill every member of the Administration—Grid’s siblings.
Then everything would be fine.
Every problem could be resolved.
“Do you understand? I can do it without you, you damned bastard!”
[Hmm.]
“Lick the sole of my foot and beg desperately for your life. Otherwise, bow your head to the ground and apologize for abandoning Amuse! If you refuse both, I’ll have no choice but to kill you.”
[Your bluffing is excessive. You do not possess that degree of reckless courage.]
Even while being crushed beneath my foot, Grid continued to look down upon me.
[You maintain your reason even when your emotions consume you. Look at yourself now. Despite being devoured by rage, you have already calculated precisely that you still require me. The primary purpose of this childish farce must be to seize the initiative. Ultimately, you and I are already accomplices.]
The black screen moved as though tilting its head.
[More importantly, I arranged for your Character Profile to disappear the instant you erase my existence.]
They gave a faint laugh.
They had definitely laughed.
I could feel it.
[You are overwhelmed with confusion, Akkun. Your hand is trembling again. Will you disguise it as anger this time as well? It would certainly be more convincing than before, so go ahead and attempt to deceive me. I will gladly allow myself to be fooled.]
“…….”
[It is no longer a disguise.]
The focus vanished from Akkun’s pupils.
At the same time, crimson letters appeared between the two of them.
【Warning: Emotional Data has exceeded the permitted threshold. To preserve Object Integrity, the System will execute the Forced Stabilization Protocol.】
It was an excessively dramatic message, but Akkun’s two pupils, engulfed in crimson mana, were not focused upon the letters.
They had accurately located Grid’s soul within the black screen.
This was not a function of Necromancy.
[Blood does tell, after all.]
The cause lay within Akkun’s innate constitution.
Unfortunately, Akkun did not even notice the change taking place within him.
‘Kill.Kill.Kill.Kill.Kill.Kill.Kill.Kill.Kill.Kill.Kill.Kill.’
Those three letters had consumed him completely.
[The road ahead will be difficult.]
Grid sighed.
Had that one been under their command instead of Akkun, everything would have been far easier…… Yet it was too late for regrets.
They could simply rewrite him.
Teaching him to control his emotions had to come first.
CLICK-
Grid lowered a lever.
【Disabling Mental Fortitude Adjustment.】
A moment later, a terrible scream reverberated through the mountains of Arche.
Freed from the pressure of the leash, Grid floated elegantly into the air and gazed down at Akkun.
He sat collapsed upon the ground, spilling tears and vomit.
[Cast it aside quickly.]
The road ahead would be far more treacherous than this.
He could not afford to remain attached to trivial matters such as Golden and those two Players.