Chapter 266: Psalms 118
The white void faded, giving way to clarity as Arthur and Alice stepped back into the science facility.
The images of Alice's past were still vivid in his mind. To think that an agent from the French government would actually be a player.
From her backstory, it dawned on him that Alice was no puppet of Elysium; she was a spy entrenched in a mission to dismantle the organization from the inside.
Her approach mirrored his but differed fundamentally. While he operated externally, targeting the root of the problem from the outside, Alice's efforts were solely to the game itself.
Beneath that shared goal was another, more pressing issue: the loyalty of the other players.
Arthur considered Alice's belief that not all of the players were complicit in Elysium's schemes, viewing most of them as innocents. She had faith in William, Jada, Margaret, and Jasper.
But Arthur knew better.
For instance, Jasper was the heir to the Reza Group, another rich entity like Elysium. Arthur saw Jasper through a clearer lens; while innocent, he was also dangerously ignorant.
Maybe the DRM was smart enough to train Alice physically and mentally, but emotionally, Alice was still lacking. Being in this psychological world of wars was not helping either.
Perhaps she did love Jasper enough for the two to be together if they survived this. Yet their love was most certainly being tried.
Then there was Alexander. That was where Alice's optimism fell completely apart. The intelligence agency she worked for dug into Alex's past, unable to uncover anything. And based on Arthur's dealings with Alex, that player was a wild card, possibly the most dangerous player here—even more so than Arthur himself, who was often looked at through a veil of fear.