Black Online

"I need your help."

The words echoed in Anna’s ears, and she took in those words like they were a sweet lullaby.

A small smile came to her face, but she then quickly hid it, crossed her arms, and turned her head around to scoff at him.

"Hmph! Why would I want to help you? You caused the death of my character, and I need to start from scratch.

"Three years of work to waste. Thousands of hours!"

She fumed.

But it wasn’t quite obvious whether it was fake anger or real, as she seemed like she was acting with some truth sprinkled in.

"You killed yourself. Do not pin that on me. And besides, you owe me for those Learning Balls."

Fang Raon said.

"...Hmm~ I was planning to give you those Learning Balls, so I don’t owe you another favor."

Anna said with a smug smile.

"...Sigh, then what is it that you want?"

Fang Raon asked with a heavy sigh.

With a bright smile, Anna turned to him, as if she had been expecting him to ask that question, but before she could say anything, Raon added.

"And I am not joining your guild."

He had a hunch that she was going to ask that, so he shut her down right away.

Anna pouted, but she wasn’t planning to ask that because she knew that he would say no, so she had something else in mind.

"I wasn’t going to ask. There is something else I want from you. If you do that for me, I’ll help you with this little problem of yours."

She said.

"What is it?"

Fang Raon asked with furrowed brows.

"You know, I have to make a new character and start back from scratch. I need to climb from all the way from the 1st floor to the 27th floor, and I would like some company.

"If you do that with me, I’ll help with that engagement."

Anna said.

"...How can we even do that? I can’t re-do those floor bosses, as I’ve already defeated them, unless I join you over at the 16th floor."

Fang Raon said with a frown.

"Hehe, silly. I am not talking about your main character. Make another character with a new game card, who is level 1, and start from the beginning with me."

Anna said.

"Wait, you can do that?"

Fang Raon said in surprise.

"Not with normal means. The ordinary game card doesn’t allow making a secondary character if your main character is still alive.

"However.

"There is a more expensive game card that allows a second character, but it has some limitations, like you cannot make your second character into the same class as your main character.

"So you cannot play as Warrior."

Anna said.

’That is very time-consuming, as I have training to do with Rock, and then I have all this stuff going on in real life. And helping Anna with this... There aren’t enough hours in the day to make it work.’

Fang Raon said with a troubled look, and Anna happened to notice it, and therefore, she decided to ask the following:

"What is it?"

"It’s very time consuming. I have a lot of stuff going on. Otherwise, I wouldn’t mind helping you out."

He said.

"I think we can make it work. I know you have stuff over at that shitty guild you’re part of, and who knows what Father will make you do.

"All I am asking is to spare a few hours late at night to help me."

Anna said.

"It’ll then take forever for you to reach back to the 27th floor."

Fang Raon said.

He also preferred that Anna get to the 27th floor fast because of Raikou and what he might be doing to her business.

"Nope. While you’re doing other stuff, I’ll be online to gather for us the Tower Keys, supplies, et cetera. I’ll also assist you in leveling up whatever class you choose."

Anna said.

’That could work if she does most of the heavy lifting, and I will only be there helping her with the boss raids.

’I am sure she can also gather a party by herself as she has always been good at networking and making connections with other people.

’It could work.’

Fang Raon crossed his arms and thought about it a little bit longer.

"...I also want those Learning Balls as soon as possible."

"They’ll be on the 27th floor. I will give them once I’ve reached there with my new character."

Anna said.

"...Alright then, I’ll help you."

Fang Raon said.

Anna immediately smiled, and she wrapped her arms around him and gave a tight squeeze with her hug.

"This’ll be so fun!"

She said excitedly.

"Nn."

Fang Raon smiled slightly and gave her a pat on the head, and she then raised her head to look him in the eye.

She was head shorter than him, but she acted so confident that onlookers might think that she was actually as tall as him.

"I will go handle this engagement of yours. I need you to go somewhere public so Father doesn’t suspect you of doing this."

Anna said.

"What about you? He’ll accuse you next."

Fang Raon said.

"Silly brother, I know what I am doing. Trust me."

Anna winked, and with an excited look, she picked up her camera from the table and skipped out of the room.

’She is a scary one.’

Fang Raon thought with a sigh, and he then put his hands inside his pockets and walked out of the room.

’Somewhere public... The guests have already pretty much left, but maybe I can find Nero from somewhere and have a talk with him. He can be my alibi.’

He thought.

...

A morning dawned.

A lone tree stood in the yard of the Fang Family’s mansion. It had been there for generations, its branches reaching towards the sky like skeletal fingers grasping onto the last remnants of sunlight.

It had been here before the village. Before the mansion. It might’ve been here before the rise of all these mountains.

However.

At this moment, there was something stuck in the tree—a photograph, a very illicit image of a man and woman.

Whisper~ whisper~

Servants and butlers of the mansion were gathered around the tree, gossiping and pointing at the scandalous photograph.

"...Unbelievable."

"...And just yesterday they got engaged, and she went and did this. What a horrible woman for her to do this to the young master.

"...The young master will be very sad. He has been fighting such a deadly illness, and now his fiancée did this... Just horrible."

They felt sympathetic.

"What is going on in here?"

At that moment, Sebastian walked over after seeing them gather around the tree, and they stiffened like the tree in front of them.

"S-Sir Sebastian..."

They didn’t know what to say, so they just moved out of the way and gave Sebastian an obstructed view of the tree and the photograph.

"..."

When Sebastian saw the photograph, his blood ran cold, and he then turned around, and he started running back to the mansion.

A while later.

"WHERE IS IT?!"

Ronin shouted, and he ran like his feet were on fire, and then he came across the tree and saw the photograph.

"For the fuck sak—"

He was about to rip the photograph off the tree, but then a hand grabbed his wrist, stopping him in his tracks.

"?!"

Ronin looked over, and his heart dropped to the pit of his stomach, as Aizen, the lord of the Fang Family, was standing behind him with a dark look in his eyes.

He looked at the photograph coldly.

"What is the meaning of this?"

Aizen asked, his voice icy and threatening.

Ronin was speechless.

The word had already spread, and more and more people were coming to check out the photograph.

Tap~ tap~

Then, Nero walked over, his walking cane tapping on the ground, and with him, Fang Raon also walked over.

"I cannot see, unfortunately. Mind telling me what exactly is going on?"

Nero asked.

Even with his Read, it was quite difficult to make sense of the photograph, as with Read, he saw everything black and blue.

"...There is a photograph nailed to a tree. It is a photograph of your granddaughter, sleeping naked with one of the male servants of the mansion."

Fang Raon said with a hurtful tone.

It was obvious to everyone that heard him that he was in a lot of pain, and they looked at him with pity.

However.

He was, of course, acting.

’Anna... You sly one.’

Fang Raon had to hide his smile.

"Son?!"

Nero roared in anger after he heard Raon, and he saw that his son, Ronin, was so stunned that he couldn’t speak.

"What’s going on over here?"

At that moment, everyone looked over as Juniper walked over to see what the commotion was about and saw that everyone was looking at her very unfriendly.

It was odd.

Why were they so unfriendly towards her all of a sudden?

In that moment.

She saw the photograph on the tree, and she screamed in shock, and she quickly went to the tree and ripped the photograph off of it.

It was because the photograph included her—sleeping naked without even a blanket on—it was very embarrassing!

She then noticed that the photograph also had someone sleeping next to her—someone she didn’t recognize!

"Juniper."

Ronin’s low voice reached her ear, and she turned around, her face so pale that it might as well have been painted white.

"I-I-I..."

"MY OFFICE. NOW!"

Aizen roared, and he turned around and walked off, and then Ronin grabbed Juniper by her ponytail and dragged her behind him.

"I am sorry, son."

Nero touched Fang Raon’s shoulder and walked after Aizen.