Mad Dog's Dead? Then He's Dead!

After leaving the general store, Sui saw that he still had time and couldn't bring himself to rent a hotel room.

He planned to find a secluded corner and reward himself, making a start on the first day of his skill quest.

He failed to notice a blurry figure moving along the wall behind him.

The figure was so well hidden that no one could make it out without getting close and looking carefully.

That sneaky man is obviously up to no good! Emma thought.

Emma Nilrath Defiel was now the gifted pillar of the Sisters of Pleasure, someone Sefni believed would become a saint one day.

She was a sorceress and the illegitimate daughter of the Nilrath family, one of the Rhodes Alliance's foremost noble houses. She had shown extraordinary talent from childhood.

Without even obtaining a Void Abyss Projection, she could enter the Void Abyss through meditation, and the great Twins of Pleasure had granted her their favor.

Later, when her father sent assassins after her and her mother, the power of the Void Abyss corrupted her, and she awakened her Void Abyss Projection.

The first time she used her power, she killed four assassins.

Before her mother died, she entrusted Emma to her dear friend Sefni, who took her in.

With the devoted care of all her older sisters and aunts, Emma flourished.

Now twenty, she was a level 16 sorceress who had mastered two S-rank blessings.

The skill she was using now was called Spirit Veil.

It let her merge with buildings, pass through walls, and blend in with her surroundings. It was incredibly useful.

That ability had made her the Sisters of Pleasure's finest spy.

In three years of carrying out missions alone, Emma had never once been exposed. She had succeeded wherever she went.

She followed Sui until she saw him sneak into a secluded, deserted alley.

I knew there was something wrong with him! He must have deceived Aunt Sefni!

With that thought, Emma merged into the wall and hurried after him.

She soon saw Sui facing a corner, doing something she couldn't make out.

His arm kept moving.

I've heard some secret codes use different rhythms of knocking to make contact. He must be contacting his superior!

Anger surged through Emma. She rushed through the wall, determined to catch him in the act!

But just as she reached the corner and faced Sui, before she could see what he was doing, an unknown liquid sprayed all over her face.

After a moment of stunned silence, Emma lost it.

"You damned corporate dog! How did you know I was following you?"

With a piercing shriek, Emma burst out of the wall and demanded an answer.

He had done that on purpose!

There was no way it was a coincidence!

Having completed today's skill quest, Sui sighed to himself:

That's day one. Twenty-nine to go. This skill is ridiculous.

Just then, a shriek came from inside the wall:

"You damned corporate dog! How did you know I was following you?"

Startled by the furious voice, Sui drew his gun and spun around to aim behind him.

Only then did he see a tall, curvaceous young woman dressed in purple gauze.

She had unusually red hair. Her fair, oval face was covered in an unknown liquid and twisted with rage.

Her purple eyes looked ready to spit fire.

Half her body was still inside the wall. Her shapely upper body jutted out as she glared at him.

Su Yi froze when he saw her.

[Name: Emma Nilrath Defiel.]

[Faction: Sisters of Pleasure (Spiritual Cultivation Faction)]

[Class: Monk Spy]

[Void Abyss Projection: Soul Serpent lv2]

[Level: 16]

[Health: 2900]

[Void Abyss Flow: 1400]

[Skills: ???]

(A gifted sorceress of the Sisters of Pleasure, currently furious at being humiliated.)

It's her!!

Su Yi knew who this person was—Emma Nilrath Defiel!

She was the final boss of version 0.5. After losing her loved ones one after another, she had suffered a breakdown. In despair, she traded everything she had for the power to take revenge and tried to drag the entire planet of Rhode Star down with her.

To defeat her, all 150 players in the closed beta had spent two months preparing and suffered four total party wipes.

By the time she died, she had caused at least two hundred thousand deaths across the Black Sun Group and the Rhodes Alliance.

And most of the dead had been upper- and middle-ranking nobles!

The purge she inflicted on their upper ranks had also made reform in the Rhodes Alliance possible, setting off the Great Revival Revolution in the latter half of the closed beta.

A powerful boss who hasn't gone bad yet!

Su Yi's eyes lit up. He had never expected to meet her here.

Then Su Yi spread his hands. "You've got the nerve to ask me?"

"I just bought the Self-Satisfaction skill from your people. What's wrong with using it here?"

Su Yi's innocent words and sincere gaze stopped Emma's fury in its tracks.

She remembered that Aunt Sefni had mentioned the Self-Satisfaction skill.

Thinking back on the effect of Self-Gratification... yes, that did seem to explain it.

"You! You damned pervert! If you want Self-Gratification, go home!"

Emma was mortified. Her beautiful face had turned dark red.

Before Sui could say a word, she slipped back into the wall and vanished without even wiping her face.

Su Yi blinked, then burst out laughing.

That girl is kind of interesting.

Emma did not occupy Su Yi's thoughts for long.

Since he intended to bring that group over to his side, Emma was naturally part of his plans.

But now was not the time to think about that plan.

Three hours later, Sui figured the time was about right and went to the door of private room number four.

Aolong came out on unsteady legs, his face glowing.

He had clearly drunk plenty and worn himself out, but he looked thoroughly refreshed.

As soon as he came out, he threw an arm around Sui's shoulders. "Sui! My dear Sui, you're a true friend!"

"This place is fantastic!"

Su Yi smiled. "As long as you enjoyed yourself, boss. If you like it, you can come back anytime."

The thought of returning delighted Auron even more. "Good, good! Well done, my dear Sui."

The two walked out of the nightclub with their arms around each other's shoulders.

Aolong took a deep breath of the cool night air. "I've been sick of Mad Dog for a long time. I imagine you feel the same?"

Su Yi smiled. "I don't have an opinion. It's entirely up to you, boss."

Aolong nodded, pleased with the answer.

Just then, Auron's phone rang.

He answered it, listened, and raised an eyebrow before saying calmly:

"Why panic? If he's dead, he's dead. He was just Mad Dog."

Auron hung up and turned to Sui, who still wore a mild smile.

Auron knew Sui had something to do with Mad Dog's death, but he had no intention of asking too many questions.

He had a feeling Sui would be far more useful to him than Mad Dog had been.

Still, he pressed him with a touch of sternness. "Su Yi, did you kill Mad Dog?"

Su Yi looked shocked. "What? Mad Dog's dead!? How is that possible?"

He raised a hand. "Boss, I swear in the name of the great Goddess of Black Cinders that I did not kill Mad Dog!"

"If so much as a drop of Mad Dog's blood is on my hands, may the goddess scourge me with her thorned whip and cast me into Chaos Hell forever!"

That surprised Auron. An oath sworn in a deity's name could come true.

If Sui dared swear that oath, then he really had not killed Mad Dog.

Aolong smiled. "No need to be nervous, my friend."

"It's even better if you didn't kill him. When the higher-ups investigate, your hands will be clean."

With that, Auron patted Sui on the shoulder.

"Well, then... congratulations, my friend. You've been promoted!"