Pick Me Up Infinite Gacha! Novel - Chapter 335
Chapter 335 – Purity for One Thing (6)
<Episode 6 of Aaron’s Parallel Story>
***
A spacious and dark room.
On the walls were screens of various sizes.
The screens displayed scenes of an ongoing massacre.
It was a cleanup operation to locate the traitors in the city.
«……»
Men, women, children, and the elderly.
Anyone who showed the slightest discontent or negative thoughts towards the Pick Me Up Project was eliminated.
The freedom of expression proclaimed by Ikar had turned into a test of betrayal.
The records of the past had led them to death.
«What do you think of that scene?»
An elder in a cloak spoke.
His assistant beside him responded briefly.
«It is an operation to eliminate the rebellious elements within the city.»
«Rebellious elements?»
«They are those who did not cooperate with the project or expressed their intention to escape. Now is the time for everyone to work together. They didn’t measure up.»
The elder burst into laughter.
«I understand. That’s how you see it.»
The elder’s name was LeCardis.
He was the supreme god known as the Divine Manifestation, respected by all.
He was now known as Alpha Zero and led the Pick Me Up Project.
«As for me.»
LeCardis looked at his loyal assistant.
«They called me the Wise God, but they did not know my true heart.»
«You know everything, Lord LeCardis.»
«You flatter me too much. Haha.»
LeCardis took a small silver box from his pocket.
Inside were a cigar and a luxury lighter.
«But I realized. When that girl came to see me this morning, I discovered the desires of my heart.»
The elder placed the cigar in his mouth.
The assistant lit the lighter for him.
«That girl confessed to me.»
She wanted to revive Mobius.
She wanted to give those children a chance.
No matter the sacrifice.
The smoke from the cigar began to rise.
The elder, enjoying the aroma of the strong cigar, spoke.
«I gave her advice. What that girl should do.»
«……»
«Haha. Should I call it advice? Actually, it was my desire. No, it wasn’t advice. I imposed my desire on that girl.»
LeCardis explained his plan to the young goddess who had faithfully followed him for a long time.
He told her that there might be a possibility if she used that method.
And the goddess of mercy accepted the proposal.
«What did she truly love?»
The smoke from the cigar filled the room.
«Did she love Mobius or did she love Mobius’s life? The answer is the former. If she could save Mobius, she didn’t care about the rest.»
«……»
«Who would have thought that this old body harbored such a strong desire? Why did I choose this path knowing the consequences? So, what do you think, Sijel?»
The assistant named Sijel did not respond.
She just bowed her head.
«I only follow the Divine Manifestation.»
The elder chuckled softly.
Bang!
The door to the monitoring room broke immediately after.
«Ah, Grandfather. You were hiding here.»
«How… you…?»
LeCardis stopped his assistant, who tried to raise a weapon.
«Ah, haha. Grandfather, enjoying your cigar in peace?»
Tel, covered in blood, laughed.
Her red eyes shone between her disheveled hair.
«How is the cleanup operation going?»
«Don’t worry. It’s going well. Very well. If I had known before, I would have eaten them all a long time ago.»
«Can you handle the side effects of contamination?»
«Of course. No matter how much I mix, I’m fine. Because I am the goddess of purity. I don’t get dirty. Haha.»
Tel had already devoured hundreds of gods and thousands of spirits.
Any other god would have gone mad or deformed by the data contamination.
But Tel maintained her sanity, albeit minimal.
It was just as LeCardis had calculated.
«Grandfather.»
Tel spoke with a serpent-like voice.
«Do you know why I let you live?»
«Insolent…!»
«Because you are useful. Useful to revive Mobius. Be grateful.»
«And I am.»
LeCardis smiled.
«Grandfather, was it you who deceived Ikar?»
«I do not deny it.»
«Wow, impressive. If he had committed suicide, Tel, who loves her sister, would do everything to revive Mobius, right? Isn’t that so?»
LeCardis put a second cigar in his mouth.
«And you are really acting like this, aren’t you?»
Crack.
A crunch was heard.
Tel had clenched her fist so tightly that the bones broke.
Blood dripped from her nails embedded in her flesh.
«I will kill you.»
Tel pronounced each word carefully.
«When the time comes, I will kill you. I will make you regret being born. Grandfather. Remember that. Do not forget.»
«But that time is not now.»
«Haha.»
Tel laughed emptily.
Then, her laughter turned into a cackle.
«Haha, haha.»
Suddenly, her expression changed.
«Well, grandfather. Is the game ready?»
«Go to the Throne of the Cosmos. With your current power, you should be able to control it.»
«Did you really make the game according to my old plan?»
«So I did. Ikar’s game plan, which consisted of advancing in stages through dialogues and persuasion between heroes, was never approved.»
«Everything was a lie and a deception.»
From the beginning, LeCardis had created a game based on a plan that Tel had written as a joke during the initial development.
That was the real Pick Me Up.
LeCardis looked at the view in the monitoring room.
The smoke rose from his cigar once again.
The assistant leaned beside him.
«Your future self will surely resent your present self.»
«……»
«Remember this, Sijel. If you ever meet your future self, it will be completely different from your current self.»
«What do you mean by that?»
«Haha! I apologize to your future self. Dealing with my legacy will not be easy. That is often the end of an old god consumed by desire.»
The elder narrowed his eyes.
There was a time when all beings of Mobius worshipped the elder.
They adored him as a god with heavenly eyes who could see the past and predict the future.
«Is there hope?»
He did not see it.
Even listing billions of possibilities, the light beyond was barely visible.
«Although not now.»
If he endured, if he gained time, would a new door of possibilities open?
The elder did not know.
Even a god with heavenly eyes could not observe a future so distant.
He needed time.
Anyway, he needed time to find another way.
However, if after all that time he did not find a way to save Mobius, what would he think of himself?
«Mobius, forgive me. Forgive me, please…»
The elder closed his eyes and, with a voice full of remorse, begged for forgiveness.
* * *
Ding.
The elevator reached the lowest basement floor.
Tel staggered out of the elevator.
She walked down a narrow hallway.
«Hehe, hehehe.»
Blood dripped with every step.
The contaminated blood leaked from her body.
These were the side effects of excessive synthesis.
Tel muttered, «I’m fine, I’m fine.»
Then she stopped and, in a completely different tone, said, «No, I’m not fine. I resent you.»
The delusions and hallucinations’ side effects tormented her constantly.
An extreme mental illness.
However, deep in her heart, there was a flame that did not extinguish.
«I must save Mobius.»
Because that was her pure purpose.
She vowed to sacrifice everything for that sole purpose.
Tel stumbled towards the prepared place.
She finally arrived at the room.
The ancient gods called this place the Throne of the Cosmos.
In this place, modeled after the shape of the universe, countless dimensions associated with Mobius could be observed.
But that universe was now in darkness.
All the dimensions had been destroyed.
It was necessary to bring light back to the universe.
«……»
Tel stopped in the center of the room.
Originally, only LeCardis had permission to manipulate the Throne of the Cosmos.
But now Tel could do it too.
She had absorbed hundreds of gods and thousands of spirits, surpassing the limits of divinity.
It was necessary.
She needed to devour those beings.
Tel raised her right hand.
The universe began to rotate slowly.
«<That old man said that the pieces couldn’t be fitted from the 80th floor of the tower.>»
She recalled a hallucination of Hegrian.
«<The broken dimensions do not connect well. Holding them is the best we can do. If we try to force them up to the 100th floor… the army of eons will come and devour this place in an instant. With all our might, we won’t be able to hold out for even an hour.>»
Fully restoring it was impossible.
Maintaining them was the limit.
If they forced them together, Mobius would collapse in an instant.
«It’s okay.»
Tel grinned crookedly.
«We just need them to be alive, right? As long as they don’t die, it’s fine.»
Tel raised her left hand.
LeCardis had prepared everything. Infusing power was all that was left.
Boom!
The small universe that slowly rotated began to tremble.
«Ugh! Cough!»
Tel spewed a mouthful of blood.
In exchange for moving the universe, Tel’s existence was disintegrating.
Crack!
Her torn skin sprayed blood.
The extreme pain enveloped Tel.
«Haha.»
Her body tore apart alive.
At the same time, she could only regenerate repeatedly.
Bones broke and entrails were shredded.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The Throne of the Cosmos shook violently.
A miracle was happening.
Causations were being reversed, time was rewinding.
Returning to that moment when countless stars shone in the multiverse.
To when there was still light in Mobius.
«Ah, after all, this isn’t working so well.»
However, just as she was about to completely rewind, the rotation stopped.
Tel waved her right hand.
The universe tore apart.
Like a huge jigsaw puzzle, it split into an infinite number of pieces.
«Let’s start.»
Tel began to hear a sound in her ears.
That sound, a majestic orchestra played by a grand symphony.
Tel became the orchestra conductor and waved her hand.
[System activated.]
[Initiating game setup.]
The first ‘system’ began to work.
[RPG summoning type Hyper Rogue]
[Pick Me Up!]
[Loading……]
A mobile game.
Yes, a mobile game.
Tel extended both arms to the sides.
The puzzle pieces, split infinitely, began to vibrate on their own.
Each puzzle piece, a dimension.
Rise, awaken.
For I have come to awaken you.
Vrrr!
The puzzle pieces scattered.
And then.
Boom!
A tower began to rise above each puzzle piece.
Within the towers were fragments of broken dimensions.
«Yes, you will reassemble them.»
Reverse it.
Arm the causality of destruction.
Change fate.
Tel waved her left hand elegantly.
Like a conductor orchestrating a symphony.
The lives that were meant to die awakened.
The children of Mobius, who slept deeply, opened their eyes.
Tel made them an offer.
«I will give you a chance.»
A chance to change fate.
An irresistible offer.
She whispered with a sweet voice.
Chance? Offer? No.
This is a command.
«Hehe, jaja.»
Isn’t this what you wanted?
Instead of dying alone, you asked Ikar to save you.
I am granting that wish.
Come, fight among yourselves.
Divide into heroes and monsters, and entertain those Earth insects.
Devour each other.
Absorb each other.
Kill each other.
You will grow stronger.
Isn’t it great?
Do they say the heroes in Pick Me Up are truly alive?
They are completely different from Earth’s AIs.
Can they use living humans as game pieces?
Because it’s a game.
It’s just a game!
«Hahaha!»
Tel waved both hands.
The symphony of destruction began to play.
«Aaaaah!»
«Goddess, mercy, please, mercy!»
«We beg for your forgiveness!»
The heroes inside the towers began to beg for mercy uncontrollably.
An endless pain.
A constant despair.
«I curse you, I curse you.»
«Tel!»
«Aaaah!»
You can beg for mercy or curse me.
[Account created!]
[Initiating scenario distribution.]
[Loading……]
Each account has a dimension and a tower.
But from the 90th floor of the tower, everything is incomplete.
«Does it matter?»
As long as «they are alive» is enough.
No matter in what state.
Even if they are torn apart, waiting to die in a bed, begging in the pain of hell.
«Isn’t this what you wanted?»
I will never let them die.
I will continue that dirty, persistent life.
I will sew their flesh, mend their entrails, manipulate their brain.
I will turn them into a pile of rags, but they will still be alive.
«Hahaha, jaja, ja, jajajaja!»
Oh, of course.
Players will also have to pay a price.
You know, right?
Playing with life and death is not a game.
Yes, you.
The one who starts the game as if nothing.
Tel smiled.
* * *
Winter, night in Seoul.
A cold wind swept through the streets.
<Quick personal loans! 300,000 won with one call!>
An illegal loan leaflet was carried by the wind.
Occasionally, passing cars honked.
Ding.
A bell installed above the glass door made a clear sound.
It was a device to alert when a customer entered the store.
«……»
A young man coming out of the convenience store looked at the loan leaflet.
Soon, he glanced at the street, as if not interested.
The young man, with the hood of his jacket covering his head, was hard to distinguish.
In one hand, he held a white plastic bag.
In the bag were lunch and a drink bought at the convenience store.
«……?»
The young man looked at the building sign across the street.
There was an advertisement on the sign.
<Join Pick Me Up with me! Join Pick Me Up with us! Everyone play Pick Me Up!>
The slogan of the ad was displayed at the top of the sign.
‘Not this ad again?’
The young man clicked his tongue.
It was an ad he had seen to exhaustion on TV, on YouTube, in the subway.
It was the new game, Pick Me Up, that was gaining popularity.
They used the slogan ‘The heroes in the game are alive’ for aggressive advertising.
‘Boring.’
The fairy, Iselle, the game’s mascot, was dancing cheerfully on the sign.
It was an addictive advertising dance, but honestly, he was tired of seeing it.
«Hmm.»
Nevertheless, he had nothing to do lately.
They say the heroes in the game are alive, right?
Is the artificial intelligence so advanced?
He suddenly felt curious.
A strange, inexplicable attraction.
The young man took out his phone as he walked towards his house.
‘Pick Me Up, huh?’
He entered the app store and saw a large-scale ad.
‘Number 1 in sales in both stores?’
That’s what it said.
His curiosity kept increasing.
Unknowingly, the young man pressed the install button.
The distance between the convenience store and his house was considerable.
It seemed that the installation was completed before he arrived.
The game was loading, and the main screen opened.
[The abandoned land of Niflheim, dominated by the White Demons.]
[In this era of darkness, a mysterious enemy invades.]
The graphics were not that good.
The prologue was running on the screen.
[Finally, the continent is shattered by the power of darkness.]
[But there is still hope.]
[You, the Master, if you want to save the world, climb the tower.]
[Many heroes will accompany you.]
When the video ended, a message appeared.
[First, write the Master’s name!]
Name.
A name.
It didn’t take him long to think.
The young man entered a nickname.
[Loki]
[Name available. Do you want to use it?]
[Yes / No]