CHAPTER 317: INTERLUDE: BANDITKING

Jeremy Dilldus couldn’t stop laughing when he saw the notification appeared before his eyes that the game had become real.

Honestly it was like a dream come true to him. Nobody took him seriously when they looked at his name. Now he would make sure that people feared him.

When he saw the quest path pop up, he didn’t hesitate to choose the Villainous Path.

The rewards were clearly stated and much better suited his desires. Rather than help others, he would rather help himself.

He reached out his hand and his inventory item list popped up as if it was reading his mind. He snickered menacingly as he pulled out his dagger

"Today is going to be fun~!" He snickered.

Jeremy’s laughter died in his throat the moment the notification scrolled past.

[System Notice: The 8 Level 20 Players of Prime City have made their choices. They have all chosen Heroic Nature. As a result, All Villainous Players shall receive Buffs in Compensation.]

His expression froze. His eyes twitched. And then slowly, like venom seeping into a wound, his grin warped into something ugly.

"Level twenty?" he echoed under his breath, voice tight. "Eight of them?"

He had barely scraped his way to Level 10 thanks to a lucky encounter with a wounded elite mob that dropped a rare dagger. He’d been smug about it for days. Thought he was ahead of the curve. Thought he was finally going to be somebody in this game. But twenty?

His gut twisted.

He wasn’t on that list. Not even close.

And then the realization hit him like a punch to the ego.

It had to be Ouroboros.

That smooth-talking, cold-blooded bastard. Everyone knew him. The cool guy with the thousand-yard stare and the perfect jawline. The type who said almost nothing and still had people hanging on every word. The type who probably didn’t even try, but still had the best gear, the best stats, the best girls. Like life just handed him power on a silver platter.

Jeremy’s face contorted with rage. "It’s always him," he hissed. "Of course it’s him. Of course he got to Level 20. I bet he didn’t even struggle. Probably strolled through the quests while the system begged to kiss his feet."

His hands clenched around the dagger, knuckles pale. The edge glinted in the dim light, catching the faint shimmer of the Villainous buff kicking in. His stats were rising, just like the notification said. More agility. More critical rate. More power for players like him.

It should’ve been enough. It wasn’t.

Jeremy’s lips curled back in a sneer. "You think you’re untouchable, huh? You think just ’cause you’re handsome and quiet and mysterious, you get to be the hero?"

He stepped forward, his cloak fluttering behind him as he walked deeper into the alleys of Prime City.

"Fine. Be the hero. I hope the system worships you. I hope you get a shiny title and a cape and all the little peasants clap when you walk by."

He spat.

"Because when I stab you in the back and take everything you’ve got, that’s when they’ll know who the real legend is."

His eyes gleamed with raw, festering jealousy. His smile returned but now it was twisted and twitchy, all teeth and spite.

"Enjoy your head start, Ouroboros. I’ll be coming for it."

Though of course, Jeremy was no fool. He proceeded to call all of his subordiantes and made sure that they too had chosen the villainous path.

He quickly gave orders to his foolish minions. He didn’t care if they lived or died but if they helped him complete his quest, their death was a sacrifice he was willing to make.

"Now it’s time for a little revenge~!" He snarled as he disappeared from his basement apartment like a trail of smoke.

He emerged into the city with the system still glowing faintly in his vision, the Villainous buff coursing through his body like adrenaline. His feet moved quickly, and his mind was already buzzing with ideas. There were no rules anymore. No police sirens. No cameras. No moderators. Just opportunity.

And Jeremy Dilldus thrived on opportunity.

He saw a man locking up a storefront and didn’t hesitate. He dashed forward, slammed the man into the pavement, and stabbed him through the back. The system rewarded him with a soft ping and a faint shimmer of red along his blade. He stared at it for a moment, then grinned.

"Guess that answers one question," he said to no one in particular. "The system likes this."

People were running in every direction. Some screamed. Others fought. Some tried to help. Jeremy watched one guy using a healing spell on a wounded woman near a collapsed kiosk. Jeremy flicked his dagger once and drove it into the man’s neck, then kicked him aside as blood began to pool at his feet.

Helping others?" he mocked as he stepped over the body. "You deserve to lose."

He made his way toward the financial district with a growing pack of like-minded scum trailing behind him. Most were scared, confused, unsure of what to do, but Jeremy gave them orders. Simple ones. Smash the glass. Take what you can carry. If someone fights back, kill them. If they don’t, kill them anyway.

He wasn’t interested in gold. He didn’t need money. Money would be worthless if society collapsed.

What he needed was violence.

Every act of cruelty gave him a little more power. The system was feeding on chaos. Encouraging it. He could feel it. The more he indulged, the more alive he felt.

But even all of this, the looting, the killing, the fear in people’s eyes...It was just the warmup.

The real prize was still out there.

Nyx.

The vicious monkey who had been responsible for his first game death. She had snuck up on him and hit him with a cheap blow. He was sure that in a head on confrontation that he would be able to easily overpower her.

He began to pray that he would run into her again. His mouth twisted into a cruel grin as he pictured what he would do when she was finally in his grasp.

It wasn’t enough to just kill her. No. That would be too simple. Too clean. Too easy.

He imagined dragging her back to some dark corner, somewhere no one could hear her screams. He would strip her of everything.Her body would become a canvas for his twisted revenge.

He’d break her fingers one by one, just enough so she couldn’t make a fist but not enough to kill her. Then he’d crush her legs until she couldn’t jump or run, trapping the monkey girl on the ground like the helpless pest she was. Every broken bone would be a reminder of the moment she humiliated him, over and over.

He licked his lips and tightened his grip on his dagger. This wasn’t just revenge.

It was domination.

And when he finally caught her, Nyx wouldn’t be a monkey girl anymore.

She’d be his Toy

And the whole city would be his sandbox