“There’s nothing we can do right now,” Adam said with a sigh as Aris began drawing circles on his chest. “Whoever kidnapped her will go off the radar for now. I doubt even the Soul Reapers will find anything right away. But I’ll have my people infiltrate the dregs of society so that when the kidnapper makes another attempt, we’ll catch them in the act.”

  That was Adam’s plan for now. Infiltrate the criminal underworld, gather information on the most likely candidates for someone looking to hire a kidnapper, and watch them for any signs of someone contacting them to kidnap Susan. They would need to be fast. Once someone made contact and hired them, the Soul Reapers would have to act even before the kidnapping attempt occurred to trace the middleman back to the real culprit before they could remove all the evidence.

  An operation like this could take months or even years.

  He sighed.

  This would cut down the Soul Reapers’ efficiency within the game by at least thirty percent.

  As Adam lamented the loss of his forces’ prowess in Age of Gods, a loud gurgling erupted from the young woman lying on top of him. He blinked. Then he looked down at Aris, who stared at him with those imploring eyes of hers.

  He sighed several seconds later.

  “I’ll go make us some breakfast,” he said at last.

  “Yay! I want pancakes.”

  “Pancakes it is.”

  Recruitment Drive

  He stared at the object resting on a pedestal beyond the window.

  The window itself was quite thick. It wasn’t made of glass either. He had created this window by mixing a variety of substances that couldn’t be produced by anyone but him. It blocked out all forms of energy and radiation.

  Given the amount of energy the object was radiating, such precautions were necessary.

  “How are the energy readings?” he asked.

  “Energy readings are fluctuating, but they are within our expectations. There’s no danger of The Arch overloading,” someone said. It was one of the workers sitting at a computer station. The holographic monitor before him displayed all kinds of information. Even though the way he rapidly typed on the computer made him seem lively, his eyes were dead like a corpse’s.

  He nodded. “Good. Good. And how’s the time compression process coming along?”

  “Proceeding smoothly.”

  “How much energy did it use up?”

  “It used up more than ninety percent of the energy we gathered from players.”

  “Ninety percent.” He sighed. “Meaning I am still far from my goal. Well, that’s fine. That’s fine. The game has just started, after all, and my plans are nowhere near finished. Continue the operation.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  Twice a year, the Pleonexia Alliance held a recruitment drive to bring fresh blood into their guild. The drive was held at the same place every time.

  Belphegor woke up early that morning and made his way to a place called South Cove. It was located on the tip of what had once been Lower Manhattan, past the now-destroyed Chinatown.

  This place used to contain several memorials and museums, but those had been destroyed during the bombings in World War III. The Pleonexia Family had bought the area at some point. Now it was used by their guild to recruit new people who would be placed in various positions within the guild.

  Belphegor stood within the sea of people. Despite being surrounded on all sides, with people jockeying around to get a better position as if that would somehow give them an advantage, Belphegor remained untouched. He casually dodged bodies with ease. It was like he was a ghost.

  He was in the middle of this massive tide of humanity. Near the front, toward the tip of the straight just before the Diamond Reef was a platform upon which a dozen people stood.

  These people were middle management and in charge of recruiting. While they weren’t important in the grand scheme of things, Belphegor still made sure to memories their names, along with their hobbies, interests, likes, dislikes, what kind of foods they ate, and even their morning routines. Thanks to Belial’s intelligence, he knew everything there was to know about the group in charge of allowing new members to join.

  “I can hardly wait to show these people what I’m made of! I’m sure to impress them with my incredible talent!” someone to his left suddenly said.

  “Ha! You think you’re talented? Bitch, you’ve only just reached level 12 in Age of Gods. I’m already close to reaching level 14.”

  “That’s because you joined a smaller guild! I worked my butt off all by myself! That’s way more impressive!”

  “As if! I suppose we’ll just have to leave it to the judges to decide.”

  “Bring it on!”

  Belphegor sighed as he listened to these people get into a dick-fighting contest. Why so many humans felt the need to compete against each other was beyond him. It was a huge waste of time.

  “Settle down, everyone!” one of the people said into a microphone that was attached to several speakers hovering in the sky.

  The person who spoke was older than most. He had gray hair, wrinkles around his eyes, and stood with a stoop. His name was Kalvin Hobbs. He was sixty years old, but he would turn sixty-one next month. Not only was he the oldest among the recruiters, but he had worked for the Pleonexia Family since before Levon took over it.

  Out of all the people present, he was the one Belphegor wanted to impress the most.

  The group of people quieted down.

  “Excellent. My name is Kalvin Hobbs, and I’m in charge of recruitment. Behind me are my assistants, who will be helping me determine which among you are good enough to join the Pleonexia Alliance.”

  No one said anything, but many of the people present shifted on the balls of their feet, listening with anticipation.

  “The Pleonexia Alliance has a long and storied history. Our group rose from the ashes of the American Federation in the wake of World War III and have helped rebuild this nation from the ground up. As the most powerful guild within the American Federation, we only accept the best and the brightest into our ranks. I can see there are at least several thousand of you here, but only several hundred will be selected to join. If you fail to join now, don’t worry. You can wait for another six months and try again, or you can always join one of the branch guilds.”

  Due to their size and strength, the Pleonexia Alliance had the right to be picky with who they recruited. Belphegor had done his research. Only one to two hundred people were chosen per recruitment drive out of the tens of thousands who participated.

  “Now, then. Allow me to explain the test for those of you who are participating for the first time. There are three trials you must complete. The first trial is a written test. This test will ask a number of questions about different scenarios you may find yourselves in as part of the Pleonexia Alliance. It’s designed to see your problem-solving skills and deductive reasoning. The second test is a physical examination. Because we are more than just a guild that plays video games, there will be times when you must use your physical body to accomplish a task. We want to make sure you are healthy enough to complete the tasks required of you. The third trial will be to compete against one of our members in a duel within a virtual simulator that has been created based on Age of Gods. I’ll warn you now, all of our members are experts who have reached level 17 in Age of Gods. You won’t have an easy time fighting against them.”

  Several people gulped. Belphegor could only assume most of these people were still at level 15 and below. He had reached level 18 by the time Age of Gods shut down to implement its new time compression system.

  “If you’re all ready, then I want you to form twelve lines. Remember to have your documents prepared. We don’t accept anyone who doesn’t have proper documentation,” Kalvin said.

  Belphegor lined up with everyone else. Because he was somewhere in the middle, it took several hours before it was his turn.

  He eventually reached the front. The assistant he stood before was a young woman in her early twenties. She had mousy brown hair, brown eyes, and pale skin. She looked like those unassuming librarian types, especially with the large wire-rimmed glasses sitting on her nose.

  Optical technology had advanced significantly within the last ten years. Not only could a person’s vision be healed with a single surgery, but it was very cheap. This woman didn’t wear glasses because she needed them. It was a style she liked.

  Her name was Ophelia. She was twenty-four years-old, never had a boyfriend, and her parents had died of Mortems Disease when she was fourteen. She joined the Pleonexia Alliance two years ago. Her hobbies outside of gaming were reading and playing erotic reverse harem visual novels.

  She also only liked 2D men.

  “Identification?” Ophelia asked.

  Belphegor said nothing as he handed his identification documents over to Ophelia. She ran a scanner over the documents, which flashed red several times before lighting up green.

  “You’re all clear. Go wait over there,” she said, handing the documents back to Belphegor.

  “Understood.”

  Belphegor moved off to the side where several dozen people were being directed toward a building some distance away by another assistant.

  The building looked like a square. It had no windows and only a single door. The interior was as bare as the exterior. Several computer stations were lined up in rows of ten. Belphegor and the others were directed to sit at the computer stations.

  “The test will begin in fifteen minutes,” the assistant said. He was a middle-aged man whose hair had not yet begun to gray. The shirt he wore was filled out with muscles, the fabric stretching taught across his shoulders and chest.

  His name was Anton Demascus. He was thirty-five and his hobby was sleeping with women. According to Belial’s report, this man had convinced several women into providing sexual favors in exchange for being let into the Pleonexia Alliance, though he was careful to never force anyone into it. That was how he managed to avoid getting arrested.

  “The test is beginning now,” Anton announced. “Turn on your computers and begin.”

  A holographic screen appeared as he turned on the computer. He typed in the basic information about himself when requested, then began going through the test.

  “I’m so glad you’re okay, Su. You can’t imagine how worried I was when I realized you’d been kidnapped,” Fayte said as she hugged the girl.

  “I-I’m sorry for worrying you,” Susan returned the hug.

  “What are you apologizing for? If anything, we should be the ones saying sorry. We didn’t even realize what was happening until it was too late,” Aris said. She was not part of the hug, but that was only because she was waiting her turn.

  Adam stood off to the side, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed as he watched the proceedings. His face was covered by a mask just like in the game.

  The three of them had left early this morning and gone to Susan’s house. Aris and Fayte wanted to check on their friend, worried about how she was doing after such a harrowing experience.

  Adam had been reluctant to go at first, but he capitulated when Aris gave him her infamous puppy dog eyes. He couldn’t deny her anything. And to be fair, he had also been worried about Susan.

  “A-Adam?” Susan suddenly called out to him.

  “Hmmm?” Adam looked up.

  “Thanks again… for rescuing me,” Susan said with flushed cheeks.

  Adam smiled even though he knew Susan couldn’t see it. “You’re very welcome.”

  They were inside one of the many rooms located in the Forebear Family estate. This particular room was obviously meant for gaming. It not only contained six different holographic televisions, but there was even an advanced gaming PC—the kind that had once been used for gaming before the age of virtual reality. Adam couldn’t figure out the make. It was clear from the various parts visible beyond the glass panel that it was a custom creation.

  Su probably made it herself.

  It was December 31, the last day of the year, and the last day Age of Gods would be down. Susan had convinced her father to let him, Aris, and Fayte come over to celebrate the new year with her.

  All three ladies were hardcore gamers. They not only played VR games, but they had a burning passion for old console and PC games.

  Which explained why they spent the last few hours of the year competing in various games.

  “All right! Time to show you what I’m made of!” Aris declared, controller in hand.

  Fayte smiled. “What say we add some stakes to make this competition more interesting?”

  “What do you have in mind?” asked Susan.

  “Hmmm. How about the winner gets to make one request from Adam?” suggested Aris.

  “And why do I have to be the one fulfilling your request?” asked Adam. He was also holding a controller. “Also, what do I get if I win?”

  “Uh… you can… make a request from… yourself?”

  “I’m gonna pretend you didn’t say something really stupid just now.”

  “Hey!”

  While the idea of forcing Adam to do one request from the winner was rejected, they did eventually settle on an appropriate reward for the winner, which was the winner would be able to make the losers do one thing they asked, so long as it was within reason.

  Of course, Adam won.

  “Uuuuuuuugh… I forgot how good Adam was,” Aris moaned.

  “How can you forget something like that? He beats us almost every day. I’ve rarely ever won against him,” Fayte said.

  “What should I make you girls do… I wonder,” Adam pondered out loud. He wanted to diabolically rub his chin, but his mask was in the way.

  “It can’t be anything perverse,” Fayte said.

  “I don’t mind if he requests something perverted,” Aris admitted.

  Fayte rolled her eyes. “Of course you wouldn’t.”

  Susan just blushed.

  “How about you three—” Adam began, only to pause when his phone began vibrating. He glanced at the caller ID, then sighed. “Hold on for just a moment. I’ll tell you my request after I take this call.”

  “Don’t take too long,” Aris said.

  Adam waved at her as he left the room, leaned against the wall, and placed the phone to his ear.

  “Astaroth?”

  “Master, Belphegor has successfully managed to infiltrate the Pleonexia Alliance.”

  “Nice. How did he do?”

  “He placed in the top ten, though he made sure to hold back every test accept the physical one.”

  “Good. We want him to stand out, but the nail that stands out the furthest gets hit the hardest. Have they given him an official position within the guild yet?”

  “Negative, but they will give him a position within the next two days. They’ve currently got him moving into the Pleonexia Alliance’s dormitories.”

  “All right. Keep me posted on his situation.”

  “Of course.”

  “And how are the other two missions going?”

  “Abaddon, Mammon, Beelzebub, and Abyzou have successfully infiltrated the criminal underworld. They are currently out of contact, but we are keeping taps on them. Mephisto, Andras, Baal, and Balam have all managed to get jobs within the government thanks to Susan, though it will take a while for them to rise to a high enough position to prove useful.”

  “That’s fine. We have time. Susan’s kidnappers won’t make another move for a while yet. Anyway, I want bi-weekly updates on how everyone is doing. You can send them through the usual means.”

  “Understood.”

  Adam hung up, pocketed the phone, and stepped back into the game room, where Susan and Aris were competing in a game called DDR. It was a dancing game that involved stepping on pads timed to the rhythm of whatever song was playing on the screen. Both of them were grinning. Fayte stood off to the side and watched with a smile.

  With a smile of his own, Adam closed the door and spent the rest of the new year with the three young women.

  Time Compression

  Adam woke up at four o’clock of the new year. He was fully clothed, an odd turn of events considering he normally woke up naked these days. Aris had a voracious sexual appetite and would often ask him to perform all kinds of acts on her—not that he was complaining. Her libido was a good match for him.

  A weight on his stomach caused him to look down, where he found Susan and Aris curled up. Aris was resting in the crook of his left arm, but Susan was lying with her head on his stomach. She was facing him as she lay on her side. Her eyelashes weren’t very long. Her innocent sleeping face caused warm feelings to rise within him.

  I wonder if she has some kind of esper power to make people feel the desire to protect her. Wouldn’t surprise me.

  Esper powers were very different from the classic magic found in video games and the fantasy stories of yore. There were some esper powers that could create elemental attacks, but most were far more bizarre, like the power to control static electricity or the ability to release pheromones. Adam had once fought an esper who could manipulate oils by breaking down and reconstructing them.

  The more bizarre the power, the rarer it was.

  A power like Susan’s—if she did indeed have esper powers—would be considerably rare.

  Shaking his head, Adam glanced at the clock once more. Barely a minute had passed. He looked around and eventually found Fayte sleeping on a couch to his left.

  They had stayed up until around two o’clock. The only reason Adam had woken up after barely getting two hours of sleep was because his body didn’t need much rest to function. He felt fully refreshed despite the previous night.

  What should I do now? I guess I can check out Age of Gods…

  The new update should have been fully installed. He wanted to see what sort of changes had been made. The device needed to log in was already around his neck, and thus he shut his eyes and logged in.