Lord: Sequence Master

"It worked…" Rosen muttered, sitting in front of the Main God computer with a satisfied smile as he saw Stephanie Dora's name listed among the captured.

Ever since Rosen learned that Stephanie had hired a hunter to track him down, he had been devising ways to deal with her. Threatening ordinary people with his bullet drawings was easy, but killing someone like Stephanie was a different matter.

Young Rosen had played enough blindfolded games with Stephanie to know how many protective magical items she possessed. A direct attack wouldn't work. Despite her wealth, Stephanie was still a normal human, limited to using Sequence 9 extraordinary items. Anything beyond Sequence 9 was beyond her capabilities.

Even the best Sequence 9 protective items had their limits. These automatic defensive talismans are only activated in the face of a clear and immediate attack. For example, if someone charged at Stephanie with a knife, the magic would block it, but if the same person slowly approached, the defense might not trigger until the blade actually cut her.

Rosen had considered this carefully and spent the last few days sneaking several static images into Rose Castle.

Using a drone crafted from his spiritual artwork, Rosen took advantage of the servants' sleep, delivering the static images into their bedrooms. As expected, the servants, upon seeing the images, were drawn to them and made contact without hesitation.

This allowed Rosen to drag one of the maids into the virtual realm, where he interrogated and manipulated her until she agreed to cooperate. By controlling the realm, Rosen ensured the maid retained her memories upon waking, terrified into submission. From there, it was simple: during her cleaning rounds, the maid discreetly slipped a static image into Stephanie's bedroom.

Young Rosen had been intimately familiar with the layout of the castle and knew that after an attack on the terrace, Stephanie would instinctively retreat to her safe room. She would then call for help from the city lord's mansion.

As predicted, Stephanie's behavior was entirely predictable. She fell right into Rosen's trap, touching the static image and being pulled into the virtual realm.

Stephanie sat on a sofa in her bedroom, her face twisted with anger. She didn't even consider asking her sister, the city lord's wife, for help.

After all, the city lord was only a Sequence 7. How could he risk provoking a Sequence 6 artist for her sake?

Reports from the outer city suggested that the death rate among ordinary people entering the Spiritual Realm was around one percent, with most of the deaths occurring early on. Recently, the death rate had dropped to zero.

Stephanie knew her odds of survival were high.

Her frustration stemmed from the fact that even a high survival rate wasn't a guarantee. Even if the odds of death were one in ten thousand, what if she was the unlucky one?

She couldn't afford to take that chance. Before nightfall, she prepared thoroughly for her encounter with the virtual realm.

Making several phone calls, Stephanie quickly borrowed some Sequence 9 extraordinary items from the city lord's mansion and a few merchant contacts. Though low in power, the items were designed to protect against spiritual attacks and curses.

Over the past few days, as the virtual realm absorbed more spiritual energy, Rosen's control over it had grown stronger. He could now influence parts of the story within the realm and see through the eyes of those bound to the static images. Monitoring Stephanie's activities through the player interface eased his anxieties.

In truth, it wouldn't have been hard for someone of Stephanie's wealth and connections to destroy the static key inside her body. Any Sequence 8 practitioner or a specialized Sequence 9 could have done it easily.

But Stephanie never considered removing the key, due to a crucial misunderstanding: she assumed the methods of a Sequence 6 artist were beyond the capabilities of anyone in Redstone City. So, she never thought to seek help in removing the key.

At 10 p.m., Stephanie took a specially formulated sleeping pill and drifted into sleep.

The pill was designed to protect her spiritual energy while boosting her latent power. It would pull her back from the dream world the moment her spiritual energy suffered damage.

This was her last resort, though she hoped she wouldn't need it.

The moment Stephanie fell asleep, her consciousness was pulled into the Saw virtual realm.

Simultaneously, Rosen entered the virtual realm via the Main God computer. Wearing a mask and holding a chainsaw, he stared at the suspended figure of Stephanie, who had materialized out of thin air. Without hesitation, Rosen revved the chainsaw and began cutting off her legs.

Stephanie screamed in agony, begging the masked figure to spare her.

Just as she felt her life slipping away from blood loss, her legs reappeared, fully restored. Her physical condition was reset, but the memory of the pain and despair remained vivid.

"You are guilty. Confess all your sins in detail and repent for each one," Rosen commanded, his voice distorted through a changer, leaving no room for refusal.

Stephanie hesitated, but the masked man began counting down.

The countdown accelerated rapidly, and as it reached zero, the chainsaw roared to life again.

Another round of torture followed. Despite her cleverness and her privileged upbringing, Stephanie wasn't built to endure such excruciating pain. The moment her injuries vanished once more, she began confessing her sins, one by one.

Rosen listened carefully, occasionally pressing for more details.

Through the virtual realm, Rosen could discern whether she was lying. The same power that had judged and executed John the drunkard was now at work on Stephanie. If she lied, the punishment intensified, driving her to a complete breakdown. In this way, she soon revealed everything Rosen wanted to know.

A person's memories are clearest for recent events, so Stephanie began with her most recent wrongdoings.

The second confession was the one Rosen had been waiting for the truth behind young Rosen's death.

Rosen was genuinely surprised—Stephanie had been responsible for young Rosen's murder.

He had initially suspected one of the other wealthy women, or perhaps the husband of one of them, but Stephanie had never crossed his mind. After all, she had wanted young Rosen's hereditary title more than anyone. Of all people, she had the most reason to keep him alive.

Yet the truth was far more shocking. Stephanie had been the one to arrange the sabotage of young Rosen's spiritual awakening ritual, switching the core materials that led to his death.

As for why Stephanie had chosen to kill him, the truth was far more complicated than Rosen had anticipated.

(Chapter End)