The Red Hand

Capital City June 22nd, 2058, approximately 5pm Free World Online (FWO) Standard Time.

A young woman who looks no more than twenty years old can be seen sitting on the third-floor windowsill of what can only be described as a feudal manor.

"If the assault team hasn't hit any snags, they should be fighting Serval about now." (Akagi)

Her hair is long and dark green with black mixed in, it flows backwards almost seeming to stand against gravity. Her eyes are the color of amber while her skin is slightly pale.

Her clothing consists of what appears to be a black Kimono, a white Obi, and a Hanten of the same color as her hair, the back of which, bears a red hand print within a red circle. At the desk just beside her lies a very well-dressed man lying face-down in a pool of blood.

"Well then, I suppose if this is to be my last day here, I might as well break out the good stuff." (Akagi) The young woman's voice does not quite match her youthful appearance. It gives off an aura of maturity uncanny for someone who looks so young and it sounds cold yet strangely comforting like the gloaming of a warm autumn day. She reaches out into the air as a small black distortion appears. A few moments later, she pulls out a bottle of Sake as well as a cup and some snacks.

"There it is! Ayakashi Brand Sake all the way from the Emperor's own personal collection. I've been saving you for the perfect occasion, and I think being forced back to that unsatisfying life in Kyoto is a good enough reason to drink you." (Akagi)

Akagi begins to pour the golden liquid into her small cup “Ahhhh hell yes, just the smell alone is telling me this is going to be the best tasting drink I've ever had.” She brings the cup to her lips and takes a small sip. A few moments pass before she proceeds to down the entire cup in one shot. “Holy hell! The Emperor's private stock doesn't disappoint! Man after having tasted this, anything IRL is just gonna taste like water. Ugh, just another reason I want to stay here.” (Akagi)

An hour passed with Akagi merrily consuming the Sake and the snacks she brought out, things were relatively quiet with only a gentle breeze and the sound of the bustling city below. At one point a maid did attempt to enter the room only to catch sight of Akagi and her dead master before quietly retreating. This peace was interrupted when a small notification appeared in Akagi's vision.

*PING*

Akagi took a few moments to read the message.

"Looks like they got the boss down to its final health bar. Seems that all those previous attempts finally paid dividends. With their new strats and the healing items and abilities they have, there is no way the boss can defeat them. It's basically default killing at this point." (Akagi)

This attempt would be the 6th by the assault team to defeat the final World Boss Serval. The previous 5 attempts had cost the lives of some of the best and brightest of the assault team. But where each of those failures took away members they also gave valuable intel on how to defeat the Boss.

"Glad I chose to bust out the Sake, it looks like we will be going home this time. Three years, eight months, and twelve days that's the exact amount of time I got to experience my true calling in life." She takes a sip. "And now I have to return to a world and people who would never accept it, not to mention losing all these powers." (Akagi)

"I'm sure right now most everyone else is cheering, ready to go home, see their families again and put this death game behind us." Akagi lets out a small chuckle.

"I guess I can relate a little bit, even I will admit I miss Kana. She should be a Junior in Highschool this year, I wonder if she went to Tokyo like she was planning." She shakes her head. "I can imagine if any of these idiots here knew "the Red Hand" had a little sister she cared about they would find that funny. That idiot Hishya would probably ramble about fucking Gap Moe or something stupid." (Akagi)

"Oh well, if they find an assassin having someone they care about funny then so be it. I might enjoy the job, but that doesn't mean I have to act like some brooding edge lord." She lets out a small sigh and pours another cup.

"A toast! To the death of "the Red Hand" Akagi and the rebirth of the boring girl.........." A look of bewilderment comes over Akagi's face. "I..... I don't remember my name. Why don't I remember it? We've only been in the game for just under four years. Did I really disassociate myself so much that I forgot my own name? I guess that goes to show just how much I've enjoyed being in this worl-" She stops herself. "How much I've enjoyed being Akagi so much." (Akagi)

“Akagi, “the Red Hand” FWO's finest assassin.” She says while dramatically waving her arms.

“These last three years have shown me so much about myself, more than I could have ever hoped for.” She says staring out into the City.

“Find your calling, pursue your passion and do something you love.” She lets out a laugh. “Those were the words that my stupid guidance counselor said to me during my consultation at the start of Senior year.” Akagi cracks a wry smile

“I wonder what she would say if I told her what I found out my passion is.” She takes another sip of the sake.

“Not hard to imagine it, she would probably cry out in horror. Tell me how horrible it is and that such a way of life isn't something that good and normal people even think about.” She lets her head hang for a moment.

“Now that I think about it. I wonder if I'll go to jail when I get back?” She continued with a bored voice. “Its not like I kept my identity a secret or anything and I'm sure the police back home will be able to put two and two together. Probably gonna be a lot of angry people. A lot of parents will surely be pissed. Hell, I wouldn't be surprised if Kishizama wanted revenge for the death of Shizami even if that bastard had it coming” (Akagi)

“Oh well, no sense in worrying about it now, whats done is done and I don't regret any of it.” She takes another sip “I don't think this is exactly what Hishya meant when she told me to live my life with no regrets but hey, details.” (Akagi)

Akagi pours another cup.

“The Hero of FWO, the Victor of Hussan, the Flame Empress; that girl racked up a good number of titles over these last few years. I bet she will be heralded as a hero back home, lord knows the people here already idolize her. I can already imagine the articles: How Hishya the Hero of FWO defeated the World Bosses. FWO's hero who kept everyone together during the Midnight Hawk Siege. The Hero who stood up to the Red Hand.” She lets out a slight chuckle. “I wonder how everyone would feel knowing that even their so called hero needed my services.” (Agaki)

Akagi then sat quietly on the windowsill staring out into the city, watching its residents go about their day until around thirty minutes later she hears the familiar voice of the game system.

*DING*

Congratulations players!

The World Boss Serval has been defeated.

With his defeat, all ten World Bosses in Free World Online have been defeated!

*Calculating Statistics*

The defeat of the World Boss Serval resulted in the death of eight players.

This brings the total number of players currently within FWO to 1,047 out of the original 3,000.

Number of Players killed by monsters 1,542

Number of Players killed by players 219

Number of Player suicides 126

Number of Players killed by premature removal of VR Gear 21

Number of players killed by external health issues 15

Number of players killed by glitches 10

Number of players killed by drowning 10

Number of players killed by non-monster wildlife 5

Number of players killed by chickens 3

Number of players killed by NPCs 2

Number of players who became limit breakers 1

Player with the highest number of Player Kills (Akagi) 104

Player with the highest number of monster kills (Hishya) 20,458

Player with the highest number of NPC kills (ProGamer) 3,954

Player with the highest number of Crafted Items (Destructive Imp) 24,374

Player with the highest personal bounty (Akagi)126,453,523 Gold Coins

Player with the................

and the list went on for some time.

With a total of 1,047 out of 3,000 players remaining this rounds to a 35% survival rate and enables 100 players to receive the final reward!

Congratulations to those who have survived my game and congratulations to those award winners!

As promised all surviving players will be logged out, thank you for playing Free World Online and I look forward to seeing your futures!

"Wait rewards? What rewards, what the hell is the point of rewards when we are about the be logged out anyway? And why the hell has the system started talking in first person? Akagi was very confused.

A few moments later a notification appeared in her vision.

Dear Akagi:

Congratulations on not only surviving Free World Online but becoming the only person to achieve the status of limit breaker! Your assassinations put the entire world on edge and you were feared and respected for your power and ability by both players and NPCs alike! As such, you have been selected as one of the one hundred players to receive my special reward! Please continue to foster your natural talents and show the world just how terrifying "the Red Hand" truly is! Additionally, for achieving the status of limit breaker an additional reward has been deposited in your inventory, enjoy and I look forward to working with you in the future!

Sincerely your friend Mizumi

Akagi was visibly confused. "Extra reward? Limit Breaker? Continue to foster my talents? What the hell is the system talking about!" “And who the hell is Mizumi?!!!” Her heart began to beat faster as she considered all of the possible meanings behind the message. However, before she was able to make any headway she was suddenly greeted with another notification.

*PING*

Beginning logout! See you later!

Suddenly, a bright flash of light blinded Akagi, she felt weightless and for a brief moment, she thought that the system had lied to her and killed her instead. However, after what felt like hours she soon found herself staring at a small clear plastic visor which contained a menu for the VR helmet. This sudden change made her stomach retch and caused her to choke on her own saliva.

After she gained control of her breathing she could hear someone shouting nearby "Doctor! She's awake! The patient's awake!"(???) After a few moments, it became clear to Akagi that she was in a hospital, and was likely moved here not long after being trapped in FWO so that she wouldn't die while in her comatose state. Everything felt strange, the roughness of the bedsheets, the cold air on her skin along with so many other sensations, it was enough to overwhelm her. FWO was an extremely advanced game boasting the most advanced AI in VR history. However, Akagi and the others had only been given access to the Alpha build. As such, less important senses such as touch were underdeveloped and could only give rough approximations of the intended sensations.

Suddenly being able to feel everything perfectly was all the confirmation that Akagi needed to prove that she had indeed been logged out.

Numerous different voices could be heard, most likely from the hospital staff, who seemed to be a panic. They didn't expect her to actually wake up and were taken aback by her sudden return. After a few minutes Akagi attempted to move her arms to remove the VR helmet but found that while she could move her arms somewhat, she simply did not have the strength to lift the helmet.

{Makes sense not moving for four years would definitely atrophy my muscles.} (Akagi)

“Ahhhh, you shouldn't be moving around miss, your in no state to do anything right now its far too dangerous!” (???)

A moment later a woman wearing nursing scrubs came into view.

“Here, let me get that helmet off you, I can imagine you're disorientated and would like to get that thing off your head.” (Nurse)

The nurse carefully lifted her head and removed the helmet.

“There we go, I can imagine that feels much bet-” The nurse stopped mid sentence as she went wide-eye as she looked at Akagi. It took a few moments for her to regain her composure and continue speaking.

"Um.... Doctor Amherst I think you need to come in here right now!" (Nurse)