Chapter 35: Chaos
When Mo Tan got up from the game pod, he was in an incredibly foul mood.
This situation was extremely rare, at least it had almost never occurred when he was in his current chaotic neutral personality, as even the most troublesome things would be regarded as a kind of 'fun' by him.
But...
He found it hard to be happy at this moment. The prerequisite for 'fun' was that, despite the troublesome and frustrating process, there was still a way to solve and deal with it. For Mo Tan, there were very few things he couldn't solve, so he could naturally regard it as a kind of joy that ordinary people could hardly imagine.
However, this time, there was no immediate solution.
"Again..." Mo Tan didn't even look at his phone. He had clearly calculated both the online time and the duration he spent in Dave's wardrobe, so the result was obvious: "Another two hours and more are gone, even longer than before!"
He climbed out of the game pod, went into the bathroom to simply wash his face, letting himself calm down a bit. Then he returned to the sofa and sat down, allowing his current personality's signature faint smile to return to his face.
"In fact, it's not without clues, is it?" Mo Tan murmured softly, "Whether it's the forum or anywhere else, this situation has never appeared, so it's almost certain that I am the only one who experiences time loss during the game."
He unconsciously rested his chin on one hand, his index finger gently tapping his temple, and his eyes narrowed slightly: "Although the abnormal phenomenon of having multiple characters has appeared, none of the three characters—Tan Mo, Black Vatican, or Mo—have experienced game time loss..."
His thoughts were gradually becoming clearer, or rather, there had been a clear direction of suspicion from the beginning, but Mo Tan hadn't been sufficiently certain before.
Even so, it was time to pay attention, otherwise, the consequences would be unimaginable...
The problem should still be with my 'illness'...
Does that mean the impact isn't just limited to having multiple characters?
No, this direction isn't clear! Let's think about it in reverse, what if the impact is still related to 'characters'?
Mo Tan had completely calmed down by this point and began to enter a special mode of thinking.
Different characters represent different personalities...
He temporarily allowed himself to become an absolutely detached, independent entity in his consciousness, then looked down at his thinking 'self' from a God's perspective.
Although in reality, I am always myself, merely experiencing intermittent drastic changes in personality, emotions, and thought patterns, in the game, I have been completely separated.
This illusion of 'ascending to a higher dimension' does not mean that Mo Tan truly stands at the same height as an 'author' or 'reader,' but it is very helpful for thinking about things that are easily overlooked subjectively.
According to the in-game classification, the personality I am currently exhibiting undoubtedly represents 'chaotic neutral,' corresponding to the character 'Tan Mo' in the game.
Sweat had already appeared on Mo Tan's forehead. After all, he was always himself, but now he had to dissect that single, subjective ego, which was not an interesting or easy task. For anyone, the perception of 'self' is deeply ingrained, and breaking it is by no means easy.
Then, when my personality becomes 'Absolute Neutral,' I am naturally Black Vatican in the game.
Finally, when I am 'lawful good,' I am Mo...
Mo Tan frowned slightly.
Wait! Finally?
"No!" He suddenly widened his eyes and whispered, "It's not the last one, there aren't just three. Although I intended to forget it from the beginning, my 'illness' doesn't only have three personalities..."
Mo Tan stood up and took a deep breath, walked to the full-length mirror in the corner of the room, looked at himself, and whispered, "Or rather, at first I really only had three personalities, but after the 'Absolute Neutral' me appeared, it became four... Of course, after 'that incident,' these years only the three personalities and characters representing me in the game remain..."
"But what if that 'me' never completely disappeared?" Mo Tan stared intently at the mirror, murmuring softly.
At this moment, the Mo Tan in the mirror exuded a pure 'Chaos' aura: unrestrained, doing as he pleased, without good or evil in his heart, treating everything as a 'game' and 'fun,' acting purely on whim, without any purpose...
"Perhaps the current me is already a rather terrifying fellow." Mo Tan's playful smile was tinged with a hint of bitterness as he whispered, "But there was once an even more terrifying 'me,' a madness and... that even the current me cannot imagine."
He didn't continue speaking, merely turned and walked to the table, started the computer, and with extreme efficiency, scoured the official Innocent World forum and numerous data sites, hoping to find some clues.
"If that's truly the case..." Mo Tan scanned countless quickly opening and closing web pages, his gaze focused and serious, "Then everything makes sense!"
...
January 4, 2049, 7 PM
Your mental connection has been detected, personal information is being synchronized...
Connection complete, character information is being read.
Welcome back, chaotic neutral Tan Mo, Innocent World will be loaded shortly. Good night.
Mo Tan reappeared in Dave's wardrobe, but the two people who had been having a secret conversation there last night were long gone.
"As expected." Mo Tan pushed open the wardrobe door and slowly walked out, chuckling, "Lord Lang En should have left long ago, and student Dave seems to have already been granted the title of temporary Holy Knight by the blind Holy Church United, preparing for action..."
As he spoke, he walked to the door, put on the drab ceremonial robe, unlocked the door from the inside, and walked out as if no one was there.
Mo Tan didn't lock the door for Dave, because he wasn't planning on playing the somewhat 'gay' wardrobe hiding game again. Moreover, information gathering had gone even more smoothly than expected. Although he missed a message last night due to the unpleasant disconnection, it didn't hinder his plan.
He found a small alley to change back into his previous white robe, then Mo Tan walked directly towards the Woodland Residence Tavern in Pato City.
"Hello~" Mo Tan smiled at the flower elf proprietress, who seemed to be perpetually busy tidying up, "I'm looking for two young friends."
Yes, although Mo Tan was roughly the same age as those two, his race was an elf, a species whose age could not be judged by appearance. So, the term 'young friends' didn't seem problematic to the proprietress, except that...
"There's no one you're looking for here." The other party replied without looking up, "Would you like a drink?"
The implication was, if you're not buying, get lost.
"Don't say that~" Mo Tan said leisurely, "Since we are both collaborators of those two children, why be so distant? You know, even though you've been living in seclusion for so many years since the Night Owl Mercenary Group disbanded, you can't just let Cole, your old flame's nephew, and his companion be in danger, can you?"
"I don't know what you're talking about." The proprietress shook her head, "And... it's very safe here."
"Don't be ridiculous~" Mo Tan shook his head, "Who can a Mid-Tier Nature Mage protect? Or perhaps, even with that Great Swordsman who also runs an unconventional tavern, time is running out, Ms. Lei Duo. Not looking for trouble doesn't mean trouble won't find you, understand?"
The proprietress of the Woodland Residence Tavern, the former main mage of the Night Owl Mercenary Group, a flower elf named Lan Ye Lei Duo, suddenly turned and stared at Mo Tan, questioning in a low voice, "Who exactly are you, and what do you know?"
"I have no interest or obligation to satisfy your curiosity." Mo Tan slowly walked up to her, smiling charmingly (crossed out) faintly, "You can see me as a savior, or... an overthrower."
Lei Duo was silent for a moment before finally dropping her shoulders, putting down the plate in her hand, and saying to Mo Tan, "I'll have to keep an eye on you."
"It would be even better if you could come along." Mo Tan smiled very happily.
...
Fifteen minutes later
"That's pretty much the situation." Mo Tan sat on the table in the room, spreading his hands to the other three, "I have two plans, but both require your cooperation. As for which one to implement, I'll come back and tell you later tonight. Any questions?"
Ms. Lei Duo immediately said, "Why should we trust you?"
"It's simple~" Mo Tan pointed at Cole and Xiao Ai, smiling, "First, I saved your old flame's nephew's life, and saved another victim, and protected an innocent soul as much as possible."
Cole looked at Ms. Lei Duo with particular horror: "Old... old flame!? My uncle, who's always so unreliable!?"
"Second." Mo Tan ignored him, merely spreading his hands, "Besides trusting me, you have no other choice. Regardless of the cult's foundation and their own strength, even their overt forces are not something you can contend with. So, the question 'why should we trust me' is quite foolish."
At this moment, Xiao Ai suddenly bowed slightly to Mo Tan and said loudly, "I believe you, sir! Is there anything I can do? Anything to avenge La Da and the others, I can do anything..."
"Tsk tsk." Mo Tan wagged his finger at the girl, "Girls should never casually say 'I can do anything,' you know. As for what you need to do, I'll tell you after I meet that fellow and come back."
With that, he didn't wait for the three to react, but simply pushed the door open and left...
After a period of silence, Lei Duo, the proprietress of the Woodland Residence Tavern, covered her beautiful face and sighed, "Completely led by the nose by both sides... A cult... Knights' Academy students... The Chief of Internal Affairs of Pato City... What is all this?"
"I also think that gentleman is trustworthy." Cole shrugged, "No matter what, he saved me and Xiao Ai, and Luo Na's soul... So I want to trust and repay him, and, uh, Ms. Lei Duo..."
"Hmm?" The proprietress, whose demeanor was completely different from usual, snorted lightly and gave Cole a sidelong glance, "What do you want to ask?"
Cole gave an embarrassed laugh: "You and my uncle are really... that..."
"No!" Lei Duo turned her head away and said coldly, "It was just unrequited love on my part, just like La Da for Xiao Ai, Xiao Ai for you, and you for that girl Luo Na."
"Eh!?" The young cleric, who had been standing by, minding her own business, was stunned: "Hey hey hey hey hey! Sister Lei Duo! I I I..."
Lei Duo shrugged, "What 'you'? Alright, now isn't the time for this. I'm very curious how that unpredictable man knew all these things, Cole, did you tell him anything?"
"I don't know anything myself, what could I say?" Cole scratched his hair, "But that gentleman did ask me some questions about my uncle before, and then the location of the Thieves' Guild intelligence point. Oh right, he also asked a bit about you after I said I was familiar with Woodland Residence..."
Lei Duo rolled her eyes, sighing as she walked out with a worried expression, "Forget it, forget it, you two just wait here. I need to go out and gather some information, and also find that scoundrel Bayes..."
With that, she went downstairs, leaving a waft of fragrance.
Then... only the two young people in the room remained silent.
The scene was extremely awkward for a moment.
"Go out..."
"Huh?"
"Go out!"
"But it's not safe downstairs!"
"There's more than just this one room! I said go out, you guy!!"
For some reason, the suddenly violent young cleric kicked Cole out, her face flushed red.
...
Outside Pato City, in the forest where La Da and Luo Na died.
Dave, clad in bright silver knight's armor, stood in the forest, his body enveloped in a faint, coppery-gold light. Wielding a two-handed greatsword with a high proportion of holy silver, he looked like a pay-to-win player.
And he was like a high-level VIP with not only holy light effects but also cool dark-themed skills...
Because he was murmuring in a low voice, his eyes filled with a murky, evil mist. His free hand was curled into a loose fist, and pale white mist continuously seeped out from his palm.
A few minutes later, accompanied by two low growls, the soil in front of him burst open, and two huge, entirely crimson, lizard-like, sharp-toothed and clawed, bone-spined creatures... actually, they were Red Ridge Beasts, appeared before Dave.
Clearly, these were the two creatures that had just recently gone on a rampage.
But unlike the brutality and frenzy of that night, these two monsters were now as docile as geckos...
Two seals, inscribed with strange ripples, had appeared on their foreheads at some point, flashing at the same frequency as the pale white glow in Dave's hand.
Reflecting each other...
Chapter Thirty-Four: End