THE GLOBAL DECLARATION AND THE CONTRACT OF FORTUNE

 THE GLOBAL DECLARATION AND THE CONTRACT OF FORTUNE

When the video featuring the "Thousand-Handed Fox’s" challenge went viral, the first reaction didn't come from gamers, but from military command centers.

At a field training center, Old General Kenshin and a line of high-ranking officers sat before a massive screen, rewatching the footage of the nine blood-red tails. Contrary to the public's anxiety, the meeting room erupted in thunderous applause. Old General Kenshin smiled—the grin of an old wolf who had just caught the scent of blood.

"Brilliant! Simply brilliant!" The General slammed his hand onto the table. "The only thing that made me hesitate about this game was individuals possessing power beyond tactical boundaries—those Level 99 entities who could wipe out an army with a snap of their fingers. But now, that Fox girl has voluntarily stripped herself of her strongest weapon. Declaring they won't use Level 99s means the upcoming battle will be a pure test of leadership, logistics, discipline, and teamwork!"

The other officers were equally ecstatic. To them, Aethelgard was no longer a child’s video game. It had become the most perfect war simulator in the world. The spirit shown by the 20,000 recruits proved it: no training ground is better for forging the will to live or die than a virtual battlefield with 99% realism.

Global Ambition and the Serpent God's Protest

News that a nation was using Aethelgard to forge an "iron will" for its military spread like wildfire. Immediately, Ministries of Defense from other global superpowers grew restless. The world's leading military powers found this model fascinating. They began exerting heavy pressure, demanding that the game developer expand the server system globally and merge them into a single super-continent so their citizens—and especially their soldiers—could enter this "smelting furnace."

Faced with massive international pressure and the prospect of staggering profits, the game developer prepared to greenlight the "Global Portal."

However, as soon as the announcement leaked, a shocking incident occurred inside the game.

At Fortress 22, the white-bearded old man—Wrath, the AI carrying the Supreme Being’s intellect—smashed his throne. Using the power of a Sin, he projected his voice across the Shadow Lands:

"Ridiculous! Do you humans intend to use the laws of the outside world to break the balance of the abyss? Tens of millions, perhaps hundreds of millions of heretics from other realms are preparing to land here? Do you intend to use infinite numbers to crush the Empire of the Supreme Being? That is cowardly cheating! If the system dares to open the gates to those ants all at once, I—in the name of the World-Devouring Serpent—will refuse to fight and let this world crumble into ruin!"

Wrath’s protest spread at light speed through the Shadow faction. Everyone agreed. No matter how strong the monsters were or how brilliant the tactics, if they were worn down by hundreds of millions of military players 24/7, even the Supreme Being would eventually collapse from exhaustion.

The Supreme Being’s Profitable "U-Turn"

The game developer immediately fell into a state of total panic. In Aethelgard, the words of the Supreme Being (and his representatives) carried immense weight. The game’s ecosystem relied on having a great "Final Boss" for players to target. If the Shadow faction went on strike, the game would lose 80% of its appeal.

That same night, a representative of the developer sent an urgent "System Secret Letter" directly to the private inbox of the Supreme Being, Arata.

In their dilapidated rental room, Arata and Yuki sat gnawing on plain bread, eyes glued to the system screen.

The letter’s content was crystal clear: The developer begged the Supreme Being to accept the global server merger. In return, they promised to establish a "Spatial Barrier," ensuring that new international players would spawn on a New Continent far away from the Shadow Lands. It would take them at least five months (real-time) to train, build ships, and cross the ocean before they could even reach the Supreme Being’s territory. AND MOST IMPORTANTLY: The developer would divert 5% of all new global registration revenue directly into Arata’s real-world bank account as an "End-Game Boss Image Royalty Fee."

"Five... five percent of tens of millions of global players?" Yuki dropped her half-eaten bread, her fox eyes bulging as her pupils turned into dollar signs. She grabbed Arata’s collar and shook him violently. "Brother! Kobe beef! Alaskan lobster! We’re finally escaping the life of eating instant noodles!!!"

Arata also gulped hard. That amount of money was enough for him to buy an entire apartment complex, let alone food. However, his "pride" kicked in. He coughed slightly, brushed Yuki’s hands off, and tilted his chin up arrogantly. "Calm down! Maintain the composure of a goddess. We aren't agreeing because of the money, remember? We are agreeing because... because the Supreme Being craves a bloody war with the entire world!"

Immediately, Arata donned his VR goggles. A Global Announcement rang out across all servers in the most majestic tone, translated into every language in the world:

[Announcement from the Supreme Being]: "Hear me, you weaklings from distant shores. Do you beg the system to open the gates just to taste despair? Fine! I accept the system’s tribute. I grant you five months to prepare. Gather your entire armies, all your weapons, and your pathetic willpower, and bring them here. I do not fight for wealth or power; I agree to open the gates because I wish to PERSONALLY CRUSH the hopes of this entire world! Come here, and entertain me!"

Behind that "cool," evil mask, Arata was secretly shedding tears of joy over the multi-billion dollar contract he had just signed.

THE INTERNET FIRESTORM AND THE 17-YEAR-OLD HUNGER

(Đăng phần này sau - Tập trung vào phản ứng của Netizen và cái kết hài hước)

The Global Internet Storm: When Netizens Go Mad

The Supreme Being’s "arrogant" declaration of war, combined with the official global server launch, ignited an unprecedented explosion in internet history. Discussion platforms from East to West suffered constant outages. Tens of millions of comments appeared every hour.

[Reddit Homepage – Subreddit r/AethelgardGlobal – Top Trending #1]

Topic: DID THIS SUPREME BEING GUY JUST DECLARE WAR ON THE ENTIRE EARTH???

@EagleSniper_US: "Holy sh*t! Did you hear his tone? ‘Bring your entire military’? This guy doesn't give a damn about the US, UK, French, or Chinese armies! Sorry, but I just registered and bought the latest VR goggles. I’m joining the Alliance. In five months, I’m planting my flag on his throne!"

@Seoul_Faker_99: "Setting aside the arrogance, did you see the game settings? The developers had to ask a PLAYER for permission to expand the game, and then he demanded a five-month delay? The Supreme Being’s power in this game is so high it exceeds even the Admins!"

@IvanTheBear_RU: "Ha! I love this brutal honesty. We at the Russian server just formed a Guild called ‘The Sledgehammer.’ But we don't give a damn about saving humanity. How do we join his Shadow faction? I want to be a monster! Long live the Supreme Being!"

[Asia’s Largest Gaming Forum – Tactical Discussion Box]

Topic: 5 Months of Peace or 5 Months of Hell? Analyzing the Situation.

@Gia_Cat_Lu_Bo: "Analyze this carefully, brothers. Five months is real-world time. That’s a very long time in-game. General Kenshin’s army isn't attacking right now because they know the Fox set the condition ‘no Level 99s.’ They are grinding and preparing officers. But during these five months, the international players will turn the New Continent into chaos."

@Chuunibyou_Master: "Don't forget that the Shadow faction won't be sitting still for five months. Did anyone notice the Nine-Tailed Fox has been recruiting from the low-level monsters? She’s turning them into a regular army! A monster with discipline is ten thousand times scarier than a human!"

@Simp_Ho_Ly_Chua: "I only care about whether I’ll get to see Lady Thousand-Handed Fox again in five months. Oh, that laugh... I’ve set it as my alarm ringtone, brothers. I wake up instantly, just wanting to take up a shield and die for her!"

[X (Twitter) – Hashtag #SupremeBeing #AethelgardWar]

@MilitaryGeek_88: "Just watched the clip of General Kenshin breaking Fortress 22. The discipline of those 20k soldiers is the real deal! They aren't normal gamers. Now that other countries are putting their soldiers in, the scale of the battle in five months could reach millions. A virtual World War!"

@ProGamer_X: "So what if they are military? This is a magic game! They rely on willpower, but the Fox and the Supreme Being rely on genius minds. I bet $10,000 the militaries of different countries will tear each other apart on the New Continent before they even manage to bring a boat to the Shadow Continent."

(If user @CasualGamer knew the "secret billionaire" was actually wearing boxers and holding a frying pan for eggs, while the "military genius" was licking the lid of a yogurt cup to save money, she would surely delete her account immediately).

[A Private Group of Global Military Generals (G-Global)]

General A (USA): "General Kenshin, we have moved troops into the New Continent. The Marines are starting to familiarize themselves with the cold weapon systems and basic magic."

General B (Europe): "We must unify command. Five months is too short to move millions of troops across the ocean. We suggest establishing a Joint Command Center right inside the game."

Old General Kenshin: "Everyone, stay calm. This game doesn't operate like a NATO campaign. Here, an individual can change the entire landscape. Do not underestimate the Shadow faction. That little nine-tailed fox has forced us into a stalemate by banning Level 99s. She wants to see how we manage millions of soldiers when communication lines are disrupted by magic. These five months... worry about keeping your soldiers alive against the local monsters first."

The Lull Before the Storm

The internet’s roar continued, boiling every hour. Newspapers, television, social media—everywhere talked about the five-month deadline and the greatest "Crusade" ever aimed at the Supreme Being.

As for General Kenshin’s army, he ordered them to stand down. Although the gates of Fortress 22 had been breached, he did not advance further. Confronting the elite monsters (even with level caps) under the Thousand-Handed Fox right now was too risky a gamble before global reinforcements arrived. The General decided to retreat and establish a defensive line, building camps and focusing on grinding levels and forging firearms using Dwarven technology.

While the whole world was bracing for a war that felt like the "survival of humanity," in the central region of the abyss, inside a room cluttered with belongings...

"Brother Arata! Has the first installment of money arrived yet? I’m craving fried chicken so much!" Yuki groaned, rubbing her flat stomach.

Arata opened the bank app on his cracked-screen phone. Seeing the long string of numbers with a dozen zeros that the system had just transferred, his eyes grew dim with happiness. He took a deep breath and spoke in his most authoritative voice:

"Thousand-Handed Fox! Change your clothes, quickly. Today, the Supreme Being shall treat you to a Special Large Fried Chicken meal, with Large fries, and... TWO of the biggest sodas!"

"Long live the Supreme Being!" Yuki jumped for joy.

The world might be going mad because of them, and millions of soldiers might be gritting their teeth because of them. But tonight, the number one priority of history’s greatest anti-human organization... was simply to go eat fried chicken to satisfy the cravings of a 17-year-old.