Chapter 15:

Chapter 15: Operation WholeSum

WholeSum


Wolfy awoke to the throbbing pain of his head regretting the decision to drink an obsessive amount. Sitting up, he could barely make out the room around him. Taking a second to breath, he stood to his feet before starting to feel himself fall. Holding out his hand for the nearest object, Wolfy held himself against the wall and took a second to get his bearings. Once he had orientated himself, he stumbled towards the exit where he could see the light shining slightly from under the crack of the door. Upon opening the door, he felt the blinding lights in the hallway that forced him to turn away.

His head continued to throb in pain from what he knew was a hangover. Taking another break at the door frame, he noticed he couldn’t hear anything coming from anywhere within the guild building. No smell of takoyaki in the kitchen, no chatter of any of the other guild members, not even Risa being her usual happy and cheerful self. Making his way out into the hallway, he continued to use the wall as support as he headed for the main room of the guild building.

“Nii, why are you up?”

Turning around, Wolfy could see his sister headed towards him with a look of disappointment on her face. She grabbed his arm gently and stared into his eyes. He could see the pain in her eyes that she tried to hide. It was the stare of a little sister who was worried and cared about her older brother.

“Nii-nii…”

“Sorry… I didn’t mean to worry you.”

“Don’t do it again… please…”

Wolfy could feel his legs becoming weak from continuously standing. Leaning against the wall, he lowered himself down onto the floor as Mariya sat down beside him.

“Glad I did this in the game and not in the real world like last time. Pretty sure my liver hated me.”

“I told you to take better care of yourself.”

Closing his eyes for a moment, he recalled the reason he drunk alcohol to the point his mind slowed to a crawl. He had never partook in heavy amounts of drinking, only an occasional beverage now and again. Yet, on that day, he ensured he had not eaten anything and was hoping to black out.

“You know why I did it, right?”

Mariya turned away.

“I do…”

“I don’t blame you but… you could have talked to me.”

“What kind of sister would I be if I made you worry about something you can’t fix?”

“Even still, I would rather we talk through it then suffer to the point we drive ourselves crazy.”

Mariya turned to Wolfy with a half-moon gaze.

“We both know that we would remain silent. Nether of us want to worry the other.”

Wolfy was silent for a moment. He knew that the two of them were similar in how they acted, aside from a few minor differences. She would hold back anything that would harm him or cause him to worth and he would do the same. Nether of them wanted to think about the chilling thoughts that always crept into their minds – the fear of the other dying.

“Ana…”

“Nii-nii, it’s rude to use a girl’s real name in a game,” Mariya said with a sight smile.

“Just… take care of yourself, okay?”

Wolfy embraced his sister as she gently patted his head.

“Don’t worry, nii-nii. Next time, I’ll be sure to talk to you.”

Wolfy could feel his eyes starting to get heavy as his head gently rested against his sister’s shoulder.

“Wait… you used… your sleep magic… on me?”

“Sorry but I need my brother to rest and be ready for what is to come. We have a battle to win, remember?”

#

Mariya looked over the map of the whole world. It was time for her and her brother to proceed with their original plans. They had ensured that they had everything set and ready before gathering everyone in the guild to the main room. Pacing back and forth for a moment, she thought about how to convey her words to the others. After thinking about it, she looked to everyone and smiled.

“Listen up, everyone. Today is the day we put our plan into motion. Everyone in this guild is precious to me, thus all of you shall be spared when we create this new world. Of all the quests we have completed, this task is one that will test our skills and prove that we are the best in this world.”

“Sounds fun to me. Remind me though, what’s the plan again?” Himorogi asked.

“It’s simple. I’ve created a potion that will enhance everyone’s stats here. Once we take it, We have exactly six full days to kill everyone in this world.”

“Why only six?” Yara asked.

“Don’t ask stupid questions, Yara,” Mariya said with a smile as she held a small ball of fire in the palm of her hand.

Yara remained silent as Mariya continued with her speech.

“Once we have killed any that would face us head on, we will hunt down any survivors in the last remaining days.”

No one spoke a word as Mariya turned to her brother.

“Go ahead and pass them out, nii.”

Wolfy pulled out the vials that his sister had made and handed them to each of the members. The vials contained a white liquid that appeared thick and creamy. Himorogi looked to Mariya for a second with an unease look on her face.

“Is this…”

“No, it’s not condensed milk. It is a special blend of white milk chocolate and coconut.”

“Okay and why is it yours and the wolf is different?”

“My brother hates coconut so I added hazelnut to ours.”

“Works for me. When do we drink?”

Mariya waved her hand and looked over the map once more.

“From where we are, some players should be within our reach in roughly twelve minutes; six if they decide to speed run. When you see them, drink it and end them. Any questions before I ping our location to everyone in the game?”

No one said anything.

“If everyone is ready, then let’s get this game started,” Mariya said with a cheerful expression on her face.

Navigating through her menu and inventory, Mariya selected an item that would allow her to send a message to everyone in the world – in the same manner as the entity that had trapped them in the world years ago. Activating the item brought up a dialogue box for her to send a message or speak live. Looking to the others, she turned to her brother. He simply smiled and nodded. Taking a deep breath, she inhaled and exhaled before hitting the button to send a voice message to everyone in the world.

“Greetings players of Phantasia! You may know who I am as the guild I run is number one on the guild leader boards. For those of you who don’t, my name is Mariya and my brother and I created the guild, Ideasthesia. We have grown tired of this world and this mundane way of life. All of you in this world have one day to try and destroy our guild. After that, we will hunt each and every one of you down until only Ideasthesia remains. So, feel free to fight us or flee and hide but remember that we will find all of you. Sayonara!”