Isaac gasped, his eyes snapping wide open. The only thing staring back at him was the inside of the tent's ceiling. The vast crimson plains were gone, now just a fading memory—along with Rakin… the so-called Overlord Chaos.

Damn… What a trip. He rubbed his brow, shutting his eyes for a moment. And here I thought the rest of this madness could wait until we reached LA and the week passed. Guess not.

With that, his eyes opened again, but this time, it wasn't just the tent's ceiling waiting for him. A notification hovered in the air. And he could feel another one hoping to take its place right after.

Warning! Current Interface configuration has been modified. Version <Rakin's Greatest Work> applied. At the current Virus stage, modifying or canceling this configuration is impossible.

Isaac's eye twitched. Considering there was no trust between him and the Overlord, he wasn't sure how to feel about the alien messing with something he couldn't undo if it turned out to be a bad idea. Hell, he had no idea what 'Interface configuration' even meant here.

All right, no reason to get mad yet, he thought, taking a deep, calming breath. Interface, can you elaborate on what has been modified?

To his surprise, the entity answered, replacing the current message with another.

Configuration <Rakin's Greatest Work> primarily affects the style of displayed notifications. Status and functionality remain unaffected.

Isaac blinked. Oh… For some reason, I expected much more than that. Guess that's what he meant by a quality-of-life update. Now I just gotta wait for some new notifications to test this. Though, speaking of…

With a quick command, the current message before him vanished. A moment later, the second notification waiting for his attention appeared. This one made his eyebrows shoot up.

Patron Mission Obtained: Overlord Chaos has tasked you with slaying a beast located in the Burning Wasteland of Earth. Follow the path shown by the Focused Compass to locate your target. No time limit. No rules. Succeed and bask in the patronage of one of the strongest beings in the Universe.

Isaac snorted. If he had any doubts about his meeting with Rakin being real, they were definitely gone now. First, the Interface modification, and now this? There was no way it was just someone trolling him.

Now, where's this compass?

Leaning on his arm, he sat up. Instantly, his gaze fell on the three phantom spiders still standing watch around him. He dismissed them with a tug on the link inside his mind. They were no longer needed.

Done with that, he ignored James' snores and scanned the tent. Rakin said that the compass should be lying next to him once he woke up.

Here.

Despite it being as dark as night, Isaac spotted the small trinket hiding next to his right leg. He picked it up and glanced at the needle inside. It spun a few times before pointing in the direction of the strange desert and canyon combination.

Burning Wasteland, right…

Shaking his head, he pocketed the trinket and quietly stood up. Just because he woke early didn't mean James had to suffer the same. Not that he even felt tired. His regeneration was way too strong at this point for him to need more than a couple hours of rest. Soon, he might not need it at all.

Huh… Maybe I should try meditation? If even half of the stuff I read about it on the net is true, it could be useful. A thought for another day.

With one final look at his male teammate, Isaac grabbed his discarded hoodie, put it on, and slipped out of the tent. His gaze instantly fell on the two women sitting in front of a small campfire, their backs to him.

He cleared his throat, making the duo turn. "Got a spot for me?" he asked with a small smile.

Elaine patted the ground next to her even as she frowned. "Sure, but you should still be asleep. It's only been, what… three hours?"

Isaac sighed, dropping down beside her. "Wasn't really my choice to wake up early. No worries, though, I'm more than rested. Perks of overpowered regeneration."

Marie snorted. "James snoring too loud? I swear, he is just as loud asleep as when he is awake."

"No." He shook his head, chuckling. "Not his fault this time. I had another meeting with Rakin."

That wiped the easygoing smiles right off their faces.

"So it wasn't just a dream," Elaine stated.

"Definitely not." Isaac smiled wryly. "And my theory was spot-on. He's my Sire. The Overlord Chaos."

Elaine's fist clenched at her side, her head dropping. Marie reached over, placing a hand on her shoulder, then looked up at Isaac. "I think we will need the full story."

He nodded.

Yeah… figured as much.

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By the time Isaac finished recounting his meeting with Rakin—carefully skipping over the bit where the alien had dissected his morality—Elaine was pacing back and forth in front of the campfire. Marie didn't have such a strong reaction, but she also refused to say anything.

"You have the patience of a saint," Elaine said, finally coming to a stop. "I would have just punched the bastard the moment he introduced himself. Then again after he explained his shitty reasoning for the wars."

Isaac snorted. "Trust me, I considered it. Wouldn't have changed a damn thing, though."

"No… I guess it wouldn't," she admitted, sinking down to the ground and burying her face in her hands. "Bastards…"

"He contacted you due to Earth's status and your title," Marie said quietly, staring into the small fire. "Even gave you a mission. I wonder if we all will go through something similar."

"Probably." Isaac shrugged. "They are looking for 'promising individuals'. And what's more promising than a bunch of idiots trying to cross the state infected with monsters potentially stronger than us?"

The corner of Marie's mouth twitched. "When you put it like that… My Sire is that Fisk guy. If I could meet with him… I don't even know what I would do. Scream? Try to kill him?" She shook her head. "Like it would achieve anything."

"I would try anyway," Elaine whispered. "Even if it killed me."

Not surprising, Isaac thought. She might have stayed quiet about her plan for revenge, but her anger definitely hadn't left. It was just boiling underneath the surface, waiting to explode. A meeting with an Overlord would be the perfect spark.

Though…

He turned to Elaine. "You know… you've never mentioned who your Sire is."

She blinked. "Oh… It's Overlord Prosperity." She let out a bitter chuckle. "I wonder what they did to earn a title like that. Wiped out a whole civilization and looted the corpses?"

"Probably worse," Marie commented dryly. "Sounds like mass slaughter is just a regular Monday for them."

"Yeah…" Elaine mumbled, looking Isaac in the eyes. "Are you gonna do it? Finish this mission?"

He didn't hesitate. "Yes. In the end, he was right. Love him or hate him. Doesn't matter. Right now, our job is to survive, get stronger, and make sure Earth wins the coming wars. And if he can give me tools to make that task easier, so be it."

Elaine averted her gaze halfway through his speech, her fists now turning white from how hard she was clenching them. He sighed and continued.

"Listen… we're not strong enough to fight them. Nowhere close, really. We need to wait and grow stronger. In the meantime… wouldn't it be poetic if we used the gifts they throw at us against them someday?"

Yet, as he said that, Isaac wasn't sure how revenge would even work in a universe where the Overlords seemed to watch everything the survivors did. He also doubted they were the first or the last to feel this way. Either the Overlords had a system for dealing with rebellious Hosts, or they simply didn't care.

"I know. Trust me, I do," Elaine's quiet voice filled the clearing. "It's just… infuriating."

That's one way to put it, he thought, and was just about to open his mouth when a fourth voice joined the conversation.

"Oh, you're all here. Good," James said as he climbed out of the tent. "Guys, you ain't gonna believe what just happened to me."

Isaac arched an eyebrow. "Let me guess. You just had a meeting with your Sire."

The bigger man blinked, stumbling mid-step. "Wha… How did you…" He trailed off, clicking his tongue. "Ah, shit. So that's what that bastard meant. Fucking hell."

That made Issac frown. Even if he was right with his guess, he had no idea what the man meant by that. "I think you're gonna have to elaborate."

James snorted as he dropped down next to Marie. "Yeah, no kidding," he muttered. "Just to check. You've just experienced the same thing, right?"

Isaac nodded and gave the man a shortened version of his meeting with Rakin.

"Damn… I met the Overlord Conductor. Only unlike you, I actually tried to clock him. Got thrown through three stone walls for my effort," James grumbled, rubbing his arm. "Tried to ask the bastard some questions too, but he wasn't having it. Just told me that if I want his support, I gotta kill a High-threat beast." His gaze shifted to Issac. "Said you would know where to find one."

Shit, Isaac cursed internally. Deep down, he had been hoping that maybe the monster Rakin wanted him to kill was a moderate threat, but of course, it couldn't be that easy. A High threat. Only a step down from the Minotaur. Great.

He sighed, returning his gaze to James. "And he didn't say anything else?"

The older man shook his head. "Nope. Nada. I would have had an easier time talking to a wall. Really, I have no idea how a guy like that can be my Sire."

Marie groaned. "Of course that's what you're hung up on."

James shrugged. "Just saying."

"So we are really doing this?" Elaine's soft voice once more filled the clearing. "Running straight into danger just because they said so?"

"I'm not forcing anyone," Isaac said. "This is my task, or well, mine and James' now. You two can just stay behind and wait for us."

Elaine scoffed. "Hell no. If you're going, I'm going too. We're a team."

"Exactly," Marie added, smiling. "Even if we don't get our own shiny suicide missions, we're still a team. One for all, all for one, and all that sappy bullshit, right?"

Isaac chuckled. "I guess…" He smiled too. "All right. You two should go and rest then. James and I will take watch."

For a moment, the women tried to protest, saying that it wasn't their turn yet. But after some prodding and then ignoring their complaining, they disappeared into the tent, leaving the two men alone.

"I don't believe them," James spoke up after a few minutes of silence.

"Hmm?" Isaac turned, raising an eyebrow. "About what?"

"Their reasons for the Virus Wars," the man elaborated, frowning. "It still doesn't add up. Entertainment? Sure, I can believe they are just ugly bastards screwing with others for their enjoyment. But it still stinks. Training us and showing us the danger of the Broken Strain would still have been smarter. Quality over quantity, my ass."

Isaac hummed in thought. He had wondered the same thing. That said, even if it turned out that Rakin was lying, the Virus Wars could still be explained by the Overlords being sick bastards. But maybe there really was something more to it…

"Maybe something about the Sire bond?" he offered. "It's a fragment of their own Virus, after all."

James tsked. "Still doesn't make sense. Why kill us off, then? Wouldn't more Hosts mean more benefits?"

"Not necessarily," Isaac said, his voice low. "It's a piece of their power. And they have given it away to billions, probably more. Just think about it."

Even though he didn't state his conclusion outright, it didn't take James long to realize what he meant. His mouth opened, eyes widening. "Oh… Damn… Like fruits. The good ones get to ripen, while the bad ones… "

Isaac grimaced as the man trailed off. Crude as the analogy was, it was quite accurate. And if they were really under surveillance all the time, maybe it was best that some things were left unsaid. Because if Overlords were giving away tiny pieces of their Viruses, only take them back once the Host died…

Then the Virus Wars are both a show and a banquet… a harvest.

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