NPC Code: Red Riding Hood

"How about you? Can you summon your bow?" I asked.

"Yeah. I don\'t know how our inventory works, but yeah. I can summon my weapon at any time. I don\'t even know why the elves let us inside this prison with our weapons in the first place. They didn\'t even bother to confiscate them!" Ryoshi cried. "Don\'t you think that this astral space is kinda overpowered? I mean, if you can store anything in here, can\'t you contain any living creature inside that empty place?"

Ryoshi loved talking about the complex concept of the game. Because of his outstanding performance in school, he cared about the little things inside a game. It was the exact reason he had not levelled up in his account compared to Fenrir, who became the top player in the game.

Despite our differences, he was an avid learner and gamer in these role-playing games. His knowledge might come in handy soon on our journey. I could only depend on my experiences while playing this game.

"I don\'t know, Ryoshi," I exclaimed, and leaned closer to his face. "And I don\'t care. We have an inventory, and I am thankful for that. Now, if you don\'t want to be impaled by those arrows and become a walking kebab, I suggest we make a move right now. But you have a point about the elves. I\'ll give you that."

I also found it difficult to believe those long-eared creatures and their actions. If they planned on taking us in here, those elves could have stolen our weapons. But they did not. Instead, the elves locked us behind these bars, still armed and dangerous.

"Probably because those elves thought we couldn\'t escape their base. We are inside their territory, after all," I replied. "And those elves move because their script told them to. If they acted violently while kids were playing Code, don\'t you think they would have banned this game in most countries?"

Ryoshi nodded to himself and answered, "You have a fair point. I\'ll give you that too"

"Anyway, we need to get out of here right now for six hours. That\'s the only time that the elves gave me. La Finta, the Grandmother of this place, placed some kind of protection for me." I shifted the topic and directed my gaze at the staircase ahead of us. "Do you want me to blast these bars away or bend them? We also need to bypass those elves once we are on the stairway."

It was a long flight up the stairs upon arriving here in the dungeon. Ryoshi likely went through that punishment before I had set foot in this place. He disliked those series of steps and cursed them whenever Ryoshi could. I can still remember the event when he gave up climbing up our classroom and begged the principal to enter the elevator.

"If we did that, you\'ll alert the rangers!" Ryoshi retorted, whilst flailing his hands. "And, yes! Of course, I know La Finta! I read about her once in the article before playing Code. But why would she protect you when there\'s a death game against NPCs and players? Shouldn\'t it be the other way around? NPC that are trying to kill us, players, because they have gone rogue?"

"Yeah. That\'s what I believe. I don\'t know why on Earth La Finta would do that for no reason? I have one, but I will tell you once we\'re out of this place." I answered. "And do you have a better idea of escaping this prison? "

"Blowing things up fixes nothing, Okami."

It had been an hour since the time I had entered this place and thirty minutes in the actual world. The two of us had been talking about various ways to get out of this prison. But that conversation ended when I sensed someone approaching our direction.

As I looked ahead, an elf girl with blonde hair greeted my eyes. It was the same petite warden that sealed me inside this room. Beside the girl were two rangers guarding her sides. Their figure did not look happy at all.

"Well, if it isn\'t two idiots squabbling with each other," Elina stated, and insulted the two of us.

The guards spared Ryoshi and me the frosty glare. I, who did not care at all, just raised my head and met their gaze.

We were two idiots in several aspects. I did not feel offended about it. If there was one thing that Ryoshi hated, it was someone offending his intelligence.

"Hey! Listen here, you offish long-eared elf! Okami and I could crush you at any time!" Ryoshi said, and slipped my name away. "Whoops. I should\'ve not said that."

I bashed him with my bare hands. A "fumu" sound escaped from his mouth. I always told Ryoshi to avoid mentioning my name in the game. Countless players wanted me dead. There was a bounty on my head, given that I was a player killer in my prime time. Now that Code became a death game, and I was in my smurf account, people could effortlessly present me to the adventurer\'s guild.

It was also why I wanted to avoid teaming up with Mer and Robin from before.

"Shut up! If you could, you would\'ve destroyed this place a long time ago." The elf crossed her arms and glared at me in the eye. "I will ask you again. What did La Finta say before she died in your hands?"

"I have the right to remain silent," I answered, and sat on the ground.

I knew these elves could never touch me within these six hours. Although the elves tied our hands up behind my back, they cannot lay a finger on my body. They could only wait until the scheduled time.

Elina did not utter a word and turned around. She might know that I would refuse to talk about their leaders, especially when I was behind their bars. If they would release the two of us, I could reconsider my decision about talking.

Well, it was not like I was hiding something from them. I would trick Elina and use that opportunity to escape if these elves would take the bait.

"So you have chosen to rot inside this place?" Elina continued.

"I speak whenever I want. Just like my friend here had said. I could take you all down within seconds."

Elina gave a snicker and turned to face us for the last time. "I would love to see you try."

After our exchange, the trio went back to the staircase. The elves\' stomps resonated throughout the dungeon. It was the only sound that we heard as we waited for them to arrive at the surface. It was a long walk; I was sure of it, since the stairway was approximately two hundred feet above the ground.

"Well, there goes our chances," I exclaimed, and laid my body on the ground.

"I can\'t believe you\'re so casual about this." Ryoshi peered his head near my face and obstructed my view.

"There was not a thing we could do about it," I answered. "And besides, someone is approaching our way."

Ryoshi could only blink his eyes after hearing such a statement from me. He did not know what I was talking about. Since he did not have the Lycanthrope\'s ability, Ryoshi was not aware of the army of players marching towards Nirvana.

"First things first, I go by the name Wolf. Second, there\'s a guild that planned on taking this place down," I exclaimed. "And I sure hope they save us first before destroying Nirvana."

"Oh. Is that so?" Ryoshi said, and sat beside me. "Well, all we have to do now is wait for them to invade this place."

Another hour had passed by, doing nothing but to wait around this cell. A guard came by and monitored us. But as soon as she saw us idling around, the elf ranger fell asleep in her chair.

I used this opportunity to use my [wolf walk] and reached out for the keys. Although this might be a useless move, I still wanted to escape from this place. This key would become useful eventually if Ryoshi and I did not want to make this place go kaboom.

"Now that\'s what I\'m talking about," Ryoshi murmured, with his eyes still shut tight.

Ryoshi knew about my past and how I became a crazed man killing people in Code. He was one of the few people who knew my identity and watched me on the news about the killing spree I committed. He knew the reason behind my massacre, but Ryoshi wasn\'t supportive.

"Do you still see NPC as mindless characters inside the game," Ryoshi asked me a sudden question. He was usually like this every time we were together inside a room.

After getting the keys from the guard, I nudged back and hid it inside my [astral space]. A notification alerted me, telling me I had got the key for the cell. \'Now, I don\'t have to worry about making a sound if we want to escape this place.\' I thought, and went to face Ryoshi.

"No. I don\'t want to become the person I was from before.." I answered.