It was when he finally breached the 35th floor after three months that he decided he wanted to do some shopping before he returned home. The guards usually did it and so far Hibiki had only been going from the dungeons to the castle ever since they started staying there.
The guards even took Akio to school and fetched him so Hibiki decided to use the one stone that he'd calibrated for the tower's entrance to catch a little break and do something different.
At first, it was quiet and people went about their normal business, but then he approached the first stall and the man greeted him gruffly before his eyes suddenly widened in shock, "K-K-Kaneko Hibiki!"
Hibiki frowned and wondered whether the man knew him from somewhere, but then he realized that the people in their immediate surroundings had all frozen and they were all staring at him with the same shocked surprise on their faces.
Excited whispers started up and Hibiki wondered whether someone had found out about the incident that happened at their old house.
The thought made him tense as he tried to push through the crowds to get away before someone called the police.
At least, that was what he thought was going to happen until he spotted numerous stalls with figurines that looked just like him, down to the very detail on the armor he used in the dungeons.
'What the hell?!'
A girl grabbed onto his arm, "Kaneko-sama! Please take a photo with me! I can't believe it, you're finally out!"
He shrugged her off and tried to retreat from the growing number of people that surrounded him until he finally realized that he had no other choice but to crush another stone to get back to the castle.
He quickly used aerokinesis to push the people back before he crushed the stone and reappeared at the castle, but his mind was in shock, "What the heck was all that about?"
Amused laughter echoed through the room he found himself in, "Don't you think it's funny how they've never met you, and yet a few leaked clips online showing off the skills of an amazing player, leagues above themselves, and everyone is simply clamoring for the chance to meet you."
Hibiki froze and fury boiled within him, "What…did…you…do!"
The vague outline of a human appeared before him, grinning almost dementedly, "Well you did agree to play a game with me, you just didn't specify that I wouldn't be able to do things to make the bet in my own favor."
Hibiki tried to grab the form, but his hands went straight through, "Why aren't you trying to stop me from destroying you?! Why are you doing all of this?"
The vague form's grin widened, "Because you are showing me the very thing that you denied…"
Hibiki felt chills run up and down his form as he tried to stop himself from asking the question the system expected, but he failed with a tired sigh, "Oh yeah? What is that?"
The being's smile turned cold, "Humanity's greed."
Hibiki's eyes widened in realization and he crushed a stone to take him back to the thirtieth floor.
He started going deeper into the tower without a second's hesitation.
'The system has been using me from the start! It's been playing both my strengths and my weaknesses to…I don't even know what it's trying to achieve!'
Memories ran through his mind of when he first returned.
The system had ensured that his brother would live just so that it could ensure that he did everything he could for Akio's sake.
He received the headset and the card and immediately started using it for Akio's sake.
Akio was placed in danger, and they immediately moved to the castle.
'Come to think of it, why had those guys even been in the apartment?'
He guessed he would never know as he just barely avoided being decapitated on the 41st floor.
The floors became harder and harder to pass, but his mind was too much of a mess to really pay attention to them.
'The system had given Akio back to me, it gave us money and apparently, it even gave me fame in an effort to stop me, but only one of those things had been important…Akio. That thing is a danger to Akio.'
By the 45th floor, he could barely catch his breath, but still, he pushed on…dragons on floor 46, sentinels on floor 47, an army of the undead on floor 48, deadly poison on floor 49, and finally, floor 50.
He grabbed hold of the door in an effort to hold himself up and there, in the center of the room, was a pulsing red crystal.
A vague image appeared next to him and the system waved his arms frantically, "No! Stop! You can't! Think of everything I did for you! Think of Akio! You…"
Hibiki stepped up to the crystal and knocked it off the pedestal, sending shards flying everywhere as it shattered on the floor.
He closed his eyes and waited for the world to return back to normal even as he sighed in relief at a tingling feeling swept through his limbs, but then he opened his eyes and watched in confusion as a screen appeared before him:
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Congratulations: New Administrator Selection Successful.
You are now the owner of the Greed system. Enjoy.
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An amused laugh slowly faded away along with the faint echo of words "This world is yours now…"