Nico crossed his arms as he leaned in, listening intently to Sophia as she concluded her story. "So, what happened next?" he inquired like a 5-year-old being told a bedtime story.
Sophia sighed. "After the question was asked, the system displayed its response blatantly:"
{ There is no escape }
Nico felt his heart beat fast for all the wrong reasons. He then got up from the bed and approached Sophia, wanting to know more.
"What do you mean it said there's no escape?" he asked in a low and disgruntled voice.
"... The system wasn't made by all the gods of Olympus. Xingtian and the Goddess Nyx created it for Xingtian to share his powers," Sophia began explaining.
"Since the system was built for death, the gods of Olympus found a way to breach it and use it to their advantage. Xingtian never actually wanted to kill the gods, he just wanted to protect the mortals," she continued.
"... And, protecting the mortals means keeping them as far away from the gods as possible..." Nico concluded as he clenched his fists in frustration.
"Since we killed Ares and lots of people died, another god will make an appearance and more people will die. The best thing would be to try to survive until we no longer wanna live," Sophia expressed with a serious facial expression.
"They're out in heaven sipping on Martinis while we're over here trying to make it to the next day. The best way to keep ourselves alive is to avoid them."
Nico sighed after hearing Sophia's verdict. In all seriousness, the chances of him winning against a god were pathetically low.
Even with the help of Lindsey and Laura, who are both stronger than him in terms of physical strength and mana, they wouldn't even be able to make a dent on a god.
Jessica, Sophia's sister, was regarded as a strong player who never lost a single fight. But even she couldn't do anything against Ares.
Nico was at a loss. There was no reason to fight the gods if he wouldn't be able to return to the real world.
His last hope relied on the last detail Sophia mentioned.
"Hey, you said this Emerald girl could alter anything in the system, right?" he asked.
"Yes. Actually, I think you might have a similar power. You mentioned how you can only fake your death though," replied Sophia.
"What's her gamertag?"
"Why's that important?"
"I have a feeling that she has some answers hidden from you and probably her comrades. I haven't met her yet, but you're right; Emerald is dangerous," Nico claimed as he slightly furrowed his brows and put his mask back on.
Sophia rubbed her chin and began contemplating. The fact that Emerald could alter the system meant that she could also alter the answers it gives.
It wouldn't be a stretch to say that she might've changed what the system actually displayed. In addition to that, she was one of Nyx's kin, which meant that there were more of them out there.
He needed to find the root of the problem before he could solve it, and he believed that Emerald was important to his freedom.
After thinking it through carefully, Sophia agreed and nodded her head. "Fine. Her gamertag is Emerald_3."
Nico thanked her and immediately opened up his system screen, searching for Emerald's profile, which he found relatively easily.
"She's got over a million likes, releases a video once a week and pictures of herself on the net..." Nico explained as he scrolled through her content.
"An influencer in the apocalypse? I think I've finally seen everything," Sophia joked with a serious face.
"Says here that she's currently in Goldhallow with Hounder. That's not too far from Red Town," he said, closing his system screen.
"So, once we leave this place, you're headed for Goldhallow?"
Nico smirked. "You said 'once' instead of 'if.'"
"Get over yourself, short staff. I only said that because I at least knlw you'll be fine," Sophia retorted as she stepped through the door.
"You're not coming with me?" he asked as he followed behind her.
"No... At least... I can't... Not yet..." she answered, her voice as low as a whisper.
Nico nodded and put his hands in his hoodie as he stepped out through the hall and stood next to Victor, who smirked at Nico.
Nico looked at him and raised a single eyebrow. "What?"
"You know, Sophia isn't the type to hold onto her emotions. The fact that you were able to get her to open up means you have a way with words," Victor answered.
"That's not it; it was an exchange between her and I."
"You're probably right. But, I have a feeling that you'll be able to help her. And even if you can't, she'll pull through."
Nico smiled behind his mask and nodded. "You're right. Sophia's stronger than most women I know. She'll be okay, and she definitely doesn't need me."
***
While Nico was trapped in the Tower of Poseidon, Laura and Lindsey were back in Genesis's mansion, walking around the familiar halls and meeting familiar faces.
While Nico had been in the tower for a week, the girls had only spent a day and they were already bring monitored by none other than Elayne.
While Laura kept her composure, Lindsey was having a really hard time doing the same.
She was frustrated and angry about the fact that Elayne had gotten killed. Not only that, but she had relations with him in order to make him lower his guard.
Elayne felt every glared dagger thrown at her and she knew why Lindsey acted the way she did. They had never gotten along in the past. But now, Lindsey would completely loathe her.
Because she killed Nico, the man who managed to save her when she felt lost.
At least, that's what they wanted her to think.
Since the objective was for them to gather information on Genesis, they would also make sure that they never found out that Nico was still alive.
If they could find anything that could lead them to the gods, heaven or a weapon that cannot be easily obtained, then their mission would be complete.
The hardest part would be finding an escape, especially since Elayne was their personal bodyguard.
As they walked through the halls, Lindsey sighed heavily and stopped walking, turning her body to stare at Elayne.
"Why don't you leave us alone, you hooker?" she insulted Elayne as she crossed her arms.
Elayne didn't respond and simply stared at Lindsey in return.
"You're so fucking suffocating, it's annoying. I can't believe Nico liked someone like you. You just had to kill him, didn't you?!"
"I didn't-! ... I didn't think he'd jump in front of me when Genesis..." Elayne responded as she rubbed her arms and looked away. "Whatever..." she added as she stood up straight and wore a serious face.
"He was in the way of Big G. So, he had to be taken out," she continued.
Lindsey gritted her teeth and almost charged at Elayne, only for Laura to hold her back.
"Look, we're not trying to fight you here," said Laura. "We just feel a little alienated because of your presence. Would it kill you to give us atleast 5 minutes to ourselves?"
Elayne thought about it for a few seconds and responded with, "Fine. But, I'm watching you."
She walked away and left the sisters alone. Laura looked at Lindsey and smiled. "Good job," she whispered. "You're a great actor."
"I wasn't acting," Lindsey retorted as she stormed off. "I don't even know what we're supposed to be doing here. Why can't we go our own way until he comes back?"
"There's no guarantee that he'll be coming back," Laura said. "We're here so that they don't go searching for anything. Plus, we're supposed to be gathering information, aren't we?"
Lindsey sighed. "... If it's information we want, I think I know where we can go..."
"We can't leave the mansion, or did you already forget?"
"I never said we're leaving the mansion," Lindsey corrected her as she smiled. "I know a secret someone who might be able to help us."
Sceptical, but willing to hear what her sister has to say, Laura sighed heavily and held out her hands. "Lead the way."
After walking to the front entrance of the mansion, Laura and Lindsey looked at the women who were dressed in little to no clothing.
Among them was Melissa, who had tied her hair neatly into a bun and had a revealing see-through dress that was made of thin linen.
The grey colour accentuated her curves and made her look even more womanly than she was. Lindsey gritted her teeth as she looked at her, envy washing over the poor soul.
Laura sighed. "Don't tell me..."
"Yep. This one has a crush on Nico and Nico has a crush on her. I'd like to think that she'd want to help him," Lindsey responded with a whisper.
"What makes you think that?"
"Remember when you and I were complete bitches to her and then Nico decided to step in? You don't just forget that type of chivalry if you're a woman," Lindsey said.
"Plus, I've heard her mutter to herself whenever Nico walks past," she added with squinted eyes.
"Yeah, as cute as that sounds, that doesn't exactly help us with our problem."
"Melissa isn't a normal dryad; she is alone and can take on the pain of any man she sleeps with, while also sharing their memories. What are the odds that she hasn't let him smash?"
"Don't you dare use that analogy ever again," Laura warned. "And, to answer your question, Genesis fancies her way too much... It sickens me, in a way..."
"Then that's our answer," Laura said as she approached Melissa. "Hey, whore! We'll be borrowing you tonight!" she shouted, causing a scene, while she grabbed Melissa's arm.
"W-What...?" Melissa replied with a worried expression on her face.
"You heard me! You're gonna be our plaything tonight!"
Laura face palmed and groaned softly. "How the hell are we related...?"