It was as if the entire room had been filled with water.

All of a sudden, my breath caught in my throat. The air grew cold, and an invisible weight pressed down on me from all sides. Across from me, the Conductor stood motionless, its unsettling smile stretching further. It was almost as if... it was savoring my struggle.

"Have you not noticed the changes in you...?"

The Conductor's voice echoed again, dripping with amusement, its hand still raised and finger unwavering as it continued to point directly at me.

"It's starting. The turning."

Its voice dropped into a whisper.

"…The Cognitive Shard in your mind is beginning to assert itself more and more. You've managed to suppress its influence, to slow it down for now, but you can't stop what's coming. The inevitable will catch up to you."

The Conductor lowered its hand.

"You'll soon turn like the rest of us, and..."

The Conductor stopped, bringing its hands to its shoulders.

"I find myself shuddering at what you might become."

"....."

With those words, the Conductor stopped speaking, but staring at its expression, I could feel the lingering excitement in its body as it stared at me.

I didn't say a word.

I couldn't say a word.

The world around me seemed to have slowed to a crawl, my mind struggling to comprehend the Conductor's words.

No, rather...

'I know.'

My heart pressed heavily against my chest.

I wasn't stupid. I'd already noticed the changes in my behavior. I'd tried my best to brush them off, to pretend they weren't there, but denial could only go so far.

'I'm slowly starting to turn.'

I looked at my hands. They looked normal, but staring at them, they felt paler than usual.

The fear I would normally feel in moments like this was simply… gone. In its stead, all I felt was a quiet sense of dread that crept up into my mind.

"Absorb those fragments, and you'll turn. Kuk..."

The Conductor's chuckle silently made its way into my ears.

"...I wouldn't mind if you turned. I'm excited to see what you'd become."

Biting my lips, I pulled my hand away from the fragments.

'I guess that's that.'

It seemed like I couldn't go into the Fourth Order.

At least, not in my current state.

I reached into the drawer, grabbed a pill bottle, and shook out several tablets. Without hesitation, I tossed them into my mouth and washed them down with a gulp of water. My mind cooled the moment the pills made their way into my system, but this was far from enough.

'This won't do. At this rate, I might never reach the Fourth Order.'

This put me in a terrible position. For the upcoming mission, I had to reach the Fourth Order.

I had done a lot of preparations for the cult mission, and the only thing that was missing was me reaching the Fourth Order.

And yet—

"Shit."

I covered my face, trying my best to think of a way out of the situation.

But regardless of what I thought, there was no magical answer.

Overdosing on pills?

That'd probably make my situation worse.

Ask the Guild Master?

That would probably be enough for him to discard me. He was the last person I wanted to find out about my condition. The Cognitive Shard would leave a gaping hole in my worth, and the Guild Master only cared about people for the value they brought him.

The moment I lost value in his eyes, I didn't doubt for one second he'd discard me.

In that case...?

"Why do you seem so against the possibility of becoming one of us?"

The Conductor's voice broke through my thoughts. When I turned toward it, I saw it seated in the chair across from me, legs crossed with an eerie sort of grace, as if it had been there all along.

"I don't quite remember how I became what I am now, but it's not so bad. The power I've gained is… difficult to even comprehend. And when I look at you…" The Conductor paused, its expression shifting, the amusement fading into something more solemn. "When I look at you, I see the potential for something far greater than anything I ever was. I see you becoming an anomaly that the entire world will one day fear. I see you becoming... the one who can bend the world to your will. The next ■■■■■■■■."

"Hm?"

I frowned, trying to make out the last part of its sentence.

"Can you repeat that? Becoming the next?"

"■■■■■■■■."

"Huh...?"

I strained to catch its words, leaning forward slightly, but once again, they never reached me. It was as if something, or someone, was preventing them from being spoken. Instead, all that came out was a faint, grating sound that scraped at my ears and sent a shiver down my spine.

I looked at the Conductor, and seeing how it didn't appear to notice anything, a certain thought occurred to me.

The system...?

Could the one blocking me from hearing be the system?

My came to a sudden pause, and just when I felt the tension in the room reach the peak, my pocket vibrated.

Trrr Trrrr—

A familiar ringtone echoed in the air.

I paused for a moment, taking out my phone and staring at the caller.

[Unknown Caller]

Looking at the number, I frowned.

A scam call?

I hung up and blocked the number right after.

But just as I did so...

Trrr Trrrr—

My phone rang again.

I frowned once more, turning my attention towards the phone again, but this time, the screen said something different.

[Jamie]

I thought back to our past conversation and answered.

"Hello?"

—Seth!

Jamie's voice echoed from the phone's speakers.

—I sent you a couple of messages, but I didn't see you answer. Is everything okay?

"You did?"

I looked at my phone, and it indeed seemed to be the case.

"Oh, you did."

—So it looks like you didn't see them...

"I've been pretty busy lately."

—No, kidding. I've been keeping a close eye on your situation. Your game is currently killing it! It's no wonder you don't have any time.

"Yeah..."

He wasn't wrong.

Instead of losing steam, the game was performing even better.

This was one of the few good things that had been happening to me lately.

—At the rate things are progressing, it won't be nuts to say that you've got the silver award clinched. That's incredible!

"Thank you."

Thanking Jamie, I got straight to the point.

"You're calling me for the stream, correct?"

—....

There was silence on the other line.

I smiled silently.

"A promise is a promise. Since I said that I'd do it, I'll do it."

—Are you sure? I know that you're busy and all of that, so...

"It's fine."

I reassured him.

"I'm planning to use this stream to boost the game's popularity. If everything goes well, it should help improve sales and raise my chances of winning the award."

—Yes! Yes… That's exactly what I meant! I didn't want to sound too pushy, but your popularity's been skyrocketing since the incident. Your name's really trending right now, so with a stream, you could draw a huge audience! It'll be great exposure for you! I even know the perfect place. I've done all the research and—

"Actually."

I stopped Jamie before he could continue, my voice coming to a pause.

"There's a place I want to do the stream. I'd like it if we do it there."

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