Successfully conquering the final mission of the World Tree alone, Rozen reached its pinnacle.
If passing through the trials in this giant domed space and reaching the door on the ceiling while being besieged by countless Guardian Knights counted as success, then Rozen had indeed accomplished it—achieving something close to impossible.
Such a feat, if revealed, would surely shock all players in ALO and even astonish the game's administrators.
Logically, having achieved such greatness, even the game's operators should have acknowledged Rozen's accomplishment and rewarded him accordingly.
Unfortunately, as Rozen had foreseen, this mission—designed to be nearly unbeatable—ultimately brought no reward, only cruel reality.
After all, the game designers were far more cunning than anyone could have imagined, making it impossible for anyone to reach the top of the World Tree and expose their secrets.
Thus...
"The door... won't open..."
Indeed.
Rozen, who had truly touched the door, found that it neither opened nor triggered any system prompt. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't force it open; the cold door rejected him entirely.
What was going on?
Was he missing a key item?
Or had he not fulfilled a specific requirement to open it?
Usually, in virtual games, there are only two explanations for failing to open a door: lack of the necessary item, or unfulfilled conditions.
However, this door was different.
The reason it wouldn't open was even more malicious and ruthless.
That is…
"In the system's settings, this door can't be opened…"
Exactly.
In the system settings, this door was designed to be unopenable.
Or rather, it was set to only open for someone with administrator privileges, like a GM account or the game designer.
In other words, only those with administrator rights or game designers could reach the top of the World Tree. Ordinary players, even after passing trials akin to hell, would still be barred from reaching the pinnacle.
The notion that completing this mission would allow one to ascend the World Tree, meet the Elf King Oberon in the sky city, and reincarnate as an Alf was likely a complete fabrication.
"How twisted..."
Rozen's face darkened, his gaze becoming cold and filled with fury.
From a rational perspective, if the top of the World Tree hid unspeakable secrets, setting the door as permanently locked was indeed sensible. But if so, why design this task in the first place? Why create such a trial, or this door, making the World Tree's top an unreachable domain?
Yet, they went out of their way to create a mission impossible to complete, leaving a door that couldn't be opened, luring players to attempt it endlessly and gain nothing in return. It was as if they wanted to revel in watching players fly like moths to a flame, only to be burned—a vile, disgusting move that enraged Rozen.
But no matter how furious Rozen was, once he intruded into this domain, the enemy would not let him go so easily.
"————!"
It was as if the silent world suddenly came alive again, with countless enemies charging toward him.
Rozen turned around, looking behind him.
There, countless Guardian Knights were either advancing with swords and spears or aiming bows from afar, making it clear Rozen was surrounded and completely targeted.
"Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish!"
A rain of light arrows once again shot out, forming a dense curtain aiming straight for Rozen.
"Boom!"
Rozen's wings flapped behind him, and he swiftly darted away, letting the arrows hit the door, bouncing off with a series of clinking sounds.
Rozen, now a blur, spun around while shifting directions, employing the "Illusion Acceleration" technique to create afterimages, like a high-flying acrobat dodging the rain of arrows, darting towards the oncoming knights.
In his hand, the Fairy Sword was raised.
"Splurt!"
When a Guardian Knight charged up to Rozen, he didn't even have time to attack. Under the swift flash of the blade, he was instantly cut in two, engulfed in flames, and vanished.
"Splurt!" "Splurt!" "Splurt!" "Splurt!"
The sound of slashing was relentless as one by one, the charging Guardian Knights were cleaved apart, each felled by a single blow, either disintegrating or bursting into flames, leaving no trace behind.
Rozen, as if venting his fury, charged into the ranks of Guardian Knights, dodging every attack using Fantasy Acceleration and delivering a storm of sword strikes, leaving trails of light that cut down all in his path. Every Guardian Knight seemed to be sliced in half by a brilliant flash, unable to resist and immediately dispatched.
Rozen tore through the army of Guardian Knights several times over, slicing open several breaches in their ranks. Even the rearguard archers couldn't escape his wrath, falling one after another.
In an instant, an untold number of Guardian Knights were slain.
Such power was truly awe-inspiring, something unheard of, leaving onlookers astonished.
If it were anyone else, even the most skilled, they would have long exhausted their HP under the relentless attacks. But Rozen, relying on "Mind's Eye" for clairvoyance and "Virtual Ether" for enhancement, dodged all attacks and left his enemies trailing in the wake of his afterimages.
Of course, Rozen wasn't merely venting his frustration meaninglessly.
In that moment, he gradually raised the state of his "Mind's Eye."
In the past, to avoid overloading his brain, Rozen allowed Gyokuto to limit his "Mind's Eye," using it at a divine realm level while temporarily sealing off the ultimate form of "Mind's Eye."
But now, he began to remove the restrictions, gradually increasing the power of "Mind's Eye."
"I refuse to believe there's no way to break through this predicament."
Rozen, while fighting through the Guardian Knight army, elevated the power of "Mind's Eye," peering deeper into this world.
He intended to gaze into the core of this virtual realm, to see it all, searching through countless data and programs for a flaw in the system's settings.
With this, Rozen felt his brain seemed to be ablaze, his breath grew scorching, and his vision started to distort, blurring slightly.
The resulting change was that time around him seemed to flow slower and slower, allowing him to see more and more, as if the swarming Guardian Knight army was advancing in slow motion. Rozen could clearly see each of their movements and even glimpsed events that would unfold in the next few minutes, like a slideshow flashing through his mind.
Until a certain moment…
"This is…"
Seeing something, Rozen froze in surprise.
Then, the corners of his mouth lifted into a smile.
At the top of the World Tree.
In the golden birdcage hanging from the branches, Yui, who had been calling for Rozen, opened her eyes.
"How... how is it? Yui!"
Upon seeing this, Asuna quickly asked, her voice filled with urgency and anxiety.
Yui spoke up, unable to hide her worry.
"Papa has entered the giant egg at the root of the World Tree. To reach here, he's fighting countless Guardian Knights."
As she tracked Rozen's location ID and absorbed real-time information, Yui reported to Asuna.
"Papa is amazing. He's battling so many enemies, and his character data is changing rapidly, almost reaching the system's maximum limits. Although the monster he's fighting are vast, they're being reduced at an astonishing speed. Unfortunately, each time one falls, a new monster appears. Papa must be facing endless enemies, fighting with all his strength."
Yui relayed all the information she could gather to Asuna, but there was a hint of anxiety in her voice.
"Rozen..."
Asuna could only gaze down from the top of the World Tree, hoping to see the figure fighting with all his might amidst an army below, her heart filled with sorrow.
Even though Asuna had been forcibly transferred to this world from SAO and had spent two months here, knowing little about this world, Yui had provided her with enough information to understand just how difficult it was to conquer the World Tree and reach its summit.
No, "difficult" wasn't even the right word; it was impossible to complete.
No matter how strong a player is, facing endless enemies can only end in defeat.
Besides…
"Papa seems to have already reached the gate, but its program code wasn't triggered. It seems that it requires administrator privileges to open; players simply can't open it or reach here."
As Yui said this, her voice was on the verge of tears.
"How can it be...!?"
Asuna didn't want to believe it either, covering her mouth and swallowing a sob.
After a moment, Asuna shook her head, pushing down her anxiety and weakness, and strengthened her resolve again.
"Even so, he'll definitely overcome this challenge. I believe in him."
With these words, Asuna steeled her heart.
"Mama…" Yui, watching Asuna, took a deep breath and likewise resolved herself. "Yes, Papa will definitely do it."
"Gu!"
"Gu!"
Saichou and Hanachou cried out in agreement.
Even though reason told them that this was absolutely impossible, they chose to believe in Rozen—the man who had once filled her hopeless lives with energy and hope, saving her from despair.
She believed that the man who had once saved her would once again appear before her. The girl held onto this future in her hearts.
But malice always arrives faster than miracles.
"Heh heh… heh heh… ha ha ha ha…!"
With a laugh filled with sticky malice, a voice, sounding almost ecstatic, echoed through the space.
"I never expected this. Truly unexpected. That man actually dared to enter this world. It seems the gods are on my side!"
These words reached the ears of Asuna and Yui, and their faces changed completely.
"Clang!"
In the next moment, a figure appeared in the golden birdcage.
Who else could it be but Sugo Nobuyuki?
"Sugo…!"
"Mm…!"
Asuna immediately reacted, stepping forward and instinctively shielding Yui behind her, making Yui let out a timid sound.
"Gu!"
"Gu!"
Saichou and Hanachou, on the other hand, positioned themselves in front of Asuna, glaring at Sugo Nobuyuki, as if protecting the two girls, their calls full of hostility.
Sugo Nobuyuki glanced at Saichou and Hanachou, then at Yui hiding behind Asuna, his mouth twisting into a grin.
"No wonder the programming department said there's something unusual running in your character file. So this is it?"
It seemed Sugo Nobuyuki had indeed put some effort into studying Asuna's immortal object attribute.
Yui, Saichou, and Hanachou had finally been discovered by this man, causing Asuna to shiver instinctively.
Asuna forced down her shivers and fixed Sugo Nobuyuki with a sharp gaze.
"Do you think you can still do whatever you please, Sugo?" Asuna said coldly. "Since you're here, you must realize that man is coming, and your plot will soon be unraveled!"
Asuna used these words to try to suppress the fear that Sugo Nobuyuki instilled in her.
But this only made Sugo Nobuyuki laugh even harder.
He laughed with both joy and malevolence.
"My plot unraveled? By him?" Sugo Nobuyuki, looking almost maniacal, yelled up at the sky. "This world is mine! All of this is mine! Here, in this world, I am God!"
Possessing the highest administrator privileges in ALfheim Online, Sugo Nobuyuki was utterly elated.
"That little punk dared to humiliate me in the real world. I almost lost everything that was rightfully mine, and I couldn't even get into your hospital room. Everyone looked down on me. No matter how much I offered, the hospital wouldn't let me in. And all this because of an orphan that no one wanted—a little nobody who only shines in virtual worlds. Everyone listened to him, did what he said. How utterly ridiculous!"
As he spoke, Sugo Nobuyuki grinned maliciously.
"But now, that loathsome brat is in this world, the world I control. That means it's my responsibility to show him who's the true ruler, who's the real god!"
The thought of what was about to happen filled Sugo Nobuyuki with unbridled joy.
In the real world, Sugo Nobuyuki truly couldn't do anything to Rozen. He had lost Yuuki Shouzou's support, and even the government sided with Rozen. Sugo Nobuyuki had experienced true helplessness, along with boundless hatred and resentment.
But now that Rozen had entered this virtual world, where Sugo Nobuyuki wielded the highest-level administrator privileges, wasn't dealing with a mere player as easy as snapping his fingers?
Sugo Nobuyuki had already planned to torment Rozen mercilessly, making him kneel and beg for mercy with tears in his eyes.
But before that…
"Since that brat made it here, he might know something. I'll hide you all away, transfer the 300 players to another place, and come back to deal with you after I'm done with him."
Sugo Nobuyuki directed an infuriatingly smug smile at Asuna.
"Mama…!"
Yui immediately clung to Asuna in fear.
"Don't worry, Yui." Asuna comforted her. "He can't hurt us."
With the invincibility attribute protecting her, Sugo Nobuyuki couldn't directly interfere with Asuna.
However…
"If you obediently come with me now, I might be merciful to that brat later. But if you don't cooperate, you know what will happen."
Sugo Nobuyuki laughed openly, completely shameless.
Asuna bit her lip hard, fighting to keep her composure.
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