"Am I supposed to know you?" Mark asked with a deep frown. She placed the tumbler on the table and stood up, adjusting her bathrobe.
"Not really. I was in disguise at the time," she said. She stood a couple of feet away from him with her arms folded across her chest, favoring her right leg to balance better.
"Is it a grudge?" he asked.
She smiled.
Mark cursed internally, realizing how troublesome his situation had become. What were the odds that the very hotel he had chosen for refuge turned out to be owned by a player? Not just any player, but one who was most likely an awakened and fully licensed Hunter, given the wealth she possessed. If he had to guess, this was related to one of his numerous gigs, the ones where he got paid to double-cross a team during a raid and run off with the loot.
Mark was not a powerful player. He was not even remotely strong, and he was not awakened in the first place. The only reason he got away with his crimes was his impeccable sense of timing. He double-crossed at the very last moment, so unexpected that before anyone could react, the job was done.
"Fine. Let me refresh your memory," she said. "It happened a year ago. April 23, during the Nightingale map exploration."
Mark's eyes went wide open in disbelief.
"Wait. That day?" he stuttered, thinking back. Then he frowned deeply. That day was one he remembered all too well. On that day, he had taken a job to raid a team of seven, which he had completed splendidly and executed a smooth getaway with the loot. What he had gotten that day was valued at over two million dollars, yet he had not earned anything from it. His contractor had backstabbed him and taken all the loot for himself.
"Oh, it seems you remember now," she chimed in. "Well, that's good. That day is one I will never forget. I still remember how a certain bastard I was saving from getting crushed literally stabbed me from behind and stole all the loot the whole team worked so hard to secure. You even mocked me and laughed at me before stabbing me a couple more times and leaving me there to bleed out and die." She narrated this with a smile on her face that did not reach her eyes. "It was only after the whole exploration came to an end that I got to find out it was not the monster that had killed Tracy during the raid, but you who had backstabbed her as well while the team was busy in battle."
She walked closer. He subconsciously retreated.
"Do you know how much we searched for you? No, you would not, since you were busy doing what you know how to do best the whole time. But you are really lucky, I will not lie. All this time and I only got to find you now."
"Would you believe me if I said it was not intentional?" he asked with a dry laugh.
"No, but I would most definitely kill you if you said that. Are you saying it?"
His smile fell. Yeah, he was screwed.
"What do you want?" he decided to be straight with her. Beating around the bush would get him absolutely nowhere. Plus, no matter how much he tried to deny it, the truth remained a fact. He had fallen into an intricate web and was now completely at her mercy.
"Hmm, what do I want?" she echoed with a thoughtful expression. "All right. How about your life?"
Mark began running countless simulations in his head on how this was going to turn out. There was no way he was dying here, not now of all times. Not when he had finally made all this money. Not when he still had a revenge to complete. He would get out of here one way or another. He must.
"No one died that day. All that happened in the game. No one was killed. I do not see why you should want to kill me for it," he said. She frowned.
"Is that what this is to you? Do you even know why hunters play it?" she asked. He furrowed his brows in confusion.
"To train?"
"Wait, this cannot be. Are you telling me you do not even know what it is?" she asked with wide eyes.
"It is a game. What else is it supposed to be?" he asked. Her expression changed completely. She stared at him like he was an idiot. After staring at him for a whole while, she slapped her forehead.
"Are you awakened?"
He did not answer.
"Yeah, that is a stupid question. If you were, you would have sensed me from the start," she said, absentmindedly twirling the centerpiece of her necklace. "But this should not be possible. Are you living under a rock or something not to know what that world is? Wait, where are you from?"
He still did not reply, just staring blankly at her, considering his next moves.
"Look, Mark, I already called my friend over. She will be arriving today. That is the reason I am even making all this known to you. There is no escape," she said.
"What do you want?" He reiterated his question once again. She stared silently for a while, then replied.
"The book in your possession."
Mark stared at her for a long while, then walked towards the table where he grabbed his wine bottle and poured wine into the tumbler.
"Three hundred million dollars, and you ensure I get out of Starfall. Only then will I comply," he said. He smiled, gesturing with the wine towards her before taking a sip.
She was shocked.
"Did you not listen to everything I just said? You do not get to make conditions. You should even pray to whatever god you serve that you make it out of this alive, much less make conditions," she said sternly.
Mark shrugged.
"Then you might as well kill me now, because you are getting nothing off me," he grinned and said. Her expression fell completely.
From all she said, he came to one conclusion: the book was just that important. In fact, it was the major reason he was still being sought after until this moment. For as long as the book remained in his possession, he was sure he would not be killed.
"It seems I have to make you understand your situation," she said, walking forward until she stopped in front of him.
Mark could guess what she was about to do, so he decided to act now.
"No!" he suddenly screamed, looking behind her. With a frown, she turned around. Just then, a bottle of wine collided with the back of her head, but the attack had no effect.
"Crap," Mark muttered.
"I have to admit, you had me there for a moment," she started, sending her hand through her lustrous hair. Suddenly, sparks of what appeared to be golden lightning began crackling about her. "But you must be stupid to think I let my guard down around you even for a second."
"Oh, I know that," he said.
The moment she looked up, he splashed the wine into her eyes, blinding her for a moment with a peppery sting.
"Ugh!" she groaned in discomfort. Before she could regain herself, he slammed her own bottle of wine against her head. It shattered on impact and she suddenly collapsed, blood dripping from her forehead.
"You are too confident for your own good," Mark grinned.
As quickly as possible, he made his way to the door and ran out, arriving into a hallway which was empty. He ran and found an elevator at the far end. He quickly tapped the button. The moment it opened...