Zenith Online: Rebirth of the Strongest Player-Novel

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...Beep! …Beep! ...Beep!

The monotonous beep of a vital monitor echoed throughout an all-white medical room outfitted with top-notch medical equipment as a man, seeming to be no older than their late twenties, rested in the bed with a sickly expression.

Their skin was pale, and the state of their body even worse. It seemed that their entire body had atrophied after being confined to a bed for an unknown amount of time. Judging by their condition, it had to be a year at the very least!

Even though he appeared uncomfortable and seemingly wanted to be left alone, the man wasn't left unattended in the room.

Aside from the bed-ridden man, five men in suited attire guarded the room. One guard was posted in front of the door while four additional men positioned themselves in each corner of the room with stoic expressions.

However, they weren't the main talk of the room. There were five additional people―three men and two women―who sat around the bedside.

On top of the expression of pain on the man's face, he also seemed upset, which was understandable given the contents of their current talk. But, what could he do? He had spent ample time with at least three of these people.

After all, at one point in time, this withered man was lauded as one of the gaming industry's Most Prolific Rising Stars! That title soon earned him the position as the strongest commander in one of the top ten guilds in Zenith Online―Golden Brigade.

And, it was through his efforts that the guild managed to reclaim this spot in the first place. The raging competition related to the guilds of Zenith Online acquiring land and power almost stepped into the realm of absurdity! It was even more lucrative than wanting to acquire these traits on Earth.

Of course, this was only true because organizations at this level already possessed such a status. Zenith Online was akin to a new world for them to conquer! How could they shy away from the challenge?

Still, the man's expression remained sour. "Your visits are becoming more frequent. I thought I had given my answer on the matter already. I'll donate my current fortune to the medical area in hopes of finding a cure for this accursed affliction."

Due to his weakened condition, the man's voice was grating to the ear, causing everyone nearby to frown. But that wasn't the only reason. This sick individual held an enormous fortune now because of many accolades and the ludicrous expansion of the gaming industry after Zenith Online's rise to global fame.

"Let's not be hasty, Kieran. There is no need for you to make such a rash decision. Let's revisit the idea of having all those funds circulate back through the guild's channels to strengthen our influence after you pass. We still need to compete against those other nine. Besides, the medical industry has enough funds; more than enough actually," a composed man with glasses said.

While trying to reason with Kieran, the man lightly tapped the bridge of his glasses against his nose, indicating some slight annoyance.

The others surrounding the bed nodded in agreement. Everyone present was either a member of the organizations that backed the guild or high-ranking guild members themselves. Although Keiran wasn't a founding member of the guild, his skill gave him the leverage needed to acquire a percentage of the guild shares on par with vice-guild leaders.

Despite their insistence, Kieran remained adamant about his decision. If not for his sickness, he would still be in the competition and the guild's foundation could have possibly grown sturdier than ever.

"No, my decision is final. The guild has enough. What more could you want?"

However, the room's atmosphere changed once everyone closed their eyes and exhaled disappointedly before revealing cold and discontented expressions.

"We've heard your interests, but it's pointless now that you're on the verge of death. We've already arranged the lawyers and found a bypass clause that we can enact. After all, I'm sure any doctor would deem you unfit to make a decision regarding your wealth. It's being seized and claimed as we speak," the man revealed.

After listening to the others talk and murmur amongst themselves, Kieran's expression grew dissatisfied. "Oh? Is that right? So, in other words, my words are air, and if you so will it, you can take my entire legacy away from me?"

Thereafter, a heavy pressure suffused the room.

Although Kieran was on his deathbed, the pressure exuded by a high-caliber expert of Zenith Online was not to be dismissed. His gaze caused a cold sweat to seep down everyone's back despite his atrocious bodily condition.

It was to the point that the security posted inside every point of the room put their hands on their specialized weapons developed for humans with unnatural mental and physical capabilities.

But, the other people in the room raised their hands and didn't allow it, especially the man with glasses sitting beside Kieran.

"Yes, that is what I'm saying. Because of the contract you signed, we have the right of ownership. It was us who gave you your future and path to success. Don't feel wronged, old friend. You leaned upon us to grow to this height, so it's only fitting that you pay back the favor during your downfall."

However, instead of becoming angrier, Kieran chuckled softly for a long time before slowly panning his gaze toward the speaker. "Old friend? Leaned upon you? Charles, don't forget who sought out the other. I could have very well succeeded without the Golden Brigade."

"Wrong. After denying their offers, you would've been crushed by any one of the other superpowers. You think they'll allow you to rise in their domain and take food out of their mouths?" Charles answered.

"Tch, either way, your interest was reviving your family's withering legacy. If I knew it would turn out like this, I would have rejected your offer and took my chances with fate," Kieran said with an icy gaze.

"Correct. You could have... but that's also why we all voted upon this once you displayed signs of the Hyper-Cognitive Overload Sickness. Your headstrong attitude was always a concern. How long could we control you if you recovered? That simply was not a variable we were willing to account for," Charles said with a sigh that soon turned into a conniving smirk.

Kieran grew silent momentarily while giving Charles a deathly stare. There were a few things wrong with the way Charles worded his statement.

One, Kieran never made his condition public. Once he became sick, he simply told the guild it was a terminal illness. Additionally, when Kieran went for an evaluation and finally learned the exact type of illness, it was said to have no cure. Therefore, he kept his diagnosis secret while training a protege to succeed him.

Two, it felt as if Charles was much more familiar with the sickness than he let on.

As a result, Kieran couldn't help but inadvertently loathe Charles without genuinely knowing why until now. "How do you know the precise name of my condition?"

"It's not very much a secret. This sickness of yours isn't the first case, nor will it be the last. Yes, you may have an extremely rare case whose deterioration rate far exceeds the normal parameters, but a cure for this ailment exists. Alas, the chairman decided you were too much of an outlier to let heal properly. And, who am I to disobey my grandfather? So... it's irreversible now," Charles said with an indifferent chuckle.

Meanwhile, Kieran's eyes widened with shock.

Over the course of 6 years, toiling endlessly for Golden Brigade, Kieran visited many facilities in hopes of finding something to cure him. But, it now dawned upon him that he may have underestimated the wickedness of his background and the grasp of Behemoths backed by the Private Sector.

"It was you! You're the reason I was turned away many times! And you have the gall to smile in my face as if we're friends? We were never friends and never will be. You'll always be inferior, a second-rate player with no talent whatsoever."

"And yet... I'm the one who'll be alive. Not you," Charles smiled, ignoring Kieran's insults. It might've seemed innocent, but it was like the smile of a deceitful devil.

Suddenly, the pressure suffusing the room amplified many times over, making everyone feel as if the gravity in the space had increased by at least ten times. Kieran's eyes bled a crimson light as he slowly levitated from the bed while releasing a chaotic pressure.

His boundless anger had triggered abilities awakened by playing a Berserker for a long time. It felt as if explosions were going off in his mind, but he didn't care. Since he was marked for death already, why would he have any reservations?

Upon noticing this change, everyone in the room paled. This was a man who managed to obtain an Awakened Character inside Zenith Online. This meant he had touched upon a level that most players could only dream about achieving.

p Once this pressure appeared, Kieran lifted his hand, creating a tiny sphere of berserk energies in the center of his palm. It vibrated uncontrollably as Kieran's familiarity with this power was shoddy at best. He never had the chance to employ it often before falling into his current condition.

Still, almost everyone inside the room was stifled under this pressure.

Only one individual besides Kieran, who experienced unfathomable anger, could move underneath this pressure.

A captivating woman with luxurious golden hair styled into voluminous curls seemed to glide across the room, potentially unaffected by gravity or at the very least, affected minimally. She took one of the weapons harnessed to the guard's waist and activated it, causing it to emit a strange whirring sound.

Her movements were light, trained, and most of all seemed inhuman. She lifted her arm, aimed the muzzle before her, and pressed the trigger.

Bang!

A psionic bullet fired, piercing through the pressure with violent oscillations. It drilled through Kieran's forehead as his eyes went blank, causing the small crimson ball to disperse.

"It just shows how inexperienced and untrained you all are. Fortunately for you all, I decided to attend this last meeting. Otherwise, I'm not sure any of you would've lived to see another morning's lovely sun," the beautiful woman said.

On the other hand, her golden eyes filled with indifference but also laden with unspoken emotion, watched Kieran's body fall back to the bed.

'If you're going to be a ray of blinding light... you need to make sure you have the overwhelming power to crush those who look to oppress you.'

Meanwhile, Charles clutched his chest while he struggled to recover his breathing. 'He's this much of a monster even on his deathbed where he can't move?! We made the right choice in not giving him the chance to recover. That's a problem we don't have the means to handle.'

…

Ahnt! Ahnt! Ahnt!

An obnoxious noise caused Kieran's eyes to slam open with a deep gasp. He stared at a ceiling with evident signs of wear and tear apparent from the dull paint covering its entire breadth.

At first, the scene felt extremely unfamiliar, but Kieran's eyes filled with astonishment after looking around. The setting was something he should've been immediately familiar with. Still, it had slipped his mind for a brief moment due to his unbelievable circumstances.

"Impossible… this is my college dorm!" Kieran muttered incredulously while sitting up immediately after. He touched his forehead and continued to look around and feel his face in disbelief.

Eventually, he approached the mirror.

All signs of sickly afflictions were nowhere to be seen in his current appearance, nor was there a gunshot wound. While it was far from being in prime athletic shape, Kieran grinned as his deep black eyes brimmed with unconcealable happiness.

Despite how difficult it was to believe his current situation, the alarm clock, which was the source of the obnoxious alarm, confirmed Kieran's suspicions.

The alarm clock revealed today to be the 10th of May. As for the year, it was nearly eight years in the past, seemingly returning to the year 2122.

However, today held great significance because, in just a few short hours, the official release of Zenith Online would go live! Zenith Online was the enigmatic virtual reality game that gave Kieran the opportunity he needed to shine.

"What the hell? Have I gone back in time? Is this even Earth..."

Halfway through his sentence, Kieran fiddled with a particular device and checked the contents of his bank account. Even before becoming famous in Zenith Online, he never experienced a normal job.

Still, his bank account consistently possessed enough funds to live. The reason for this was a tragic event years ago.

It was an explosion that plagued many families. What's more, it involved a government facility, which forced them to distribute remuneration and aid to any family directly affected by the tragedy. As one of the people affected, Kieran lived as an orphan until the age of 18, when he gained access to the account left for him.

According to national expenses, it wasn't an astonishing amount, but it was enough to comfortably raise a child for 8-10 years.

Of course, the account allocated a portion of the money given to him to schooling and the orphanage by default. He received the remainder after all those fees were taken care of.

'It's not much left, but it'll have to work for now,' Kieran inwardly thought.

Though he said it wasn't much, the mentioned account held more than $20,000 inside. But, as someone who had once seen millions and even billions flowing through lucrative deals, thousands of dollars wasn't enough to move him emotionally.

Ignoring the issue of his depleting funds, Kieran immediately made a purchase for over $5,000!

As for the contents of the purchase, it was a VR Helmet. It wasn't the most impressive version since it was outside his current living budget.

Alas, as a twenty-year-old with no job, there wasn't a single bank that would issue him a loan. Such were the woes of a typical college student. But, this wasn't an issue for the current Kieran. After all, he possessed advantages that no other individual could claim to have―potential knowledge regarding the future and faith in his capabilities!

Of course, it wasn't perfect, but that was currently irrelevant.

All he needed was information regarding his own future since he wasn't particularly worried about the situations of others. While waiting for the delivery of the device, Kieran paced around the room while silently formulating a plan. As he did so, a vengeful fire lit in his eyes.

'Damned Golden Brigade! I swear I'll uproot you all and enjoy every lasting moment as I destroy everything you've built,' Kieran swore while gritting his teeth and clenching his fist wrathfully until they each creaked.

However, he wouldn't target them just yet. He needed time because the Golden Brigade already possessed many skilled individuals on its roster. Kieran would only be chasing a wolf with a brittle twig if he sought them out now.

Therefore, Kieran's first objective was to train himself to quickly recover his prime abilities―both inside Zenith Online and on Earth.

In the few hours it took for the delivery to arrive, Kieran did some light exercise to familiarize himself with his current capabilities and ate a nutritious meal. Once it arrived, he wasted no time configuring the settings and putting it on.

A timer appeared before Kieran's eyes while settling his agitated emotions. Eventually, as Keiran logged into the game, a faint smile appeared on his face. In the past, he could only play this game a year after it had launched, but not this time. This time, he'd wreak havoc in the game from the beginning!

'Heh, let's get this show on the road.'

〈0:03〉

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〈Welcome to the launch of Zenith Online!〉