Edited by: Kuro

The members of JADED all lived long lives.

Alexander, or Al, stayed in the entertainment industry for a while moving on from being an idol rapper to an actor who was loved by many for years to come. He didn’t get married, but he still loved his life and work just the same.

Daniel, or Danny, found himself teaching dancing like Kelly. He loved dancing and still danced even when his hair turned grey and his skin was slightly wrinkled. He married another dancer and they owned their own dance studio together.

Elliot, or Eli, modeled after his idol years, becoming a famous model. He used his face to earn money, but it worked perfectly for him because he didn’t like talking too much. He got married to someone, unexpected to the rest of the world. She was energetic and did all the talking for him, but he seemed the happiest with her by his side.

As for Dexter, or Dex, he ended up marrying Adriel’s secretary, Luis, and lived a happy life watching over Jaden and Adriel.

Lastly, Jaden and Arisa had both died of old age with their partners. They lived a long life and had no regrets.

When they both woke up at the same time in System 225's space, they looked at each other for a moment before looking over at System 505 and System 225 who were sitting at a table drinking tea.

[You all took long enough.] System 225 said as he sipped his tea, pinky out, and as elegantly as possible.

System 505 was sitting across from System 225. She had a short bob hairstyle with wavy dark green hair. Her hair was slightly parted to the right side. She was tall, thick in all the right places, and wore a plain white dress. Her dark brown eyes were a bit slanted, giving her a fierce look. She was the complete opposite of System 225.

Contrary to her appearance, she was actually a really soft-hearted and warm System.

[Arisa...] System 505 softly stated as she got up from her seat, she wanted to get closer to Arisa, but Arisa stepped back. It seemed Arisa was still a little scared.

[I know you are scared of me, but please... Please hear me out.]

The Host and System 225 couldn't help but mentally chuckle at the scene. The two had also started out again just like that.

Arisa looked at System 505 before looking at the "Host." He nodded his head and gave her the 'go on' look. She could only sigh before nodding. She trusted him. "Okay... I will hear you out."

System 225 stopped drinking his tea and got up. He brought out a new cup and refilled the teapot. [You two can talk here, while I will go talk to my Host.]

The Host nodded before walking with System 225 across the room from Arisa and System 505. He knew that their conversation was going to be a long one, so he didn't mind moving somewhere else.

[Host, I just wanted to say, congratulations on completing two E-ranked worlds. Now, you will be entering D-ranked worlds. As I have said before, the higher the rank, the more difficult it will be.]

"Thanks... System 225, did you find out anything about my nightmares?"

System 225 nodded. [It seems not only is your nightmares psychological, but System 001 is pulling strings to make sure they are more frequent. You must be careful. The stronger the world is, the stronger your nightmares will be. System 001 will make sure that you will experience plenty of nightmares so that you will lose your will to continue on...]

"Well isn't that annoying, but somehow that makes sense. He can't directly interfere with us right?"

[That's right. The UniOrb is trying very hard to protect us, so the only thing he can do is send little virus-like nightmares into your data. He hopes one of them will latch on so that you will gradually lose all meaning.]

"And if it latches on, what will you do?"

System 225 hesitated before giving a sigh. [I will have to confine you here until I get rid of it and stabilize your soul so that we can continue, or have Arisa and System 505 do what we have been trying to do.]

Hearing that, the Host's mood instantly went sour. He knew that Arisa wasn't strong enough to get through the worlds. She had entered the Villain System too early and it affected her soul. Especially after encountering him in the 4th world, every time she couldn't continue on with the plot, the cracks in her soul became worse. Jaden was lucky he caught her a bit early, but if it had continued on, her soul would've shattered in that world.

He sighed. The Host knew he was still too nice, too innocent. Naive even. But it was just how he was. No matter what hardships he went through, he somehow always, always, stayed true to himself, pushing through like a roach that survived a nuclear bomb.

As if System 225 could read his expression, System 225 gave a soft smile. [Host, the reason as to why you are still kind is because your data has been written that way. Every soul has an origin world. The experiences that have shaped you in your origin world will carry on with you regardless of the circumstances in your next lives. You may break, heal, and even rewrite some data, but there will always be data that is unshakable unless your data is erased and then reprogrammed.

[Only those who have been riddled with what humans call "darkness" will be erased and reformatted. Sometimes, those with permanent data will become contaminated after thousands of years of being subjected to unfortunate circumstances.]

"Eh? Then why haven't I been contaminated?"

[Host, you are a Host. Our souls are protected by the UniOrb so that whatever darkness tries to contaminate us, it will be blocked. This will ensure that no Host will be wronged. The worlds within the UniOrb are also slightly protected. This is why System 001 wants to take over the UniOrb. Once he takes over, there will be no more restrictions and no more protections. System 001 will have complete power and control.

[The Villain System is flawed which is why he can't obtain as much energy as he possibly can. The worlds are also stubborn and will hold on until there is nothing left. Even then, the Villain System needs a lot of energy to continue onwards and the amount he will receive is minuscule. The Villain System has cons, but eventually, when the countless worlds in the UniOrb fall one after another, even if it takes billions of years, he will be able to take over eventually.]

A lot of things were starting to make sense. The only thing he couldn't understand was why. Why was System 001 doing all this?

****

[Host, their conversation is still going on. Would you like to proceed to the next world?]

After finishing their talk, the Host felt rested. He gave one last sigh before nodding his head. He put his hand on the UniOrb and closed his eyes.

"I'm ready."

[Understood. Initiating transfer 3... 2... 1... Transfer complete.]

Grandpa Marky: Hey everyone! I'm on time this time around. A few things, first there are like 10 or so days left for the CG discord event. I would love to see you all participate for my story. My prizes are 3 bonus chapters (so 3 extra chapters on top of what I have for the week) and then a nsfw chapter if you want it.

Also, I've been battling with my health and I'm still waiting for my blood test results. I think I am getting them tomorrow. I'm a little nervous. I've been battling this pain for a decade and time and time again, doctors kept telling me there's nothing wrong. Sometimes I think they are right, but I want to trust my body. The pain I feel shouldn't be like this. Advocating for oneself is really hard. Hopefully, I figure out what's going on. Anyway, I will see you all in the next Arc! It's a fun one. I hope you all enjoy it. Ta-ta!