It was about time.

I think it's about time I ask myself the question, "Am I the bad guy?"

Are we?

Sure, I've never been a very decent person. A good reason is good enough for me to do horrible things, but my monstrosity aside, it was very much about time that I asked myself questions about myself.

About us.

About all of this.

As I battled the lone invader, I felt a range of emotions that I've long since last felt: excitement, amusement, and perhaps a hint of frenzy. But as the battle came to an end, I finally realized that what I had just done was kill someone.

Yeah, kill someone. Of course, I won't pretend that I'm innocent enough to say that "killing is bad," but I'm the kind of person to say "but" after, only to feel completely okay with it thereafter. And that's exactly what I felt at that moment.

I've fended off plenty of invaders as a dungeon core. Well, technically, the deed was that of my spawns, but any reasonable mind, including myself, would think that I'm also guilty. But up until now, the defeat, or, if you really want to stress things out, the death of an invader, was represented as a red dot disappearing from the map's interface, only to reappear as an asset in the "resource management" of the interface to be either harvested and turned into G.P. or not.

I don't know how anyone else would feel about it, but the way it was presented to me very much makes it feel easy to forget that dealing with lives. I'm not trying to shoo the responsibility away from me, but, given the level of intelligence you must have to enter my domain, you can't really blame me.

It was only as I battled, or, to be exact, as I finished the lone invader off, as in the battle I didn't really feel anything else than exhilaration, as I saw a human fall down, that I realized that, given the number of red dots I've seen extinguish, I was at least responsible for a little genocide.

I had a very exact number in mind, so yes, the amount of red dots I've seen extinguished qualified what happened thus far to a genocide.

Did I feel bad about it?

Well, I did take a peek at my acquired G.P., and I heard my heart or whatever component was acting as a heart murmur to me. Literally, this isn't even one of those metaphorical experiences I often or so go through. I literally heard myself murmuring, "You did great."

At this point, I think I really lost what little made me human.

I did plenty of bad things in the past, but I did those bad things. There's always been some sort of logic going on in my head and heart to justify those bad things, a sort of cause. Here, well, it's the same, but I think it's easier, if not utterly effortless. Back then, if one could say I lacked humanity here, it was fair to say that I was simply devoid of it.

Damn, this is really crazy.

Now I think the right thing to do is ask myself, Am I really okay with this?

To which a voice in my nonexistent head replied, "Yeah, we should be."

To which another voice replied, "You think?"

"Yeah. I mean, we're a dungeon core, and from what we understand of this world, we're an entity that administers a dungeon as a dungeon master. Should we be fine without humanity? In fact, we're even better without it, don't you think?"

"Yeah, I guess you're right."

"Of course I am."

"Of course you are, huh? May I ask you another question?"

"Go ahead."

"Who the fuck are you?"

"Me?"

"Yes, you. Who else could I be talking to?"

"I don't know."

"Yeah? So who're you?"

"Me, I'm the voice in your mind."

"No, you're not. I'm the voice in your mind."

"What?"

"What?"

In that moment, if I had a body, I would be there accusatorily pointing at the one pretending to be the voice in my mind, but they were what they were, and I was a dungeon core, an entity without a proper body to speak of; all I had was the voice in my mind, and right now there were two of us.

 

***

 

"So, who are you?"

"I already gave you the answer to that question. I am the mind, or perhaps, the way you might hear it, the voice behind this dungeon."

"No, you're not; that's me."

"Well, I'm not lying."

I needed a moment to recollect myself. Had I had a proper body, I'm sure I would've properly confronted the source of my confusion, but once again, things were what they were; as a dungeon core, I was nothing more than a feeling voice. Well, actually, from his words, it's more like fleeting voices now, for the voice speaking to me was exactly how mine sounded. As confusing as all of this was, that was something I was more than sure of.

"Assuming what you're saying is true."

"And assuming what you're saying is also true?"

"How do you explain what's happening?" I asked, having a vague idea of what could be behind this.

"Well, I have a suspect here, but I'm not sure if it's really that yet,” I replied, having a vague idea of what could be behind this.

At that moment, our attention went to the interface that was seemingly presented to both of us.

 

_____________________________

 

[ ???'s Interface ]

 

Name: ???

Entity: Dungeon Core

Designation: Dungeon Master

Status: Idle

 

[ Authorities ]

- Authority Gathering

- Ethereal Echo

- Otherworldly Synergy

『Expand』

 

_____________________________

There, wedged between Otherworldly Synergy which the ability I've finally very recently got the hang of and Ethereal Echo an authority I’ve yet to discover the speciality of was the Authority I had the hunch to be the responsible for my current predicament.

The voices in my mind continued their peculiar conversation.

"Well, isn't this a twist?"

"Yeah, no kidding."

I found myself contemplating the options before me. If this is really the doing of an authority then there’s bound to be some way to undo it out there. Undoing it will, regardless of how the split or clone or whatever words were fit to describe what happened, result in the undoing of the fake one.

"What do you think?" I asked, finally realizing the irony of seeking counsel from myself. Cough cough, excuse me, I meant a clone of myself.

“I don’t know. Why do you like me exactly?”

“Mh?”

“Is it because you think I’m the clone—the split, while you’re the original, so you think as a split I have at least the final say about my fate? Is it that?”

“I don’t know. You tell me. Are you a clone? A split?”

“I don’t know, you tell me. Wouldn't you be the clone, the split, and as such, you’re trying to pass as the original one to take everything that is mine. Let me warn you, it's not going to work out like that.”

“I like that spirit but unfortunately I have no doubt regarding what and who I am—I am ‘me.’”

“And so am I.”

“Then, on that much we agree?”

“On that much we agree.”

In that very moment, a metaphorical handshake was shaken.

“You are you.”

“And you are you.”

“Indeed but I doubt it won’t be long before I will be annoyed to have to call you, “you,” so I suggest I call you, Erm, let’s say Has—. Actually, no. Won’t do, that was my name.”

“Then what about a code name.”

“Nice idea, you. What do you think of the Code name, Dungeon Master 01?”

“For you?”

“No, for you.”

“I have nothing against except that I have the feeling that you’re about to tell me that you’re—”

“I’ll be Dungeon Master 00.”

“Hm.”

“What?”

“Why do you get to be Dungeon Master 00, wouldn’t that simply put to question my authenticity.”

“I don’t know, would such a simple thing as a codename, question it?”

At that moment, I guess I finally felt what Andry felt upon being given the codename Cola Coco. I wanted to complain about it but, stubborn as I was, I knew very well that the opponent on the other side was me. I knew very well that there was simply no winning this argument, just escalating it.

After a moment of silence, I stepped forth, declaring, “you know what, fine, I’ll be Dungeon Master 01 while you’ll be Dungeon Master 01, but only because you got to declare it before me.”

“Then have terms?”

“We have terms.”

“Since you guys have terms about taking over “Dungeon Master 00” and “Dungeon Master 01,” can I take Dungeon Master 02?”

“Sure.”

“Why not?”

“Wait—”

“What the hell?!”

“Who the fuck are you?”