MMORPG: REBORN MARK ADVENTURE IN ONLINE GAME

Alex's Fate – A Dog's Worth

Alex stood frozen in the auction house, his breath shallow, his fingers still hovering over the interface as if he could somehow undo what had just happened.

Phantom Strike was gone.

For 2 gold.

He had just thrown away a skill worth 20 gold—maybe even more.

His entire body felt numb.

The crowded auction house, the players rushing past him, the constant notifications flashing on his screen—none of it registered.

All he could hear was the pounding of his own heartbeat and the distant echo of Sophie's voice in his head.

"Don't disappoint me, Alex."

His stomach twisted violently.

What… what was he going to do?

With trembling hands, he fumbled to open his friend list and called Sophie.

Beep… Beep… Click.

"What?"

Her cold, irritated voice came through instantly.

Alex's throat went dry.

He tried to speak, but his voice caught. The words felt too heavy, too dangerous to say.

Sophie's patience didn't last.

"…Alex?"

Her voice sharpened.

Alex swallowed, forcing out a shaky, barely audible, "I… I messed up."

Silence.

Then, a slow, amused chuckle.

"Messed up?" she repeated, as if tasting the words.

Alex nodded frantically—even though she couldn't see him. "I-I was listing the skill book, but I—"

"Did you sell it?"

The amusement vanished from her tone.

A cold, suffocating pressure replaced it.

Alex's fingers curled into a fist, his nails digging into his palm. He didn't want to answer.

But he had no choice.

"Y-Yes…" he choked out.

Silence again.

For one agonizing second, he thought the call had disconnected.

Then—

"For how much?"

A whisper. Low. Dangerous.

Alex felt like he was standing at the edge of a cliff.

He closed his eyes.

"…2 gold."

The silence this time was heavier.

Then—

Laughter.

Cold. Mocking.

Sophie was laughing at him.

Alex's knees nearly gave out. His chest felt tight, like an invisible hand was squeezing the air out of his lungs.

"You… you sold a 20-gold skill book for 2 gold?" she said between laughter. "Are you… actually braindead?"

Alex's face burned with shame. His hands trembled.

"I-I was in a rush! I—"

"Shut up."

Her voice dropped, turning sharp as a knife.

"I don't want excuses. I want results."

Alex flinched.

"Sophie, I—"

"No. You don't get to talk."

His mouth snapped shut.

She exhaled slowly, as if trying to contain her rage.

Sophie's laughter faded, leaving behind a silence so sharp it made Alex's skin crawl.

Then, her voice came back—calm, slow, deliberate.

"Do you have any idea… how fucking stupid you are?"

Alex's breath hitched.

"Do you?" she pressed, her tone darkening. "Because I'm struggling to understand how someone with a functional brain—no, wait, let me correct myself—someone who pretends to have a functional brain—could make such a colossal mistake."

"I—"

"Shut up," she snapped, her voice cracking like a whip. "Just shut up, Alex."

He swallowed hard, his entire body locked in place.

"You had one job. One. I handed you an opportunity, and you threw it in the garbage like the fucking idiot you are."

Her voice was laced with venom now, each word hitting him like a slap to the face.

"Do you even understand what you've done?" she continued, her words slow, each syllable dripping with contempt. "Do you know what that skill book could've gotten us? Do you know how much gold I had to move around for this bullshit?"

Alex clenched his fists so tightly his nails dug into his palms.

"Sophie, I can fix it—"

"Fix it?" she cut him off with a sharp, mocking laugh. "Oh? You're going to magically pull Phantom Strike back out of the void? Maybe rewind time? Maybe stop being a useless piece of shit for five goddamn minutes?"

Alex bit his tongue so hard he tasted blood.

"You're worthless, Alex. A deadweight. A fucking liability," she hissed. "I should've left you rotting with Mark instead of wasting my time on you."

His heart clenched painfully.

"You were nothing before me, Alex. Nothing. I pulled you up, I gave you a chance, and this—" she scoffed, "this is what you do with it?"

Alex's entire body trembled, shame and anger twisting inside him.

"…I-I can—"

"You can what?" she snapped. "Do you even have gold to cover the loss? Oh, wait—you don't."

His silence was answer enough.

Sophie let out a low, disappointed sigh.

"You're a joke," she muttered. "A pathetic, embarrassing joke."

Alex's vision blurred.

His hands shook.

His mind screamed at him to fight back—to say something—but he couldn't. Because deep down, he knew.

She was right.

Alex's breathing was ragged, his fists clenched so tightly his nails dug into his palms. His entire body burned with humiliation and rage.

Enough.

"Fuck you, Sophie!" he snapped, his voice raw with fury.

The silence on the other end was instant.

Then—

"What did you just say?"

Alex's heart pounded, but he didn't stop. "I'm done with this bullshit. I'm leaving the guild. Find someone else to treat like a fucking dog."

For the first time in the conversation, Sophie didn't respond immediately.

Then—

A slow, amused chuckle.

"You think you can leave, Alex?"

Something about the way she said it sent a chill down his spine.

"Go ahead," she purred. "Try."

A notification popped up on his screen.

[Contract Agreement: Dark Solution]

Clause 13.2: Early Termination

The signee agrees to a 10-year binding period.

If the signee wishes to leave before the contract's completion, they must pay a penalty of 100,000 credits.

Alex's blood ran cold.

"You…" His throat tightened. "You tricked me."

Sophie sighed, her voice laced with mock pity. "No, Alex. You tricked yourself. You were so desperate for a shortcut, you didn't even read what you signed."

His hands trembled as he stared at the outrageous number on his screen.

"One hundred thousand credits?" His voice cracked. "That's—That's impossible!"

"For someone like you? Yeah." Sophie's voice was dripping with satisfaction. "But that's the price of stupidity, Alex."

Alex felt like he was suffocating.

He was trapped.

Alex's mind raced, his breathing uneven. His whole body trembled—not just from anger, but from the sheer helplessness pressing down on him like a weight he couldn't shake off.

Ten years.

One hundred thousand credits.

There was no way out.

"Good," Sophie said after letting the silence stretch just long enough for it to suffocate him. "Now that you've finally accepted your place, let's talk about how you can start making up for your fuck-up."

Alex bit his tongue so hard he tasted blood. He didn't want to respond, didn't want to give her the satisfaction, but Sophie wasn't the kind of person you could ignore.

"The ledger and the alchemy furnace," she said smoothly, her voice regaining its usual sharpness. "I want them both. And you? You're going to bring them to me safely."

Alex stiffened. "Ledger? What ledger?"

Sophie clicked her tongue, irritated. "Don't play dumb, Alex. The merchant's ledger from Viles Town. It has records of every major trade happening in the region. With that, we'll know exactly who's supplying what—and how to choke them out."

Alex swallowed hard. That wasn't a simple task. A ledger like that was kept under heavy security, even in a backwater town like Viles. The merchant guilds didn't play around when it came to their records.

"And the alchemy furnace?" he asked cautiously.

"You don't need to know why I want it," Sophie said dismissively. "You just need to get it. Both of them."

Alex clenched his fists. "And if I refuse?"

The smirk was practically audible in her voice. "Then you'll be working off your debt very slowly, Alex. Maybe I'll even make sure you earn exactly 10 credits a day. Oh, wait—that's optimistic. Maybe 5."

His stomach twisted.

At that rate, he wouldn't even pay off a fraction of his contract by the time he died.

Sophie sighed dramatically. "Look, Alex. You're already at the bottom. But if you actually manage to do this right, maybe—just maybe—you won't be completely useless to me."

Alex gritted his teeth.

He had no choice.

"Fine," he muttered, his voice hollow. "I'll get them."

Sophie's smile was evident in her next words.

"Good dog."

Alex stared at his inventory, his hands still shaking from the adrenaline rush.

He'd won the bid.

The alchemy furnace was his.

For once, he hadn't screwed up.

His heart pounded as he opened his friend list and called Sophie. The moment the call connected, he didn't even wait for her to speak.

"I got it," he said, forcing his voice to stay steady.

There was a pause. Then—

"*Hah.**" Sophie let out a small, amused breath. "Looks like you're not completely useless after all."

Alex's fists clenched. He had expected at least some kind of acknowledgment—anything other than more of her mockery.

"See? That wasn't so hard, was it?*" Sophie continued, her voice laced with condescension. "I give you an order, you obey, and everything works out."

His teeth ground together. "I told you, I—"

"Don't get ahead of yourself, Alex." Her tone sharpened. "You've done one thing right. That doesn't erase the fact that you threw away a skill book worth 20 gold."

Alex bit his tongue.

"Now," Sophie continued smoothly, "since you managed to get the furnace without screwing up, I expect you to handle the next task properly."

Alex exhaled through his nose. "What next?"

"The ledger," she said, as if it was obvious. "That should be simple enough, right? Since you're on a winning streak."

Alex's entire body tensed.

"That ledger belongs to the merchant guild," he said carefully. "If I get caught—"

"*Then don't get caught.**" Sophie cut him off flatly. "It's really not my problem how you do it, Alex. Just get it."

His jaw tightened. "And if I don't?"

Sophie laughed softly. "Oh, Alex. Why do you keep pretending you have choices?*"

His stomach twisted.

"You want to stop being a worthless debt slave?" Her voice dropped to a low whisper, dripping with amusement. "Then earn your way out. But until then—"

A small pause, then a smirk in her voice—

"*Be a good dog and do as you're told.**"