Infinite System Inheritor Return From The Abyss-Chapter 299 - 297: Meanwhile somewhere...

After they left the Association building, Alex and Alexa drove home in silence. The car ride was quiet. Even the city noise outside seemed far away.

Alexa finally broke the silence. "Alex…"

"I know," Alex replied without looking. "There's no other developer. We made the game—just the two of us."

When they arrived home, Alexa went straight to the living room. She sat on the sofa and placed her hands on her face.

"I feel awful," she said quietly. "We were used…"

Alex sat across from her, watching her closely but not saying anything yet.

Alexa continued. "Do you remember? That black smoke figure who appeared in our dreams... the one who gave us the idea of creating a VR game?" Her voice was low and filled with guilt. "They told us to make something new. Something special. And we believed it."

Alex nodded slowly. "At first, I thought it was just inspiration. But every night, more and more creatures appeared in our dreams. Different kinds. All with names, abilities, weaknesses… like they were already made."

Alexa held her head, her voice rising in panic. "But most of the dangerous creatures… they showed up to me, Alex!" she cried. "We need to find who that person is! They used us to create the game!"

She stood up, pacing the room, her hands shaking. "It's like this was all planned. Our world—turning into this—it's not an accident! We became their stepping stone!"

Alex stood too, walking over to her. He gently grabbed her shoulders. "Alexa, calm down. We can't rush. We have more important things to do right now. First, we need to help stop what's already coming."

Alexa slowly nodded, but her eyes were still wide with fear. Then, she remembered something and froze. Her voice trembled. "What if… what if it's not just the creatures? What if the events in Ethereal Online happen too?"

Alex frowned. "That's impossible," he said firmly. "If those events really happen…"

He paused. "It would be the end of the world."

The room fell silent.

Alexa sat back down, feeling cold inside. "The person who used us… they're probably enjoying everything that's happening now."

Alex looked serious. "They won't let it end this easily."

Meanwhile, in a far and isolated place, there was a quiet village by the sea. The village was small, but peaceful. It had only one port, and the people lived by fishing and helping one another.

Today, a ship arrived.

Some villagers stood near the port, curious and hopeful. It wasn't often they had visitors.

An older man waved as people got down from the ship. "Welcome to Starry Coast Village!" he said with a kind smile.

A young woman beside him added, "It's been a while since adventurers came here."

One of the men who came from the ship smiled and bowed. "We heard your village needs help."

The villagers nodded. "Yes. We need someone to deal with the sea monster," another villager explained. "It has been eating our fish. We can't catch anything… and the sea is too dangerous now."

The party of four from the ship listened. But when the villagers turned away to prepare food for them, the group huddled and whispered among themselves.

"Heh, did you hear that?" one of them said, smirking. "They're desperate. We can make them pay more."

"They won't say no," another added. "They're scared. We'll act like it's a big job and demand double."

They laughed quietly to themselves. Though they smiled in front of the villagers, their true goal was greed.

The villagers, however, were honest and had no idea of the group's hidden plan. All they wanted was for the sea monster to disappear—so they could fish again, and live in peace.

The village head, the old man who welcomed them, kept smiling as he walked with the group.

"We are thankful you came," he said in a soft voice. "Our village doesn't have combat-type Awakeners… Most of us have classes like Builder, Craftsman, or Gatherer."

One of the party members raised an eyebrow. "Ah, so it's true. This place is known for non-combatant Awakeners."

Another one nodded, looking around. "Yeah. I heard the smiths here make good tools. Also, this village has lots of rare materials nearby."

The village head chuckled humbly. "We survive by trading what we make… but without fish, things are getting hard."

They talked more as they walked through the small streets. Many villagers waved, happy to see new faces. Children peeked from behind barrels, and elders sat by doors, whispering with hopeful eyes.

After a while, the village head said, "We have prepared rooms for you to rest tonight. Please, have a meal first."

But one of the party members shook his head. "No need."

Another stepped forward, stretching their arms. "Let's just finish the job quickly."

"We'll head straight to the sea," the third one added, with a confident smirk.

The fourth, who had been quiet, looked at the calm ocean. "This should be easy."

The villagers looked surprised but didn't say anything. The village head gave a small bow. "May the sea bless you with safety."

The party arrived at the shore, where the waves were calm, and the sea stretched far into the horizon. They looked out into the water, ready for the task at hand.

One of the party members turned to the villagers and said, "You should leave now. It'll be dangerous when the sea monster attacks. You'll just be in the way."

The villagers were confused. "But… we want to help," one of them said, nervous but trying to be brave.

Another party member shook his head. "It's best if you leave. You don't have combat classes, and you'll just slow us down."

The villagers felt uneasy. The village head looked down at the ground. "We understand, but please—please, be careful."

The party didn't seem to care. They started walking toward the water, laughing among themselves.

"This is perfect," one of them chuckled quietly. "A whole village paying us to handle the monster… and we don't even have to do much."

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Another member grinned. "Yeah, they're so desperate. We'll take the reward and still have time to enjoy the village later."

The third party member laughed too. "It's like hitting a jackpot, getting paid for doing almost nothing."