Rise Of The Hoarder

“You don’t mean us, right? Since we’re spectators. Then…”

Lara sharply paused mid-sentence and her eyes bulged. That told me she already figured it out. That’s right… those who would be playing with the human scum I collected were another type of filth.

With my voice ringing at the exact moment as Lara, we both gave the same answer.

“Demons!”

Yes, I planned on making a game similar to the impromptu one back at the Hobgoblin territory.

Back then, I released the Gifteds who abandoned the Camp and forced them to win against the Demons I had already wounded. The deserters didn’t stand a chance and lost, helping me in my experiment.

But, unlike back then, I would be in full control over this situation. Plus, it was no experiment. What I planned on carrying out here was simple—an Execution!

It was only a matter of how interesting it would be for me.

“Now, then. We’ve freshened up and had breakfast—all that’s left is the show.” My lips curled up to form a sadistic grin._.

Since Lara and I sat comfortably outside, on a pile of sheets I spread on the ground as though we were on a picnic, we were a little distance from the hideout.

Quickly, I summoned the challengers before me, having them occupy both the left and right sides of the gap between the hideout and us.

Seeming to materialize out of thin air, the scavengers showed up. Their numbers were thirteen—eleven regular troops, one sniper, and the leader… Kevin Smith!

On the other end, stood a bunch of Demons—Hobgoblin Champions, of course.

‘To even out the numbers, I made sure thirteen Hobgoblin Champions also stood opposite the scavengers who were still in shock as to what was happening.

“GURUIIIIKKKK!!!”

The Hobgoblins, being the first to take cognizance of the situation growled and filled the air with their screeches.

“W-wha-?!” The scavengers all burst out in surprise, almost at the same time.

Their faces displayed fear as they set their eyes on the Hobgoblin Champions before them. Their bodies quivered and sweat fell from their faces.

It appeared that they instinctively knew instinctively what awaited them.

“GARUIIIIIKKKKKK!!!” The Hobgoblins made to pounce on the scavengers, not wasting any time in order to satiate their hunger and rage.

Their feet dug deep into the ground, shattering the earth. In a single dash, the scavengers would be mincemeat.

I wasn’t going to allow that, though.

“<Inducement>. <Command>.”

Instantly, the bodies of both Demons and humans froze up.

An air of tension enveloped the atmosphere as I rose from the picnic sheet I sat on, drawing closer to the two parties.

“You guys are now players in a little game of mine. I’ll be explaining the rules.” A smile formed on my face as I approached.

I loosened my hold on the Demons and humans, allowing them to look in my direction.

Both sides appeared perplexed, surprised… and utterly frightened! Most of the beings here didn’t even know who I was, save for the sniper and leader of the scavengers.

As for the Demons, I was in stealth for the most time I was there, giving them no way of truly recognizing my identity back then. The only way they could target me was due to the influence of the King.

As a result, for the players gathered, they were meeting me for the very first time.

For those who recognized me, though, they had both been unconscious thanks to my previous ‘activities’ with them, but due to the effect of <Command> that I used, they sprang back to life.

Now staring at me with confusion, only one word could describe the emotions that must have been swirling within the two… Despair!

“I have rendered you all incapable of speech. That is because as players, you do not need to communicate with me. You’re merely characters!”

As I spoke the rules of the game to them, I could sense the unease on both sides. Not only could I control the humans who stood before me, but the Demons were also no exception. It was all thanks to one of the new Skills I got, the most recent one—<Inducement>.

‘I should thank that Grizzly Dragon once again. I always knew the unimaginable fear and paralysis effect was a Skill that Demon had. It’s a good thing I killed it!’

Having obtained three new Skills from it, I had only two empty Slots left, but they were very much worth it!

‘<Inducement> allows me to control the emotions of enemies that are weaker than me to a certain extent. It’s a predatory Skill mostly used to induce fear or paralysis from the target. I can also use it to draw an enemy’s aggro. It’s quite useful.’

The most important part was that, unlike Command, I could use it on both Demons and humans! Talk about being lucky.

“You’re all currently paralyzed since the game hasn’t started. I’ll explain the rules to you.”

My eyes darted to Kevin, who was perhaps the most frightened of all of them. Was he still recoiling from the fact that he couldn’t see my Status Level or fathom how powerful I was?

It was surprising, though, how I didn’t feel any animosity toward him even though he killed Ana. Sure, I would be avenging her and everyone else if I did this, but that didn’t appear to be my main motivation.

I just wanted to have fun!

“We’ll be playing tag. Simple, right? All you have to do is avoid getting killed by the Demons. If you survive for an hour, you win.”

Everyone’s eyes bulged the moment I said this. Even Lara leaked out some level of surprise from behind me.

“I’ll allow you one minute to maintain a distance from the Demons. You can use the area to your advantage. There’s no one around for kilometers, so go wild!”

They could run as fast as they could, and hide as well as possible. I gave them this opportunity for a single minute.

“After the period of grace is over, I’ll release the monsters to hunt you down. If you can evade them for the stipulated time frame, I’ll take the Demons away, and you can run free.”

It seemed very fair, no?