Chapter 124 - Handsome Compensation
Once Albion spoke, the surrounding participants paused in silent contemplation before murmurs immediately broke out in the crowd.
"The Strongest Wizard is right..." A Hunter smiled wryly before saying, "Why are we so serious?"
"Sure, the prize money is tempting, but if it's not meant to belong to us, why force it? A bit of EXP and credit is something I can afford to lose."
"This Hunter is right." Another Hunter nodded in agreement before inserting his opinion, "Everything is just a game. We should learn to have fun..."
"Learn to have fun? Are you kidding me? Are you saying that if people want to stick their schlong up your bungschmuckler, you should also learn to enjoy?" the angry Hunter retorted.
"What the hell is a bungschmuckler? Who even says something like that?"
"It means bum hole, ya bloody knobhead." The angry Hunter rolled his eyes furiously before firmly stating, "I refuse to let this cheater win!"
"Kek. You call him a cheater, but what if his strength is real? Even the management team had yet to taken action. Don't you think they would be aware if Wizard was cheating or not?"
Very shortly, the crowd was divided in their opinions.
One side believed Albion was a cheater, while the other side believed his strength was genuine.
"Look, I'd like to stick around and listen to you all debate, but I also have things I want to do after this." Albion yawned with boredom before stating with a serious look, "I'm ending this match right now."
"Sh*t, he is about to do something big! En Garde!" A Hunter immediately warned with an alarmed look.
At the same time, Albion's eyes glinted with fierceness before clenching his fist tightly.
"Here comes my super-duper serious p—"
Before Albion could finish, the light in his eyes dimmed as his consciousness got pulled away into the white space again, causing his body to freeze mid-action and face-plant into the ground shortly after, motionless.
The surrounding participants immediately glanced at each other with furrowed brows before the angry Hunter snarled, "Dammit, he is baiting us again! This person is definitely a troll!"
...
"Dammit, why did I get pulled into this space again? Who is messing with me this time?" Albion frowned, feeling a little frustrated.
Shortly after, the face of a peerlessly beautiful woman appeared on a pop-up holographic screen, causing him to raise an eyebrow.
"Greetings, Young Master Albion," the Impartial Goddess AI spoke emotionlessly before explaining, "I am sorry to interrupt your game, but I have been tasked to investigate you under the suspicions of using dishonest means to gain unfair advantage in Hunter World."
"Oh? Is this what you call an advanced AI?" Albion responded curiously without any relation to the AI's prior statement, nor was he charmed by its unmatched beauty.
Nevertheless, he began pacing around the 3D holographic screen of the Impartial Goddess, studying the AI's detailed appearance with keen interest.
"Interesting. Artificial intelligence has reached this level of development already, huh? Did this also come from the Federation?"
"..."
Impartial Goddess was speechless.
As the only supercomputer and AI in charge of running Hunter World, interacting with millions of different people simultaneously were to be expected and nothing to be surprised about.
After receiving a sudden message from another one of her copies, she suddenly spoke, "Sorry for the inconvenience, Young Master Albion. Please have a nice day," before disappearing entirely.
The white space quickly collapsed following her prompt disappearance, sending Albion's consciousness back to his virtual body shortly after.
...
Inside the management control room, the Impartial Goddess reappeared on screen, causing the two operators to be startled.
"That was fast. Did you already validate the person, Impartial Goddess?" The female operator inquired with surprise.
"Yes, Miss Claire. It has been confirmed that the Soul Inspector is not in control of the person—thereby concluding the Soul Inspector is dead in both soul and body," the Impartial Goddess answered before adding, "The person's battle power is the real deal."
"Hold on. The Soul Inspector's failed possession only proves the person's soul strength is superior to the Soul Inspector or that he has a special method to do deal with soul possessions..."
"This doesn't necessarily prove the person's battle power is genuine. How did you arrive at the conclusion that it is, Impartial Goddess?" The female operator inquired with doubt.
Suddenly, the doors to the management control room opened before a middle-aged man with a robust stature walked in.
"The Impartial Goddess didn't make the conclusion. It was I."
"A-Association Leader!"
The two operators stood up and greeted the Hunter Association's leader with surprise before the male operator quickly asked, "Why have you come here?"
"I have been informed of the Soul Inspector's death. There is no need to continue the investigation. This matter ends here." The Association Leader stated.
"But Association Leader, this person's identity is unknown origins. If his strength is truly genuine, it is all the more important that we investigate to understand this person," the female operator stated.
The Association Leader gave her a casual glance before speaking, "You are only saying this because your authority is not high enough to peruse information pertaining to level 7 users."
"I don't mind telling you that this level 5 user was boost by Emperor Polemos. Use that information and figure out the rest yourself. We have already annoyed that person enough. The Hunter Association cannot afford to offend this person."
The female and male operators fell into quiet rumination before their bodies suddenly trembled at a startling guess.
At the same time, the Association Leader turned to the screen and calmly spoke, "Please remove all recordings of the match and compensate the participants and spectators to keep their silence regarding today's events."
"Of course, you must compensate that person handsomely as well for the troubles we caused him. Also, keep his public account at level 5 but grant him special privileges under my authority, and tend to that person's every request to the best of your ability, Impartial Goddess."
"Understood, Association Leader," the Impartial Goddess acknowledged.
...
Ding!
<10,000,000,000 credits has been credited to your account>
<You have gained the unique title, Privileged Being>
<All NPCs will be inclined to feel friendly towards you when interacting>
<You are entitled to enjoy a 50% discount at every NPC-owned store>
A string of notifications rung in Albion's head shortly after he returned to his virtual body, causing him to be pleasantly surprised as he was getting up from the ground.
"What is all this? Did I just accidentally activate easy mode or something? 10 billion credits? That's like $100-million!" Albion softly exclaimed.
"Welp, I don't really know what the f*ck is going on, but I ain't gonna say no to freebies."
Albion accepted the pie that fell out of the sky without further thoughts regarding the matter.
However, a high-tech watch materialized around Albion's left wrist before a mini Impartial Goddess popped out, looking like a little fairy.
"Greetings, Esteemed Hunter. Those are compensations for the inconvenience the Hunter Association has caused for you." The mini-Impartial Goddess spoke.
"Oh?" Albion gazed at the little thing on his hand before asking, "And what are you supposed to be? My emergency food?"
"???"
"Ahem, it's nothing."
"I have been assigned to assist you on your travels throughout the boundless lands of Hunter World and answer any inquiries you may have, Esteemed Hunter. I am Impartial Goddess, but you may call me whatever you like."
"Oh? Anything, huh?" Albion raised an eyebrow before suggesting nonchalantly, "How about Little Sh*t?"
"...."