The Empire State Building didn't look like a skyscraper anymore. It looked like a demon's finger pointing at the moon.
The Iron Vanguard had fortified it. Massive steel plates covered the glass windows. Spotlights swept the streets below. And at the entrance, a literal tank—a World of Tanks knockoff with a glowing barrel—sat guarding the revolving doors.
"We're insane," Dave whispered, hiding behind a dumpster in the alleyway across the street. "We're actually insane. That's a tank, Jax. A tank."
"It's a collection of polygons with a hitbox," I said, adjusting my [Debugger's Specs]. "And it has a weak point."
I looked at the tank.
[UNIT: IRON_VANGUARD_TANK] [ARMOR: 5000/5000] [DRIVER: "TANK_COMMANDER_BILL" (LEVEL 18)] [WEAKNESS: EXHAUST_PORT (THERMAL VENT)]
"Miller," I whispered. "Can you throw your shield?"
Miller looked at the tank, then at his shield. "Yeah. About fifty feet. Why?"
"See that glowing red vent on the back?" I pointed. "It's the exhaust for the mana engine. If you plug it, the engine overheats. It forces a system reboot."
"And then?"
"And then the tank shuts down for thirty seconds. That's our window."
Miller took a deep breath. He stepped out of the shadows. He wound up his arm like a discus thrower.
WHOOSH.
The shield flew through the air, spinning with a low hum. It clanged perfectly into the exhaust port, wedging itself tight.
KA-CHUNK.
The tank sputtered. Black smoke poured out of the sides. The glowing barrel dimmed.
[SYSTEM ALERT: ENGINE OVERHEAT.] [INITIATING EMERGENCY SHUTDOWN...]
"Go!" I hissed.
We sprinted across the open street. The spotlights swept over us, but the guards were too busy yelling at the tank driver to notice four shadows slipping through the side door.
I pulled out the [SECURITY_KEY_BACKDOOR.EXE]. It looked like a rusty skeleton key made of code. I jammed it into the electronic lock.
CLICK.
[ACCESS GRANTED: GUEST_USER (ELEVATED PRIVILEGES)]
The heavy steel door slid open. We were in.
The Vault Floor (Floor 80)
Getting up was surprisingly easy. Why? because the Iron Vanguard was arrogant. They put all their guards on the ground floor and the roof. They didn't expect anyone to hack the elevator.
The doors dinged open on the 80th floor.
"The Treasury," Sarah whispered, her eyes wide.
The entire floor was a vault. Glass walls displayed rows of glowing swords, armor sets that looked like they belonged in a museum, and stacks—literal stacks—of Monster Cores.
But in the center of the room was the prize.
A massive, golden computer server. It hummed with power. Cables ran from it into the floor, pumping energy down to the basement where the "Server Golem" was being built.
[OBJECT: THE GUILD BANK] [CURRENT BALANCE: 5,400,000 GOLD] [OWNER: THE_WARDEN]
"Five... million," Dave nearly fainted. "That's... that's all the money in New York."
"They've been taxing everyone," Miller growled. "Every potion sold, every monster killed. They take a cut."
"Time for a refund," I said, walking up to the golden server.
I cracked my knuckles. I placed my hands on the terminal.
[WARNING: BIOMETRIC SCAN REQUIRED.] [PLEASE PLACE HAND, WARDEN.]
"I don't have his hand," I muttered. "But I have his backdoor."
I executed the key file.
> RUN: BACKDOOR.EXE > BYPASSING BIOMETRICS... > ACCESS: GRANTED.
The screen flashed green. I was in.
"Okay," I typed rapidly. "I'm going to transfer the gold to us. Dave, get your inventory ready. You're the mule."
"I was born for this!" Dave opened his bag, drooling slightly.
I selected the funds.
> [SELECT: ALL] > [TRANSFER TO: DAVE]
I hit Enter.
[ERROR.] [TRANSACTION FLAG: SUSPICIOUS ACTIVITY.] [TRANSFER LIMIT EXCEEDED.] [ALERTING MODERATOR...]
Red lights started flashing in the room.
"Crap," I hissed. "There's a transfer cap! I can't move more than 10,000 gold at a time without The Warden approving it!"
"Jax!" Miller shouted, looking at the elevator. "They're coming! The elevator is moving!"
"We need to leave!" Sarah yelled, raising her staff. "Forget the gold!"
"No!" I shouted. "If we leave it, they win! They'll build the Golem and wipe the city!"
I stared at the screen. I couldn't steal it. The system blocked large transfers to a single user to prevent hacking.
To a single user.
I looked at the code.
> IF (RECIPIENT_COUNT > 1000) THEN (IGNORE_LIMIT)
"It's a loophole," I realized. "Guild giveaways. If the Guild Leader wants to give a bonus to all his members, the limit is removed."
I grinned. A wicked, malicious, Admin grin.
"Dave," I said. "Put your bag away."
"What? Why?"
"We aren't stealing it," I said, my fingers flying across the keys. "We're redistributing it."
I opened the [Player Database] for the entire Safe Zone.
> [SELECT: ALL_PLAYERS_IN_ZONE("NEW_YORK")] > [EXCLUDE: GUILD("IRON_VANGUARD")] > [ACTION: GIFT_GOLD] > [AMOUNT: EQUAL_SPLIT]
"Jax, what are you doing?" Miller asked, watching the numbers spin.
"I'm executing the Robin Hood Protocol," I said.
I slammed the [ENTER] key.
[PROCESSING...] [TRANSFER COMPLETE.] [5,400,000 GOLD HAS BEEN SENT TO 12,402 PLAYERS.]
Somewhere outside, down on the streets, a notification pinged on twelve thousand phones and HUDs at once.
PING.
[YOU HAVE RECEIVED A GIFT!] [AMOUNT: 435 GOLD] [MESSAGE: "COURTESY OF THE TRASH-TIER ADMIN. ENJOY."]
"You... you gave it away?" Dave fell to his knees, weeping. "You gave it all away?"
"I just crashed their economy," I said, stepping back from the terminal. "Their mercenaries won't fight if everyone in the city is suddenly rich enough to buy their own gear. The monopoly is broken."
DING.
The elevator doors opened.
A man stepped out.
He was seven feet tall. He wore armor made of black dragon scales. A helmet covered his face, but his eyes glowed with a terrifying purple light. He held a greatsword that smoked with dark energy.
[BOSS DETECTED: THE WARDEN] [CLASS: MODERATOR (CORRUPTED)] [LEVEL: 25]
He looked at the terminal. He saw the balance: 0 GOLD.
He looked at us.
"You," his voice wasn't human. It sounded like grinding metal. "You deleted my city."
Miller stepped forward, raising his shield. He looked like a toy soldier next to The Warden.
"Run," Miller whispered to me. "I'll hold him."
"You can't hold him," I said. "He's Level 25. He'll one-shot you."
The Warden raised his sword. The air pressure in the room dropped. Gravity seemed to double.
[SKILL: GRAVITY CRUSH]
"I cannot be stopped," The Warden boomed. "I am the Law."
I looked at him through my specs.
[TARGET: THE_WARDEN] [HP: 5000/5000] [STATUS: INVULNERABLE (GM_MODE)]
He had GM Mode on. We couldn't hurt him.
But GM Mode had a weakness. It relied on the server recognizing him as an Authority.
I had one trick left. The [Developer's Mug].
I chugged the rest of the cold coffee. My brain vibrated.
I looked at the floor beneath The Warden.
[OBJECT: FLOOR_TILE_MARBLE] [ID: 8842]
I couldn't delete The Warden. But I could change the environment.
"Hey, Warden!" I shouted.
He paused, sword raised.
"Check your permissions," I said.
I focused on the floor tile he was standing on.
> [SELECT: FLOOR_TILE] > [CHANGE_TYPE: TELEPORT_PAD] > [DESTINATION: RAND()]
"Random?" Sarah gasped. "Where are you sending him?"
"I don't know," I grinned. "Hopefully somewhere wet."
I hit the mental Enter key.
The floor beneath The Warden glowed bright blue.
"What is th—"
ZAP.
The Warden vanished.
[SYSTEM ALERT: PLAYER 'THE_WARDEN' TELEPORTED TO ZONE: 'THE SEWER OF DESPAIR'.]
Silence fell over the room.
"You teleported the final boss... to the sewer?" Miller asked, lowering his shield.
"He'll be back," I said, my legs giving out as the caffeine crash hit me. "He has a teleport scroll, probably. But it buys us ten minutes."
I grabbed a handful of Monster Cores from a display case—just enough to pay our rent—and turned to the window.
"Dave," I said. "Smash the glass."
"With pleasure!" Dave threw a heavy gold bar through the reinforced window. It shattered.
The wind of New York City rushed in. We looked down.
The streets below were in chaos. But it was good chaos. Players were cheering. People were buying food. The Iron Vanguard guards were confused, their authority crumbling as newly-rich players laughed in their faces.
"We did it," Sarah smiled. "We actually did it."
I looked at the notification in the corner of my vision.
[QUEST COMPLETE: THE HEIST] [RANK: S] [REWARD: TITLE - "PUBLIC ENEMY NO. 1"]
[LEVEL UP!] [LEVEL UP!] [LEVEL UP!]
I was Level 5.
"Let's go," I said, stepping onto the window ledge. "Before he comes back smelling like sewage."
We jumped. Sarah cast [Feather Fall], and we drifted down into the neon-lit night of the new world.
The Tutorial was over. The Game had officially begun.
And the Admin? He was just getting started.
[END OF VOLUME 1]
[STATUS:]
Jax: Level 5 (Class: Codebreaker/Admin)
Miller: Level 6 (Class: Tank)
Sarah: Level 5 (Class: Mage)
Dave: Level 4 (Class: Rich Merchant)
Current Funds: Enough for pizza.
Enemies: The Warden (Very Angry).