"Welcome, welcome, dear Viewers! This is Belial_069, live and streaming, here to witness the very first trial these adorable little humans down below are about to face!" Belial announced enthusiastically, throwing in a few playful somersaults mid-air.
Karma stared at Belial again.
Was he seriously streaming this?
Was all of this just... entertainment for someone else?
But then Karma noticed something even more surprising.
A floating screen materialized beside Belial, displaying text that everyone in the station could read out loud.
[Rexonxo_736: Lol, Belial is live again. I wonder how many humans are gonna die this time. This guy is one of the most bloodthirsty Djinn in all of Babel.]
[Tamal091: Ha! What did you expect? Babel set up shop in a world full of weak little humans. The best part about these worlds is watching them drop like flies, and Belial knows it! Nothing like that pushover Batanari who always goes easy on these idiots.]
[Sayoshy-34: Don't say that, they're innocent. It's not their fault they were born so weak. There's nothing fun about watching them get slaughtered. I still remember that one time a whole group of humans couldn't even clear the first game. It was awful to watch.]
[Empowered_Mermaid7.3: Exactly! I am so sick of watching these oppressive men enjoy seeing helpless humans get killed. #StopAnimalAbuse.]
[Tamal091: Ha, and there goes the damn bitch barking again. Here, Belial! A little motivation! Die a lot and I'll send more.]
{Tamal091 has donated x5 Silver Fate Coins to Belial_069}
The comments kept scrolling fast alongside Belial, moving so quickly there was barely time to read them.
But from the little he had managed to catch, Karma already had a pretty good idea of what games with Belial looked like.
And it didn't sit well with him.
"Hahaha, come on! Stop being so dramatic, you're going to scare my little sprouts," Belial said, stroking his own cheeks with a weirdly flattered expression, as if being called bloodthirsty was actually a compliment. "Still, thank you so much for the donations! But let's set that aside for now! Let the show begin."
The Djinn spun through the air and landed on top of the train.
"Alright, my dear little sprouts! The first game will be called [Find the Den]. Within a 5km radius, I have placed a series of 'safe zones': spaces protected by a magical barrier that will keep the monsters out," Belial announced with an innocent smile.
Karma turned his attention back to the steam train. Through the windows, he could make out the shapes of various monsters slamming against the walls, desperate to get out.
Wolves, goblins, and a handful of other strange creatures.
None of them looked particularly friendly.
"Now! Be careful, each barrier has a capacity limit. Once it's full, no one else gets in," the Djinn added, conjuring a pair of glasses onto his face. "While you search for shelter, stronger monsters will keep appearing. Five more trains will arrive at 30 minute intervals."
As Belial spoke, a timer materialized above him, reading [30:00].
"Now, here's where it gets fun. The safe zones are color-coded: green, orange, purple, and red! Each one represents a 'round', so to speak. There are four rounds in total, and at the end of each round, the zones matching that round's color will disappear. So yes! I strongly recommend finding a red zone as soon as possible," the Djinn explained, conjuring little colored shapes in the air to illustrate. "When the first 30 minutes are up, the green zones will vanish, and a new train carrying stronger monsters will arrive."
Then the Djinn's smile twisted, revealing a row of gleaming, razor-sharp teeth.
"But here's the really fun part! If a player dies inside a zone while it's still active, that zone will upgrade to the next color tier! For example, if someone dies inside an orange zone, it becomes purple! So yes, killing others inside the safe zones is not just possible, it's actually pretty convenient," Belial declared with a cruel smile.
Karma's stomach turned at that.
He could already picture people turning on each other just to survive.
This game was genuinely messed up, he thought.
"Now that we've cleared that up! A few more rules. Players may leave and re-enter a zone freely as long as there's space available. That said, it's better to stay put, since every 10 minutes spent inside a zone grants 10 XP, and that number scales up depending on the zone's color! So grinding monsters to level up early on isn't the most efficient move," the Djinn said with a shrug.
Karma rubbed his chin, thinking it over. If what Belial was saying was accurate, the smart play was to find a red zone from the very start.
The problem was that those zones were almost certainly going to be the hardest to track down, and he definitely couldn't rely on luck to stumble across one.
"And finally, your goal is to find a red 'den' before the trial runs out. When time's up, one last train will arrive carrying monsters powerful enough to wipe out level 0 humans like yourselves without breaking a sweat," Belial explained, with a hint of disdain in his voice.
Karma clicked his tongue. That meant people were going to die no matter what.
In fact, the number who would actually make it through was limited.
But how few would survive?
"Well, that covers the rules! Let the game begin," Belial announced, throwing both arms up.
In that same instant, the doors of the steam train burst open, and the horde of monsters poured out.
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