Over 100 players crowded the small town square. They were staring at each other.
On the left side of the fountain stood The Iron Legion, led by TankTop. They were clad in heavy goblin leather and held shields reinforced with iron.
On the right side stood the Void Wizards, led by GlassCannon. They wore dark robes and held glowing staffs. Sparks of magic crackled around their fingers.
In the middle, the Waifu Protection Squad sat on the rooftops, eating bread and watching the drama.
[Global Chat]
[TankTop]: Move your mages, Glass. You're blocking the Blacksmith.
[GlassCannon]: Make me, meathead. Your armor is weak to magic. One fireball and you're cooked beef.
[SimpLord]: Fight! Fight! Fight!
[RogueOne]: Can we kill each other? I tried to stab a wizard earlier but it said "Invalid Target".
Fang watched from his observation deck, sipping a virtual cup of coffee.
"They are ready," Fang whispered. "They have gear. They have levels. Now, they have egos."
Currently, the game was Co-op. Players could only kill monsters. But Fang knew the truth about human nature. Cooperation was temporary. Domination was eternal.
"System," Fang commanded. "It's time for the bloodsport update."
He opened the [Game Rules] tab.
[Rule Modification: Player vs Player (PvP)]
[Status: ENABLED.]
[Restriction: Safe Zones.]
Fang drew a blue circle around Shadow's Rest and the spawn point.
"I can't have them killing each other at the shops. That hurts the economy."
[Restriction: War Zones.]
Fang highlighted the Weeping Graveyard and the open void.
"Out there, anything goes."
[Ding!]
[Global Notification: The Developer has updated the World Rules.]
[PvP System: ACTIVE.]
[New Rule: Town is a Safe Zone. No violence permitted.]
[New Rule: The Wild is a War Zone. Kill or be Killed.]
A collective gasp went through the players in the square.
TankTop drew his mace. GlassCannon charged a spell.
"Meet me outside the gate," TankTop growled. "Right now."
"With pleasure," GlassCannon sneered.
The two groups began to march toward the town exit.
Fang shook his head. "No, no, no. If they fight in the dirt, it's messy. And more importantly... I can't charge admission."
He needed a stage. A place where the violence was organized. A place where the other players could watch, bet, and scream.
"System," Fang said rapidly. "Open [Architecture]. Select [Grand Arena]."
[Cost: 2,500 Creation Coins.]
It was expensive. It drained almost all his funds again. But Fang didn't hesitate.
"Place it."
He pointed to a floating rock formation just south of the town, connected by a massive stone chain.
[Ding!]
[Construction Initiated...]
The sky rumbled. Massive stone pillars shot up from the void. Bleachers carved from obsidian formed a perfect circle. A sandy floor, stained with pre-rendered blood, materialized in the center.
Iron gates slammed shut. Banners unfurled.
[Building Complete: The Void Colosseum.]
Fang leaned into his microphone.
"Attention, gladiators," his voice boomed from the heavens. "Fighting in the mud is for animals. True warriors fight in the Arena."
[System Event: The First Guild War.]
[Prize: 10% Tax Rights of the Weeping Graveyard for 24 Hours.]
[Entry Fee: 100 Gold Coins per Team.]
The players stopped marching. They looked at the massive structure floating in the sky.
"Tax rights?" TankTop's eyes bulged. "If we own the Graveyard, we get 10% of all the loot people find there?"
"That's thousands of gold," GlassCannon calculated. "We could buy the best gear in the game. We could corner the market."
The greed in their eyes flared.
"TO THE ARENA!"
The stampede shifted direction. They ran across the stone chain bridge, pushing and shoving to get inside.
Fang teleported to the VIP box, high above the sandy pit. He watched as the stands filled up.
[Spectator Count: 88]
[Combatants: 12 (6 vs 6)]
Fang quickly set the rules for the match.
[Match Type: Team Deathmatch.]
[Win Condition: Eliminate the opposing team.]
[Arena Hazards: Active.]
"Let's see what they've got," Fang muttered.
In the center of the sand, The Iron Legion stood in a tight formation. Three shield-bearers in front, three damage dealers behind with spears.
Opposite them, The Void Wizards spread out. Three mages, two archers (mercenaries), and one healer.
[Ding!]
[3... 2... 1... FIGHT!]
"Shield Wall!" TankTop screamed.
The Iron Legion raised their reinforced shields. A blue aura shimmered in front of them—a skill TankTop had unlocked at Level 8: [Iron Will].
"Fireball volley!" GlassCannon shouted.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Three balls of orange fire slammed into the shields. Smoke exploded. The impact shook the arena.
[-10 HP (Blocked)]
[-15 HP (Blocked)]
"They're tanking it!" a spectator screamed from the stands. "Look at that defense!"
"Charge!" TankTop commanded.
The shield wall lowered, and the Legion charged forward like a steam train.
"Scatter!" GlassCannon yelled. "Kite them!"
The mages ran backward, casting small 'Ember Bolts' to chip away health. But the arena wasn't an open field. Fang had placed pillars and spike traps.
One of the mages, a player named 'MerlinTheMediocre', backed right into a spike trap.
[-150 HP!]
[Player 'MerlinTheMediocre' has died.]
"Watch your step!" GlassCannon screamed. "The arena is trapped!"
"Gotcha!" TankTop lunged, swinging his [Thunder-Caller Dagger] which he was using as a secondary weapon.
He slashed GlassCannon across the chest.
ZZZT!
[-45 HP]
[Status: Shocked (Paralyzed for 1s)]
"He's stunned! Kill the leader!"
The Iron Legion descended on GlassCannon like a pack of wolves. Spears thrust forward.
But GlassCannon grinned.
"You're in range," the mage whispered.
He slammed his staff into the ground.
[Skill: Void Pulse (Level 5 Unlock)]
A purple shockwave erupted from GlassCannon. It didn't do damage. It had a 'Knockback' effect.
The three Legion warriors were blasted backward. They flew through the air.
Two of them landed on the sand.
But TankTop... TankTop was knocked too far. He flew toward the edge of the arena.
"No!" TankTop flailed.
He went over the wall.
He fell into the endless void below the island.
[Ding!]
[Player 'TankTop' has died.]
The crowd went wild.
"RING OUT!"
"HOLY CRAP!"
"DID YOU SEE THAT?!"
With their leader gone, the Iron Legion crumbled.
The Void Wizards picked them off one by one with concentrated fire.
[Ding!]
[Winner: The Void Wizards!]
[Guild 'Void Wizards' has claimed the Tax Rights!]
GlassCannon stood in the center of the arena, his robe tattered, his HP low. He raised his staff in victory.
"BOW TO THE MAGIC!" he screamed.
The chat scrolled so fast it was a blur.
[User88: I'm rerolling Wizard right now!]
[User99: That was insane! When is the next match?]
[RichBoy: I bet 50 gold on Legion and lost! Ripped!]
Fang watched the chaos with a satisfied smile.
[Despair Harvest: +300 Coins (From the losers).]
[Ticket Sales: +500 Coins.]
[Betting Commission (5%): +200 Coins.]
He made money from the fight. He made money from the deaths. He made money from the bets.
But the most important number was the one in the top corner.
[Active Players: 145]
The spectacle had drawn attention. Clips of TankTop falling into the void were already circulating on the in-game social feed. People love violence.
But Fang saw a flaw.
"The melee classes got kited too easily," Fang analyzed. "If Wizards dominate too much, everyone will play Wizard. Then the game becomes boring. I need balance."
He opened the [Item Shop].
"Time to introduce the counter-play."
He created a new item.
[Item: Smoke Bomb]
[Effect: Creates a cloud of smoke that breaks 'Target Lock' for spells.]
[Cost: 50 Gold.]
He placed it in the Rogue shop.
"Now," Fang whispered, "The Rogues will rise."
Suddenly, a system alert flashed red.
[Alert: Server Capacity Reaching Limit (80%).]
[Alert: Player 'DevGod_Zero' has entered the spectator lobby.]
Fang stiffened. The rival tycoon.
[Global Chat]
[DevGod_Zero]: "Cute arena. Very primitive. But let's see how your server handles a real load."
[DevGod_Zero]: "Sending a Raid Party."
Fang frowned. "Sending a raid party? Players can't transfer servers."
Unless...
[Ding!]
[System Warning: External 'Invasion' Request detected.]
[User 'DevGod_Zero' has used a 'Cross-Server Guild Ticket'.]
[Incoming: 50 Elite Players from the 'Cyber-City' Server.]
Fang's eyes widened.
50 players from a futuristic sci-fi server? They would have laser guns. Exoskeletons.
His players had rusty swords and fireballs.
"He's trying to grief my server," Fang realized. "He wants to wipe my players to ruin my retention."
The sky tore open. A massive, metallic portal appeared above the Colosseum.
Dropships began to descend.
The players in the arena stopped cheering. They looked up at the sleek, chrome ships.
"Aliens?" GlassCannon asked.
"No," TankTop, who had just respawned and run back, shouted. "Invaders!"
Fang stood up. This wasn't a game update. This was an act of war between Developers.
If his players got slaughtered by overpowered sci-fi gear, they would quit. They would feel the game was unfair.
Fang had to act. He couldn't stop the invasion, but he could balance the scales.
"You want to bring guns to a sword fight?" Fang snarled.
He opened the [Environmental Physics] tab.
"System. Override Zone Physics."
[Select Override.]
"Magic Overload," Fang commanded. "Increase all Magic Damage by 500%. Decrease Technology Efficiency by 90%."
[Warning: This will cause chaotic instability.]
"DO IT!"
[Ding!]
[Global Event: The Age of Myth.]
[Tech Malfunction Active.]
The dropships shuddered. Their engines sparked and smoked.
One of the ships stalled and crashed into the side of the arena.
Out of the burning wreckage, players in sleek power armor stumbled out. But their suits were sparking, heavy, and slow.
"My aim assist is offline!" one invader shouted.
"My jetpack won't ignite!"
Fang grinned. "This is my world. Physics obeys me."
He turned to the microphone.
"Players of Shadow's Rest!" Fang bellowed. "These outsiders think their technology makes them gods. Show them the power of the Arcane! KILL THEM ALL!"
TankTop and GlassCannon looked at each other. The rivalry was forgotten.
"For the loot!" TankTop roared.
"For the XP!" GlassCannon screamed.
The 145 natives of Fang's world charged at the 50 high-tech invaders. It was a swarm of desperate, greedy, dopamine-addicted savages against a confused, debuffed elite force.
Fang sat back down.
"This," he said, watching a goblin-leather warrior beat a power-armored soldier with a rock, "is going to be great for ratings."
[Current Players: 195...]
"Almost there."