Awakening: Starting With The Villain System-Chapter 69 - 68: Comments

After I was done reading the website news post, a dry, sanitized account that mentioned an "unprecedented security breach" and a "high-tier adversarial entity" without ever using my name, a morbid curiosity got the better of me.

My finger hovered over the screen for a second before I clicked on the comments.

I needed to see the noise, the chaos my actions had spawned in the wider world.

The page loaded, a cascading waterfall of hot takes, memes, and panic.

[Hydrogen Bomb]

—For Aegis Collective to claim it's their most important ability core, that must be some crazy shit.

(Reacts: 509,8k) (Replies: 2.5k)

A part of me felt a flicker of pride.

[Coughing Baby]

—If something that powerful is truly in the hands of a high ranked villain, are we even safe again?

(Reacts: 1m) (Replies: 5.8k)

The fear was palpable. A million reacts. A million people, or bots, tapping a button to express their unease.

Safe? You were never safe. The world was always this dangerous; you just had the luxury of ignoring it. Now you can't.

[49/51]

—Bro thought he's the protagonist.

(Reacts: 90,5k) (Replies: 5.5k)

A bitter laugh escaped me.

The protagonist? No. The protagonist has friends, a moral compass, and a soundtrack.

I had a sarcastic system, a pocket full of stolen cash, and a headache.

If I was the protagonist, this was a horror story.

[Flawless Pig]

—They should take this as a lesson, and tighten their branches security, if it was better, something like this wouldn't have happened.

(Reacts: 890,6k) (Replies: 505)

Ah, the voice of reason and hindsight. So easy to say from behind a screen.

They weren't wrong, but the comment felt hollow.

It was like telling a drowning man he should have learned to swim better.

[Monocle]

—Bro just casually achieved what most villains failed to achieve.

(Reacts: 135,1k) (Replies: 700)

Now that was a compliment I could appreciate.

It was acknowledging the scale of the act, the sheer audacity.

It wasn't about morality; it was about accomplishment.

[Redghost] replied to (Monocle)

—That happened because Aegis dropped their guard, giving their most valuable possession to their branch is stupid.

What do they expect to happen, villains would not know anything like that is with their branch, and wait around till it enters the headquarter hands?

(Reacts: 485,6k) (Replies: 460)

This 'Redghost' was sharp. They were piecing together the logistics, the strategic blunder.

It was unsettling to see my own reasoning reflected back at me by a random username.

[Flawless Pig] replied to (Redghost)

—Your opinion is valid. But you should know the ability core was only transported through the branch, after the destruction of many of their secret storage, it wasn't given to them to be held, Aegis was going to collect it that evening from the branch to the headquarters.

(Reacts:128,5k) (Replies: 260)

My breath hitched.

So that was the official story. The core was just in transit.

I had hit the jackpot by pure, dumb timing.

Or had the system known? The thought was a cold trickle down my spine.

[Redghost]

—Would the government, and the hero association help Aegis Collective in the search of the villain?

(Reacts: 942,1k) (Replies: 6k)

The question of the hour. Nearly a million reacts.

The public was demanding a response. I could feel the net tightening, not through any specific clue, but through the sheer weight of collective attention.

I was no longer a ghost; I was a spectacle.

[xX_ShadowBlade_Xx]

—So the final boss just got a power-up. Cool, cool. Anyone know if this "high-tier adversarial entity" is taking applications for a minion? I sure don't want to be on it bad side.

(Reacts: 200.4K) (Replies: 450)

I almost smiled.

Applications are closed. The only minion position is already filled by a snarky system.

[IAmVerySmart-99]

—Aegis is soo selfish.The villain did a good thing.

(Reacts: 140k) (Replies: 20.1K]

Anarchist sentiment. There was always a segment that cheered for the downfall of any large institution.

I wasn't a hero to them; I was just a convenient wrecking ball.

[KarenOnTheCase]

—This is what happens when you don't have proper security.

(Reacts: 59.2K) (Replies: 203)

Back to the security angle. It was a comforting thought for people, I supposed.

To believe that bad things only happen when there's a procedural failure, not because the world is inherently chaotic and some people are just built different.

[GossipGoblin]

—Such a relief, my cousin's friend's sister used to work at that Aegis brach (she got transferred last year)

(Replies: 408.1K) (Replies: 104)

The irrelevant personal connection. Humanity's need to insert itself into every narrative, no matter how tangential.

[RealityCheck_42]

—Everyone making jokes until this "adversarial entity" uses the core against us. This isn't a meme, it's a mass casualty event waiting to happen.

(Reacts: 399.5K) (Replies: 601)

And there it was. The cold splash of water.

The voice cutting through the noise to state the terrifying truth they were all dancing around.

This wasn't a game. The power I now held is indeed dangerous.

If I decide to go against the world after I grow stronger, the world would be doomed.

[CatVideoEnthusiast]

—Can the ability core summon infinite kittens? If not, I'm not interested.

(Reacts: 1m) (Replies: 2.2k)

And finally, the beautiful, blissful ignorance of the internet.

A million people who just wanted to see cats.

In a strange way, it was the most comforting comment of all.

[Load more comments...]

I didn't load more. I had seen enough. My actions were now public discourse.

I was a symbol, a threat, a joke, and a potential employer, all wrapped into one anonymous entity.

I turned off my phone, the parade of hot takes and public panic dissolving into blackness. I didn't have the energy for it anymore.

I faceplanted directly onto my pillow, the cool cotton a welcome relief against my overheated skin, and threw the phone somewhere beside me on the bed. It landed with a soft thud.

For a moment, I just lay there, breathing in the quiet room.

The results were good, at least. That's all I always wanted to know.

The news confirmed it: the heist was a success in the public eye.

I wasn't in any trouble, my name wasn't flashing on the screen, and my face wasn't on a wanted poster.

Everything seemed well set. The chaos I'd left behind was being attributed to some mysterious, high-tier villain, a faceless entity. It was perfect.

Whoever invaded Aegis right after me, that other attacker, even did a more better job in the situation.

They'd caused the massive distraction that allowed me to slip away, and now they were probably taking the heat for the bulk of the destruction and the dead guards.

I felt a strange, detached gratitude toward that unknown force.

They'd been the perfect patsy, the chaos to my precision.

Ding!

[Your villain rank increases!]

Huh?!

[You have levelled up!]

Wait, what?

[Your villain rank increases!]

Another one?

I pushed myself up on my elbows, the fatigue momentarily forgotten.

Huh? How?