Cherreads

Chapter 27 - The Last Request and the Chaos Within

**************************************************************************************

✦✦✦ THE WRITER IS LAZY ARC ✦✦✦

(Or: How plot holes became portals.)

[INT. STAR VALKYRIE BASE – COMMAND ROOM]

[It's unusually quiet. Too quiet. Suspiciously quiet.]

Kiana (lounging upside down on a couch, reading a half-finished script):

"Uhh... guys? This page ends mid-sentence. It just says: 'And then the enemy appears, doing a thing with... something.'"

Mei (eyebrow twitching):

"...What."

Captain (scrolling through a tablet):

"Yep. Next line says: '[Insert dramatic confrontation here].' That's it."

Bronya (deadpan, typing furiously):

"The Bronya has scanned the document. Writer stopped writing approximately... 27 hours ago."

Kiana:

"Is that why our last mission had no objective? We just stood there yelling at a tree until it fell over."

Writer (offscreen, in pajamas, lying on the floor):

"I got tired, okay? Writing is hard."

Captain (gritting his teeth):

"People are glitching through walls. Mei tried to cut an enemy and the sword just phased through."

Mei (holding said sword, unimpressed):

"Physics turned off like a light switch. At one point I teleported 30 meters by blinking."

Bronya:

"The Bronya has discovered 17 continuity errors, three paradoxes, and one loop where she marries a toaster."

Kiana (snorting):

"Bet you were the little spoon, huh?"

Bronya:

"...Correct."

Captain (turning to the ceiling):

"Writer! Get up and fix this!"

Writer (muffled, from under a blanket):

"Mmm... can't. Motivation.exe has stopped working. Also I ordered pizza."

Kiana (grinning):

"I mean, mood."

Mei (cracking her knuckles):

"If you don't get up, I will write the next mission myself. It will involve feelings."

Writer (sits up slowly):

"...You wouldn't."

Mei (eyes glowing):

"It starts with a flashback. And unresolved trauma."

Bronya:

"The Bronya supports this. Drama protocols initialized."

Captain (pointing at the blank monitor):

"Seriously. The screen just says 'BOSS LOADING…' and has been spinning for three hours."

Kiana:

"At this point I think I'm the final boss."

Writer (stretching):

"Okay, okay! Fine. I'll write."

[Writer stumbles over to the console, types slowly with one hand while sipping coffee with the other.]

[SCREEN UPDATE]

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Mission Objective: Stop the Cat That Controls Gravity.

Status: Unwritten. Use imagination.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Captain:

"Are you kidding me."

Mei:

"I'm not fighting Schrödinger's Cat with improv."

Bronya:

"...The Bronya refuses to act without a script. She is a professional."

Kiana (rubbing her hands):

"Actually, this sounds kinda fun—"

Captain:

"No. No more chaos. We are not LARPing the apocalypse!"

Writer:

"You are now."

[CAMERA PANS OUT. Everyone yelling. Screen flashing "Narrative Integrity Critical". A faint meow echoes ominously.]

FINAL SCREEN:

Mission Status – Probably Happening.

Writer Status – Horizontal.

Bronya's Sanity – Rebooting.

Captain's Blood Pressure – Maximum.

Team Morale – Surviving on sarcasm.

V – Still missing. Probably smart.

**************************************************************************************

In a certain area—

Tents were pitched tightly together, bustling with people coming and going in urgency. Inside one such tent…

???: "Hurry up and bring mana potion along with the first aid kit! Or are you waiting for someone to die?!"

??: "S-sorry, sir!"

The man being scolded darted out in a rush.

As soon as he disappeared, a figure cloaked in black with a white mask stepped forward.

Masked Man: "Quite the mess you've got here."

???: "Yeah… chaos is the right word. The wounded keep flooding in nonstop."

The doctor turned to face him, revealing striking green eyes, tousled brown hair, and a handsome but exhausted expression.

Doctor: "So, you finally came."

He removed his gloves and tossed them onto the nearby table.

Masked Man: "You're the one who called me, aren't you?"

Doctor: "Yes. And I assume you know why."

Masked Man: "..."

The doctor stared at him for a moment before speaking again.

Doctor: "This might be selfish of me… but I want you to stop the war. Please."

Masked Man: "And what do I get in return? You know I don't do things for free."

Doctor: "I'm well aware. That's why I'm offering you something—something you've been waiting a long time for."

He paused.

Doctor: "The Key of God."

Masked Man: "?!"

Doctor: "You thought I didn't know? You've been waiting for me to die so you could claim it. Don't bother denying it."

Masked Man: "....… didn't expect you to know. But you realize without that key, you're going to die."

Doctor: "I know. But if one life can save hundreds more, I think it's worth it."

Masked Man: "You're a fool. Throwing your life away for people you don't even know."

The doctor lowered his gaze.

Doctor: "It's my conviction. You of all people should know… you've been watching us, haven't you?"

Silence.

Doctor: "Please… you who has seen everything—we're out of time. Treat this as my final request, as a dying man's plea."

He smiled faintly.

After a long pause, the masked man spoke.

Masked Man: "...Fine. I accept."

A system window blinked into existence in front of him.

-----------------------------------------------------------------

Mission Created

Objective: Stop the war between Humans and Elves

Success: Reward – Key of God (Life and Death Control)

Failure: Lose trust of the Keyholder

-----------------------------------------------------------------

The doctor smiled and took both of the masked man's hands.

Doctor: "Thank you… my friend."

The masked man remained silent.

-

-

Somewhere Else

Inside a dimly lit room—

V awoke, his body aching all over.

V: "Urgh…"

He struggled to sit up and glanced around.

V: "Did I warp back to the inn room I rented?"

Realizing he was safe, he relaxed a little—until another wave of pain hit him.

V: "Ugh… just as I thought, I can't handle honkai energy directly…"

He peeled off his shirt, revealing red vein-like marks running up his arms and neck.

V: "At least it's not critical yet…"

With his current ability, he could still force the honkai corruption out of his body—it would just take time.

V: "What's more important now is… how much time has passed?"

He pulled out his phone.

V: "Three days… THREE DAYS?!"

Panic surged.

He scrambled to gather his things, checked out of the inn, and made his way to a secluded alley.

V: "Here should be fine."

He focused his mind to teleport again—

V: "Ah,right….... I haven't even checked the mission rewards yet."

With that, he vanished.

-

-

Star Valkyrie – V's Room

V reappeared from the void, collapsing to the floor as soon as he returned.

V: "Urgh… the honkai energy still tearing at my body…"

Though he expelled some energy to move, it wasn't enough.

V: "...… let's check the rewards first."

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Mission Complete – Defeat Drake

Reward: Unlock 1 Skill

Bonus Rewards:

– Skill: Checkpoint (From Lazy God: "I'm too lazy, so just take this")

– Skill: God Time (From Playful God: "I dunno what to give. Take this random thing")

– Item: System Access x4 (From Calamity God: "Everyone else is having fun, so here's one for you")

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

V: "…"

Silence filled the room. Then—

V: sighs "…Unbelievable."

He returned his focus to the rewards.

V: "Let's unlock a skill first."

After some thought, he made his choice.

V: "Unlock skill: Energy Control."

-----------------------------------------------------------------

Skill Unlocked: Energy Manipulation

-----------------------------------------------------------------

-----------------------------------------------------------------

Then he looked at the bonus rewards again.

Skill: Checkpoint

Allows user to set teleportation points. Cooldown: 30 mins per point.

Skill: God Time

Temporarily boosts all abilities by 100x for 1 second. Cooldown: 72 hours.

Item: System Access Stone

Grants system access to whoever breaks the stone.

-----------------------------------------------------------------

V: "…This is insane."

Checkpoint was just glorified teleportation. God Time? One second?! What was he supposed to do with one second?

Only the system stone seemed remotely useful.

V: "sighs…Calm down. There might be a use for them somehow. But first—I need to deal with this honkai corruption."

He glanced at the clock.

V: "I hope there's still time…"

-

-

-

-

Few day Later – At Star Valkyrie

Kiana: "Hey! That's my snack!"

She reached to grab the treat held high above her head by—

Captain: "Heh, it's mine now!"

Kiana: "You're so mean!"

Mei walked out of the kitchen.

Mei: "Captain? What are you doing here?"

Her question paused the skirmish.

Even Bronya looked up from her game.

Captain: "Ah, I came to see V. We need to talk."

Bronya nodded with understanding.

Mei, though curious, but didn't press.

Kiana, however…

Captain (whispering): "…And to escape from two very dangerous ladies."

Suddenly, Kiana lunged—but the Captain dodged easily.

Captain: "You'll need more than that to catch me! I am Captain Ryuu Pendragon, heir of—"

He was cut off as a hand swiftly snatched the snack from his grasp.

Before he could react, a beautiful maid smiled sweetly at him.

Rita: "That's not very nice, Captain. Running away over what happened the other day?"

Captain: "…R-Rita?! What are you doing here?"

Rita: "I've come to fetch you for unfinished duties, sir."

Captain: "C-can't Aichan handle it instead?!"

Rita: "Unfortunately, Aichan needs assistance. That means you're required."

She extended her hand toward him.

He glanced at it, then at her face, then back again.

Captain: "…Before we go… just to confirm—"

Rita: "Yes?"

Captain: "I won't be… drained dry, right?"

Her smile was the only reply.

He turned pale and tried to flee—but she grabbed his collar before he could move.

Rita: "Now, let's go. Everyone, have a lovely day."

She waved politely to the others as she dragged the struggling Captain away.

Captain: "SOMEONE HELP ME—!"

His voice faded down the corridor.

Back in the room, the three girls sat in stunned silence.

Kiana: "…What does 'drained dry' mean?"

More Chapters