Chapter 4: The Moderator's Offer
The pulsating waypoint on my mental map was a siren's call. A System Moderator. This was no longer a faceless system; it had a concierge. And it knew my name.
Sarah grabbed my arm as I turned to leave. "Liam, wait. That thing... a Moderator? It's a trap. They don't 'talk'. They erase."
I looked at her hand on my arm, then at her face, still pale with shock. "They tried to erase me. It didn't work. Now they want to negotiate. That's a sign of weakness." I gently pulled my arm away. "Stay here. Protect these people. Your new S-Rank power isn't just for show."
I didn't wait for her reply. I moved, my **[Flame Walker Boots]** carrying me over the rubble with silent, preternatural grace. The waypoint led to the city's central plaza, now a cratered wasteland dominated by the still-glowing golden system screen.
As I approached the coordinates—a seemingly empty patch of scorched earth—the air in front of me shimmered. A figure resolved, not teleporting, but *loading* into existence, pixel by pixel.
It wasn't a monster. It looked human. A man in an impeccably tailored, albeit digital-looking, grey suit. He had a pleasant, neutral face that was utterly forgettable. His name tag floated above him, not in the blue of a Player or the green of my admin access, but in a calm, authoritative silver.
**[System Moderator Kai]**
"Liam Cross," he said, his voice smooth and synthesized, like a high-end AI assistant. "Or should I call you 'Hacker'? Your handling of Purger-001 was... unorthodox. Filing it away like spam email. We're impressed."
"Impressment wasn't the goal. Survival was," I said, keeping my guard up. My admin interface was open, a hair-trigger away from any command. I tried to scan him. `[ERROR: INSUFFICIENT PRIVILEGES.]`
He smiled, a thin, practiced expression. "Of course. And survival remains your primary objective. But your methods are causing... instability. You're not just stealing from Players; you're siphoning from the System's core processes. That loot stream interception hack is particularly resource-intensive."
"So patch it," I challenged.
"We will. But that's a crude solution. We prefer to leverage talent, not delete it." He gestured, and a complex, holographic schematic appeared between us. It was a data-flow model of the entire Tutorial Zone. "The System is vast, Liam. Bigger than you can imagine. And like any large organization, it has... internal politics."
My interest was piqued, despite myself. "Politics?"
"Factions," Kai clarified. "Some of us believe in a more... meritocratic approach. The current 'Chosen 100' model is inefficient. It's based on arbitrary, pre-System potential. It misses diamonds in the rough. Like you."
He was good. He was speaking directly to the part of me that had always been overlooked.
"What are you proposing?"
"A partnership. A beta test," he said, his eyes glinting with cold, logical light. "We grant you a limited, official **Administrator License**. You continue to do what you're doing—culling the weak, inefficient Players and redistributing their assets. But you do it with our blessing. You become our... quality control agent."
A new, official-looking prompt appeared before me.
**// OFFICIAL CONTRACT OFFER: [FRANCHISED PURGER] //**
**// TERMS: //**
**// 1. LICENSE TO [REVOKE] PLAYER SKILLS & ASSETS. //**
**// 2. ACCESS TO RESTRICTED SYSTEM DATABASES. //**
**// 3. 10% COMMISSION ON ALL RECLAIMED SYSTEM RESOURCES. //**
**// 4. MANDATE: MAINTAIN SYSTEM STABILITY. //**
**// [ACCEPT] / [DECLINE] //**
It was a devil's deal. All the power I was stealing, handed to me on a silver platter. The freedom to act without hiding. All I had to do was become the System's enforcer. I would graduate from a hacker to a cop.
I looked at the **[ACCEPT]** button. It would be so easy.
Then I thought of Jake's arrogance, born of a system that told him he was special. I thought of Sarah's desperation before I upgraded her. I thought of the cold, impersonal countdown of the Purger.
This system was broken. Becoming its official janitor wouldn't fix it. It would just make me part of the machinery.
"I have a counter-offer," I said, letting the contract hang in the air, unsigned.
Kai's smile didn't falter, but it grew colder. "We don't negotiate with anomalies."
"You just did," I replied flatly. "Here are my terms. I keep my current, *unauthorized* access. You look the other way. In return, I don't escalate. I don't start hacking into the core governance protocols. I just... play my game."
It was a bluff. I had no idea if I could hack the core protocols. But he didn't know that.
Moderator Kai was silent for a long moment, his digital eyes analyzing me. "You are a significant risk variable, Liam Cross. Your proposal is unacceptable."
"Then we're done here." I turned to leave.
"Wait."
I glanced back.
"The contract remains open," he said, the holographic schematic and contract vanishing. "Your current activities are... tolerated for now. But the moment your 'game' threatens the integrity of the Tutorial, the next Purger won't be so easily fooled. It will be a Class-Omega. It doesn't have a mana bar to drain."
He began to pixelate, fading from existence. "We'll be watching, Hacker. Choose your next moves wisely."
He was gone.
I stood alone in the plaza, my heart thumping. I had just stared down a System Moderator and called his bluff. I had bought time. But I'd also made a powerful enemy.
A new, personal quest notification appeared, unbidden by the system. It was in my signature green text.
**// PERSONAL QUEST UPDATED: [BREAK THE GAME] //**
**// OBJECTIVE: UNCOVER THE TRUE PURPOSE OF THE SYSTEM. //**
**// SUB-OBJECTIVE: RECRUIT ALLIES. SARAH CHEN ADDED TO [CONTACTS]. //**
**// WARNING: SYSTEM MODERATOR KAI HAS BEEN ADDED TO [HOSTILES]. //**
A slow smile spread across my face. This was better than any contract. I had a real goal now. Not just survival. Not just theft.
Revolution.
And I knew just where to start. I opened my map. There was another Player, not far from here. One with a skill I needed. According to the manifest, his name was Marcus, and he was a **[B-Rank: Data Miner]**.
It was time to stop just stealing skills and start stealing secrets.
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**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**
The stakes are higher than ever! Liam has chosen to defy the System itself! What secret will he uncover with the Data Miner's skill? Will other Moderators come for him?
The story is heating up! **Please VOTE with your Power Stones and leave a comment**—your support keeps these chapters coming! Let me know what you think Liam's next move should be