Chapter 43: Thoroughly Exposed!
It took a while before Dean could get his hands on the small mirror part that he struggled to find. It wasn't available inside the cave. Instead, it was thrown in an open space between the monsters. If it weren't for those monsters actively ignoring this area, he wouldn't have found this thing.
After examining it for a moment, Dean could tell that it contained a little bit of spiritual energy that made it glow even brighter. It reminded him of the coal mine he had found in the previous world and narrowed his eyes.
Although he still didn't know how many of these little worlds contained Tyler's powers, he was still willing to find all of them if that's what it takes to save that guy.
After resolving it all in his heart, Dean came back to the cave only to find that Tyler was still missing. Seeing that, Dean frowned and asked the guy with glasses who seemed to be bored enough to squat on the ground and pick up stones. "Where's Stanley?"
The man shrugged and said, "Haven't seen him ever since he marched out."
Dean's brows furrowed, and he quickly walked toward the direction and went out to search for Tyler.
"Stanley!" After searching silently, Dean finally let go of his ego and called out for that person. Even if he was embarrassed to death because of that incident in the cave, he still couldn't see his beloved getting killed just because of his ego. He was likely aware of the fact that Tyler had recognized him and was perhaps angry because he was hiding from him.
But Dean wasn't even thinking about these things right now. He felt a bad premonition rising in his heart, making him purse his lips and quicken his steps to find that person.
If Tyler would die this time without sucking the energy from this mirror, he didn't know what would happen. Perhaps he might have to restart the world forcibly, and the result of it might even be hazardous. Dean didn't even want to think about it.
He knew that Tyler was likely to be stuck in an illusion that caused him to delay for so long. But when he thought of the details mentioned in the storyline, his brows furrowed. He remembered that there wasn't any information about illusion being used in the second stage. Then was this a hidden plot or something?!
While thinking like this, Dean suddenly entered a very dark cave. And as soon as he entered the cave, he felt like something was sucking his consciousness. His vision was hazy as his head felt like it was exploding due to a sudden stab of pain. And even in this state, he could tell that thus was crystal clear that this was another illusory game!
How annoying! Hadn't they cleared a board game in the previous stage? Why did this world have to make things difficult for them? The illusion mentioned in the storyline wasn't this complicated!
But Dean vaguely felt that all these things might be happening due to the presence of Tyler's power.
He didn't get time to ponder over this before his entire consciousness was sucked, leaving his body lying in the dark.
When woke up, he found himself sitting in the driving seat of a car. The car was surrounded with darkness, but there was a yellow lamp at the top of Dean's head. He was stunned.
Wasn't this car way too modern for this medieval kind of world setting? Thinking of this, Dean quickly opened his system and decided to send a message to the higher-ups.
[Respected User568,
I respectfully want to ask you, what the hell is this mess? Wasn't this world supposed to be medieval?! Why the hell do I see a modern car in its illusion? Don't tell me it's because of Tyler's power that was sucked by this world.
Yours faithfully,
@#&()vdj]
The reply came quickly.
[Respected @#&()vdj,
We just did research and were about to inform you of this matter. Mr. Tyler's power has also created a havoc in many worlds. So you're bound to find unexpected things. Please bear with us and deal with it. We hope to have a pleasant cooperation with you!
Yours faithfully,
User568]
After that, the system went offline, leaving Dean with a dark expression on his face. This unreliable system! He couldn't wait to get out and beat up those people within the team of higher-ups!
Now he would have to think of what kind of game this was before he could search for Tyler. Just then, a cold voice suddenly entered his ears.
"So you're finally here." Tyler said sarcastically, who was sitting on the passenger seat, looking all bored.
The male lead froze. It took him a little while before he realized that Tyler was sitting here for God knows how long and even saw him interacting with the system.
Now it seemed like Dean was truly and thoroughly exposed. Should he might as well confess that he was David in the previous world?
But when he thought about his own shameful actions of using artificial Tyler to keep his own mind sane, Dean shook his head. No! That was embarrassing! It was no doubt that Tyler must have seen the records of the world after it ended.
Not in any way would Dean admit that he was so lovesick in the previous world that he had to create an artificial version of Tyler to soothe his heart.
Even if Dean could tell Tyler the truth, he still would strive his level best to hide this shameful past in the depth of his heart.
Plastering a fake smile on his face, he said, "I don't even know what's going on."
"Sure." Tyler coldly sneered, making the male lead feel guilty. The latter could tell that this person was rather angry. Should he try to appease Tyler's anger?
Thinking of this, Dean cleared his throat and said, "This seems to be a weird car…"
Tyler didn't say anything and coldly kept staring at him as if waiting for a confession or something. Cold sweat formed on Dean's forehead. He turned his head away and started bluffing. "Oh! This illusion suddenly gave vital information in my head. This seems to be a racing game, and this weird thing with steering wheels that looks similar to the wheels on a boat is meant to give directions. And suddenly, I got the information about driving! Don't worry, Stanley. I've got everything under control."
But Tyler's gaze didn't move. Instead, he squinted his eyes and continued to stare at the male lead, who shifted uneasily. "You sure you don't want to say anything else?"
"What else can it be?" Dean laughed awkwardly.
But before they could continue the conservation, the car suddenly started, and a mechanical voice said, "Welcome to the Death Race!"