Chapter2

On the third day after I awakened, Celine messaged me saying she wanted to come to my house.

I live in an old, two-bedroom apartment in the suburbs of Los Angeles, the rent of which I saved up from part-time jobs. Celine's family lives in Beverly Hills, in a detached house with a swimming pool and a three-car garage. We were high school classmates; she pursued me. In my past life, I thought it was love. In this life, I know it's called an investment.

The doorbell rang at two in the afternoon. I opened the door and saw Celine standing outside in a white dress, holding a Starbucks coffee, smiling as brightly as the California sunshine.

Edric stood behind her, along with twelve newly awakened recruits I didn't recognize, their eyes filled with a hunger to prove themselves.

"Surprise!" Celine tiptoed and kissed me. "I brought you a latte. Remember you like it with less sugar, right?"

I took the coffee. The cup was warm; she had already drunk half of it on the way.

"These are the core members of the guild," she turned and pointed to the twelve people, as if introducing carefully selected goods, "all S-rank and A-rank professions. From now on, we're family."

Edric walked in and looked around my living room.

"It's quite cozy," he said, then sat down on the sofa and crossed his legs.

"However, you probably won't need to live here much in the future. The BOSS's territory system will automatically assign land, and I heard the environment is quite nice."

"Yes," Celine said, sitting down next to him.

"The BOSS territories are all system-managed, with free water and electricity, and they even have their own defense systems. They're much better than this place."

She took a document out of her bag and placed it on the coffee table. The cover was printed with the logo of the "Dawnblade Guild"—a longsword pointing upwards, with the tip shaped like the sun.

"This is an exclusive BOSS cooperation agreement," she said, turning to the first page and pointing to the densely packed terms.

"I stayed up all night writing this, referencing templates from several top guilds. Take a look, and we can discuss any issues."

I looked down at the agreement.

Article 1: Party B (BOSS) shall provide at least three dungeon challenge opportunities per day, with the time slots arranged by Party A (Guild).

Article 2: All equipment dropped in the dungeon belongs to Party A, and Party B shall not keep or transfer it in any form.

Article 3: Territory development resources shall be uniformly allocated by Party A to enhance the overall strength of the guild.

Article 4: Party B shall not accept challenge invitations from other guilds, and the exclusive binding period shall be permanent.

Article 5: If Party B breaches this agreement, Party A has the right to terminate the cooperation and pursue corresponding responsibilities.

I turned to the last page. Above the signature panel was a line of small print: "This agreement, once signed, is protected by system rules and is irrevocable."

"How is it?" Celine leaned closer and put her hand on my shoulder.

"The terms are all fair, right? We protect your territory, and you cooperate with us to farm equipment—it's a win-win situation. And look at Article Six; I specifically added 'Party B will receive 5% of the guild's monthly profits as compensation,' which is a benefit I negotiated."

5%.

I didn't receive a single penny in my past life.

"What does this 'permanent binding' mean?" I pointed to the fourth item.

"Oh, that?" Celine blinked.

"It means you can only run dungeons for our guild, not for other guilds. This is to ensure our gear advantage. Think about it, if you run dungeons for us today and for someone else tomorrow, what's the point of having a guild?"

"So, from now on, I can only be killed by you?"

"Oh, don't put it so harshly," she pinched my cheek.

"It's a 'challenge,' not 'killing.' The system will revive you; you won't really die. Besides, we're husband and wife; how could I possibly harm you?"

Edric chuckled beside him.

"Brother, you need to improve your awareness," he said, standing up and walking up to me.

"The BOSS route is meant to provide resources for players. If you awaken as a BOSS, what are you supposed to do if you don't cooperate with the players? Just hide in your territory and farm by yourself?"

"Edric!" Celine frowned. "Don't say that."

"Did I say something wrong?" Edric spread his hands. "That's how the system is set up. Heroes advance the plot, NPCs provide quests, and bosses drop resources. These are the game rules, not my rules."

He turned to look at the twelve guild members.

"Don't you agree?"

"Yes." A girl who had awakened her fire mage skills nodded.

"My cousin also follows the BOSS path, and now he works for a guild in San Diego, and he gets a salary every month."

"Yes, yes, yes," another warrior chimed in, "I've seen it on the forums. Some bosses are doing really well; their guilds assign them dedicated healers, and they revive instantly when they die—it doesn't hurt at all."

"So you see," Celine grasped my hand, "this is how everyone works together. Our guild is relatively generous; at least we give you a share of the profits. Some guilds don't even offer that."

I looked at her.

She convinced me the same way in my past life. She said it was for our future, that we could live a good life once the guild became powerful. I believed her. I signed the agreement, moved into the territory assigned by the system, and began a two-year period of being killed three to five times a day.

"I need to think about it."

"Consider? Consider what?" She released my hand, her voice still gentle.

"Dorian, we're already engaged, are you still going to reconsider?"

"We're not engaged."

"That's only a matter of time!" Her voice rose eight octaves.

"My parents have both met you. My mom said you're a very honest person and told me to cherish you. And now you're telling me you need to think about it?"

Edric walked over and patted her on the shoulder.

"Don't get agitated, let's talk slowly." He looked at me with a hint of condescending patience in his eyes.

"Brother, I understand your concerns. It's understandable to feel a bit overwhelmed being a boss for the first time. But you need to understand, this is your only way out. You're awakening the boss path, not a hero, not an NPC. You can't level up on your own, you can't accept quests, and you can't even enter safe zones. You either need to find a guild to cooperate with, or you'll be ganged up on by random groups."

"Random team?"

"Yeah," the fire mage interjected, "the system rules state that unclaimed bosses can be challenged by any player. You won't even have a right to loot; if your equipment is stolen, you won't even be able to say a word."

"So your best option is to sign with us," Celine sat down again, adjusting her skirt. "Dawnblade will protect you. I promise, as long as you cooperate, I won't let anyone hurt you."

She was looking at me as she said this.

I remained silent for a few seconds.

Then I picked up a pen and signed my name on the last page of the agreement.

Celine's face immediately lit up with a smile. She jumped up, hugged me, and kissed me several times on the cheek.

"I knew you were the best!" She held up the agreement and waved it at the twelve people. "See this? This is my husband, my most reliable personal boss!"

Everyone applauded.

Edric walked over and extended his hand.

Welcome to Dawn of Blades.

I shook hands with him. His hand was very strong, and it made my wrist bones ache.

"It's a pleasure working with you," he said. "I'll be leading a team to your territory tomorrow afternoon at two o'clock. Remember to prepare in advance; the first time clearing land might be a little painful."

Will it hurt a lot?

"No," Celine answered quickly.

"The system will block out most of the pain. And I'll be watching to make sure they don't go too far."

Edric smiled but didn't say anything.

After they left, I was the only one left in the apartment.

I stood by the window, watching Celine's white Porsche Cayenne drive away in the parking lot below. The agreement was still on the coffee table, the ink barely dry.

I opened the system panel.

【Occupation: BOSS】

[Level: 1]

Experience points: 0%

[Current Status: Exclusive binding agreement signed (Dawnblade Guild)]

[Hidden Mission: Reach the maximum level and unlock administrator privileges]

I stared at the last line of text for a long time.

Thirty-three days.

In my past life, it took me a year to reach the maximum level because I needed several days to recover after each death; my mind couldn't take it. This life, I don't need that. I've died enough in my past life.

Tomorrow at 2 PM, Edric will come to my territory with twelve men.

They will kill me three times.

I will drop three pieces of equipment.

Then Celine would stay, give me a half-empty bottle of healing potion, kiss my forehead, and say, "You're so kind."

The script from the previous life will be repeated word for word.

But this time, I knew how it would end.

I closed my eyes and a smile appeared on my lips.