Harem of the final villain in an ERO MMO!!! I just need to survive

Chapter 7 7: Fake It Till You Make It [Pt1]

?Keith waited with bated breath for Shinzou to respond. Surely this man was not dumb enough to not notice this drastic change in his friend?

But contrary to Keith's beliefs, the man did nothing more than laugh Keith's words over. He wrapped one arm around Keith's shoulder and pulled him closer a little bit.

"Hahaha, grandmaster has gotten better at joking, huh? Now, there is no need to be so modest and undermine your power. We all saw you take down the assassin."

Keith was sure he was shaking in his boots and the arm on his shoulder felt infinitely heavier than it was supposed to be. He was sure that it had something to do with his initial fear of being found out.

"No, I am serious when I say that I did not take anyone down."

"And I said, the grandmaster sure has a way of joking around. Now, we should hurry up inside before any other fool gets it in their mind to attack us."

The grip on Keith's neck tightened before he was pulled behind Shinzou. People around the gasped at the two masters walking together in harmony.

Many even pointed toward the pair and marveled at the 'tight' friendship they both had. They had never seen a more tightly knitted-together pair of friends.

"H-Hey, let me go. I can walk by myself."

Keith's body was trying its hardest to appear graceful while his legs were dying while trying to keep up with Shinzou. As a result, Keith felt like was overworking and he would pay the price for this later.

But all his complaints fell on deaf ears as he was pulled harder and faster by the man in front of him.

Suddenly, Shinzou stopped walking and turned around. Keith felt his heart skip a beat in fear as soon as he faced the harsh face of his 'friend.'

"Look man, I don't know what has gotten into you all of a sudden, but just know that I am on your side. If something or someone harmed you, I would be there to help you out. Not that you would need it, right?"

Keith wanted to open his mouth and declare that he was not 'the grandmaster' he appeared to be. But it all died out in his throat as soon as those words formed.

Shinzou was smiling but he had just subtly let Keith know that he would die if he was relieved that he was not the 'grandmaster' but an imposter who happened to hijack his body.

And it was also at this time that all of Keith's self-preservation instincts decided to kick in.

His back straightened and his expression closed off as his eyes glared down at master Shinzou. Even Keith felt like he was a different man when he slipped into his 'acting' headspace.

"Stop babbling around like a fool. As if I would ever need the help of a buffoon like you in my life. I'll kill you the next time you suggest something this vulgar to me."

Keith wanted to cut his mouth off and disown it. He was saying everything that would get him killed off in a matter of seconds. He did not want to die. But he could also not stop and take his words back.

All he could do was to look ahead and hope that his eyes conveyed his desperation and his apology. He hoped that he would survive this clash without dying.

"Yeah man, I got it. You are still the same as always so I guess I was worried for nothing. Don't you worry, you have me with you?"

'That's the problem. I will die of a heart attack before I die from an assassination attempt if I spend any more time with you.'

Of course, all of Keith's grievances and doubts remained inside his heart. He could not let them see the light of day if he wanted to live a long and healthy life.

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"You guys, look who I have here. After a long time, my friend finally decided to show his face to the masses."

If Keith was not playing the role of a cold and aloof master, he would have hit Shinzou for attracting this much attention to their small group.

With this single call from Shinzou, everyone turned their attention toward their pair. It was too much pressure and Keith almost swayed as a result of this much pressure. He could feel the eyes stabbing into him, accessing his worth.

"Grandmaster, you are here as well? Have you decided to come out of your seclusion and join our society?"

Keith looked at the speaker and his words got caught up in his throat. It was a voice that made him stop and stare at the beauty. It was his favorite character in the game, master Fushi.

She was the most beautiful female Kieth had ever seen in his life and she had also been the one who shaped his whole 'type' when he had been young. Elegant and busty with silky black hair with blue highlights and a strict face with glasses complete the look.

The second Keith had seen her, he knew that he would devote his life to the master and be her devotee.

'And I finally got to meet her. But I cannot show any appreciation for my goddess. What a cruel life I lead.'

If Keith could have spoken freely, he would have waxed poems of admission for his favorite character. He wanted to go over and talk with Master Fushi so badly. But he could not do that for one simple reason - his character setting.

"Ah, it's the old day of the Crimson Myre sect. You are looking as young as ever. How many layers of makeup did you use this time?"

"Bold of you to speak like this to me, you bloody mad dog. Aren't you just a pet this fake master keeps on a short leash?"

'Ahhh, I knew this was going to happen. My dreams of having a good relationship with my favorite character are evaporating in front of my eyes.'

Keith felt like crying as he watched the small fight take place. It was bad enough that sparks were starting to fly all over the place now.

Anyone who had heard about this MMO knew the legendary rivalry between Master Shinzou and Master Fushi. It had never been kept hidden and often led to internal conflicts in the story.

There had been a time when Keith had enjoyed this setup. But that had been before it had started affecting his life.

The pressure in the room felt like stuffing. It was getting harder and harder for him to breathe. He was not sure when he had started to pant a little but he was the only one who looked uncomfortable.

"Oi, both of you, stop. The Grandmaster looks angry and he's also shaking now. We will all get in trouble if you continue to fight."

'Oh, I am shaking alright. I am shaking in fright because I feel like I will be accidentally squished while the others fight.'

Of course, Keith could not open his mouth to say this. He had enough pride and mental presence to deny any such accusations.

But the threat worked and everyone else instantly calmed down and looked back at him with a scared expression. They all were thinking the same thing - what would the grandmaster do next? He was not a benevolent person.

"Alright, that's enough. I cannot be bothered to punish you all this time but I will not tolerate another fight. Now, let's get this meeting started."

Everyone in the room (including Keith) took a relief-filled breath once this situation was passed over with relative ease. He couldn't help but feel like he had avoided a big danger when everything calmed down.

Surely, nothing would be able to threaten him now if he stayed quiet, right? Who would make the mistake of questioning the 'big and scary' grandmaster?

With such a grand scheme in mind, Keith decided to take his seat. He was seated at the head of the table with no competition, not that he noticed. He just wanted to go home.

"Now then, let's get this meeting started. I hope we will be able to make things better for everyone."

These were the same words from the game and Keith barely managed to get them out. He was so proud of himself for not stuttering.

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"So it has been decided. Grand Master would be the one to go after the demon beasts and dispose of them. Anyone else who wants to volunteer is free to do so."

'How did things come to this? All I wanted to do was to enjoy life a little bit more.'

Keith had thought that all he would have to do was sit back and enjoy what was happening. He did not have to fear any kind of danger heading his way since he had minions.

But once again, the world had proven Keith wrong and he had managed to land himself at the first sight of danger.

As for what happened, it was a short story that started almost an hour ago.