Sarah's humming woke me—a gentle melody drifting through the village elder's house like morning sunlight. For a moment, I could almost pretend everything was normal. Then my vision flickered, reality peeling away at the edges, and I remembered what I'd become.

  The Corrupted abilities I'd embraced after our battle with the titan had changed more than just my code. Every surface held new meaning now, every shadow contained hidden data. The simple wooden walls of the elder's house blazed with spawn points and quest markers, while item properties glowed like cosmic radiation through closed cupboard doors.

  She sat by the window, absently tapping her fingers against her starter armor. The scratches from yesterday's battle remained—a badge of survival that told a story of courage under impossible odds. Through my new sight, I could see her player data: health bars, experience points, and dozens of status parameters floating in transparent windows around her avatar. The sheer complexity made my temples throb.

  I quickly looked away, focusing on the simple wooden beams overhead.

  "That's a nice song," I managed, my voice rough from sleep.

  Sarah started, then gave me a curious look. "It's just something my roommate plays constantly, it’s been stuck in my head all day." She looked thoughtful for a moment. "I don't usually share random stuff like this with NPCs, but after yesterday's battle..." She trailed off with a small smile.

  "I'm picking up completely new code signatures!" Dev's enthusiasm carried from the next room. "Nothing in my research archives matches these interaction patterns!"

  "Dev," Marcus called up from downstairs, "maybe save the analysis for after breakfast?"

  Through the window, I could see players working to repair the damage from yesterday's battle. The defensive walls we'd built still stood, though many showed signs of corruption exposure—patches of wood and stone that seemed to shift when viewed directly. Even the cobblestones I'd manipulated retained a faint purple sheen. The village NPCs had resumed their normal routines around the destruction, their pathing algorithms trying to compensate for the changed landscape.

  I tried to sit up, but the world swam. Not just dizziness—reality itself seemed uncertain, shifting between what was and what could be. Quest markers pulsed faintly in the corners. Item spawn points glowed like dying embers in cupboards. Each new layer of perception threatened to overwhelm me.

  "Here." Sarah offered a standard healing potion, its properties reassuringly stable compared to yesterday's corrupted variants. "You look like you need this."

  I accepted gratefully. Even with my new vision, some things were clearer than any data overlay—like having people who actually cared what happened to a bugged NPC. "Thanks. For everything."

  "That's what friends are for." She said it casually, but the words hit me like a jolt of static. Friends. Not players and NPCs. Not users and programs. Friends.

  Warning: Corruption integration accelerating—monitoring required

  Warning: Entity "KAEL" exhibiting unclassified evolution patterns

  Warning: System unable to predict long-term stability

  Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

  Recommendation: Continue observation—adjust containment protocols as needed

  The warning flickered and faded, weaker than before. As if the system itself was uncertain how to handle these connections that defied its rules.

  Marcus appeared in the doorway, his veteran gear replaced with simple traveling clothes. He moved with the easy confidence of someone used to leading raids, but there was something else in his bearing—the patience of a teacher who'd spent years helping others find their way.

  "You collapsed after that battle with the titan," Marcus noted, his raid leader's instincts showing through. "Good thing the elder's house was nearby."

  "There's more to it than just exhaustion," I said, watching purple light flicker across my hand. "After the battle, I got a system notification. An option to embrace the corruption, evolve beyond standard NPC limits. I took it."

  "That explains the new visual artifacts in your code structure," Dev said, his scanner whirring. "The corruption signatures are completely different from yesterday's readings."

  Sarah leaned forward. "The system actually offered you an upgrade?"

  "More like it acknowledged what was already happening," I replied, remembering how natural the choice had felt in that moment. "The corruption was changing me anyway. This just made it official."

  "And more dangerous," Sarah added softly. She'd stopped humming, her expression distant. "I started college thinking everything would make sense once I got there. You know? Like leveling up in real life. But sometimes the world's just..." She gestured at the window, where players gathered in the square below. "Sometimes it feels more real in here. Like we can actually make a difference."

  "Tell me about it." Marcus stretched, joints popping. "Try keeping thirty teenagers engaged in algebra when they'd rather be anywhere else. At least here, when something tries to eat you, it's honest about it."

  I laughed, then stopped as my vision fluttered. For a second, my vision glitched and showed me their raw data: player IDs, connection status, and input streams all overlapping with their avatars. It was like seeing the game's backend and frontend simultaneously.

  "You okay?" Sarah asked. "You went all... strange there. Like you were looking through us instead of at us."

  "The vision's still settling," I explained, grateful when reality solidified again. "It's like... imagine suddenly being able to see radio waves and infrared and ultraviolet all at once. Everything's more, but your brain doesn't know how to process it yet."

  Dev nodded enthusiastically. "Like when you first start raiding! All those mechanics to track, but eventually it becomes second nature. You just have to—" He caught himself, flushing slightly. "Sorry. I get excited about learning new things. My code testing job doesn't usually involve, you know, actual magic."

  "It's not magic," I started to say, but the words caught in my throat as my sight shifted again. Beyond the village walls, something stirred. Through my new sight, I could see system protocols activating across the zone—the same patterns we'd noticed just before the titan appeared. But these were colder, more precise.

  "They're coming," I whispered, the certainty settling like ice in my circuits. "The enforcers. Not just one this time. They're evolving too."

  Marcus stood, his teacher's calm replaced by a raid leader's focus. "Then we prep. Sarah, you connect well with the newer players—start organizing training groups. Dev, see what you can learn about the corruption's patterns without breaking more scanners. I'll reach out to my old raid team."

  "And me?" I asked, trying to ignore how the room's edges kept trying to unravel.

  "You," Marcus pointed firmly at the bed, "are going to rest. Learn to handle that new sight of yours. Because when they come..." His expression softened, a flicker of trust in his eyes. "We're going to need all of you. Not just your powers. You."

  "He's right," Sarah added. "You're not just some broken NPC anymore. You're our friend."

  "The statistical probability of an NPC developing genuine consciousness and emotional connections is..." Dev trailed off at their looks, then smiled. "Actually, you know what? Some things are better without numbers."

  The room blurred again, my new sight revealing the threads that bound us together. They weren't just data streams anymore. They were stories and trust and shared battles. They were friendship, defying the system's cold equations.

  And no amount of corrupt vision could fully capture that beauty.

  To be continued…

  —

  Thanks for reading Chapter 6 of The Broken NPC!

  What do you think about Kael's evolution? How will his new abilities affect the coming battle with the enforcers? Let me know your theories in the comments!

  Next Chapter: As Eldermark prepares for the enforcers' arrival, Kael must master his unstable new vision before it masters him. But with his own code evolving beyond control, time may be running out...

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