**Chapter 4: The World Fights Back**
The moment the connection snapped, I felt sick.
Not physically—I don't have a body—but spiritually. Like a piece of my code was missing.
**[Connection Lost. Plot Points Stabilized: 0]**
**[Warning: Narrative Deviation at 15%. Correction Protocols Initiated.]**
"Correction?" I thought. "What does that mean?"
Arthur was already mounting his horse. "That villain escaped! We need to hunt him down!"
"No!" I screamed internally. "You idiot, he just told you the truth!"
But Arthur couldn't hear me. To him, this was just another quest.
I hovered above him, panic rising. If Arthur chased Lucien (the Villain) now, the story would accelerate. Chapter 50 would come too soon. And if Lucien died… the world resets. Everyone dies. Everyone forgets. Except maybe me.
I needed Plot Points. Fast.
**[Current PP: 0]**
**[Earn PP by ensuring Protagonist survives critical moments.]**
"Critical moments…" I looked around. The Slums were quiet. Too quiet.
Usually, this part of the story would have a random encounter. A thief, a monster, something to give Arthur XP.
But there was nothing.
The world was… empty.
Then I saw it.
A shadow detached itself from a wall. Not a normal shadow. It was jagged, glitching like a broken video file.
**[Entity Detected: Narrative Correction Unit (Type: Assassin)]**
**[Objective: Eliminate Anomaly (You)]**
My core froze. *The story is trying to kill me?*
The shadow lunged. Not at Arthur. At *me*.
I couldn't dodge. I was bound to Arthur.
"Arthur! Duck!" I screamed. Nothing.
I had no PP to manipulate luck. I was helpless.
The shadow's blade passed through Arthur's neck… and hit an invisible wall.
*My wall.*
I was Plot Armor. My entire existence was protecting the Hero. Even if I wanted to die, my function wouldn't allow the Hero to be harmed by something outside the script.
**[Attack Blocked. Plot Points Generated: +50]**
**[Critical Save Detected. Bonus PP: +50]**
**[Total PP: 100]**
The shadow screeched—a sound like tearing paper—and dissolved into ink.
Arthur rubbed his neck. "Weird draft. Anyway, onward!"
I stared at my hands (if I had them). 100 PP.
I was rich.
But the System message lingered: *[Narrative Correction Unit]*.
The world wasn't just a story. It was a machine. And I was a virus.
I looked at the golden thread leading to Lucien. It was flickering.
*"Before Chapter 50,"* he had said.
I checked my system panel.
**[Current Chapter: 4]**
**[Estimated Time to Chapter 50: 30 Days (Real Time)]**
I had a month to save the villain, break the loop, and stop the world from deleting us all.
And I just made the System angry.
"Arthur," I whispered, my voice finally carrying a tiny bit of weight.
He paused. "Did someone say my name?"
He looked around, confused.
I couldn't speak fully yet. But I could nudge.
I spent 10 PP.
**[Spend 10 PP to Influence Thought?]**
**[Yes]**
Arthur shook his head. "Actually… maybe we should rest. Train a bit. Chase the villain later."
He turned the horse around.
I floated behind him, watching the shadows.
More Correction Units were coming. I could feel them.
Lucien was right. I was the only variable.
But variables get deleted.
**[New Ability Unlocked: Glitch Vision]**
**[Cost: 5 PP per use]**
**[Effect: See hidden scripts and previous loops]**
I activated it immediately.
The world shifted. Colors inverted.
And everywhere I looked, I saw ghosts.
Hundreds of Arthurs. Hundreds of Luciens.
All dead
.
All reset.
I wasn't the first Plot Armor.
I was just the first one who remembered.
---