Chapter 1
No one has ever cleared Wish.
The Boss twists every wish into death.
I should have died first.
Instead, I kissed him.
After that, everyone who hurt me died. The other players called me the Boss's secret wife—and pointed a gun at my head.
To survive, I must uncover his past and make one final wish.
Get it wrong, and I'll be erased.
Get it right, and I may bring the monster back to life.
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[Welcome to the SSS-level dungeon: “Wish.”]
[Please choose your cause of death.]
I had barely arrived in the horror game and joined the other players when a strange man appeared in front of us.
Thick black mist coiled around his head, hiding his face. Something about him felt wrong.
“Shit!” the guy with dyed yellow hair shouted. “What kind of sick prank is this? You think a few cheap effects will scare me? Nice try!”
He’d been cursing since the game started. The veteran players had tried to explain, but he was convinced we were all in on a scam.
He marched up to the stranger and shoved him.
“I’m warning you! Let me out of here, or I’ll—what the hell?”
His hand went straight through the man’s body.
He stumbled back and stared at his hand. It dissolved into red mist.
“Wh-what’s happening? Help me! Someone help me!”
He fell and crawled toward us. Before anyone could move, his body burst apart, splattering blood and flesh across the ground.
The system’s cold, mechanical voice rang out.
[Death count: 1]
[Current survivors: 7]
[Keep up the good work, players!]
The stranger hadn’t moved. He repeated his greeting in the same flat voice.
“Welcome to the SSS-level dungeon: ‘Wish.’ Please choose your cause of death.”
Glowing messages scrolled through the air like a livestream chat.
[Damn. These players are unlucky. “Wish” has a zero percent clear rate. Hardest dungeon on record.]
[The Boss grants every player’s wish—in the most horrifying way possible.]
[You meet the final Boss as soon as you enter. He makes you wish for a way to die, then “mercifully” grants it.]
[There’s only one correct wish. Find it or die.]
[Even top-tier players have failed. How long do you think this bunch will last?]
No one moved. We stood there with the yellow-haired guy’s blood at our feet.
At last, the Boss lost patience.
“Since none of you have a wish, I’ll choose for you.”
A massive scythe emerged from the black mist behind him.
“Wait!” a middle-aged man shouted. “I—I have one! I know how I want to die!”
We all turned toward him.
He swallowed. “I choose to die peacefully of old age. No sickness, no pain.”
Someone gave him a thumbs-up. “Smart move, man.”
The Boss lowered his scythe.
“As you wish.”
The man let out a breath and smiled. The others hurried to follow his lead.
“Same for me! I want to die peacefully of old age too!”
“As you wish.”
Soon they were laughing and talking again.
“Good thing Martin thought of that. What a lifesaver.”
“Yeah, the Boss can’t touch us now. We’ve practically won!”
