My Best Friend, the Final Boss Chapter 1

I was transported into a horror game with my best friend.

She became the final BOSS, and I became a player.

When my teammates shoved me forward as a human shield, I threw myself into the BOSS’s arms and whined.

“Babe, they’re all bullying me.”

The BOSS’s pale fingers paused at my neck for a fraction of a second before lashing out, striking my teammates with brutal force.

With him on my side, I was unstoppable, raking in points like it was nothing.

Then one day, the game glitched, and two instances merged.

The BOSS from the other instance saw me and let out a triumphant shriek, tackling me in a hug. “My darling bestie, I finally found you!”

Wait.

If she’s my best friend... then who is the BOSS holding me right now?

* * *

[Welcome to the instance: The Lost Woods.]

[Instance Difficulty: SSS-Rank]

[Objective: Survive for one month.]

[Commencing rules announcement:]

[Rule 1: Do not act alone at night.]

[Rule 2...]

It took until the second rule for the reality to sink in: I was in a horror game. As the cold, mechanical voice droned on, a live-stream chat feed exploded in my vision.

[WTF, a whole month? No wonder this is the hardest instance. Most are just a week.]

[Well, this is the instance the elite squad chose. It’s gotta be different.]

Reading that made my eye twitch.

Forcing myself to stay calm, I scanned the five people around me, drawing on years of playing horror games. A good team was half the battle.

There were three men—one average-looking, one with glasses, and one heavy-set guy—and two women, one with fiery red hair and another with a dark, brooding look in her eyes. None of them showed a hint of panic.

The red-haired woman’s gaze met mine, and she shot me a look of pure venom. My heart sank. She didn’t seem very approachable.

I ignored it for now and focused back on the chat, trying to glean any useful information.

[I remember this instance has a hidden rule... something about sacrificing one person to the BOSS every three days...]

[Hey, is that a noob?]

[Poor girl. First time in and she lands in a hell-tier instance.]

[And she’s with Carter’s squad... yikes. She won’t last three days.]

Before I could process that, the average-looking man, Carter, walked over to me and extended his hand.

"Hey, newbie. I'm Carter, this squad's leader. We'll need your full cooperation if you want to survive."

I reached out to shake his hand, but he pulled his back at the last second, leaving me hanging awkwardly.

The red-haired woman let out a derisive snort. "He was just being polite. Don't get ahead of yourself."

I pressed my lips together. Fine. If that’s how they wanted to play it, I wouldn’t be telling them that my best friend was the BOSS of this instance.

The man with the glasses, Dexter, tried to smooth things over, but his eyes, magnified behind his lenses, were fixed on me with a cold, reptilian focus that made my skin crawl.

The sky was darkening, and the woods around us began to rustle, as if something was waking up. I remembered the first rule. As much as they creeped me out, I couldn't risk being alone.