Trapped in a Rival's Illusion

I Accidentally Became the Guild's Therapist

Chapter 12: Trapped in a Rival's Illusion

Livia Marcelline Quinn, Mental Supporter Lv. 4 and reluctant server celebrity, was spiraling into a crisis of her own making. Her Therapist's Log was a chaotic tapestry of the Bloodbath & Beyond guild's dysfunction: Bron: Plushie obsession, dread of irrelevance. Nyx: Dark phobia, unspoken crush. Phina: Slime romance, craving connection. Alaric: Gambling to escape. Miles: Trust issues, betrayal scars. After thwarting Eclipse Covenant's kidnapping attempt at the Celestial Spire, she'd been sucked through a rogue portal into the Void Crucible, a glitching MMORPG prison realm where obsidian spires jutted like broken teeth, chains of violet light slithered across the air, and NPCs whispered, "Error: Escape Vector Null." A holographic system warden—a faceless wraith cloaked in static—floated above, droning, "Containment Protocol: Active. Subject: Empath Eternal." Livia stood in a shimmering illusion cage, clutching her notepad, muttering, "I'm not a raid boss, so why am I locked in the server's creepiest dungeon?" The Void Crucible was a claustrophobic nightmare—walls pulsed with dark mana, player prisoners rattled glowing bars in distant cells, and a leaderboard flickered, crowning Eclipse Covenant as the server's second-ranked guild, taunting Bloodbath & Beyond's lead. A vendor bot with a shattered visor and a glitched voice box skittered past, hawking "Freedom Charms: 90% Failure Rate! Buy Now!" while its arm sparked erratically. Spectral guards patrolled, their dialogue looping: "Containment Breach Risk: 87%." Livia's introverted soul screamed for a server crash, but her HUD buzzed with notifications, and her guild was nowhere to be found. I'm their shrink, meme queen, and now a prisoner, she thought, her dry humor a lifeline. Flunked psych, memed across dimensions, and stuck as a trophy for power-hungry weirdos.

A notification pinged: [Achievement Unlocked: Caged Empath. +15 Resilience Points (Desperate)] "Resilience? I'm one glitch from a full-on meltdown," Livia muttered, scribbling Issue: Kidnapped by rival guild. Approach: Don't lose it. Her progress bar read Mental Supporter Lv. 4: 3100/4000 EXP. She'd earned EXP dodging Eclipse Covenant's trap, unlocking Instinct +5 to sniff out hidden motives. Her Empath Surge, Therapist's Insight Lv. 1, and Mental Defense +10 kept her afloat, but her viral fame—subreddits, ASMR videos, cursed Livia plushies—had painted a target on her back. The server's forums buzzed with Eclipse Covenant's boasts: "We'll claim the Empath Eternal for our guild!" The illusion cage pulsed, its walls projecting distorted echoes of her own voice—clips from her subreddit's ASMR videos, whispering, "Breathe in for four…" Livia's face burned, her sarcasm flaring. "Great. Even the prison's a fan." She scribbled: Issue: Creepy cage plays my memes. Approach: Stay sane. Before she could process, the cage's light twisted, and Varkus the Soulreaver, Eclipse Covenant's guild boss, materialized. A towering figure in spiked, void-black armor, his eyes glowed like dying stars, and his voice rumbled like a server crash. "Livia, Empath Eternal," he sneered, "your therapy skills are ours now. Fix my mind, or rot in this cage forever."

Her Therapist's Insight pinged: Patient: Varkus. Issue: Sadistic Control, Rooted in Deep Insecurity. Severity: Extreme. Livia's stomach churned. This guy's a walking red flag. "Therapy in a torture dungeon?" she said, sarcasm sharp. "What's next, group hugs with a raid boss?" Varkus's eyes narrowed, the cage tightening, projecting visions of despair—crumbling guilds, betrayed allies, screams of abandoned players. Her Mental Defense +10 dulled the fear, but her pulse raced.

A notification flashed: [Achievement Unlocked: Therapist Under Duress. +10 Defiance Points (Risky)] "Fix me," Varkus growled, leaning closer, his armor radiating cold. "Make me unbreakable. My guild demands a leader without weakness." Her Instinct +5 screamed trap, but Livia saw a flicker in his psyche—fear beneath the malice. He's not just cruel. He's broken. She activated Therapist's Insight, diving into his mind: flashes of a younger Varkus, mocked by peers, abandoned by his first guild, clawing for control to bury his pain. Her own past—failure, invisibility—echoed faintly, and she swallowed hard.

"Okay, Varkus," she said, steadying her voice with Charisma +1. "Why do you need to be unbreakable? What's got you so scared of falling apart?" Her Empath Surge amplified the question, and Varkus flinched, his armor clanking. "Insolent NPC!" he roared, but his voice cracked. Her Therapist's Insight caught it: Patient Vulnerability: Exposed. She pressed, her sarcasm a scalpel. "You're not ruling a guild—you're running from something. Scared of being left again, huh?" The cage wavered, Varkus's eyes widening. "Silence!" he bellowed, but the illusion flickered, showing more: Varkus as a low-level player, betrayed in a raid, his guild disbanding, leaving him alone. Livia's HUD glitched, a new skill activating: Reverse Psychology Lv. 1: Turns patient's emotions against them to provoke breakthroughs. She leaned forward, voice sharp. "You're not unbreakable, Varkus. You're terrified of being nothing. Ever try facing that instead of chaining people up?" Varkus staggered, clutching his head as the cage projected his nightmares: a guildhall in flames, allies turning away, his name erased from leaderboards. "No… you can't see that!" he gasped, his voice raw. Livia pushed harder, her Reverse Psychology unraveling him. "You chain others because you're chained to your past. Let it go, or it'll eat you alive." The cage shattered, its fragments dissolving into sparks. Varkus collapsed to his knees, armor dimming, muttering, "What… you saw all my nightmares?!" Livia's Therapist's Insight plunged too deep, flooding her with his pain—betrayal, loneliness, rage. Her own failures—flunking psych, feeling worthless—surged, and tears streamed down her face. He's a monster, but he's me. She scribbled, hand shaking: Patient: Varkus. Issue: Sadistic insecurity, betrayal trauma. Approach: Broke him with truth. Cost: Too much. Her Mental Defense +10 couldn't shield her from the emotional backlash, and her vision blurred with tears.

A notification pinged: [You turned the tables on a sadistic boss. +1200 EXP. Skill Unlocked: Reverse Psychology Lv. 1] Her progress bar surged: Level Up! Mental Supporter Lv. 5: 300/5000 EXP. Her HUD chimed: Reverse Psychology Lv. 1: Provokes emotional breakthroughs by reflecting patient's fears. Cost: 25% mental stamina. Her robe glowed brighter, violet runes pulsing faintly.

The Void Crucible trembled, NPCs whispering, "Error: Containment Breached. Subject Unbound." Eclipse Covenant players materialized, shouting, "Secure the Empath!" Their blades gleamed, and Livia's Instinct +5 pinged: Threat: Imminent. Her guild was still missing, and Varkus, broken on the floor, was no help. She wiped her tears, muttering, "I'm a therapist, not a psychic martyr." The air grew heavy, chains reforming, and her heart pounded. She'd shattered Varkus, but at what price?

A final notification flashed: [You gazed into a monster's soul. Achievement Unlocked: Nightmare Mirror] Livia clutched her notepad, whispering, "I'm either a genius or doomed." As Eclipse Covenant closed in and Varkus's haunted eyes locked on hers, she knew she'd crossed a dangerous line—and there was no turning back.