The Backlog geyser exploded overhead, showering the arena with glowing task-orbs in every size and color.
Each one was labeled with horrors such as:
"Fill in tax form ????"
"Reply ALL by accident"
"Clean room (Lvl 99)"
"Apologize for message sent 3 months ago"
Raon dodged a spiraling "Clean room (Lvl 99)" orb and screamed,
"SHION I CAN'T BEAT THIS ONE IT'S TOO REAL!"
Shion slid beside her, tablet glowing dangerously.
"Don't touch that one! It never dies—if you kill it, it respawns stronger!"
Raon shrieked, "AAAAAH I KNEW IT!!"
Delaylord laughed, the cracked monitor flickering with evil glee.
"F E A S T U P O N T H E M, M Y S W E E T B A C K L O G C H I L D R E N."
Raon gagged.
"Why did you make that sentence so disgusting?"
Shion deadpanned.
"Because he's procrastinated his way into moral decay."
The arena trembled.
The Backlog's shadow grew darker… deeper… heavier.
Shion's eyes widened.
"Oh no. Raon. He's doing it."
Raon glanced. "Doing what?"
Shion pointed at Delaylord's chest, where a glowing button emerged.
A horrifying, gigantic, cosmic-sized…
SNOOZE BUTTON.
Raon gasped. "NO. NO. NO. SHION. TELL ME HE DID NOT."
Shion whispered like a terrified priest:
"He did. He just unlocked Final Form…"
Delaylord slammed the Snooze Button.
A tidal wave of lazy, warm, sleep-inducing energy cascaded outwards.
The world blurred.
The arena lights dimmed.
Ambient lo-fi hip hop began playing from the heavens.
Raon fell to her knees.
"My… brain… is… getting… comfy…"
Shion staggered.
"M-Me too… This is bad… This is really—"
Then the wave hit full force.
Both collapsed.
SNOOZE MODE ACTIVATED:
All enemies' reaction speeds reduced by 80%
All motivation is temporarily stupid.
Raon slurred,
"Shionnn… why is my soul… wrapped in blanket…"
Shion groaned,
"Because his aura… is literally bed… on a Monday morning…"
Delaylord's voice echoed sleepily:
"R E S T… J U S T A F E W M O R E M I N U T E S…"
Shion forced her eyes open.
Her tablet vibrated violently.
WARNING: SNOOZE MODE WILL KILL PRODUCTIVITY IN 23 SECONDS.
Raon mumbled, "Shion… if I die… tell Echo-chan… she's a good speaker…"
"We're not dying!!" Shion snarled.
"Raon… WAKE. UP."
Raon: "I can't… my eyelids are… punching me back…"
Shion slapped her.
Raon shot upright like a launched rocket.
"AHHHHH OKAY I'M AWAKE WHAT'S HAPPENING"
Shion panted.
"We have less than thirty seconds before Snooze Mode destroys our will to live forever!"
Raon stood.
Then collapsed.
Then stood again.
Then accidentally stepped on a "Reply ALL" orb, which exploded into a chain of awkward social consequences.
Delaylord clapped slowly—painfully slowly, like a sloth on vacation.
"N A P T I M E… L A S T S… F O R E V E R…"
Raon screamed,
"No it DOESN'T! I REFUSE! SHION WHAT'S THE WEAKNESS OF SNOOZE MODE?"
Shion froze mid-scan.
Then, eyes widening, she shouted:
"THE WEAKNESS OF SNOOZE MODE IS —
DOING SOMETHING PRODUCTIVE!"
Raon recoiled.
"EWWW WHAT??"
Shion grabbed her shoulders.
"It's the ONLY WAY!"
Raon gagged like she was being asked to eat steamed broccoli.
"F-Fine… tell me what to do…"
Shion pointed at a floating, glowing orb labeled:
"Clean 1 (basic)."
Raon's soul left her body.
Shion screamed,
"IT'S JUST BASIC CLEANING! YOU CAN DO THIS!"
Raon's hands trembled.
The Backlog orbs swarmed closer.
Delaylord pressed the Snooze Button again—
Lofi music intensified, emotional beats hitting harder.
Raon inhaled sharply.
And then…
She reached out…
…and tapped the Clean 1 (basic) orb.
The orb dissolved.
A peaceful chime rang out.
Shion gasped.
"She did it…"
Delaylord recoiled, screen glitching violently.
"N O O O O O O!!
P R O D U C T I V E B E H A V I O R!
M Y O N L Y W E A K N E S S!"
Motivation surged through the arena.
Raon blinked, suddenly energized.
"Shion. I feel different."
"Describe 'different.'"
"…Like I want… to vacuum?"
Shion gasped.
"RAON WEAPONIZED PRODUCTIVITY—THIS IS HIS COUNTER!"
Delaylord screeched,
"S T O P I M M E D I A T E L Y."
Raon marched forward, cracking her knuckles.
"Sorry Delay Daddy—
I think it's time you wake up."
Shion yelled,
"RAON DON'T CALL HIM THAT—"
Raon blurred forward, legs glowing white-hot.
SUPER PRODUCTIVE KICK
(LV. 1: FIRST STEP)
BOOOOOOOOOOOM.
Delaylord flew backward, smashing into a wall of procrastinated tasks.
Shion read her tablet and gasped.
"Raon… you just knocked motivation into him so hard he's updating."
Delaylord's screen flickered.
His error messages scrambled.
Then—
UPDATE 0% → 1% → 15% → 40%
Raon shouted, "Shion, what's happening?!"
"He's being forced to improve himself!"
Delaylord screamed in agony:
"S T O P
I D O N ' T
W A N T
T O G E T
B E T T E R—"
UPDATE 62% → 79% → 94%
Raon lifted her leg.
"Sorry dude —
this is the part where you turn your life around."
SUPER PRODUCTIVE KICK
(LV. MAX: CLEAN YOUR DAMN ROOM)
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM.
Delaylord exploded in a burst of golden dust and achievement notifications.
The Backlog dissolved.
The Snooze aura shattered.
Silence filled the arena.
Then Shion whispered,
"…Raon?"
Raon turned to her, heroic.
"Yes?"
Shion pointed behind her.
Raon looked.
The explosion had revealed:
A final staircase.
Leading to the Core of the Data Abyss.
Raon whispered,
"Shion… is that…"
Shion nodded.
"It's the deepest chamber. The origin. The source of all corrupted data."
Raon clenched her fist.
"Then let's finish this."
Shion took a steady breath.
Raon smiled.
Then tripped on a small glowing orb labeled "Pay Water Bill."
Shion sighed.
"We'll kick that after."
---
END OF CHAPTER 110