[ O5 Council ]
Andrew named his company that. Of course, he knows the origin of the name; it's a tribute to the highest-ranking authority in the Foundation universe: the O5 Council. Mysterious, commanding, and revered. It was the name Andrew had settled on the moment he decided to start his venture. Now, that idea is finally taking shape, even if just in its earliest form.
At the moment, his company is little more than an empty shell, no office, no staff. Just him, the sole founder. His [O5 Council ] might not look impressive right now, but that's fine. Andrew already has a long-term plan in mind. His virtual universe project has only just begun, but he's confident it will grow, evolve, and one day reach its full potential.
"Let's go. I need to clear this stage early," He muttered while staring at the screen, lifting a glass of water to his lips. Steam curled upward, and in that quiet moment, the vision of a vast virtual empire started to take form in his mind.
In a small apartment elsewhere in the city, two young women sat before a computer, reviewing the message they had carefully composed. They were known online as "The Sonozaki Twins", Sara, the elder, and Rachelle, the younger.
The message was addressed to a "supervisor", the leader of a popular project team. The sisters hoped to join the supervisor's production crew. Their message inquired about available interview times, qualifications, and other relevant requirements.
Ever since receiving a response from the supervisor, the sisters had been ecstatic, almost giddy with anticipation. They ran excitedly around the room, like two delighted sprites. After long and meticulous editing, they were finally ready to send the message. Every word had been reviewed repeatedly to avoid any error that might damage their chances.
"I wonder if we'll get an interview…" Sara asked, a note of worry in her voice.
"Don't stress, sis!" Rachelle smiled. "If they replied, it means they're interested. We might not be guaranteed a spot, but we'll at least get a shot!"
Sara relaxed a little and nodded. "Alright. I'm sending it."
She clicked send. To make sure the message wouldn't get buried, they sent it multiple times using different accounts. After all, the supervisor must receive hundreds of messages daily.
Just as they finished, her phone buzzed with an unknown number.
Rachelle's eyes widened. "Don't tell me…?"
Sara frowned and answered the call cautiously.
"Hello, is this Ms. Sara?" a woman's voice asked.
"Yes. Who's calling?"
"Ah, hello! I'm calling on behalf of *** Studio," The woman said warmly. She quickly got to the point: her team was offering a generous payment in exchange for her guide with confidentiality guaranteed.
Sara let her finish before replying softly but firmly: "I'm sorry. I can't sell my strategies. That wouldn't be fair to the other players."
She ended the call.
Beside her, Rachelle sighed. "Sis, maybe we should change our number..."
Sara gave a tired smile. "It wouldn't help. Big companies always have their ways."
Rachelle slumped. "Ugh… I guess this won't stop until all 20 player slots are taken."
"Probably," Sara agreed.
They had learned from the supervisor's Twitch stream that the first player had already cleared the level. It was exciting and stressful.
After the Sisters' strategy post went viral, everyone started paying attention. Regular players. Organized teams. Even corporations. The sisters had hinted at the method for beating the game, and combined with the supervisor's announcement, it was easy for people to figure out that the sisters were ahead of the curve.
Their phones buzzed nonstop. Private messages piled up. Followers exploded in number. Many wanted to buy the full strategy, some offering impressive prices. But the sisters had a reason to say no; they wanted to keep the game fair, especially since they were hoping to join the production team. Selling the solution would compromise the experience for other players. Even big corporations had called multiple times using different numbers, each offering higher than the last. But the sisters stayed firm. Now, all they could do was wait and hope that the remaining top 20 players would clear the level soon.
In the meantime, they stopped updating their strategy post. It was the only way to protect the fairness of the challenge. Publishing more would just give some players an unfair boost, leaving others behind simply because they hadn't seen the post in time.
So the sisters chose silence and waited.