Chapter Sixty-eight: Revolution
I was gonna push this chapter till tomorrow, but Morgan himself came to visit me.
He told me, go plus ultra, while doing that one Eminem pose.
Eminem toss.jpg.
Background (sub-important) pov
My name is Nonoya Kiruki.
A mere worker of a small R&D institute which has yet to be branded.
Why haven't they been branded, you ask?
Beats me.
However, they work alongside many really big company is why I've stayed.
Our director's name is Elaine Mcfaren.
A really elusive person.
However, I was called by such a person yesterday to her office.
"Nonoya Kiruki, huh? A weird name, but I'm not exactly interested in that."
The director began with sharp words like arrows, hurling straight to my heart.
I staggered, almost slipping.
But I kept my professionalism up.
After all, this job was one I couldn't afford to lose.
For such a small company, it reeled in quite a lot, but I've heard rumors.
Still, I'm not the type to concern myself with those.
"Well then, I guess I can trust you."
Flipping the papers in her hand, she scrutinised it for a moment.
Next, she placed them neatly on her desk, smiling faintly as she did.
Wait, aren't those my papers…
Did I just get investigated? Nai wa~
I felt my face freeze as a cold sensation crept up my spine, yet I forced myself to keep a poker face, hoping she wouldn't notice.
"Mm. Well, if that's what you want, but anyways—"
She began to tap her table with her finger.
"A few days ago, we spoke with an elusive individual in hopes of working with him."
Elusive?
For someone like the director here to call such a person elusive, who could they be?
Naturally, my imagination ran wild, picturing some handsome CEO or a genius researcher.
Given the line of work, it must be so.
Tall, handsome, rich—
"However, he contacted our Manager today. And guess what he said?"
I tilted my head slightly to the side.
How would I know?
I'd never even met them, but regardless of my thoughts, I shook my head.
"They want to absorb our small team into a bigger one."
Mm?
I blinked once, then twice, then thrice, and then my whole body trembled.
So, I wasn't wrong about them being a rich CEO. However—
"But the thing is, he wants us to buy the patent for his research materials."
Director Elaine smiled.
But once more, I lost it.
Immediately, without thinking, I slammed my hands down onto the table.
Thud!
I felt a sting behind my palms but I ignored the pain.
"Huh? First off he wants to absorb our R&D and next he wants us to pay?"
That's crazy!
I screamed the last part at the top of my lungs as I watched the Director's expression slowly change.
Her expression shifted from stoic to slightly amused, one eyebrow lifting just a fraction.
"..mphm. If it were any normal person that is, I would have outright ignored them."
She then placed her elbow against the arm of her chair, propping her head lazily onto her hand.
Finally, she elegantly crossed those supple legs of hers—oh no! What am I doing!
I hurriedly wiped the drool that threatened to spill, straightening my posture and forcing my focus back.
"By that, what do you mean…?"
"Heh, money is the least of our worries, we don't even value such a thing."
I stared at her for a moment.
Then, slowly, I nodded.
While indeed, money was needed to run the facilities and to get major upgrades, that has never really been anyone's concern here.
If I were to put it simply, people here are more of a mad scientist type of people.
After all, I've seen a couple of them lock themselves up in their lab for weeks.
Scary people, I tell you.
But I noticed something lately. I brought my hands up to my chin, fingers pressing lightly as I closed my eyes in thought.
It was when I was passing by team dive researchers. And if I wasn't wrong—
They were discussing a project, something about simulation or something along those lines.
"Wait.. —that!"
My eyes snapped open.
"Exactly, that is what it is."
The director nodded her head slowly, clearly satisfied with the conclusion I had come to.
Was this all a test?
…Scary.
"If I may, why am I here then?"
Director Elaine smiled.
"Simple, you are to acquire a few things that would be essential."
She spoke lightly, as if assigning a casual task.
"Our dear guest will be returning to Japan tomorrow, so we need to impress him, no?"
For the director to talk about this person like this with so much interest—
I felt my curiosity spike.
Yes, I was beginning to look forward to meeting them, but oh the misery.
From one place to another, and then another!
That wicked woman! I take all my fantasies about her back, dammit.
So she was only scouting me as a potential errand girl!?
Grrr!
I feel like I can become a dinosaur at any given moment.
And hell, if it wasn't because the pay is good, I wouldn't be doing this.
But, finally, I got to meet this person the director spoke so well about.
It was evening.
According to the schedule the Manager gave me, they should be arriving by this time.
They had arranged their flight to be taking early morning.
So, close to the hour they'd be returning, I had gotten there.
And now, I was waiting at the airport.
"Seems like their arrival is the only one scheduled by this time."
I muttered to myself softly.
The lobby was mostly empty.
And looking at the dashboard.
'I'm right.'
Not seriously long after, the speaker for arrivals made an announcement.
At once, I straightened my back and professionally put on my best attitude.
In front was a platinum-blonde haired girl, not anything more than fifteen.
She walked with a lazy swagger, both hands clasped behind her head.
And this had this sort of punkish vibe to her.
"Ahhh, what a boring ride~"
"Uhm… Ash, you… slept throughout the journey."
Following her was a black-haired female with a cold-looking face.
H–how scary.
"Its the same Leo. This is why I hate trips."
"Ash, if you complain every time, you won't grow taller."
Next were two other females, one with long blonde hair tied in semi-braids.
She pushed a ginger-haired girl seated in a wheelchair.
"Wh—hey! I'm still growing, you know! I grew one centimeter this week!"
The girl named Ash snapped back at the two.
Yet, from their interactions, anyone could tell it was a friendly one.
Like they've known each other for long.
I was watching such a beautiful scene when.
Fourth was another cold-looking long black-haired woman, her crimson red eyes.
She immediately caught my attention.
My breath hitched.
Wait, I thought the CEO prospect was a male, was I wrong?
No, even the Director confirmed him to be a he.
Just as I thought that, rubbing my chin, the woman seemed to notice me, and then…
"She must be the one we're waiting for, Clair."
Clair?
I blinked, then he finally appeared, a male, in his… teenage years.. ordinary—
Crack!
Something inside me seemed to crack.
My illusions shattered, splintering apart with each passing second as he walked closer toward me.
"So, you're the one Elaine sent?"
I had been completely lost in my thoughts when all of a sudden, I heard his voice.
And, it snapped me back to reality.
But weirdly, as soon as I heard that—
My body froze.
I stiffened, snapping to attention without thinking with my arm shooting up in a salute.
"Yes sir! Everything has been done as per her instruction!"
The words flew out of my mouth faster than I could process.
For a moment there was silence.
And there were weird strange looks.
I want to die…, and just when I thought things wouldn't get bad.
Pftt—
I heard a small snicker. It came from the platinum-blonde haired girl they called Ash.
"Mm? What is it?"
The male turned toward her, but instead of annoyance, his expression was completely laid back.
With a casual tilt of her head, she answered—
"Pft—hahaha! Nah, I was just thinking pigs must be flying today."
She waved her hand shortly in front of her face.
At that, the red-eyed woman beside her too couldn't help but stifle a laugh as well.
"My dear sister, are you implying that pigs will fly before the day I'm respected?"
At his words, the other girls tilted their heads slightly, covering their mouths.
Their shoulders shook faintly.
"Heh! You said it yourself."
With a smug look and a slight raise of her lips, the girl, Ash replied without hesitation.
So those particular two are siblings.
Then, thanks for the save, little miss.
But, what about the others…
No, not quite.
The red-eyed woman looked to be of Japanese descent, and the rest are different.
But, the more important question is–
…why does such an ordinary-looking person like this have so many beautiful girls by his side?
Just as I thought that in sadness, I no longer heard their words.
I raised my head; they were all staring at me with tilted heads.
"Are you not going to lead us?"
My prospective boss suddenly said that.
"Ri–right! This way please …"
With an awkward smile stretched across my face,
—I quickly turned and led them toward the bus we'd hired for this.
My steps were a little too fast.
After making sure all their luggage had been loaded properly as well.
I immediately checked again, then again, ensuring nothing was amiss.
Only after that did I finally climb back into the bus.
Tiredly, I slid into my seat.
But just then, I remembered.
<...right, I remember, our prospective boss will be bringing some guest with him, entertain them well>
Just thinking of that woman setting me up like this, I sighed.
Balling my fist and then coughing into it, I stood up with a smile across my face.
"Welcome to Tengu City, everyone. As you can see, we have the most vibrant of surroundings, filled with—"
"Aaah, conductor miss, you don't have to do that, we get the general idea."
Eh?
I blinked.
The girl named Ash cut me off mid-sentence.
"How have ya been dealing with those abnormal recent Spacequakes?"
Like the punk she looked like, she was sitting exactly how a delinquent would.
One leg half in a zen-like sitting posture over the other.
Her elbow resting on her knee with her chin propped lazily against her hand.
"Ash…"
The beautiful blue-eyed, blonde-haired girl tried to cut in.
But after opening her mouth, she hesitated, and then kept her silence.
No, please help me here, y'know.
"Well, I had hoped that since those two were on the case, the damage would have been minimized. I guess I was wrong?"
Suddenly, I felt like I was beginning to hear something I really shouldn't be hearing.
"Brother, is there seriously anything you can't do?"
The girl asked her brother to which I also internally nodded.
"Don't worry, you'll meet those two soon too."
"No, that's not what I'm talking about. Seriously, just what have you been doing?"
I'm also curious about that.
But the male only lifted his chin, resting his hand against it, as if deep in contemplation.
"Almost died, almost ran mad, studied like crazy, met crazy people, and so on…"
That didn't say anything.
Not even a little.
Everyone present wore more or less the same expression at those words.
No, everyone except the blonde girl, who only gave a wry smile.
I seriously don't understand their dynamics.
And since I was no longer needed for whatever conversation this had turned into—
I quietly proceeded to sit at the extreme front of the bus, sulking.
..after sometime.
Back to normal pov.
As the bus rocked, the streets outside the window passed like a blur, leaving silence.
Once more, every one of them was subjected to more sitting.
The bus was now once more in silence when—
"Brother, now that I think of it, you said you were creating a game, right?"
"Well, not exactly a game, but a system that uses full virtual technology—"
Morgan paused, then sighed.
He remembered his sister only remembered selective things.
If they didn't interest her, she wouldn't listen.
She was willful like that.
"Yes. Games are involved."
"Oooh~"
Ashley's eyes lit up immediately.
"Then worry not, my brother. Be it this full drive system or this game, leave it to me!"
She confidently hit her chest with her fist, raising her nose high proudly.
Morgan only stared at her with a wry expression.
"You love games?"
"Of course. Who doesn't? And this is full dive VR we're talking about."
She leaned back onto the backrest, folding her arms in front of her chest with a nod.
Just a second ago, she had said full drive.
Immediately, Morgan came to the conclusion that she was messing with him on purpose.
"Well be the ones developing it, but the game on the other hand.. I was thinking..."
He trailed off slightly.
It was either they let an outside company develop it, or they hired developers to work for them directly.
While the second option sounded ideal.
It would take a whole lot of resources, and not to mention, another infuriating thing was.
The concept of open world games was backwater.
Like seriously.
Why are your technologies so overpowered, yet creating an open-world game is such a problem?
Naturally, game creation engines like Blender or Unreal Engine didn't exist.
He couldn't even use them if he tried. But..
Now that he now has the overpowered «Accelerated Cognitive Assimilation»—
Morgan could easily learn how to use it.
However,
«Master, it is possible to use Auguma to design the local cyberspace… or in other words, the Virtual Environment»
«…then, it can be exported, and other settings or programs can follow»
Huh?
Morgan's lips parted slightly, a wry smile forming as realization struck him.
'Aaaaa! Of course! Why need stupid engines when they already have the system!'
It was almost embarrassing how obvious it was in hindsight.
Rather than relying on stupid engines or pre-existing frameworks.
They could simply cheat by using the very system they were developing as the foundation.
[Avalon]'s processors could already allow for the simulation of Earth.
So why couldn't they simulate something less than Earth with limited resources?
'Ugh… I feel stupid now.'
But, unlike Morgan, someone wasn't interested in the technicalities of whatever he was cooking.
"So? What's the game about?"
Right, I wouldn't expect you to be interested in boring tech talks.
Morgan shook his head, turning to Ashley.
"Open world and dungeon crawling."
"...dungeons? And open world?"
"Yeah, you have to explore a whole floor, a massive space, then clear the dungeon of that floor, beat it to proceed to the next."
At that moment.
Even those who hadn't been particularly invested turned their attention fully to him.
It wasn't disbelief.
Rather, it was a silent request: 'go on, we're listening'.
Naturally, Morgan continued.
"There's a hundred floors."
Players are required to explore them and their dungeons and beat them to proceed.
Only after they've beaten the floor boss can they finally ascend to the next floor.
Naturally, the bosses are not the only thing to worry about.
There are also quests linking to the boss.
Certain NPCs' quests will reveal details about the boss's mechanics.
And there are also field bosses where defeating them will weaken the boss.
So many mechanics.
"There are even Server and Global raids where many players will challenge one single boss."
Just Morgan finished…
Ashley's eyes were already sparkling just from hearing the concept.
"Now you're speaking my language."
She immediately patted his shoulder from beside him.
For her.. she couldn't wait anymore.
Grrr!
She was already drooling while growling.
The platinum blonde would turn into a ferocious dinosaur any time soon.
Or somehow just run faster than light into the future to start playing already.
Seeing her overly excited expression, Morgan shrugged.
If he could, he would've already started.
But for now, his role was limited.
Right now, his only job was to generate the fields and the maps.
The rest would be handled by the developers.
"So, what's it gonna be called?"
Morgan tapped his chin.
"Mmm... was thinking of calling it Sword Art Online, but I guess that's plagiarism?"
Artemisia tilted her head slightly.
Then she pulled out her phone, already searching for the name.
If it existed, they'd just negotiate in peace or not, depending on the other party.
With a smile and approving nods from Cecile and Maya, as though they knew her thoughts.
…She tapped on her phone.
Actually, despite appearances, every single person here was rich.
Casually so.
Tens of millions of yen sitting in their accounts.
Naturally, it was earned simply by possessing money in higher-value currency.
Since each one here was military personnel, always fighting with their lives on the line..
It was rightfully earned.
But that aside.
Artemisia couldn't find a game with that name.
What she did find were things like Sword Online, or several other titles not worth mentioning.
"I can't find any matching game."
"Well, you won't understand."
Hearing that, Artemisia felt an inkling and quietly put her device away.
But then, she paused.
Thinking it over, she raised a finger.
"Then how about Dungeon Odyssey… or Sword Fantasy or something like that?"
For a moment, Morgan froze.
How did she...
"Sword Fantasy: Dungeon Odyssey, huh? Adding both together has a nice ring."
Cecile, beside her, chimed in with her own calm assessment.
Morgan glanced at the other girl with his mouth parting into an "o."
Genuinely, it sounded… right?
Is this how it feels to talk with smart and not mentally retarded people?
Tsubarashi!!!!
Morgan wanted to let his hair flow out while ascending to heaven like a certain religious figure meme.
Jesus subarashi meme
Note: Tonomachi stray again.
And when Morgan actually thought about it, he wasn't wrong.
In the end, the only thing he was really borrowing was the hundred-floor concept.
Well, that, and the virtual space itself.
The monsters wouldn't be the same.
Okay, he might shamelessly borrow the concept of sword skills…
But considering everyone here was already familiar with real combat..
That would actually make beta testing far easier.
And hey, chakra-coated weapons and Haki-coated weapons are a thing too…
Note: Morgan is trying to justify his plagiarism.
But, all in all…
"I guess we have our blockbuster already."
Morgan smiled.
And meanwhile—
While the discussion continued in the back of the vehicle.
A certain woman remained frozen at the front seat, already forgotten by the rest.
She had already forgotten how many times she'd mentally short-circuited today.
A virtual game.
Not to mention, a full-dive system that allows someone to enter a virtual space.
That was unheard of.
As someone familiar with cyberspace, and by extension, games..
She understood exactly what that meant.
These guys are skipping an entire generation and jumping straight into the future of gaming.
Now she understood.
She understood why the Director and the Manager held him in such high regard.
Naturally, she no longer questioned whether it was possible.
The girls seemed to believe it was, and if that were the case, then...
She wanted to believe its possibility.
Morgan Sinclair.
She wanted to watch the change, and the revolutionary wind he would bring.
Note: Drums of Oppression and Golden Wind of neglect incoming