Lord Yuto stared blankly at 'himself' standing in the center of the stage at Opera Epiclese, feeling a momentary daze.
The expression of Yuto in the light screen was calm, and he gently tapped the ground with a platinum-colored scepter in his hand.
"I hope that lady has tied a rope to you 'arrows'."
As these words fell, the version preview PV ended.
Yuto looked at the gradually dimming light screen, momentarily unsure of what to say.
Even Yuto, who had lived on this continent for nearly four hundred years, was somewhat stunned when faced with those all too familiar scenes.
He had never thought he would see that familiar art style again, nor had he expected to see the so-called 'Creator God' of this world again.
"Phew..."
Yuto leaned back in his chair, feeling a bit tired, his slightly blue eyes staring blankly at the light screen in front of him that showed no intention of shrinking.
He sat there quietly, making no movement even when the light screen lit up again, as if he were...
A salted fish who had lost its dream.
Just like that, Yuto leaned back in his chair, spacing out for a while before slowly coming back to his senses.
"So... am I now a true game character?"
Yuto's mind replayed the words he had spoken in the PV just now, finding it difficult to distinguish between truth and falsehood.
He hadn't simply been spacing out; he had placed himself into that segment of the plot, considering his experiences over the past four hundred years to determine if he would truly say such words.
The answer was affirmative.
He would.
Thinking of this, Yuto suddenly felt a chill down his spine.
From over four hundred years ago until now, he had been doing what he believed he should do, and he could guarantee this one hundred percent.
But... after seeing that scene just now, he suddenly felt as if he wasn't as real as he had thought.
"Could it be that I'm just a fictional character? But what about those memories of the real world?"
Yuto suddenly felt his brain wasn't quite sufficient, but he had no other evidence to prove that all of this was reasonable.
"Wait... evidence?!"
That self-negating thought immediately gave Yuto inspiration.
Wasn't his self-doubt due to the sudden panel and the light screen that had just appeared before him?
So why should he look for answers within himself, instead of from the perspective of the problem?
This rather bizarre reverse thinking instantly freed him from the vortex of self-doubt and self-negation.
Yuto suddenly looked up, staring at the interface that had somehow turned into something like a comment section, and the light screen floating by his hand.
[Current Popularity Value: 1000]
[Popularity value is greatly related to your performance in the plot. If operated properly, it can achieve twice the result with half the effort.]
[Uses of Popularity Value include but are not limited to: improving your strength, changing your plot trajectory, obtaining information, etc.]
[Additional Remark: The Popularity Value you consume is a cumulative points. Your own popularity index will not decrease due to your consumption]
Looking at the panel by his hand, Yuto immediately breathed a sigh of relief.
"It seems it's not as serious as I imagined... at least for now, I can still control my own plot direction."
"But... I only made one appearance in the PV, didn't I? Why is there such a huge buzz?"
Yuto was a bit confused, and he naturally looked at the light screen in front of him, which resembled a comment section.
As expected, it was full of comments related to him.
However, when Yuto glanced at them... he almost slid off his chair, startled by the comments.
"Is there a possibility that Fontaine's Water God has three forms: the Judge, the Assistant Administrator, and the Hydro Archon?"
"I really like Neuvillette, his shoulders are so broad, but this Assistant Administrator whose name sounds like someone from Ritou seems to hit my sweet spot more."
"First, let me clarify, I'm not gay. Second, I'm not gay. Finally... never mind, I am gay! Everyone, look at me! I have an announcement! I am Lord Yuto's dog!"
"Let me see... The serious and stern Assistant Administrator and his God's untold stories... Is this title explosive enough?"
"Update quickly! Can't sleep!"
"Assistant Administrator... it seems like a tough character, and is he strongly linked to the main plot?"
...
Yuto spent about a minute reading through these various comments related to him, some serious, some perverted.
Of course, during this process, Yuto's brows never relaxed, to the point that by the end... Yuto felt the muscles under his eyebrows were a bit sore.
"Now I understand what the characters themselves must have thought when I used to go crazy over them..."
Yuto silently shook his head, then tried to close the current page and looked at the light screen by his hand.
To be honest, what he wanted to know now was... how to design his own plot.
Almost simultaneously with Yuto's thought, a new panel appeared before him.
[Vision Holder: 500 Popularity Value]
[Main Plot Adaptation: 500-??? Popularity Value]
[Personal Legend Quest Writing: 10000 Popularity Value]
[Character Side Story Participation Adaptation: 2000 Popularity Value]
Looking at the clearly priced panel, Yuto gently nodded, then began to carefully calculate.
"Currently, I only have a thousand Popularity Value, so I can only do two things: purchase a Vision for myself and arrange a main plot for myself."
That's right, Yuto himself didn't know why he could live for so long, and he didn't have any innate elemental power or innate elemental authority.
So now... what Yuto most urgently needed was not an opportunity to show off in the plot, but a Vision.
"After all, any character with a prominent role in the plot... at least has a Vision."
Yuto thought this while selecting the 'Vision Holder' option.
As the Popularity Value on the panel to his right rapidly decreased, a dazzling purple light suddenly bloomed on Yuto's desk.
The purple light lasted for about half a minute, and a purple Vision appeared before Yuto.
"Electro element, huh?"
Yuto muttered softly, gently shook his head, and then focused his gaze on the light screen in front of him.
The 'Vision Holder' option gradually faded and disappeared, leaving the space where it once was empty.
"Hmm? No automatic replenishment?"