She let out a long sigh as she navigated the different system panels. Eclipse Now had integrations with many social media platforms, making it easy to upload gameplay footage or stream while still connected.
Said feature was one of the main reasons behind Eclipse Now's rampant popularity.
'I don't want to show my face...' She opened her inventory, and a small bag of coins jingled as she pulled it out.
This satchel contained 10 golden coins about the equivalent of 100 USD. It would be enough to purchase a mask of some sort, right?
Where would she even get one? She opened the brochure that she received from the man she had smacked. Alas, no luck. There were no stores or shops listed in any of these brochures. Just a whole bunch of tourist spots and teachers for certain classes.
Her eyes eventually landed upon a marker on the north-eastern side of town: a miniature carnival.
'I'm sure I could find a mask, or at least some sort of face covering there!' With a destination in mind, she descended the hill.
Now that almost an entire day has come and gone, the bustling city streets were no longer so overwhelming. It was still quite busy, but she could at least walk at her own pace without having to worry about being crushed by the crowd.
Strangely enough, the city was much prettier at night. Lamps sparkled, their flames giving warm gentle glows that seemed to make the streets glitter. Like the small markets set up on the side of the cobble road, a vast majority of players had logged out for the night.
It was quite the contrast to be honest. The blues of the sea and whites of cloth were replaced with the orange and gold of fire as well as the inky black of night.
Once again, she found herself thinking 'How is this a video game?'
Full dive technology relied on the part of the brain responsible for dreams. By allowing your brain to be the computer, it could load much more detail than what would normally be possible. Of course, this puts strain on the brain so the game servers and VR Helmet take a small portion of the load.
She suddenly stopped walking.
A man just flew out of a tavern window and landed mere meters away from her. Shards of glass covered the street. He groaned.
"Ah- Um... Are you ok-" She stuttered.
Just then, another man flew out the window. This time voluntarily. He landed above the first man, his knee pressing into the man's chest. He had long black hair and wore an outfit that resembled that of a cowboy. Large boots, a cattleman hat, baggy chaps and a large brown trench coat above a black wool turtle neck.
With a smooth motion, he unholstered a silver six-shooter from his belt and pressed it into the man's forehead.
"Say it one more time. I dare ya."
"I- I didn't want any trouble! I just thought that she was a little big-"
BANG
Cobble went flying, grazing the man's cheek. A bullet hole had appeared mere millimetres away from his head, and smoke rose slowly from the point of impact.
"Did you not hear me? I said-" His voice escalated in volume, only to immediately fall silent when he heard an "Ahem" from the doorway of the tavern he had just jumped out of.
"M- Marie! I was just-" His face flushed
"No buts, Mr. Alkaline! You broke my window and nearly scared that poor girl to death!" A woman walked out of the tavern. She pointed to Alissa, who had long since fainted.
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Alissa awoke to an unfamiliar ceiling. Turning her head to the side, she saw the same man from earlier on his knees and being scolded by a woman. Compared to earlier, he looked like a wet puppy left out in the rain.
With a huff, the woman finished yelling at the man and turned to Alissa.
"Oh my! I'm so sorry about that sweetie, I didn't realize that you were up quite yet!" She rushed over to Alissa's side, who had only just noticed that she was lying down on a bed.
She was an elf woman, her hair light green and eyes dark purple. Her face was round, almost like a dumpling. And she smelled distinctly of fresh apple pie.
"You didn't hit your head when you fell or anything, right?" She lifted Alissa's bangs, revealing a small scrape on her forehead
"Oh my, you're bleeding! Give me one second!" She spun around and moved to a cabinet in the far corner of the room, retrieving a white medical box from inside. Moving back to Alissa, she wrapped a bandage around her head. "There, all better"
"Uh- W- where am I?" Alissa stuttered out.