Han Yeoreum, the team leader and operator ‘Summer’, didn’t leave the dungeon until we defeated the last named enemy of this bus run.
Peeking glances at her, I finished the bus run and waved goodbye to the remaining guests. Two of them quickly hopped into the exit portal and vanished.
Sniff sniff.
Then, I shook my head as I watched Summer still hanging around me, smiling brightly.
“…Aren’t you busy, Operator? Shouldn’t you be going?”
“Ugh. I’m fine for a moment. Watching Rain is enjoyable. There could be another bad guest, you know?”
I’m not some decorative plant, you know.
At that moment, a slightly chilling hypothesis popped into my head. I stepped back a bit, getting into a cautious stance.
“You’re not monitoring me or anything, are you?”
“Oh please~ Unless the user is detecting abnormal records, an operator doesn’t monitor directly.”
Abnormal records? Does that include my synchronization rate?
Suddenly, she let out a deep sigh.
“Haah, thanks to ‘Mr. Who,’ the company people spent two sleepless nights, you know? The development team is wiped out, and the customer service is bombarded with complaints. It’s like, the in-game operators are busy due to a surge in calls. There’s an emergency patch, and I’ve got to keep an eye on the progress. Plus, I have to repeatedly work on the balancing QA that was done haphazardly. That’s why I’m here doing this.”
I let out a slight chuckle.
‘Mr. Who,’ that’s likely referring to me. I heard the community went ablaze after my solo play video aired. It caused a relative sense of deprivation due to the overwhelming skills of a lone player that ordinary users couldn’t imitate.
Of course, there are outstanding users in any game. But the gap here is just too large.
There should’ve been a need to establish a system that allows for a base level of imitation.
Not that I did anything wrong though.
I merely showcased what I could do.
If I had used all the ultimate moves gained from the Training Tower and Ice Castle, it would’ve been a real disaster. Would other users even have a way to earn such skills?
I let out a scoff.
“Hmph, didn’t you say I could do whatever I wanted?”
“Hehe, of course. You can enjoy yourself as you wish, Rain.”
She just kept on smiling brightly.
Suddenly, questions started to bubble up inside me.
Operator Summer.
She must know a lot about this world.
Perhaps even the background behind how this world became a game.
But, that’s something I need to explore myself.
Still, curiosity is curiosity.
How should I ask for her to answer me?
“Well, take care! If anything like this happens again, just call me anytime!”
Swish.
Operator Summer, with her shimmering robe and blonde hair, began to envelop herself in a halo of light.
I rushed to call her back.
“U-um, over here!”
“Yes~?”
She stopped and looked at me with a puzzled expression.
Feeling a pang of regret, my voice dropped a little.
“Don’t you think it’s a bit unfair that you know, but won’t tell me?”
This world looks so similar to the one I loved.
It left behind only painful memories, but I gave it my all, right?
I feel like I at least have the right to know something.
Calming the turmoil inside, I gazed at Summer with composed eyes.
Summer wore a troubled expression.
“Uh, umm. No matter how much of an operator I am, I can’t share everything about the depths of the game with users, you know? Like the company regulations and confidentiality agreements and such.”
“Company regulations? Confidentiality agreements?”
“Well, technically, it’s not that strict. Just because you are an absolute entity doesn’t mean you’re free from the rules. Plus… it’s hard to exert direct influence on the game. As you ascend, you get tied to various regulations. Anyway, there are a lot of complicated circumstances. But… um, let me talk about something.”
After a long while of hesitation, Summer snapped her fingers and broke the silence.
“So, there’s a kingdom. But then, a civil war breaks out, and that kingdom falls. The king, who tried to preserve the kingdom until the end, eventually dies of exhaustion. You could say he had a disease, and poured his energy into it until he crumbled. So, what happens to the kingdom that lost its king?”
I tilted my head.
Why the sudden talk about the kingdom?
Is this part of the ‘Continent of Astria’ setting?
“Isn’t there an heir to succeed the king?”
“Um… that’s a complicated story. All the legitimate heirs perished during the civil war. There’s not a soul left in the kingdom with the bloodline of the king. The royal blood holds immense power, and only a person with the potential to inherit this power can become king. Since the kingdom relied heavily on the king’s immense abilities, it can’t do anything without him.”
Wasn’t there a coup? Did they self-destruct?
Looks like the side that initiated the civil war didn’t end up victorious.
There were many aspects to question, but I chose to swallow it.
The kingdom was merely a metaphor; she seemed to want to convey something else.
“…If there’s chaos and no one to govern, it becomes a disordered nation.”
“Exactly~! It walks the path of destruction. The timeline also gets chaotic… Oh wait, that’s a different story. Anyway, it’s a serious issue for other kingdoms too. The rebels and thieves from there could cause harm to another nation.”
Suddenly, other kingdoms?
“So at this point, a powerful empire needs to step in. They freeze the kingdom at first, bringing mercenaries to simulate how to quell the civil war and how it should be governed, exploring various methods. It’s about creating history.”
“And then?”
She raised both hands and mimed covering one hand with the other.
“They cover up the history. They could see it as a process of normalizing a kingdom that can hardly be called a kingdom anymore.”
The Empire sounds pretty strong.
It’s less like inter-state relations and more like they exist on a whole other level, huh?
I ended up throwing a question back at her.
“…Wouldn’t a sufficiently strong empire just go in and wipe out the rebels, then incorporate them into the empire?”
Summer stomped her feet. How adorable.
“No matter how much of an empire it is, it’s entangled in intricate affairs between nations! Drat…! Never mind! I knew it would be hard to explain! But this is the limit of what I can say!”
In the end, Summer gave up explaining, throwing her hands up in surrender.
“I’m really leaving now. Haah, this is skirting on the edge with what I’ve told…”
Bang!
Operator Summer disappeared, enveloped in a halo of light.
I stood still for a while, gazing at the spot she vanished from.
“Covering up history, huh….”
*
“Guild meeting?”
“Yes. We tend to gather for a chat after finishing our dungeon farming. When I brought it up in the chatroom, they asked if there are plans for a meeting where all the guild members can come together.”
“Hmm….”
Hearing Cherni’s words, Chris rubbed her chin and fell into thought.
The members of the ‘Hong Baek’ guild had developed some camaraderie after participating in the Green Dragon raid together.
Although there were no major opportunities to work together in the 4-man elite dungeon with each party, they could run the bus together with Rain during times Chris wasn’t around.
“It’s reasonable, there’s not really a problem with it. Having a chance for the guild members to bond is a good thing. But….”
Chris’s trailing words gave away her feelings, and Bae Merong chimed in.
“It’s because of Rain, right?”
Chris nodded.
Bae Merong grinned and poked Chris in the side.
“Well, you could just ask, can’t you?”
“I’m sure there are those among the Hong Baek guild members who would like to meet Rain. What kind of player is he? Does he actually look like his character?”
“What’s that last part about…? Rain’s mine, you know?”
With her arms crossed, Chris shot a glare at Deathly Death, who was smirking.
She then raised her hands in surrender.
“Fine, I’ll ask. But you all know the deal, right? If Rain doesn’t want this, then it’s off the table.”
“Of course.”
“Got it.”
Chris’s party wrapped up their farming.
Cherni went to meet a friend. Deathly Death became a gladiator in the arena.
Bae Merong wandered around with Chris in front of the Ice Castle.
“I wonder what our white dog is doing—Chris, are you going to sleep?”
“Rain seemed to want to run the bus with us after we finish our farming.”
“Really? I won’t mind staying up a bit late.”
Chris nodded and was about to send a message to Rain but paused.
Crunch crunch.
As they rounded the back of the Ice Castle, a pure white girl gazing blankly at the lake caught their eye.
“Rai….”
Chris swallowed her words.
Her heart dropped.
The beautiful girl looked as if she materialized directly from her ideal image. The deep obsidian eyes she possessed were now gazing far away, seeming profound.
Those eyes that she rarely showed since moving in with her.
It was hard for Chris to approach Rain in this mood.
However, she couldn’t just leave her like that.
She wanted to see Rain smile at her again, not like this.
Chris carefully approached and quietly stood nearby.
Rain’s body shifted slightly, and she turned her head.
Eventually, with her obsidian eyes locking onto Chris’s, a reflection appeared.
Smile.
“Sister, are you done farming? Aren’t you tired?”
“I’m fine. I plan to game a bit later tonight. Do you want to run the bus together?”
“Yes. I want to earn some gold.”
Chris took Rain’s hand and they walked toward the Ice Castle.
Perhaps the guild meeting can wait a little longer.
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