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157
“Oh, you came?”
A quiet unmanned café a short distance from home.
When Hanbit arrived there, Lee Minho greeted him warmly.
“You came right away?”
“Not far from the office. But this place is incredibly quiet.”
He looked around and said.
The room-like structure with many partition walls — and no people at this time of day.
A café Hanbit had found to accommodate Luna, whose face was well known.
Having ordered drinks, Hanbit came and sat down.
“Your expression has improved.”
“Has it? Maybe because I left the company.”
Minho said, scratching his cheek looking a little sheepish.
Well — just escaping from under that team leader alone would have brought the stress level way down.
“But how did you leave early? Unlike me, you were a full-time employee.”
“Your situation came to mind, and I went to meet the executive director in person. Waited a long time in front of the elevator — hands were shaking the whole time.”
Hanbit’s resignation process had all been shared with Minho.
It seemed he had agonized over it and finally worked up the courage.
“Good for you. Thank goodness at least that person was there.”
“Exactly.”
The two exchanged words with understanding.
The topic gradually moved to the main point.
“Your current work is developing RP gear, you said. How did you end up at the startup?”
“There was a government-sponsored lecture when I was preparing to change jobs — went to attend it. A developer from a company called Core came out as the lecturer, and I was apparently noticed from throwing out so many questions. Then I received an offer to transfer to the company they’d started.”
Minho, adding that it was half luck.
Looking at his expression, he seemed quite satisfied.
Even back when they were poking through the gear at his place — someone who showed tremendous enthusiasm in areas he found interesting.
“The research currently in progress at the company is about RP’s true nature.”
“Its true nature?”
At the strange word repeated back, Minho gave a nod.
He was about to take out documents from his bag.
Just then.
“Should I give you two privacy?”
A familiar voice coming from the adjacent table that couldn’t be seen.
Following the sound of footsteps, the figure who revealed herself was Luna.
“……Luna?”
Her being here was strange.
There was still over an hour until the appointment.
“Why are you here already?”
“Couldn’t sleep so came for a walk around the neighborhood. But I fell asleep with my head down on the table.”
Luna gave a small yawn behind her hand.
It seemed she had been progressing through the Ifrit episode since early morning.
“If you’re having an important conversation, I can step out for a walk. This place is quiet enough that conversations carry extremely well.”
An unmanned café with no other customers — sound traveled too well.
Having recognized Black Dragon’s voice through sleep, Luna felt uncomfortable listening in on something that seemed important.
“Shall we talk together?”
Hanbit immediately asked her.
“Is that really alright?”
“Nothing I need to hide. What about you, hyung?”
“No…… Is that person really Luna? The youngest daughter of Yeonhwa Group’s chairman?”
Minho, leaning forward, asked in a small voice.
That much of a well-known figure — even to ordinary people who weren’t RP players.
“Hello. I am the youngest daughter of Yeonhwa Group’s chairman — may I join?”
Whether she had heard it, Luna reacted as though accustomed.
Minho, who had shot to his feet from his seat, responded in a flustered voice:
“Oh, please sit.”
“Thank you.”
She took the seat beside Hanbit.
Then shifted her gaze to the documents on the table.
“I hadn’t misheard.”
The theme of RP gear visible amid the documents full of technical terms.
An element important to her as a vanguard as well.
“So — what is this ‘true nature of RP’ you were talking about?”
Hanbit resumed the earlier conversation.
Minho, taking out a pen from his bag, underlined something on the documents and said:
“A game called the Record Project was announced, and a thing called gear was released into the world. The fact that these remarkable machines directly affect the brain is well established. They’re perfectly coordinating an enormously complex neural network. Current technology doesn’t even come close.”
Research into gear carried out worldwide.
Results obtained through analysis of the brains of people while playing.
Still actively ongoing — but only to the level of scratching the surface of the technology the game company had disclosed.
“Looking at the various research in progress, I had a fundamental question. Did human hands really create this? Even as an absurd notion, it’s technology for which ‘made by a god’ would actually be more convincing.”
“…….”
Hearing that conjecture, Hanbit briefly lost his words.
Using the name of god as a metaphor was common enough — but for RP, the weight was different.
And being Hanbit — who had stood before the goddess — he couldn’t refute it in the slightest.
“Interesting.”
Luna reacted as though finding it fascinating.
Having been scanning the documents scattered with technical terms, she posed one question:
“Then is this ‘compatibility’ also the mark of divine selection? It looks like a measured value of how suitable one’s body and mind are for RP.”
“What you’ve described is correct. It was confirmed by cross-referencing all the elements that activated brain activity. I would say it’s close to innate talent.”
Hanbit too was aware of the concept of compatibility.
Because it was something he had heard through the executive director.
“This is the data presented numerically.”
Minho took out and showed what looked like a chart.
The name Black Dragon was there as well.
“The sample size isn’t large, so take this lightly. The average compatibility value is 200 for regular players, 5,000 for vanguards. But here — Black Dragon shows a value of 300,000. An absurd number.”
“…….”
The same number he had heard from the executive director.
That its reason lay in the cycle-regression wasn’t difficult to guess.
“Looking at how Black Dragon plays — it doesn’t feel entirely strange. It’s not something related to the character’s specs, after all.”
Luna accepted the result without being particularly surprised.
The common perception of Black Dragon was of the one person who had read the original novel.
People were focused only on that — but Luna had felt there was something fundamentally different.
More like there was something not quite enough in simply calling it innate talent.
“Take a look at this too.”
Minho took out several photographs that looked like RP screenshots.
The figures visible were a boyish-looking boy and girl.
The facial resemblance suggested they were siblings.
“Isn’t this the technique Black Dragon uses?”
Luna, examining the photos, pointed to the girl.
Hanbit had already noticed it as well.
“It is.”
Hanbit’s eyes went slightly wider at one of the photos.
A girl holding a long sword not suited to her body.
The sword she had swung had a clear wind blade flying from it.
‘What is this?’
The boy was shown touching something sparkling with light.
Partly obscured by trees — but this was unmistakably a spirit.
“Who are they?”
“A staff member from our side photographed them in the forest outside Ifrit. Junior high school kids — their names were Haneul and Noeul or something like that.”
“Junior high?”
He had thought it was just the characters — but they were actually young players.
As he was quietly looking at the photos, Minho spoke again:
“Apparently they only made IDs at launch and only recently started playing. And the game itself is their first ever. I don’t know the details, but twins both learning skills like these — couldn’t there be some genetic component?”
“……I wonder.”
Regardless of age, both twins having been touched by spirits wasn’t ordinary.
As in other worlds — did physical bodies in reality truly determine something?
“Are you in contact with these players?”
“No, they just parted ways after that. I asked around just in case, but…… who knows how it’ll turn out.”
Minho, looking regretful about having missed a good opportunity.
Gradually becoming the eyes of a researcher.
It would be best to find those twins within the game.
“Either way, if it’s truly beyond human hands — doesn’t that make the research meaningless?”
Unable to reveal the truth of the goddess, Hanbit expressed a simple concern.
At that, Minho smiled and said:
“If it’s beyond human hands, that’s all the more reason it’s worth studying. There’s also the saying that willpower matters. Perhaps it’s possible to create a crack in biological determinism. The chip inside the gear hasn’t been cracked open yet either.”
The small chip inside the gear where the word ‘Edelen’ had been discovered.
Probably connected to the restricted area — but it was still unknown.
“Speaking of willpower — Luna, how was it for you with the mask yesterday?”
“The mask?”
“Yes. As far as I know, losing bodily control was supposed to be inevitable.”
Having raised the lingering question, Luna briefly traced back her memory.
Then spoke with a somewhat nuanced expression:
“What you described as discomfort — I think I understood what you meant. There was actually a strong pressure in my head as though trying to control my body. Something like a giant trying to move your arms and legs.”
“……But you overcame that?”
“I can’t exactly explain it, but I think ‘shook it off’ would be the right description. Calling it willpower seems fair.”
Words delivered matter-of-factly — far outside the realm of common sense.
The mask’s binding that Hanbit had felt in other worlds was also like a giant gripping one’s limbs.
The idea of completely shaking that off was a domain that would remain imagination.
“Being a device that functions through the brain, willpower could very well exert influence. Perhaps gaps in the game system could be exploited as well.”
Minho gave a nod while jotting something down.
After exchanging that kind of conversation for a moment, Hanbit brought up a photo on his smartphone.
“This is what I wanted to show you, hyung. It’s a slab that came out after defeating a boss yesterday — doesn’t it look like a programming language?”
“Hold on.”
Minho enlarged the screen and examined the letters and patterns engraved on the slab.
Quite densely packed and scratched up, making it not easy to make out properly.
“It looks like a few things are mixed in, but yes, it is programming language. Do the codes need to be matched and run? This might take a while.”
“I’ll send you the photo, so please take a look when you can.”
“Got it. I’ll let you know if anything comes up.”
Having continued the conversation a little longer, Minho left.
“Is Black Dragon’s CEO not coming?”
“This time they really did go abroad. I just have to report the results well.”
Yeonwoo had set off on the previously cancelled Japan business trip.
He would be back tomorrow — just need to wrap up the deal well.
After waiting a short while while exchanging small talk.
The Yeonhwa Gaming CEO made her appearance.
“Hey, Sola! If you’re going to leave first, at least say——!”
The young woman mid-scold made eye contact with Hanbit.
Having cleared her throat, she straightened her hair, walked over slowly, and presented a business card.
“Pleased to meet you, Black Dragon-nim. I am Lee Hansol, CEO of Yeonhwa Gaming.”
“Yes, pleased to meet you. Please, take a seat.”
“Thank you.”
Hanbit gestured after receiving the business card, and Lee Hansol gave a light bow and sat.
Luna, still in the seat beside Hanbit, tapped the table and said:
“We’re busy, so what if you just hand over the money and go?”
“If you’re busy, leave. You’re an obstruction to conversation.”
At her younger sister’s provocation, Hansol waved her hand trying to shoo her away.
“Don’t want to.”
Luna gave a lazy smile and stretched.
Watching that, Hansol let out a sigh and shifted her gaze.
“I apologize. My sister is like that.”
“Not at all. I’ve received a lot of help from Luna, and I’ve been making good use of the donations from Yeonhwa Gaming as well. Thank you.”
“Oh, not at all.”
With a soft answer she fell briefly silent.
Then lowering her head, she continued:
“First of all, I would like to apologize regarding the recruitment matter. An employee’s hasty misunderstanding caused you unpleasantness.”
“Not at all. That was Rashten’s fault. I have no ill feelings toward Yeonhwa Gaming whatsoever.”
“……Thank you for saying so.”
Hansol, slowly lifting her head, wore a genuinely sorry expression.
Hanbit himself truly had nothing in particular on his mind about it.
“Well — with you giving me the opportunity for this meeting, I should make it up to you with a deal you’ll find satisfactory.”
Having quickly composed her expression, she took out the tablet she had brought.
There, a chart with an organized item list was displayed in full.
“These are items we’re selling at the exchange. Things gathered by six vanguards including Luna over there, and their affiliated players. Colors have been assigned by difficulty of acquisition.”
“……There’s a lot.”
Hanbit, scanning the list, was inwardly impressed.
Items of an enormous variety.
What caught his eye were the materials used for the Tower of Vortex entrance tickets.
“Will you be purchasing RP information with these?”
“We can convert to cash if you prefer, but if it’s items you need, this would probably suit you better. Taxes are painful no matter how you pay them.”
“Ah.”
A nod came naturally at the returned answer.
Watching that, Hansol smiled and said:
“Then shall we proceed in order?”
