[Ding-dong.]
[Ding-dong.]
Maria jumped off her bed after hearing the second doorbell. "Oh shit! I woke up late because of Chloe." She didn't even change her clothes before sleeping because she was too tired. She quickly went to the bathroom to gargle with mouthwash. "Coming!" she shouted.
When she opened her door, she saw Peter looking at her from head to toe.
"Looks like someone had a good time last night," he said with a playful smile.
"I-" she went blank with his remarks. "Come in, Peter. Make yourself comfortable!" She opened the door and run to the bathroom.
"Aaargh!" Her eyeliner was smudged when she looked at the mirror. "This is the reason I hate makeup," she cursed. She hastily washed her face and cleared the smudges around her eye. Then returned to the living room.
"Sorry to scare you," she said comically. "It's not every day you see a ghost."
He laughed. "Good to know you have this side too. But it's my fault. I should have called first. I just assumed you were too excited for me to install this capsule, so I came here right away" He's pleased to look at Maria's bare face.
"No, that is the right thing to do! No need to apologize." She raised her hand eagerly. She looked animated again. "My friend just wanted us to bond yesterday before immersing myself into another game. We stayed late last night, and I was too tired to change," she explained.
His face became serious. "This friend of yours is...a man?" he asked, narrowing his eyes.
"No, no. She's my best friend, Chloe." She was oblivious to the sudden change of his tone.
The smile returned to his face. "I trust that you didn't discuss my capsule with her, yes?"
"Oh, don't worry. She's not interested in this kind of stuff. There is no need to discuss it with her," she brushed off the security issue quickly.
"Good. Let's go and help me get the stuff."
Peter unloaded the capsule in his van. It had an automatic function for loading and unloading so it would be convenient for the installer to transport the capsule. Maria was not needed there.
"Wow, that's bigger than I thought."
"Yes, the first prototype is bigger than the others." She led him to her room where he would install it. "Great, you are well prepared," he commented when he saw the room with an obvious space for the installation of the capsule. "Do not switch to online mode, okay? You can only use this offline," he reminded her. "This is for your safety." She sat on her bed while watching him do his work.
She reckoned she understood why somehow. "Yes, Sir! By the way, why do you have the prototype of the Inheritance Kingdom?"
"Why? Because I made it," he said casually.
"Wait-What? You made it? Are you serious? Are you the creator of Inheritance Kingdom?" she was shocked by this information. She reached his side and stared at him with admiration.
"Too close!" He pushed her face away from him with a finger to her forehead. "This is my baby. I brought this idea to Han-Jin Gaming Corporation three years ago to develop the game further. They recognized my vision and created a team of experts to help me realize this dream. We collaborated for about a year but eventually, they kicked me out from my own project." He suddenly wore a grim expression.
"That was too shameful of them!" Now that she was able to look at him directly and studied his face. "B-but you look so young though." She assumed he's just in his mid-twenties. "Maybe they bullied you because they thought they can?"
"And they succeeded."
"Did you report this to the authorities? If I were you, I would sue them!"
He frowned. "We couldn't find a loophole in my dismissal." He finished installing it and was showing Maria how to initialize it. "Okay, this prototype consumes a lot of power. It has not been augmented by the new version to fix the power source. So be wary of your electric bill. Don't use it excessively. Maximum continuous usage is 18 hours, 5 hours rest in between."
"Should I use solar power, so it is more sustainable?"
"Yeah, you can do that. Again, do not switch to online mode. Otherwise, this capsule will be traced and will be confiscated by Han-Jin Gaming Corporation. You know that it cannot be used in the Philippines and they are seeking ways how to get the first prototype capsule."
"Right. I won't switch it," she promised.
She reached over and caressed the smooth surface of the capsule. "This is so amazing. You are a genius!" She felt like she was given the best present on Christmas day and it was not even December yet.
Peter smiled at her reaction to the capsule. "Nothing is more rewarding than seeing a gamer who truly appreciates your masterpiece, huh?" he silently said to himself and feeling satisfied.
"Here, this is the chip to the capsule. Let's create your profile. Put your palm here." He handed her a gadget with a sensory scanner. He guided her in creating her profile. Once it was set, he asked her to lie in the capsule and assisted her to secure the contraption. He gave her instructions to initialize the game. "Don't forget to change the sensitivity settings when you immerse yourself into the game based on how you want it okay? I will stay here to oversee your first immersion, relax, and have fun."
She's brimming with excitement. "See you later. When you get hungry, please help yourself in the kitchen."
[Chip Inserted]
[Launching Inheritance Kingdom]
Then it became dark and Maria felt she was being pulled by gravity. "Wow, a nice effect!" When the sensation stopped the surrounding gradually brightened. Maria heard the birds chirping. She looked at her new surroundings with bright eyes. Her heart was jumping with joy. "Is this Inheritance Kingdom? This looks real! Oh my gosh, I can smell the grass." She looked at the green meadow ahead. The sky was so blue. It felt a bit warm, yet it was breezy. Summer! "Oh right, change the sensitivity settings." She switched it to normal.
The place she materialized in was the starting point in the game. There's a huge tree behind her and up north, she can see a village. Smoke was coming from the chimneys. She looked left and right and didn't see any monster. "So, this is a safe zone, no monster will spring to me," she gathered.
She walked happily to the village. "Oh yeah, I feel like I am really walking in real life. This is so amazing! But wait, wouldn't I be tired as well?" She dismissed the trivial thought and went on.
***
"Hmm...so she really is the Blumock I know." He checked out her workstation and saw the compilation of her past study sketches. "This was one of the monsters I approved to be incorporated in the game. She will be surprised once she encounters this monster in the future. What a small world." He softly laughed.
At first, when he heard the name Blumock, he thought it sounded familiar, but he couldn't fathom where or when he encountered it. Until a few days ago, he discovered that some artworks that he commissioned, one of them came from an artist called Blumock. He admired some of her works and confirmed Maria's talent to be excellent. Then he inadvertently shifted his eyes on a slightly opened drawer.
He recognized something that looked like his lucky coin. "Oh, wait! Is that--" He frowned when he picked it up. "What the hell happened to this coin? Did she try to dip it into a solvent to check if it is really gold?" He studied his coin and tried wiping it on his shirt to bring the shine back, but it stayed lacklustre. "That silly kid," he cursed. "I told her to take care of this coin. She will definitely hear something from me!"