Feeling gleeful, he said his goodbyes to Reina, and went to meet with Leland. The latter guided him to his new house.
It was a small two-room flat with an integrated kitchen, but it was equipped with all the furniture and technology needed. It even included a computer for his use. And when Leland learned that Lorn didn't have a phone, he even ordered one to be brought to him as a gift.
Lorn felt bad to have lost part of his hand, but he now felt that his adventures in the One World were worth it.
And before Leland left, he explained that all testers of the One World had access to a forum made only for them. He urged Lorn to check it out at his leisure.
After he was left alone, Lorn took a shower, went outside to buy some groceries and went back to cook. Things took much longer than usual, which was annoying, but Lorn tried his best to get used to his damaged hand. He had no hopes for it to recover. To him, it would be better to have low expectations. It was depressing, but it was the least hurtful state of mind.
'And if my hand did recover, I would just be pleasantly surprised.'
As he was struggling to hold a fork in his left hand, his new phone arrived. Lorn set up the phone and stared at it for a few seconds in silence. Eventually, he sighed and called a number.
"Hello?" a smooth voice replied on the other side.
"It's me," Lorn replied.
"Oh. A new phone again?" Elan replied playfully. "Got kicked out of the experiment because of your 'nimble hands?'"
"No, the researchers provided it. I'm also renting a place on 21st Migrant St. Can you come here?"
"Sure, I'll be there in… thirty minutes. Text me the exact address."
Lorn did as asked and groaned. A certified way to ruin his day… but he knew it was best to get things over with sooner than later. Since Elan was sure to have sold other people to the research, he would realize Lorn was free sooner or later. Perhaps he even had henchmen guarding nearby.
'And besides, I can tease the motherfucker today,' Lorn hummed. 'It's kinda exciting."
He went to the computer and accessed the forum of testers. Unsurprisingly, there were only a few posts, three of them to be exact. The first was just an intro and a set of rules, the second one was simply titled 'Hello'. Someone named Indra wrote it, describing the place he appeared in the One World, the free city of Berg, located on an island close to the country of Zee. He invited others to come meet him, but Lorn ignored it as he had no idea where any of those places were.
The last was titled: 'Don't die'. Lorn clicked on it and read the warnings left by someone who died in the One World. Like Reina said, he resurrected where he logged in, but the pain and trauma of dying was simply too much. He wasn't okay in the One World, and after he logged out, he had developed severe anxiety problems. The most prevalent were his PTSD and panic disorder.
"No matter what, you must struggle to survive," the writer warned. "I know most of you are going to ignore this, but the next time you log in, hurt yourself and remember that the One World is not that different from reality."
There were comments on the bottom, sending the man condolences. There were also some that spoke about toning down pain in the One World. Since it was going to be a game, it shouldn't be so brutal.
Eventually, an official representative of the research center explained they were working on a solution.
'I guess I dodged a bullet, huh?' Lorn thought.
There definitely was a moment when the pain was searing through his mind that he thought it would be better if he died. He reminded himself not to take the One World as any other game. Harsh punishments for dying existed in other games, but none could compare to the One World.
'I should really thank Sybil somehow,' he decided.
He opened a new tab and searched for tips when cooking with open fire. He learned that controlling the strength of the fire was the most important thing. Other than that, he also looked for recipes made inside pots and cauldrons.
As he was reading, someone knocked on his door. Lorn peeked through the eyehole and saw a scarred face staring back at him. Cursing, he opened the door.
Elan walked in as if he owned the place. Perhaps in his head, it would already be his possession in a few months. He curiously checked the place for a few seconds before speaking.
"Nice place you got here?"
"It was decided that I would rent it with a bit of my pay," Lorn said.
He made sure to imply that he had no choice in the matter. Lorn didn't mind the excess luxury, but he was sure Elan wouldn't approve of it too much.
"Do you want some leftover eggs?" he then asked sheepishly.
"No. What happened to your right hand?"
'How the hell did he even notice?' Lorn thought. 'I didn't even use it in front of him.'
But Lorn couldn't act surprised.
"My rotten luck. The 80%," Lorn replied with a wistful sigh.
"Ah. The list did contain paralysis," Elan hummed. "I'm glad it wasn't anything too serious. And you can also take this chance to take a break from gambling. It would be too hard to pull off your tricks with a hand like that."
Lorn shrugged.
He rarely cheated. Only when he knew he could get away with it. Those were easy bucks, but the amount was low. At the big tables, however, not many could get away with a few 'sleight-of-hand'-s.
"You don't seem so disappointed."
"With you teaching me the futility of certain actions and emotions so thoroughly, how could I despair?" he shrugged again.
"Heh. I suppose," Elan chuckled. "And how long do you think the experiment will last?"
"I'm not sure, but it will last at least a year." He made sure to sound excited. "You don't have to worry. Since you already sold me, you can only wait until I'm finished with the research. Though… can you leave me a thousand bucks each month so I don't starve to death?"
Elan was disappointed. Lorn could definitely feel it. Perhaps he expected Lorn to suffer, but instead, he saw him full of desire to continue the research.
"I can add it to your debt," Elan replied.
Lorn could tell he was doing this out of spite. He wanted to laugh in his face, but Lorn kept it in.
"Ugh, never mind. I'll manage somehow," Lorn groaned, but the next moment, he smiled ever so slightly.
"Anyhow," Elan continued. "How was the experiment? The grand research to copy one's consciousness?"
To that, Lorn only replied by waving his new bracelets around.
"Ah. I suppose that's to be expected. I don't suppose you can blink in morse?"
"Sadly, no."
Lorn knew how to, but even if he said yes, the One Country's investigators would come knocking on his door, anyway. Knowing Elan, he would also realize that.
When Elan was driving Lorn to the research center, he had asked Lorn to gather information if possible. He even slipped in a hearing device on Lorn's shoulder, which Lorn immediately got rid of after he got off the car.
Lorn didn't want to potentially ruin his chances with the One Country. He was fairly sure security would discover it, anyway.
And since Elan didn't explicitly order him to use the hearing device, Lorn had no obligation to work hard on his behalf.
'It really is good, getting back at people.'
And now that there was no way to relay the information, there was no reason for Elan to stay here.
"Well, that's it for my update," Lorn said. "Just sit tight and wait for the money to roll in. I'll be sure to send everything I can after every month."
Elan's face turned sour for a while, but it quickly turned neutral. It was fun while it lasted, but Elan wasn't one to succumb to emotions for long. A brief moment of annoyance and irrationality… and the cold, calculative personality would emerge once more.
"In that case, I'll leave you be," Elan smiled. "Pay any amount you would like from your salary. I'll be happy with anything."
Lorn nodded and quickly locked the door. He spent some time to thoroughly check whether Elan left anything in the house, and after finding nothing, he plopped on the bed. He picked up his phone and called a certain number.
"Hello, 'Velvet's' speaking. How may I help you?"
"Is Irene available for tomorrow?"
"Oh, Lorn!" the receptionist lady said, giggling. "I was wondering where you'd gone. Ray's been worried, you know? And yes, She's free tomorrow. Do you want the whole day?"
"Yep. I'll pick her up at noon, is that alright?"
"Sure, sure. Have fun, you two!"
"Of course."
***