The deal was set and the money transferred over. In one transaction, he had made over 1000 gold which would have taken him weeks to make an equal amount of money through farming and selling monster parts. He wondered how much he could gain if he had rarer O.M.'s for sale.
"I wouldn't mind a couple," Jack replied. "I would like to order two O.M.'s. I don't think I would need so many like Will here. It's not like I would be creating a movie or something."
"I'll take three. Please." Isabel chirped in happily. "Who knows, it could be useful later on."
"Give me five and some discount, please," Eve asked with doe-like eyes. "For old friend's sake?"
"Nope. It's not easy making O.M.'s, you know that."
"B-but I'm your friend."
"Business is business."
"Fine." She crossed her hands in defeat. "You're so stingy when it comes to business."
"You know me too well," Kiyro smirked. He was not going to budge at this moment when he could be reeling in a large amount of gold.
"Fine," Eve said with a disgruntled voice. Everyone sent their respective game money to him with a memo stating what they wanted. Kiyro felt elated with a sudden large boost in income. "With that done, why don't we get this quest underway. Let's keep our Alive gear in contact until we finish placing the selenites."
"Sure."
"Okay."
"Good idea."
Each one of them sent an invitation to stay connected through the Alive Gear. Five small icons were present on the corner of his Alive gear of each of his teammates. Isabel had a flower icon, Will a gryphon, Jack a hammer, Alex a twin dagger, Eve a bunny, and Kiyro was a baby dragon.
"We've got less than two hours. Be careful not to get caught because we won't have a second chance," said Kiyro. "It's easier to pretend to be a student than to cover up as someone else. So improvise. Let's try to be back in an hour?"
"Gotcha," said Jack
"I'm fine with that," Will nodded.
"Shouldn't be too hard, right?" Eve glanced around, a bit too excited.
"I hope so," Isabel squeaked, worried that she would get caught.
Alex gave him a short nod, and they all went out the door and parted ways. Kiyro looked at his map and noticed the icons of his teammates splitting off into opposite directions spreading out like a star.
Kiyro rubbed his hands to calm his nerves and breathed in deeply. He had done a lot of impersonation missions in the past, so it wasn't too difficult to do. However, in reality, he often changes his persona to fit the environment, people, and circumstances. It was only around Eve he acted like himself. Since the beginning of the game and meets Eve, he realizes that it has been a long time since he acted like himself instead of putting on a false mask.
To put on a mask again was like using tissue paper as if it was nothing. With his nerves calmed down, his demeanor changed to a timid, shy student. He ruffled his hair, so it was slightly messy, his hands were in front of him rubbing each other slightly, and his eyes darted back and forth like a frightened doe. Then, adjusting his Alive gear, he walked forward towards the exit of the library.
Glancing around, he checked the walls for any possible cameras and people. There were none in his vicinity. Passing by a desk, he noticed a stack of workbooks, pencils, and a backpack laid on top of the desk. He picked up a few workbooks lying on the edge of the table and exited the door.
He could have taken more, but he knew that taking as little as possible was the best possible route to go without being caught. Especially since he didn't know when the owner of the bag and books would come back and notice his things missing.
Walking with his head held slightly downcast, Kiyro walked through the arching hallways. He scanned his surroundings with his peripheral vision to watch where he was going. The doors suddenly burst open, and students streamed out of classrooms like a flood. He had to watch his steps to avoid crashing into anyone.
Do these people have no eyes and don't see where they are going? Kiyro grumbled his distaste. He had to dodge a couple of times to avoid being run over.
Walking continually till the crowds slowly dwindled, he noticed a black hat hanging off the side
of a male student's backpack. Walking toward the student, he purposely collided with the student. Kiyro stumbled backward, and his books fell to the ground, while the male student tumbled with his own books scattered around him. A couple of students turned their heads to watch, but in a matter of seconds, they turned back around.
"I'm sorry." Kiyro bowed timidly, averting his eyes.
"Hey, watch where you are going." The student spoke, annoyed.
"I'm really, really sorry." He bent over to help pick up the spilled books that scattered around the ground at that moment; when the student turned his back on him, he carefully pickpocketed the male student and stole the black hat.
Quickly gathering up his books, he slipped the hat underneath him. Then, reaching out to the male student, Kiyro handed him the spilled books that were the male student's. The male student got up and left, leaving Kiyro on the ground. He watched him leave before he got up from the ground.
Kiyro pulled out the stolen cap. He put on the black cap, covering half of his face. It was not that he liked stealing. He noticed a couple of cameras that he passed by and kept his head down, trying his best to keep it hidden. Now with the hat on, he didn't need to keep looking down; it gave him a neck cramp.
Turning right towards the next hallway, he eventually came to a classroom. Opening the door, he noticed a dozen students already seated in their respective seats. He stopped and scanned around, trying to find where he had to place the Selenite. It was next to the windowsill, where a group of students had huddled.
"You're kidding me, right?" Kiyro silently worded. He noticed a seat behind them and began walking towards it.
Right behind him, the professor followed him in and walked up to his desk. The chattering died down, and they turned towards the professor. Kiyro made his way, sat behind the group that scattered like flies, and went to their seats.
"Good afternoon. I'm glad to see that you all are present." The professor skimmed around and noticed Kiyro. "It seems we have a new student today. I did not expect to have a transfer this late in the summer." Everyone's attention immediately turned toward Kiyro. His mind went into overdrive as he thought up an answer on the spot.
"My name is Kyle. I'm just a temporary student sent by the foreign exchange program to check out the classes." Kiyro even threw in a slight Asian accent. He checked his Alive gear and had less than two hours left. He couldn't just up and leave the classroom when he completed his task. He needed to leave on a quiet term without interrupting the classroom and creating suspicion.
"I see. Well, then welcome, Kyle. Please take off your Alive gear; even though this is a liberal art gaming class, I would appreciate it if you didn't use it while in class unless I allow it."
Kiyro reluctantly raised his Alive gear and placed it on his cap. This was going to be a bit harder than he expected to keep in contact with his teammates.
"Now then, today we will be studying the continuation of game design from our last lesson." The professor picked up an erasable marker and began writing on the board. "The designer creates an experience for the players to enjoy. It's not only the story, the gameplay, mechanics, and music. As a player, we all want to know what it is like to live in our character's shoes. With that being said, as a designer, we need to create a world and events that let players experience the different emotional roller coasters that the main character will experience throughout their journey. The more our senses are pulled into the game, the more the players will feel like they are the character. In the past, we had games that only stimulated our visual and sound senses. Now in virtual reality, all five of our senses are stimulated, bringing it close to reality. Whether it be a full-on deep immersion to the game giving you the interaction of a lifetime or a dangerous addiction that replaces drugs."
The professor draws a bubble on the top and a line downwards towards the stick figure of a human.
"One must create a world for the experience to take place. From the world, different stories, characters, aesthetics, and spaces must be created." He formed more circles around the experience bubble. "It is up to the designer or a group of designers to create the game. In a sense, a designer must remember that creating a game is not the only process. One must consider how to profit off the game, which the client would be, and how they will pitch their games to their team. With their respective team in mind, a schedule must be created, and a game document that could be hundreds of pages must be written for the ideas to be set in stone. It is the designer's responsibility to take the initiative to lead the team towards the end goal of the game. They are the only ones who fully understand the game they have created from start to finish."
The students listened diligently, interested in what the professor had to say. Even Kiyro was interested in what the professor was going to say. "In the end, a game designer creates the game based on realityt."
"A game must start somewhere." The professor raised up his closed marker and pointed to his head. "It all starts with the idea that is put into action from a simple decision. A spark of energy that is converted into a reality."
One of the students raised their hands.
"Yes, Tim?"
"Professor Stein, what are the main reasons designers make games?"
The surrounding students chuckled at his question, thinking the answer was simple.
"That question in itself sounds simple but is a difficult question to answer." Then Professor Stein walked back and forth in silence, deep in thought. "Everyone has a different answer to that question. Some are simple, others are complex, but most of the answers would be for entertainment or fun. Think of it like this, as a designer, you are creating a world you want to experience, fantasize about, and possibly live in, just like an author that thinks up a story to write for their books. At first, it is only for themselves, but as the audience grows, they share that same world and experience with the people around them. In that story and experiences, some designers created their world to emphasize something important to the players by creating hidden messages that the players have to uncover. Other times it's for the immersion and an escape from reality for the weary souls living in the real world. The list goes on and on, each different and unique."
Kiyro raised his hands with a question in mind.
"Yes, Kyle?"
"Then, sir, what about the game Growth? Someone like you who has designed games before and teaches the class. What are your thoughts on the reason behind the game's creation?"
"That is a bit of a difficult question to answer. However, I noticed some things about the game of Growth and the division of the Two gears."