An astonishing game score, great reception by the public and a marvellous future that threatens to put Evanescence as the pioneer of VR technology.
'OrcgameCO... a rather humble British company that created the first virtual reality game for the American new platform Synapse. Investing in this company is making more and more sense now... especially now that I experienced first-hand how wonderful the VR world is'.
Carter was enjoying what was unironically one of his favourite meals, instant ramen. While doing so he decided to do some research about Evanescence.
'There are a lot of complaints from people saying that the game doesn't have enough assistance and is also not very intuitive, unlike most MMOs. I don't play any so I don't know... it looks intuitive enough for me', He thought about the story which was technically inexistent and did some research.
...
Evanescence has a campaign mode, in order to trigger it, you must head to your starting city's guild and start the quest called 'manhunt' this can be done singlehandedly or in a multiplayer set-up with your own party. Bear in mind, the campaign is quite difficult considering VR is a fairly new game set and most people haven't yet gotten used to using their whole bodies as a controller.
'Once again, I felt it was quite smooth... is it because I've never played a game with a keyboard before? In any case... I'll do this manhunt quest once I have levelled up enough'.
...
After you have introduced your payment options, you can head to the guild shop in any of the main cities to exchange your gold eva-coins for goods or cash, it is essentially a trading division within the game, a revolutionary gadget that so far no modern MMO has ever included, essentially creating an economic system within the game that shall attract not only aspiring players but also professionals of all kinds.
'Put my payment details and sell some stuff, I need to try this asap'.
Slurping his last bit of noodle and after having done enough shopping for a whole week, Carter jumped on his bed and donned the helmet again.
[Welcome to the Synapse, Banks]
He started Evanescence right away and after the briefest time of loading, found himself exactly in the same spot where he had been before, except that it was nighttime and the scarce fire posts lit up the city that regardless of day or night, it was still crowded with players of all kinds. In the case of Bellemere, all humans.
"Okay now… where is the guild? I should investigate everything this city offers first".
Weapon shops, food shops, potion shops, music shops, inns.
'What is even the advantage of an Inn?'.
He entered the place and asked the person behind the counter, a bearded man that looked like an NPC.
"10 Cooper coins for one night".
An options screen popped up at the front, it indicated that by sleeping in the inn he could recover all of his health which apparently wouldn't be the case if he just logged out and popped up exactly at the same spot he was before.
'This is quite troublesome... what would happen if I log out in the middle of a fight?' He didn't want to find out just yet.
Taking out from there and heading to different shops, something popped up on his screen, something flashy resembling an illusion. From the corner of his sight, he caught a glimpse of somebody that quickly vanished, leaving only a brief smile on her blur.
'What was that?'
As he continued to walk from shop to shop, it became even more evident that someone was tailing him until he finally caught and realised that whoever followed him all this time was actually a lady. Her shiny blonde hair was only visible for a bit behind her clerical white and navy robes with golden outlining and staff.
She was standing in front of a fountain as if none the wiser; intending to fool who knows who because the person she was tailing was already aware of her presence. A gust of wind aired her attire, which she had to cover in order to not show too much to the daring hero. Banks was standing behind with a deep frown.
The lady turned around with a bright smile and giggled, "You caught me~"
'Cute…'
"My name is Agatha, what is your name, young Warrior?"
'She's an NPC…' He concluded as no person in their right mind would speak like that normally, 'No wonder, you hardly find anyone this beautiful in real life anyway'.
He recalled that he knew someone this beautiful, and she was his ex as well... not good memories.
"I'm Banks, it is a pleasure to meet you, Agatha. Why were you following me?" Crossing his arms he inquired, expecting a rather dull answer from an NPC as it had been thus far with all the shop attendants he had spoken to.
But that didn't happen.
"You looked lost, Banks… I thought you would need a guide. Was it presumptuous of me?" She leaned down shily, twirling her hair and acting all prude. Her slight actions captivated his heart and yet, he still recalled who he was talking to, an NPC, artificial intelligence at best.
'Well programmed though'.
"I'm just looking around. Do you know where the guild is?" He asked her, thankfully enough she appeared as if he really did need a guide and recalled the many people complaining about how little intuitive the game was. Although it wasn't that bad to be allowed free reign, he still had questions.
"Yes, come with me. You can ask me anything you'd like to know, I'll be your guide for the day~"
"Wonderful, if that's not too much to ask, could you tell me a little about this city?".
Following the gorgeous lady's tail, Banks asked question after question while immersing himself in how wonderfully programmed she was, and how delightfully designed her dress was. How perverted her creator was to make her that voluptuous, and so on and so forth.
In the meantime, the players around watched him and their eyebrows twirled in confusion and ridicule.
"The hell is wrong with him? talking to himself? I've seen people getting mad in loneliness but this is ridiculous".
"Leave him alone, you wanna do the camping? I'm rather thrilled".
"Sure let's go! It is hard though".
**
**
"The guild has branches in every city, they're the organism in this continent that helps humans, elves and dwarves get stronger in order to fight against the demons".
"Why aren't there any elves in this city?" Banks reminisced about the character creation and choosing races, although there were other options such as elves, dwarves and tritons... there weren't any of them in this city.
"The elves have their own home in the forest, just like the dwarves live in their dungeons and canyons, according to the Weremore Empire Covenant established two thousand years ago: we are not to live together lest it sparks another great war. The peace we have is not long-lasting and it is better we all respect each other's space" Agatha's words sounded subtle yet afflicted.
"Was there any war before?"
"Of course, many... you could say elves and dwarves were our deadliest enemies for thousands of years, but we had to join hands in order to fight against demons who were an even more dangerous threat. The enemy of my enemy is my friend, so to say?~"
"What about tritons?"
"They're a very concealed race living the archipelagos around the continent, although they do not belong to the covenant, they are also our allies against the demons when they're threatening our coasts instead of the mainland".
While speaking, between question and question, they finally reached the guild. A rather large building in the middle of the city. Distinctive due to its unique bricklaying design and aesthetic. You just couldn't miss it and yet Banks deadpanned at not having found this place much earlier.
Before entering though, he had an important question to ask.
"What do you see me as? like, what am I to you?" He wanted to know what exactly were they for these NPCs. Obviously, for him, this was a game; but he was curious to know what they saw him as.
"You are a young hero sent to this world by the gods~ they have blessed us with your presence and I certainly spect big accomplishments from you, Banks. I can tell you are special".
"How can you tell?"
"... I just can tell~" Her words were shrouded with mysticism and her subtle steps heading inside the guild indicated she didn't want to delve into the topic.
'Sounds like a cheap compliment to me, from all your answers, this is the first time you've actually acted like an AI'.
"Why is this city called Bellemere?"
"Lady Bellemere was a heroic lady who despite being just a farmer, adamantly protected this city against a horde of demons three hundred years ago. Back then it was just a small town called Kreion, a desolate corner of the Weremore Empire. Now, however, it is the bastion of hope where heroes assemble".
"Did she die during the attack?"
"Yes, but her heroic momentum stays with us even today as this is one of the few cities in the continent with an anti-demon barrier".
"…"
He recalled those demonesses from the first day and how they weren't able to approach him while on that mysterious pavement path.
"You're a new hero in these lands so it is understandable that your knowledge is limited, Banks. But please, fret not, all doubts shall be extinguished with time as you thread on this world. Despite how riddled we are with wars and strife, Evanescence is no doubt a beautiful world filled to the brim with life, you will love it".
'I already love you, I mean... it'.
"Are you alive?" He questioned one last question, now inside the building filled with people.
"Of course, dummy~ aren't we speaking? Why the sudden question?"
"Nothing in particular..." He scratched his head with an awkward smile, 'You're too smart to be an AI… I didn't know they were this advanced already, is this some undercover developer? or an actual player that's just following me around?'.
Whenever he checked her up, there was just [Agatha] on top of her head with a bluish colour, so he couldn't tell whether she was an NPC, a player or whatever.
"Is there anything on my face?" She asked, leaning down and giving him a glimpse of her pronounced yet covered cleavage.
"Sorry, you're too beautiful that I lost my judge just briefly, it is okay now".
"Oh my… words will get you nowhere with me, rather, you'll have to show me your heroism!" She evaded him with a blush and walked towards the counter, Banks merely smirked and followed after this 'AI' whom he dared admit, he was quite interested of.