Uh? Need help locating the server? What does that mean? Any VRMMORPG needs the internet to run; if we aren't online, why can I still play? It makes no sense. I'll just take my headset off and go to sleep.
I tried to put my hands around my head and signaled my body to take the headset off since the HUD screen froze and did not want to let me log out. UH? I got a nasty surprise when my hands touched my ears.
What? The line between VR and reality had gotten thin, but this time, I could swear I felt my hands over my ears instead of the headset I had on. I tried one more time until I panicked.
"Is that a new hand signal, sir?"
Albedo was speaking to me. What the heck? NPCs never spoke unless you interacted with them. What was going on? Don't tell me it's one of those popular things happening in WebNovels lately. Have I been Isekaid?!
"No, I'm just trying to open the menu but can't."
"Do you need a moment alone?"
"No, but I do have a task for you, Albedo. Go outside and check the surroundings of the headquarters. I fear we might have been teleported somewhere else."
"As you wish, sir."
Albedo left the room carrying his notebook as always. I had a weird feeling of self; my body felt lighter than it used to be. I was so different, and yet it did not feel wrong.
My class was supposed to be the strongest in the game, but would it be in this world? Also, was there more like me? Did other players get summoned here with me? Or was I the only one?
I would know once I got outside and found the answers for myself. It would be nice to meet another reincarnation. Getting the hang of being sent into another world with my powers felt unreal, yet I always felt pain when I pinched my cheek.
Now, I regret not changing my avatar to something more intimidating. The way my avatar looked was embarrassing for a leader. What would the NPCs say?! "Our leader is a Femboy?!"
Maybe I can still switch my clothes for something more formal with my staff. I picked up my staff and browsed around the limited menu until I found an avatar customization option, and then I picked my formal clothing.
It suited me better. So all that was left was to check how many headquarters staff had come with me. Everyone except Albedo vanished when the timer marked zero.
I once again grabbed my staff and pushed the summon button, immediately calling for everyone in the headquarters to show up. Soon enough, a portal opened, and a tiny Elf appeared from it.
It was Jane, and I was happy to see them, but before we could even get a little cozy, more and more people showed up through the door. Woah! Calm down there! I knew I called for everyone, but Jesus, I wasn't expecting so many of my minions to be here!
The other seven guardians came in and formed a line beside Jane. Behind them was another line and then another and another. It was incredible. I had at least one hundred maids, all the guardians, and a lot of disposable middle-class shadows.
The strongest of the Guardians, "Ray," broke the silence by saying.
"We have all gathered here as you wished, sir! All the Guardians, Maids, and even the Shadows have been summoned as you wished!"
"Ngugh, Y-yes, I see that. Thank you all for showing up when I called for you. I do have an important announcement to make. I am just waiting for Albedo to return from the outside with its report."
As if he had been peeping, waiting for the perfect timing, Albedo showed up from a portal, holding his notebook open with a pen in his left hand.
"I have returned with your report, sir. If I may be excused, I'm surprised to announce that we are no longer surrounded by the other clans, nor are we in the desert like before."
That confirmed it; other players might still be around but were not teleported among us. What a pain in the butt. Now, what was I supposed to say? I don't know what my new goal is. Should I conquer the world?
"I feared as much. Now, Guardians, listen up! We have all been teleported to this new land, and we are still yet to determine if it's a bug or something a little more serious. I expect you all to keep guarding your posts!"
A unanimous answer caught me by surprise.
"Yes, sir!"
Albedo knew I was a little out of words, so I left it up to him to begin dismissing people; he knew what everyone did, so I left him to handle it.
I hadn't lied, though; what was my goal? Did I want to return to Japan? I had no wife or kids to go back to nor any friends. Still, conquering this world might be too ambitious. I hadn't even been out there; what if another power lay there? One that could beat me?
I couldn't risk it, so first, I would have to scan the area for threads, and then I could bring any plans for world domination. How would I disguise myself, though? Should I pretend like I'm an adventurer?
All those thoughts crossed my mind as I headed to my room, accompanied by Therese. My personal maid had high stats herself; maybe bringing her along would be a good idea; for now, I just wanted to go outside and see the world for myself.
So I grabbed my coat from my room and headed outside before being stopped by little Jane as she warned me about my safety.
"Lord Naofumi! It might be too risky to go outside! Please do not leave us!"
"I will be fine; if you're worried, come with me. I just want to see the outside, Jane."
They couldn't stop me for very long and soon accompanied me outside along Therese. I opened the heavy entrance door and saw it was about Navy sunset time. The outside world was beautiful.
It was better than anything I had seen before, better than ray tracing or any Mvidia graphics card ever. I walked a little more outside until I was in an open area with enough space to use my fly spell.
With one substantial jump, I launched myself into the air and used fly to keep flying upwards. Jane followed right behind me with her Nimbus cloud. I was dumbfounded by the scenery around me.
I was already getting extremely high up, and I could not even begin to notice a curvature. Jane struggled to breathe beside me, so I used a spell to let him breathe in space as we continued going up until we could finally see the entire world from the sky.
This world was massive; considering my flying speed, I guessed it was at least four times as big as Earth just by timing the flying time it took me to get here at almost Mach 100.
"Sir, it's freezing cold up here. What are we looking for?"
"Warm shield. We are looking at our future territory, Jane; this will all be ours. Can you even picture it?"
"All of it? Isn't it a little big?"
"It is, but if we are not the ones to conquer it, then who will? Don't you want our clan name to be known across the globe?"
"Yes! I will do anything so the clan gets the respect it deserves!"