Chapter 127: The Magical Connector in Ras’s Hands, and PC Communication

“Please explain, if you can.”

Ras smiled comfortably as he spoke, since Schutz seemed far too nervous. He understood why, but he had not called him here to eat him alive. No, since he planned to draw Schutz’s invention and abilities into the company, perhaps it was something similar.

“Yes... Well, it’s nothing special. It’s ‘negotiation.’”

“Ah! As expected.”

Tata immediately reacted to Schutz’s answer. He had wondered if that was the case but had not been certain, so now that he heard it directly from the person himself, his expression looked refreshed.

“What is this negotiation?”

Ras had learned magic, so he could roughly guess, but since he had not received a formal education, he could not be certain about the terminology.

“Ah. It refers to one of the major elements of magic.”

Tata realized they had been speaking in terms only they understood, looked apologetic, and began explaining.

It was not a difficult concept. This magic had rules like other fields of study, but because its origin came from “beings,” it had variability in many areas. Mana consumption was especially affected by this point.

Because of that, it could be adjusted to some extent through “negotiation” with a “being.” However, this was absolutely not easy.

The difference between humans and beings was greater than the difference between ants and humans. They were hard for each other to understand, and the scale of their existence was also different. By common sense, it was almost impossible for an ant to grant what a human wanted.

However, there were always exceptions, and the price granted by a satisfied being through such exceptions was so enormous to ant-like humans that wizards could never abandon that faint possibility and always kept trying.

“But exactly what condition did you use to succeed in the negotiation?”

Tata asked this again in a tone full of curiosity. Successful negotiations were rare enough that each case was recorded in magic books, so merely seeing someone who had succeeded firsthand was quite moving to him.

Naturally, there was no way he would not be curious about how Schutz had succeeded in that negotiation. Ras felt the same. Although he had learned through private lessons, he was still a wizard.

Schutz awkwardly scratched his cheek. It was because Tata, and even the chairman of the great Meta Hardware, were looking at him with gazes half admiring and half curious. Still, it did not feel bad.

“Well... I didn’t offer some amazing condition. I just thought I had a chance if it was related to Spirit Stone.”

“What?”

Ras wondered what that meant. Then, after hearing Schutz’s explanation, he unconsciously let out a sound of admiration.

Compared to humans, beings were far too vast and great. Yet the fact that they bothered mingling with ant-like humans and granting power meant they also wanted something.

Of course, there was the price paid when borrowing magic, but something even more important existed. That was “awareness.”

No one knew why, but beings wanted humans to be aware of them. In the past, people thought they wanted worship, but according to modern research, worship was merely one method of being aware of a being. They wanted awareness in any direction.

However, since beings also had tendencies, there were differences in which methods of awareness they preferred.

“I focused on the fact that this game called Spirit Stone used spirits as its subject.”

“Ah...”

Spirits were said to be extremely dry compared to other beings, almost like laws. Even so, spirits were still beings that wanted “awareness.” No, because they had fewer other interests or desires, they might thirst even more for others to be “aware” of them in any form.

“As expected, the spirits were very satisfied with Spirit Stone.”

Schutz had now completely shed his earlier intimidated air and wore a triumphant expression, as though recalling how he felt when the negotiation succeeded.

Still, Ras truly had not expected the beings known as spirits to be satisfied ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠with a game he created. Of course, he had used spirits as subject matter, but they were fictional forms completely different from actual spirits.

However, to vast beings like spirits, such fine details did not matter. What mattered was simply that many people recalled spirits and felt various emotions toward them.

“So I kept sending thoughts that this machine would help people enjoy Spirit ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Stone and let more people enjoy Spirit Stone. Then they accepted the negotiation.”

Schutz spoke as if it had been easy, but negotiating with a being was absolutely not easy. Like using magic, one had to endlessly send thoughts and feelings to a being without knowing whether it was listening, and hearing a being’s answer was even more difficult.

Ras was also a wizard, but he had never heard anything like an answer from a being.

So even the fact that Schutz felt the spirits were satisfied showed that he was a wizard with remarkable sensitivity. Ras looked at this raccoon wizard again.

Still, it was true that the contents of the negotiation were not especially impressive. Moreover, Schutz had not done anything for that condition. Strictly speaking, Ras, who developed the game, had paid that price.

Ras had already made up his mind to obtain the magical connector somehow, but he had felt a slight burden, wondering if he was taking away an individual’s invention. Now that burden suddenly eased.

In any case, afterward, Ras used appropriate pressure and incentives to make Schutz join the company and bring the magical connector under the company.

Of course, since he was not a robber, he did not simply swallow it whole. Naturally, he paid Schutz a considerable price.

In truth, considering the world this connector would create, three million Del could be called an absurdly small amount. But to Schutz, who did not know that future world and had simply been making and selling the devices by cottage industry methods, it was an enormous fortune.

Of course, he might regret it a little later. But he would not be able to think Ras had known such a future would come, so he would not be able to resent him.

And in reality, opening that future was Ras’s role, so the future value of the magical connector would be something Ras created.

“Then please proceed with the mass-production plan.”

“Yes. Understood.”

Ras called Utaro and had him prepare a magical connector factory. Since Schutz had already been making and selling this, there was nothing to develop.

If production difficulty were high, raising the yield rate might take some time, but based on Schutz’s explanation, that was not the case either. Magical devices were simply unfamiliar; as long as they had the materials, they were easy enough to produce.

Then again, it could not be a complicated machine if an office wizard, not even a magical engineer, had made and sold it through a neighborhood workshop with almost no ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠defective products.

“How long will it take?”

“One month should be enough.”

Meta Hardware’s own capabilities had also grown considerably, so they no longer needed to run around looking for factories like before. They already owned many factories, had wide connections through those factories, and their reputation had grown high enough that a few words inside the company would quickly bring them a usable factory.

Ras felt his heart pound as he proceeded with magical connector production.

Naturally, that was because he would become the only one in the world monopolizing the production of machines that connected to internet communication. Of course, for now, it was merely an item that allowed users to play a game’s Network Mode cheaply, so no one could sympathize with Ras’s feelings.

“Mr. Schutz, please solve the feedback issue between the magical connector and the server. For technical issues, you should be able to receive help from the engineers on that side.”

“Yes...”

Schutz looked somewhat overwhelmed, but he had already received a huge sum of money and joined the company, so he had no choice but to nod.

“Don’t worry too much. I’ll quickly hire additional personnel for the Magical Technology Team as well.”

Using Schutz’s arrival as an opportunity, Ras established a wizard department in Meta Hardware. He did not know whether there would be more magic-related matters in the future, but the company’s scale continued to grow. Moreover, once the internet era arrived, an unspecified number of people would be connected, which would inevitably raise the possibility of such issues.

This was, after all, a fantasy world where magic existed.

Of course, there was also the method of using outside personnel like Tata, but since the company had many secrets to protect, Ras judged that it would be better to spend more money and create an internal department outright.

Once the magical connector existed, Ras accelerated the PC communication ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠business.

Ras designed its basic framework. At times like this, his memories and experiences from Earth truly were convenient. He did not know the fine details or specialist knowledge, but merely remembering how he used community sites was enough to immediately present a general direction.

Ras proposed forms for bulletin boards and link systems.

The structure went from major categories down into smaller ones, but as long as users could freely enter and exit through links, the basic framework could be considered complete.

Unlike Earth, this world had mice from a fairly early stage, and they were already widely used, which helped implement Earth’s system. A mouse was a device highly compatible with graphical interfaces.

For now, Ras first created bulletin boards related to Spirit Stone. After all, most current network users were people playing Spirit Stone’s Network Mode.

The basic form resembled the mobile game cafés Ras was familiar with. There were strategy boards, information-sharing boards, match request boards, and free boards.

One different feature was the chat room.

Ras was not from the chat room era, but he had heard that old internet culture could not be discussed without it. Complete strangers gathered and talked all day, and that alone was so fun that they lost track of time and ended up with phone bills of several million won.

Honestly, when he heard this story on Earth, he did not understand it at all. But after coming to this world and chatting a little with opponents through Spirit Stone’s Network Mode, he began to understand what it felt like.

In a world where the internet had become too ordinary, people felt nothing special toward the humans beyond the screen. But in the past, the virtual world itself carried a strong romance.

And because there was little suspicion, people mostly accepted what the other person said as it was, pictured it in their minds, and let their imagination swell. It did not feel like talking between ordinary humans just like oneself, but as though one had also become a special existence and was mingling with special beings like characters from a manga.

Also, before the internet, the barrier to meeting and talking with people was quite high. No, that barrier still existed now. There were not many people who could casually speak to a complete stranger while walking down the street.

But being able to immediately contact others without any such barrier was a tremendous thrill.

All stimulation became dull once people grew used to it, so people nowadays did not understand it well. But for those who had lived a long time feeling that barrier, chatting could only feel incredibly fascinating and fun.

And there was one more thing: the pleasure of anonymity. In reality, people had to be careful about every word and action, but online, they could become madmen and say whatever they wanted.

Of course, nowadays, netiquette existed, and people knew there were things to be careful about online too, such as doxxing and IP tracing, and that anonymity was not complete. So they were careful in their own way. But in the early days, people did not know such things, so it felt incomparably free.

(Translator’s Note: Netiquette — Internet etiquette; social rules and manners for online communication. )

(Translator’s Note: Doxxing — Revealing someone’s personal information online without permission.)

(Translator’s Note: IP tracing — Tracking an internet protocol address to identify or locate a user or connection source.)