2. Still, We Live On - (3)
2. Still, We Live On - (3)
***
As soon as I settled into the capsule shaped like a massive black sphere, it gently enveloped me.
The first impression was striking in how convenient it all was, as if it wanted to get me connected to Another World the moment I sat down.
————————
In an instant, my vision went dark, and at the same time a strange sensation wrapped around me.
Simultaneously, a dazzling font embroidered in gold on a pure white background filled my view.
[To a Wider World of Adventure]
A screen that looked like it belonged in a game's standard opening. The scenery of a world I'd never seen before flashed by, brilliantly seizing my vision—but only for a moment.
The instant I felt warm sunlight, I was already standing in some inexplicable space.
"..."
All of it felt more natural than I'd expected.
There was a strange sense of dissonance, sure, but it was so vividly real that I could hardly believe it was virtual reality even while experiencing it firsthand.
"This is... virtual reality?"
I muttered the words aloud, dazed. And what came out was a woman's beautiful voice—similar to my real voice, yet unmistakably different.
I fluttered my hand, took a few steps.
An unfamiliar, oddly alien sensation ran through my whole body.
I didn't understand the detailed operating principles or systems, but it felt far too real to dismiss as just a game, and that piqued my interest.
The space, which looked like a bustling city district, was full of people besides me.
Every one of them was brimming with personality, as befitting Another World, an RPG. From greatswords so huge they could hide a person's body, to one-handed swords, bows, crossbows, spears, axes, katanas, maces, magic wands—people wore countless varieties of armaments.
As I looked around at them, I suddenly wondered what my own weapon was.
The moment the thought crossed my mind, I felt a familiar sensation in my hand.
—!
My breath stopped before I knew it.
Slowly raising my hand, I saw a weapon of an all-too-familiar shape dangling from my arm.
'...Is this even possible?'
It was a Crescent-Moon Weight.
Could this really be coincidence?
Could this world's original Han Serin—the one who had played this game—actually have been some parallel-world version of me? The coincidence was so absurd that I found myself entertaining the thought.
Among the many people walking the streets right now, I couldn't spot a single person carrying a Crescent-Moon Weight.
It was clearly a niche weapon here too.
And yet the Han Serin who had existed in this world had chosen the same weapon as me.
Even the color of the cord connected to the weight and wrapped around my right arm was gold.
"......"
I let out a hollow laugh, then turned my head to look at the people passing through the city.
Occasionally, I also saw quite a few people in plain clothes with no weapons at all.
Some of them had ordinary faces, but the overwhelming majority had beautiful features that looked practically stamped from a mold. Those faces, the kind that would draw your eye if you met them in reality, all somehow looked similar.
They looked so alike that I wondered if everyone had copied one famous customization preset.
Well, it's a game, so maybe decorating your avatar's appearance was only natural.
"..."
I'd logged into Another World knowing a few things, but I still knew nothing about my character.
I wandered the city looking for something like a mirror. First, I needed to figure out my character.
When I looked into the mirror of a shopfront made entirely of glass, a hollow laugh escaped me before I knew it.
In the mirror stood a woman seemingly painted in white.
A woman with skin so white it was practically pale was staring back at me.
A beauty with long silver hair.
The expression resting on her delicately featured face looked utterly emotionless.
Depending on how one looked at her, that detached expression gave off all sorts of different impressions.
And those appearances were all too familiar to me.
Had the original me who'd been 'Han Serin' been confident in her looks? Even her virtual reality character was modeled after me.
My reflection in the mirror looked exactly like my real self, with no notable differences.
'Rin.'
My favorite character. And now, no longer just a character—the form that had become me.
An appearance that belonged to a real person, yet was unrealistically inhuman.
She'd been designed with an Eastern beauty concept, but I'd put considerable effort into customizing her.
To add a Western touch, I'd changed her originally ebony-dark hair to pure silver and adjusted her features here and there until she looked almost mixed-race.
In this virtual reality, that otherworldliness probably wouldn't draw much attention. But outside this game console, my appearance was strange no matter who looked at it.
Which was why I hadn't even been able to bring myself to go outside for days.
What let me remain unfazed by the countless stares in the game world was the sense of omnipotence filling my body.
Because I had power.
I didn't care about the eyes watching me.
In that world, I had possessed enough power to stand above everyone.
But...
Now, in this frail body where I could feel nothing at all, could I endure the stares of others so easily?
That was what I feared now.
I still needed more time to accept that reality.
As I carefully stroked my cheek while watching my reflection, a laugh suddenly slipped out.
The silver-haired woman in the mirror wore the same mocking smile.
A woman with a smile so cold it sent a chill through even me as I watched.
But that look wasn't so bad.
— Black Ark.
The name of the world where I'd spent years upon years. In other words, the name of the original game.
Because in the world of Black Ark, I had always looked like this.
Wearing a cold smile, rejecting anyone who approached, simply wandering the world alone.
'No need... to remake it.'
When I'd first booted up Another World, I'd thought about deleting any existing character and starting over. That thought had vanished before I knew it.
In truth, this character was no different from the real me now.
A form that looked as if my Black Ark self had been transplanted here.
The familiar weight on my right arm.
I spun the Crescent-Moon Weight in circles as I walked.
As an RPG, it was bound to have various hunting grounds.
It would definitely feel different from the vivid sensations I'd known before.
But still, it seemed like it might relieve, even a little, this feeling like a deep thirst building up inside me.
......
"...There are no portals?"
I'd been looking for something like a portal, but when I confirmed that no such thing existed in this game, only a hollow laugh came out.
When I opened the world map and looked over the terrain and cities scattered across it, the sheer scale was staggering.
'How the hell am I supposed to get around?'
I couldn't understand what the game's creator was thinking.
As I worked through the holographic settings interface and looked for transportation, I found an option quickly.
—Neeeigh!
The animal nuzzled its head against my hand affectionately even while I stood still.
Before I knew it, I was stroking its pure white mane, blinking dazedly.
A mount. The means of transportation was all too familiar.
It was a mount that reminded me of the world of Black Ark.
And what's more, it was a horse with the appearance of a unicorn.
A normal white horse, but with what looked like folded wings.
'Arianat?'
A horse that flies through the sky.
The Arianat was faster than an ordinary horse, but its real advantage was being able to fly over different terrain and shorten travel routes.
In the lore of Black Ark, it was known as a horse that few possessed. But for some reason, in this virtual reality, I had something similar.
As I stared blankly at the horse still nuzzling its face against my hand, a thought suddenly struck me.
Isn't this virtual reality game too similar to the world of Black Ark?
But that thought was brief. I naturally climbed onto the horse and opened the world map to a nearby hunting ground.
'Darkened Elf Forest.'
—Neeeigh!!
The horse let out a cry, then began moving at incredible speed.
A system where, once you set coordinates, the mount automatically travels there.
Everything was similar to Black Ark.
Then, as if suddenly picking up speed, the horse kicked off the ground in rapid succession, and I instinctively grabbed the saddle to steady myself.
——!!
At the final moment of acceleration, it spread its beautiful white wings wide and began to fly through the sky.
Toward the wide world. As I flew swiftly through the sky, feeling the wind rush past refreshingly, a laugh slipped out.
"...This might be fun."
The words escaped me before I knew it, like my true feelings leaking out.
And then that sentiment vanished in an instant.
Whoosh!!
Something came hurtling toward me, cutting through the wind. I registered it in a daze and turned my gaze.
And in that moment, as if by instinct, I twisted my head—and something grazed past my cheek.
"..."
I blankly touched my cheek. I felt no particular pain.
But bright red blood was clearly smeared on my hand.
Ding!
Ding!
Belatedly, something like an alarm rang out, warning me of danger.
[Outlaw 'AhFuckJustDieThen' is approaching you.]