Creation (2)
Chapter 1, Verses 2-4
And the land was formless and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And GM's spirit hovered over the waters.
And GM said, "Let there be light," and there was light.
And the light was good in his sight. Then he separated the light from the darkness.
Rumble, rumble.
The carriage wheels hit a rock or something, jolting hard.
Which only made the pain in my ass even worse.
"Ugh…."
Real fantasy worlds just aren't my thing.
That's why I created the virtual world of Luddera.
But the Luddera access device—that magic tool to enter that world—still needed stabilization before use, so logging in from this bumpy carriage ride was impossible.
Which meant I had no choice but to endure the butt pain, motion sickness, and boredom, sprawled out in here.
To ease the nausea threatening to rise, I stared out the window at the distant horizon.
It seemed to help a bit.
Feeling a little more comfortable, I recalled the early days when Luddera was born.
The first time I created Luddera—this virtual reality magic—was a full ten years ago, when this body of mine was around ten years old.
After hearing Kartesia the red dragon's threats, I used the countless artifacts and spells she gave me to develop Luddera.
A world overflowing with dreams and romance, close to my ideal utopia—like something out of the novels I'd only read about.
I even added fun elements from my past life's VR games for Kartesia to enjoy.
Once it was fully set up and I showed it to her,
"As expected of you, human. I was right to entrust this to you!"
She emerged from Luddera's world with a beaming smile.
"Ask for whatever you desire. I can give you the vast treasures I've hoarded, or even become your family's guardian dragon."
"No need. I didn't do it for a reward anyway."
It was just to survive.
I already had more treasures than I knew what to do with from what she'd given me before. Overflowing, really.
"More importantly, I have a question."
"Hm? What is it?"
"You could create this world yourself, so why teach me the magic and hand over all those treasures to make me do it?"
Dragons could use their special dragon tongue magic, and they had a Dragon Heart granting near-infinite mana.
If the goal was entertainment through a virtual world, wouldn't it be easier for her to make it herself than have me do it?
"Ah, that."
Kartesia nodded slightly, as if she understood the question, and continued.
"I tried using the magic you created myself."
"What? Then why—"
"But I couldn't. I had the guardians, the elves I protect, and even the Empire's mages try, but no one could use it."
Which meant….
"This magic can only be used by you in this world. I don't know the reason yet."
Because I created it? Or because I'm from another world?
A magic only I can use.
It was a strangely complex feeling.
"But if I knew that, couldn't I threaten the world's existence? Why tell me…?"
"Hmph."
Kartesia snorted as if it was absurd.
Meaning such threats meant nothing to her. Or maybe she saw me as someone who wouldn't stoop to that.
Either way, it was the shrewd demeanor of an ancient dragon with millennia of experience.
"……."
She froze like that.
After a brief silence, sweat suddenly beaded on her forehead.
"……I hadn't thought of that."
The sweat drops multiplied.
It was a completely unexpected reaction.
I realized she might not be as terrifying as I thought.
"Just kidding! I value my life too much to do something like that. Haha."
"I-is that so!"
She sighed in relief, patting her chest.
"In any case, your role is crucial. I won't hold back support to develop that world—tell me what you need."
"In that case…."
Was it relief from surviving the dragon's threat?
Or because this dragon who'd kidnapped and threatened me started feeling oddly friendly?
For whatever reason, I wanted to please her—and made the wrong choice.
"There's a way to make Luddera's world even more fun."
The choice to spread access devices with login permissions across the entire continent to increase users.
NPC, Non-Player Character.
Non-player characters—ones the player can't control.
Console games without online features are built around adventuring in worlds made of these NPCs.
The Luddera I created was entirely filled with NPCs I'd set up, all moving by my will.
A world where I controlled everything as I wished. Inside it, I was an almighty god—but there was a problem.
Maybe because everything went my way, or because the NPCs' actions and thoughts couldn't surpass what was in my head, the world wasn't as fun as I'd hoped.
So I thought back to my past life's online games.
Games where countless people logged in simultaneously, meeting and playing together—multiplayer experiences.
If unpredictable beings I couldn't foresee joined the game, I could recapture the fun from my previous life!
With that in mind, I decided to spread Luddera across the continent.
By distributing access device magic tools with login permissions for this world.
"Mass-produce magic tools and spread them…."
Kartesia rested her chin on her hand as she listened.
"Uh, is that a problem?"
"No. Entirely feasible. Nothing is difficult for this ancient dragon. But… why do that? Won't it let low-class rabble in to dirty your world?"
"Because it introduces uncertain elements I can't control."
"Uncertain elements?"
"You've experienced endless amusements, so you know: if you control every situation, it's no fun. The real thrill comes from unforeseen events and dealing with them, right?"
"……Indeed."
Kartesia nodded in agreement.
"Very well. As you say."
After that, she mobilized every route she had to distribute the access devices across the continent.
Thanks to an ancient dragon's efforts, no one knew who owned Luddera or who was spreading the devices.
Even if this world's inhabitants were ignorant of games and VR, it should gain some popularity. That's what I thought back then.
I never imagined it would spread this much in just ten years.
These were the articles I saw in the newspapers after Luddera started spreading.
That's when I realized I'd screwed up.
What had I done?
Had I unleashed poison on this world just for a bit of fun?
Luddera had become more important than anything else on this continent,
and I'd ended up in the position of having to manage that world.
Plus, in an extremely precarious tightrope walk where getting my identity exposed would spell disaster.
"Ahahaha! It's just as fun as ever! A world teeming with all this rabble—I'm glad I trusted your words!"
Kartesia loved the chaos, though.
She'll protect me if things go south later, right?
……She won't ditch me in a pinch because she's always glued to Luddera, will she?