Chapter 5 - Two Worlds Collide
I opened my eyes... to a beautiful girl.
I know that probably makes no sense, but I have no idea what just happened either.
The moment I chose my faction, I was enveloped in a blue light—a phenomenon known as “teleporting” to another space, something you could never experience in the real world no matter how hard you tried. I was sent off to a new land, crying out in sheer wonder. Then, as the torrent of light faded, I opened my eyes, which I had squeezed shut against the brilliance, and—
""Huh?!""
She was so close—practically in my face. It was a miracle I could even register her as a “beautiful girl” before her unfamiliar face filled my entire vision.
"—Wha—?!"
"—Gah—?!"
With surprising calmness, I pieced together the situation: a girl had been running and crashed right into me the instant I teleported in front of her. Due to our height difference, her forehead slammed into my chin, and I was sent flying backward before being knocked out cold.
Man, this game is something else. I actually got knocked out. See? Right below my HP bar, there’s a status effect icon, probably indicating that I’m incapacitated…
"Ngh…! A-Are… are you okay?!"
Though she was holding her forehead, it seems the blow wasn’t as critical for her as it was for me. The girl rushed over, her face etched with panic. As she peered down at me with concern, I could see she was a stunningly beautiful girl, so perfect she almost looked crafted.
Her dazzling blonde hair seemed to have its own shimmering effect, and her large, amber eyes shone like embedded jewels. Every feature was the very picture of “adorable”; it was a cliché, but she looked like she’d stepped right out of a 2D world. Then again, Arcadia’s graphics are incredibly realistic, so maybe saying she could put an idol to shame would be more fitting.
In any case, in this game, you can customize your appearance in any way you want, except for your gender and voice. I, for my own reasons, created an avatar that was basically my real face with only a few minor tweaks, but I’m probably in the minority.
I hear it takes some getting used to your avatar’s movements if your height and other features are too different from your real self, but other than that, [Arcadia] lets you become a completely different person with relative freedom.
Which means that the beautiful girl in front of me, who looks to be in her mid-teens, is almost certainly a “crafted beauty.” But honestly, I couldn't care less. Worrying about the “person behind the character” is a complete and utter waste of time. If the beautiful girl I see is, in fact, a beautiful girl, then it’s far more rewarding to simply enjoy her as such.
The number of people who wouldn’t create a handsome or beautiful character in a game with character creation is definitely small. This world will surely be a feast for the eyes. Speaking of which, the male-to-female ratio, since you can't change your gender—oh, the stun wore off.
"Um…"
I hadn't been able to reply simply because I was in a forced stun, but as I silently and slowly sat up, the girl’s eyes flickered with anxiety.
Man, the range of facial expressions is insane. It's getting hard to believe this is a game.
"Ah, I'm fine. It was a shock, but you don't feel any pain in this game, right?"
I forced a smile, consciously making my voice sound cheerful and gentle. It seemed my people skills, honed through countless customer service jobs, were working as intended; I could see the tension leaving the girl’s face.
"Oh, is that so? I'm so glad… Um, I’m very sorry. I thought no one would be at the starting point, so I was just running around…!"
The girl explained as she looked around. I followed her lead and scanned our surroundings. We were in the middle of a dense forest. From a cave straight into a forest, I thought, but upon closer inspection, we were in a clearing that had been neatly prepared, as if to scream, “This is a safe zone.”
"Ah, so you were running around and I teleported right in front of you."
"Y-Yes. It really surprised me… Ah, no, I mean, I’m the one who surprised you."
"Well, it has been three years since the game launched. You wouldn't expect to see anyone at the starting point…"
Hm?
"Wait, are you… starting today too?"
Three years since release. The dedicated hardware costs a fortune. And on top of that, she chose the overwhelmingly unpopular Istia.
For us both to be new players at the exact same time… isn't that incredibly unlikely? The girl seemed to have the same thought, as she blinked in surprise a moment after I did.
"Wow, that’s amazing. What a coincidence!"
For some reason, the girl beamed happily as she said that.
…This tentatively-beautiful girl has the voice and mannerisms of a beautiful girl, too. I’ll upgrade her to a presumably-beautiful girl. It doesn’t cost anything to dream, after all.
So, I’ve managed to hit a rare drop more precious than any in an online game and have an encounter with a presumably-beautiful girl. But… what do I do now?
I’m a perfectly healthy young man of a certain age. If this leads to us adventuring together, I’d be all for it. But while it might be easy in an analog game, asking a girl out in a world this indistinguishable from reality is, in my book, just as hard as hitting on her for real.
As a veteran of the part-time job battlefield, I pride myself on having polished my communication skills to a decent degree. However, with my sights set solely on [Arcadia], I never had the time to even try getting a girlfriend.
I’m a total scrub with zero experience. I can handle customer service or work-related interactions, but when it comes to personal conversations with women, my mind draws a complete blank.
"Y-Yeah. It really is a coincidence, huh?"
See? All I can manage to squeeze out is some low-IQ agreement that does nothing to extend the conversation. What could she possibly find enjoyable about talking to a guy like me? I can only despair at the situation, forced to rely on the smiling girl to lead the conversation—
"Since we’re here, would you like to party up for a bit?"
—Just as I was about to despair, salvation came from the girl herself.
Should I be happy or feel pathetic? Either way, in that moment, the “presumably-beautiful girl” with the dazzling smile earned the simple, undisputed title of “beautiful girl” in my mind.