kscans

Chapter 153 - The Next Event

About a month had passed since the end of the Stampede event, and players were buzzing with excitement, wondering what the next event would be.

Starting with the Clan War, the events had started offering prize money. There was an expectation that the next event would similarly offer prize money.

A decent number of people had received prize money for ranking high in contribution points during the Stampede. It wasn't the hundred million per person prize like in the Clan War, but it was still a large sum.

Many players were eagerly preparing, determined to get their hands on a large sum of money in the next event. However, it was not known what kind of event it would be, and they seemed to be enjoying themselves even before the event, making predictions about what would come next.

In that situation, Hayato was being consulted by Diite.

At the Crown Cafe. They were having a conversation through a monitor.

"—And so, I was thinking of making this kind of event, but what do you think, Hayato-kun?"

"First of all, isn't it strange that you’re asking me?"

Diite seemed to have lost her confidence after the incident with Hypnos. To put it mildly, she had reached the point of consulting Hayato about the very meaning of her existence.

Hypnos, her self from a hundred years ago. Leaving aside the fact that he was a backup, his attitude of not treating people as people had shocked her, making her wonder if her old self was like that.

Furthermore, despite being an administrator, she could not grasp or manage everything in the virtual reality. In that case, what exactly was she, and furthermore, what was an AI, she had begun to think about such philosophical matters.

From Hayato’s perspective, he could say that being able to think like that was growth, or rather evolution, but Diite was worried that Hypnos might be her true nature, and recently she had started seeking Hayato's opinion on everything she did.

"Hayato-kun, please don’t say such things and help me out. I’ll pay you."

"First, let's stop trying to solve things with money. And I'll help you if you’re in trouble, but I’m a bit troubled by you revealing the event before the game starts. It’s too much of a spoiler, isn't it?"

"Even so, I have no one to consult but you. I’m worried about whether it’s okay to hold the event as it is."

Hayato wanted to help Diite. But what he was doing was like counseling. He wondered what it meant to be consulted about a game by an AI.

"Besides, your login frequency has been decreasing recently, hasn’t it, Hayato-kun? Sometimes I worry that you’ve already grown tired of virtual reality."

"Sorry about that. I’m busy right now. I’ll log in every day once I have more time."

"I’ve heard. The number of female customers has increased because they’re after Ash-kun, right? And Veru-kun and the others are regulars there too, aren't they? I’m glad your business is prospering. Though it’s lonely that you’re logging in less."

"Well, the coffee still doesn't sell, but the sales of chocolate parfaits and pudding are up. Veru-san and the others bought an apartment nearby, so I guess they’re regulars. It seems they’re starting to seriously work on making a movie lately. It looks tough since they have to do the script, direction, and everything else."

Veru and the others had bought an apartment near the cafe.

Although it was a short walk away, they had most of their meals at Hayato’s cafe.

In the age of resource depletion, people who could cook were rare. Since most meals were covered by nutritional supplements, there was simply no opportunity to cook.

But in this era, ingredients are more abundant than back then. Sufficient food is being produced in the Colony "Farm." In this era, there are also injection-type nutritional supplements called energy tubes, but these are purely for medical use, and no one uses them as a substitute for meals.

For that reason, Veru and the others didn't cook for themselves but came to the cafe to eat. It was sad that they didn't order coffee after their meals, though.

That aside, Hayato was wondering how to restore Diite’s confidence.

As he was about to think, something hit his leg.

"Alright, alright, it’s about time to open the shop. Stop playing around and get to work."

Esha said this while lightly poking Hayato’s leg with a mop. It was as if she were saying he was in the way of her cleaning.

"It feels strange being told that by you, Esha. And haven't you been a lot harsher with me lately? Did something happen?"

"Nothing happened, so it’s just Hayato’s imagination. The kind of imagination you have when you think you forgot to turn off the air conditioner after leaving the house."

"…I don’t really get the analogy, but I’ll just assume it’s my imagination. Well then, Diite-chan, I’ll be logging in tonight, so let’s meet again then."

"Is that so? Then I’ll be waiting. Of course, Esha-kun, please come too."

"Understood. Then I’ll try inviting Ash-san and Ren-san as well. I think they should be free tonight."

"Acknowledged. I look forward to it."

Diite said that, and the monitor went black.

"Sorry, Diite-chan, but let’s open the shop first. I think Veru-san and the others will be here for lunch."

"You’re right. But after that, the female customers will come pouring in for Ash-san. That is a true Stampede."

"We have a connection to Stampedes, don’t we? Maybe I should have Ash work for about two hours a day. Even when customers come in, they just stay, so the turnover rate is bad."

"Don’t you think that would cause something even more terrible to happen?"

Hayato, thinking that would be a problem in its own right, proceeded with preparations to open the shop.

Night.

Hayato, Esha, Ash, and Ren each logged in and woke up in their rooms at the base. Then they moved to the dining hall.

Diite was already sitting in a chair in the dining hall, and she greeted them with a smile when they arrived.

"Hello, it’s been a while. I’ve been waiting for you all."

Diite seemed happy, and she welcomed Ash and Ren, whom she hadn't seen in a while.

After exchanging greetings, they all sat down in their respective chairs.

"Ash-kun and the others, how have you been since then? I heard from Hayato-kun that you’ve been busy, but that there are no particular problems."

"Yeah, no problems. There are some clashes of opinion with Agres and the others, but that’s proof that we’re trying to make a good film. And every day is fulfilling."

"That’s good to hear. And Ren-kun, are you, um, okay? I know a lot happened."

"Oh, you don’t have to worry so much, Diite-san. After that, I apologized to everyone and they forgave me, and I’m even scheduled to have a small part in the next movie. I’m going to become a great actress who surpasses my mother!"

Many things had happened, but everything had been resolved amicably. Hayato didn't know what words had been left in the doll left by Ren’s mother, Kilika. But according to Ash and Ren, it had contained words of apology, gratitude, and hope for the two of them.

Saying they couldn't forget that, Ash and Ren decided not to erase their memories. And that doll is now carefully displayed in Ren’s room in the apartment they bought.

"I’m planning to become an actor who surpasses my dad too. That aside, sorry. I haven’t been able to log in much lately."

Diite shook her head.

"It can’t be helped. To be honest, I’d like you to prioritize this, but if your real life is fulfilling, then it can’t be helped. Well, it would be helpful if you could log in when something happens, though."

"Yeah, when that happens, I’ll log in even if I have to push myself."

Ash and Ren hadn't logged in recently. Their mornings were spent with Veru’s acting lessons, their afternoons with part-time work at the cafe, and their nights were busy scrutinizing scripts and direction. They didn't have time to log in.

And Veru and the other members of the Genesis Dragons hadn't logged in either. Or rather, it was said that they probably wouldn't log in anymore. It was still possible for them to log in, but now, the virtual dragons were run by a simple AI, making them nothing more than simple rare monsters.

For a while, the players were in an uproar, saying that "the person inside is gone" because their movements had become clearly mechanical compared to before, but in the end, they settled on the conclusion that an NPC AI had been put into the dragons during the event.

"By the way, how are the members of the mercenary group doing?"

"The members of Crescent Moon Beast, you mean? They’re fine. Cecil-kun has taken them in and is doing something similar to what you were doing, Ash-kun. It seems they’ve settled into the form of the Empire’s Anti-Dragon Special Forces."

With Ash reconciling with the hardline dragons, the mercenary group Crescent Moon Beast, which Ash had led, was disbanded. Now, there were no hardline dragons, and they were distinguished by whether they attacked people or not.

In the first place, the distinction between the moderate and hardline factions was information that only appeared in the monster encyclopedia, so only a very small number of players knew about it.

Regardless of such factions, a special forces unit led by Cecil called the Dragon Busters, whose purpose was to hunt dragons that attacked people, was newly established in the Empire, and all the members of the group ended up joining it.

It could be said to be a major promotion, as they were now akin to knights belonging to the Empire, rather than the unstable profession of mercenaries.

When the mercenary group disbanded, a grand party was held at this base, and it was quite lively.

Almost a month had passed since then, but no particular problems had occurred. The only thing was that Cecil had started visiting the base more often.

Once they had finished talking, Diite looked around at everyone.

"Now then, if you don’t mind? I had consulted with Hayato-kun about this, but I wanted to hear everyone’s opinion."

Diite began to explain about the next event, Treasure Hunting.