Act 4: Media Power
ACT 4 Media Power!
“I guess it has begun now.”
A man muttered as he looked at the clock on the wall. With a bushy beard and thick potbelly, it was a man in his late thirties wearing pyjamas. He looked like any ordinary father living next door. And he was actually a common neighbourhood ajusshi. But that was in reality. Once he entered through the magic door to a fantasy world called New World he was Raiden, the leader of the Hermes alliance filled with hundreds of people. Yes, this ajusshi was the leader of the Hermes alliance Raiden! It was currently 8 o’clock in the morning. It was still too early to be active in the game. Raiden’s normal pattern was to log on at 12 o’clock. However he had been unable to sleep last night.
“It has to work……”
It wasn’t possible to hide his anxiety as Raiden muttered before taking out a cigarette. The reason he had a sleepless night was because today was ‘the day.’ It was the formal debut stage of the Hermes alliance’s secret society!
“Today I will see if the secret suicide squad can play an active role.”
Raiden had a lot of expectations towards the suicide squad. No, to be exact they were the only thing he could rely on. It wasn’t necessary to explain but the Hermes alliance was in massive debt after the lawless port was destroyed. That was not the whole problem. At the time, Raiden had gathered funds from the alliance to invest into construction of the lawless port. The amount of profit gained from the lawless port depended on the funds invested. If it had gone as planned and they were able to recapture Seutandal then the dividends would be enormous. The lawless port seemed to be a business plan with a 100% success rate. In addition, Seutandal would be a golden goose once it was recaptured! Everybody in the Hermes alliance invested with the dream of making a fortune and the lawless port was able to be created in a short amount of time. But the lawless port was smashed before it could give any profits. At the same time, the investments of the alliance members became toilet paper overnight. Whether it be dozens of gold or hundreds of gold, all the alliance members’ blames were directed at Raiden. That wasn’t all. The person who most believed in the success of the lawless port plan was Raiden himself! He believed that shares in the lawless port was a guaranteed blue chip (stock where growth, profitability and stability was secured) and he believed that the one who held the most shares would profit the most. He had mobilized his offline and online contacts and prepared money to invest. Thanks to that, Raiden was backed into a corner in both New Word and reality.
‘But if the suicide squad succeeds today……’
As much as 10,000 gold (from the lawless port stolen goods) would come into his possession. It wouldn’t be enough to settle all his problems but it would turn off the heat.
‘There is also one more important thing aside from the money coming in today. I will be able to gauge if the secret society will be profitable. In the words of Jewel, obtaining the 10,000 gold won’t be a problem. It will be possible to recover all our losses and have a reserve source of income if they prove successful today.’
“And once again Seutandal…… Huhuhu, hahaha!”
Raiden cackled at the thought of the rosy future. Then the door suddenly opened and a sharp voice could be heard.
“Shut up! You’re laughing when I just received an early morning call from debt collectors!”
A woman who was Raiden’s wife yelled into his ear. Raiden winced and closed his mouth before stuttering.
“Oh, no, this is…..”
“I really can’t live like this. How could you borrow money without saying a word to me? Do you know what it is like receiving called from loan companies? If you don’t pay it off within a week then they will send someone!”
“U-understood. It can be solved today if everything goes well.”
“Bah, are you certain? I’ll tell you in advance but I can’t live with debt-stricken people. If you don’t fix it in a few days then I will take the children and go to my parent’s house!”
His wife shouted as she poked him angrily.
‘Damn, I have to pay off that borrowed money.’
Raiden continued smoking while sighing. He had stayed up all night chain smoking. He couldn’t possibly eat until he heard news of Jewel’s victory. Well, if he didn’t pay back the money then his wife wouldn’t be setting the table for him. Raiden restlessly pulled out some milk from the refrigerator. He was drinking the milk when his son turned on the TV and its sound could be heard.
“Today’s game exclusive scoop will be a special live broadcast!”
‘Game exclusive scoop? Is it already that time?’
Raiden drank the milk and turned his eyes towards the TV.
Originally the game exclusive scoop was broadcasted once a week during the evening. But since viewers started to protest that the information was coming in too late so a program called ‘game scoop hot issues’ began in the morning hours.
‘Anyway this is a special live broadcast? Had an event begun in New World?’
“I’m curious about the special live broadcast. Since it wasn’t in the schedule.”
The female reporter asked the question that Raiden was wondering about. And the host laughed and nodded.
“It’s not a surprise that you don’t know. I heard some talk a few hours ago and decided in a hurry. But there is no doubt that every minute will be interesting. I’m very curious in the results as well.”
“Ah, your words have made me even more curious. The audience is also interested so please tell me quickly.”
“I understand. But before that, have you seen the video titled ‘Crime File’ which spread like wildfire over the internet yesterday?”
“Yes, I received a notification from my friend and watched it. Since beginners from Schudenberg often visit the Haruna camp. I’ve also been there before but the NPC captain of Haruna was really beautiful and kind. Seeing such a good NPC get killed was really heartbreaking. Well, a new NPC appeared not long afterwards in the game but he is just a bearded grandfather.”
The female reporter said with a deliberately angry expression. Then the host laughed loudly and nodded.
“Hahaha, I know as well. While users have killed NPCs before, this is the first time an NPC village was decimated so it is was a shocking incident. But the even more shocking contents of the video was the advance attack notice.”
“A village called Lancel.”
“That’s correct. Lancel village is located in the Argus Mountains in Schudenberg. After building the village, it has been rapidly growing thanks to its eager residents. In addition, there are many unique goods and a variety of species so the village has been quite famous these days.”
“Are they going to be killed like the residents of Haruna camp?”
“Yes, that might be so. But where there is evil in the world, there is also justice.”
The host shook his finger and spoke.
“The thieves who appeared on the video are strong and vicious. When they said they would attack Lancel, I thought all the users would run away. However justice is still alive. Surprisingly many people have decided to oppose the bandit group! And even more amazingly, the one who rallied them to stand against the thieves is none other than Dark Wolf!”
“Omo, isn’t Dark Wolf the one who became a hot topic after Seutandal rose?”
“That’s correct. The hero who caused Seutandal to rise will make an appearance on the game exclusive scoop! After he heard the news, he ran to Lancel and rallied the users to fight against the bandit group. And the combat scene of him fighting against the thieves will be aired live!”
Then a lamp which was placed in front of the host started shining.
The person standing nearby wearing earphones received instructions and nodded, causing the host to shout.
“The images are being transmitted now. We will see the true identities of the thieves who attacked the NPC village and see if Dark Wolf can stop them, creating a new legend. All the viewers are cheering for Dark Wolf.”
Puhak!
Milk spouted like a fountain from Raiden’s mouth as he idly watched the screen. The face which filled Raiden’s 54 inch LED TV was Jewel.
After seeing Jewel’s face on the TV, his six year old son asked.
“Eh? Isn’t that the person who appeared in a video with Daddy before? Isn’t that ajusshi Daddy’s subordinate? Then Daddy is also bad like him?”
“Oh, no! I don’t know that person!”
Raiden wildly shook his head.
———————————————————————————————
‘Huhuhu, that Jewel still doesn’t know what is going on.’
Ark laughed at Jewel’s confused expression. Yes, this was the method Ark came up with 18 hours before. In order to oppose the Crime File circulating the internet, he had received the help of the broadcasting station!
Ark had been desperate before he thought of that method. If the Crime File scared users off then Lancel would only have 300 people protecting it. On the other hand, Jewel’s force numbered 500 people. Furthermore, they also had high levels. No matter how he thought, he couldn’t think of a method to win. In order for the mission to be a success, he had to ensure that the damage to NPCs and the village remained below 30%. But in order to reduce damage to the residents, he would have to sacrifice the village and vice versa. Those two challenges weren’t compatible at the same time. And if that quest failed then the quest he spent 1 and a half years on would also fail. That wasn’t all. If the town received a serious blow then the real estate price would slump! Even if Ark managed to stop the thieves, Ark had no choice but to submit to considerable damage.
‘The only way to minimize the damage is through the users……’
While they were only level 100~150, it would be possible to do something with those numbers. Furthermore, if the users died then Ark wouldn’t receive any damage. He