Game Opportunities Become Reality Episode 110
============================================================
Game Opportunities Become Reality Episode 110
28. A New Wind (2)
Unlike on Earth, hacking in this world requires magical knowledge, an understanding of Mana, and high-level mathematical ability, so it can be said to be the domain of Mages, not ordinary people.
The career path most commonly chosen by young Mages who cannot advance beyond the lower circles is the technical field, and technical Mages are divided into the hardware branch, which creates or researches artifacts, and the software branch, which creates programs based on the Hollywood system.
A hacker can be considered a technical Mage of the software branch, and their abilities are not much different from hackers on Earth.
They infiltrate social and communication networks built on Hollywood, and they also breach the backend of virtual world operating sites and programs that use goggles.
However, if it's a large corporation or a national institution, software-branch technical Mages skilled in tracking are attached to them, so if you touch the wrong thing and get caught, you have to be prepared to lose your head.
After all, this world is dominated by feudal states with rigid class systems.
As evidence, when Count Acres and Young Lady Otis from the Prius Republic accessed the fake Opportunity of the President's son, they were immediately tracked down and nearly lost their heads when the Vanguard Knights were dispatched.
Because of this, while being a Mage carries a certain特殊性, the risk of approaching it purely for fun was so great that not many people in Rondel claimed to be hackers.
"It's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Adrian Lawrence."
"R-Roc Antique."
In that sense, the hacker I'm meeting right now can be called a truly precious talent.
[Roc Antique / Software Technical Mage (2nd Circle)]
Race: Human
Age: 23
Affiliation: 5th son of Count Antique's family, Kingdom of Rhinehearts
Talent: Intellectual ability (highest), learning ability (high), inquisitiveness (high), Mana (low)
Traits: Exceptional mathematical skill, programming, Inquisitor of the virtual world
Relationship: Cautious / Neutral
Status: Flustered / Afraid
His abilities as seen through the Myriad Mirror are beyond reproach, and his skills have already been verified.
"Y-you really do know the Lord Marquis Lawrence?"
"Of course! Ahem!"
Roc Antique, the young lord of Count Antique, was stuttering unbecoming of the noble breed whose arrogance and pride pierce the heavens while Michelle, the Young Lady of the Otis County, looked at him with a smug air.
That's right.
He was the one who cooperated with the Young Lady of Otis when she infiltrated the fake Opportunity in the Prius Republic and copied part of the data.
That's why, even though I was seeing him for the first time, I could assess him as someone with proven skill.
No matter how hastily it was put together, he was the one who infiltrated the system created by Chester, the Opportunity Manager.
At least as far as I know, Roc was the second most talented hacker.
Of course, the first is Chester, the Opportunity Manager.
"Please, have a seat."
The reception room of the Lord's estate in the Marquisate of Lawrence.
Seated were myself, Roc, and the Young Lady of Otis.
"Actually, I'm planning to recruit a large number of software-branch technical Mages this time. I also intend to create a hacking division within that. So I begged the Young Lady of Otis to introduce you to me."
"Ahem."
The Young Lady of Otis continued to act smug beside me.
As if used to her behavior, Roc nodded with a thoroughly cowed expression, unbecoming of a young lord of a Count family.
For reference, there is a tendency among nobles to look down on Virtual Reality.
As its economic value cannot be ignored, they do dip a toe into it for business, but fundamentally, there's a prevailing perception that Virtual Reality is a refuge for incompetent people.
So there was no way his family would look favorably upon him for spending so much time in the virtual world, and his position within the family was inevitably unstable.
His timid personality was a product of this environment.
"Is a hacker unit really necessary? For one thing, it's illegal, and if we get caught, we could be marked by the royal family or cause diplomatic friction."
"I'm not the kind of person to yield to diplomatic friction or the royal family's displeasure. So I'd very much like to work with Young Lord Roc Antique."
Given his unstable position within his family, my offer wasn't bad.
After all, isn't the person recognizing his worth and extending a hand the new power of the Kingdom?
If he works with me who will soon become a Duke his standing within his family will rise vertically.
"I'm certain I'll be nothing but a burden."
"You may. After all, I'm hiring a hacker to protect what I have. There won't be any meaningless attacks on others."
His timid personality was quite bothersome.
But I intended to go to great lengths to recruit him.
"You need a hacker to protect things?"
"I believe the best defense is a good offense. Hearing the hacking incidents against virtual influencers these days, I thought I needed to pay more attention to security."
So while bringing in a large number of software-type technical mages, I also intended to bring him in as a hacker.
Since I already operated the Mage Tower, there was a related department, but it was mostly for show, so I planned to use this opportunity for a major overhaul.
'That makes sense I'm someone with a lot to protect after all.'
Was my persistent courtship too much for him?
"The best defense is a good offense? Certainly not a bad approach, but..."
He broke into a cold sweat, his eyes darting back and forth.
I thought for a moment this might end in failure….
-Whack!
"Ouch!"
Young Lady Otis slapped his back roughly and said.
"Shut up and do it! Where else would you get such an honor!"
"Uh, uh? Okay, got it."
Surprisingly, Roc followed her words all too easily.
"I doubt anyone else would offer you the same conditions wherever you go. I'll give you the best treatment in the Kingdom of Rhinehearts."
"Please take care of me."
Whether it was due to Young Lady Otis's forceful insistence or him deciding on his own, I ended up with a brilliant hacker either way.
"B, but about that virtual influencer case you mentioned earlier."
"Yes."
"It might not have been the work of a hacker."
"What do you mean?"
"A hacker who was agitated by the news of his favorite virtual influencer's disappearance once launched an investigation. He he eventually found the suspect's trail and managed to track it down, but…."
"And then?"
"As it turned out, the suspect was a program that moved on its own without a controlling user. As if it had a will of its own."
That's quite an odd story.
So I tilted my head in confusion.
"You mean artificial intelligence?"
"Could be artificial intelligence, could be a virus. For a long time, there's been talk among hackers almost like an urban legend that a virus with a self-awareness exists inside the Hollywood system."
"So did you report it?"
"I I kept quiet because I thought I'd end up being framed as the culprit. But the story doesn't end there."
"What is it? I'm curious now."
"Not long ago, that hacker was found wearing goggles, in a brain-dead state."
That's the kind of story you could use as a ghost story.
In the end, it was just an unconfirmed rumor.
But I couldn't simply brush it off.
The Hollywood system is Opportunity itself.
If such a being actually existed and approached me, it would only become a nuisance.
I'd better ask Chester about this later.
"I've digressed. Sorry about that."
"No, it was interesting. I look forward to working with you. You can start right away tomorrow, right?"
At my request, Luke nodded, and his recruitment ended in success.
"What about me?"
But then Young Lady Otis pointed at herself out of nowhere and asked.
I reacted as if to say I had no particular work for her.
At that, I blinked slowly, then shook my head.
I didn't really need her after all.
At my reaction, Young Lady Otis's shoulders drooped.
* * *
After suppressing the Second Prince's faction's rebellion, my daily routine finally returned to normal.
Play games, check on Ibril's contest.
And play games again, check on Ibril's contest.
With that, my level rose one more step to 243, and after about a week, Ibril's final contest ended and she returned to the domain.
"I'm so glad you're safe. You have no idea how shocked I was to hear about the civil war in the holy land."
She let out a sigh of relief the moment she saw me.
Ibril was just a girl of fifteen.
Whether it was from all the camera exposure during the Saintess contest, or simply from growing up, she was visibly becoming more beautiful by the day.
I let out a small chuckle at her concern, showing my composure.
"Now you know what a remarkable patron you have, right?"
At my words, she protested.
"Remarkable aside, you never run out of incidents and accidents, so I kept losing focus in between. Do you know how worried I was?"
For someone like that, you did well.
She finished with excellent scores and overwhelming viewership ratings through the final contest.
Now, only the Divine Choice remained in two weeks, and there was no doubt she was the closest to becoming the Saintess among her many rivals.
Embarrassed, I cleared my throat and averted her gaze.
"What's this?"
I handed her a paper bag.
She tilted her head as she received it, and I opened the contents for her myself.
"It's a royal-hosted celebration party for suppressing the rebels. His Highness the Crown Prince sent an invitation to Lady Ibril as well."
"A royal party?"
"Yes, first time, right?"
If Ibril failed to become the Saintess, this might be her first and last party.
Of course, even if she didn't become the Saintess, if she remained active as a priestess, she would rise quickly.
She'd certainly have no problem reaching bishop.
But a bishop and the Saintess are different ranks.
Right now, she's being given special treatment like the Crown Prince personally sending an invitation because she's close to being the Saintess, but if she slips from that position, treatment like this would be hard to come by.
So, regardless of the outcome, I plan to make sure she can enjoy herself freely now that she's finished all the contests successfully.
"Is the Lord going to escort me?"
She asked with her cheeks flushing red.
I replied as if it were only natural.
"Of course I, your Sponsor, would escort you. Though, I'll have to escort my fiancée Arcia as well, so I'll be a flower in each hand."
Ibril looked satisfied with that and expressed her anticipation.
I know what feelings she holds toward me to react that way.
But I can't respond to her heart.
Counting my past life, I'm a middle-aged man over forty.
It's hard to have special feelings for a fifteen-year-old.
'It's clang-clang territory.'
Perhaps because we'd been through so much together, she chattered on without pause about the behind-the-scenes stories from the contest.
'Like how Evelyn Francis, whom I'd only thought of as difficult, kept coming up acting friendly and digging for information about me.'
'Or how Princess Sia Rin of the East took down a gang of thugs with her bare hands.'
'And even the incident where I got a kiss on the cheek from the High Elf Grace Hielven.'
I smiled and listened to her stories.
But I didn't forget to point out one thing...
That was information about Grace Hielven that wasn't widely known.
"You seem to have taken a liking to Lady Grace. Did you know all her lovers are women?"
"What?"
"Just... be careful."
Ibril froze in shock on the spot, but the warm atmosphere remained.
How long did we talk like that?
"My Lord. A guest has arrived."
I ended up receiving an unexpected visitor.
"Who is it?"
"Her Highness Princess Diana Anne Rhinehearts."
"Her Highness the Princess?"
She was so far outside my expectations that I couldn't help but question it.
After all, there was no connection between Princess Diana and me.