Opportunity in the Game Becomes Reality Episode 211
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Opportunity in the Game Becomes Reality Episode 211
48. Preparations for the Worst (5)
After Bug's work was finished, I could see a stack of laptop boxes piled up in one corner of the room.
"What's that?"
"I had my parents procure them. I'm planning to take them to Rondel."
"What are you going to use all these for? Rondel's online environment is different from Earth's, so you'll only be able to use them offline."
The number of laptops was roughly twenty at a glance.
Given that they were high-spec gaming laptops, I figured the amount spent on these alone must have been at least forty to fifty million.
I answered Bug's question with a smile.
"Well, they're for you and the students you'll be teaching."
"Huh? Things for me to use? And teaching? What? Students?"
At Bug's visibly flustered reaction, as if he'd been hit by a literal bug, I shrugged as if asking something obvious.
"Why do you think we're going through all this hardship? We're preparing for the situation where Rondel and Earth merge, based on what Grand Duke Lucas, now the Demon King, said."
"So?"
"If we have enough time to prepare for the merge with Earth, shouldn't we raise a force that can be immediately utilized in Earth's environment?"
"And that means programmers who specialize in computers?"
Satisfied that Bug had finally understood, I patted him on the back.
"Of course. I've already selected the people to be educated from Blue Moon and our royal house. They're all smart and capable individuals. And since I've also prepared training grounds installed with concentration reinforcement magic circles and large quantities of expensive memory enhancement potions, their learning speed will be very fast. You'll enjoy teaching them."
"Concentration reinforcement and memory enhancement... Am I the only one who finds that terrifying?"
"Haha, don't worry. I won't expect unreasonable results in too short a time. I'll give you six months. Within that period, bring the students up to a level where they can respond to external hacking."
"You crazy bastard?"
Upon hearing my words, Bug grabbed me by the collar.
I judged it to be entirely feasible, but it seemed he thought it was an unreasonable demand.
-Thunk.
"Gah! My eyes!"
I freed myself from his grip by poking the eyes of the clinging Bug with my fingers, then looked down at him writhing on the floor and spoke firmly.
"This isn't a request, it's an order, so I won't accept any objections."
At that, Bug froze and stopped moving, and I chuckled and used healing magic.
Thanks to that, the revived Bug made the most pitiful expression he could and made excuses.
"But, I need to support you guys as a party member in the game..."
That was a fair point.
Creating a force to prepare for the integration of Rondel and Earth was important, but the top priority had to be raising levels and clearing the Opportunity Quest.
Moreover, there was barely any time left until max level.
In other words, this was a critical period.
"Just hand that character over to Gregory. He's a healer anyway. It's not a particularly difficult character to control, so it doesn't matter who follows along as a party member. You just focus on educating the students."
"To describe my Heal, which had a soul poured into it, in such a manner..."
But seeing that I was utterly unmoved, he eventually let out a deep sigh and surrendered.
Saying I'd made the right call, I placed a hand on his shoulder and didn't forget to add one more thing.
"Oh, and if you have spare time after teaching the students, don't forget to develop a few programs that might come in handy."
"You're working me like a dog, you demon bastard."
After stowing the laptops in my subspace, I deliberately didn't mention that the students she would teach this time were the first batch, and that there would be second and third batches afterward.
* * *
Afterwards, I visited Reiers County and gifted them the items I had prepared.
The main artifacts, including the satellites, were still under development and production, so all I could deliver were a few flying vehicles, daily-life artifacts, and personal firearms for the soldiers.
But since the quantity of daily-life artifacts was considerable, Count Reiers expressed his gratitude almost grovelingly, as if he were about to perform a bow of worship.
After briefly finishing my visit to Reiers County like that, Selin attempted to contact the Demon King, Exid Lord (Grand Duke Lucas).
But perhaps the aftereffects of the descent weren't something that would fade in just a few days, so there was no response at all.
With the conversation with the Demon King ending in failure, we had finished all our business and returned straight to Rondel.
We treated people, Bug developed programs, visited Reiers County, and attempted to contact the Demon King Lord Exceed we did a great many things, but all of it took only about thirty minutes in total.
With Teleport Magic, you could reach your next destination in the time it took to blink, so distance posed no constraint that was what made such a schedule possible.
[Remaining available connection time: 1 hour and 51 minutes.]
The vast pure-white space you couldn't help but see when returning from Earth to Rondel.
I was satisfied with the generous amount of usable time the ruin's dimensional transport device allowed.
"Huh?"
As the dimensional transport device shut down, Benjamin, who had been meeting his younger sibling in a space separate from ours, was also reverse-summoned in an instant.
I approached him, standing blankly in a corner of the ruin.
He must have been having a lively conversation with his younger sibling, because he was standing in a rather awkward posture.
"Did you have a good time?"
"Yes? Ah... ."
Regret was thick on his face, but perhaps because he had finally reunited with his younger sibling, he still looked pleased despite the short time.
"I was so happy I could barely speak. Thank you so much for all your consideration."
"I made a promise, after all. The chairman of Daehan Electronics will take good care of your younger sister, so you needn't worry."
"That's good news. Amy is going to live well thanks to Your Highness the King."
"Someday, you'll be able to stay on Earth without a time limit. Until then, you'll have to make do with visits like this."
"Yes, it's more than enough. Whenever it may be, I will surely repay this kindness."
"Just hearing that puts me in a good mood."
I soothed Benjamin, whose eyes were welling up with tears, and then looked at Blake.
"Staying on Earth is getting more and more interesting. The food agrees with me too."
"Don't you get bored just staying at home?"
"My stay is short anyway, so where would I go wandering? I think it's a priority to absorb information about Earth at your parents' home."
"I appreciate you understanding it that way."
Lately, I could feel myself growing closer to him.
Blake gave a cool hand-wave goodbye, then led Selin along like a subordinate and moved on to the next section of the ruin.
"Let's head back soon too."
And then I used Teleport, leading the members who would head to the ducal palace.
"We pay our respects to Your Highness the King."
At that, the scenery shifted from the pure-white space to the ducal palace, which exuded an old-fashioned atmosphere, and the retainers and facility managers waiting at the teleport gate all bowed their heads in unison.
"Hm?"
But at that moment.
Feeling something strange, I had to look up into the air.
"What's the matter?"
"No, I thought I sensed something odd, but now I don't feel it anymore."
"I didn't feel anything at all."
"Really? Then I must have imagined it."
The same scenery as always, the same scents as always, the same sounds as always.
I tilted my head and entered the palace with my companions.
* * *
Reiers County, situated between North Korea's Seohan Bay and China's Shandong Peninsula.
"Daily goods over there. Weapons over there."
"Yes!"
The young lord, who had belatedly noticed the pile of artifacts stacked high in the Lord's estate garden and approached with a startled expression, asked his father, Count Reiers.
"What is all this? Oh, did His Highness Grand Duke Lawrence come by?"
"That's right."
"Oh, no... . I should have greeted him."
"He seemed busy he just dropped these off and left without even time for a cup of tea."
The administrator and soldiers busily sorting the gifts.
Perhaps because there was someone looking after them even after falling into an unfamiliar world, the people's faces weren't necessarily dark.
The young lord let out a hollow laugh, looking at the ten Spirit Towers floating in the sky alongside the fortress-city and the mass of Vangas visible all around the Lord's estate.
With this level of military strength, they could even contend with the Dukes within the Walther Kingdom they had belonged to.
"I'm truly grateful. I wonder if it's alright to receive so much."
No matter the circumstances, he couldn't help but know that the money being poured into them was considerable.
So the young lord felt both grateful and sorry toward Adrian.
"Next time His Highness Grand Duke Lawrence visits, I intend to swear my loyalty."
"Huh? All of a sudden?"
"It's a decision I've thought about thoroughly."
And his father, as if sharing the same thoughts, made a shockingly unexpected statement.
Thanks to that, the young lord was greatly taken aback.
"Hmm..."
But soon calming his startled heart, he thought calmly.
This was clearly an act of treason, but there was no one in this world who could define them as traitors.
The one currently working hard for their survival was not the royal family of the Walter Kingdom, but the Grand Duke Lawrence, and without his help, everything could have been blown away by the nuclear bomb.
Therefore, where to align themselves in this situation was clear.
"Indeed, it seems better to solidify our ties further."
"Right. And among all the powerful figures I've observed in noble life, I've never seen anyone go out of their way to help others like him. That person is special in many ways."
That was certainly true.
Besides, he was also a descendant of Grand Duke Lucas.
And so, the two decided to enter under Adrian's banner.
With this, the Reiers domain became an exclave of the Duchy of Lawrence.
The problem was that this exclave happened to be another world.
"But what's that?"
Then the young lord pointed at something.
There, ten large and small flying cars were placed.
But the problem was those flying cars...
"Aren't those royal ceremonial vehicles?"
They were none other than the extravagantly ornate cars used by leaders of a nation.
"His Highness Grand Duke Lawrence left them for us, saying we shouldn't fall behind the Earthlings. I'll use the most flashy one myself, and deploy the rest for major events."
The young lord could only let out a hollow laugh.
What else could one expect from the Grand Duke Lawrence?
His way of thinking itself felt different from ordinary powerholders.
The Lord and the young lord laughed cheerfully, looking at the items Adrian had left them.
"My Lord, a guest from the South Korean government has arrived."
Just how long had they been immersed in classifying artifacts?
At the steward's report, the Lord and the young lord tilted their heads.
For there had been no appointment to meet them.
"What is it?"
Though curious, they didn't express any particular displeasure.
From their perspective, the South Korean government was the only nation they'd encountered in this world that they could communicate with.
"Very well, tell them to wait a moment."
"Yes, I shall."
The Lord, who had been in casual attire, returned to his room with his son to prepare to receive the guest.
The two, having changed into light makeup and elegant banquet attire, together received the people sent by the South Korean government, and from those Koreans, they encountered unexpected information.
"Thank you for welcoming us so warmly despite our unannounced visit."
"Haha, not at all. There must be a reason for it."
"Actually, we came to seek advice from Count Reiers."
"Advice?"
"There's a person our government is looking for, and we wondered if you might know who it is."
With that, they pulled out a tablet and played a video.
Upon confirming that the person in the video was Adrian and his party, Count Reiers flinched in surprise.
And the NIS agents belonging to the South Korean government did not miss the Count's reaction.
"What reason do you have for looking for this person?"
"As you can see in the video, this person healed wounded soldiers with a mysterious power. We suspect it may be Rondel's magic."
"So?"
"We came hoping that if you knew them, we might be able to seek their help."
After hearing the story, he could roughly tell what the other party wanted.
But Count Reiers could not accept their request.
"I won't lie for the sake of maintaining good relations with the South Korean government. I'm sorry, but it would be best for you to drop any interest in this person."
His unexpectedly straightforward admission of knowing them made the Korean guests feel a slight fondness for Count Reiers.
However, that fondness soon turned into curiosity.
For the moment Count Reiers, the master of this land, referred to the person in the video as "this person," it was essentially revealing that the other party held an even higher status.
"He is someone who could easily crush a small domain like our Reiers fief, and is akin to the dawn of Rondel itself."
Even though they hadn't had a long relationship, they could tell that Count Reiers was not the kind of person to speak carelessly.
Because of this, the South Korean government couldn't help but grow even more interested in Adrian and his party in the video.
Moreover, the fact that Count Reiers who had even driven China into a corner would speak so modestly only proved that the other party was a true heavyweight.
"I see. I will keep your advice in mind."
Seeing the Koreans respond with such courtesy, Count Reiers smiled.
"I only feel sorry for having taken up your time."
And when they offered their apologies, Count Reiers shook his head, saying it was nothing of the sort.
"Not at all as it happens, I was also hoping to speak with the President of South Korea. Since things have turned out this way, I might as well use you as my messengers."
"Messengers?"
Looking at those who expressed their confusion, Count Reiers wiped the expression from his face and spoke as if making a declaration.
"Convey this to the President: Reiers County wishes to form a military alliance with South Korea."
At that, the Koreans' eyes went wide.
After all, it could hardly be said that enough mutual interests had been established between them and these people to warrant such a discussion yet.
Moreover, what Count Reiers said next dealt them an even greater shock.
"If the military alliance is formed, I will support South Korea's advance to the North as a token of commemoration."