章節 2: Chapter 2: Enter The Game

Chapter 2: Welcome, Player.

Something was wrong. These messages were strange. Error? What was that? Who said it?

It had been a week since I first started hearing these things. When I shut down for the day, the words still play in my mind. When I greet players, advertise quests, and occasionally find a player to reward for completing those quests, those words are still around. I wonder if that is why the Players are taking more quests from Providence, and less from me.

"No," I tell myself. "I will not lose my Players. This is my job."

"Did anyone else hear that?" Another male's voice called out, confused.

"Hear what?" His buddy asked him lazily.

"This NPC just said something weird."

"You're imagining things."

"No, really..." The first guy insisted.

"Maybe it got hacked. Or maybe it's like I told you, you're spending too much time in this game since the update..." Their voices drifted off into the crowd. I did not watch them leave. I was busy trying to get Players to take my quests, the Knight of Dre'al still needed help fighting the Ghouls of the West End. I did not watch them leave? Why would I think about that? They're outside my Range.

...'Think'?

What's that?

"Welcome, Player. I have three quests for you. But first, would you like to choose a name?"

And then I fall over. Actually I was knocked over by the girl Player I was speaking to.

Can I do that?

The girl is saying something. The error message is screaming louder, I can't hear what she's saying, but she looks worried as I stare at her blankly. Then a group of pretty and glamorous guys walk past, and she is pushed into me. She casts a spell. The sounds disappear.

And I don't move.

She can't cast a spell yet, she hasn't chosen a name. She can't do anything. She's in the tutorial. But all of the sounds are gone, the music, the breeze, the grass under the Players' feet. Everyone is frozen, except the girl and the group who shoved her. And me. I turn to Providence but she is frozen in the middle of a transaction, and then I turn back to the girl.

Hacker?

...What's a hacker?

But now the girl is also frozen. She is about to beaten; her HP is low, and the Guards are not here. I look around, and the Guards are nowhere in sight. But this is the marketplace and no one can fight or cast spells here. They would have to go to the Arena at The Center Square to do that. And there are no guards.

Can I move?

I walk forward and place myself between the group of males and the newbie girl. "Adventurers. Beware. New Players are under the 24 hour protection of the King. If this is your first warning, if she loses all her health you can be temporarily banned. If this is not your first warning, you can be permanently banned."

"Hey, that's the NPC from before! I told you he said some weird stuff." The guy glared at me. "What's this about a protection and a king?"

"Relax moron, they just did an update." One of his friends sighed. "It must be some of that new shit they added. Damn it, I knew I should have read the update packet..."

"You were too busy looking at the new hottie to read the whole thing?!" The first one jeered. "I can't get banned, my Mom just spent a lot of money so I could play this game. She works hard for that stuff."

"So what? You're such a mama's boy, Collin... she can always get more..." Another guy joked as the group finally decided to walk away.

The girl must have gotten up already because now she was in front of me. "I know you're just an NPC," she was saying, "but thank you."

I did not answer her thanks. It was not in my programming to answer. "Welcome Player, I have three quests for you. But first, would--"

And then everything went dark.