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Chapter 44
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My first interview was an extremely enjoyable experience.
Rather than an interview, it felt more like chatting about Akare.
I ended up saying things I didn’t need to out of excitement.
Well, it was fun. Cheers to that.
Meanwhile, the topic of “Yas” was endlessly trending across various communities.
One of those unnecessary remarks was the secret behind maxed-out affinity.
Yas.
The image of the reporter, shocked at the possibility and glancing nervously at me, is still vivid in my mind.
“Is Yas really that good···?”
Sure, it’s a basic human instinct, a primal desire.
But if one were to indulge such base thoughts, are they even human, or just a beast?
In that sense, the communities were clearly full of beasts.
“How would you even know unless you’ve done it?”
You know, whether sex is truly that good.
Whether it offers pleasure so overwhelming it paralyzes reason.
Even with the anonymity, it’s hard to imagine people being so candid about their instincts.
Since I’ve never directly… experienced it, it’s hard to say for certain.
Of course, I could easily find out using the Creator’s Authority.
But I wasn’t interested in prying into others’ records just to experience it.
“There’s nothing but talk of Yas everywhere.”
Even as time passed, the trending topics dominating the community remained unchanged.
Affinity. Yas. And Raven.
Admittedly, Raven was a captivating character.
To make people obsessed with a character like Raven, what would it take?
Raven was the result of countless considerations and thoughts centered on that question.
“Ugh···.”
Continuing to browse these communities any longer felt like it would pollute my mind.
‘Oh, Sweet has started streaming.’
Sweet, who hadn’t joined the major party due to personal reasons.
Breaking several days of silence, they finally resurfaced.
No matter the circumstances, taking consecutive days off was crossing the line.
And it wasn’t just me who thought so; the public sentiment towards Sweet was furious.
―――
🔥🔥🔥
Explain yourself!
Is the girlfriend rumor true?
Morons being loud about a streamer they didn’t even watch.
Time for Yas with Raven.
🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥
―――
Despite the blazing chat, Sweet remained silent.
Then, the stream category was changed to Akare.
“Ah, ah. Hello, everyone.”
―――
So your personal reason was…?
There’s no way you played Akare alone, right?
Where is this guy streaming from?
What’s with the bed in the background?
―――
Ignoring the flood of comments, Sweet opened the affinity tab.
As soon as the tab opened, Raven’s affinity caught the eye.
The highest stage, “Destiny,” with a completely filled affinity gauge.
In the background was a queen-size bed, creating an intriguing visual harmony.
“I had some personal matters, so I’m a bit late.”
Sweet flashed a victorious smile.
The chat froze for a moment before messages started flying by at a speed impossible to follow.
“Guys, calm down.”
There’s a saying: “Adding fuel to the fire.”
Instead of extinguishing the flames in the chat, Sweet fanned them further, intensifying the chaos.
Wearing the smuggest expression possible, they continued to provoke the viewers.
“Ah, I’m about to burst out laughing. Your reactions are too hilarious.”
Like someone who had just ascended to enlightenment after a major event.
Despite the barrage of insults and slurs, Sweet remained unbothered.
“Guys, I now understand what love is.”
Comparing the time Raven sacrificed herself to now was like night and day.
Back then, she exuded an aura of wanting to kill everything in sight.
Now, she seemed to radiate such positive energy—it was truly endearing.
“Leaving a review? What do you think this is, a travel blog?”
Could a person really change this much?
Watching the changed Sweet, I couldn’t help but question.
What on earth is this “Yas”?
How could it change someone so dramatically?
There’s no paradise to escape to.
That saying turned out to be true.
I fled the Yas discussions in the community only to find Sweet’s stream plastered with the same topic.
- I surrender.
Giving up on rest, I entered the capsule.
***
A catastrophe that hit the PC gaming industry.
That’s what Akare was called.
After the rise of virtual reality and capsules, PC gaming rapidly declined.
Yet the industry hadn’t completely collapsed.
While revenue was down and concurrent users halved,
Optimistically, only half had been lost.
But what could they even do?
They had already experienced how insurmountable the competition was.
An overwhelming gap that couldn’t be closed.
There was only one way to narrow it.
Not by improving themselves, but by pulling down their successful rival.
And Akare was a game developed in South Korea.
Avoiding Korean law was impossible.
Recently, the most controversial issue was Akare’s affinity system.
Even though it was accessible only to verified adults,
What kind of country is South Korea?
A nation that regulates adult content for adults.
Naturally, Akare’s actions were bound to be a thorn in the side of certain groups.
And those groups had already prepared to target Akare.
[Akashic Records Gallery]
―――
[Title] Crazy idiots at it again
(Link to an article about Akare censorship)
Gate Control Board, it’s you again, you f***ing bastards.
Like: 1682, Dislike: 61
―――
[Comments 1067]
Are they censoring scenes of Raven having sex?
ㄴYes.
ㄴIs the Gate Control Board stupid? Why are they coming after Akare now?
ㄴInfo: The Gate Control Board has always been stupid.
―――
Regulations on violence and obscenity due to excessive realism.
“Virtual reality combat significantly increases aggression in humans,” said a psychology expert.
It was a predictable narrative, but one that had never failed.
A truly unbeatable card.
Using this tactic could only mean one thing.
The complete downfall of Akashic Records.
However, public opinion wasn’t swaying in their favour.
―――
[Title] But isn’t it suspicious how silent the National Assembly is?
(Image from a women’s community roasting the Gate Control Board)
Even women’s communities are relentlessly bashing the Gate Control Board right now.
Everyone’s pissed about them censoring Prince Raven.
Like: 2058, Dislike: 61
―――
[Comments 1426]
Breaking news: All communities are uniting, lol.
ㄴNorth, South, male, female… complete unification.
ㄴSomething… something big is happening.
ㄴRaven is hot though.
ㄴBro.
ㄴF*** off.
―――
There’s a saying in Korea that 2D characters have more rights than real people.
Judging by the way public opinion was shifting, it seemed to be true.
As soon as they tried to regulate Raven, a 2D character,
All communities united, and everyone began tearing apart the Gate Control Board.
―――
[Title] Breaking News: Petition to abolish the Gate Control Board surpasses 1 million signatures
(Image of the petition reaching 1 million signatures)
It surpassed 1 million in just one day, lol.
A record-breaking achievement for fastest petition ever.
Was the rumour of 10 million concurrent players on launch day true?
Like: 2361, Dislike: 60
―――
[Comments 1125]
Honestly, the Gate Control Board brought this on themselves by being ridiculously dumb.
ㄴFor real, lol.
ㄴThey have zero awareness.
ㄴLooks like they took bribes and went for it anyway.
―――
Akare had already established itself as a game enjoyed by the entire nation.
Even beyond that, Akare was the first game to implement virtual reality technology.
The first of its kind in virtual reality.
If Aurora had used it for more than just game development,
Virtual reality could have been seen as a dream technology with endless potential.
Many countries, including advanced nations, were already courting Record Eye.
It was already fortunate enough that Record Eye was based in South Korea.
And yet, they dared to mess with Record Eye?
What if this incident drove Record Eye overseas?
If you weighed virtual reality technology against the Gate Control Board on a scale,
Of course, the scale would tilt toward virtual reality.
“Hmm···.”
Watching the unfolding events, I rested my chin on my hand and tapped the desk with my index finger.
Even during my days as a hero in another world, there were plenty who schemed against me.
Most of the time, I didn’t even have to intervene; the Crown Prince handled it directly.
But now, the Crown Prince was too busy drowning in work.
I couldn’t bring myself to ask him to deal with such trivial matters.
“A good idea just came to me.”
The date for the previously announced second-half roadmap showcase was approaching.
While the Gate Control Board was half-dead, pummeled by public backlash,
What they had done to me wouldn’t simply vanish. That wasn’t how it worked.
Even if they faced public criticism, it was obvious they wouldn’t reflect on their actions.
They’d just shrug it off as bad luck this time.
It was time to leave a lasting impression.
To show them I wasn’t someone who would just take hits without striking back.
***
The day of the second-half roadmap showcase arrived.
The major party gathered at Daehyeop Kim’s house to watch the showcase.
Suzuka, a VTuber, couldn’t attend in person but instead appeared on Kim’s stream
Wearing a cute rabbit mask.
“Don’t I look good like this?”
Suzuka waved awkwardly at the camera.
“So, what’s being revealed today? A new region and what else?”
“The new region is, like, the elf homeland thing.”
“Elderheim.”
“Yeah, that’s it. Won’t there probably be some elf-related class release?”
Paegwi’s guess was reasonably logical.
An unrevealed secret class.
A new class slated for release.
One of the two was likely to come out alongside the new region update.
“Daehyeop, have you been to Elderheim?”
“Nope, couldn’t even enter yet.”
“Probably won’t be accessible until after the update.”
Currently, the main story was stuck at “Proof.”
Destroying the Object of Destruction with Raven.
But since the new region, Elderheim, hadn’t been updated yet,
It was impossible to progress further in the main story, and leveling up was equally difficult.
Within the Empire, there were no hunting grounds or dungeons suitable for high-level players above level 60 who had completed their second awakening.
“It’s starting.”
The timer on the official broadcast’s waiting screen hit zero.
The screen transitioned, and Aurora appeared.
-Hello. I’m Aurora, the Director of Akashic Records.
Aurora’s signature outfit, a uniform and laurel crown, made it clear this was virtual reality.
-Today, before I share the roadmap for our upcoming updates in the second half of the year…
Aurora, on-screen, continued with an uncharacteristic blank expression and an indifferent tone.
-I have some bad news to share with everyone who loves Akare.
Bad news?
The large company party, shocked, held their breath and waited for her next words.
-Recently, there have been several issues regarding Akare.
“Ah.”
The four people sighed simultaneously at Aurora’s words.
Several issues.
Anyone active in the community knew exactly what that meant.
-Akashic Records is a domestic game and must abide by domestic laws.
The large company party immediately had a gut feeling.
A bomb was about to drop.
No, something even bigger than a bomb was coming.
-As much as I wish we didn’t have to, we can’t ask for special treatment for just us…
Snap!
Aurora snapped her fingers.
At the same time, the enormous screen behind her lit up.
[Affinity System Revision]
-We plan to revise the Affinity System, which has caused the most issues.
Snap!
Aurora snapped her fingers again.
[ Deletion of “Destiny” Cutscene Achievement ]
[ Removal of Special Interactions for “Destiny” Affinity ]
[ Limitation on Physical Interaction with Affinity NPCs ]
No more “Yas” with Raven.
No more physical interactions with Raven.
This was nothing short of a death sentence.
-The same applies to avatars.
Snap!
[ Revision of Avatar “Shimmering Summer Night Swimsuit A” ]
[ Revision of Avatar “Shimmering Summer Night Swimsuit B” ]
The revisions of the most popular swimsuit avatars.
The screen displayed a clear difference between the “Before” and “After” versions.
The amount of exposed skin had decreased by over 80%, turning the swimsuit into something barely recognizable as swimwear.
-Excessive violence is also a problem, apparently.
Snap!
[ Combat “Bloodstains” Changed to Green ]
[ Combat “Limb Destruction” Censored with Mosaics ]
[ Combat “Physical and Magic Hits” Censored with Mosaics ]
Imagine seeing green blood splattering during battle.
Or severed limbs covered with mosaics.
Immersion would be utterly impossible.
In a game whose main strength was its hyper-realistic immersion,
This ironic anti-immersion policy defied explanation.
-Too grotesque monsters? They provoke discomfort and revulsion.
[ Reworking Models of 129 Monsters ]
The redesign of monsters that had felt like fighting real creatures.
Only part of the changes were shown on-screen, but they were enough to make anyone sigh.
Every single one of them now looked like something from a childish fantasy instead of a dark fantasy.
-What do you think?
“Uh…”
“Hmm…”
“Eugh…”
Daehyeop Kim, Sweet, and Suzuka swallowed their words at Aurora’s question.
Paegwi, the only one remaining silent, took a deep breath before shouting loudly.
“F*** the Gate Control Board… Mmph!”
“Paegwi, calm down.”
“Hah…”
“Wow… I have no words.”
Who would fix this situation, and how?
As everyone pondered this while watching the official broadcast,
Aurora’s lips curled into a sly smile on-screen.
-These changes will not be applied in the next update.
????
Simultaneously, question marks popped up above the four people’s heads.
-But they might be implemented someday.
If a truly problematic situation arises.
Aurora’s follow-up left everyone speechless.
The streamers watching together. The users tuned in to the official broadcast.
Everyone.
The only one smiling joyfully was Aurora herself.
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