Chapter 31
Everyone wants to shine.
A successful life, a healthy body, a happy family.
The desire to shine was like a wish to be fulfilled.
This human psychology operates the same even in games, not just reality.
Financially stable and passionate about the game?
Then there was no reason not to spend money.
The stronger your character became, the more presence it had, and the greater satisfaction you felt.
This is also why real-money trading became one of the difficult issues in the game.
As long as there is demand, supply will follow.
‘So, even workshops have made their way in.’
After handling today’s enormous workload as usual and while patrolling,
I discovered groups moving in units of dozens in Echoes of the Restless.
Their classes were all Priests, and their levels were all 10.
Of course, they were equipped only with basic items, casting Heal and Blessing on each other while hunting mobs.
‘Look at how systematic they are.’
The maximum number of members in a party was four. When eight such parties gathered, they could form a raid.
And it wasn’t just one raid, there were two.
In other words, 64 Priests were roaming across the Echoes of the Restless, hunting.
Among them, there seemed to be a representative who was leading and directing the others.
‘Their goal isn’t leveling up.’
Party hunting was efficient. But raids weren’t.
Raids halved the amount of shared experience,
in exchange for buffs related to combat, making them essentially a raid-exclusive function.
‘Their goal is collecting items.’
Akashic Records was an open-world RPG game.
Naturally, it had elements and content to stimulate adventure.
Their objective must be the ‘Spirit Fragments’ dropped throughout the Echoes of the Restless.
Collecting 10 Spirit Fragments could be combined into ‘Essence of Defiance’.
This essence would randomly boost one of the character’s stats when used for the first time.
For that reason, the demand for Spirit Fragments was high, and that’s what these workshops targeted.
‘China, Vietnam. Australia and Thailand. Even Japan. So many different places.’
Is this the global village or what?
This is my world.
Get out of my world!!!
It was time for the unwelcome guests and nuisances to leave.
I deactivated observer mode and descended directly into Echoes of the Restless.
Since I had jumped into the middle of the workshop’s procession, attention quickly turned to me.
I approached the one who appeared to be their leader, drawing my sword.
“All members violating the terms and operational policies are subject to penalties.”
“Suddenly, what? Everyone, stand behind me. Who are you? This is justified, I don’t understand.”
Look at this awful translation.
They were a menace just by existing.
“Please refer to the official site for detailed information.”
High-level Magic, Absolute Zero.
I inscribed my will into the world using mana and swung my sword once.
A subtle chill swept over the workshop, granting them a slow death.
After slashing down those who had become ice statues, the penalty was complete.
“Wow, wow… that’s amazing.”
A Priest who had been hunting nearby approached me with admiration.
He wasn’t subject to penalties, so he was unaffected by the magic.
However, the records of his real-money trading, viewed under the Creator’s Authority, were on the verge of crossing the line.
“You’re Director Aurora, right? Thank you for dealing with those workshop guys…”
“Stop at earning a little pocket money.”
At my cold voice, his mouth shut.
Hic-
Was he flustered because I hit the mark?
He started to hiccup with an awkward laugh.
“I won’t do it anymore! Hic! I promise! Hic! I’ll be satisfied with just chicken!”
“Good. Please enjoy the game healthily.”
After normalizing the workshop in the global village, I switched back to observer mode and left the scene.
***
[Indie Minor Game Gallery]
These days, the main topic in the In-game Gallery was ‘rice-coin farming’.
Due to the high efficiency of rice-coin farming in Akare, the topic never cooled down.
At first, most posts related to rice-coin farming received a significant number of dislikes.
But nowadays, even when information about rice-coin farming was posted, most people just skimmed past it.
As if not engaging in rice-coin farming felt like a disadvantage. The atmosphere was strange.
Amidst that atmosphere, one post was uploaded.
That one post changed the vibe of the In-game Gallery.
―――
[Title] Watched Director Aurora Penalty Workshop Real-Time
(Video of Aurora normalizing the workshop)
(Video of Aurora warning the author)
The Graveyard Hunting Ground was taken over by the workshop, and we were just twiddling our thumbs,
but then Director Aurora suddenly appeared and wiped out the workshop, LOL.
I was admiring and approached Director Aurora,
only to be warned in a cold voice.
Almost died of a heart attack there, LOL.
I mean, 10 Spirit Fragments are enough for a chicken gift card.
Who could resist rice-coin farming under those circumstances???
Of course, I’m done with rice-coin farming now and plan to enjoy the game as Aurora told me.
Went from a fallen rice-corn farmer to a diligent player.
Likes 2002 Dislikes 64
―――
[Comments 1234]
How much loss is that workshop that ran two raids looking at?
ㄴ64 capsules lost, so at least -64 million.
ㄴForeign workers have to make proxy purchases, so it must be losses in the billions.
ㄴWow, LOL.
ㄴWorkshop normalization, truly Shin Lo Ra.
This guy did rice-coin farming and ended up being praised alone, LOL.
ㄴLaura, who despises rice-coin farming, uhuhu.
ㄴMeanwhile, exactly 64 dislikes, LOL.
ㄴThe workshop folks must be pretty angry.
―――
Capsules were equipped with real-time replay recording functionality by default.
Because of that, the scene where Aurora normalized the workshop was recorded as it was.
The user who had been warned directly by Aurora posted it in the In-game Gallery, and it became a hot topic.
Workshops were one of the difficult issues in RPG games along with rice-coin farming.
Many game companies failed to solve this problem perfectly and faced criticism from users.
But this time, Akare’s swift response completely resolved the dissatisfaction that had accumulated in the gamers’ minds.
―――
[Title] Wasn’t it impossible for RPGs to catch workshops?
Especially domestic RPGs, LOL.
These guys wouldn’t ban workshops even when reported.
But in Akare, the Director himself steps in to crack down on workshops.
How come no one could do this simple thing until now?
I heard domestic RPGs are experiencing record-level recessions lately.
Just think of it as karma for their usual awful management.
Likes 845 Dislikes 16
―――
[Comments 521]
Akare is dominating in both gameplay and management, just all-kill.
ㄴThat’s so true.
ㄴEven a blue-potion anime-girl Director? No contest.
ㄴI heard Aurora even does cosplay after work, she’s that ‘serious’.
All these games have extreme P2W models and terrible customer service.
ㄴUgh, which game is this again?
ㄴIsn’t that every domestic RPG? LOL.
ㄴNo other industry treats customers like suckers as much as the gaming industry does.
―――
From the perspective of domestic game companies running RPGs, it wasn’t entirely unfair.
It was painful enough that the first virtual reality game happened to be in the same RPG genre, taking all the market share.
Now, being constantly compared and criticized for both gameplay and management, it was only natural to feel wronged.
However, feeling wronged wouldn’t erase their past karma; it was an issue they had to bear.
―――
[Title] I drew fan art of Director Aurora
(Fan art of Aurora sweeping the workshop with Absolute Zero)
And here’s a bonus
(Fan art of Aurora preparing for cosplay)
Likes 1666 Dislikes 1
―――
[Comments 851]
LOL LOL LOL this is hilarious.
ㄴCrazy bastard.
ㄴPlease, In-Boom, just stop.
ㄴThis guy doesn’t know how to hold back LOL.
I’ll use this well.
ㄴAlready used it.
ㄴWhat’s with the one-minute cut?
ㄴSpeed-draw is crazy.
Aurora would get disillusioned if she saw these comments.
ㄴThese madmen in In-Boom.
ㄴA woman with high self-esteem actually likes this kind of thing.
ㄴOh, so spicy LOL.
―――
Recently, while the main topic in the In-game Gallery had been rice-coin farming,
as stories about Aurora’s sightings continued to spread, the topic changed rapidly.
No more rice-coin farming discussions circulated, and even if related posts appeared, they were showered with dislikes and quickly buried.
***
A few days had passed since the crackdown on workshops and rice-coin farming users who crossed the line.
Thanks to the Crown Prince, who quickly adapted and showcased excellent work performance, my workload greatly decreased.
As expected, my judgment was correct. The Crown Prince was SSS-tier labour… no, an employee candidate.
Anyway, thanks to the efforts of the Crown Prince and Aka-chan, my workload significantly reduced.
So, I logged in with my secondary character, which I hadn’t been able to do for a while, and enjoyed Akare after a long time.
‘Suzuka has rejoined the large company party.’
The large company party had surpassed the point where the beta test ended.
The progress difference was significant, so I couldn’t play with Suzuka.
‘I need to find a party too.’
I had already tried to find a party a few times but was rejected every time.
I didn’t hear the reason for rejection, but I could guess why.
The rice-coin saint.
A user who had been publicized on the In-game Gallery as synonymous with rice-coin farming.
The number of Priests had already increased significantly due to the rice-coin farming issue.
Was there any reason to party with a Priest user who had a history of controversy?
None at all.
Of course, not all Akare users would be looking at the In-game Gallery.
If I kept searching, I’d eventually find a party.
After enjoying Raven’s gender reveal event at level 15,
I moved to the Cradle of Dark Magic and repeatedly ran the dungeon.
‘The rice-coin saint solo running the Cradle…’
From a third party’s perspective, it was a scene bound to be misunderstood.
I couldn’t go to any other dungeon or hunting ground besides the Cradle of Dark Magic.
It was the only place a priest could run solo.
I was definitely not running it to farm the Obsidian Staff.
“Huh?”
While I was repeatedly clearing the Cradle.
The boss monster, Minion of Darkness, dropped an Obsidian Staff.
“···.”
With trembling hands, I picked up the Obsidian Staff and placed it in my inventory.
This was definitely not for farming profit.
I was just selling it at the shop to gather gold and prepare my equipment.
‘That nickname keeps bothering me.’
The Director’s alt character, who normalized the game, is actually running the Cradle for farming?
This must never be found out.
Although I had never farmed for profit before and wouldn’t in the future either.
This situation was ripe for misunderstanding. It was enough to become the subject of ridicule.
“Finally, level 20···.”
Hunting was more efficient in a party, but not when it came to bosses.
Maybe because I was monopolizing the boss alone, I reached level 20 very quickly.
I should push the main story after levelling up to 23 here.
Just as I was planning this and about to enter the Cradle again.
“Excuse me.”
Someone called from behind.
When I turned around, a man who looked like a priest was staring at me intently.
“I’ve been watching you for a while. Are you soloing this?”
“Yes. I am a priest.”
Could it be an invitation to join a party?
I answered with excitement.
“A priest running the Cradle solo? Is that even possible?”
“Yes. It seems doable.”
At my confident answer, his face twisted.
“What, are you using a hack or something? There’s no way that’s possible.”
– ··What on earth is this now?
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