Log inEpisode 20 — Laser Line 2
While Shadow was still savoring this new revelation about the Professor, he had once again slipped back to reality, using breakfast as his excuse.
The moment he finished eating, he headed straight for the laptop set up beside the capsule.
Opening the laptop and typing something in, a low hum began to rise from the capsule as an ominous line of text appeared on the laptop's screen.
[PROJECT: ASCENSION — OPENING LINE FOR SUPREME AUTHORITY USER]
"Been a while since I've logged into this."
Popping open the capsule's cover, the Professor climbed in without hesitation and powered it on.
Once the cover sealed shut and the surroundings dimmed, the text unique to hacking mode drifted through the air for a moment before a door labeled ASCENSION appeared before him.
Walking slowly toward it, a camera mounted above lit up and a voice welcomed him.
[Supreme Authority authentication initiating. Please provide the password.]
"The redefinition of humanity."
At this weighted declaration, the camera blinked for a moment before the door slid smoothly open.
[Confirmed. Welcome back, Master Platinum.]
Stepping inside revealed a vast spherical chamber. Standing on a long platform set near its center, the Professor looked around him.
Along the walls of the chamber, writhing in a form eerily similar to a giant mass of brain tissue, an endless stream of complex mathematical formulas and translucent projections of what users were currently doing inside Worst Field played out continuously.
"As Supreme Authority, I issue the order. Advance the phase to the next stage. Begin the countdown for Update L2."
At his command, the writhing along the chamber walls quickened, and one of the projections rose up before him like a great screen. He watched it with clear satisfaction.
Three days later.
The world was abuzz with a single piece of news.
Worst Field, which over the past five years had seen plenty of minor events but nothing resembling a major occasion beyond the occasional server expansion, had announced its first large-scale story event.
What was more, the pre-released PV for the event was more than enough to stir the hearts of countless viewers.
A future city engulfed in flame, air-raid sirens blaring across the scene. Batteries scattered throughout the city fired an entirely new kind of laser beam — never before seen in Worst Field — slicing through incoming fighter craft and shooting them down.
As the camera slowly panned toward the tallest building in the city, it revealed a neon sign glowing with an unfamiliar company name: WAC.
Approaching a window on the building's top floor, the view slipped inside to reveal a conference room.
"How can this be happening?!"
"Chairman! You mustn't send that request for aid! The company's stock price—!"
"You think stock prices matter right now?! At this rate, our company is headed for a forced merger!"
The middle-aged man addressed as Chairman was watching, on the map installed on the conference table, as his city was slowly but surely being torn apart.
"But they're a den of greed! If we let in a pack of wolves just to drive off a fox—"
"If we're doomed either way, then I'd rather choose the path where at least I die standing."
At the Chairman's resolve, the executives' faces turned somber, and he immediately reached out to his secretary standing beside him, issuing an order.
"At once! Broadcast a distress call to the nearby planets, immediately!"
"Y-yes, sir!"
The screen briefly went dark, then flickered back on to show what looked like a communications feed.
There, a haggard-looking Chairman, sweating profusely, stared into the camera.
"I am Winkley Wisp, Chairman of Wisp Arms Corporation — WAC for short — a company specializing in optical weaponry: industrial laser equipment, defense products, and the like."
The secretary beside him reached over, dabbing carefully at his sweat with a handkerchief. Clearing his throat, he continued.
"Our company is currently under a massive assault from Cosmo Spawn Co., the industry giant whose main business is the construction of warships."
Even as he spoke, the building shook — evidently under attack as they spoke.
"Anyone will do! Any courageous adventurer, warrior, or mercenary who will stand beside us and take up arms in our defense — we will reward you handsomely, without fail!"
The screen briefly distorted with static before returning to normal, and the Chairman gripped the camera, straining out the words.
"To ensure your safe passage, our fleet is securing the flight corridor with everything we have! Please — use our pride and joy, our safe-passage guideline, known as the Laser Line, and fight for our sake!"
The screen finally cut out with a burst of static.
A moment later, a thick sheet of steel slammed down over the frame, and with a whirring sound, red and blue lasers began carving something into it.
[1ST STORY MISSION: LASER LINE — COMING SOON]
The moment she saw the video, Shadow scampered straight over to the Professor.
"Professor!"
"……?"
He looked up from the rifle he'd been cleaning to face her.
"We're going to the update area too, right?!"
"No."
At his mechanical, immediate answer, Shadow puffed out her cheeks and started shaking him by the shoulder.
"Let's go! Come on, let's go! New materials! A mysterious adventure!"
"…We are a contractor outfit that makes its living off PvP."
"Ngh…!"
Hearing his answer, Grave sidled up and chimed in casually.
"If the reward's as good as a contract fee, though, wouldn't that be worth going for?"
"……."
Kiss, sipping iced tea on the sofa, added her voice too.
"The official season's basically wrapping up, so jobs have been pretty thin lately."
With everyone looking at him as if urging him to go, the Professor let out a small, mechanically-tinged sigh and nodded.
"If our party balance holds up, I suppose a quick look around wouldn't hurt."
"Hm? What's wrong with our party balance?"
At Shadow's puzzled tilt of the head, the Professor pointed at each of them in turn, then at himself.
"A sniper hiding at the very back, a driver, a heavy infantry fighter at the front line, and a mid-to-close-range assassin operating on stealth. It's not a composition suited to fighting as a group, nor to standard PvE."
"Ah."
Sure enough, by PvE standards, the Solution team's composition was fairly ramshackle. Users who typically enjoyed PvE content usually ran with a heavy infantry fighter up front, two regular infantry, one commander/comms specialist to buff and coordinate movement, and finally one medic supporting from the rear. Aside from Grave as the heavy infantry, every member of the Professor's team fell well outside that standard formula.
"S-still…!"
"I know. I said a quick look around would be fine."
Just as the conversation seemed to be settling, Cuticle raised a hand.
"Um… mind if I say something?"
"……?"
The Professor turned to look at her, and Cuticle gave an awkward smile before speaking.
"I've actually been training up medic skills on the side, you know…"
"……."
"Seriously?!"
"Yeah. Back when crafting requests barely came in, I had to find something to fill the time…"
The Professor's head drooped in defeat, shaking slightly, while the women's expressions brightened considerably.
With that, they now had at least the bare bones of a PvE-capable team.
Of course, not everything could go smoothly.
"The update date is one week after the official season ends."
"……."
"If any contract work comes in, that takes priority over this."
The official season came to an end.
The results of the season, which wrapped up without any major upsets, were already the last thing on users' minds.
Everyone's attention was fixed on the update set to launch a week from now: "Laser Line."
Up until this point, every gun users carried had used solid, physical ammunition. Energy-based equipment had been more or less confined to shields and stealth modules. So naturally, everyone's interest was piqued by an event involving a company that specialized in laser weaponry.
"Aren't you excited about laser guns, Professor?"
Kiss, who was particularly fond of this kind of thing, was practically buzzing with excitement, and she hadn't even had a drink.
"Not particularly. Laser guns don't suit sniping."
"Huh? Why not? Since lasers aren't affected by ballistics…"
"And they're too visible. The moment you fire, your position's immediately given away. Not to mention they stand out far too much."
"Aah…"
At the Professor's blunt verdict, Kiss's face fell a little. But the Professor let out a short laugh.
"That said, coating Shadow's blade with an energy layer might not be a bad idea. Or as a self-defense weapon for Kiss. Might work well mounted on the vehicle too."
"Really?!"
"Mm-hm."
The Professor's team began preparing to enter the event zone independently.
Since they'd be heading into a warzone, there was no such thing as being too prepared.
"Ammo's fully stocked?"
"Cargo bay's packed!"
"Weapon repair kits are loaded too…"
Once preparations were finished, the team boarded their vehicle and set off.
Their destination: Coperiol Spaceport, one of the few neutral zones on the conflict-zone planet.
Near the spaceport, advance parties from countless clans had already gathered in scattered clusters, waiting.
"Yo — Professor!"
"……?"
Spotting the team's vehicle approaching from a distance, Baird Choi came over.
"What's this about? Never expected a PvP specialist outfit like yours to get involved in something like this. Somebody put in a request?"
"Not particularly."
"You gotta enjoy the game like a gamer should!"
At Kiss's remark from the side, Baird Choi let out a short laugh.
"Ain't that the truth! Gotta enjoy the game! Damn right."
"……."
"Guess even the Professor can't hold out against a bunch of women nagging him."
Chuckling, he teased the Professor sitting in the passenger seat a while longer before someone from his own group called him back and he headed off.
The Professor's team wasn't the only one drawing attention. The Overlords and Father Masquerade's people were openly shooting hostile glances their way, while over with Mary's Children, the officer they'd met on a previous job waved a greeting.
Everyone but the Professor waved back, and one by one, they made their way into the spaceport.
After a stretch of passing scenery through the void of space, the view of WAC's spaceport came into sight.
But what greeted the users who'd just arrived were six troop transport ships sent by Cosmo Spawn Co.
From the foremost of the transports, a holographic image projected outward. It showed a young man with a sharp face and glasses, dressed in a suit, looking down at the users.
[How troublesome. To think that pathetic distress call would draw in this many vermin… It pains me to lose potential customers, I must say. But I'm afraid all of you will have to die.]
"Guess that's the final boss, then."
"Combat right off the bat — now that's a hell of an event."
"Alright, everybody! Weapons ready!"
If anything, the users felt their competitive spirit rising, eager for the new enemy about to appear.
[Now then, employees — carry out the forced eviction notice on these people!]
No sooner had he finished speaking than the transport's lower hatches opened, and Cosmo Spawn's private soldiers, jetpacks strapped to their backs, began dropping down.
"Serve the eviction notice on these idiotic vermin! Charge!"
"Fire! Let's deliver our own version of an eviction notice, our way!"
Taking the lead were the Gaia Legion users.
"A rough welcome party — now that's what I'm talking about!"
"Decked out in fancy gear and all! A man's strength is what counts, strength!"
"Light 'em up! Let's carve the fear of users straight into their bones!"
At once, a massive firefight erupted between the user faction and Cosmo Spawn Co.'s private soldiers.
—To be continued—
