Chapter 10

The capital city of Maukt -- the capital of the Kingdom of Castel -- was a vast city that could make even Maildia seem insignificant.

At the center of the capital stood the castle, a symbol of the city, with the town spreading out in a radial pattern around it. One could only wonder how many people lived in the town below the castle.

While it was unlikely that there were a million people, the streets filled with market stalls were bustling with energy and crowded with people, to the point where one could easily feel overwhelmed.

How much time would it take to build such a large-scale city? As someone not well-versed in programming, I could only imagine that it would take an incredibly long time.

I recalled the producer of the game company confidently stating in an interview, "We created another world with the intention of keeping players engaged for decades, creating a truly serious alternate world."

His words were not false; the development company had indeed created a world within the game. It wasn't just the fact that this was the world's first VR game that made it impressive. It was the staff of the development company that made this game truly remarkable.

Moreover, MMORPGs often have surprisingly short lifespans. It's extremely rare for a game to continue service for decades. Some games don't even last a year after launch due to lack of popularity. There are even cases where games that were hyped during development and featured in magazines and online never see the light of day due to a lack of funding.

Considering all this, this Another World, which must have had a substantial budget, could be described as an MMORPG that aimed for a long-term hit. Even without the title of the first VR game, I was confident it would become popular.

In fact, the online reviews were overwhelmingly positive. Comments like, "It feels like I've really traveled to another world," "The freedom is too high. I have too many things I want to do, and there's not enough time," "The developers are too serious, I'm laughing," and "I feel like I'm going out more often than returning to reality" were common. The anticipation for the official service launch was high.

The closed beta period, which currently has a player limit, was down to its last week. Unless there were major bugs, it was unlikely to be extended. After that, it would transition to an open beta test without player limits, and once that was completed, the official service would begin. The official launch date had not been announced yet, but it might not be too far off.

That said, the town below the castle in Maukt was a maze of narrow, winding streets that could easily confuse anyone. Thanks to the map window, I could at least figure out where I was, but without it, I would have been lost in the crowd. After wandering around with a tourist's mindset, I realized that the city was divided into three main areas: a district near the castle with grand mansions that looked like they belonged to nobles, a district with typical houses similar to those in Maildia, and a slum area with rough-looking men and women who seemed to be prostitutes.

The district with the grand mansions was surrounded by walls and guarded at the entrance, so I could only glimpse the inside from the entrance. The castle, which was inside the walls, was not easily accessible. It wasn't like in some RPGs where the king is friendly and invites everyone into the castle. In reality, that would be unusual, if not impossible. I suspected that one would need to accept a quest to enter. For now, I would put that on hold.

Now, let's get to the purpose of my visit to the capital. First, the item shop. They didn't sell healing potions or the highest-grade potions, but they did have other potions. I had almost used up my potions on the way here, with only two of the lowest-grade potions left. I took this opportunity to stock up on intermediate potions and mana potions. At one silver coin each, and with my current wealth of two gold coins and fifteen silver coins, buying twenty of each was a significant expense. I wondered if I could afford the equipment.

I was naive -- I checked the weapon and armor shops, and while their selection was much better than in Maildia, the high-quality items were too expensive. I would need to make the capital my base and earn more money. I bought a copper bracelet and leather boots to slightly boost my defense and headed to the adventurer's guild to accept a quest.

There was a line of about ten young men and women at the entrance to the adventurer's guild. It seemed to be a queue for registration. The capital was bustling with adventurers. I had no choice but to join the line at the back.

By the way, Japanese people are known for their well-organized lines, which foreigners find astonishing. During disasters, they maintain order and form lines to shop and receive supplies, which is highly praised worldwide.

In MMORPGs, Japanese players, who value order, often form lines. For example, when there are limited numbers of monsters to defeat for a quest, forming a line allows players to complete the quest efficiently and prevents others from cutting in. If someone cuts in, they might be exposed online and treated as a no-good player.

Such scenes are apparently rare in foreign MMORPGs, where people see the formation of lines as strange, even suggesting that Japanese players might be robots. In foreign games, it's likely a free-for-all where the fastest wins. Maintaining order in such situations is almost a cultural trait.

Indeed, seeing a well-organized line of armed players might seem unusual. From the monsters' perspective, it must be disheartening to see a line of players waiting to kill them as soon as they appear.

"Alright, it's about time. There are eleven people here. Please follow me."

A woman, presumably a guild staff member, called out. It seemed the registration process was finally moving forward.

She led us away from the adventurer's guild. Away from it? Perhaps due to the crowd, they were handling registrations elsewhere.

She led us to a stone building on the outskirts. So, this was where we would receive our quests.

Inside, there was only a staircase leading to an underground area covered in iron bars. There were no other guild staff members in sight. The woman took out a key, unlocked the iron gate, and guided us inside.

"Please gather here in two hours."

Wait, we weren't going to register here? Could it be that this line wasn't for the adventurer's guild but for something else!?

Before I could think further, the door slammed shut, and the woman left. ...There was nothing I could do now. Should I wait two hours? But I was counted in the number, and I needed to complete the quest. Checking the event window, I saw a new quest had been added. I had no choice but to do it.

...Next time, I'll make sure to confirm what the line is for before joining it.

The adventurer's guild in the capital of Maukt, the Kingdom of Castel, was known as one of the highest-paying workplaces in the kingdom. However, it was also known for its extremely demanding and harsh working conditions.

With about 30% of the kingdom's population concentrated in the capital, many villagers and poor people came to the capital to become adventurers and improve their lives. This inevitably led to a large number of quests and adventurers. Despite this, the guild's efficient staff managed to handle everything smoothly.

However, there was one problem child in this otherwise excellent workplace.

"Senior, I've finished guiding the adventurers!"

It was the new recruit, Nina. With her chestnut short hair, she was energetic and cheerful, traits that made a good impression on those around her. However, she was also fatally clumsy.

"Good job. Did you guide them correctly?"

The one praising her was Maurice, her mentor. He was worried she might have made a mistake, but due to the busy schedule, he had entrusted her with guiding the adventurers who had accepted the sewer quest.

"Yes, I guided eleven people to the sewers!"

Upon hearing this, Maurice's face turned serious.

"You idiot! What are you doing!"

"Ouch!"

Maurice's fist flew, and Nina rubbed her head, blinking in pain. Maurice then thrust the quest request form at her.

"Only ten people accepted the quest! Someone must have sneaked in!"

"What!?"

Panic-stricken, she checked the documents, only to confirm Maurice's words.

"Didn't you take a proper headcount before leading them?"

"Ah!"

"Ugh... Go check it out. The sewers should be safe enough."

"Ugh... I understand."

"And I'll give you another lecture when you get back."

Nina, who had to go into the sewers, grimaced and slumped her shoulders.

The sewers under the capital were regularly infested with low-level monsters like wererats. Individually, they were weak and rarely posed a threat, but it was necessary to prevent them from overflowing into the city. Therefore, the sewer monster-clearing quest was given to new adventurers as a test.

Nina, holding a lantern, searched for the adventurers she had led. She confirmed that the five people near the entrance were all registered. They must not be here. Determined, she pushed forward into the depths.

The stench of the sewers was overwhelming, even with a handkerchief over her nose. Her footsteps echoed, adding to her unease and making her eyes water. She cautiously moved forward, avoiding the occasional wererat.

After walking for a while, she found no one. As the sense of time began to fade in the dark, narrow space, she considered returning to the entrance.

Then, she saw a faint light ahead. Finally, she had found the other adventurers. Her spirits lifted, and she ran towards the light, feeling a bit resentful.

As she got closer, she could see the figures. Just as she was about to call out, her vision captured something unexpected.

A girl in tattered clothes and men beating her.

Her thoughts froze. What was happening here? One thing was clear: it was dangerous to stay. She needed to call for help.

Thud.

A blow to the back of her head. She lost consciousness.