Chapter 32

Janus

The phone in the office was ringing. Carl picked it up with the notion that he will receive a scolding.

[Where the hell is my report, Carl?!]

“P-President…I-I just got the report, sir, and I was actually on my way to call you.”

[Good gracious! Do I have to call you first to check on it every time?! It‘s been 70 days, Carl! 70 freaking days where I don‘t know what’s already happening to my game world!]

“But sir, there wasn‘t really any visible changes in Terroa since the update…”

[You‘d better be sure about that, Carl, or I will hang your neck with that phone cord.]

Carl gulped and touched his neck. The Boss is angry but then when he thought of his report, the tension he felt all these time vanished and was replaced with a streak of confidence.

“S-Sir…about the report.”

[Come on, tell me. And be quick and precise with it.]

“Ah, actually sir, we found the fruit of the update.”

[Fruit?]

“Y-Yes sir. But you won‘t gonna like it.”

[At this point, Carl, I think there‘s nothing I don‘t like more than you beating the bush. JUST TELL ME!]

“Janus’ restraining program have been overwritten!”

[Janus’ what was overwritten?]

“Janus’ restraining protocol sir. The one that limits the production of quests and missions…sir.”

On the other line, the President made exhales and it sounded calm and composed as opposed to the furious voice on the phone line up until now.

[Tell me, Carl, what does this protocol do? Will it affect the money going in to our pockets?]

“In the long run sir, it will.” Again, Carl swallowed.

[How?] The president’s tone sounded as if the calm before a great storm, that instant when it was just a few moments more before the angry winds came back.

“The Restraining Protocol is the program that let‘s us control Janus from this side, sir. And the update…”

[And the update?]

“And the update not only created a lot of X-Class quests and missions, it also unlocked, no, to put it more accurately, it locked our control over Janus, sir.”

And the sound of something breaking as it hit the wall echoed on Carl’s end. He pulled the ear piece away from his ear as the President’s voice came back with a more thundering and frightening tone.

[What’s that supposed to mean, Carl?! What do you mean we can‘t control Janus?]

“We can’t, sir. The update’s source is still unknown, but the fruit of the update had been traced to directly affect Janus and it unlocked the world Quest-Missions Generation Protocol. Meaning, sir, that from the day of the update, Janus had been operating solely on his own and does not actually require any outside input nor any maintenance.”

[You’re saying that Janus had just became the god of Terroa? Is that what you were saying?]

“Practically sir, yes.”

Again, something fragile broke on the other side.

[…ck! What can we do to reverse it?]

“We can‘t sir.”

[What do you mean we can’t?! It’s just a computer program! Any program cannot operate solely with no person operating and maintaining them from outside. It is definitely a hacking from somewhere!]

“Sir, if I may, Janus is a product of Neurowaves and computer generated program platform unification. The update came from within the system itself. The only people who really understand how Janus’ core program worked are the ones who invented him. And they were gone sir. The Kingsley Doctors are dead, Sir Alfred Pegasus is still missing until now. Janus locked his external intervention system. His core program is in self sustaining mode. The only way we can touch him is to install or give him update for the game. But even that sir, he’d just absorb the program and alter its original settings to fit in on the world he had created.”

[So we’re giving him food instead, is that it?]

“Yes sir. Janus is practically a God now and no one can touch him except to actually find his core program and alter it from inside.”

[Inside?]

“Yes sir. We traced that the update’s core purpose is to create a physical rendering of Janus inside Terroa.”

[So you‘re saying he‘s roaming Terroa as a player?]

“Yes sir. He’s more like camouflaged as a player.”

The president sighed and his heavy breath could be heard on the other line. Carl closed his eyes and balled his fist as the hand that held the hand piece of the phone tightened around it.

[Why would he do that?]

“Probably to operate the world, according to how he is seeing it on a user’s perspective.”

[And how will it affect our financial aspects?]

“If we don’t restore him on his default settings, or at least, stop him from interfering with Terroa according to his whims, you can expect, sir, that he will some day end up getting caught up with the interference acts that he might create quests and missions that’s so hard, no one can actually solve them.”

[No one can solve them…meaning all users who try them will die. Is that it?]

“Yes sir. That‘s a probability.”

At this, point, the president’s voice had calmed but Carl still felt that heavy pressure. But that pressure, he knew, wasn’t coming from President Ethan. It’s coming from the fact that Carl knew what was going to happen to the game in the future.

It was a fact known to all that Terroa was a very, very expensive game. Though it was discounted that a noob buying the game and registering for the first time is entitled to a discount. Once a registered user die once, his next purchase of the game account is already priced at normal. And for any ordinary player, that price was actually too much.

The monthly subscription fee was actually also high, not all players can play the game every month. Some of them skips every other month and that’s also one reason why the ratio of users quitting the game is increasing since with that same routine, while their friends are all constantly getting stronger, he was lacking behind.

With all these considered, if they don’t stop Janus’ rampage, that ratio will continue to increase. And to any other business, less customer, less money. Less money means that the company might close down shop.

If that happens, he would have to find another job.

But with his specialization, his skills, and especially with his standards of a job he wanted to do, he doubt that there would be a company other than Panorama Corp that he would be willing to give his all to work.

For that, he couldn’t help but feel anxious about the president’s decision about this.

[Carl.]

“Sir.”

[Assemble a team of the best players you can find. I will pay their monthly subscription fee. Their mission is going to be to hunt down Janus and kill his avatar if necessary.]

“But sir, that’s…”

[What is it, Carl?]

Carl pursed his lips as he swallowed the words he wanted to say.

“Nothing sir. Just wondering if you still have further orders for me.”

[Actually there is. I want you to create a virus that can attack this update on Janus and install it on him immediately. And while you‘re at it, I want you to also prepare your avatar. You will be our eyes and ears and probably the leader of the assassin squad.]

Carl was left with no choice but to agree. “Yes sir.”

After all, if there was a great perk on being a staff of the company of the game you play. That would be the rare privilege of playing the game for free.

[Start moving.]

“Yes sir.”

***

Back in the Walled City of Aarun, Siva came in front of the NPC Shop and wore an excited smile.

As soon as he entered the shop he met the Shop Keeper and his usual old face that wore an intelligent expression. Something that you’ll feel on a wise man.

“I heard you sold a live Dragon in Hagonoy?” The Shop Keeper seemed like he was teasing. Siva took out a list from a window he summoned and the Keeper did a glance before he smiled back to him. “These are high grade materials and resources. What do you want to do with these?”

“For the Cassius Clay. Kind of thinking if we could improve them with these.”

“Noooo…” The Shop Keeper shook his head. “I told you already, lad, your armament already reached the last stage of its improvements. If you wanted to use all these materials, you‘ve got to invent a new weapon.”

“Oh!” Siva made a face palm as he frowned. “I kind of remember you saying that.”

“Haaah…you‘re young but you’re already forgetful.”

“Kind of hated it when it came from you.”

“Don‘t hate yourself. You‘ll go crazy.”

Siva flattened his eyes. “…”

“Hahahaha…don’t be hard on your self. Take your time designing, I won’t go anywhere.”

“I was actually hurt by the thing you said.”

“You‘re welcome.”

“Oh come on! Take me seriously here!”

“Hahahaha…Time ticks by. Take a cubicle and start working already or you might end up waiting in line for one to be vacant.”

“Alright. Alright. Light me one up.”

“Oh and by the way, did you use my gift?”

“The guns? No, not yet.”

“Why? I‘m hurt now. It was a gift from me.”

“It‘s not that I didn‘t want to use it. But it‘s just that I haven’t the chance to actually use it when fighting all those monsters. Besides, what was it really that you put in there?”

“Haaaah…go find out yourself.”

Siva shrugged his shoulders and entered a cubicle to do his designs. Designing. It would take some hours before a person finishes. Especially in Siva’s case when he had to rely to imagination, mechanics, computer aid, CAD designs, and those already existing inventions as references to make his weapon.

“Oh, just curious, where you to next?”

On that question, Siva peeked out of his cubicle door and answered, “Espada.”

“The East? Where to?”

“Thrall Kingdom. You know where it is?”

“Yeah I know it. Been there twice. Well, you might want to visit Silver Road Valley. There are tons of good monster resources there. And I also heard that since the war between TGG and the Sylphs are happening on the nearby kingdom, competition with the monsters are a bit low. You might want to use that chance, lad.”

“Hmm. Thanks for the tip.”

The Shop Keeper gave Siva a wink while Siva gave a brow paired with a thankful smile back. He waved a hand to the old man and came back to lock his cubicle.

A smile and a nod came from the Shop Keeper and he also came back on manipulating his hologram panel.

Then, after a while, another customer entered the shop and the bell on the top of the door rang lightly.

“Good morning mister Janus.” Said a female archer cheerfully. She took out her bow and then presented it in front of the keeper’s desk. “I followed your advice and it worked! Thank you so much!”

“Ahaha…well, glad to hear it. So what‘s with your bow? Did it broke or need some fixing?”

Siva

Volume 1 [End]