Chapter 10

But, the scenery was absolutely gorgeous, and the serene sights of nature made me feel peaceful.

Before I knew it, I had reached the village that Adelle was currently in.

Because of the warning that the Hunter’s Guild had issued, the village was completely deserted, so I didn’t try to be secretive while transporting the monster core.

I found the alleyway Adelle had cozied up in as soon as I entered the village.

I swiftly dragged the screen to her, and dropped the monster core into her lap. Adelle flinched and looked at the small white jewel with apprehension.

She picked it up and examined it, her mouth shifting into a tiny ‘o’ shape. It looked quite adorable, if I did say so myself.

Suddenly, I noticed something.

The gem was rapidly being filled with a yellowish undertone.

Adelle seemed to also notice it and was about to drop the stone when-

A bright white light burst out of the monster core.

The sudden explosion of light made me drop my phone, as I covered my eyes with my hands.

After a few seconds passed, I slowly took my hands of my face and peeked at the phone.

Adelle was lying face down on the ground.

I gulped as I gently tapped at her.

‘She’s okay, right? No, she’s fine. She is quite fine.’ I muttered internally, her lack of response causing me great distress.

I gently flipped her over, my fingers trembling.

Her eyes suddenly popped open. Her black pupils, that had a tinge of red in them, made me feel like I had witnessed the awakening of a demon.

She slowly got up, a low groan escaping her lips.

***

–Adelle's POV–

I took in deep breaths while leaning onto the wall.

‘W- What just happened?’ I bleakly muttered in my head while clutching at my stomach.

I felt like my bones had been stretched and then dipped into acid. My entire body was sore, and even taking in a breath made me feel like I was about to die.

But, even while experiencing such intense pain, the only emotion I felt was exuberant happiness, because I knew exactly what this was.

This was the fabled awakening.

I had heard countless tales of hunters being engulfed in holy light before awakening superhuman powers, when they finally gained the favor of the fickle gods.

I… I had finally awakened. I would no longer be treated like a disgusting rat, and I would finally be able to gain some power of my own.

I slowly tilted my head up to the sky, trying to guess where that invisible awakened was.

I did not know what that white gem was, but it had changed my life. It was most definitely extremely valuable.

I forced out a few words with great difficulty.

"Who... are... you?"

***

I stared at Adelle with all sorts of conflicting emotions boiling inside me.

What the orphan asked was surprisingly philosophical.

Who was I? What is this world? What will-

A series of knocks sounded from my room's door.

“Elena, my friend skimmed through the contract. I’d like to talk about it with you if you’re free right now.”

I dropped my phone onto the bed and dashed to the door, unlocking it in a jiffy.

“What did she say?” I opened the door and spluttered.

“Well... She says all the terms look okay and are unusually permissive and liberal. Despite their scammer like approach, everything... seems surprisingly legitimate. I’ll leave the decision to you. I don’t mind if you join them as long as you can maintain a good balance between both your work and school.”

The giddy joy once again bubbled in my heart as my mom confirmed that this was indeed not a scam.

I had actually hit the jackpot!

“I want to join! I promise I’ll maintain a good balance! I’ve always wanted to work in the game industry!”

My passion to work in the game industry greatly diminished after I had heard rumors of how exploitative the game industry was to its workers, but my mom did say that the part time employment contract was quite liberal.

My mom wouldn’t let me join if there was anything that made her feel the slightest tinge of unease.

I couldn’t help but giggle almost maniacally.

***

I looked at the VR headset I had just received.

Hadn’t my mom given our address only yesterday night...?

I decided to just chalk it up to my luck as I read through the small paper slip given.

‘Experience a different reality!

Live a new life!

Introducing V4.1, which comes with thought based controls and the ability to experience all five senses!

Warning:

Extended use may cause tiredness.

Being able to experience the five senses may cause blurring between reality and VR. It is advised to turn this feature off if the user’s mental health is affected.’

I stared at the paper slip with narrowed eyes.

...Was this VR Headset a fraudulent product, by any chance? Because boy oh boy, it was making some very exaggerated claims.

I decided to ask James about it. After all, last night, he had told me to reach out to him no matter what doubt I had. After all, he would be my supervisor from now on.

I opened Dismord and quickly typed out,

‘Hello James!

I just received the VR Headset. I have a few doubts about it, though. It says that it is based on thought based controls and that it can also allow me to experience ‘all five senses’.

That... seems a bit exaggerated. Is it just hyped up for marketing purposes?’

James, as usual, replied quickly.

‘Ah, about that. I was planning to tell you about it. Harmony Inc is actually developing cutting edge VR technology, and we made a major advancement just a year ago.

The testing phase had been going on till now, and it will be released in the market quite soon. It is not hyped up. Trust me, try it on! You’ll absolutely love it!’

I blinked and re-read the message he sent.

If the VR Headset was actually as good as what James promised, wouldn’t it overturn the VR market? No, being able to experience all five of your senses and also be able to control a game merely by your thoughts... that was technology that would overturn the world.

I gulped as I looked at the VR headset in my hand. This was probably very costly, right?

I gently strapped it to my head, subconsciously acting like it was fragile glass that would crack at the slightest touch.