The Little Prince in the Ossuary

00078 — #Intermission %26 #Hardened Earth–

#Intermission, picking stars from the sky

There were people in the world who shone more than others. Everyone loved their outstanding appearance or extraordinary talents, such as a naturally beautiful voice, perhaps.

They called them “stars.”

Star. Didn’t that word describe them well? It gave a sense of distance. As with real celestial objects, a human star was a beauty that you couldn’t touch. Regardless of how pure one’s heart was, yearning for the stars couldn’t but end with regret.

Nevertheless, some people still chose to reach for the stars. They tried to get their hands on them with crooked affection and false obsession. In most cases, their efforts resulted in crimes, often invading the star’s private life or property. They then would begin to spread rumors, threaten the star, sometimes even kill them, thinking they’d rather destroy what they couldn’t have.

Even if one were to get their hands on the stars, there were still problems. Their beauty was a cross-section of a strong sense of occupation. It was pretty hard to live up to the belief that one’s bare face was like starlight. In short, they had to go to the bathroom, too! And if starlight was their essence, why did so many star couples wind up getting divorced?

Too many stars had lost their reputation for drugs, illegal gambling, military corruption, or sexual scandals. When you picked a star from the sky, would you be truly satisfied?

Stars were the most beautiful from afar.

That was right. That was the reality.

However, this was what the virtual reality business department of Paradise Group said to that: Fuck The Reality.

Everything was possible in virtual reality! You could get the starlight as it was in your fantasy. Assuming, of course, that you had enough money.

What did this mean?

It meant one could purchase virtual reality character products of celebrities who had contracted with their company.

The method was simple. Search for the names of your favorite celebrities in the post-insurance DLC store. Then one would see a list of various products. In brief, these packages were as follows:

The first was the Skin Package, which was required to purchase a celebrity’s appearance. You could use this appearance yourself, or it could be overwritten by a specific virtual personality from the virtual reality worldview you used. The only thing that would change was the appearance of the buyer. There was no significant impact on the level of attractiveness as it appeared in the context of the operation; it was all just for self-satisfaction. As such, this package was the cheapest.

The second was the Standard Virtual Personality Package. If one were to buy this, they could put the celebrity in their worldview! Depending on your worldview, you would also be given a proper joining mission! You wouldn’t have to worry about mission failure because the operation of the control AI itself was an unconditional success. It would feel like the whole universe was helping you when you wanted it.

The buyer would also set up the first meeting. It was possible to create a situation wherein you would dramatically save the celebrity from a crisis, leading them to fall in love with you. Haha, wouldn’t a fan have imagined it at least once? Unlike ordinary virtual characters, their purchased character would eventually fall in love with them, no matter what process they were to go through.

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Unlike the Skin Package, the Standard Virtual Personality Package was applied to the celebrity’s career, personality, specialties, and abilities. A personality was a changeable option, but a separate fee was often applied in the event of cancellation.

Last was the Filmography Virtual Personality Package. It was the highest performing, most expensive, and most limited in utilization. This product utilized the fictional characters that the entertainer had portrayed in movies or shows. The personality, background, and abilities were all tailored to the character.

As the setting was specific, it was difficult to use this product in a different background. For example, if one were using the “Sunset,” a worldview set in the western frontier, it would be strange if a character from an SF worldview suddenly popped up. No matter how good the post-insurance control AI was, it was impossible to give credibility to such a situation. The Standard Virtual Personality Package was somewhat more realistic in this case. That was why it was recommended to check the compatible worldviews carefully before purchasing.

These products’ unit price was usually high, but there were cheaper products if one were to look carefully (though customers weren’t very interested in them). These were the character packages of unpopular entertainers and old stars.

In reality, celebrities didn’t make a lot of money. Only the top 0.1% enjoyed the glory of the times. The rest… they were hard-working day laborers. So they tried to sell their appearance and character products any way they could.

Even celebrities who had reached the entertainment industry’s peak couldn’t sell their images at high prices after a while. Their best days didn’t last that long. There were also a lot of stars who fell into the one-hit-wonder category, as well as rookies making their debuts. So stars did have an obsession with success and could always feel the pressure. An old pop song seemed to fit.

「Will you still love me when I’m no longer young and beautiful?」

「I know you will.」

「Will you still love me when I got nothing but my aching soul?」

「I know you will.」

The singer’s answer in the song was pathetic. The hot, pure yearning for the stars was but a moment of passion.

There was no such thing as eternal love.

This was why the discount on character packages was surprisingly frequent compared to the popularity of stars. When you thought that your life as an entertainer was over, there were many times when you would cry. Because of this, one shouldn’t be afraid of the high price. The sales protected you.

I’ve guided you to celebrity character products so far, but what do you think? Do you have a strong desire to buy? Star chasers, shake out your wallets, and let your hands flood with starlight!

For your happiness, the virtual reality department of Paradise Group will continue to make the best efforts for your money. Thank you.

#Hardened ground, Fort Roberts (1)

The Americans’ respect for war heroes was extraordinary. As the youngest recipient of the Medal of Honor in the world, Gyeo-ul had the right to be saluted first by his superiors. Even the president was no exception. It was not an explicit right, but it was a practice that everyone respected.

Gyeo-ul was not obsessed with that right. It was his character and intention to look humble.

Every American liked Gyeo-ul, so there were a lot of people who wanted to get to know the boy officer. There were also many enthusiastic supporters of Fort Roberts’ police force. It was not difficult for Gyeo-ul to get acquainted with them.

Sergeant Adare and Officer Dawson, who were now accompanying Gyeo-ul, had also recently become acquainted. The two were embarrassed by Gyeo-ul’s request to go on patrol together but were pleased to accept it.

“You seem to patrol more often than before.”

When Gyeo-ul said this, Sergeant Adare responded positively.

“Thanks to you, thoughts on the refugees have changed a lot. A directive has been issued from the top to strengthen the management of refugee zones. It’s true that we’ve been indifferent. It’s just an excuse, but they’re all out of their minds.”

“I think it was inevitable. You’ve lost a lot of things, right?”

These kind words made the sergeant smile.

“Yes, definitely. Anyway, now that we’ve come to our senses, we’ll have to get back what we can. We can’t return to the way things were in the past.”

The conversation was taking place right in the middle of the Chinese-style residential district. Outside the boundaries of the Triad, they were busy crossing the boundaries of other organizations. Gyeo-ul looked at the police patrol route. This was the purpose of his going on this patrol from the beginning. The two policemen had no clue, but there were things only Gyeo-ul could see.

Translucent red oblique lines warned of the “sense of survival.”

‘It’s on and off. Well, you can’t be very skilled.’

The invisible shooters never maintained their aim. The oblique line was shaking. The width was in meters.

Bow and sling were very difficult weapons to build up skill with, and there was no space to train long-distance fighters. At best, they would have been training short-range fighters in a tent.

The poor quality of weapons was also the cause of low hit rates. How high a level of weapon could unskilled workers make from crude materials?

“Was the patrol route originally this way? Or are you going to take a different route just for today?”

It was Officer Dawson who answered Gyeo-ul’s question. He pointed to the middle of the row house construction site. “It used to pass by there. The patrol route has changed since construction began. This route will be maintained until the first round of construction is completed.”

It was a satisfactory answer.

The aim warning, which increased and strengthened every time a particular section passed, suggested a lot. It meant that there was something that had to be guarded and watched, but it was difficult to move away from the changed patrol route.

“After the construction, it will actually become a city. In fact, the population has long been equivalent to a small city. But… then the police will start up the graveyard watch again. I’m looking forward to it, even though I’m sure I’ll get tired. It feels like I’m going back to my old life.”

The sergeant’s words caught Gyeo-ul’s attention. Regardless of whether they were inside or not, they were on patrol on the outside, so he needed to blend in with the conversation to avoid making it awkward. Since he had some questions in mind, Gyeo-ul began to ask them.

“Why do you describe night patrols like that?”

“Oh, you mean the graveyard watch? I don’t know if it’s true or not, but in medieval England, there was a person who guarded the cemetery all night. That’s where the expression comes from.”

“Protecting the cemetery? Were they trying to stop grave robbery?”

“No. At that time, a cemetery’s area was fixed, so I heard that when there were not enough new places for burials, an old tomb would be dug up and made into plots. But sometimes, when they took out a coffin and opened it, there was a scratch on the inside of the coffin cover. One in every twenty-five coffins. That means they buried someone alive, right?”

“That’s right.”

“From then on, when burying a body, they connected a string to its wrist and tied it to a bell outside the tomb. They called it the List Bell. The duty of the guardian of the cemetery was to dig out the buried person if the bell rang. I heard this from my senior when I was a beginner, but I thought it was quite plausible.”

“That’s interesting. Thank you for your explanation.”

After that, the casual conversation continued. Since friendship with each and every person was an asset, Gyeo-ul faithfully listened to the meaningless words.

“A city… I heard there were barbershops, laundry, and supermarkets in the refugee camps in Syria, and that’s what’s going to happen here soon. I don’t know about anything else, but I want to have a donut shop. Night patrols without coffee and doughnuts feel like something is lacking.”

Dawson’s wish made Adare laugh.

“The Chinese won’t make a doughnut as good as Bakers.”

“Who knows? They’re good at cooking.”

Gyeo-ul tilted his head.

“Do you two like donuts? I heard American police are stereotyped as donut-lovers.”

Dawson and Adare answered simultaneously.

“That’s not real. I didn’t eat them because I don’t like them. But when I went on patrol in the middle of the night, I’d go to a donut shop to relax. It was almost a habit; it felt like part of the job. I think that’s why I miss them.”

“You can look at it as a generation gap. Some say they eat bagels instead of donuts for their health.”

Gyeo-ul felt curious. ‘I don’t think bagels are much better than donuts…’

At this point, the patrol reached a checkpoint outside the Chinese residential district. The soldiers who saw Gyeo-ul saluted smartly. Gyeo-ul acknowledged them and turned around to observe the construction site. The first round of construction was almost complete.

‘If I’m going to do this, it would be better before the patrol route is changed again.’

At this point, it was okay to quit the patrol. Still, to reduce unnecessary suspicion, later on, Gyeo-ul decided to join the two police officers for a longer duration than had initially been planned.