Friday, November 22nd, 2024, 1:50 P.M.
"It really is too bad."
Ryuuzen Yuki muttered as soon as the staff left the table after handing him and Kamo their menus.
Looking at Yuki, whose whole body was radiating indignation, Kamo gave a bitter smile.
"I'm really sorry, I also received an invitation."
Kamo had known for a long time that Yuki didn't like him very much, and after the last time they'd played Mystery Maker together, the gap between them had widened even further.
In fact, when they saw each other at the meeting place designated by MegalodonSoft, at Port K in Okayama Prefecture, Yuki had looked like he was about to turn tail and run.
It had been three and a half months since the kickoff meeting with Kurata, and today was the first day of the Mystery Maker 2 demo.
As a result... Kamo had, unenthusiastically, accepted the role of "murderer".
You could say that this was entirely down to the man falling into Kurata's aggressive pace and being swept away... but there was no denying that somewhere in Kamo's heart lay the idea that "this seems quite interesting".
Since then, Kamo had had several meetings with Kurata's subordinate, Juumonji.
Director Juumonji was also a well known illustrator who had published many art books. In addition, he often acted as Kurata's substitute at various events, and Kamo had read many interviews with him in game magazines.
Kamo spent a month and a half coming up with his plot, and then another half month working with the developers to create a stage for his ideas.
After the preparation of the game's stage was completed, Kamo personally checked whether there was any deviation between the case as he'd designed it and the construction of the stage. At the same time, the debuggers also carried out their work to ensure that there would be no system errors during the actual playtest.
The work was difficult and time consuming... Just three days ago, Kamo was nestled in MegalodonSoft's Tokyo office working on final checks. The last few days had been so long that he couldn't tell if he was a writer or an employee at the company anymore.
Perhaps because of this, by the end of the long ten days of collaborative work, he had forged deep friendships with all the developers, including Juumonji. Most of the group were the easy-going type, and they even organized a special banquet for Kamo at a high class restaurant before the demo.
Even Kurata, who had left for MegalodonSoft's French branch on business half a month before, sent him a bottle of fine wine as a present.
However... now was no time to lounge around drinking wine. For Kamo, who was going to play the role of a murderer, the real show began now.
Because of the murderer role's special position, Kamo had been given the list of invitees in advance. Therefore, he already knew that Yuki, under his Aoba Yuki pen name, was among them.
In contrast, those who played the detective roles were not informed of the other invitees until the day of the event. That's why Yuki had been so surprised when he suddenly saw Kamo.
***
Kamo had thought Yuki might be upset to see him, but he hadn't expected him to be dumbfounded.
"...Huh?"
"Why, you look so upset. Is it because I was invited too?"
"Ah, that's part of it."
Yuki smoothly took over the conversation, fiddling with the band of the smartwatch on his left wrist. The watch was emblazoned with the shark of the MegalodonSoft company logo.
Yuki was a budding mystery writer, seven years younger than Kamo.
Both he and Kamo's wife were part of the Ryuuzen clan, the founding family of the Ryuuzen Group, a large corporation. To be blunt, they were trust fund kids.
However, Yuki didn't seem to like this identity, so he left the family as soon as he went to college. Before he became a writer, he had been working in the TV industry... only to quit his job when he was caught up in a tragic incident.
For some reason, Yuki seemed to be reluctant to meet Kamo's eyes, and instead kept looking out the window.
From the side, Yuki's face bore a slight resemblance to Rena's. It was no wonder, seeing as how they both bore a marked resemblance to their shared grandmother, Ryuuzen Fumino. That was why... no matter what attitude this cousin of his wife's family took, Kamo couldn't bring himself to get angry or turn away from him.
Yuki's gaze fell on the table as he spoke again "I though you didn't like things like this, Mr. Kamo, so even if you were approached, you'd refuse."
Even though they were family, he insisted on referring to Kamo by his last name with proper honorifics. Kamo had gotten used to it.
Kamo pushed up his glasses and gave an ironic smile.
"I was going to refuse, but Ms. Kurata talked me into it."
"I understand. I was also blindsided by her words. Even I'm a bit confused how I ended up here."
After saying that, Yuki sighed deeply.
"...Also, the editor-in-chief told me that, since my book won't sell, I should 'just go and make myself known'."
It's not easy for you either."
"Actually, the one who was invited wasn't 'me as a writer'. I just accidentally let it slip, so the chief asked me to participate under my pen name to raise awareness."
"I see."
"Then the chief and Ms. Kurata pretty blatantly set me up... But this event seems quite interesting, so I probably would have participated even if I wasn't forced."
As they chatted, the staff brought in their post-meal drinks, a caffè americano and a milk tea. Yuki inserted a straw into his plastic cup and spoke again "Then again, I don't think you played the original Mystery Maker that much, did you Mr. Kamo?"
"I'm ashamed to admit it... but I only played for a few hours on the spur of the moment after receiving the invitation."
The two of them were sitting in the dining hall of the health resort.
The resort was called Megalodon Manor, and on the outside it had a log cabin style design. Including Kamo and Yuki, there were five people currently in the dining room, all of them guests who had been invited to participate in the demo.
Kamo took a sip of his piping hot black coffee.
He had just asked the staff delivering the coffee and learned that there were still two guests who had not yet arrived. It was rumored that the plane from Okayama had been delayed, so they would have to wait in the restaurant until everyone had arrived.
Yuki looked around with a skeptical expression.
"There were five of us when we gathered at Port K, and there are five of us now. They said eight people were invited, and two are late, so that still leaves us one person short. ...I asked another staff member when we first arrived on Inunojima, and he said the same thing, so there shouldn't have been a miscount."
"Maybe someone got on another boat and arrived early?"
"Could that person be a VIP?"
As far as Kamo knew, the highest profile person on the guest list was already sitting in the dining hall with them.
Looking at the guest profiles alone, there shouldn't be anyone else who deserved VIP treatment... No, rather, there were a few people who seemed outright strange. One of the guests was listed as a drifter, and the another was a "Jack-of-all-trades". It was possible one of them had come in especially early.
Yuki slipped his hand into the pocket of his jeans and spoke again "Right, right, I should explain why I said 'it really is too bad' earlier. That wasn't referring to you, Mr. Kamo."
Saying that, he suddenly jerked his hand out and made a face of despair.
"Ah, I almost forgot, they took away our cell phones."
Because Director Juumonji had explained it beforehand, Kamo had already been prepared... As soon as they arrived on the island, they were led to the building next to Megalodon Manor to undergo a security check, during which their cell phones and other belongings were confiscated.
Kamo showed a bitter smile.
"Even if it's to prevent stealth photography or recordings, it's a bit excessive."
Their cell phones were placed in thick felt bags which in turn were locked in black boxes that looked completely indestructible.
This was the first time Kamo had been separated from his cell phone in years. It felt like he'd been forced to bid goodbye to a part of himself.
Yuki nodded vigorously in agreement with Kamo.
"Not only that, they also took my watch and wallet. That's just too much."
Kamo felt the same way, but something else seemed more important.
"Hm? Yuki, were you wearing a watch and a smartwatch?"
"Well, that watch was a gift from Ms. Mikumo, after all."
Mikumo was Yuki's girlfriend. Kamo was afraid if he said any more, the whole conversation would devolve into Yuki talking about how deep his affections ran, so he hurriedly changed the subject.
"Well, it seems that in order to prevent someone from smuggling in a bug, basically all carry-on items were confiscated."
The only exceptions were the smartwatches Kamo and the others were wearing on their wrists.
MegalodonSoft had sent them those watches ahead of time in hopes that they would review them, and also said they would have some use at the demo event as well. However, ever since they had arrived on Inunojima, the smartwatches' functionality had been limited.
"It seems I wasn't the only one to take issues with the staff's behavior. I heard some others arguing with them; one person said something like 'why are you even taking my jewelry!?' ...Honestly, just how little faith in us do the organizers have?"
Facing the indignant Yuki, Kamo suddenly remembered his question.
"Say, what were you about to say earlier? About why you were upset."
"Ohhh, right, I forgot. I just said I regretted it because of the time trial event in the original Mystery Maker."
"I think I heard the operators say something about that. It's starting at noon in two days, right?"
The playtest event at Megalodon Manor required an overnight stay.
The demo would end at noon, November 24th, overlapping with the start of the time trial event for the previous work.
However, Kamo still didn't understand why Yuki was upset.
"Won't an event for the original game be available as long as you own Mystery Maker?"
Kamo asked rhetorically, and Yuki nodded vigorously.
"Yes, it's a completely open event."
"Then surely an exclusive demo of an upcoming game is more important, right?"
"You're right, but this time trial is rather special."
Yuki explained that at noon Japan Time on the 24th, Mystery Maker was going to have a major update, as part of which a new level would go online.
"The name of the new level is 'The Supreme Great Detective', and players all around the world have been waiting for it for months."
Seeing Yuki's excitement growing, Kamo was slightly hesitant as he said "So you regret that you can't make it to the major update, huh? ...Then you can just wait until after the demo event, then play it."
"How can I? By then it'll be too late!"
"Too late?"
"Like I said earlier, this is a time trial event. Players from all over the world will be competing for the title 'King of Detectives'... This update is synchronized globally, and the first people to clear the level get deluxe rewards."
Yuki then went on to give the specifics of the special rewards for clearing the level.
☆The first twenty people→Go on a global tour of sites important to Mystery Maker, together with Director Juumonji.
☆The first two thousand people→Receive playing privileges for Mystery Maker 2 fifteen days in advance + an exclusive set of new avatars and mystery stages.
"The top prize is a world tour? First I've heard of that. That's way too luxurious for a video game prize." Kamo muttered.
Yuki nodded. For some reason he had a smug look on his face.
"MegalodonSoft is especially good at creating momentum like that... Because of the time difference, players in Europe will have to get up very early in the morning to play, and many people say that's unfair."
"So, which one are you aiming for, Yuki? The first two thousand?"
"Yeah, that's right... but the terms might be a bit harsh."
It was because Mystery Maker was a breakout game that had sold over sixty million copies.
Assuming only ten percent of players even attempted the trial, that was still six million people. Even if there were two thousand copies of that special early access edition of Mystery Maker 2 in existence, the odds were still one in three thousand.
Looking at Yuki slurping his milk tea, Kamo frowned.
"Wait a minute... I seem to remember you asking if I was free on the 24th, is that because of this?"
Yuki suddenly looked embarrassed, his gaze dropping to the plastic cup in his hand.
"You realized? I was planning to trick you into playing 'The Supreme Great Detective' if you were free. If you can beat it, then I can get that special edition all to myself."
Even though Yuki was born a prototypical Young Master, there was an unexpected cunning to his character, and sometimes he demonstrated a staggering amount of boldness.
Kamo sighed and said "You're really... But speaking of which, there's no need to do all this, right? You've already been invited to the demo, so if you just talk to MegalodonSoft, won't they give you the privilege of playing the new game early?"
"It's only a special privilege if you win the time trial fairly and honestly."
"Don't give me that! You were planning to trick me into getting it for you!"
As the two of them bickered, Kamo suddenly felt eyes on him.
He turned his head back and seemed to lock eyes with a teenager. He couldn't be sure, though, because the teenager's long bangs covered his eyes.
The teen sat alone, in a seat slightly away from Kamo and Yuki.
He was wearing a dark blue school uniform with his school's logo and a green tie. The plastic cup on the table in front of him held only ice cubes.
This would be the only high school student among those invited, Kenzan Ryohei.
Kenzan suddenly smiled, but didn't say anything, instead looking down at his plastic cup.
Kamo glanced at his smartwatch; the time was now 2:12 P.M. They had been waiting for over an hour.
He stretched and said to Yuki "This resort's actually pretty nice. And there don't seem to be any buildings other than this on the entire south side of Inunojima."
Inunojima was situated in the sea six kilometers away from Port K, covering an area of about one square kilometer, with a population of about sixty. It was said that many private lodgings had been built on the island during the Showa era, but now, all of them were closed, and the main industry on the island was fishing. The residences were mainly concentrated on the north side of the island, and there was nothing on the south side but this facility and the aging plank road... Probably because it wasn't peak tourist season, the island was permeated with an atmosphere of desolation.
Yuki squinted out the window and nodded. There were many southern trees planted outside that didn't match the local climate.
"It feels a bit like a fancy hotel. I heard from the editor-in-chief that he goes to a health resort run by the company every New Year's Eve. It's in Mie Prefecture, and apparently employees get special discounts..."
Yuki kept talking, but Kamo's mind had already gone elsewhere. He felt sorry for Yuki in his heart, but while his mouth casually kept up with the conversation, his eyes began to wander.
On a seat next to the wall-mounted TV, a man with white hair was napping.
He appeared to be in his early to mid seventies, with a lean figure, and even from a distance, one could see that the hair on top of his head was rather thin.
Kamo had known this man long before he accepted the invitation; he was Roppongi Shido.
The man was a critic by profession, and often appeared on news programs.
He was adept at using the experience he'd gained working in Investigation Division 1 of the police as a younger man, and he gave sharp opinions wherever he appeared. Rumor had it that he was also a consultant with the police, and often assisted with investigating cases in secret.
Whatever the truth was, in was certain that he was the most well known of the guests in attendance.
A man sat across from Roppongi, and Kamo could only see his back.
The man had thick black hair, and he was wearing only a shirt and vest, even though the weather had gotten cooler. His body looked to have more fat than muscle, though his large shoulders still gave him an overall feeling of strength.
That would be another guest, Fuwa Shinichiro.
Fuwa was a private investigator who ran his own detective agency in Shinjuku. The logo of his office was an abstract image of a dark green vest, which must have originated from the director's own style.
Although he was a detective by profession, his case investigations didn't involve the proper authorities, so he was still considered an "amateur detective" for purposes of the demo event.
The restaurant was filled with a lazy atmosphere. The sunlight coming in through the window soothed the mind and body alike.
At some point, Yuki mentioned the name of the resort, shaking his plastic cup of milk tea with one hand.
"Don't you think the name's too straightforward? It's just 'Megalodon Manor'."
"It's a straightforward name based on the company's."
"A megalodon is a giant shark that lived in ancient times..."
"Yeah, I knew that..."
Kamo was startled by a sudden clattering sound. At the same time, he found that his neck was suddenly failing to support his head.
...His consciousness was turning fuzzy?
The movement came from the plastic cup falling to the table. Because of the impact, the cup's lid was knocked open, and ice cubes and what little tea remained spilled onto the table. Yuki, who had been holding the cup only a moment ago, was looking at his empty right hand in bewilderment.
Soon, Yuki showed a stiff smile.
"Could it be... sleeping pills?"
After he said that, the blood finished draining from his face and a heavy look of exhaustion seeped from the corners of his eyes. Kamo grabbed the paper cup in front of him, which was still about a quarter full of coffee.
"...Looks like it."
Both of them had drank most of their drugged cups. Even if they had exceptional willpower, it would be difficult to resist the effects of the drug. As expected, Kamo felt more tired than he ever had in his life.
Kenzan, the boy in the uniform, also leaned against the back of his chair and closed his eyes. Judging from the strange angle his neck was twisted into, he should have already fallen into a deep sleep.
"I hope... this is... part of the event..."
Yuki wasn't able to finish the sentence before his head slammed into the table, knocking away the plastic cup.
Drugging guests at a video game playtest was too far removed from common sense.
Moreover, Kamo had also been drugged. If even he, the criminal mastermind, hadn't been forewarned, it was basically safe to assume the odds of it being part of the plan were zero.
Then just who was it, and for what purpose...?
Despite having been desperately supporting himself, eventually, Kamo stopped thinking. His vision went black, his temple hit the table, and the odor of stale wood and wax oil filled his nostrils.
A moment later, he lost consciousness.
***
When he opened his eyes, the first thing he saw was the dark ceiling.
Is black such a heavy color?
Kamo shook off the illusion that the ceiling was descending to crush him and propped up his upper body on the bed. A sharp pain ran through his head.
He was in a strange room. No, it looked familiar, but his brain hadn't shaken off the effects of the sleeping pills and he couldn't think properly.
He was sleeping on a wooden single bed. A desk and chair were at his feet. The room was probably a little bit larger than a normal hotel room for one, and had cream wallpaper and furniture in a uniform natural wood color.
He turned his head to the left and was suddenly startled.
There rested a spherical white object with a diameter of about two and a half meters.
If he had to compare it to something, the thing looked a bit like the three dimensional swivel chairs that astronauts use for training. But inside this sphere there was no chair, only a thick black column and several cables and wires.
Kamo rubbed his temples... he knew exactly what it was.
The full body VR control device, RHAPSODY.
It was said to be the first ever full body controller of its kind, and it had attracted a lot of attention at the Tokyo Game Show. It was scheduled to sell with an MSRP (Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price) of 200,000 yen. Although it was very expensive, there were still many people eagerly awaiting the device's coming spring release date.
When he was doing his overtime work at MegalodonSoft to prepare for the event, Kamo had used the RHAPSODY to do debugging tests over and over and over again, so he knew that the device was going to be used for the demo.
...Since there was a RHAPSODY here, did that mean he was still inside Megalodon Manor?
Kamo pushed up his black rimmed glasses, which were about to fall off, and got off the bed.
Black jeans, a casual shirt, and his coat. He was still wearing the same clothes he was in when he'd passed out in the dining hall. Probably because he wasn't finished digesting the sleeping pills yet, he walked with wobbly steps.
The solid wood desk held stationery and loose leaf paper, a floor plan of the building, and... a large cardboard box. The box was full of food and drink.
A message card was stood in front of the box.
In the closet you will find a VR operation suit, a pair of glove controllers, and a VR headset. Please put them on and complete your preparation to enter Mystery Maker 2.
Details will be explained in the VR space. Your questions will be answered there as well.
Kurata Chikage
First, Kamo was confused. Then an intense anger welled up in his heart.
This card made it clear that drugging their drinks was a deliberate arrangement by MegalodonSoft. And even Kamo, who played the role of the murderer, hadn't been informed.
...Just what do they hope to accomplish with this borderline criminal act?
Kamo began to fumble for the cell phone he kept in his coat pocket. He had to contact Producer Kurata or Director Juumonji as soon as possible and get some explanations.
However, the pocket was empty. His wallet... even the business card holder he never left behind when he went out to work as a writer was gone.
Memories fogged by sleeping pills gradually returned to him, and Kamo finally remembered that all of his belongings had been taken away.
He looked down at the message card and hesitated for about ten seconds.
Should he leave the room and look for a staff member, or should he follow the card's instructions and put on the VR equipment?
After a few troubled moments, Kamo chose the latter. His reasoning was that he felt it would be better to get into direct contact with Producer Kurata.
He opened the closet, and there was indeed a full set of VR equipment inside.
Kamo didn't touch the VR suit or gloves, but he did pick up the headset.
To use the analogy of a traditional game, it's the VR headset that's the equivalent of the console itself, while the gloves, suit, and RHAPSODY are just fancy controllers. If you want to contact the staff, then just putting on the headset and using voice chat is enough.
After putting on the headset, a message appeared before Kamo.
This VR headset is registered to Mr. Kamo. Confirming identity through iris scan bioauthentication.
.........
Welcome, Mr. Kamo.
The moment the text disappeared, Kamo almost fell into a panic.
...Because the figure that appeared before his eyes belonged to his daughter Yukina.
Yukina was sitting on a chair at the dining table, rocking her feet, clumsily holding a pencil in her tiny hand, dutifully doing her math homework.
Far in the background, Rena slowly stirred a pot of food.
From the headset's built-in headphones came a clear voice.
"Yukina, it's almost time to eat, clear the table."
"Okay~~!."
There was no mistaking it... This was the dining room of Kamo's home.
Even though the image didn't emit an odor, Kamo could still smell the aroma of beef stew. It was as though he could have just reached out and touched his family. Looking at the clock on the table, it was now 7:15 P.M., and the window was already shrouded by night.
Precisely because it was a scene he was so familiar with, Kamo could be sure that this wasn't CG, but a live feed.
They were monitoring his family... or would it be more appropriate to say they were threatening him by taking Rena and Yukina hostage?
Kamo felt an awful chill in his spine.
From the direction of the view, the camera should have been installed in "something" underneath the TV.
He remembered that there was an AI assistant placed there. About two weeks ago, MegalodonSoft had given it to him for evaluation.
...The AI assistant had a spy camera installed in it?
At that moment, Kamo remembered something else and couldn't help but shudder.
The AI assistant wasn't the only thing he'd been given for evaluation. If the other things had also been tampered with...
Yukina was wearing a smartwatch on her right wrist, and the megalodon logo on it was visible through the screen. Rena was wearing the same thing.
"That's enough... I'll follow your instructions."
He whispered through gritted teeth and the image in front of him disappeared. A message emerged from the darkness——
The smartwatch that was given to you has a special "death trap" device, containing a poisoned needle that can be activated remotely.
If you value the lives of Kamo Rena and Yukina... as well as yourself, please follow our instructions.
Kamo reflexively pressed his left wrist.
He was also wearing the same type of smartwatch that had been delivered ten days ago. The message in front of his eyes continued.
We have now remotely locked the smartwatch. If you do not wish to lose your life in vain, please do not do anything foolish like trying to remove the watch by force.
If you fully understand all of the above information, please launch Mystery Maker 2.
Kamo pressed the button to raise the lenses.
The lenses lifted up to his forehead and his vision returned to reality. Without realizing, he had started hyperventilating and broken into a cold sweat.
...The poisoned needles hidden in the watches... that must have just been a bluff to scare me.
He wanted to take his chances and leave this place by force. However, the fact that Rena and Yukina were also involved made him think twice. If the worst case scenario was true, their lives would be in danger.
For now, it would be better to follow the instructions and find out what the other party is really up to... After making his decision, Kamo opened the closet and took out the VR operation suit.
The suit covered the entire body except for the head and hands, and was divided into several parts for ease of application and removal. Kamo picked up the top part first and put it on. Since he had put it on several times before, it only took him five minutes to finish dressing.
The operation suit was black and gray, with a heavy fabric with a spandex texture on the back and abdomen.
When worn, it looked a bit like a combat suit from some sci-fi movie. The design was clearly meant to look appealing to gamers rather than be functional. But because the fabric used was highly stretchable, it at least didn't feel like it restricted movement.
Next, he put on the glove controllers. The familiar MegalodonSoft logo was printed on the back of the hand. Although the gloves were generally rated as having poor battery life, when used in the RHAPSODY, they could operate for hours on end.
Kamo walked towards the RHAPSODY with his VR headset on, and the white sphere made a soft start up sound before slowly opening.
This device is registered to Mr. Kamo. The correct VR headset has been identified. Welcome, Mr. Kamo.
After displaying this message, the sphere's entranced opened to meet Kamo's movement.
Upon entering the RHAPSODY, the black pillar in the center bent smoothly, creating a curve to sit on. Kamo leaned his back against the black pillar and lowered his center of gravity. He heard only a click, then felt a slight vibration transmitted through his body through the operation suit.
The back of the VR operation suit had an interface port two centimeters in diameter and two centimeters deep, located in the center of the back, just below the shoulder blades.
The RHAPSODY's black column had a matching connector two centimeters in diameter and protruding two centimeters out, and the two were magnetically connected. When connected, they could synchronize the suit with the RHAPSODY.
Before pressing the button to reset the lenses, Kamo took a deep breath.
Whatever lay ahead... he had no choice but to confront it head on.