Emperor! Can You See Stats!?

Chapter 184: The Unveiling of New Realities

“What now?”

The first thing that Eurius saw when the video came on was a metallic door in front of him.

Clank!

The door opened with a loud noise and three people entered. 

To be precise, one of them was dragged in.

Thud.

Two burly men in black clothes threw the man they had brought in on the floor.

“Hey! What are you doing to me!”

The blond man who was thrown shouted in protest, but the men in black did not even twitch their eyebrows.

“…”

“Please wait here for a moment.”

Clang!

The thick metal door was locked firmly and there was no way out from inside.

Eurius watched the scene with a puzzled expression.

‘Did the emperor get imprisoned?’

And surprisingly, he seemed to have no power at all. 

He was easily dragged by the muscular men…

Bang! Bang!

“You bastards! Let me out!”

Bang!

“Don’t you fear the law!”

“…”

He was just an ordinary human who could not even break a single iron door, unlike before.

Eurius looked at him with a dumbfounded expression.

“Huff… Huff…”

The emperor, who had exhausted himself from banging on the door, collapsed on the ground and gasped for air.

A little later.

Creak.

“Have you calmed down a bit?”

“…!?”

The person who opened the door and came in was an Asian woman. 

She looked like she was in her late twenties and wore a white coat that gave her an intellectual appearance.

But he had no chance to evaluate her, whether she was a woman or not.

“Who are you.”

“I’m the one who asked you to come here.”

“You, damn!”

He tried to muster his last strength and grab her collar. But that did not work either.

“Calm down for a moment. You’re more impatient than I thought.”

Woong.

“Ack!”

He floated a few centimeters in the air and flailed his arms and legs. 

The person who did this was a man who followed the woman into the room. 

He looked like he was in his mid-thirties and wore a blue robe that did not match the modern interior, as if he came out of a historical drama.

The emperor, who finally noticed him, was shocked enough to faint.

“You are!”

“I’m Lee Cheongmun. I saw your match before and it was quite impressive.”

“…!?”

The emperor blinked his eyes in astonishment.

“Are you calm now?”

Nod nod.

He landed on the ground again and looked at the woman and Lee Cheongmun alternately with a slightly frightened face. 

He was closer to fists than laws.

The emperor, who had regained his senses, soon noticed the name tag on the woman’s coat.

[VR Team Leader: Dimiana Kim]

He had an incredulous expression on his face.

“No, why are you, the famous psychic and K Foundation, interested in a commoner like me…”

“You’re not an ordinary commoner!”

The woman cut him off firmly.

“You are the youngest champion of the virtual reality league hosted by the K Foundation.”

“…!?”

Emperor Scharnos looked even more clueless. 

The woman continued to speak.

“The reason why I called you, Mr. XXX, is because of the K Foundation’s top-secret VR project.”

‘Called? Not kidnapped?’

Emperor Scharnos sneered inwardly and answered.

“Why would you bother to call me when the K Foundation has plenty of talent to spare?”

“That is…”

The woman seemed to hesitate for a moment. But she answered with a resigned expression.

“Name: XXX, player account: Sharnos, born in 2XXX, parents deceased early, currently enrolled in XX University with a special admission for VR-related fields. Is this your personal information?”

“Hmm?”

The woman recited his profile and Emperor Scharnos nodded with a puzzled expression.

“That’s your aptitude.”

“Aptitude?”

The woman nodded.

“Among the billions of people who have accessed the virtual reality system created by our K Foundation, you have the highest player aptitude. And it’s not even comparable to anyone else.”

Emperor Scharnos looked incredulous. 

It was a word he had never heard in his life.

“What do you mean by player aptitude… hey!”

“Simply put, it means the adaptability to virtual reality. Haven’t you seen it in dramas or movies?”

“…!?”

The woman explained kindly.

“You won the championship by defeating countless players in just a year after starting our company’s game. Didn’t you ever think that you had some special ability?”

“Well…”

Emperor Scharnos paused for a moment.

“But it’s just a game. That’s what you think, right?”

The woman answered for him.

“…”

“But player aptitude is a real ability. No, rather than an ability, should I say a talent?”

“Talent?”

“That’s right.”

Chuckle.

The woman smiled playfully and picked up the document again.

“I brought your military physical examination record when you enlisted. Your father is Korean, right? You served in the military before immigrating.”

“…That’s personal information, and isn’t that military secret?”

“Don’t worry about trivial things. According to this record…”

Flip.

The woman turned the page and began to recite his information.

“Your grade at the time of examination was 3rd due to mild asthma! You’re not exactly very healthy.”

“…”

“No talent for psychokinesis either. You’re just an ordinary person.”

“So what are you trying to say?”

Emperor Scharnos snapped back irritably. 

This woman had a knack for getting on people’s nerves.

“This is where it gets interesting. Even though you’re like this!”

Clap!

The woman clapped her hands and looked at Emperor Scharnos with sparkling eyes. 

She seemed cold and intellectual before, but she was the type who didn’t listen to anyone when she got into her own world.

“You become the owner of a talent that no one can follow in virtual reality. Congratulations. You’ve broken through this one-in-billions chance.”

“…!?”

‘Do you have to say it like that?’

Emperor Scharnos’s face crumpled. 

He roughly understood what she meant. 

He blurted out sarcastically.

“So, you’re saying that I’m just a simple shut-in in reality, but it’s different in virtual reality, right?”

“That’s right. In your case, you mainly focus on combat.”

“What do you mean by that…”

He had a sullen expression. 

He was the champion of the virtual reality world, wasn’t he?

But then, another voice was heard.

“Unfortunately, it’s different from what you think.”

“…!?”

Emperor Scharnos widened his eyes and looked at the direction where the voice came from. 

It was a man in a blue robe, an oriental man named Lee Cheongmun.

“What do you mean by that?”

“You must have some prior knowledge about ‘Ether’, right?”

“Of course I do. I don’t know the hard words, but it’s the source of power that superhumans use, right?”

“That’s right.”

[Ether]

This was a new ability that humanity discovered in the 2Xth century.

According to the ancient Greek philosophers, the world was made up of four elements: earth, water, fire, and wind!

Of course, not everything in the world was made of Ether as they defined it.

“Human souls are made of Ether, and using the power of this soul is what superhumans who use [Force] do. That’s roughly it, right?”

“That’s correct. You seem to know that much.”

“Who do you take me for, an African refugee?”

“…”

This was a basic knowledge that everyone learned in the compulsory education system in the 2Xth century South Korea.

“If you know that much, then I can explain it briefly.”

The woman intervened again.

“As you know, virtual reality is a technology that transfers human consciousness to virtual reality through brain waves. But there were many technical problems to create a world that was exactly like reality, and it took a long time.”

“Hmm…”

The woman then briefly explained the development process of the virtual reality machine.

“…And finally, in the 6th generation, we were able to achieve a 99.9% reproduction rate. You must have already seen it since you entered.”

Nod.

Emperor Scharnos agreed. 

He was a pro gamer and he knew better than anyone.

Unlike the previous generations that felt something lacking compared to reality, this machine created a world that was almost indistinguishable from reality.

“But even at this stage, there was one thing missing.”

“What was that?”

He didn’t know when he became curious, but Emperor Scharnos unknowingly asked a question. 

The woman answered firmly.

“Soul.”

“Soul?”

“We still can’t synchronize the brain waves and the body perfectly. In fact, high-level superhumans like Mr. Lee Cheongmun here have a hard time using their full power when they enter the virtual world.”

“…”

Emperor Scharnos tilted his head at this point.

“But what does that matter? Virtual reality technology is already useful enough even if it’s not exactly like reality.”

That was true. 

In the 2Xth century, virtual reality was inseparable from human life. 

It was widely used from games and sports to office work. But there was no reason why that world had to be exactly like reality.

“…”

The woman closed her mouth for a moment and ordered someone to bring something else.

Thud!

A paper with something densely written on it was handed over.

“What is this?”

“A contract.”

“What?”

The woman smiled again and opened her mouth.

“That question is confidential and cannot be disclosed to outsiders. So…”

“So?”

“If you sign a pledge to work with us, I’ll tell you.”

“What?”

Emperor Scharnos was stunned. 

They had kidnapped him and brought him here, and now they wanted him to sign a contract…

“Did I have a choice in that?”

“Of course you did. If you refuse, we’ll send you back.”

He tried to answer quickly.

“Then send me back right…”

“But!”

“…!?”

“Since you have learned some of the secrets of our K Foundation, you will have to face corresponding measures. For example… lifelong close surveillance…”

“Oh, come on!”

Emperor Scharnos was furious. 

They had been spouting nonsense about player aptitude and whatnot from the start, and this was an outrage.

The woman also quickly started to make excuses.

“We are sorry for this. But the contract terms are not bad at all. And there won’t be any dangerous work either.”

“Do you expect me to believe that?”

“…”

The woman responded with silence, and Emperor Scharnos also realized that it was useless to make a fuss.

“Damn it…”

His eyes quickly scanned the contract on the table.

[Top Secret Project: New World]

***

Beep.

Eurius’s consciousness returned to the arena.

[Did you get the answer you wanted?]

“…”

The golden dragon asked, but he did not answer. 

He just calmly thought about it.

‘Help view.’

Sometimes he looked at the help menu.

It was also necessary for making a decision.