Paying to Win in a VRMMO: Volume 1

by Blitz Kiva

  Asuha didn’t entirely trust Sakurako, who lived under the same roof as Ichiro. Asuha wanted Ichiro to settle down and get married already, but to nip in the bud any woman who didn’t meet her standards was part of her duty as a second cousin.

  “Okay...” Asuha held her Miraive Gear in both hands, knelt down on the bed, and closed her eyes. It was a mental preparation ritual that she employed when she needed to get pumped up. She did the same thing before softball tournaments.

  There’s so much I have to do in the game today. I have to meet Itchy, tell him the real reason I invited him, help him level up... And if Sakurako’s along, I need to find out what kind of weird “help” she’s been giving him, and put a stop to it... It’ll be hard having to do it all by myself, but I’ll do it.

  Asuha put on her full face gear Miraive Gear X and lay down on the bed. She didn’t know exactly how it worked, but there was a sensation, like strange waves getting into her head, and before long, her consciousness was completely severed from the real world.

  Normally, as a commercial-use device, the Miraive Gear Cocoon came with a credit card slot. It was there to let you input your card information directly without having to type out the code every time, a perverse sort of consideration from the maker. But it was such a blatant feature that many users objected to it, enough so that the Cocoons found in internet cafes and arcades often had their card slots covered with tape or advertisements.

  Nonsense.

  Ichiro Tsuwabuki’s philosophy was, “If you can use money, you should,” and he had no scruples about inserting his black credit card into the slot. There was a type of virtual currency called Future Points that you could buy at convenience stores, but if he was buying anyway, he thought, why not just use a credit card directly?

  The Cocoon’s reclining seat seemed comfortable enough, if not quite on par with his Armonia luxury bed. He rested his entire body on the seat, then placed the helmet-like device — the commercial Miraive Gear X he had bought — over his entire face.

  As always, he found it a bit stifling, a disappointment from a so-called state-of-the-art virtual reality device.

  But that feeling only lasted for a minute as Ichiro felt his consciousness and senses gradually cut off from the real world, drawn into the artificial reality created by the Miraive Gear. Darkness and light wove together, forming a single icon in the user-controlled cyber space. “Narrow Fantasy Online Premium Pack.”

  There were two versions of NaroFan that consumers could buy: the standard and limited editions. The limited edition, which offered exclusive classes and content, was one example of the game’s bias in favor of users willing to invest more real-world currency.

  This sometimes led to tragedies like user flaming and carelessly sold items being resold off for even higher prices, but Ichiro had no interest in such details — if it gave him more options, he wanted it. So he ended up paying an exorbitant price for a limited-edition pack picking up dust in the corner of an Akihabara shop. More could be said on this subject, but we’ll save that for another time.

  The words above it read: “Choose your game.” It was likely that the Cocoons currently operating all over Japan displayed dozens of installed game icons in this virtual space. Nothing quite felt real here, but Ichiro merely thought “Touch it,” and instantly, the game icon lit up.

  The light consumed his “vision” and the logo for Pony Entertainment, Inc flashed up, followed by the one for Miraive Gear, then at the end, the name Thistle Corporation. All that trouble to create a virtual reality, yet this part wasn’t any different from standard game hardware.

  It was hard to concretely identify exactly when he passed from the real world into this cyberbrain space. Every time he put it on, he found himself there before he knew it. It was clear from the way it could trick the mind that the Miraive was a very advanced device.

  He felt his consciousness bathed in light once more, and before long, it cleared. He was being moved — more precisely, the device was sending the illusion to his brain that he was being moved — to a place that, unlike the earlier cyberspace, came with a definite feeling of air and ground.

  Ground, sky, and myriad objects. He was standing at the precise coordinates where he had been when he had logged out the night before.

  Ichiro opened and closed his hands several times, testing the sensation. They felt exactly as they had a few minutes ago in the real world.

  He had been at this for a week now, and he never stopped being impressed by that.

  Yes, it had already been a week since Ichiro Tsuwabuki had begun playing Narrow Fantasy Online. Now that he was here in the fictional continent of Asgard, he was no longer Ichiro Tsuwabuki, heir to the Tsuwabuki Concern. He was Ichiro Tsuwabuki, Magi-Fencer of the Dragonet race.

  That’s right, if you can believe it — he named his character after himself.

  As a dedicated player herself, Sakurako Ogi had gently admonished him for this. “Playing under your real name will make people think you’re a land mine,” she said. But Ichiro declared her concerns “nonsense.”

  “Land mine” was a term used for players who lacked the skill and etiquette to engage in proper party play, invoking the imagery of how stepping on a land mine could take off an arm or a leg.

  In fact, it wasn’t just the name. He had many of the telltale signs of being a land mine.

  Thanks to Ichiro’s nauseating real world belief that he was the apex of humanity, he’d made his avatar a faithful recreation of himself, from the graphics down to the voice. He couldn’t remove the horns and tail native to the Dragonet race, but the Premium Pack-exclusive — in other words, pay-to-play — Dragonet was otherwise a faithful recreation of Ichiro himself.

  So, if his avatar was a perfect self-insertion, then what about Sakurako Ogi’s?

  “Forgive the wait, Master Ichiro.” A voice rang out, clear, yet carrying the weight of years. It resembled that of a now-deceased famous actor.

  The speaker was a man in the prime of life, clad in full-body plate mail. He had short-cut silver hair and a scar that traced vertically from his forehead to his left cheek. His armor clinked with each step he took towards Ichiro.

  “We logged in at the same time, Sakurako-san.”

  “Now, now!” At Ichiro’s words, the man threw out a hand. “To use one’s real name is counter to the rules of online etiquette. As of this moment, I am the somber front-line Knight, Sir Kirschwasser. My house has served House Tsuwabuki for generations.”

  “Yes, very well, if you insist.”

  “I mean it. You keep acting like you forgot and start calling me by my real name. You need to stop. It’s already been a week.”

  “You’re dropping character, Sir Kirschwasser.”

  Yes, shocking as it might seem, this was Sakurako. Of course, in a game, it was naturally possible to give your avatar a very different appearance from your own. But to pretend to be the opposite sex?

  But while Sakurako admitted that you saw fewer people doing that in a VRMMO, where it was harder to get a third-person view of your avatar, playing as the opposite sex was an everyday occurrence in most online games. It was an unsettling thought.

  “What I find hard to understand is why you want to play someone exactly like yourself in real life. Just how in love with yourself are you?” she demanded. Even the “loyal servant’s” tone was strange.

  “It is not that I am in love with myself. I simply feel no need to lie about who I am.”

  “You never want to try being someone else?”

  “No.” As he spoke, Ichiro tapped the air twice with his index finger, and a semi-transparent browser window opened before his eyes.

  “Oh, I see you’re getting used to that.”

  “It has been a week, after all.”

  This was a menu window. The care put into the depiction of Narrow Fantasy Online’s environment made it easy to forget you were in a virtual space, but a handful of elements did provide a reminder that it was all a game.


  From the menu screen, you could change equipment, call items out of inventory, log friends, and buy virtual items. You could also access “Mirai Network,” a cyberbrain community formed between Miraive Gear players; read webpages; and download apps exclusive to the platform.

  Ichiro’s window was already full of apps, both free and paid. He had been impressed by how much software they had that was useful for his businesses.

  “Now, we don’t have much time.” Ichiro looked at the small clock at the bottom of the menu screen.

  “That’s right, isn’t today the day you’re meeting your cousin, Asuha? Do you know her avatar’s name?”

  The game allowed multiple people to use the same avatar name, so just having the name wasn’t the final word in finding someone. Of course, without it, there was no way to even begin. Fortunately, Ichiro had asked for her character’s name in advance.

  “Yes. I believe it was ‘Felicia.’”

  “Felicia! I-Is Asuha a fighting gamer, by chance?”

  “I have no idea what you’re talking about, but I believe it’s a reference to the blue felicia, a flower of the Asteraceae family, like the tsuwabuki.”

  They were currently out on a map called the Volgund Volcanoes. According to Kirschwasser, it was the best place for building up levels and skill points, so they were there hard at work on the mundane task of leveling up. It would be a long walk to “Starter Town” where they were set to meet Asuha, a.k.a. Felicia.

  As they walked down the mountain road, Kirschwasser spoke earnestly. “Ah, I wish I had a horse to get around. I am a Knight, after all. I get a bonus to my horseback riding skills.”

  “Once I get a little more agility, I can learn ‘Dragon Wings.’”

  “You sound rather pleased about that.”

  “It’s just that, in the real world, I’ve never lacked for anything. In terms of both money and talents.” Ichiro gazed happily at the sky over the volcanoes.

  “You’ve been focused on building up your strength stat lately, right?”

  “Yes. But now that I’ve acquired ‘Break Object,’ I think I can lay off.”

  “Oh, the Dragonet exclusive skill. That one didn’t look very useful in a fight, though it really does add flavor.”

  “The game is so rigid about stats. Isn’t it wonderful not to have things go your way all the time?”

  “Is it? What an enviable thing to enjoy,” Kirschwasser murmured.

  There was acid in Kirschwasser’s tone, but Ichiro shrugged it off like a Poison Toad hit in the face with “Water Spear.” He was entirely shameless.

  It may be time to explain the general ins and outs of Narrow Fantasy Online.

  It was only the second VRMMO ever released, and in terms of both sales and active numbers, it far outstripped its predecessor.

  It was published by the Thistle Corporation, the company founded by the girl who had developed the virtual reality Drive technology and participated personally in the creation of the Miraive Gear.

  Thinking about it that way, it was understandable that it used the full potential of the Miraive Gear’s specs to create such a big world and that so many of the players it attracted chose to stay.

  Apparently the name “Narrow Fantasy” was a reference to the fact that even that huge game world was small compared to the VR worlds the company wanted to develop. The fact that it was first conceived of in a small research lab in a university was also suggested as a possible origin of the name. Either way, Narrow Fantasy Online plunged you into a wider world.

  The game’s “Grand Story” detailed how players were assuming the role of adventurers exploring the newly-discovered continent, Asgard, taming it, and unearthing the sleeping mysteries it contained. The players’ information was managed by the Adventurers’ Guild, and the dev team would sometimes assume the role of the guild when releasing new information.

  The only things, stats-wise, that the players could choose when making their character were race and class.

  Races were Human, Elf, Dwarf, four kinds of Anthromorph, and the Premium Pack exclusive races: High Elf, Dragonet, and Machina.

  Classes ranged from more orthodox ones like Fighter and Mage to specialist ones like Alchemist, Grappler, and many others. The player could only choose one class at the start, but then add up to two subclasses, for a combined total of three.

  Kirschwasser, for instance, was a Human, with Knight, Fighter, and Acolyte classes. His main class, Knight, excelled in defensive and mounted combat. His subclasses were Fighter, which encouraged the growth of all physical stats, and Acolyte, which specialized in healing and support. The end result was a front-line tank made for drawing aggro. His offensive prowess was lower than DPS specialists of the same level range, but he was that much tougher for it.

  “Do you enjoy playing that way?” Ichiro asked.

  “As a tank? It’s not that I especially enjoy it,” Kirschwasser responded, rubbing his jaw. “But I suppose I do prefer support to being a damage-dealer. For instance, if an ally gets in trouble... Yes, let’s say he’s a high-DPS ally who could finish off the boss in one hit, but his life is low. That’s when I’d charge forward. I could absorb an attack that would knock out ten of him and shrug it off, and even if I died, it wouldn’t matter.”

  “I find that very hard to understand.”

  “That’s not terribly surprising... Oh, there it is.”

  They had already moved from the volcanoes to a field. At the edge of the Vispiagna Meadow, a safe zone relatively free of dangerous monsters, stood a rather large harbor city known as “Starter Town.” It was bustling with beginner adventurers. Ichiro himself had started there just one week ago.

  “Incidentally, I failed to ask Felicia’s... Lady Felicia’s race and class.”

  “Were you trying to figure out what title to give her?”

  “Do you know what they are?”

  “She said her race was Human, and her class was Beast Tamer, I believe.”

  Ichiro’s words inspired a thoughtful frown to come over Kirschwasser’s face. “I see. That’s quite a niche class.”

  “Not many people use it?”

  “More than use your Magi-Fencer class, Master Ichiro, but they are in a similar boat. As I explained to you, the most powerful characters in games like these tend to be specialist builds, who...”

  “Ah, nonsense. Let’s save the lecture for another time.”

  Kirschwasser — Sakurako Ogi — was a gamer. A heavy gamer, at that. Theories about how to make a powerful avatar had been beaten into her head, and that expertise occasionally gave rise to a sort of grandmotherly solicitude.

  But to Ichiro, it simply sounded like his loyal servant was scolding him. He was happy to listen to advice, but he did get bored with hearing the same thing over and over again.

  At last, the two went through the gate to enter Starter Town.

  “I haven’t been here in a week,” Ichiro commented.

  “That’s true. You’ve become so much more impressive since then, they probably wouldn’t recognize you. Your equipment, especially.”

  The outfit that Ichiro wore definitely stood out in this fantasy world. A lustrous pattern, like butterfly wings, stood out against his blue jacket and slacks. Beneath his jacket he wore a dress shirt that came with a visual effect of constantly producing a light magical mist, owing to the spiritwood of the Lancastio Spiritwood Sea from which it was made. The belt, the watch, and the leather shoes were all made from some of the hardest items in the game to acquire, and they complimented him perfectly, as if they’d all come custom-ordered from famous brand-name stores.

  It seemed unbelievable that a person could get that far in just a week. The only disruption to his flawless image was the slightly tacky butterfly brooch at the chest, but Ichiro still acted terribly fond of it.

  It was true to say that he’d grown so impressive that people wouldn’t recognize him. As usual, he turned heads, but it had less to do with his physical attractiveness and more for the way his e
quipment clashed with the fantasy setting around them.

  “Yes, Iris did a fine job, too.” Ichiro’s mood was restored by getting to talk about his equipment.

  “Do you think she might log in?”

  “She appears to be busy with her term finals. It’s a shame. I had hoped to introduce her to Felicia.”

  Soon, they reached the fountain plaza that was to serve as their meeting spot. The area was crawling with new players and the mid-level players who’d likely invited them. He was thinking it would be hard to find Felicia in all this, but before he could even start searching, she found them.

  “Itchy!”

  There was a girl at a corner of the plaza waving cheerfully to them. He focused his attention on her and confirmed that the name above her head read “Felicia.”

  As she had described in their earlier communication, Felicia was a petite Human girl, though still a little taller than the real-life Asuha. She looked nothing like her, but the way she jumped up and down was so much like Asuha that it created an eerie sense of cognitive dissonance.

  “Hey, Felicia,” Ichiro said as he waved.

  “She looks as cheerful as ever,” Kirschwasser noted with a leisurely air.

  “I’ve never talked to you in the game before! Itchy, I can call you Itchy, right? Since you used your real name!” She ran up to him, babbling on and on, clearly unable to conceal her excitement.

  “I don’t mind. I’ll call you Felicia.”

  “Okay! Oh, that’s right, Itchy, friending! Let’s friend each other!”

  Felicia knocked twice on thin air to open up the window. She worked so quickly that before he could even respond, “Friend request from Felicia” popped into the air right before his eyes.

  As it was Felicia who invited him to the game, he had no reason to refuse. Ichiro touched “Yes.” It was followed by a cheery automated noise, and the window displayed a new message.

  “You are now friends with Felicia. Friends: 3. Remaining: 996.”

  “Yay! Itchy, let’s work hard together!”

  “Yes, let’s.”