Chapter 406

Force sleep had to be the greatest thing ever created. In the blink of an eye, literally, 8 hours passed for James. One second, he was looking lovingly into Rue’s eyes, then blink, and bam, back awake…looking into Rue’s, er, eyes? His pixie had a habit of messing with him when he woke up. She seemed to very much so enjoy seeing what types of reactions she could get from him, and this time, was no different.

After her fit of laughing, and she dressed herself more appropriately, they took to walking around the Safe Zone, as James partially monitored his experience. Even with the eight hours, he’d not hit Tier 5 Rank 9. He was close, only a couple thousand experience away, really, but it seemed with the skirmishes ongoing, players coming through Dungeon Gates had slowed a little. Additionally, as was to be expected, players had been farming experience in a safer manner the higher they climbed, for the most part, because of the pain a loss of a levels worth of experience could feel like at higher levels.

Still, at the current rate, he had no doubt he was going to hit Tier 6 this immersion. Or, at the very least, Tier 5 Rank 10. Which would mean more mobs for his fifth floor, as well as the final upgrades for them. Depending on how close he got to Tier 6, he was debating spending a few dungeon tokens on the final day of immersion to get his Safe Zone Research to level 5, just so he could fiddle around with the Siege Events and have them ready for when the players next logged in.

In a perfect world though, he wanted Tier 6 to hit before players were forced out for this immersion cycle, because it would give him a full 24 hours in game to work on his sixth floor in peace. Additionally, as always happened in DCO, the moment he got his Six floor, he would gain access to the world boss for his fifth floor. And he wanted that, so he could implement it as soon as possible for the players. Especially given having access to the fifth floor World Boss would be a major boon for Skirmishes, and Dungeon Wars. The latter of which he knew would be starting again soon.

“What do you think we should do next?” James asked as he walked alongside Rue. They were walking slowly, hand in hand, around the peaceful, picturesque holiday town. Around them, painguin shopkeepers and NPCs moved too and fro. In some of the buildings, light shown upon various shelfs, and if James focused on them, he could flicker between the version of the Safe town he and Rue walked, and the one the players inhabited. While it didn’t let him interact with them, he could see the players, their shops, their wares, and what they were up.

It was amazing how much the town had been growing, and already the Safe Zone had a bustling entertainment district, including typical casino, brothel, and various pubs, as well as an arts district, and food and drink district. The hot springs were also a massive spot of popularity among adventurers. Apparently, if they spent some coin and at least an hour at the hot springs, they could gain a buff that gave them a slight experience boost for a short duration, as well as mild resistance to cold damage.

Rue and James were currently moving past what would be the shop district, towards the frozen lake that existed at one of the far ends of the town. He knew a few players had used their building tokens to create an ice rink business over it, and players had even taken to implementing games similar to hocky on the ice. It was like its own mini game, and he knew from the Reddit Posts that league had already been formed, and players were creating tournament brackets to play there. Another way that DCO, with its ultra-realism, and infinite possibilities, seemed to be pulling players away from time in the Zone, and focusing all of their time within the game. James couldn’t help but wonder, if that trend persisted, how the economy would be affected. If people stopped spending V Coins in the Zone, there could be issues. But he figured instead people would start using V Coins to purchase currency within DCO, and slowly begin turning their lives inside of DCO into their preferred living situations.

The zone, after all, was neat, but it had a different realism to it. DCO, with its crazy realistic feel, taste, touch and such, combined with the magical aspects players got from their classes and races, just offered a much more ideal lifestyle, in James’s mind, to the Zone. Add in the fact players within DCO could earn their own currency and way, without having to work for others, and it started to tip the odds in DCO’s favor. Hell, James wouldn’t be surprised if people started using their two days in the Zone, when they couldn’t be within DCO, to simply earn more V Coin to spend within DCO. He chuckled at the thought. Xander was an ass. But he’d created something amazing.

Still, James couldn’t help but wonder if that was all there was to DCO. Something Hades had mentioned still bothered him. And as they walked, while he tried to enjoy Rue’s company, tried to enjoy what should have been his perfect life, he couldn’t help but wonder. What was it that hacker had been searching for? Why was the government so involved with DCO? The forces they had at their disposal, the rapid deployment of those enforcers to shut down Cyb3Ru5, it didn’t fit. Add in the massive secrecy and NDA’s, and James couldn’t help but feel, something else was out there.

“Copper for your thought?” Rue asked, squeezing his hand tightly as they reached the ice rink. He realized she’d been watching him as they walked, her eyes analyzing his features, concern clear on her face.

James looked at her, his sweet Rue. His Rue. His world. He would do anything for her. He knew that now. It was so clear; she was so perfect. And yet, he knew, she could only exist here. Life was cruel that way, and he knew her real body, or, her original physical body, was permanently suspended within a medical pod. Her father had done the unthinkable, and managed to sustain her, and give her life within immersion. Yet, James and Rue, technically, he realized, existed worlds apart.

Except for here. DCO was the world they shared. This existence, here and now, was what James clung to the most. It was, he’d decided a while ago, his true home. Already, he’d decided life outside of DCO, life without Rue, was supplementary. His time in the ‘real world’, was time away from Rue. Time that he just had to endure before he could get back into this perfect world of his and hers. A world where he and she, could be whatever, and do whatever, they wanted.

He smiled and shook his head. With a mental command his shoes changed into ice skates, and he pulled her towards the frozen lake. He pushed those intrusive, dark thoughts aside, and pulled the love of his life onto the lake.

She sparkled, her eyes shimmering with happiness, her voice dancing with joy, as the two skated onto the ice. This moment, this world, was theirs. James had never felt anything more certain, more real, more perfect, in his entire life. DCO was his home.