Chapter 35 Jaeyoung''s little ball (3)


    Jaeyoung''s little ball.


    This little ball swelled out of control and became a giant nuclear bomb.


    “Hey, that’s a broadcasting station.”


    “ah! Let''s not push that! Are you here just to cover that?”


    “This reporter! this reporter! Where the hell have you been?”


    Arcadia''s official press conference. This is the first ce where thispany, which has always been unresponsive despite numerous controversies, breaks its silence. That''s why the press conference room was full of reporters with numerous broadcasting cameras and microphones to the extent that not only Korean but also foreign broadcasters came to cover the event.


    “uh! Start!”


    “Start the live broadcast! hurry!”


    When the spokesperson of Arcadia Co., Ltd. stepped on the podium, the camera sh exploded as ifpeting. Tension began to form on the faces of the reporters who raised their hands to the keyboard as if they were going to write down every single word that came out of the spokesperson''s mouth.


    [We will now announce the official position of Arcadia Co., Ltd. on various allegations that have recently caused controversy on the Inte. First, let''s talk about the NPC Duke of Bergen who died in the game. The Duke of Bergen is...]


    The spokesperson started talking about the Duke of Bergen first. The enormous ambition of the Duke of Bergen that came out of his mouth and the detailed and detailed ns he prepared to realize it surprised reporters.


    “What is it, the NPC in the game prepared a coup?”


    “They colluded with another country to usurp the throne... That''s a very realistic reason?”


    “If there had been a war, it would have been pretty fun. Aren’t there a lot of rted quests?”


    The reporters also exchanged nces and whispered that they were interested in each other, probably because they were also yers of Arcadia. And a reporter raised his hand as if he couldn''t contain his curiosity and shouted.


    “It must have been an event that the gamepany paid close attention to... Why did it fail?”


    A war that destroyed the territory itself because it was not enough to kill such a major NPC while putting so much sincerity and effort into the details. No matter how much the reporters thought about it, they could not understand the intention of the gamepany. However, the spokesperson rather listened to the reporter''s question and tilted his head.


    [Listening to the question, it seems that there is a part that everyone misunderstands... There is no fact that thepany was involved in this case at all.]


    “Huh?”


    “what?”


    Reporters with confused expressions at the words of the spokesperson. When the press conference hall started to stir, the spokesperson calmed them down with a gesture before continuing.


    [It is true that some major quests in Arcadia were nned and developed by thepany itself. However, most of them are designed so that quests are created actively and autonomously ording to the basic settings of NPCs and the surrounding situation. And in the case of the Duke of Bergen... it was an autonomous action that resulted from a change in the environment of session to the throne.]


    “Wait a minute! Does that mean that everything you just exined is an autonomously created quest?”


    “Does that make sense now? No matter how, how could an NPC who is artificial intelligence go so far...”


    It came as a great shock to reporters that this enormous political conspiracy stemming from the desire for power, more human than human, was created by the voluntary actions of NPCs.


    [It''s a fact that we talk about every time at ourpany, but Arcadia is not just an ordinary game. Although it is virtual, we are working hard to realize a world that is like reality. I hope you don''t set that limit just because you''re an NPC.]


    “What nonsense...”


    “What is it? So, is it really possible to do this with artificial intelligence alone?”


    “hey! Call the editor right now! I got a scoop, so empty one page tomorrow! hurry!”


    Reporters urgently began pounding on the keyboard. Their movements began to get busy in the fact that they had a greater amount of coverage than expected, but the spokesperson''s announcement was not over yet.


    [Next.... I''ll talk about a recent controversial video in Arfandia. First of all, the people in the video were identified as users ying as merchants, and they received a quest from the Duke of Bergen and tried to make a big profit by purchasing grain exclusively


    . They pricked up their ears. The spokesperson removed his hand from the keyboard, looked at the reporters who were all looking at him, and continued.


    [In this process, we confirmed the direct involvement of the Korean conglomerate, GM Group, and confirmed the circumstances in which they purchased gold with arge amount of money, and even confirmed that they were trying to make huge profits in the game through this. This case is the first case in which apany directly intervened in Arcadia''s market maniption and profited from it, and the amount invested alone reached 1 trillion won...] “1 1 trillion won


    ? Aren''t you crazy?”


    “Arge corporation directly participated in this hoarding in the game?”


    It is surprising that a realpany participated in the incident in the game, and I was astonished at the fact that it was not just a singlepany, but GM, a huge group that is so famous that no one in Korea knows about it, and the scale of funds far beyond imagination.


    [There was a difference of opinion within thepany regarding the rted issue, but we decided to disclose it in terms of public interest. In this way, it was judged that the actions of realpanies continuously encouraging discord and confusion with enormous capital can cause great damage to users, and to prevent this, a system that can track and monitor the circumstances ofrge-scale gold purchases was developed. I will arrange it.]


    Hyeonjil.


    It''s natural enough for wallet warriors to dominate the game with huge amounts of cash. But what happens when certainpanies get to the point where they exercise monopoly power in games by pouring huge amounts of money into them? What could have happened in Arcadia, the spokesperson began to speak in a serious tone.


    [Infinite freedom, infinite possibilities. In order to truly realize these two mottos pursued by Arcadia Co., Ltd., we believe that everyone should have an equal starting point. Therefore , I strongly warn you through this incident so that apany or a specific organization, not an individual''s ability, will not recur to incite riots in the game with enormous funds.]


    It contained details of a clear market disruption in which the In GM Group colluded with the Duke of Bergen to monopolize grain to gain huge profits. A serious criminal act that, if done in real life, would be regarded as a war crime and the group itself could be blown away.


    Although it is a game, no legal responsibility can be imposed on the GM Group, but this fact alone can bring enormous moral criticism. Reporters began to feel desperate as they imagined the aftermath of this press conference in their heads.


    “Editor? Empty the front page of tomorrow''s newspaper right now. It''s not a jackpot, it''s an invitation.”


    “Uh, I’m ready for an emergency breaking news right now. no stop everything Thises first.”


    “Yes, chief. I will write an article right now and post it.”


    An issue that has no choice but to be a scoop. The reporters, who took the lure that was so appetizing that it was not enough to call it a delicacy, began to write articles about this incident, eaching up with the most provocative title they could think of.


    * * *


    ssroom at Seomin University.


    Now, the name of the department has changed to ‘Virtual Reality Engineering Department'', former students of the Department of Computer Science and Technology gathered together and talked about the news that is bing a hot topic these days.


    “Hey, did you guys hear that too?”


    “Does that make sense? Isn''t that the level of a game?”


    “therefore. Do you think it is possible to have an artificial intelligence with that much autonomy?”


    “Maybe I’m exaggerating? If that is really possible, from now on all screenwriters will lose their jobs.”


    An borate andplex n to usurp the throne. The fact that NPCs autonomously created a narrative on a scale so vast that it even prepared for war was not an easy matter to believe.


    “No, so where the hell did the lich who killed the dukee from?”


    Richie, who was never mentioned in the official announcement. The reporters at the press conference were also distracted by the pouring scoop articles and missed the part, but in the end, the identity of Richie, the main culprit who made all of this in vain, was still a mystery.


    “therefore! It didn''t seem like a simple lich either! He was a very strong guy!”


    “I''m ying in Maroon Kingdom right now, and because of this...”


    The ssroom was buzzing with stories about Arcadia. Jaekyun nced at Jaeyoung, who was sitting next to him, and asked cautiously.


    “Jae Jaeyoung... Do you know what that is about?”


    Jaekyun asked because he knew Jaeyoung didn''t y Arcadia, and he nodded and replied that he wasn''t interested.


    “Roughly? Because of that, newspapers and news are in full swing.”


    The news that shook the society noisily. The fact that a real conglomerate nned a war in the game and tried to make a huge profit through it caused tremendous shock and repercussions to the public.


    “Uhm... that’s right.”


    Jae-gyun, whose mouth seems to be twitching while keeping his eyes open, seems to be having a hard time continuing the conversation. After hesitating for a long time, he was about to say something, but he had no choice but to shut up again as the professor opened the front door and entered.


    “Did you enjoy your lunch?”


    Professor Kim Tae-hoon enters with a slightly reminded expression. The students did not respond to his question. It was because his eyes were drawn to strangers in strange equipment and gowns following him.


    “These people are here to give you a special experience. Did I tell you before? It will give you information about thetest technologies and trends avable for virtual reality.”


    With those words, Professor Kim Tae-hoon guided a person in a gown to the podium with a hand gesture. While he stood back, the person standing on the podium looked around the room and said,


    “Nice to meet you, everyone. I am Researcher Kang Pil-joon working in Arcadia’s R&D team.”


    “Arcadia?”


    “what? really?”


    As soon as you introduce yourself, the ssroom bes agitated. Arcadia Co., Ltd., which is currently called a dreampany. The fact that they were working there as researchers filled the students'' eyes with curiosity and envy.


    “You juniors, listen carefully to Professor Taehoon Kim. It''s very difficult, but you can persevere until the end and follow it well. Thanks to Professor I, I came to this ce and came to see you like this, right?”


    “This guy...don’t say anything strange and quickly exin why he came today.”


    As if they were teachers and students in the past, they had an informal and intimate conversation with each other, and Researcher Kang Pil-jun lifted a huge helmet that was ced on the podium.


    “The reason I came today is to do a test for all of you who are nurturing your dreams in the world’s first department of virtual reality engineering. You know that virtual reality technology is directly rted to the brain, right?”


    Directmunication between brain and machine. I nodded my head slightly because I knew to some extent about the virtual reality technology implemented through it.


    “But not everyone has perfectly machinepatible brains. To be precise, how urately the machine recognizes and epts the electrical signals sent by the brain, and how the brain epts the signals sent by the machine. There is a lot of variation from person to person on this.”


    An unfamiliar concept that I have never heard of. However, since it was a story directly told by practitioners about virtual reality, the students began to listen enthusiastically, even taking notes.


    “How muchpatibility is shown in the process of exchanging signals between the brain and the machine is the most important talent for those who will be involved in virtual reality. We call that synchro rate. Through this helmet I''m holding, I can see how much your synchro rate is showing.”


    Synchronization Rate.


    It was an unfamiliar concept to hear for the first time, but the eyes of the students began to shine at the fact that they would be examining this, which is the most important thing in the virtual reality industry. Researcher Kang Pil-joon pointed to a male student with a nk expression in the back row and said,


    “hmm.... The boy in the back row over there?”


    “Me?”


    “yes. What is your name?”


    “...My name is Jaeyoung Yoon.”


    “Yes. Jaeyoung, would you like to check the numbers first?”


    Researcher Kang Pil-joon, who smiled brightly and held out the helmet in his hand, did not know that his choice would be the worst choice for trampling on the dreams and hopes of other students.