Peridot
The imperial palace was a massive Neo-Colonial structure, augmented with the pipes, gears, and contraptions typical of a steampunk setting, part exquisite work of art, part industrial warehouse.
I never felt comfortable in this kind of environment. It fees as though every step I take violates some rule of etiquette no one had ever taught me... I mused, holding a champagne flute in the corner of a vast ballroom.
"My initiative is the most promising of all those aimed at exploring the abandoned mines of Foçafunda, I tell you!" declared a man in a top hat and monocle.
"I'll keep that in mind," I said with a polite smile, raising my empty glass. "Oh, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to- urgh, grab another drink." I tried to sound as posh as possible, but the nobleman's condescending smile told me I'd failed.
"Of course. Do enjoy the celebration to the fullest; it is in your honor, after all." We parted ways.
Sighing, I navigated the room with great care, dodging nobles who looked at me with dollar signs in their eyes, underestimating me so thoroughly they thought I'd be easy to manipulate.
Whoever coded the high-class NPCs did a fantastic job; the arrogance and disdain were perfectly rendered. I felt uncomfortable and unconsciously adjusted the tight collar of my formal shirt. This just isn't me.
Unfortunately, Anelise and I had been separated the moment we entered the palace so we could be fitted with "appropriate attire" to meet the Empress. Just as I was considering slipping away from the ballroom until the ceremony began, a murmur rippled through the crowd.
"Beautiful..." I whispered, catching sight of Anelise approaching in an opulent period gown. Her hair was styled in curls that framed her beautiful, made-up face; her nails were manicured and painted a reddish-brown, matching the outfit that cascaded in multiple layers all the way to the floor.
"Wow, that suit looks good on you," Anelise said with a smile.
I felt my pulse quicken. Thank God I'm not a siscon after all! Perhaps she wasn't the only one who could make me happy to be alive? Even though the adventures I shared with that gamer weren't real, even though her avatar wasn't real, my feelings were; she even made me forget I had a mission. It was just like those times I used to sneak off with Jade to play video games in her MECHA all those years ago, she was a safe harbor in a stormy sea.
"Thanks. You look beautiful."
"Oh, t-thanks," she grinned broadly, adorably oblivious to, or unconcerned with, the etiquette expected of the women in that hall.
Do I have a thing for delinquents, maybe? No, that's not quite it; my second girlfriend was anything but upstanding, yet I still failed to connect with her.
"Legiano?" I heard a familiar voice: Norma. The nun was wearing a much more elaborate outfit now, adorned with images of human skeletons, though she carried the same weapon as before, and, surprisingly, the Imperial Guards seemed to have allowed her to bring it inside the palace. "Well, what a coincidence seeing you here!"
"Norma, it's a pleasure." As I stepped forward to shake her hand, she hugged me instead.
"Oh. Hi, Anelise, how are things?" the [Nun] asked, still holding me in the embrace.
"I've been better."
"That's great!" Norma smiled at Anelise, finally letting go of me. "Anyway, since my [Class: Apostle] is [Legendary], I have some ceremonial duties to attend to, but I'll see you around."
"Really? That's a shame," the [Engineer] replied; I got the impression she wasn't exactly heartbroken about parting ways with the [Apostle].
Am- am I being corrupted by my nerd of a sister, or does this actually look like a... love triangle situation?!
"Legiano, shall we go? I want to know what the fancy food these nobles eat tastes like, but I'm too shy to grab appetizers on my own since no one else is doing it."
"I get it, I totally get it," I agreed, nodding.
▲○X■
When all was said and done, all that exotic rich-people food, as much as I hated to admit it, was delicious. Part of me even resented my mother for not using her influence to treat us to dinners like that, but I quickly brushed the thought aside; after all, that terrifying woman had an almost supernatural knack for spotting "traitors" and... exterminating them.
I shuddered at the thought.
"Didn't you like it?" Anelise asked.
"I loved it. I'm just a bit nervous about seeing the Empress. I hope I don't get sentenced to execution over some stupid little thing," I said, an excuse that was only a partial lie.
"The NPCs already think we colonists are a bit crazy anyway. You know, in the lore, we're agents of chaos who show up during stagnant times to shake up the status quo, or something like that. Besides, we're commoners, and they know it. I bet they're already making plenty of exceptions for us, so unless we actually attack someone, we should be fine," she said.
"Huh. You're experienced with this subject?"
Anelise chewed a piece of caramelized fruit very slowly before shrugging.
"I just read a bit about it online. Every player wants a [Class: Noble], it's the meta right now, so court life is really well documented."
"I see."
That must have been why Vinea knew exactly when the capital would be most vulnerable: when a detachment of the Royal Guard, the strongest NPCs of all, was sent on an expedition to gather ingredients for a remedy for the ailing Empress.
The very mission of the ailing empress must have been an event the devs created to grant some noble titles faster, since the players wanted it so badly.
"W-What was it?" Anelise asked.
"Nothing. I was just rethinking our adventure, and I realized I wouldn't have gotten this far if it weren't for you. Thank you, Anelise."
"...You don't need to thank me. You have a goal, don't you? I'm just helping you achieve it," she replied, dejectedly, downcast.
Did I offend her? How?!
Think, Peridot, what can you say to improve the mood of a capricious, impulsive, slightly villainous, and extremely cute girl?!
"I'm not just talking about my goal. I..." Why was admitting that so embarrassing? Why did the words floating in my mind make me more self-conscious than when I called her beautiful? I couldn't say, but even feeling like an awkward fool, I admitted: "I also had a lot of fun playing with you."
An orchestra began to play on a platform next to the staircase to the second floor, the hall darkened, and when Anelise picked up my hand, I thought she would drag me to the dance floor, but instead, she took me to an empty hallway, behind a marble statue.
"...Legiano."
Suddenly, I felt my palms terribly sweaty, my knees terribly weak.
"Yes?"
"Uhm..."
[Invitation: The player "Anelise" has sent you an invitation for physical contact. By accepting, for the next minute actions such as: KISSES, HUGS, GRAB WILL BE ALLOWED.
Note: Vanguard does not support nudity or explicit sexual content.]
Without moving a muscle, Anelise silently watched my index finger move through the air and press a button visible only to me. "Yes," I selected, and she must have been notified of it.
We stared at each other for a moment, paralyzed.
You're the man here, Peridot, she's done more than enough! I scolded myself, feeling more heat, more intensity than even when my last relationships began or ended.
I held her waist with one hand, and her face with the other, hoping my sweaty palms wouldn't bother her, and I took a step closer.
So close, she seemed even more sublime; her eyes, even if a lie, stared at me so transparently. She desired me, truly, more than just the heat of the moment. And God knows I felt the same.
"Nghn...!" I kissed her. "Agn- Hm" the lipstick on her soft lips tasted of orange. "Ah... Aghn!" Her tongue greeted mine shyly, and I responded enthusiastically. "Haah...!" I couldn't tell who was making which noise, but one of us sighed when the hand I had on her face slowly slid down her slender neck to her breasts, depressingly hidden by a corset. "Ky- Ahn...!" My other hand grabbed her backside, ample even under all those layers of fabric.
Then, pushed apart by an invisible force, we both received a notification that the time allowed for romantic physical contact had run out.
And just in time.
"Her Highness! Lady Juliana of Sargonia and Mandraga, the Fourth!" the master of ceremonies announced in the ballroom.
"We have to go back," I said.
"Yes," she agreed, holding my hand, her smiling eyes shining brighter than any of the pearls she wore.
As we returned to the ballroom, I felt more than just happy; I felt at peace. There was a place for me in the light, after all.
And there, coming down the stairs, was a pale girl who couldn't have been more than eighteen, so slender she seemed to struggle just to bear the weight of her extravagant gown, yet she was the wealthiest, most influential, and most powerful woman in all of Vanguard: the Empress.
Beside her walked a muscular knight, completely hairless and sporting metallic implants visible even beneath his formal attire, Ferdinanko, captain of the Imperial Guard and, according to the game box, the strongest NPC of all.
Yet, it was neither of them who captured everyone's attention at that moment.
"Kyaaah!" screamed Norma, who was walking right behind the Empress and the leader of the Imperial Guard, alongside members of the high clergy.
"Miss Norma!" An elderly priest from another faith, clad in elaborate robes adorned with images of gears, angrily grabbed the [Apostle]'s arm. "Even if you are an [Apostle], what do you think-?!"
"T-That!" Norma pointed... at Anelise, who was staring back at her with a coldness I had only ever seen on the faces of the most ruthless assassins from my past. "It's not what it looks like!" Ferdinanko furrowed his brow, stepping in front of the Empress, and glared at Anelise.
"Reveal!" the captain of the Imperial Guard shouted, pointing his palm at the woman beside me.
There was the sound of shattering glass, and the fragments of the woman I had fallen in love with, the one who had proven to me that I could be a good person, fell to the ground, crumbling away like a discarded shell.
What remained was:
"Vinea..." I whispered, staggering backward, suddenly nauseated. "My sister."
Game Over ☠
Jade
"Urgh...!" I felt no pain from the countless glowing wounds covering my avatar's body, making her look practically like a Christmas tree, but my digital self's limbs felt heavy and my vision blurred, just like after a real-life beating.
I had barely managed to escape that palace, and only because I'd tricked the captain of the Imperial Guard, who chose protecting the Empress over attacking me, and because that [Title] which "increases the detection range for humanoid entities" allowed me to avoid unwanted encounters once I was outside. It really came in handy in the end.
"Mistress! You're suffering from curses, bleeding, and other harmful effects!" An imp I hadn't seen in ages popped out of my pocket, looking worried. "On top of that, the entire Empire is hunting you down, along with the remnants of the Balance Guild, extremists from the Cult of Dead Gods, and even some cults of the Wild Gods. You need to form a contract with me, or you won't survive!"
"No. Not yet." I leaned against a tree as my stamina points completely drained away. "If you want to help, look for food, drink, and healing items in the woods. And a garage, too."
"A garage? Of course, Mistress! I'll secure your getaway vehicle!"
I gritted my teeth.
"No. There's no point in running anymore."
"M-Mistress?"
"Do as I ask, Armadeiro. I'll be back in a day or two."
"...Right."
I logged out.
And the moment I found myself back in my room, I heard heavy knocking on the door and my brother calling out to me from the other side.