Fria looked at William with visible confusion in her eyes. As far as she rembered, this NPC shouldn't know her na. This wasn't the type of ga where the NPCs would automatically know you, you had to introduce yourself first.
Maybe he has known my na ever since we t in the Gravitas Ruins? That must be it. Fria concluded.
"I guess it has." she smiled. "You've beco a lot stronger since the Trial Tower."
Unconsciously, tears began to flow from Fria's eyes, but she didn't understand why. She assud it had sothing to do with one of William's many unique skills.
Now it was William's turn to be confused. Sothing about Fria's expression was off, and the way that she greeted him wasn't like his lovable sister that played video gas and enjoyed slacking off. It was almost as if she and William had beco two strangers on the street that had t once before.
Also, the Trial Tower? images flashed through William's mind as he tried to rember faces and nas from when he was inside the Gravitas Ruins. In an instant, a masked girl wielding an ethereal greatsword popped up.
It was her?!? I was so close the entire ti? Has she been here as long as I have?
William didn't fully understand, but all of his answers were right in front of him. "Fria, do you not rember ?"
"Of course I rember. We fought the Ancient Gravitas Mummy together." she gave William a thumbs-up.
"Not that... I'm your brother, rember?" he didn't know how else to word it.
"My brother? I don't—" Fria paused.
"You don't?" William asked, but Fria didn't respond for a long ti. Instead, her body shifted left and right while a series of images and mories returned, while the conflicting mories faded into nothingness.
First ca her childhood. mories of her climbing trees by herself in the backyard started to include William's faint outline, which beca clearer and clearer as ti passed. Her middle school years spent struggling with difficult math problems beca her and William working together on a difficult problem.
Even her early adulthood changed. Instead of her working by herself to earn money for the new ga, it beca William purchasing it for her while she didn't even have a job.
And then ca the mory of her on the bus. She watched it all over again as William's figure disappeared, and even the breeze that tried to alter her mories was there. This ti, however, William's Resist Fate Talent ca into effect, wiping away the breeze before it could reach Fria for a second ti.
"Will!" tears stread from Fria's face as she rushed forward to hug her brother.
William smiled as he returned the hug, relieved to see that his sister seed to be her old self once again. "What happened? How are you here?"
"I could ask the sa of you! How did you get the NPC tag?"
"Huh? NPC tag? What do you an?" William was also quite familiar with many gas, so he understood the term NPC, but he didn't know why Fria was using it while referring to him. And the way her eyes glowed uniquely when she looked at him...
System, what's going on?
-Fria thinks you are an NPC inside a video ga.
I get that, but is it true?
-Finish the Quests and you'll naturally know.
Damn it! William beca visibly frustrated. If he was in a video ga, why not just tell him when he first arrived? Why wait until now?
Being in a video ga made sense when William thought about it, what with the System, a Guild Hall, various Sects and dozens of Factions that always wanted to kill him, but at the sa ti...
Stuck in a video ga... that's so cliche and boring. Not to ntion the Heavens, Duon, and the System itself seem very realistic. It can't be just that...
"The text above your head says NPC. Did you get that from a developer or sothing?" Fria asked excitedly. She had completely overlooked the mory of William's strange disappearance, assuming he was simply sowhere else.
"Uh... No." William scratched his head as he contemplated her words. He avoided revealing his own System's existence, but he explained his situation as best he could to Fria, who looked at him with wide eyes the entire ti.
It was the first ti she had heard of soone being stuck inside the ga, but it wasn't too surprising considering all the weird things that happened with VR.
While he explained his situation to Fria, William simultaneously held a conversation with the System in his mind.
Text box? Are you attached to her too, System?
-It's not the sa being as , but a weaker imitation. Most of the functions are similar to mine, but they couldn't possibly compare to the real deal.
Is that so? You must be quite strong, then.
-Naturally.
William sensed a hint of pride from the System as it spoke, reminding him of its tsundere attitude.
"Are you planning to Ascend soon?" Fria asked William suddenly.
"Ah, yes. But I still have sothing to do first." William replied. "Are there other people here with you?"
"What else do you need to do? You're already so strong..." Fria started, "I had my Elder with , but he's Cultivating right now because he said he's too weak to protect . Other than that, there's a few other Players that join for Quests from ti to ti."
Other Players? I get it now. William smiled, having gained a slightly clearer picture of the World as it was.
If his deductions were correct, Fria and the other Players had co to this World through so sort of transport thod, and they could co and go as they pleased. It was the only way to explain how they thought this World was a video ga, and why they thought he was an NPC and not a real person.
While William wanted to believe that this World was fake and that he would live a peaceful life eternally, he could tell that there was much more to the story. The System didn't react like a bunch of lines of code, and the interactions he had with many of the others didn't line up with any video gas he knew of.
The technology was way too advanced, and likely not cost effective for any company. No, it had to be real.
And if that was the case...
William had a guess, but he wasn't fully confident, so he refrained from asking the System. He knew it wouldn't respond anyway.
"I have to unseal the World. Do you want to help ?" William asked.
"Will I get a lot of Points for helping?" Fria returned.
Points? She gets them too?
-They're earned the sa way you gain them, but with many more limitations. They also can gain Talents, but it's not through a Talent Shop like the advantage you have.
"We just reunited and you're already trying to take benefits from ?" William frowned.
"Hehe. You know it!" Fria bead.
Well, I guess helping my sister isn't a bad thing. I already have so many Potential Points anyway.
"There will be a lot of Magical Beasts. I'll leave so behind for you as long as you can handle it." William replied.
"Yay!" Fria was overjoyed. The lack of Potential Points in the Lower Realms was the main reason why she didn't Ascend. Who would have known that her adopted brother would solve that issue for her?
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