Noah stood up. "That’s it then, we’ve found our headquarters".
"The Labyrinthine Expanse it is".
The decision was made, but its implentation was not going to be imdiate. Afterall, the rest of guild Echelon’s core was yet to make the transition to the Heavenly Domain.
Of Echelon’s core, only Noah’s Lord Doom had made it to the Heavenly Domain, the rest of the cohort were still stuck clearing their Heavenly Domain challenge.
Before embarking on their ambitious plan, they needed all of them.
This was why imdiately after the conversation, Aria bid her farewell first, logging out of the ga to return to her original Avatar in the beginner domain.
Silently, Genevieve and Caleb followed.
When it got to Benjamin’s turn though, he looked at the two people remaining with him, his captain and his boss and whistled. "Boss, don’t you think a bonus is necessary as motivation to clear the Heavenly Domain Challenge?"
Noah glared at him.
"Uhh, I was just saying". He chuckled. "Anyways, nevermind".
With that, Benjamin also logged off, returning to the beginner domain.
Nightingale looked at Noah as soon as all the others left. "What will you be doing in this ti?"
"What else? Leveling up of course". He shrugged.
"Are you not scared of being ambushed again?"
Noah smiled. "You see, as a celebrity, there’s this thing called upholding public face". He chuckled. "Jonathan, that bastard only ambushed because no one else knew where I would arrive in the Heavenly Domain".
"I was isolated, and hence nothing held him back".
He grinned. "But guess what I’m going to do after leaving this inn? I’m going to stroll through this citadel, announce myself to the world".
"Make it known that Lord Doom is in the Obsidian Citadel".
"Wherever I am, I’ll make myself known. That way, those bastards won’t have the justification to attack brazenly".
"Afterall, they’re not just gars, they’re celebrity idols too".
"Scarlet Rose fans want their captain to challenge and defeat fair and square on the competitive stage, not shalessly in the ga".
Nightingale’s eyes widened. "You an once the attention of the Heavenly Domain is on you, they won’t dare attack brazenly?"
Noah nodded.
Nightingale frowned. "It’s just like I can’t go to eat in my favorite local restaurants anymore. Afterall, fans expect , Nightingale to only eat in the best, fanciest, and most expensive restaurants".
"You get it". Noah smiled.
"Their own popularity will be working against them".
Noah nodded. "But of course, they can easily avoid this though. That is if they use alternate accounts to shalessly co after ".
"But don’t worry, I’ll be prepared for them".
Nightingale nodded. If anyone else said this, he would not have believed, even other pro players but since it was God Noah, he believed him.
Looking at his boss, Noah smiled. "What’s on your mind?"
"Huh?"
"There’s clearly sothing on your mind".
Hearing that, Nightingale sighed. He looked at him. "You said you’ll tell the truth about why you can’t co to the club headquarters yet".
"Oh, that?" Noah nodded nonchalantly, and then...
"I’m stuck in the ga".
He said it casually, just like that.
"...!"
Silence reigned; then Nightingale’s eyes widened. "What? I don’t understand".
Noah laughed. "It’s simple really, I’m literally stuck in the ga. I can’t leave".
"Huh?"
Seeing the look on Nightingale’s face, Noah felt like teasing him so more but then, with a sigh, he told him everything.
Afterall, Nightingale already showed enough sincerity so far.
Whether he liked it or not, they were now tied together through Club Echelon. As employer and employee, Noah felt that Nightingale deserved to know.
When Noah was done explaining, silence reigned.
In the end, Nightingale just said. "Wow..."
He hesitated for a few seconds, then he continued, looking at Lord Doom with a complicated expression. "Wow". He said again. "Honestly, of all the guesses I had, I never expected this".
"You an you’ve been living in the ga for months?"
"How is that even possible?"
Noah shrugged.
Nightingale’s eyes flickered, his hands on his chin as thoughts went through his head. Mumbling under his breath, he rapidly analyzed the situation, then...
"It doesn’t add up". He suddenly said.
"What doesn’t?"
"I an, if you were really reincarnated or transmigrated into the ga like you think," he looked at Noah. "Do you really think you’ll still be here with us?"
"Personally, I think you’d have been in a parallel version of Warstar, possibly a world where you interact with NPCs, not us".
"Everything points to transmigration, but then, the tiline is still the sa, everything else is normal, you interact with us as if you’re playing the ga normally, just stuck inside the ga". Nightingale rubbed his chin.
Noah looked at him. "What are you thinking?"
Nightingale looked at him again. "Doesn’t this remind you of sothing?"
Noah smiled, he already guessed what was going through Nightingale’s mind. Afterall, even he already had the thought after months of staying like this.
"Neural technology?"
"Yes," Nightingale nodded. "Precisely, VR technology".
"Before Warstar, a lot of people thought the end of normal digital video gaming was over, that VR technology gas would take over the scene".
"But then Warstar ca, taking the world by storm, dominating and suppressing the once budding VR age".
"What I an is your current state feels more like playing the ga through VR technology rather than actually being transmigrated into the ga".
"I thought of that too," Noah finally interjected. "But then, if I’m really playing Warstar through VR technology, then where the hell is my body?"
"How did it leave the café?"
"When Genevieve learned of my condition, she went back to the café where I disappeared and did her investigations, yet she found nothing".
"It is as I think, I just suddenly disappeared".
Nightingale frowned, thinking of sothing. Before he knew it, one of his fingers started scratching his forehead and that was when his frown suddenly deepened as if he just realized sothing.
Noah looked at him, paying closer attention.
"What if...?" Nightingale looked at him.
"What if you were kidnapped?"
"..."
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