I involuntarily leaned closer to the screen, I was really interested in what the correspondents are going to talk to my brother.
Katzu on TV looked different: confident, fit, calm, like not the guy who in the evenings in headphones tells me when to hit the boss's weak spot.
Television lights gave him a special charm, the light of the spotlights slid over his face, making his look even more determined.
At that moment, I noticed that I wasn't the only one paying attention to the screen. Two girls stopped by the drinks stand nearby.
They looked at each other, and one of them sighed dreamily.
—Wow, what a handsome guy… Just look at how he speaks!
— And he has a great voice!
Added the second, barely able to contain a smile. I immediately blushed and fumed.
Everything inside me flared up, as if someone had poked me in the most sensitive place.
—You...
I muttered, clenching my fists and almost stomping my foot. I turned sharply, looking after them, and shouted loudly but with restraint:
—Hey! That's actually my own brother! Don't praise him in my presence!
Several customers in the department turned around, some even burst out laughing, and those girls, blushing, hurried away, muttering something like:
—Wow, what a coincidence...
I sighed, but when I saw my own reflection in the TV's mirrored panel, I almost laughed.
I looked unrecognizable: big black glasses, a wig of blonde curls, a cap tilted slightly to the side, and a light raincoat over my tracksuit.
Even if one of my literary world admirers were nearby, no one would guess that I was the same Viyatka Trikomi.
—Well, it's better if they praise Katzu instead of me. They don't know that there's a whole writer behind it.
I was just about to turn away from the screen and head to the ticket office, when the TV suddenly blinked again, changing the frame.
Now the screen was not just showing an interview, the demonstration of game content began, and a large holographic image appeared next to Katzu.
— We have access to a closed beta update. The developers entrusted us to test a new region. It is called "Mechanical Island".
He spoke in a confident voice, slightly leaning towards the microphone. As he spoke, a metallic chime began to play in the background, rhythmic, like the heart of a huge machine.
The camera smoothly zoomed in on the screen behind Katzu, where images flashed by one after another: a flying island made up of endless steel plates and bronze pipes; massive gears floating slowly in the sky, connected by threads of light; and huge structures resembling towers with rotating energy cores amidst the clouds.
—The island is made entirely of metal parts, and it is inhabited by mechanical creatures that are a cross between wyverns and machines. They breathe steam and make a humming sound like wind in metal pipes.
And of course, there will be a new profession called Engineer. This race will control the machines and create automatons and airships.
I was standing still in front of the TV, and I felt like I was in a trance. My eyes were fixed on the screen, and my heart was beating faster.
—The Mechanical Island...
It sounded beautiful and frightening at the same time. It awakened a light, long-forgotten feeling of inspiration inside me.
The screen showed another image of a girl in a strange silver suit standing in front of a huge crenellated gate.
I automatically took out my phone, took a photo of the screen, and smiled.
—You know how to keep people interested... Brother, you've turned the interview into a full-fledged trailer.
At one point, I couldn't help but chuckle, squinting at him.
"I wonder how much they paid you for that speech, brother."
The tone of my thoughts was full of light irony, but somewhere deep inside there was a glimmer of pride. He always had the ability to speak so simply, but in such a way that you wanted to believe every word he said.
On the screen, the logos of sponsors, numbers, frames from test builds flashed.
It all looked too professional to be just a leak. It seems that the developers really made a bet on him, and now the whole of Seoul will know the name of Katzu not only as the winner of e-tournaments, but also as the official representative of future content.
—The end of winter...
I whispered, staring at the bottom of the news story, where it read:
"The Mechanical Island update will be released on February 25."
That means they have almost four more months... I sighed, imagining my brother sitting in a gaming chair surrounded by monitors, probably already testing the island and coming up with strategies to get there first.
—And here I am, counting my steps.
I chuckled to myself, glancing at the screen of my fitness tracker.
It had been over an hour already. My ten thousand steps have long since exceeded twelve.
I didn't realize I was standing still, holding my breath, watching every word and every frame as if it wasn't news but a part of my own life.
—Damn, I promised myself at least forty minutes of active pace!…
When I returned home, the first thing I did was take a shower, feeling the warm water running down my skin, washing away the fatigue from my run.
I looked at the clock; the day was just beginning, but my thoughts were already drawn to what awaited me in Log Apofis.
My fingers found the VR headset on their own.
—Oh! You've opened your eyes!
—Good morning to you too, Fritte.
Fritte spun around happily, as if the very magic of the room had been awakened by these simple words. I watched him for a while, so carefree, so lively, so naive.
But soon my smile faded.
"In eighteen days."
The thought sounded cold inside me, like a countdown before a sentence. That was when the group raid against the Fourth Apostil – Swamp Boar, Nemorino, would begin.
With each passing day, the deadline drew closer, and my anxiety persisted even in my dreams. I looked at Fritte, who was floating in the air, whistling a fairy tune carefree.
What if he died? This question had been haunting me for days.
Zikei and his brother warned Nemorrino that he couldn't perceive NPC attacks, which meant that Fritte would be useless in combat.
But the worse thing was that no one knew what would happen if an NPC died forever. Would they just disappear from the list? Or would they really disappear, along with everything they had lived with her?
—Fritte...
—Hm, I'm listening.
The little one flew closer, looking straight into my eyes. My heart ached as I tried to explain to a creature that considered me a friend that I was going to a place where perhaps no one would return.
—Thanks for waking me up. We have a lot to do today. And first, I'd like to tell you something.