Somewhere in the Ocmarun Gulf, near the Veridies Ocean.
3.2 kilometers deep.
Almost three long… boring and eerie hours had passed.
According to my calculations, we had traveled about twenty-five thousand nautical miles.
Honestly… the sheer size of this world is insane.
How can a machine that travels at fifteen times the speed of sound still take this long?
My common sense trembles at how absurd a video game world can become.
Anyway, I decided to ask Gideon how much longer it would take to reach Atlantis. But before I could, the ship suddenly began to decelerate sharply, and his voice echoed inside the cockpit:
[General, according to my records, we have arrived. That plain surrounded by underwater mountains, covered in bioluminescent vegetation… that is the settlement you are looking for. We are still two thousand meters away.]
—Finally… I have to admit it —I muttered, looking through the glass—. It looks… beautiful from here.
I stood up from the seat, stretching while thinking about everything that had happened. The journey was exhausting, but the worst part was the boredom.
Still, those three hours weren't wasted.
The amount of information Gideon holds is insane, but among everything, I confirmed the best possible news (even if it has nothing to do with going back home).
Quincy was right: Gideon is storing more than a billion seeds of all kinds. And products capable of accelerating germination and maturation.
Finally, my vision of a modern utopiain this world is starting to feel possible.
Although something bothers me… everything is going too well.
I'm powerful, I have two AIs under my command, and unlimited resources. Living comfortably is guaranteed.
And yet, that's never a good sign. Maybe I sound paranoid, but I've read —and translated— enough stories to know what happens when everything seems to go perfectly.
Of course, this is reality… And not a novel written by some author with a protagonist-torture complex, right?
Still, the thought won't leave me alone. Everything has gone too conveniently. As if… it were part of a story.
"Wait a damn second."
I reconsidered my actions… As if performing a mental recap. Reorganizing the facts.
Let's see:
I spent money on this game. Fifteen days before its global release.
I was the first user and was rewarded with an (Ex) skill.
Thanks to my useless gaming efforts…
After one final payment, I achieved what I always wanted: being disowned from being a Dreifus.
As punishment (or blessing), I returned to Grandma's Temple after years.
But I had an accident while wearing the VR headset.
And as a result: I am dead or trapped inside [War of Kingdoms].
And that money, conveniently, wasn't lost.
It allowed me to buy stat packs that some idiot programmer left in the shop, which I could access thanks to the System Window I also inherited.
And the strangest, most suspicious part is that I didn't wake up in my character Erling.
No.
I reincarnated or possessed a generic-looking child.
An NPC who would never level up.
A slave who cleaned shit in a stable.
Owned by some random noble family.
Destined to be destroyed by a girl named Karen.
I met Artia, an AI that has made my life easier than any tutorial ever could.
I fought absurd monsters and defeated gladiators in a coliseum.
And because I met Melissa…
I ended up getting involved with gods.
—Shit… —I whispered—. In retrospect, my life in these two weeks in this world has been a damn absurd story.
I slumped into the seat, pressing my forehead into my hands.
I thought.
"This is insane… I am real… and everything I've experienced here feels more real than most things out there."
Sure, I'm an NPC now —at least I think so— but I interact with the characters of this world more deeply than any future player ever will.
Though I suppose that damn "Player Soul" trait has a lot to do with my mood swings, mental stability, and emotional balance.
I don't know what will happen when I face that beast called Poseidon.
I shouldn't have trouble with him… but I can't help it.
Melissa had the same face as my mother.
Whom I barely remember: Her smile, her voice, how warm it felt to be with her.
And now, when I imagine that scene… her violation…
Even though I know it wasn't her, it felt like my mother had been violated by that bastard.
That image. That feeling.
That's why I can't forgive him.
"This damn game reminded me of my mother… but it also desecrated her memory."
And to me, Poseidon is the main responsible.
[We have completed the approach, General.]
—T-this is…!! Atlantis!!
The Narval hovered in stealth above the massive underwater city.
And for a moment, I forgot how to breathe.
It was exactly as Plato described it, though with its own differences.
Resting on a seabed plain, surrounded by mountains that looked like they were asleep in the darkness.
A city covered in an ethereal light, wrapped in coral and bioluminescent plants.
Three rings surrounded its core, each separated by wide water channels and translucent walls.
White stone pathways connected the rings to the center, where a colossal castle stood at the foot of a mountain.
Two statues flanked it: one of solid gold, and another of marble and gold, like eternal guardians.
—Impressive… —I whispered.
The design reminded me of that girl with green hair's hometown. And I also noticed something familiar: the three rings weren't just structures, but class divisions.
Royalty in the center.
Important nobles in the first ring.
Common nobles in the second.
The rest… in the third.
The entire city glowed like a neon circuit submerged in darkness. I didn't know if it was magical or biological energy, but I assumed it had to do with the luminous coral.
As the Narval descended further, inhabitants began to appear before my eyes.
Sirens.
Thousands of them.
Creatures of hypnotic beauty, half human and half fish. Their skin ranged from porcelain tones to pale blue hues, shaped by pressure and lack of sunlight.
Each tail had a unique design: patterns, scales, colors… like each one had its own genetic signature.
Some rode giant turtles, sharks, or dolphins, pulling elegant aquatic carriages.
It was a beautiful and strange sight at the same time.
With Gideon's help, I guided the ship to the epicenter of the city.
There, the golden statue rose like a frozen sun.I brought the Narval closer to observe it… and realized it wasn't Poseidon.
Behind the statue stood a temple.And not just any temple.
Its gold and pearl columns made the Parthenon of Ataxia look poor. Sculptures, reliefs, and golden paintings decorated its entrance.
—Incredible… —I murmured.
For a second, I wanted to get out and see it with my own eyes.
But then I remembered something.
I didn't bring a diving suit.
I didn't even ask Gideon if the Narval had one.
—Great… I'm a genius.I traveled halfway across the world to get here… and I have no way to breathe underwater.