"Mm. I trust you to get it done."
Viserys nodded repeatedly as he listened to Mouse_Is_Duck report on the intelligence operation plan.
As the old saying goes, even if you haven't eaten pork, you've seen a pig run.
Mouse_Is_Duck, combining his knowledge from spy thrillers with the random (and sometimes terrible) ideas of his subordinates, had actually managed to put together a Secret Police force that looked somewhat legitimate.
The Secret Police Bureau had a total of 156 players.
It had an Action Division with 80 players, led by Flying_Bat. Their job was to arrest people. Viserys was generous, waving his hand and equipping them with forty low-cost crossbows.
As for who they were arresting, well, that went without saying.
Additionally, the Action Division borrowed over a dozen jars of Wildfire and a large amount of gunpowder from the Grenadier Corps. They would also handle assassinations and sabotage.
There was an Intelligence Division, currently with only 30 players, led by Caramel_Cotton_Candy. The number was small because few players had the patience for it. Plus, this was the result of watching too many spy movies; give it a few days, and the number would likely drop even further.
Mouse_Is_Duck was already considering recruiting locals for this.
There was a Security Division with 40 players, led by I_Eat_Goji_Berries_For_Dinner. Their duty was nominally to protect high-ranking officials, like the current Admiral of the Royal Navy, and future Hands of the King, Masters of Coin, etc.
But in reality, the Security Division's job was to monitor these people. If any of these noble lords showed signs of betraying House Targaryen, the Security Division had the authority to execute first and report later.
Finally, there was a Logistics Division, pitifully staffed with only six players. Mouse_Is_Duck had to serve as the acting head because almost no players wanted to do the grunt work of serving others. For these six players, Mouse_Is_Duck even had to pay them extra wages offline.
For Logistics, Mouse_Is_Duck was also planning to hire NPCs.
"Due to the current shortage of personnel, intelligence work cannot be fully rolled out across Pentos yet.
"It will take some time to spread our eyes and ears throughout the city. However, I am confident that the Secret Police will teach the Usurper a lesson regarding counter-espionage and measures against threats from across the Narrow Sea."
Mouse_Is_Duck spoke with confidence. Although the Secret Police were few in number, this "Spy Chief" was certain he could handle the amateur local spies sent by forces across the Narrow Sea or elsewhere.
A bunch of country bumpkins and street thugs who haven't seen the world. They aren't even fit to carry our shoes, the Director thought to himself.
Viserys originally wanted to offer some suggestions, but seeing that this Spy Chief—and Captain of his "Stormtroopers"—had clearly done his homework, he couldn't find a place to jump in.
When Mouse finished, Viserys realized he had nothing to add.
So he simply waved his hand, signaling him to go and start his work.
---
Earth.
"Oh my God! This game is too real! It's so real I literally don't want to log off!"
Leonardo looked at his uncle David, whose face was flushed with excitement. He didn't need to ask to know that David was definitely going to call his friends and recommend this game.
Seeing another 500 slots appear on the official website, Leonardo said to his uncle, who was already picking up the phone:
"The devs only released 500 slots this time. Your friends better hurry, or they'll be too late."
Official Forum.
With more and more players sharing daily gameplay videos and tons of screenshots, a massive number of netizens were drawn in.
Over three thousand players swearing on their honor that this was a 100% realistic virtual game made many netizens believe it.
Of course, there were inevitably those who insisted it was all paid shills. They generally believed the game was real, but refused to believe the "100% realistic VR" hype, thinking it was just a high-end VR game with graphics comparable to AAA titles.
Some even posted lengthy scientific arguments debating that current technology couldn't produce such a game.
Viserys had seen one such post, thousands of words long.
All he could say was: If that guy ever gets a chance to log in, his entire worldview will be shattered.
Unlike most players who just yell "Holy crap" and start playing, intellectuals like that often suffer the biggest shock upon entering the game.
"Excuse me, is this game real? Is it only in Chinese? No Japanese support?"
On the forum, the appearance of a Japanese netizen broke the balance slightly.
"Holy sht, there's a Japanese guy here. He better not log in, or I'll beat the sht out of him."
Comments like that flooded in, and the Japanese netizen never posted again.
But the constant appearance of foreign netizens made everyone realize that the game's marketing was seriously impressive.
How many foreign netizens were there? Enough that a Japanese netizen and a Korean netizen had already started flaming each other.
There was even a Jewish netizen claiming the game contained discriminatory symbols.
And a redneck kept posting, asking when a black user who had commented earlier would register for the beta. You didn't need to be a genius to know he had no good intentions.
Of course, these people were quickly drowned out by the local netizens.
The influx of foreign netizens and the pitifully small number of beta slots seemed to tell everyone that the official claims were true: this virtual game really could achieve 100% realism.
After this little interlude, the newly released 500 slots were snatched up in the blink of an eye.
Leaving behind a sea of regretful netizens, beating their chests and wailing in posts.
Through the System interface, Viserys saw that over 50,000 netizens on the official forum had registered their interest in a beta slot.
The number was still growing.
Viserys wasn't surprised; in fact, he felt the number was a bit low.
After all, if a game costs money, netizens might be skeptical or short on cash.
But Viserys was presenting a game that was free to play. This meant that whether they believed it or not, netizens would register with a "try it, lose nothing" mentality.
Plus, free shipping for the VR helmet? Even if it was fake, using it as a scooter or motorcycle helmet wasn't a bad deal.
It's like the old saying: Preach the gospel, and people doubt. Hand out free eggs with the gospel, and suddenly you have a lot of 'believers'.
---
The fires in Pentos had just been extinguished.
But the commoners in the city were still terrified, running home in panic.
"He's not a Magister's lackey? Then why is he running?! Arrest him!"
Flying_Bat, Chief of the Action Division of the Secret Police, pointed at a peddler who had turned to flee and shouted.
With a single order, seven or eight Action Division players brandishing wooden clubs chased him down in a few steps. Without asking why, without needing a reason, they caught him and started beating him.
Even when the peddler's head was covered in blood, they didn't stop.