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"Recently, all Adventurers who had gone missing in the Eastern Needlewood Mountains have been found and rescued by the Adventurer's Guild.
It is reported that they were attacked by a centuries-old magic formation and trapped underground.
The Adventurer's Guild had been continuously posting quests to find these missing members... In any case, it was fortunate that among the trapped individuals was a handheld console gifted by the Illusionist known as Caelan Ashford.
This device has the same functions as the console currently sold on the market, but it is much smaller and more convenient to carry—not even the size of a triple-A runestone...
It seems that future Adventurer teams should ideally carry a console to facilitate seeking help from others in case of emergencies..."
Caelan listened to the runestone radio while preparing for the day. The news anchor's voice filled his new bedroom—the one in the house Hadrian had built, with its smooth walls and comfortable furnishings.
"High-ranking officials of the Adventurer's Guild inquired with Illusionist Caelan Ashford about the handheld console, the hero of this rescue operation.
He was informed that the handheld console is troublesome to produce, time-consuming, and labor-intensive.
Currently, it is only circulated among his close friends and relatives, and there are no plans for external sale for now..."
That much was true. The handhelds took as long to make as Deluxe Edition consoles, consumed significant meteorite powder, and didn't expand the player base the way mass-produced Elite Editions did. For now, they remained private gifts.
"The Adventurer's Guild has applied for the Empire to intervene and investigate the matter of this magic formation."
Good. Let someone else figure out why an ancient Elf prison was still functional after a hundred thousand years.
"The war between dozens of factions in the eastern Land of Chaos has shown signs of escalating. To prevent further civilian casualties from the conflict, the Six Great Empires have agreed to send representatives to mediate the dispute.
Our Moonwatch Empire has dispatched a team led by Earl Cedric of House Moonwind.
As is well known, Earl Moonwind is particularly skilled at 'subduing people with virtue'..."
Caelan raised an eyebrow at that. "Subduing people with virtue" was a polite way of saying the Earl was exceptionally good at making people cooperate—whether they wanted to or not.
"The Church of Light in the Lion Kingdom has once again been exposed for a scandal involving a bishop molesting young boys..."
He turned off the radio.
Some things never changed, no matter which world you lived in.
Caelan checked the time.
10:00 AM sharp.
He smiled and released the games.
Immediately, players who had been waiting in the game store saw three new titles appear.
New Game One: Knight of Light(Adapted from Knights of the Round Table)
Synopsis: In the Late Stage of the Sacred Lion Empire—the predecessor of the Lion Kingdom—a very dark era, the Grand Duke Bangalore, an evil lord of the Empire, brutally ruled the common people in his territory.
Under his tyrannical rule of sustainable exploitation, the common people lived in dire straits.
To rescue their suffering relatives, three powerful warriors, guided by the Holy Light Mage Merlin, resolutely raised the banner of rebellion against Grand Duke Bangalore.
Merlin warned that to unify order from this war and establish a peaceful homeland, they must rely on the Holy Grail, which possesses infinite power.
Thus, Artoria, a descendant of kings, and her friends embarked on the path to find the Holy Grail.
Three Selectable Characters:
Artoria: A descendant of kings, a powerful female warrior rumored to be able to pull out the Holy Sword, skilled in using greatswords.
Lancelot: A gentle, brave, and strong handsome man, skilled in using scimitars.
Percival: A strong man with the heart of a youth, skilled in using great axes.
The three characters featured running attacks and running jump attacks—new mechanics that enhanced control flexibility and made the game more newcomer-friendly.
Correspondingly, enemy AI and movesets were richer and more diverse. Simple in the early stages. Brutally difficult in the late stages.
The bosses had been carefully designed:
Stage 1: Scorn, wielding a long-handled great axe.
Stage 2: Fallen Knight Balford—a former Paladin who willingly betrayed the knight's creed, skilled in dual swords.
Stage 3: Legion Commander Allen—Grand Duke Bangalore's younger brother, clad in heavy armor, wielding a giant meteor hammer, shaking the ground with every step.
Stage 4: A warrior codenamed "Afterimage"—skilled in rapiers, moving so fast only an afterimage can be seen, capable of summoning clones.
Stage 5: Lionman Lord Barbas—a powerful Lionman who fled to the Initial Continent after being wanted on the Beastman Continent. Tall and mighty, using a giant hammer.
Stage 6: The Evil Mage—Bangalore's strategist, cunning and treacherous, with powerful magic.
Stage 7: Troll Ironhide—massive in size, incredibly strong, covered in thick iron armor.
Stage 8: Evil Grand Duke Bangalore himself—the tyrannical lord.
Game Tip: Learning to block is the key to your success.
Normal difficulty and Advanced difficulty available. Only Advanced difficulty completions qualified for the First Clear Hero List.
Price: 1,000 gold crowns.
Players: Up to three simultaneously.
New Game Two: The Punisher
Synopsis: Frank was once a high-ranking general in the Shadow Reach Empire army, living a happy life—until one day his wife witnessed a wicked transaction while dining out.
His wife and child were tortured and murdered.
Due to the powerful background of the crime boss Kingpin, Frank found no recourse through legal channels. Enraged, he swore to use every means to "punish" all criminals, to prevent the same tragedy from happening to other innocents.
His proclamation: "If you are guilty, you must die."
Frank's good friend Nick Fury, who was still serving in the army, did not entirely agree with Frank's "stopping violence with killing" approach. But he was still willing to help his friend fight against criminal forces.
Selectable Characters: Frank and Nick Fury.
To make the characters appear more powerful, all attacks—both enemy and player—featured flashy special effects. Intimidating. Brutal.
The guns had been replaced with engraved runestones, just like in Dragonspire New Century. All characters wore Shadow Reach Empire attire.
Normal difficulty and Advanced difficulty available.
In commemoration of his childhood, Caelan had retained the "shaking red man" bug in Normal difficulty. A beloved exploit. A nostalgia trip.
But in Advanced difficulty, the bug was removed. Fair was fair.
Only Advanced difficulty completions qualified for the First Clear Hero List.
Price: 1,000 gold crowns.
Players: Up to two simultaneously.
New Game Three: Phoenix Dance in the Nine Heavens
Caelan had to admit—the name was ridiculous.
But Caroline had chosen it. Among all the suggestions, she'd latched onto this one with the enthusiasm of someone who had finally found the perfect outfit.
It's so elegant, she'd said. So dramatic.
It sounds like a nightclub, he'd thought.
But he'd made the game anyway. Partly because he owed her for the interrogation incident. Mostly because she wouldn't stop messaging him until he did.
The plot was entirely fabricated: a story about five elemental Phoenixes helping humans fight against Abyssal Creatures from the Abyss Plane. Flying units, mostly. Waves and waves of them.
Playable Phoenixes:
Wind Phoenix: Scatter shot attack. At maximum weapon level, it covered the entire screen—but the spread meant lower damage per hit.
Lightning Phoenix: Twisting electricity attack, arcing between enemies. Satisfying. Fun.
Ice Phoenix: Puffs of frost breath that slowed enemies. Solid damage output.
Earth Phoenix: Stone balls that could offset enemy bullet barrages. Defensive and offensive.
Hidden Character - Fire Phoenix: Continuous attack. Enemies hit by flames would spread fire to nearby foes.
Simple. Mindless. Devastatingly effective.
The Fire Phoenix was accessed via a secret code, naturally. Caroline would appreciate that.
The game featured charge attacks and a Retainer System—formerly called the wingman system, but that didn't quite fit the phoenix aesthetic.
Price: 1,000 gold crowns.
Players: Up to two simultaneously.
Difficulty: One setting only.
Three major releases.
Knight of Light for the Lion Kingdom. The Punisher for the Shadow Reach Empire. Phoenix Dance for the Fire Phoenix Empire.
Every major nation now had a game set in their territory.
Moonwatch had Elemental Contra. Soaring Dragon had Red Fortress and Dragonspire New Century. The Lion Kingdom had Knight of Light. The Shadow Reach Empire had The Punisher. The Frostpeak Empire had Snow Bros. The Fire Phoenix Empire had Phoenix Dance in the Nine Heavens.
Six empires. Six games.
Caelan smiled.
It was good business to make people feel represented.