2. One After Another

"What's happening?!""I can't open the menu pop-up!""Somebody report this to the Admins!""Are you dumb?! We can't even open the menu pop-up!"The people of the city, or rather, the players are panicking. They were minding their own business and suddenly they all fell unconscious, only to find they could no longer open the menu pop-up. Without it, they can't report this to the Admins. That also means they are trapped here, in this game."D-does that mean we are trapped?""I'm afraid so...""H-hey, stop joking! This just might be a bug, they will fix it as soon as possible""I hope so"WOOooOOOaAAAaAOOOOOooThe sound of a siren gained people's attention, they were the firefighting unit with their antique trucks! It seems many buildings were set on fire during the strange event as there is a lot of black smoke coming from various directions. The police also started flooding the area trying to calm the people and fix the traffic as many cars were blocking the road and there were a lot of crashes happened."Sir, please get out of the road. It's dangerous here" Said a police officer to a group of players standing in the middle of the road."W-wait a minute, what's happening here?!""I don't know sir, but please get out of the road for now""O-okay"The group did as they were told."Hey, do you notice?""What?""That police officer, he is an NPC, right? We all know Civilizica's NPC lacks dialogue, but he talks very naturally, like a real human being. Heck, don't you see his expression? That's beyond the game's capability""What are you trying to say actually?""I mean c-could it be..."~^~^~^~^~^~-Imperial Palace, Meeting Room-The meeting room was in chaos. Everyone won't stop arguing, it becomes so loud to the point they can no longer understand each other.BANGThe sound of the door being slammed silenced them."Why's the ruckus, I can't hear it all the way here!""Your Majesty!""Hmm?"The one who shouts is a man in his 50s, he has grey hair and a pair of orangish eyes. One thing that stands out the most is the fact he has a pair of canine ears. His name is Rolf Braun, and people know him as the Prime Minister."Alright, anybody has an explanation about the current situation?" Asked Amalia as she sat on her chair at the end of the d-end table.'Even a pinch of information would be very helpful right now, I should keep acting for now. I don't really know them even if they have been working with me for a long time, again it's because of the lack of dialogue that hinders Player-to-NPC relation-building '"Unfortunately, we don't have any explanation regarding this situation. Our scientists are working hard to solve this mystery as we are discussing it right now" Said Prime Minister Rolf.'Not a single information?'"Regardless of its origin, the havoc wreaked upon our Empire is undeniable. Production and distribution were delayed, the stock market has plummeted, and the value is falling to no end. We're still in the process of quantifying the financial damage. Our economy is experiencing an unprecedented downturn, the worst in our history" The one who spokes is a middle-aged man, he's just a normal human with black hair and brown eyes. The Minister of Finance.'Now this is bad, very bad'"H-how long will it take to heal the economy as it was?""It could take a couple of years, Your Majesty"'That's too long! Does he not know how hard it is to build an economy this strong?! I lost a crazy amount of money because of this! Without money, everything I built will fall, including this stupid Empire'KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK"Who is that? We are in an emergency meeting!" Said a minister.BANG"Huff, huff. Pardon my intrusion, I bring information from the border!""Where's your manner?! Don't you see we are in a meeting, this better be important!""Calm down, Prime Minister. Let him talk""*sigh* What did you bring?""Sir," He took out a piece of paper from his pocket and gave it to the Prime Minister......"T-this... this is absurd! I'm letting you here not to deliver a joke!""B-but, Prime Minister. The message comes from our soldier at the border""And you think I will believe this crap?!"'Just what is written on that paper' Thought Amalia."Let me see it" She forcefully grab the paper from the Prime Minister's hand.'What's this? A telegram?'__________'The border has dissapeared, there is only sea in every direction'Something like that

__________

"What?.....""Y-Your Majesty, there's no need to trust this information," said the Prime Minister."No, I believe our soldiers won't lie. They are the ones at the border, not us""Your Majesty...""You know what? I believe you all can find a temporary solution for this problem"Amalia stands up from her chair and leaves the room, nobody has the guts to stop her.~^~^~^~^~^~CLICKAmalia locked the door and collapsed herself on the sofa.'Just what is going on? Everyone fell asleep, I couldn't open the menu pop-up, and things started to get real. It's like we're not in the game anymore. Are we?'"Stop right there!" A faint voice can be heard from the other side of the door."Let me go, damn it!""We need more guards!""AAAhhhh!"BANGThe door was broken into with only a single punch."Amalia!""Katou?!""Have you noticed it?! I know the answer to this madness!""Well, you better start with clearing the mess you caused""Hmm?" Katou turned around and saw a messed up hallway, there was also a broken big door lying on the floor because of his punch."Uhh... do insurance exist in this era?"==========Katou's avatar is a young man, probably around 20 years old in appearance. A pair of eyes as blue as the sky, and short brown hair. Amalia has known her since she first started playing Civilizica. He chooses to become an adventurer and explore the world while she decides to build a kingdom. He always paid a visit ever since she just started building a small town that soon would be the capital of her vast Empire."You better not waste my time""Calm down, it's not like you have anything to do in this situation, eh?""You have 1 minute"Katou took a deep breath before he spoke again."You felt it, aren't you? Everything suddenly started to get real, we can feel warmth, we can feel the wind, we can even feel each of our breaths""...It happens to you too?""It happens to all of us, I've asked several fellow players and they told me the same thing""....." A single drop of sweat fell from her forehead while she sat in silence."I'm sure you also noticed we can't open the menu pop-up""That's... true""If it's just that, I would probably though it's all nothing but a bug or some kind. But when everything gets real, I only have one conclusion""And... what's that?"Katou stands up and spreads his hands wide and high."We have been transported to another world!"".....huh?"He then slams the table and shouts."Come on, what else can explain this?!""... sometimes I forget you are a shame to society""Hey, I'm serious! And I'm not a shame to society! Do you have any other explanation for this?""I... I don't""I know it's unbelievable, but some people seem to believe it. Listen, I don't what kind of problem you are facing, I want you to know our fellow players are also suffering from this. You are the Empress, Amalia. You have to take responsibility even when you are clueless, that's your duty. You are our only hope""What can I do about it? You know Civilizica's nation-building system is very complex and realistic. I just got a report about an economic crisis, it will take a long to recover. And if what you said is true, it will probably take longer. We don't know if other countries also got transported here. The worst case is we are alone""What is it if we are alone?""Are you a fool? No nation can stand by itself alone, even if some ever existed, they wouldn't survive for long. Modern civilization was built upon globalization"".....So what now?""I need to know how many players are trapped alongside. They need to be organized before they create more chaos. I don't believe they will follow the law so it needs to be done fast, and you are are lend a hand""What? Why me?!""How many friends do you have in your friend list?""Uhh, last time I checked it was 322""Find them and confirm their existence""But there are more than three hundred of them!""Well, you better start searching""B-b-but-""No buts" Amalia then used her magic to teleport him outside the palace."Huh, using magic gives me a weird feeling"~^~^~^~^~^~The rest of the day is filled with chaos across the Empire, and it will continue into the following days. The number of trapped players transported along keeps increasing each day, with an estimated total of 8,000 to 11,000. For reference, Civilizica has an average of 60,000 to 90,000 active players per day, and it has been downloaded more than 7 million times.While many of them were terrified and chose to cooperate with the police forces and take shelter, many of them also went rogue and created even more problems. The police alongside the players on their side tried to persuade them. The result is not much but it's working nevertheless.That night, martial law was enacted.==========~Fifth Day Since The Transmigation~-Southwestern Coast-Five soldiers can be seen inside a post, four of them are chatting and eating snacks. They change shifts every two hours and now is Soldier#4's turn."I still can't believe the whole land disappeared and is now replaced with the sea," (Soldier#2)"For real! I thought I drank too much when listening to the news on the radio, but everyone else also heard it" (Soldier#3)"I thought drinking during the shift isn't allowed" (Soldier#5)"Nahh, a little sip of happiness wouldn't hurt, boy. You are new here aren't you? Don't worry, kid. I can teach you a few tricks hehe" (Soldier#3)"Hey, I think I see something" (Soldier#4)"And what would it be? (Soldier#3)"It... looks like ships" (Soldier#4)"What? Give me the binoculars, son!" (Soldier#3)Soldier#3 looks through the binoculars, he sees a massive fleet of ships sailing right to their shore."Holy dips, crab nugget. That's a lot of ships, but all of them were sailships. Nevertheless, must report this, quickly! Sound the alarm"Soldier#5 hurriedly handled the radio and informed the command center while Soldier#2 went outside to sound the alarm.WOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAOOOOOOOOHHHHHHThe sound keeps repeating and repeating. This city, Himmelshafen has a population of 1,100,000 inhabitants and is also a busy port. An attack here would be devastating.With the unknown fleet approaching, time felt so slow. It was estimated that more than a thousand sailships were approaching. It was clear to everyone that an invasion was happening. The shore is well-defended, there are naval cannons placed in many spots but they don't know if it's enough to stop more than a thousand ships.~^~^~^~^~^~-In The Imperial Palace-KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK"Now what?!"CLICKThe door opened and the Ministry of Defence walked in."What is it?" Amalia's appearance is... awful. She had bags under her eyes, and her uniform was in disarray. She looks like haven't slept for days which is true."It's our Southwestern shore, the military has confirmed an invasion attempt is occurring right now""Huhhh? Ohh..... I see" Amalia smiled, a smile that made the minister feel chill."They don't give us much time, do they? Seems like Katous was right, even someone like him can be reliable sometimes"She paused for a while before continuing."Get everyone on high alert, prevent whoever they are from causing too much damage. We must know where they come from""Yes, Your Majesty"