1 White Online.
''The world's most highly anticipated VRMMORPG, White Online, is going on sale tomorrow!'' A middle-aged female News Anchor said with an eager face.
The middle-aged man next to her smiled and continued, ''White Online, a game that has been teased for over 10 long years, is finally opening its servers! The world will, without a doubt, enter a new era of VR games!''
The female News Anchor nodded excitedly, ''White Online got its name from the beautiful snowy landscapes that will be the main trait of the game! The game's developers from Legacy Company have revealed that the world's first AI was added to the game! There have also been rumors about the NPCs shown in the trailers. Some believe that they are actually New Gen Humans! That has not been proven, but after the decision to incorporate the AI, the rumors have once again resurfaced!''
The middle-aged man took over, ''Tomorrow at 12 AM, the servers will officially open! It will definitely be a busy day at Legacy Company with the rumors that over 300 million VR Helmets have been sold!''
''White Online! The World of Legacies will be the start of a new era!''
...
Meanwhile, in the city of Snowstar...
Snow covered the beautifully designed architecture, covering the city in a sheet of white.
Captivating and mesmerizing.
Lofty skyscrapers soared toward the sky, breaking up the monotonous pattern of white, their lights reflecting in the distance.
The citizens walking in the streets looked satisfied, going on with their lives as usual, but most of them had their heads toward the screens plastered on the sides of the buildings.
The News was shown on each and every screen; passersby stopped walking and gazed at the News with enthusiastic faces.
In front of one of the screens...
A young man, whose hair matched the snowy environment around him, gazed longingly at one of these screens. He had stunning facial features! You could almost mistake him for a girl with his delicate-looking eyebrows and smooth-looking skin. It didn't help that his skin was more flawless than any of the females around him.
This fact didn't go unnoticed, earning the ire of those standing around him.
He got a lot of attention from the nearby crowd, but that young man's concentration was on the screen.
This young man's name was Isaac Whitelock.
He was 18 years old and should be in school at this time, but he'd dropped out for unknown reasons.
Snow began slowly falling from the sky, which woke Isaac from his stupor.
He started walking in the streets, his every step crunching loudly in the snow.
Isaac walked a few hundred meters, finally coming to a stop; he turned his head and saw a radiant sign [VR Helmets 34% Off!]
It was coming from one of the many stores, which was very busy currently— excited teens and adults left the store with small boxes in their hands. A picture of a VR Helmet on the side of each box.
''White Online... Well, I have nothing else to do... Might as well say goodbye to my allowance,'' Isaac wryly smiled as he entered the store.
The area where VR Helmets were sold was bustling— it was almost the only place with customers.
Isaac didn't try to take the VR Helmet forcefully— he waited until there were fewer people and grabbed one of the VR Helmets with a tag [299$ - 34%]
He purchased the VR Helmet and quickly exited the busy store— he'd gotten his allowance yesterday, and the first thing he bought was an expensive item that almost bottomed his wallet.
But Isaac didn't seem distressed— instead, he was curious about the new world he was about to enter.
He left the hustle and bustle of the nearby shops and started walking toward his home.
It took him nearly thirty minutes to arrive in his neighborhood, but he didn't seem to be exhausted, even slightly. His body didn't look athletic. It was actually quite delicate and could easily ignite an elderly woman's protective instincts.
Two guards stood in front of the gates, blocking his path.
''ID.'' One of the guards said with an apathetic face, acting as if he didn't know who the young man was. Even so, the man's countenance couldn't hide the visible anger in his eyes.
Isaac sighed, 'Don't act like you don't know me, you dickhead.'
He grabbed his wallet and showed his ID.
The guard snorted and opened the gate very slowly.
But Isaac waited patiently until the gate was fully opened, and he managed to enter.
It only took three whole minutes...
Isaac entered the neighborhood, ignoring the guard's laughter as he walked through the gates.
The neighborhood was stunning! All of the houses looked like small mansions, with massive yards and their own fences and gates.
The cars driving in the neighborhood were the most expensive one could find in the market currently, but it was an ordinary sight to Isaac.
He walked for another 10 minutes until he reached a particular mansion, which didn't look any less extravagant compared to the others.
The mansion was enormous, with over 5 floors and a large back and front yard.
There was a tall fence surrounding the mansion with a beautiful metal gate placed in the center.
Isaac walked up to the gate and looked to his left, where a small, indiscriminate camera was located.
He simply waved his hand.
Instantly, the gates were opened, and Isaac entered the beautiful yard. Pure white snow covered the ground, and beautiful statues stood tall, dotted across the landscape.
Bushes surrounded the yard like a garden, but they were covered in snow. It gave an otherwordly kind of beauty to the yard.
Isaac opened the front door and entered the mansion.
The interior was just as beautiful as you could imagine.
The floors and the walls were a handsome light brown, crafted from the wood of an Oak Tree.
The furniture looked brand new, and paintings covered the walls.
There was a simple stairway to the second-floor dozen meters away from the entry. A spacious room with a plain table in its center was directly in front of Isaac.
On the right side of the first floor was a massive kitchen, and off to the left were the living and dining room.
Isaac took his jacket off and placed it on the hanger— he put his shoes gently on the shoe rack and carefully ascended toward the second floor.
However, before he managed to close the gap, a voice interrupted him.
''Isaac? Where have you been?'' An attractive, black-haired, middle-aged woman peeked from the kitchen and asked.
Isaac turned his head and smiled awkwardly, ''Mom, I just went for a walk.''
His mother, Isabella, was worried, ''You shouldn't have— it is not safe for you!"
Isaac sighed, ''Sorry, mom.''
Isabella approached Isaac and was about to hug him until she saw that he was carrying something.
''What is this?'' She asked.
Isaac saw her looking at the VR Helmet box— he smiled and said, ''It's a VR Helmet! I heard a lot of people talking about a new game releasing tomorrow, and I was curious. The News station was giving White Online a lot of praise.''
''White Online?'' Isabella was shocked to see Isaac showing interest in something. She wasn't sure whether it was a good or bad thing that it happened to be that specific game.
''Yes, it seemed interesting, and I decided to try it out,'' Isaac said with modest excitement.
Isabella smiled, seeing that he was excited, but she crossed her arms and asked, ''How much did it cost?''
''Ah...'' Isaac pursed his lips and spoke sheepishly, ''199$.''
Isabella narrowed her eyes, ''Isaac Vayne Whitelock!''
''Alright...'' Isaac scratched his head, ''299$.''
Isabella sighed and smiled wryly, ''I will give you another 100$ but don't you dare spend it on games!''
''Mom, you don't need to,'' Isaac said with embarrassment.
Isabella kissed his cheek and said, ''End of conversation.''
After those words, she returned to the kitchen.
Isaac sighed and shook his head. He finished climbing the stairs to the 4th floor and entered a spacious room.
The room had a massive bed that could easily fit 5 of him.
There were a large wardrobe and a desk next to the window.
A chandelier hung from the ceiling, giving the room a cozy feeling.
The door to his own private bathroom was next to the wardrobe, containing a bathtub, shower, and sink.
Isaac put his VR Helmet on top of the desk and started unpacking it.
After carefully pulling it out, he put the box on the ground and grabbed the VR Helmet.
It was a blue-colored helmet with a white-colored visor.
Isaac knew that it wasn't the most expensive VR Helmet.
The VR Helmet he bought was simply Bronze Ranked.
There were Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum, and even Legendary Rank assemblies.
5 Ranks in total.
The Bronze ranked Helmet had a lot of limitations, but Isaac never planned to play the game professionally.
He thought that after 1-week of playing, he would get bored and quit. That was how it always happened when he tried out different hobbies.
Isaac put the VR Helmet back in the box and placed it gently in the wardrobe, behind the hundreds of clothes he had.
''Tomorrow... I am feeling kinda excited, I guess,'' Isaac murmured. His mouth curved into a small smile, and he walked back to the desk.
He opened the cabinet, and there were well over a hundred notebooks!
Isaac took the one on top and opened it.
He started writing everything he'd experienced today. Isaac had been doing this for the past 3 years, but he never got tired of it.
Isaac wrote for half an hour until the last thing he wrote was putting the VR Helmet on the wardrobe.
After that, he closed the notebook and placed it back in the drawer, locking it tightly with his silver-colored key.
