The profiler, the scammer and DHB (2)

Waiting for the appointed time, I yawned.

There were still a few minutes before Friend Number 1 arrived.

Thankfully, I didn't feel dizzy anymore now; but let's not jinx it because I don't plan to faint anytime soon. Let at least a few years pass before that.

Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed teenagers down the apartment, a little below my balcony. These kids often come by here recently; their conversations are also quite funny.

Silently opening the door to the balcony, I leaned forward on the railings and eavesdropped on their conversation while smoking a lollipop.

"…Did you hear about the new cheese products in the supermarket?" Teenager A said.

Wow, who even pays attention to this?

"Yes, we have to make a plan to get them first, before it runs out of stock. Everyone will surely run to get one so, if we arrive late, we won't have any." Teenager B added.

Uh… No.

Then Teenager C showcased his weird tastes:

"Personally, I think the strawberry flavor is better."

No, it's pepper flavor that's better, but are you still talking about cheese?

Why would 'strawberry flavor' even exist?

"Strawberry flavor? What are you talking about?"

See?

Teenager C shook his head.

"You ignorant being, you are really pitiful for missing out on the greatness of strawberry-flavored cheese. With my endless benevolence, let me enlighten you. If you crush strawberries and mix them with melted cheese and sugar…"

I see.

What the hell am I listening to?

Get out of here, you insult to gastronomy.

As their talk strangely turned into conspiracy theories with the government deliberately hiding the existence of strawberry-flavored cheese to keep it to themselves and the stock of new products in supermarket being intentionally limited to create internal strife that would, for unknown reasons, evolve into a civil war, the source being spies from foreign countries being planted into the government to destabilize our nation's unity (???); I heard the sound of the doorbell, unfortunately disrupting my eavesdropping onto this absurd conversation.

I left the balcony and opened the door, revealing a woman in her twenties with dark brown hair and brown eyes, a few centimeters shorter than me, a thin body and sporting a neutral expression as well as an orange T-shirt, a brown jacket and jeans.

Meanwhile, I was wearing a dark blue T-shirt with black leggings and a blue vest, so the exact opposite in terms of colors.

The woman was Friend Number 1. I mean, it was Lou-Ann.

"Come in."

As Lou-Ann sat on the sofa as if she were in her own house, I recalled something.

"By the way, was it your brother who sent these messages?"

Lou-Ann turned her gaze to me.

"What messages?"

I showed her my screen with yesterday's conversation.

[Friend Number 1: What

Friend Number 1: Wut

Friend Number 1: Whatisit

Friend Number 1: Whatsthematter

Friend Number 1: Is there a problem?]

Lou-Ann frowned slightly, as if she were seeing it for the first time.

"Yes."

I nodded.

"As expected, I thought it didn't suit you."

Lou-Ann explained:

"My hands were occupied so I asked him to write in my stead."

Judging from her reaction, she didn't think her brother would write so many messages to say the same thing.

Wasn't he only a few years younger? Why couldn't he type 'What is it?' properly?

As she checked her phone to see how else her brother had transcribed her words, I turned on a video game and handed her a console.

She accepted it and we began to play in silence for a while until one of us finally spoke up.

"…Do you think life is important?"

I tilted my head at her unusual question, but attempted to think of a satisfying answer nonetheless.

This type of philosophical dilemma is sudden, but actually understandable with the current situation. After all, she should have also noticed the uncanny resemblance between the recent scenario and my novel.

"Are you asking because my novel became reality?"

As I expected, Lou-Ann confirmed it.

"Yes."

Was content about the players already broadcast on TV? I couldn't be sure, she could have heard it somewhere else.

Maybe it would also be important to determine if Lou-Ann became a player like me, in other words, if she was among the people who participated in the first scenario.

Then, she continued.

"If this is indeed your novel, then are people now 'characters'? Or are your characters 'people'? Does the value of life change depending on if we consider someone 'real' or 'fictional'?"

Are 'characters' less important and 'real people' more important? So if we judge that people also became 'characters' when this world turned into a novel, does that make their lives less important than before?

Can we still consider it 'murder' if we kill someone then?

To all these unanswered questions, I asked back:

"Why would we even need to determine the 'value' of a life? Whatever a life is worth, it doesn't change that if you take it away, you will have committed murder. It doesn't change that people will be affected by that loss and grieve for the victims, that it will have an impact on their surroundings, and that it is both immoral and illegal."

Even though we casually decide characters' life and death on a whim, did the fact that they are fictional make their experiences any less real?

Characters usually have a past, their own personality, beliefs, values, memories, likes, dislikes, fears and goals.

If they suddenly come to life and stop being 'fictional', how are they different from 'real' people?

They were only born in a different way, they were created instead of growing up, but does the way they came into existence make them less important if they become able to have their own thoughts?

The border between fiction and reality is only a thin line. One can be controlled and the other interacted with. One goes far beyond our 5 senses while the other can be touched.

I scoffed.

"You make it sound like fiction is less important than reality to begin with, but isn't it one of the things that influences us the most? Isn't it from stories we learn from, both morally and emotionally?"

No wait, I'm losing the game. I knew it, it was actually a tactic to distract me, right?

Trying to catch up to Lou-Ann's car on the screen, I concluded.

"So, if you ever kill someone, don't use the fact that people could be 'characters' as an excuse to not feel guilt. You must admit that the one you murdered was 'real'. After all, everyone is equal before death."

Faced with this absurd conclusion but somehow not that surprising coming from me, Lou-Ann deadpanned.

I mean, I don't really care if others die, okay? Everyone eventually dies and I'm not some hypocrite who wants to save everyone.

Lou-Ann stopped her questions and there was silence once again.

In the end, I still don't know if she's a player.

I could ask, but first of all, she could simply lie, and second, I wouldn't want to answer that question if she also questions me back afterward.

After a quite philosophical exchange, the time came for Lou-Ann to go back home and I still didn't know if she was a player. Well, I guess it doesn't matter that much anyway.

I took back the consoles and grabbed my bus card as I decided to accompany her to spend more time together.

"Let's go."

After a while, we arrived at Lou-Ann's house.

Without knocking, she opened the door and entered, immediately greeted by her grandmother.

"You're back. Oh, Ena is there too."

"Hello."

Lou-Ann was surprised.

"Grandma, what are you doing here?"

"What, don't you want to see me?"

"That's not it…"

"I passed by to make a pie for your family to share since there were too many apples in the garden."

My friend nodded and went to her room.

Instead of immediately leaving, I came in and approached Lou-Ann's grandmother.

"Excuse me, Ma'am. I have a few questions."

My friend's grandmother wasn't a typical gentle grandma. She actually had a big temper and carried around rifles even though it was totally illegal. An aftereffect of war, I suppose, since she used to travel to other countries as a soldier when she was younger.

"Ask away, youngin."

"Hmm, you know how to handle firearms, right?"

The grandma laughed heartily and patted the rifle beside her. No, what is this doing here?

"Of course. In my time, I was the best in my unit. Even now, if a robber dares attack my house, I'll shoot 'em and pan! They're gone."

See? Totally illegal.

But ignoring the fact that you're talking about murder, we're not even in your house, so why is this here??

Don't tell me you're just carrying a rifle around? How were you not caught yet?

Sincerely worried about the carefreeness of Lou-Ann's grandmother, I continued.

"Yes, so, is there a specific way to use guns? Do we need to take a special position to aim or avoid the recoil?"

I asked a few more questions like how to put on and remove the safety before thanking her and leaving.

Walking away from my friend's house, I thought.

Okay, now, I have a better idea on how to use the gun I got.

I just hope Lou-Ann's grandmother won't suspect anything because I asked too many questions. Maybe I should've also inquired about other things to hide what I truly wanted to know.

Well, it's already too late and I'd be too lazy to do so. Anyway, it's not a big deal if Lou-Ann or her grandmother learns that I'm a player, it'll only make communication easier to not have to hide something after all.

I didn't see Lou-Ann's brother either, he should've been holed up in his room or at a friend's place since it's the holidays. Her parents seemed to not be in the house as well.

It's better if the least people know that I'm a player to not attract the attention of the police. Once it's known, I'll only lose my freedom and either go to jail for murdering someone in the first scenario (which I didn't do) or be put under surveillance because they lack proof and I'm a potential threat.

It would be easier if I were stronger and could block bullets with my bare body as well as stop tanks with my physical abilities, but I'm not able to do that.

Speaking of which, others should've also gotten a hold of the guns that were provided in the first scenario. I should get some bulletproof vest under my clothes just in case.

When I was immersed in my thoughts, I suddenly felt a change in my surroundings and paused.

[A suitable number of people has been detected.]

I suddenly understood the situation.

[The conditions have been met.]

On my way home, near Commerce, I stepped into a scenario area that activated due to a sufficient number of players being present.

I'm really unlucky, huh?

[Welcome to the second scenario area.]

In a few minutes, the second scenario will begin.

[Good luck.]