01x02 - Haga Makato

[bunniefuu]

King's Seeker Online

is a full immersion VR game.

We logged in as QA testers,

tasked with checking it for bugs.

But for some reason, we couldn't log out.

That was a year ago now.

I've continued my job as a debugger anyway

and had a strange experience

in a certain village.

Nikola, a village girl who was

supposed to die during a quest

came back to life and came to see me.

She's really alive.

I've seen that village burn dozens of times

Done that quest over and over.

Have I seen it so many times

that I've gone crazy?

Again

And again

And again

No, this isn't right!

She's supposed to die in the game.

She shouldn't be here.

I'll file an addendum.

Haga-san! Good morning!

Ow, ow, ow

A-Are you okay?

Y-Yeah.

Haga Makoto

Haga-san, what will you

do with these barrels?

I'll take one with me, just in case.

I'm leaving the rest, though.

All right.

In that case, I'll move them outside.

I'll do whatever I can to help, so just ask!

Okay.

What shall we do with the stuff in this pile?

Somebody else might come and use it,

so they can just stay there.

I see.

You're leaving it for other Seekers, huh?

Haga-san, do you not plan

to use this anymore?

I suppose not.

Then can I have it?

Help yourself.

Thank you so much!

Well?

Do I look like your apprentice?

Yeah, I guess so.

Then let us be off, Haga-san!

Um, the other villagers

I mean, will they be okay without you?

You're right. They all told me not to do this.

But I really wanted to go on a

journey with a Seeker, so I left!

So that's her new backstory?

I've always wanted to see the outside world!

Now I can fight the monsters of legend!

And find long-lost treasure!

That's really not what this job is about.

U-Um, Nikola-san, you're actually

Yes?

Well, let's just get going.

Okay!

We're heading to Bayle Castle

to report what I've found so far.

But we'll be checking the towns

and villages on the way, too.

Especially this one, the town of Adan.

Okay!

This world looks peaceful, but it's actually

filled with bugs I mean, anomalies.

Study everything carefully.

Okay!

What to do about this?

So this is Adan.

It's so very big!

You could say that.

Is that an adventurer?

Them, too!

Oh, if you want to find an inn,

leave that to me.

I'll haggle down the price

Wait, huh?

Haga-san?

Haga-san?

H-H-Haga-san?!

Haga-san!

Wh-Wh-Wh-Wh-What's wrong?!

Oh, sorry. Let me explain.

This is how you do debugging.

Debugging?

That's part of your job as a Seeker, right?

It's the bulk of the job, actually.

But anyway

When you see a wall like this,

suspect that there might be gaps in it.

But why?

I certainly don't see any

You can't tell by looking,

which is why I check like this.

And if I find anything strange,

I write it down.

I see.

You try it, too.

I'll start by having her learn

simple checks like this.

I can do it, too!

Haga-san's been doing this

harsh work all by himself?!

What is he doing?

I'm scared.

We've gone around the whole

perimeter without any problems.

Yes.

Now, about that inn

Wait.

It's dangerous to assume that

one check is all you need!

That's precisely how you overlook things.

Let's try jumping at it or hitting it

from other angles. Stuff like that.

Let's go around again!

We'll also check the two towers

by the gate today, too.

Welp, that's a wrap for today.

We'll stay out here tonight.

There are towers we haven't

checked outside of town.

We'll make one more pass around the wall

and then go into town tomorrow.

Nikola-san, are you okay?

Was this too much to take in at once?

I'm sorry.

I was just thinking about what we

did today, and it made me laugh.

We're both all beat up from slamming

into the wall so many times!

I guess from an outside perspective,

it is kinda funny.

It's been so long

since I did this with a buddy.

I see.

Even if I didn't realize it, I've been lonely.

Maybe I don't need to report her just yet.

Okay, once I've written up

today's report, we can sleep.

Um

So, Haga-san, you mentioned

you're alone right now, right?

What are your companions up to?

I was thinking that once we're done

checking this town, I should go see them.

Hey.

What are you doing out here

instead of in town?

An event? In a place like this?

Hey, you're cute!

Haga-san!

Wh-Who might you be?

We're Seekers, on a mission

from Wise King Bayle.

Is there a problem?

Oh, Seekers

I see. So you're Seekers, are you?

Good work on the debugging.

Haga-san!

H-Haga-san!

A little surprise! My way of saying hello!

Come on, at least laugh.

Haga-san!

Oh, are you grinning inside that helmet?

Right. You are a perv, aren't ya?

A debugger stone?

He's a QA tester, too!

Get back.

Haga-san!

A stun b*mb?

\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\h\hRoyal Capital, Bayle

Situated in the hills of the Bayle Plains, it serves

as the financial and cultural center of the kingdom.

The Bayle Mountains to the east serve

as a natural barrier against invaders.

Grafa

A deity worshipped widely throughout the Bayle Kingdom.

As the god of the earth and love, Grafa's temple

welcomes pilgrims from far and wide with open arms.

Damn it!

Let's follow him, Sakai.

He can't have gone far with that girl.

Nah, Sumida, there's no rush.

Look at all these bug sheets!

I didn't know anybody was still

taking this job so seriously.

Wow, he's even noting

individual hitboxes and stuff? Eww!

It's not like there's any point.

Well, let's follow him, I guess.

Okay, they can't get in from outside now.

Nikola-san

Listen to me. When a problem like this happens,

your first order of business is to get away,

calm yourself down, and think!

O-Okay.

But what about your wound, Haga-san?

Oh, I'll be fine

You're not fine!

If we don't treat you, you'll die!

You're gonna k*ll me! You're gonna k*ll me!

We need to get this out!

Really, I'll be fine.

I have something for this.

Stamina medicine! And recovery medicine!

Wow!

Seekers are amazing!

Now, what to do

Were those people not your companions?

They were acting so friendly.

No, they're in the same line

of work, but I don't know them.

There's no telling what they're after,

though I assume they'll follow us.

Wh-What do we do?

Let me think

Okay, I've decided.

We'll stay here and hide for a while.

How long is a while?

A few days, maybe months

I'm a pretty patient guy.

Th-That long, huh?

Oh, there you are! Lucky me.

You're using debug mode, aren't you?

Yeah, of course we are.

Got a problem with that?

Debug mode?

They told us our first day not

to use it except for emergencies!

H-Haga-san's really angry.

We need to do our checks in the

same environment players will be using,

which means no debug mode!

That's Debugging 101!

Using debug mode can even create more bugs!

What's so funny?!

Cool it, would you? Sorry if I startled you.

I get that you take this stuff

way too seriously.

My bad.

You'd be right under most circumstances.

But this is an emergency, isn't it?

We can't go back to our world.

Right?

We debuggers gotta look out for each other.

And that's just how it is.

So why don't you come join us?

I'm Sakai with Play-Ing, Inc.

And this is Sumida-san.

Nice to meet you.

I'm Haga from Nishima Technologies.

Oh, aren't you guys in Ikebukuro?

Didn't we do debugging for

Monica's Castle together?

Oh, right.

I think we did.

Uh-huh.

Well, what about you?

I-I'm Nikola from Luisa Village!

Huh? A non-player character?

You're an NPC?

You look like a stick in the mud,

but you're having some fun too, aren't you?

Glad to see it!

We've got a little group going

with our boss as the leader.

There's a lot we don't

understand about debug mode.

So we're recruiting other debuggers

and exchanging information.

We all spend our days

trying different things.

And the more the merrier, right?

Then why

Why aren't you doing your job as debuggers?

About that

We haven't been able to log out

for nearly a year now!

What I want to know is why

you're still working at all.

If we play to the end and file our reports,

maybe we can leave!

A while back, we ran into a group

who said the same thing.

They were trying to beat the game's story.

Oh, those idiots?

They had zero basis for all that talk.

Felt like some religion.

A group that said the same thing I did?

Come on. Think about it, Haga-chan.

"Haga-chan"?

Nobody'd blame you at this point

for giving up on your debugger job.

Besides, even if you do get out of here,

is anything good waiting for you?

No dreams, no goals.

Just taking whatever comes your way.

Suicide in slow motion.

Doesn't that sound familiar?

Well, that's why we all decided

that we like it better here!

Just let go of that weird sense of pride,

and you can have a ton of fun.

For instance, our boss is doing

a challenge to see how many NPCs

he can impale on the castle spire.

And I'm testing out how much

a vampire can endure.

As for this guy, he sleeps

on a bed of naked NPCs!

He's a total perv!

Shut up.

It's true, though! You're a real freak!

H-Haga-san, these people

Zip it.

I'm going to keep doing my job on my own.

I'm not going with you!

What a pain.

I should've known it'd come to this.

It's because you stabbed him for a laugh.

I don't like wasting time.

I'm going to knock you out

and take you with us.

Charge Alpha

Level 5!

Another smokescreen?

For someone who looks like a tank, he sure

puts a lot of effort into being slippery.

He seems insistent on not using debug mode.

It should be easy to find him.

We haven't done too much

debugger hunting lately.

This'll be fun.

They're using debug mode. I can't beat them.

I need to get away, but how?

Haga-san, it doesn't look

like they're chasing us.

They're in no hurry.

You saw how they came in, right?

That stone slate can let you pass

through walls and become invincible.

The slate makes them invincible?

Then if we steal it

Steal it?

You're right!

You're pretty fast.

But where do you think you're going?

We'll have to chance it.

Let's go, Nikola!

Sumida-san, feel free to tag

me in if you get bored!

Sure.

I'm overflowing with power.

No hemorrhoids, no back pain!

This world's the best thing

to ever happen to me!

That tower! On the right!

Got it!

You trapped yourself, idiot.

Our little game of tag is over.

Charge Alpha

Level 5!

So they split up?

It won't help them.

This skill has zero cooldown.

If I bounce off the wall toward that

slow-looking girl, that's one down!

This is why you have to actually check things!

My debugger stone!

Gotcha!

The other one could still be nearby!

Stay close to me!

Okay!

Seriously, Sumida-san?

Who knows what'll happen in

an area with no assets?

He might be falling through

empty space for all eternity.

Going after them is way too risky.

I've gotta tell the boss.

Are all the other Seekers as scary as them?

There's a place called the Advent Altar

half a day's walk from here.

We'll spend the night here and head

there tomorrow if nothing happens.

What's there?

My friends

My old companions.