Ding!
The elevator doors finally opened, revealing a spacious room adorned with a gray carpet that stretched across the entire floor. Several white chairs were neatly arranged in rows, all facing a large projector screen.
The place was already fairly packed, with several people chatting and exchanging pleasantries.
But not all were like that, there were quite a few that had tense expressions on their faces.
"Oh, look who's here!"
A man, tall and sharply dressed in a gray suit and black tie, made his way toward us. His gaze was fixed on Kyle.
"Of all people, I didn't expect one of our star prospects to come to some rookie orientation day."
One of our star prospects?
I glanced at Kyle, who laughed nervously, clearly embarrassed.
"Come on, you're exaggerating."
Him?
"Exaggerating?"
The man dismissively waved his hand.
"Come on... You and I both know you're one of the hottest prospects in the Guild right now. The number of inquiries I've been getting about you from other guilds? It's been a headache."
The more I listened to the conversation, the more peculiar my expression became.
'So not only the world changed, but Kyle has now become some sort of highly sought-after prospect?'
"Anyways..."
The man turned his attention to me, tilting his head as if he'd just noticed me.
"...Who might this be? Seems like a fresh face. Is he one of the new recruits?"
"No, he's with me, Section Chief."
"Ahhh."
The Section Chief paused, as if he'd just had a sudden thought, and slapped his fist into his open palm.
"Could he be that observer you were talking about?"
"Yes."
"I see, I see."
The Section Chief shot me one more curious glance before turning back to the end of the room. He waved his hand at someone across the room.
"Come here! There's someone I'd like to introduce you to."
Soon, a young man with short, bowl-cut black hair and brown eyes appeared.
"Section Chief?"
His face was slim, and dimples appeared on the sides of his cheeks as he walked over. My initial impression was favorable—he seemed like a nice guy.
"Here, Kyle," the Section Chief said, patting the boy on the shoulder, "this is Myles. He's got potential. When you have time, try to help him out. He'll be useful for us down the road."
Myles?
I cocked my head slightly while looking at the young man who went on to greet Kyle politely.
As I looked at him, I couldn't help but squint. Something about him felt vaguely familiar. I couldn't quite explain it, but the more I stared at Myles, the more I felt a strange sense of déjà vu, and it started to unsettle me.
I just couldn't quite put my finger on what made him feel so familiar.
"Hello."
"Hm?"
I blinked, snapping out of my thoughts. Before I knew it, he had come to greet me.
He had a polite smile on his face as he extended his hand towards me.
"Nice to meet you."
"...Oh, hello."
I greeted him back, shaking his hand.
I wasn't great at conversation, and the moment after I let go of his hand felt strangely awkward, but Myles didn't seem bothered. He simply smiled again.
"I heard that you're here as an observer. Are you looking to enter the Guild?"
"Me?"
I quickly shook my head.
"No, far from it. I'm just a game developer. I'm here to gain some experience so I can create a better game."
"You're a game developer?"
He looked intrigued as he asked.
"Yes."
Not a great one, but one.
"What type of genre? Horror?"
"...Yeah."
I couldn't help but feel a little embarrassed admitting it.
"Hmm."
Myles' expression shifted slightly, almost awkward. He seemed to want to say something, but at the same time hold back.
It made me grow curious.
"What's wrong?"
"No, it's..."
He pursed his lips.
"...I don't know, I just feel like horror games are not it."
"Eh?"
He shook his head and sighed.
"You know, while not many people work in Guilds, with most sticking to relatively normal jobs, there are plenty who've witnessed some pretty horrific things—many on a daily basis. I just… don't think horror is a great genre overall. If you want to create a horror game, you'd need to make one that truly stands out."
"...."
I stood in silence, unable to utter a single word back.
Why didn't I think about this before?
Indeed, this world wasn't the same as my old world. With Guilds, Gates, and all that nonsense around... people's tolerance to horror was much higher than back when the world was normal.
In short, horror games sucked in this world.
'Ahhhh...'
I wanted to groan out loud, throwing whatever curse I could think of in the air.
'And just when I thought things couldn't get worse.'
At this rate, I really was going to die in just a few months.
"Everyone, please gather around!"
The Section Chief's voice boomed throughout the room as he gathered the attention of all those present.
"Please take a seat. The orientation will start shortly."
I scanned the room for Kyle. I eventually spotted him near the projector, speaking with someone wearing a black hoodie and hat. Their head was lowered, obscuring their face, but the way Kyle looked so stiff, so respectful, told me they were someone important.
"You want to sit with me...?" Myles asked all of a sudden, snapping me out of my thoughts.
"...Sure."
I replied, relieved to have a familiar face beside me. We made our way to an empty seat. So far, my impression of him has been great.
He felt quite down-to-earth.
As the noise quieted down, all eyes turned toward the Section Chief and the person in the hoodie and hat, now sitting behind him with one leg crossed over the other, hands buried deep in their pockets.
Kyle sat next to them, his back straight.
"It's nice to see so many talented people present."
The Section Chief smiled, his expression satisfied.
"I won't make your orientation boring. There are a few things I want to cover first, but before we get into that, let me introduce you all to two of our star rookies."
Kyle stood up, drawing immediate applause as everyone seemed to recognize him. The attention was intense, and I noticed a few envious glances aimed at him.
He merely waved his hand before going back to his seat.
Then, the Section Chief pointed to the person in the hoodie.
"I'm sure you all will like the next person up."
With a playful smile, the Section Chief nudged the person in the hoodie. They soon stood up with a resigned sigh, slowly removing their hat to reveal a long cascade of blonde hair that fell down their back.
Unzipping her hoodie, she revealed an olive-green military jacket that seemed to match the color of her eyes, layered over a black crop top that showcased her toned midriff. Her cargo pants, equipped with utility pouches, completed the look.
The moment she stood, the room fell into complete silence. Some clearly stunned by their appearance, while others stunned by her fame?
I wasn't sure, nor did I have time to be sure because I was also stunned.
But it wasn't for the same reason as everyone.
"Looks like quite a few of you recognize her..."
The Section Chief introduced her.
"….This right here is the second rising star of our department, Zoey Terlin. If you need anything, don't hesitate to ask her or Kyle. They'll be around today to help with orientation."
"Yo."
Zoey spoke, waving casually as she rubbed the back of her neck. She looked somewhat tired.
The surroundings remained silent after her greeting.
I just stared, frozen. My mind was blank, and my thoughts empty. I didn't know how to react at all after seeing her.
After all...
I knew her.
Of course, I knew her.
How could I not?
She was one of the characters of one of the games I had previously created.