SWNOVELXO Chapter 189
[That’s right. It was the Unique Magic that I provided to Wearsoft as an outsourced project. I remember it had the fantastic and fascinating name of ‘Astheral’s Ring.’ But why are you showing this to me…?]
[Professor Volkov, please look closely. This person is not an NPC; they’re a Player. You didn’t seriously hand over a 5-circle Unique Magic with a GPL (open-source license), did you?]
[That’s not it, but… so you’re saying Wearsoft leaked my Unique Magic to this person?]
[Whether there was some sort of deal with the company or if it was an independent castojacking, we still don’t know. However, what is certain is that we need to hold someone accountable. Would you please sign here? We’ll take care of the problem.]
—
Unique Magic of a circle higher than the middle circle was practically equivalent to a wizard’s identity.
The more complex the spell, the more the circuit arrangement and runes in the Magic Circle reflected the user’s habits.
Especially someone like a former military mage was a valuable strategic asset of a nation, and in modern times, where wars frequently broke out, it became a well-known fact that revealing Unique Magic wouldn’t do anyone any good.
—
The ASI company ‘Ophelia’ is headquartered in England.
Having had their contract unilaterally terminated by Wearsoft, their flagship product could potentially end up in the hands of an individual, exposing their technology.
If it escalated to a corporate dispute, it would surely take ten years for a Supreme Court decision. It was clear that they would be bankrupt before that.
Thus, the Ophelia legal team changed their target to NoName and decided to retrieve ‘Adella’ by any means necessary.
After continuously reviewing her gameplay videos, they found circumstances that suggested she had stolen and used someone else’s Unique Magic.
They immediately handed the case over to a law firm in the Republic of Korea, and everything progressed swiftly, from preparing a lawsuit to the filing itself.
—
‘How long do we have to wait?’ The executives lost their patience, while after work, all I saw was my family sound asleep in the following days.
‘How dare they openly disregard our company? Well, the results will tell whether they’re the rubbish or we are.’
Bring it on, whether it’s Wearsoft or NoName. The Ophelia legal team, fully prepared, laughed confidently.
Then suddenly, a call came in from the Korean law firm demanding ten times the retainer fee already paid.
“What do you mean? Asking for ten times now?!”
“Basically, since criminal charges are not applicable here, we need to hold the guardian of the minor responsible for civil damages. This is entirely different from what you initially mentioned.”
“Why is criminal prosecution impossible? Our technology has clearly been leaked!”
The reason they presented was absurdly simple.
[Article 9 of the Criminal Act of the Republic of Korea (Minor Offenders): The acts of a person who has not reached the age of 12 shall not be punished.]
That nonsensical tenfold amount felt like an implicit pressure to cancel it immediately.
“Didn’t you see the news yesterday…? We don’t take cases with high possibility of loss, even if it’s for simple publicity. If you don’t decide by today, we’ll return the full amount of the retainer to your account.”
Because saying that a 7-year-old performed castojacking, or that Cheon Byeong-ho the mage facilitated or coerced criminal activity didn’t make any sense at all, they added.
In line with the performance-oriented nature of Korean law firms, they already saw the chances of winning this case as zero.
“What do you mean seven years old? Who is seven years old?”
The legal team just stared in confusion, unable to comprehend the situation.
Then, through the phone line, a bustling noise was heard, followed by a change of voice.
From a bumbling young man to a seasoned woman’s deep voice.
“Hey, put me on the phone right now. You really want to treat this poor seven-year-old like this? Whether you raise the retainer fee ten or a hundred times, our law firm will not take this case. I hope you never contact us again! So shameless, what do you expect from a filth-laden country?”
Ding!
The call was abruptly cut off.
‘Poor? Who’s poor? NoName? Why?’
My gaze shifted to the news screen.
A fresh news update from just yesterday.
That day, the world of the Ophelia legal team crumbled.
—
Certainly, the introduction of the video Na-me showed was ordinary.
– Oh, so cute haha
– The weather looks really hot
– I love crepes too!!!
└ Wow, I found a common point between NoName and me!
– Thanks for the kindness, I’m impressed!
– NoName… The genius with brains, skills, and character… But I, Hahm Pil-kyu, a descendant of the 32nd generation of the Gangneung clan, lack all that.
└ Hahaha, who are you, Pil-kyu? LOL
└ 14 years old, and yet getting yourself crushed LOL
– I’m serious, but I want to engage my son with NoName!
└ How old is your son?
└ 14 months
└ 14 months isn’t even 14 years old! Have you lost your conscience? Hahaha!
But as the video progressed, they were left with no choice but to express their shockingly close admiration.
[Wishing there will be no more heartbreaking victims across the globe, I send my heartfelt condolences from afar.]
[Even amidst uncertainty and hardship, it’s admirable to see you moving forward toward a better future.]
[I hope the days to come will bring more happiness than the time that has passed. For me and for all of you.]
It was hard to believe that such emotionally stirring words came out of a fourteen-year-old’s mouth without hearing them firsthand.
Even those who hadn’t previously grasped Na-me’s brilliance could instantly understand.
This kid is different.
So, thinking that way, their discomfort with the young voice faded away.
Focusing on the profound and thoughtful message contained within, it felt like all else became trivial, no matter how the voice sounded.
– Finally home!
– Is she going to reveal her face?
– Please be a pretty girl! Please be a pretty girl!
– Please be an ultra pretty girl! I’d sacrifice all my life’s luck for this!!!
– D-cup! D-cup! D-cup! D-cup! D-cup!
– Nung-Na-me wishes! Nung-Na-me wishes!
But a few of the audience felt a sense of strangeness or discomfort since the moment they saw Na-me’s room.
– Huh?
– ???
– Woah, it’s NoName’s room!
– Where have I seen this before?
– This is V-tube! That math one!
– ?
– Isn’t this the background from when I solved that problem?
– Wait a minute, why is this here…?
– That’s virtual reality, right? Isn’t this the real world?
—
The vlog began with cars, trucks, and buses zooming by.
In the heart of Seoul, the typical green signs.
Leaves rustling down with the wind.
No matter how sophisticated the virtual reality was, it couldn’t compare to the real world.
The scenery that continued in the video had moved to NoName’s room.
Then, as if casually, a black-haired girl appeared, her hair fluttering.
The audience in the stadium froze in silence.
Why?
Why is an avatar that should be in virtual reality existing in reality?
It wasn’t a hologram or synthesis.
Her every gesture was so realistic that there was no room for another explanation.
Traffic jams began in the synapses of the audience’s brains. It was like hearing horns honking from everywhere.
And the one thing that cleared it all away was Na-me’s next line.
“Hello. I’m Na-me from the 2nd Grade Elementary Division of Sephiron Academy. Nice to meet you.”
Na-me greeted excitedly from the video.
A brief silence.
Did she anticipate the audience’s reaction?
If Na-me’s statement was a bomb, then the viewers’ chat room was the debris left after the explosion.
– What is going on? What is going on? What is going on?
– Who are you!!!
– What is this…? Why is the same person in reality…?
– Is this a dream?
– 8 years old? Why 8 years old?
– Is this live right now?
– The caster even looks confused, so it doesn’t seem like a prank…
– Don’t mess with me, it’s obviously synthesis… wait…?
– ??????????
– Sephiron Academy, that’s in Gangnam District.
– Not 14 but… 8 years old…?
– D-cup NoName O.O?
– This means there was a younger sibling, right? It must be true! It has to be… wait?
– Haha, NoName, you’re going too far with the pranks!
—
The emotional changes were instantaneous.
The viewers, desperate to deny it, gradually became engulfed in confusion. Amidst this, voices demanding the truth from Na-me began to emerge.
– Wait… is this real…?
– Something feels off, something feels off, something feels off…
– What am I even looking at?
– Please tell me it’s a prank; this doesn’t make sense!
– Is that really NoName?
– But she’s so small, she’s talking about elementary school, right?
– She’s younger than my youngest sibling!
– Even younger than my son?
└ ddddddd
– Is the video still not over? Tell Na-me to answer quickly!
– What’s the caster doing, just standing there!
—
Na-me’s voice once again filled the stadium, quelling the controversy.
“Haha… How can I wait until tomorrow? Even now, a day feels like three years. Anyway, I want to share the story of my life, but it’s not a grand and long tale, so please lend me your ears for just a moment. I earnestly ask you for this. And once my story concludes, I hope you’ll grant my small wish when I win the final match tomorrow.”
Even as Na-me’s video continued to be broadcast on the main screen, the side displays showed the child’s face standing quietly in the center of the stadium.
The microphone held tightly in her hands hung down below her waist.
The expression Na-me wore wasn’t one of joy, sadness, or even neutrality.
Her eyebrows were furrowed, and her tightly closed lips conveyed a sense of loneliness and calamity.
“My mother, No Seol-ah, was kidnapped by the terrorist organization Valpurgis seven years ago and gave birth to me. Shortly thereafter, the two of us became entangled in an operation to eliminate Valpurgis. You might find this a bit absurd. You’re probably wondering what I’m talking about right now, right?”
There was no response to Na-me’s words.
Not a single sound could be heard.
“In short… I’m making this video to reveal that I am a survivor of the Valpurgis incident.”
In the vast stadium where even the tiniest sound felt forbidden,
The audience held their breath, shrouded in silence.
“My mother passed away six years ago,”
Recalling the time spent locked in different capsules, each towering 10 cm apart, in a strange coexistence with a corpse,
“I have been trapped in a capsule since I was born for seven years.”
It took a significant amount of courage to reveal that.
Na-me’s hands that were clasped together began to tremble slightly.
When she closed her eyes to recall, the image that must have filled her vision was likely the nightmare-like scenery.