Purity Online - The World For The Fallens
Day 63: Otomura Yamato (Part 4)
"What do you mean, anyway?" Yuukaru looked very confused.
"Wait!!" Yuukaru suddenly realized something. Both of his eyes were wide. "So he said, I will be in this virtual world for 9 hours in the real world and 63 hours in this virtual-reality world?! Means I'll sleep inside the capsule for nine hours?!"
"A-Are they going to do something to the capsule to punish me?! Detonate it?! Using dangerous electrical waves to shock my brain and finish me off?!" Cold sweat started flooding all over Yuukaru's body. Various speculations that seemed a bit excessive appeared in his mind.
"Tu-Wait, this is just an exaggerated worry. You're just involved in a persecution case, Yuukaru!! Not murder. Impossible to be put to death. Justice is rubbish, but the law is not so ridiculous." Yuukaru tried to calm his mind. Dielus-elus his chest. "Calm down, Yuukaru ..., calm down .... It's just an unwarranted worry."
"But, what am I sent to this virtual world for? They're not planning a weird scenario, are they?!" Yuukaru's face paled again. "Don't they want to torture me online?! Simulating virtual death over and over again to me using AI in the form of a herd of bandits, meteor apocalypse, natural disasters, and so on?! Or give me a virtual banishment?!"
"If I die here, will I die in the real world, huh? It can be bad if I die here then I will also die in the real world. W-Wait, impossible if that happens. But what if it's true? What if they were going to punish me for death? God fucking. I still want to live."
"Dam. Where is the building in the jungle like this. I don't have the ability to hunt, anyway. My run isn't fast either," Yuukaru complained as he circulated his gaze throughout the forest. "I hope I don't starve to death before the test period ends."
Yuukaru stared at the fruits hanging on the branches of the trees. The fruits are very tempting. He was eager to eat it, but he was afraid that the tantalizing fruits might actually be poisonous. He had no knowledge of this virtual forest. If this was really a death game, he might as well die in the real world when the avatar of him died in this world from poisoning.
"Ah, yes. Maybe there is a virtual village. Maybe I can find some food there." Yuukaru rose from a sitting position towards a standing position. His clothes were soiled by dry leaves and grass. The girl then started to step in any direction, relying only on intuition. The bushes that blocked his path.
"I hope I don't even go deeper and get lost in this virtual forest. I don't want to starve to death."
—————————————————————————————
The sound of insects overwhelms the atmosphere. Sometimes there are also owls. Darkness began to fill the lush forest. The dark blue sky was stretched out in space. The sun had set, but Yuukaru had yet to find a way out of this dense forest. He had also not eaten since last afternoon, drinking only the fresh water in the river and the springs that he occasionally found. All the trees, shrubs, and rocks here look the same. It seems he was just going around in circles. Occasionally, there were also wolf howls that made the feathers stand up. Bats also sometimes cross over the head. It was like being in a horror movie. However, the fear was overcome because the colorful stars and the half moon hanging in the sky were able to calm his heart.
"Dam. Let me not get lost," Yuukaru said as he brushed aside the drop that blocked his path for the umpteenth time. "That's right!! I don't want to starve to death."
Suddenly, Yuukaru's gaze caught a cluster of smoke soaring into the sky. Approached by a glimmer of hope, the girl ran as fast as she could towards the smoke. The bushes that blocked his path quickly. He was getting closer to the source of the smoke. Yuukaru accelerated his run. A ray of orange light in the distance. A fire! Yeah, it's a campfire! There are humans!!
The little hope in Yuukaru's heart began to grow and rule over his heart. He's getting closer to the campfire. The last bush that blocked him with the bonfire. A short-haired, golden-haired young man was sitting by a fire pit covered in firewood while burning a large piece of raw meat. Beside him lay a sharp stone covered in blood and some pieces of meat that had matured. There were also some large pieces of meat that were still raw.
"Ah, are you also an alpha test participant?" ask Yuukaru.
"Yes" said the young man with a flat face.
"Ah, then thank goodness!!" Yuukaru smiled kindly. "I'm Yuukaru. That you?"
The young man lifted the cooked piece of meat from above the campfire, then placed it beside him. "Otomura Yamato," he said without looking at Yuukaru's face.
To be continued