She Rules the Dungeon

It was the day of Five Lives Saga's launch. For the two who were most involved in the process of history-making, they were the least concerned. Grace, Michelle and even Dr Whitestone were busy working their butts off with the tidal waves of people demanding to know more about the unique dungeon. PJP's shares were rocketing without any signs of dropping or stopping. True to his word, Adrian did not release new shares after the buyback and many who sold theirs a few weeks before were regretting that decision. Many scientists who heard Dr Whitestone's story about the dungeon run he tested didn't let him go without a detailed recount. Michelle's phone never stopped ringing. Grace and her guildmates were busy helping adventurers new to Five Lives Saga get used to the new dungeon and the guild master have stopped taking in new recruits due to overwhelming response. The cacophony that seemed to be everywhere in town was proof of their success.

Somewhere in John Mcsmeldy's quaint cafe, the duo responsible for the chaos outside was munching on tuna melt sandwiches and sipping coffee. Otta and Richard were refreshed. The weight was finally off from their shoulders and it was good to simply kick back their legs and relax for a bit. It was Richard's idea to take a breather after they put the finishing touches to Five Lives Saga and Otta agreed. They'd spent the first two days purely catching up on the sleep and rest the needed. Today would be the first day they spent it outside, grabbing something good to eat.

"So what did you do?"

Otta looked up from her meal briefly before resuming as if she didn't hear Richard. Honestly, she knew he would ask but she didn't want to tell him what she did. There was no way Cameron alone would have been able to make this happen. Otta had added her personal touch to the proposed plan and things simply exploded after that.

"Promise not to judge?"

Richard nodded. He was extremely curious about the methods Otta used to turn the situation around despite having complete faith that she could do it. Although he was busy, he knew that Otta didn't leave her apartment. How did she do it?

Otta quickly finished the last bite of her sandwich and began retelling her story.

"It's a multi-level plan. Remember how we decided to register Five Lives Saga?"

Richard nodded. "Michelle's idea right?"

Otta smiled. It's true that her friend recommended registering the dungeon as a business to protect themselves against the government's control over dungeon creators. It also made some negotiations easier. However, it wasn't until much later that Otta understood how to fully utilise the business aspect of Five Lives Saga.

"Using that name, I was able to pull some strings in the front. Grace's guild and PJP were some of the new connections I made using Five Lives Saga after it was registered. Michelle was very good at making it known that we were going official. What do you think our competitors would think when they hear that we're becoming a business?"

"Try to take us down... wait, I get it. That was why PJP was under pressure and the share prices fell right?"

The red-head grinned and leaned in closer. "So what do you think will happen when PJP is under pressure?"

Richard raised a brow. The answer was obvious. In fact, Dr Whitestone came to deliver the bad news personally. The programmer left the other day to continue his work, trusting that Otta will be able to handle it. He didn't quite understand why the pressured director would suddenly place so much faith in Otta.

"What did you do to change his mind? Dr Whitestone was unable to do anything about it."

Otta chuckled. Now, this was the part where she modified Cameron's plan. "I consulted Cameron in anticipation of such a thing. He is good at what he does and gave me some advice. I took his advice and was inspired to spice things up a little."

Excited, Richard leaned in closer. "You bribed them, didn't you?"

Otta deadpanned. "We're broke, remember?"

The programmer scoffed. Bribing wasn't limited to money. Children can be bribed by sweets like how scientists could be bribed by information. "If you think money can buy over a scientist's heart, you're dead wrong. I'm talking about information. You struck a deal with them or something... Knowing the director, if Dr Whitestone is unable to convince him then it would be close to impossible to convince him otherwise. What kind of data did you sell him?"

Otta grinned and put up two fingers. "Money and experience. Information was simply a freebie. In return, I asked for him to sign a contract and pass us a list of their shareholders. I merely probed him into the right direction and advised him a little about what to do for PJP to recover its loses and hinted at increasing our budget for future projects."

Richard whistled lowly. There were many things that he could think about after listening to Otta's little insight. The lady knows how to play the game and he was glad she wasn't his opponent. "What were the terms?"

Otta blinked innocently, making Richard sit straight. He felt the chills whenever Otta pulled the innocent eyes on him. "What do you mean? It's simply standard business things between company and company partnership you know?"

"Standard? Is this something like what the government did? The indemnity thing against stupidity?"

Otta rolled her eyes. "Oh please, I'm not that shameless. Who needs indemnity when there are privacy and data protection clauses? If the government won't take responsibility for that, I'll take precaution against it. We may not be able to win them but we won't lose to them with such strong backing."

"We're not allowed to use any other software for dungeon creation except for Roomscape, remember? What kind of bulletproof clause did you include?"

"It's actually Cameron's idea," Otta admitted. "He helped to draft some of the terms but the idea is to not let PJP's shareholders know anything about our progress. If we were still a dungeon creator partnered to them, PJP is obliged to divulge information to shareholders who request it. However, as a business, they are no longer allowed to disclose any information pertaining to our partnership dealings to external parties."

Obsidian eyes brightened up. "I patched the loop in Roomscape and shifted everything over to a private system with PJP. Nothing can pass through the security I set up without my permission. I didn't even think about limiting the information channels on the inside... you're good."

Otta blushed. Richard hardly gave compliments but when he did, it made her feel gooey on the inside. "It's nothing. I just happened to be very familiar with haters. Besides, that's not the only good news. Adrian will be prototype testing for us in the developmental phase. He also agreed to lend us our very own lab rats."

"Not unexpected. The thing going on with Grace's guild is going well too. I heard because of this, she's been promoted to vice guild leader."

Otta beamed. She was happy for her friend. "Well, I'll say she deserves it. Black Penguins is a good partner. Thanks to them, I don't have to create an event to orientate new adventurers in the dungeon. Also, I heard that they've recruited a lot of our loyalists."

Richard shook his head. "I still find it hard to believe that the guild is called Black Penguin of all things. Chimaera Heart or Beast Soul would be a much better choice of name."

Otta giggled. Many people had similar reactions. Grace's guild was one of the most famous guilds for hardcore adventurer enthusiasts who believe in polishing their skills and minds in battle more than their strength. They host martial art tournaments often enough and Otta had been to a few to cheer for Grace. In terms of teamwork, Black Penguin can be considered the best guild. Black Penguins adventurers are able to work well in parties as they are familiar with each other's style of fighting. In fact, Grace ever mentioned that the guild master will coordinate the members for any party and the strategies or formations. It was definitely the right decision to ask Black Penguin to help test the raid dungeons.

"The name came from a good friend of the guild master. Apparently, the master is a gentleman who believes that wearing a suit to work is appropriate no matter the circumstances. In case you're wondering, the master is an assassin-ranger type of adventurer. He uses guns and only ever wears a black suit."

The programmer was amused. Otta was an interesting person but Grace's guild leader sounded like a fairly interesting person too. "I assume he's highly skilled to be able to fight wearing such stiff clothes. Perhaps we should invite him to test one of the high difficulty dungeons..."

"About that, he's already agreed. He wants to experience death in a dungeon."

"He's never died in a dungeon?"

Otta shook her head. "He's strong. I quote his words 'Nothing within a three feet radius is able to touch me' and according to Grace, it is true. He demonstrated it in the dojo during a spar. Nobody could touch him before they were defeated."

Richard nodded. "I guess we'll have a lot of fun deciding on how to kill him."

Otta let out a nervous laugh. "Don't say it so crudely... I don't want to be a murderer."

He shrugged and called for another cup of espresso. "We're deviating a little. I'm still curious about what you did. Don't think for a second that I've forgotten. How did you deal with the shareholders? I'm surprised they didn't cut our funds when we didn't release it by the third day. I still remember how Dr Whitestone looked like when I got to the door. It made my day."

Otta gave him a mysterious smile. "I had your assistant to make some special deliveries."

"The app?"

"No," Otta shook her head. "The one on your laptop."

Richard froze. "Wait, how did you get in? Did you hack my password?!"

The red-head rolled her eyes. For a computer wizard, Richard could be really predictable at times. "Seriously? It wasn't hard to guess. I got in on the second try. You were craving tuna melt sandwiches so hard and complaining about it for days that even if I didn't want to, I had to try it."

Richard blushed. It was true that he had a habit of changing his passwords frequently. He did it so often that it was hard to remember all the codes he used. Over the years, it became a pattern to enter whatever was most impressionable for the week. Otta was right about that and he couldn't be mad at her for simply understanding him so well.

"Alright, I'm not mad about it. Just... don't do it again without my knowledge. So what did you need Jenny for?"

Jenny was the digital assistant that Richard created. According to him, she was his only daughter. Otta once asked him what would happen if he married and had another daughter. The programmer rolled his eyes and told her that the day wouldn't come. Otta couldn't say anything about it because she looked at Richard who was holed up in her room and knew that it would be very difficult for him to find a girlfriend with his antisocial lifestyle.

"I needed Jenny to send a mail to a few VVIP shareholders in PJP. It took me a while to create the mail because, please don't be mad when I say this, Jenny doesn't explain well. I didn't understand all the foreign languages she was speaking and spent more time searching up a dictionary than writing the mail!"

"One, it's not a foreign language. Two, it's only natural that she uses jargon, she wasn't meant to be used by people who couldn't code. Three, Jenny's job is to facilitate and not teach so she's doing the right thing. Programs are written by humans to help them carry out their tasks easier, not to think on their behalf."

Otta inhaled deeply. She didn't want to get into another heated debate with Richard right now. Jenny was a frustrating dumb program but for now, she'll keep that to herself.

"Right, I'm going to put this aside now. Back to what I was saying, I drafted a few mails using Adrian's address to send it. Of course, Adrian doesn't know that he sent the mail because it doesn't reflect in his outbox. I simply copied the front part of his mail address to make it more convincing with a very important title that will guarantee their clicks. Once the mail is opened, they will be unable to click anything else and a video will play. Once the video ends, the mail automatically disintegrates or removes itself from the system according to Jenny. I must say that the video was really well done because those VVIPs who received the mail immediately helped with buying back the shares. I'm sure they're laughing at the windfall right now."

Richard laughed. That was such an original idea and his only regret was how he wasn't there to see Otta draft the mail.

"They must be really shocked to see a preview of Five Lives Saga before its official statement... well done, partner!"

Otta grinned and returned the hi-five. It wasn't hacking but it bordered close. If their competitors could employ dirty means to take them down, who was to say Otta couldn't do the same? Five Lives Saga wouldn't be taken down that easily. As long as Richard was in it with her, things would work out.

"So what's next? We've finally made it out of the woods."

Otta blinked. "Out of the woods? I think you meant to say we've finally caught the wind in our sails. There's no stopping now. Since things are rolling, we better not pause while we're still in the lead. I want to go straight to the top and out of this world! Who needs Roomscape to dictate what a dungeon should look like?"

"Oh? Interesting statement there. What do you have in mind?"

Otta looked around before lowering her voice. "Ever heard of mods and add-on?"