Arcade Headquarters – Asian DivisionSeoul, South KoreaDepartment of Programming and Support
The corridors of Arcade's headquarters were silent, dimly lit by the soft glow of developer monitors.The rhythmic tapping of keyboards filled the air, interrupted only by the occasional hum of coffee machines dispensing yet another dose of caffeine.
Walking with a confident stride down the main hallway, Glenn, the programming team supervisor, held a tablet loaded with crucial information. A slight smile of satisfaction curled on his lips as he made his way toward the office of the Head of the Support Department—Long Yu.
He knocked gently before entering.
—"As ordered, sir," —Glenn said, straightening his posture—"I've programmed and inserted unique, undetectable packages into the game's system. With the countdown you requested, they'll vanish exactly two minutes after global launch."
Long Yu, a man with sharp eyes and perfectly slicked-back hair, nodded with satisfaction as he reviewed the data on his screen. His fingers tapped rhythmically against his dark wood desk.
—"Good work, Glenn." —He leaned forward slightly, his expression ambitious—"Once I contact the right people, we're going to make a lot of money... and you'll get your promotion."
Glenn smirked to the side, enjoying the idea.
—"The monitoring team will keep watch over the packages until you're ready to reach out, sir."
Long Yu narrowed his eyes.
—"Do you trust them?"
Glenn gave a slight nod, full of confidence.
—"Don't worry, Mr. Long. They're my team. They won't say a word."
Long Yu held his gaze for a few seconds before nodding slowly.
—"I'll trust your word. You may go."
—"Yes, sir."
Glenn turned and left the office with a victorious air, while his superior smiled with satisfaction.
Monitoring Sector – Security Department
The atmosphere in the monitoring center was tense but routine.Several giant screens projected real-time data on the game's condition, system activity, and player interactions within the virtual economy.
At one of the terminals, a young man with thick glasses and heavy eye bags—Carl—was lazily scanning logs when suddenly—A red flash pulsed across his screen.
His heart nearly stopped.
—"WHAT THE—!!"His hands flew across the keyboard, fingers racing to verify what had just happened.
The alarm in his voice made two nearby programmers—Elvis and Alison—snap their heads toward him.
—"What the hell is going on, Carl?" —Elvis asked, frowning.
Carl swallowed hard and pointed at the screen.
—"The stat packs... someone just bought them!"
There was a second of stunned silence—Then panic erupted.
—"WHAT?!" —Elvis shouted, practically jumping to his feet.
The atmosphere cracked with tension. Alison began typing like mad, rushing to trace the origin of the transaction.
—"Who the hell did that?! Was it Erling?!" —Carl asked, voice thick with urgency.
—"NO—" Elvis said immediately. "Carl, Erling's been locked in the Britain Kingdom server all week... he never leaves."
A cold chill ran down Carl's spine.
—"If Long Yu finds out about this..."He ran a hand over his face, panic rising.—"He's gonna flip out..."
Alison's fingers moved faster, and her eyes widened at the trace results.
—"It looks like... the packs were purchased by a random program... a simple Mob?"
Elvis narrowed his eyes and leaned over Alison's screen, stunned.
—"That's impossible. Totally impossible!"
Carl leaned closer too, analyzing the transaction code. His fingers curled tightly on the desk's edge.
—"But look... that's what it says."
Elvis ran a hand through his hair in frustration.
—"Where the hell would a Mob get that kind of money?!"
Alison shook her head, still staring at the data.
—"I don't know... but what we do know is—it bought all the packs."
Carl felt another chill crawl down his spine. He leaned back in his chair, arms crossed.
—"If that program was smart enough to buy them...Then it's not impossible."
Elvis frowned deeply.
—"What do you mean, Carl?"
Carl swallowed again, voice dropping to a whisper, as if afraid the walls might overhear.
—"I think that program... somehow... became an advanced AI."
Elvis and Alison exchanged looks of pure disbelief.
—"That's impossible, Carl," —Alison said, trying to stay calm—"The system's code doesn't allow unregistered AIs to exist..."
Carl pointed at the screen.
—"Then explain this."
A bead of sweat ran down Elvis' neck.
—"If it allocates all those stat points to itself...No one in the entire game will be able to beat it."
Alison's face turned pale.
—"You're right... it'd be a threat to players and to the game's main characters."
Elvis took a deep breath and gripped the mouse tightly.
—"Alright... if this is a bug, then initiate the reset protocol on that Mob. Now."
Carl nodded quickly.
—"We have to do it. Glenn will skin us alive if we don't."
Alison started prepping the commands for reset. But just before hitting the final key—She paused...And smirked.
—"Let's see if that program is really smart enough to avoid a reset."
Elvis leaned forward, eyes sharp.
—"Do it."
—"Yes, sir!" —they answered in unison.
Alison's fingers hit the final key.
The reset protocol was engaged...
But the real question was:
Would it work?