Notoriety, page 21
“I can see that you haven’t been ignoring your training, though I would have preferred it if you didn’t hold back so much.”
“I only held back slightly. My eyes and mind can move quicker than is safe for my body. While you are right that I could have easily overwhelmed you, I would have risked injury to do so.”
“Oh, is that due to you being out of balance in your life from playing that game?” asked Sensei Kikuchi with a contented smile.
“In part, though it is that game that allows me to have my mind and eyes able to react with such speed. As for my body being able to catch up, I have no intent to pursue that as if I do ever truly need to use it I expect it will be worth the injury, though I have no intent to need that level of skill.”
“Such a pity. You could be such a great martial artist if you were to apply yourself.”
“We have had this conversation before, Sensei. I am perfectly fine being able to handle the average opponent. That said, I have a few cards to play if I ever do need to fight for my life here in reality, but let’s be honest. In most situations our fists will lose to a gun.”
“Fair, though you know firsthand that they can beat a gun is some circumstances.”
“True, but that requires the gun to be held by an idiot most of the time.”
Alex just smiled as Sensei Kikuchi gave him a nod. It was time for him to get back to manning his booth, as Ava and Mia had started their own exhibition matches against two of Sensei Kikuchi’s pupils. While most had not taken an interest in the match as they had come to watch Alex, that quickly changed as the pair worked together to dominate the other pair. Alex just laughed after their 15-minute time slot was over and they smiled before bowing to the two guys, who looked slightly embarrassed at how easily they had lost as they bowed back. The chatter in the crowd seemed split between the two guys holding back and the twins just being that good, as they each took one of Alex’s arms as the crowd gave them room to move to their next appearance.
After demoing aikido, they did the same for kendo and swing dance, with Alex making Sensei Sano struggle mightily to keep up with him in sparring and Ava and Mia taking on four pupils and winning. With the repeat performance of the twins dominating others, more landed in the camp of that they weren’t to be messed with as Sensei Sano looked at them like he was seeing a pair of monsters. Alex just had to smile as while the twins had participated in the lessons since the beginning, it had always been separately before moving to Colorado, so Sensei Sano had never seen them work together. Needless to say, just like in ED the pair were beyond deadly when they worked together and were worth at least three equally skilled fighters. When they reached the swing dance floor that had been set up, Alex enjoyed dancing for a straight half hour as Ava and Mia switched out mid dance seamlessly several times. This led to an interesting display for others to watch as even Mr. Fredholm was surprised, as it was not something that was typically seen outside highly choreographed events. Yet Ava and Mia made it look easy as they smiled for the whole crowd before they finished dancing.
After a short chat with Mr. Fredholm, Alex and the twins headed off to the meeting that was scheduled just before the second half of the day’s program started. When they arrived in the room that had been set up for them to use, Alex smiled as he saw Kate absorbed in her work as her bodyguards stood at the ready. As Alex went to give her a quick kiss on the cheek while hoping to catch her by surprise, Tara and Harrison came in and launched right into talking just as Alex was leaning down to give her the kiss. This led to her raising and turning her head right into Alex’s lips as he ended up giving her a kiss on the chin, causing her to react in a startled manner for a second before recovering and stealing a kiss from his lips in return.
“If you two are done acting cute, we have a meeting to get done,” commented Tara. “It’s bad enough that I regularly need to pull 16-hour days in ED, but I think today might take the cake.”
“Oh, why is that?” asked Ava.
“Yeah, so far today hasn’t seemed so bad,” added Mia.
“You two are off wandering around with Alex, while Harrison and I are dealing with all the questions that people want to ask Alex. Add to that all the teenagers acting like they are the greatest thing ever, who are just sorry excuses for human beings that are trying to convince us that we should let them join FAE, not even realizing what that entails. Honestly, the only saving grace is that there are a few great teenagers who might be perfect for the summer intern program that Alex wants to do.”
“Did you get their contact information?” asked Alex.
“Do I look like I am dumb? Of course I did, though I had to take down a bunch of the idiots’ info to get them to leave.”
“Did you put them on a separate list?” asked Kate with a smile.
“No, I just marked the ones that I think are promising.”
“You’ll need to split the list before we start sending info out next week on the internships,” commented Kate. “Though that can wait. First we need to make sure that Alex is up to date on all the ongoing developments before he goes on stage, as he will go right into the press conference after his speech.”
“Anything that you think could trip me up?” asked Alex.
“No, though you should expect a question about who Ava and Mia are.”
“Right, I keep forgetting that most of what we do is hidden to most people.”
Kate held in a laugh as she replied to Alex.
“Really, before yesterday most people who were paying attention to you thought you were only involved with Sam and Nicole in reality. Now, however, well let’s just say that Tara needs to be worried about being asked if she is one of your ladies, though most are focused on me and the twins…”
The following hour was spent with them going over all the incidents that had occurred at the event and away from the event. This included a few times when security had to remove a few attendees for not listening to orders and breaking rules. Luckily, none of the VR pods had been damaged during one of them when a teenager refused to leave it after his turn was up. That said, there were many asking for the testing of the pods to continue for an extra day. This was due to only around 20% of the roughly 10,000 who had shown up being given an opportunity to use them. Alex had Harrison contact a few of FAE’s personnel to explore this as he couldn’t blame them, as the event had drawn double what he had expected. Then there was the fact that they were short on food for the expected dinner rush, due to the fact that they had only planned for one and a half times their expected crowd. Luckily, all this had required was a quick catering order to several dozen local restaurants when they realized the food stands would run out and dinner at the event had been handled. With all that taken care of, Alex smiled as he once more took the stage at 4:00 PM, as most of the stands shut down for an hour to allow them a chance to eat and reset for the evening.
Walking out to some music that they had paid for, Alex once more took in the crowd that was far more packed this time. Though the front was filled with a few dozen reporters and a few actual news crews, who were likely recording the whole event and would edit it on the fly for the story that evening. Past them was at least 3,000 teens and parents who looked largely like they were still trying to figure out just what to make of the event. As Alex took all of this in, he smiled at how ridiculous he would have found it had he been on the other side in his last life and attending this event. Still, he had a role to play and that was what he needed to do for the rest of the day as he started his presentation.
“Now I am sure all of you are wondering why half of the stands seem to be shutting down right now. Let me assure you that it is just so they can get some food and get ready to last until the end of the day and that by the time I am done bloviating they will all be open for your enjoyment again. On that note, we will be allowing reservations for those of you who want to test out the VR pods tomorrow. These will be only taken at the end of the night and you will be able to secure a single slot according to your position in line. That means if you are at the back of the line and 8 AM is all that is left, you can either take it or leave it, but I expect slots to fill up from what I am hearing. Unfortunately, we can’t extend openings beyond that due to the logistics involved in doing so.
“With that said, I hope you all have been making the most of this time. I know that several of you have been stopping by the various booths and getting some great information. That said, yes, the two senseis I sparred with today were ones I was fortunate enough to learn from for a few months last year, but that doesn’t mean that they are the best options here. What you should be looking for is a style that fits what you are after and will allow you to grow…”
Alex continued for around 20 minutes, highlighting different dojos that taught different styles as pictures that had been provided by each were shared behind him. This was followed by him talking about dance studios for another 10 minutes and by the end of it, he could tell that a fair bit of the audience’s attention had been lost as he shifted gears.
“Alright, I know most of you didn’t come out here to listen to me advertise one dojo, or dance studio, after another. Now you all came out to hear about Eternal Dominion and understand how it is that you can at the very least earn a bit of side income from playing it. As I am sure that most of you know, selling gold is the easiest way, but it is also short sighted as you need to invest in your character if you want to grow. Next one that everyone hears is pick up a crafting skill and make items to sell. This one is a great way to go, if you can get to the point where you can turn a profit, that is. Until then, enjoy turning ten gold into six. So, how do you make money playing ED if you aren’t able to sell your gold and you can’t craft decent items?
“It is simple, you harvest all the materials that you come across while playing and deal directly with a guild like mine. Now, you need to make sure that we aren’t taking advantage of you because if we can save a copper per item we will, because over tens of thousands of items it adds up. If a guild isn’t willing to pay at least one percent more than what an NPC would pay you, then there better be some other deal that makes it worth your time. Whether that be limited access to their guild shops, help with quests or whatever it is that you value, make sure that you get it in writing and never agree to only sell to them. All that does is set them up to exploit any loopholes that they hid in the contract to take advantage of you…”
Alex smiled as he got into talking about the things he cared about for the remainder of the hour that he had to fill. Once he was done talking about how to avoid the predatory deals that so many major guilds trapped new players into, he shifted to techniques to discover what kind of class was right for each of them. During this, he highlighted how important it was for players to be a fit with their class by talking about how often FAE players who were day one players restarted. Once he was done with this, he shifted one last time as he brought his presentation to a close.
“Thank you all for coming out. I hope you all will enjoy the food that has been brought in for dinner. To those of you who want to stick around, I will be taking some questions from the wonderful media, who I am sure will be writing stories on how to avoid being taken advantage of while playing Eternal Dominion after this. So, for the rest of you who haven’t done so yet, stop by the FAE area and talk with Tara about signing up to receive information on our training and recruitment opportunities. Though you must be 18 or under to qualify for these opportunities. Sorry, moms and dads, but this one is just aimed at your kids.”
Alex didn’t have to wait for long before the reporters started to clamber to ask their questions, as Kate walked out and selected one of the two reporters who had a whole news crew with her.
“Alex, what do you have to say about the protest that has been going on outside this event, to include the several arrests of protesters that have been made on charges not related to today’s protests?”
“Simple. Everyone has a right to protest and make their opinions heard, but if you have something that has caused law enforcement to be looking for you, you might want to stay out of the spotlight.”
Alex smiled as Kate had already taken the mic and was handing it to an extravagantly dressed teenage girl who was obviously streaming.
“Oh wow, um like, what’s it like living in a mansion, with butlers and maids and stuff?”
“First, my staff is excellent and are respected parts of my life who play a vital role in ensuring that my time is used efficiently. As for living in a mansion, that depends on if you mean in game, or out of game, as it is slightly different. Out of game it is like having a permanent sleepover as I live there with a bunch of my best friends and a few of our parents. If you want what it is like in Eternal Dominion, well then, I enjoy the perks of royalty there so all I will say is that, outside my sleeping quarters, it can get a bit stuffy with all the staff and expectations, but it is still awesome.”
The now mic-less teen waved and Alex caught a thank you from her as Kate handed the mic to another professional-looking reporter.
“It has come to light that you are in a relationship with multiple women, two of which are pregnant. Are you in any way concerned about how this affects your public image?”
“Not in the slightest. Do I expect everyone to like it? Absolutely not, but I am running a private business, not running for an elected office. To be clear, yes, Ava and Mia who would be the lovely redheaded twins who have been with me all day and Kate, who is the lovely lady handing out the mic, are all involved with me. No, none of them are pregnant and no, I am not hiding the other two. Sam and Nicole are just too far along to travel safely. That said, if anyone out there has any designs on being lady number six, just stop now. I am not interested as my life is full enough as it is.”
Alex could see several reporters quickly taking notes and likely changing their questions as Kate handed the mic to another streamer, who asked an innocuous question that was simple to answer. After that it went to another reporter that was clearly part of a larger organization, who asked a question related to the failed land purchases in Colorado. This pattern continued for a while until Kate finally went to the other reporter with a full news crew on hand, as the middle-aged man smiled before asking his question.
“Alex, I must say you keep very busy and yet you still find the time to put on an event like this. Tell me, what was your goal today?”
“Thank you for asking as I think that there has been a bit of confusion on just why I am hosting this event. First off, no, I don’t expect FAE or myself to receive any benefit directly from it beyond the exposure. I would be surprised if any in attendance joined FAE down the road, beyond participating in one of our internship programs for a summer. Simply put, I am hosting this because I can. I believe that if it saves a single person from taking the first deal that they are offered and finding that they are stuck in a guild that they don’t like and is taking advantage of them, it was worth it.
“It’s why I invited smaller workshops out here as they are where everyone should start as they don’t have enough resources to trap you. Sure a major workshop might pay you enough to survive and will be responsible for part of what your earning potential is. However, more times than not, they simply bring you in and stick you with a group of players around your same skill level and provide a minimum investment while demanding maximum return. Even FAE has contracts that are like this, though I try to still ensure that we reward outstanding performance and provide more resources to the members in that situation. Still, it is a deal that is meant for players that are looking for that stability, not the youth here today that have their whole lives in front of them.”
Alex smiled as Kate called an end to the press conference as Alex rejoined Ava and Mia, and they slipped away with Kate and one of her bodyguards to enjoy the rest of the night. They went to meet up with Mr. Carter, Mr. Bell, Anna, Lauren and Jessica, who were all waiting for them at the Carters’ as the Carters had yet to sell their house. When they arrived, the five of them made their way inside to find the other five were watching the news coverage of the event as Alex spoke, drawing their attention.
“So, did anything interesting happen?”
“Ha, about time you came by and said hi,” retorted Anna. “As for anything interesting, not really, unless you included the war between painting you in a positive light or a negative one that has been on the news all day.”
“Yeah, they even dragged me into it,” added Jessica. “It’s rather irritating, especially as I have been outed as a millionaire. I suppose that means I should go with the moderate risk investment strategy that will let me live comfortably that has been offered to me. After all, I can already see what my last few weeks at school are going to be like once everyone realizes that I got such a massive settlement.”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to ruin your last three weeks of high school,” responded Alex.
“What are you talking about?” interjected Ava.
“Yeah, Jessica should embrace it,” added Mia.
“Just think about all the people who ignored you.”
“And how it’s your turn to ignore them.”
“Though you should do something nice for those who were nice to you.”
“After all, you don’t want them to think that you think you’re better than them.”
“You two are impossible,” interjected Kate. “Just tell them that the credits haven’t cleared yet and send Alex a list of all those who you want to do something nice for.”
“Ha, that’s easy. Anna and Lauren are the only ones that I am more than just casual friends with,” responded Jessica. “I mean there are several others who I talk to once in a while, but I’ve never hung out with them out of school.”
