"Let me get this straight." Atlas chuckled.
"You're going to show up from the dead, prove that you're strong enough to kill the haters, and then say [yo, deal with it]."
"That's what I should do." Helix laughed.
"Hell yeah, you should." Charlotte grinned.
Marie and Riley gave her a wry smile.
"But no. We have three full wagons full of Earthian clothes I designed, and I collected and researched other Earthian items." Helix explained.
"So you're going to buy their love?" Atlas laughed.
"Not exactly. I own one-tenth of the clothing business and will squeeze the otakus dry for the products." Helix chuckled.
Atlas' eyes widened, and he gave Helix a bewildered grin.
"Wait, you're going to bleed them dry and then tell them you did them a favor?" He laughed.
"Forget Kylon, [you] sound like Yakuza."
The group burst into laughter.
"It's true, but it's not the full picture.
See, I'm not buying their love.
I'm winning their heart with the items I have." Helix chuckled.
"Hoh? You think you can win hearts with yoga pants and regular clothes?" Atlas asked with an amused smile.
"Nope. Better." Helix claimed with a slight smile.
Atlas raised an eyebrow.
"Cat~ears." Charlotte sang.
"Wait. You have cat ears!?
Why didn't you just start with that?
You'll be insta-forgiven!" Atlas exclaimed.
The group burst into laughter again.
"That's right. That's not all, either." Helix continued.
"It's part of a larger strategy to gain loyalty, support, and shape the legal structure for Knights in Alzeria."
—
"These hot tub circles are not for sale!" Helix proclaimed aggressively.
Confusion spread through the groups, who were experiencing an emotional rollercoaster.
"The twenty-three wonderful people who helped me during my hardest trials will get a hot tub.
They are the only reason I'm here, and you have an opportunity to get otaku delights." He chuckled.
He turned to the people that sent him the Circle of Remembrances and met their gaze.
"While it was deceptive, I want to thank the people that sent me circles and indicated their desire for me to listen.
You helped me through the darkest time of my life.
I hope that a hot tub and a clothing item of your choice are enough to thank you." Helix explained with a warm smile and a slight bow.
Cheers passed through the super-otakus that sent him circles.
Tears welled in their eyes, and many started smiling and hugging.
Disappointed whispers spread everywhere else, but Helix cut them off.
"They get items by default because they're [my friends], but that doesn't mean you can't get a hot tub." Helix clarified with a slight smile.
The weebs and fifteen otakus looked at each other with renewed excitement.
"You can earn one as a reward for helping out!" Helix announced.
Once the Knights processed what he said, cheers erupted again.
"There are no limits to the number of hot tubs I'm willing to hand out.
However, do not expect one as a participation prize." He warned.
The audience listened to his every word.
He felt like a cult leader but had no choice.
"Sometimes, we will give hot tubs out as explicit rewards.
Other times, we will give them out to people that are good to others.
I'll ensure that there are criteria for receiving them that don't require social skills.
We're all socially awkward people, so…." He said, trailing off.
"That would be dumb."
Helix chuckled, and the groups burst into laughter and thunderous applause.
He was satisfied that he was riling them up like the troops.
Things were going much smoother than expected.
He touched his neck, put in the old items, and pulled out a deck of cards.
"There are no video games in Myriad, but there is a card game I found where you collect cards and battle with them.
It's called Roshak and it's from Kozen." Helix announced.
Excited gasps flooded the area.
"I have five thousand of these cards.
My partners and I will give you one by showing up to certain events or completing tasks.
The more tasks you do, the more you get.
Then you can trade, sell, or barter with them.
They're the closest thing we have to videogames ...."
Helix circled the crowd to see all of their faces.
"And they're free."
Roars exploded in the stadium again.
It was infectious, and the stands were slowly filling in interest.
"You're in the biggest city on this continent.
I'll be giving each of you the travel guides that I wrote.
They're not normal travel guides.
They have information on substitutes for coffee and other Earthian comfort items." Helix announced.
Excitement passed through the crowd.
"There's also information on troll magic, or prank magic, you can use for your mischief." He chuckled.
"Cosplay, cat ears, Earthian clothing, playing cards, hot tubs, soda, coffee, travel guides, great food…." Helix listed out what he was offering.
"Have you figured out why I brought all of these items one thousand miles to Alzeria?"
—
"The carrot and the stick?" Atlas chuckled.
"Give people items as rewards for doing your bidding?"
"Exactly. Humans are depressingly simple creatures.
It's basic, yet effective." Helix sighed.
Marie, Charlotte, and Riley nodded.
"Helix is downplaying it." Marie commented with a bright smile.
"There's more to it than that."
Atlas raised an eyebrow.
"Hoh? Since he's not telling me, will you tell me what his goal is?" He asked while narrowing his eyes at Helix.
—
Anxious murders spread through the crowd.
"As an incentive for working together?" A brave weeb asked.
"That's true, too. Here, this is a rare card." Helix chuckled while throwing the playing card to him.
The weebs' eyes glistened with shock, and he held the card as if his life depended upon it.
Excited murmurs passed through the crowd.
Helix laughed when he saw their impending willingness to participate moving forward.
"People won't get things every time they answer questions." He laughed.
Nervous laughter passed through the groups.
"However, can I get one more guess?"
Millie raised her hand nervously.
She was still in shock over the Ronka incident.
However, she felt safer with Helix around, so she wanted to make herself known.
"Is…." Millie began nervously.
Helix waited patiently with a warm smile.
"Is… it because you want us to start living our lives again?" She asked.
Helix flashed her a dazzling smile.
"Perfect answer. Thank you, Millie." He replied with a gentle gaze.
She blushed in embarrassment.
The young woman had a crush on him since he arrived and still hadn't gotten over his death.
"Millie is right. I wanted to help everyone remember why we were excited to come here in the first place.
We were excited because we were anti-social high schoolers that dreamed of a world we belonged to." Helix explained.
"We shouldn't build a better world here because we don't want to be scared.
I hope that we can rebuild in a way where people feel safe and can enjoy life again."
He circled the super-otakus and power-weebs, who greeted him with thunderous applause.
"I love being in a world where I can use magic.
Myriad is fascinating and full of adventure.
It's a fantasy world that I've dreamed about since before I could read.
Who felt excitement when they first came here?" Helix asked.
The groups started raising their hands awkwardly.
"Who's still excited?"
Everyone put their hands down.
"That's… lame. Don't you think?
There's magic and fucking dragons here, people!" Helix roared with passion.
The excitement started building.
"We have systems, people use staffs to launch magic at things, and we have soul beasts.
I'm pulling shit out of thin air! More than half of us are instantly beautiful somehow.
Who wants to create a protection system that allows us to enjoy that!?"
Thunderous roars of excitement flooded the arena.
"Who wants to live in a world where you can pursue your interests without training out of fear!?"
The crowd was reaching a fever pitch and devolving into a frenzy.
Helix gave everyone a gentle smile.
"Then let's create the world we fantasized about before coming here!
But before we can enjoy Myriad, our new clothing, comforts, and life, we must protect this Capital.
Can I rely upon you to work with me?"
Deafening applause rocked the stadium.
—
Power stones and grammatical errors = more content. :)
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