vir•tu•al /vûr′choo͞-əl/ (adjective): made to appear to exist

***

In the dead of night, when the others had left, a solitary receptionist remained. With a pen, by a lantern’s dim light, she corrected and improved proposals made by Members—in order for them to have better chances against the uncaring guild leader.

Receptionist Desk.

‘Huh?’ Trisha perked up, placed down her pen. ‘You haven’t gone home? What do you mean you fell asleep in the restroom?

‘... I guess that does happen.’ Sigh. ‘Our work never ends…

‘No, I don’t need help. Thank you for the offer, but I’ll be done for today soon enough. Oh, if you’re not in a rush and would like to accompany me, please—feel free to take a seat.’

The edge of her lips curved a smile. Having company was nice.

She looked at the paper. Picked up the pen. Wrote down notes, then crossed it. Scowl. ‘Sorry, it seems like this’ll take a while. This one’s tricky…’

She glanced up. Stare…

‘... Why don’t I tell you a story while you wait?

‘It’s fine. I’m good at multitasking. Really. It’s a skill that you’ll also get when you’re in this job long enough.’

Pause… Smile.

‘You’re in charge of handling Quest, I believe? Which? Oh, the herbs. That’s good for newbies. Though, have you seen the criminal bounty hunting list before?

‘No? It should be somewhat visible from here. Look there. Notice any that’s… different?’

Inside the guild, enveloped in partial darkness, was the quest board. The details were hardly visible, but it could be seen that each wanted poster had an image and a reward on them. All except one.

‘That one in the corner is different. It has question marks for image and reward.

‘What I’m about to share with you is a story that stands right at the border between reality and myth. A story with an authenticity that can not be verified or unverified. A story… that is both true and untrue.’

She worked on the paper as she continued.

The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

‘... I’m sure you’re familiar with the four requirements for guild creation. For a guild to be called a guild, it needs four requirements: Place, Members, Quest, and Approval. Those are the very foundations where a guild is built. Miss any and you’re not a guild.

‘However, there are always exceptions…

‘There’s… a peculiar guild. Out there. Somewhere.

‘It doesn’t have Place; at least not permanently like most. Has no attachment whatsoever to a location. Could settle anywhere, could vanish whenever they’d like.

‘It doesn’t have Members; at least not the regular sort. Anyone could take their Quest—if it can be called that—and could get the reward. Yes, anyone, even criminals.

‘It doesn’t have Quest; at least not the kind that you and I are familiar with. You can call theirs Quest, sure. That is if you don’t find anything wrong with child kidnapping, setting fire to a building, assassinating an important figure, and anything similar. That’s the kind of Quest they have. Nothing honorable about them.

‘Lastly, it doesn’t have Approval. It just doesn’t.’

The sound of pen scratching paper filled the silence.

‘People call it… the dark guild.

‘It’s like the darkness itself. There, but not there.’

‘Alright, I just finished my work for today. Please wait a while more as I tidy them up.’

She stood up. Stretched her back a little. Then leaned forward to tidy her desk.

‘Yes. I told you about the dark guild—because the person on that mysterious wanted poster… is the creator of the dark guild.

‘No one knows what he—or she—looks like. Does he truly exist? Who knows?

‘... You just asked a good question. Doesn’t make sense, right? If no one knows what he looks like, why is he on the wanted poster? The reason for that is…

‘Superstition.’

She finished arranging her desk. Grabbed the lantern. Time for them to go.

‘Let’s talk while walking.

‘Guilds that don’t hang his wanted poster are… targeted by the dark guild. There’s no evidence for this claim, but guilds hang the poster anyway out of fear, as a charm to ward them off.

‘And by doing so, they’ve engaged in an unspoken agreement of spreading this whole thing in exchange for “safety”.’

She led the way. Walked toward the quest board.

‘He has no bounty, because the bounty keeps being updated. He’s someone whom many are wary of.’

She weaved the lantern, threw light on the poster.

Question mark for image. Question mark for reward.

Only a name:

Virtual

‘He’s not someone you can search for—not someone you can catch.

‘Let’s say… you capture him. There won’t be any evidence to prove that he’s Virtual. No one will ever admit that he’s Virtual. There’s no glory to be had in taking this quest, in catching this ghost.

‘This poster is here because of superstition. That’s all there is to it.’

She turned. Gestured to follow and to leave.

‘Huh?’ She glanced over her shoulder. ‘What do I think about all this? I just think that he’s—’

She walked away. Finished her story.

‘— a known unknown.’