LIVE BROADCAST — RAVENLINE GLOBAL NEWS
!!BREAKING NEWS!! Otome Game "The Droopy Rose" HACKED — Players Trapped in Impossible Mode!!
—Start of Live Coverage—
[Anchor: Mireille Vosburgh, Reporting Live]
"Good evening, viewers across the globe. This is Mireille Vosburgh with Ravenline Global News. We interrupt our regular programming to bring you a breaking report on the most popular virtual reality otome game in history, The Droopy Rose, which has just been hit by a massive cyberattack."
"According to sources within LuminaVerse Studios, the game's developer, the hacker infiltrated the core system of the game's infamous Hard and Very Hard modes. This unauthorized breach has caused a catastrophic shift in the affection score algorithm, dropping the standard starting score from negative twenty percent (-20%) to an unprecedented and near-impossible negative eighty percent (-80%) across all male leads in the Hard Mode."
[Footage shows players angrily shouting at screens, others crying, and one player furiously throwing their VR console into a pond.]
"Originally, players in the Hard Mode were tasked with raising affection from a cold -20% to a full 100% in order to survive. Now, due to the hacker's manipulation, this has become virtually impossible. The hacker appears to be actively sabotaging player progress, hijacking responses, and choosing deliberately destructive actions, essentially, playing as the player themselves to ensure no one wins."
[TECH BULLETIN]
"We believe the hacker's intention was to hijack the prize payout system," stated Chief Developer Kael Richter. "The $10 million grand prize offered for completing the Very Hard Mode remains secure, but the attack attempted to reroute it. The system held, but the gameplay suffered... immensely."
"As of now, no player has successfully cleared the Hard Mode since the attack. Even top-ranked veterans have failed. Reports include corrupted dialogue options, delayed affection updates, forced sabotage scenes, and even in-game NPCs behaving erratically."
[SECURITY UPDATE]
"Our cybersecurity division has managed to stop the hacker from stealing any real funds," said Mira Elwood, CTO of LuminaVerse. "However, they left behind an evolving bug that continues to warp the affection system in real-time. We're racing against the clock to reverse the damages and trace the intruder's digital footprint."
"Officials speculate the hacker may be using the game to test a new AI-disruptive virus, or possibly to blackmail the studio. International authorities have been contacted. For now, developers strongly advise all players to avoid the Hard and Very Hard modes until further notice."
"This is the first time in gaming history where a romantic visual novel has become a virtual death trap."
Hashtag #TheDroopyRoseHack and #Minus80Madness are now trending worldwide.
"We'll continue to update you on this shocking cyberattack as more information unfolds. This has been Mireille Vosburgh, reporting live. Stay safe and maybe… stay single, for now."
—End of Broadcast—
"Umm, Grandaunt… the news seems to be in perfect timing tonight."
Elyza nudged Viviana's elbow, eyeing her glued to the console. The woman was still grinding through Very Easy Mode, dangerously close to finishing the Saintess's romantic route.
"What news? I'm busy." Viviana didn't even blink, her fingers dancing across the buttons with suspiciously youthful speed for someone over sixty.
"But this is important, Grandaunt."
Elyza pulled out her phone, quickly opening the live broadcast. "It's about the game."
Viviana finally paused, eyes narrowing. "How important?"
Elyza just handed over the phone.
"Watch this."
Viviana leaned back and stared at the screen. The anchor's voice came through crisp and urgent: "—massive hacking attempt has corrupted the affection scoring system in Very Hard Mode. Players report starting affection scores as low as -80%, with the hacker hijacking decision-making in real time—"
Viviana's eyes widened. "What the heck?! What is wrong with them?" she shouted.
"This probably means one wrong decision and… boom, instant Game Over," Elyza sighed, slumping on the bed. "I can't even survive Hard Mode, let alone Very Hard. Oh my gosh... what is life…?"
She turned—and froze.
Viviana was gripping the console with trembling hands, her chest rising and falling with labored breaths. Except… it wasn't fear.
"…Grandaunt?" Elyza whispered, voice shaking. "W-Why are you like that?"
Viviana burst out laughing like a villain in a telenovela. "This is gonna be fun. Elyza, can I stay in your bedroom forever?"
Elyza blinked. "Huh?! Why? Just buy your own console, TV, and VR gear. You're rich, Grandaunt. You're literally the chairwoman of Carsten Electronics!"
"But my reputation and dignity would self-destruct if my assistant caught me fangirling at my penthouse." She grinned devilishly. "Here, I can be… free." [Viviana has a personal mansion gifted from her father, a penthouse for her work, and another mansion she recently bought.]
"Wait, you're staying for a month?!"
"I'm going to win Very Hard Mode."
"…But you haven't even cleared Easy Mode," Elyza muttered, arms folded like an exasperated parent watching their kid try to run before they could walk.
Viviana gave her a confident thumbs up. "I'll finish it in no time!"
"Don't give me that look." Elyza rolled her eyes. "I know you don't care about the prize money. You're doing this because you want to win. You're addicted to the challenge, and terrified to lose, aren't you?"
Viviana didn't reply. She was already back in-game, eyes narrowed, fingers flying across the controls like a war general commanding a battlefield.
Elyza let out a long sigh and climbed into bed, wrapping herself in her blanket like a burrito of emotional exhaustion.
She peeked out once more at her 60-year-old grandaunt, hunched over the console like a sleep-deprived gamer teen.
"…This is my life now," Elyza whispered.
It was already 10 p.m. when Elizabeth Carsten quietly opened her daughter's bedroom door, peeking in just to check if Elyza had fallen asleep.
What she didn't expect, at all, was the sight in front of her.
"Auntie?" Elizabeth blinked, confused. "Why are you… I mean, what are you doing here?"
Viviana didn't respond. Her attention was glued to the screen, thumbs moving at lightning speed on the console.
Elizabeth's gaze shifted from her aunt to her daughter, who was sprawled on the bed in complete disarray: blanket kicked halfway off, arms flung to both sides, hair resembling a bird's nest, one leg up the wall somehow, and a thin string of drool trailing from the corner of her mouth. She was snoring. Loudly.
Elizabeth let out a quiet laugh and walked over to fix the blanket, tucking Elyza in gently.
She glanced back at Viviana, who was still laser-focused on the game. It was… surreal.
This was Viviana Carsten, the chairwoman of Carsten Electronics. A woman infamous for her obsession with luxury, allergic to social gatherings, known for barking orders in high heels, and who'd proudly remained unmarried because, according to her, men were "financial liabilities."
Now, here she was. In her grandniece's bedroom. At 10 p.m. Playing an otome game… for teenagers.
Elizabeth couldn't help herself, she turned on the lights.
"Ugh…" Elyza groaned under the covers, flinching from the sudden brightness.
Viviana squinted at the light before shielding her eyes. "Hey! What the—wait… Elizabeth?" She finally paused the game and put the console down. "What are you doing here?"
Elizabeth crossed her arms and raised a brow. "Maybe I should be the one asking you that, Auntie."
She walked over and plopped down on the small sofa in the corner, eyeing the paused screen filled with sparkles, handsome anime boys, and heart-shaped gauges.
"This… is new."
"I—I can explain, Elizabeth," Viviana stuttered, clutching the console like it might protect her.
"You should be explaining," Elizabeth said coldly, her tone dropping like ice. "Because you definitely don't belong here."
Viviana shrank back, eyes wide. "W-Why are you scary all of a sudden?"
Elizabeth flashed a wicked grin, eyes gleaming. "Am I?"
Viviana gulped. "You're supposed to be the kind, gentle, nurturing type! Like a loving mother figure, soft, calm, and warm!"
Elizabeth raised a brow and crossed her legs like a final boss preparing for her monologue. "That's my mom and dad. Not me, Auntie."
Viviana let out a long sigh, brushing her hair back as she tried to regain her composure. "Fine… the game is based on The Droopy Rose."
Elizabeth arched a brow. "I know that. My daughter's been obsessing over it for months. See those seven posters on the wall?" She pointed behind Viviana. "That's the reverse harem. The same group of fictional boys she won't stop talking about. And yes, I also know that the novel ikwas a massive hit during your youth and that it was the last gift Grandma gave you before she passed away."
She narrowed her eyes.
"But that doesn't explain this." Her hand swept toward the glowing screen, the blushing 2D male leads, and the words "AFFECTION SCORE" in bold letters.
Viviana stayed frozen like a caught teenager.
"That game is an adaptation, Auntie. It's for kids. For Elyza's generation. Teenagers. Young adults. Not high-profile executives with retirement plans and senior citizen discounts."
It sounded less like a scolding and more like a disappointed mother talking to a rebellious teenage daughter. The irony was not lost on either of them.
Viviana whimpered and looked away, shoulders slumping. She looked… pitiful.
"And besides," Elizabeth continued, her voice softening just slightly, "You need rest. You've got work tomorrow. You're not a machine, Auntie. You're… sixty."
Viviana flinched.
That was a direct hit. A critical hit.
"I'm not weak," Viviana muttered under her breath like a sulking child.
Elizabeth stood up, arms still folded. "No one said you were. But your body isn't twenty anymore. It's time to act like the powerful woman you are in real life… not some lovestruck high schooler trying to romance fictional men for stat boosts."
Viviana slowly looked up. "…But I'm almost at the ending."
Elizabeth blinked. "…What?"
"The Saintess, Aurelia, have finally have her happy ending. I triggered it on Very Easy Mode. Only one more CG left!" Viviana said with pride.
Elizabeth just sighed, long and deep, as she walked toward the door. "Fine. Play all night. Just don't cry when your back gives out during tomorrow's board meeting."
Viviana huffed, sitting straighter. "My back is stronger than your attitude!"
"I heard that," Elizabeth muttered before shutting the door behind her.
Viviana stared at the screen, then at her sleeping grandniece. She patted Elyza's head and whispered, "Thanks for not judging me like your mom."
Elyza snored in response, completely dead to the world, one leg still somehow dangling off the bedframe like a broken mannequin.
Viviana smirked.
"…Alright, Saintess Aurelia. Let's finish this."
Hours later...
It was already morning—6 a.m., sharp. The sun peeked through the curtains, birds chirped, and the soft whirr of a console echoed through the room like a lullaby for the deranged.
Elyza groaned as she stirred awake, rubbing her eyes. She blinked toward the glowing screen.
Viviana was still sitting in front of it. Still.
"Wah!" Elyza yelped, rolling off her bed and landing flat on the floor with a thud.
Viviana didn't even flinch.
Elyza peeked over the mattress. "G-Grandaunt?" she croaked. "Are you okay? Are my consoles okay? Did they overheat and fry your brain?! Hello?"
No response.
Viviana's eyes were bloodshot, rimmed with exhaustion and laser-focused on the screen. Her fingers moved with twitchy precision. Her hair looked like she'd been in a wind tunnel, and there were at least three visible dark circles under each eye.
"Umm… you do know you have work today, right?" Elyza tried again. "You're the chairwoman. You own, like… people."
Still nothing. The console chirped, and Viviana clicked furiously, muttering something about "affection points" and "blooming the crimson rose of trust."
A ringtone suddenly blared through the room, Viviana's phone, buried beneath a mountain of snack wrappers. Elyza fished it out and gasped.
23 missed calls.
—Vice President
—Secretary Lin
—CEO Leona Hayes
—CEO Dr. Ramil Ortega
—CEO Isaac Mauer
—CEO Commander Elle Stratford
—CEO Professor Aiko Ren
…The list went on.
"Grandaunt…" Elyza gulped. "You need an intervention."
Suddenly—
Click!
Viviana bolted upright with manic triumph. "YES! I finally finished Easy Mode!!" she cried, eyes gleaming like a mad scientist who just resurrected a dinosaur. "Two modes down, Elyza! VERY EASY and EASY!"
Elyza stared in horror.
Viviana looked like she'd crawled out of a grave. Hair resembling a mop struck by lightning. Skin pale. Eyes red. Yet she beamed with pride, teeth sparkling like anime sparkle overlays.
"G-Great job…grandaunt," Elyza said with a nervous laugh, slowly clapping. "But maybe it's time to shower, sleep, drink water, or breathe, before you unlock Normal Mode."
Viviana waved her off. "No, no, no, NO! I must continue. I must conquer Normal Mode!" she said with the same energy as a war general declaring battle.
"Okay, but I'm definitely telling Grandpa about this."
Viviana didn't even hear her. She was already loading the next chapter, muttering strategies like a speedrunner mid-record attempt.
Elyza sighed, grabbing her bag. "I'm going to school now. Try not to die."
She opened the bedroom door.
And froze.
Outside stood a battalion of Viviana's elite bodyguards, dressed in black, standing like statues with earpieces.
Behind them, five CEOs looked grim, whispering with pale expressions.
Viviana's secretaries stood with iPads, schedules, and binders in hand, visibly trembling.
And downstairs…
Elyza spotted her mother, Elizabeth, pacing and signaling her to come down, urgently, with a hand movement that screamed, "RUN."
Elyza's mouth dropped open. "Oh no…"
She stepped outside the room and quietly closed the door behind her, leaving Viviana alone with her console.
One of the CEOs turned to her immediately. "Ms. Elyza," she whispered like someone reporting from a war zone. "Is… Chairwoman Viviana still in there?"
"…Yes," Elyza said grimly.
"Is she—?"
"She's… playing an otome game."
A collective shudder swept the crowd.
"Oh no," murmured CEO Dr. Ramil Ortega.
"I KNEW something was wrong when she ignored my quarterly report email," muttered CEO Leona Hayes.
"She hasn't been answering calls for 12 hours," said Secretary Lin, pale and haunted.
Elizabeth stormed forward, yanking Elyza's hand. "Tell me everything she did last night," she demanded in a low whisper.
Elyza, still stunned, replied slowly, "She… finished two modes. She didn't sleep. And she's now preparing for Normal Mode like it's her final battle."
Elizabeth looked up the stairs, hands clenched. "This is worse than I thought."
"Worse?" Elyza asked.
"Your grandaunt," Elizabeth whispered, voice tight, "once nearly wiped out the stocks of three competitors overnight because she was bored. And now… now she's obsessed with a dating sim."
They both turned to the bedroom door.
Silence.
Then, from within—
"Hah! You think you can reject me, Reuben Alden, a fallen patriarch from one of the fallen Empires? Not on my watch!"
Click, tap, click.
"I CHOOSE THE SECRET CONFESSION PATH!"
Elyza facepalmed.
Elizabeth sighed.
The CEOs prayed.
And somewhere, in the corporate headquarters of Carsten Electronics… stocks began to fluctuate.
TO BE CONTINUED...