Arc Archive

You must rise above the clouds if you dream to reach the stars. But when that time comes, will the starry sky be enough for you?

— Official description“„
Archives related to the *Arc: Light Bound* event.

## Archive

### The Light Curtain 1

A half-sphere-shaped energy barrier that enshrouds the Arc City. No one knows when it appeared, but it's been there for at least a century. No known substance can reach the other side. Empowered by a core which no one knows where it's kept.

### The Keys

Keys required to unlock the Light Curtain's core. Also store information about the core's location. There are three of them, each kept by Heliopolis, Snake Eye, and Taixuan respectively.

### Theresa 1

The most popular idol in Arc City now, ranking 1st in every recent popularity poll. Heliopolis has just named her their official promoter to promote their products.

### Heliopolis

The top tech giant in Arc City with a wide business reach from medicine, machinery, food to AI and biotech. The current CEO is Miss Jackal. Rumors say she is not in good health to lead the company, and Heliopolis has been unusually silent about it.

### The Light Curtain 2

Heliopolis seems to have been researching the Light Curtain for a long time. Their data show it's contracting at a very low speed, and they're unable to stop the contraction.

### The Mysterious Ninja

A mysterious ninja who emerged unexpectedly beneath the Heliopolis main tower. No one knows who she is, but one thing is certain: she is closely connected to the Light Curtain and its keys.

### Raven's

A bar-and-grill ranking 17th on the Best Cuisine in Arc City list. Address: 58 Salk Row, East District. Opens at 17:30 every day and doesn't have a regular closing time. Serves snacks and cocktails.

### Cioara

The owner of Raven's, a natural businesswoman who is not particularly good at cooking or bartending.
 Always gets into a fight with the only attendant Bronie for trivial matters and always relies on Theresa to make peace.

### Snake Eye

An underground organization behind the massive intel trading network in teh city. Intel dealing is what has made them rich and powerful. However, as one of the three key holders, Snake Eye seems to view the Light Curtain in a very different light than the other two.

### Taixuan

The largest gang in Arc City which runs most neighborhoods in the Central Distric and East District. Unlike other street gangs, Taixuan has a set of rigid rules to be followed by every member. The master of this organization always stays cool, calm, and collected. On their turf, even Heliopolis has to play nice.

### Theresa 2

Bronie and Theresa used to be orphans drifting on the streets of Arc City. Later adopted by Taixuan, both learned a few tricks, or perhaps too many - at the age of then, they were already widely known as the most fearsome street brawlers in the East District.

### Raven

A mercenary who was once a big name in the city. They say she could do anything with good money. However, this legend suddenly vanished eight years ago. Some claim to have seen her again near Salk Row, East District, but no one can produce any solid proof.

### The Light Curtain's Core

A curious crystals. It remains a mystery how it can generate the Light Curtain, but one thing is for sure: it didn't happen naturally and someone did it on purpose.

### Beyond the Light Curtain

After the Light Curtain vanished, an exploration fervor soon took over the city. However, as they marched out, the citizens found nothing but a boundless wasteland. Some say they discovered a substance that resembles the Light Curtain structure 5 km beyond the city border, only there is a difference: it allows objects or humans to pass through freely... (Heliopolis has blocked such information and set up multiple perimeters 3 km outside the city border to stop the exploration.)

### Bronie

A genius hacker in Arc City, a.k.a Haxxor Bunny. Also an attendant with an attitude working at Raven's. Though disobedient and rebellious, she cooks and bartends much better than Cioara.
Bronie is armed with equipment from her Haxxor Arsenal. Besides her SMGs and droned which she names Hare Hunters and Trackers, it also includes guided-missile launcher Crusher Bunny, sniper Biting Bunny, and HE grenade Bouncing Bunny - all created from her projection. With accurate data, she can project any gear in her arsenal at any time. Never knowing how it works, she finds it very handy - at least it has freed her from the pain of maintaining equipment herself.

### An Interview with the Galactic Hacker Author

A-chan: Welcome to Late Night Talk. I'm your hostess A-chan~

A-chan: With great honor, we have Mr. Caperton, the author of Galactic Hacker as our special guest tonight.

Caperton: Hello everyone, I'm Caperton.

A-chan: It's been a decade since your last public appearance, Mr. Caperton.

Caperton: A decade? Sorry, time flows a bit differently on my side.

A-chan: Haha... Mr. Caperton's humor hasn't changed at all.

Caperton: Change or not, it's just a matter of perspective.

A-chan: Yeah, you're right. Let's talk about your new book!

A-chan: Is it also a story beyond the Light Curtain, just like Galactic Hacker?

Caperton: As an observer, I only faithfully record what has happened.

A-chan: Haha... Mr. Caperton certainly has a unique writing philosophy.

A-chan: Let's get back to the book itself. I noticed the protagonist seemed to have a special identity called "Valkyrie". Is it connected to Galactic Hacker?

Caperton: No, these two books record events from two different bubble universes. As for their connections,there might or might not be.

A-chan: Bubble universes? Is it a new concept from your new work?

Caperton: You can say that. As I said before, I only observe and do not invent new ideas.

A-chan: Mr. Caperton's words are just like his works, brief but mesmerizing~

A-chan: Mr. Caperton, can you tell us how you created...no, observed these wonderful stories?

Caperton: Simple. I leave Arc City, travel to other bubble universes, and record what I see.

A-chan: Huh? Do... do you know a way to get out of the city?

Caperton: Correct.

A-chan: Could you tell us how you do it?

Caperton: Of course.

Caperton: First, you buy a portion of omelet rice that expires in 24 hours at a convenience store. Don't reheat it. Eat it cold. After that, lie down for 20 minutes with your head pointing south. When you wake up, you'll find yourself turned into a toasted egg roll, but don't panic. Now you only need to hop into your hot water-filled bathtub and remove the bath drain stopper - then you'll be flushed to the outside world.

A-chan: This... this doesn't sound very easy.

### Gossip in the Bar

"Hey, do you believe in love?"

"If you're gonna throw up, get out and turn left. There's a garbage can."

"No no no, I just want to ask you, do you believe in true love?"

"If you throw up here, you'll have to pay 800 for cleaning. If you do it twice, I can give you a 10% discount."

"Come on, Cioara, I'm not drunk. Just bored and want to talk with you."

"I charge by the minute. Order a drink and you can get 5 minutes for free."

"Sure, get me something, anything."

"Okay, a Gin and Tonic. You have 5 minutes. What do you wanna talk about?"

"Just saying... if the Light Curtain disappears someday, will you stay here and keep your bar?"

"Yeah."

"Why? Don't you have a dream or something like that? Why do you have to stay?"

"I'm short on money."

"Maybe outside the city, money is just meaningless."

"Well then, before you leave, remember to transfer your meaningless money to my bank account."

"Come one, why so serious? It's just a silly question. You're too pretty a girl to stay here... Wait, unless there's someone on your mind already."

"Yeah, this bar is my lover. Your drink. You have 2 minutes and a half left."

"Huh? Does time always fly when you talk to a pretty lady? Hmm, the drink is nice."

"The second one is half price. Want it?"

"With free talk minutes too?"

"No, that's only the first one. After that, every minute sets you back by 100. 5 minutes for free when you get to a full hour... Wanna continue?"

### Arc City Urban Legend

(A deleted post on the Arc City social media)

———— [Urbran [*sic*] (expected: Urban) Legend] Sakura Cyber Ghost Special (Popularity: Full Stars!)

Posted by: A Nobody

Exclusive reveal! This time I got a good shot of the legendary cyber ghost! The real deal!

Commented by: Fried Rice w/o Rice

I can smell the stink of a clickbait miles off. You don't even have a legit photo!

Commented by: A Nobody

Check this out! [Picture]

———— A very fuzzy photo that shows an utterly blurred figure with pink hair dancing in the wind.

Commented by: Choc Boy

Holy molly! You do have a picture??? But it's a mess and you can barely see anything.

Commented by: Doggie

Come on, keep it going! More pictures with better details!

Commented by: Strawberry Hat

Feels like a young and beautiful girl. Hope she's a kind ghost~

Commented by [*sic*] Roasted Duck

As a senior ghost fan, I believe this photo is real. The hair seems natural and not edited, and the figure matches previous sightings.

Commented by: A Nobody

Thanks for your approval! I'm a big fan myself, and it literally blew me away to see her with my own eyes! She just popped up from nowhere. It's unbelievable!

Commented by [*sic*] Roasted Duck

For real? Come on, tell us more. This is some seriously juicy new intel!

[Everything below was deleted]

### Ancient Ballad

High walls were built in where □□ forsook.

To them the people prayed with fear.

On them the people gazed with hope.

But they will forget, and they shall forget.

Forget to fear and to hope.

Forget why their ancestors laid the bricks.

Forget they thrived in where □□ long forsook.

......

So a young traveler left the walls to see the world.

So an outlander seized the stars high in the sky.

There □ built new walls with the stars.

□ etched the walls and the world on the traveler's heart.

......

This is where □□ long forsook.

It shall decay, and it shall perish.

Yet it is where the traveler calls home.\ [*sic*] (expected: <space>)No matter where she is, no matter where she goes.

This land long forsaken by □□,

will forever be at her side.