Chapter 4
"What's the first thing you want to do when you get discharged?"
It's the question soldiers approaching discharge hear the most.
And the answer is usually one-dimensional.
I want to sleep all day at home.
I want to have samgyeopsal with a glass of soju.
I want to lie in bed, tear into some chicken, and watch Netflix.
Those whose freedom was taken for granted feel the value of everyday life, and want to reclaim that ordinary existence.
In that respect, Dohyun was similar.
"Games."
"…What?"
"I said I want to play games."
"……."
His daily life as a gaming addict consisted of a moderately spacious room, a computer, and VR equipment—nothing more.
He wanted to reclaim that everyday life so desperately it drove him mad.
At first, his fellow soldiers looked at him with bewildered expressions, but soon came to understand.
"Games? By any chance, God of Savior?"
"Ah, that first virtual reality game? Damn, I'll give you that one. I'm dying to play it too. Of all times, I get my draft notice right after it launches……"
"What kind of game is that? You should've said you wanted to play God of Savior."
"Everyone, want to hit a capsule room after discharge? Let's form a party."
To people, God of Savior was no longer a game for losers.
God of Savior was a culture, a world unto itself.
It was harder to find someone who didn't play God of Savior.
Even among the elderly, not knowing God of Savior meant being treated as someone out of touch with the world.
Regrettably, in a situation where God of Savior dominated everything, there wasn't a single person among them stuck in the military who didn't want to play it.
"…Is God of Savior really that amazing?"
"I heard it's like another world……"
"Ah, have you guys never played God of Savior? Damn, what a bunch of noobs…… It's seriously no joke. Bring three extra diapers when you go."
Even the junior soldiers who listened while sharing a cigarette showed interest.
At times like those, the guys who had experienced God of Savior on the outside would puff up with pride and unfold their stories like war heroes.
Those who hadn't played God of Savior listened with eyes full of childlike wonder.
Before long, God of Savior and women accounted for more than 90% of all conversations in the military.
Every time that happened, Dohyun had to test his patience.
'A real virtual reality game……!'
The successor to Demlock, which he had dismissed as impossible and ignored.
Who could have known it would actually be a virtual reality game?
It was heartbreaking enough to bring tears of blood that it launched precisely when he entered the military.
He never believed in God before, but this time his faith surged.
At this point, it was clear that God had intervened and was messing with him.
Thus, enduring and enduring through the eternity of one year and six months while listening to news of God of Savior, the moment of discharge finally arrived.
Bang!
"…Capsule! Where's the capsule?"
"Oh, oppa's here? Your hair got really long."
"My oppa comes home and the first thing he looks for is the capsule. When you were a baby, you only cried for momma, momma. I guess this is why they say kids become useless once they grow up."
"Mommy, you have your daughter here though~"
"Stop calling me that. You guys have no middle ground, do you?"
Arriving home, Dohyun searched for the capsule like an addict looking for their fix.
Seeing this, his younger sister Hyun-ah and his mother Chae Mi-sook, who had been watching TV, showered him with reproach. Normally Dohyun would have bristled, but right now, he couldn't care less.
He only wanted to welcome the capsule into his arms as quickly as possible.
"We put the capsule in your room. Two men carried it in, and goodness, why is that capsule so heavy? I guess people play games with these things nowadays."
"Mom, you don't know God of Savior? Not knowing that gets you treated like a total outcast these days."
"Oh my, you brat. They talk about nothing else on TV, so of course I know. But I'm too scared to try that. Those people must not be afraid of fighting those monsters."
"Mom, your son is the best at catching them. He's a butcher, an absolute butcher."
Listening to their conversation with one ear and letting it go in the other, Dohyun entered his room and came to an abrupt halt.
His eyes filled with emotion.
"Ah……"
Its brilliant figure.
The smoothly drawn oval and the fluidly curved contours couldn't have been more beautiful.
Approaching the capsule and running his hand along it, a smile spread across Dohyun's face.
'So this is the capsule……'
The emotion felt was different from only seeing it on broadcasts.
Was it because he had ordered this capsule by scrupulously saving up his military salary, which had risen enough to now be called a proper wage?
Even though it was a basic capsule bought secondhand for around 400, the pride that swelled in him was like buying his first car.
"Son, aren't you going to eat?"
"I already ate. I'll eat dinner."
Responding casually to Chae Mi-sook's words, Dohyun threw himself into the capsule.
The soft, enveloping cushion felt quite nice.
At first they were expensive, but now that nearly two years have passed, capsules these days are produced well at cheap prices.
Compared to back then, the quality was decent, and the synchronization rate had increased too.
'Then shall I try logging in.'
Dohyun began operating the capsule skillfully.
He had already familiarized himself with the instructions by watching countless videos.
The same went for information about God of Savior.
He hadn't studied everything, but he had roughly confirmed what kind of structure it had on his way home.
'It has many similarities to Demlock.'
Perhaps because it was a sequel, many aspects were similar.
It was obvious, really.
God of Savior had a worldview set in a future generation after Demlock.
The worldview, cities, and various other elements.
Many things had changed, but perhaps because they shared the same lineage, the systematic settings themselves were similar, so nothing seemed too difficult.
He had only looked at the general overview for now, but detailed strategy guides could be checked as needed without being late.
One year and six months was plenty of time—just clicking through the website a few times was enough to bring up most information.
It went without saying for God of Savior, which a billion people played.
Click.
After turning on the switches in sequence, completing the setup, and putting on the gear similar to a helmet-type device, his vision went dark.
Then a message appeared.
[Iris recognized.]
[Verifying ID card.]
[ID card verified.]
[Synchronization complete.]
[Connect to God of Savior?]
"Yeah."
With his immediate reply, his mind grew distant and the world was dyed white.
And the world that revealed itself again was a pure white space. From within that space, a female AI's voice rang out.
[Welcome to the paradise of adventure.]
[Please create your character.]
[Gender cannot be changed, and appearance can be restored in terms of hair, eyes, and other body parts. Other changes are possible within bounds that do not significantly affect the human body.]
Dohyun looked at the full-body mirror placed before him.
In the conspicuously placed mirror, Dohyun's current appearance was reflected.
A figure exposed bare, with only critical areas barely covered.
Hair that he had grown out somewhat but still couldn't shake the military look, and a noticeably more solid physique compared to before caught his eye.
'It does look too much like a soldier though.'
It wasn't like he was advertising that he'd rushed here right after discharge.
Simple touches changed his appearance each time, and admiration escaped him as he modified it.
With just a swipe, it changed—it felt like casting magic. Though, saying that, there wasn't really anything he'd actually changed.
That was only natural since he had simply lengthened his hair.
Other than that, there was no difference from his real-life appearance.
'There's nothing to properly fix in the first place, so there's no need to waste time being bothersome.'
This was certainly different from Demlock.
In Demlock, where the five senses weren't felt, you could freely change not just your appearance but even your gender.
Those called so-called customization masters supposedly demonstrated extreme utilization even under these poor conditions, but unfortunately, Dohyun lacked such dexterity. He had no desire to go through the trouble anyway.
With the customization complete, a somewhat civilian-like appearance was finally achieved.
As he stared at the mirror with satisfaction, the voice came again.
[Please set your nickname.]
'A nickname……'
Anyone playing God of Savior would have no choice but to be careful.
Generally, in-game nicknames couldn't be duplicated, but God of Savior allowed duplicates.
With a whopping one billion people playing the game, it was only natural.
However, Dohyun called out without a moment of hesitation.
"Kaiser."
The name that had been with him from when he first started gaming until the service ended.
To him, Kaiser was as familiar and meaningful as his real name.
He had never even considered making a different name.
[Is the nickname 'Kaiser' correct?]
"Yes."
[Nice to meet you, 'Kaiser.']
[Your hashtag is Kaiser#312543.]
[Character created.]
[Moving to the tutorial zone.]
With that message, his vision was dyed black.
* * *
"Wow……"
Dohyun honestly let out his admiration at the scenery spread before him.
This was atop a castle wall.
The kind of castle you'd see in a typical medieval fantasy movie.
It wasn't the beautiful otherworld landscape he'd seen in videos, but the sacred flames brightening the darkness and the towering castle walls made it feel like he had entered a battlefield.
The cool touch of the night air brushing past his body, the smell of burning.
The sensation of standing on the ground with his feet.
The subtle sensations felt on his skin as he wiggled his fingers.
Every sensation from his entire body felt the same as reality.
It made him wonder if he hadn't started a game but possessed a body in a fantasy world. A vitality that was on a completely different level from Demlock.
'So this is a virtual reality game……'
He was staring blankly at the otherworldly landscape spread beyond the castle walls when—
[This is the horrific battlefield of the past Arlen Castle.]
[Please select a weapon.]
The voice he had heard during character creation snapped Dohyun back to reality.
Instinctively turning around, he saw countless weapons floating in midair. Systematic phenomena in such a realistic place felt rather awkward instead.
[Crude Sword]
- A worn and dulled sword.
It seems usable for cutting people without issue.
[Crude Spear]
- A worn and dulled spear.
It seems usable for stabbing people without issue.
…….
[Crude Bow]
- A worn and ragged bow.
It looks like it can still shoot about fifty more times.
From swords to spears, bows, daggers, maces, crossbows, staffs……
Various weapons lined up, but Dohyun picked one up without a moment of hesitation.
[Selected Crude Sword.]
[You can use the sword's basic skill 'Smite'.]
[Tutorial begins.]
The sword. The weapon Dohyun had used most frequently during his Demlock days.
There was no particular reason.
He had simply chosen it because it seemed the most versatile in all aspects, but once he actually handled it, it suited him well.
"Hey there!"
As soon as he picked up the weapon, a soldier came running from afar as if he'd been waiting.
His urgent expression and blood-stained armor revealed the direness of the situation.
Apparently finding Dohyun's stillness frustrating, the man approached roughly and grabbed his wrist.
"What are you doing here at a time like this! The other mercenaries have already joined the battle, so hurry and merge with them!"
[A party is formed with Knight Commander 'Charlie.']
Party Members
-Charlie
-Kaiser
With that hastily formed party, Dohyun was practically dragged into the castle.
It was the typical event tutorial found in most games.
Following Charlie, unlike outside the castle, chaos unfolded. Soldiers and monsters fallen in pools of blood, pierced by swords and arrows.
Where his leisurely admiration from moments ago had gone, an urgent situation was instantly conjured.
And it only worsened the deeper they went.
Kraaak!
Kaaaaah!
Fallen soldiers, and amidst the bodies of their comrades, more and more soldiers fighting fiercely against hideous monsters.
Those who appeared to be mercenaries could also be seen fallen here and there.
"Already this many…… Damn it."
Charlie squeezed his eyes shut as if his heart was being torn apart, then turned his head and quickened his pace.
He was genuinely grieving his comrades' deaths.
Simple data couldn't reproduce the trembling around his eyes or the subtle shaking of his hands.
"In the end, they joined forces with those monsters…… If the rumors are true, they must have made a contract with that 'Monster.' If we don't hurry and stop it, it will descend upon us."
That was why he was rushing without even being able to properly close his comrades' eyes.
If the monster descended, everything would be over.
And Dohyun knew who that monster was. He had seen it multiple times through videos already.
It wasn't a monster created to be defeated in the tutorial.
"Hurry. If we go through here, it won't be far."
Just as they descended the stairs and were crossing the corridor, Charlie shouted.
It was then.
Shoo- Thwack-!
At the sound of something cutting through the air, Dohyun stopped, and arrows flew past right in front of him and embedded themselves in the ground.
It was as if the arrows had intentionally avoided Dohyun on their own.
"……!"
Charlie, who had been about to knock the arrows away with his sword, stopped in surprise.
Then belatedly coming to his senses, he muttered.
"Did you dodge knowing they were coming? No…… that can't be. You must be the lucky type."
Deflecting arrows was one thing, but stopping and dodging like that didn't make sense.
It was reasonable to think it was just luck.
Kekekeek-.
Kiriik-.
The ones who had fired the arrows were monsters.
Creatures that overall resembled goblins.
However, the small horns on their heads distinguished them from regular goblins.
There were five of them in total.
"They've pushed in this far…… We have to break through them."
As Charlie took his stance, the monsters made kiki sounds and each raised their weapons.
Two archers, three with blunt weapons.
A troublesome combination. For Charlie, it was a predicament. He was about to get his feet tied down in an already urgent situation.
"I'll go first……!?"
It was then that Dohyun burst forward.