#002
──Please set your character name.
When 7017 opened his eyes, he stood alone in a pure white world.
For a moment, he couldn’t understand what had happened and was bewildered.
“I should be dead?”
No “information” appeared in his vision. The device implanted in his body wasn’t functioning properly.
7017 realized that he had indeed died.
Was this the underworld?
Or was he seeing a dream right before death?
──Please set your character name.
Then, he heard someone’s voice.
Something appeared before 7017, who was bewildered as to what on earth this sound was.
Upon seeing its appearance, 7017.
“A flying robot vacuum cleaner?”
……blurted out that impression.
Its flat cylindrical appearance was literally a robot vacuum cleaner itself.
[Would you like to set your character name as “Flying Robot Vacuum Cleaner”? It is a nonsensical naming sense, but if it is Master’s opinion, I shall comply.]
“No, wait! What are you talking about? Character name?”
The lens part, shaped like a robot vacuum cleaner’s eye, sparkled.
[This is the final step of Character Conversion. Please set your character name.]
“Character Conversion?”
That was definitely a concept from the Divine Game created by Yggdrasil—commonly called the “Game Labyrinth.”
Each labyrinth inside Yggdrasil was independent of the others.
In other words, to enter a different Game Labyrinth, it was necessary to convert the character one was playing into an avatar for that Game Labyrinth.
[It was an emergency situation, so emergency life-saving measures were taken. Master’s body has been converted to suit Yggdrasil.]
7017 couldn’t understand what this robot vacuum cleaner was saying at all.
“What are you saying? Who are you? Where is this? Am I dead?”
[Responding to Master’s questions. I am the Random Box Device System YggON. An entity commonly called “YggON.” A “UR” grade of which there is only one in the world.]
“What?!”
[Congratulations, Master. You have drawn the one and only UR grade in this world.]
The ranks of items from Random Boxes were N, R, SR, and SSR.
A grade called UR was unheard of until now.
[This is the boundary between reality and Yggdrasil. Because Master’s real body was on the verge of ceasing life functions, forced intervention was carried out. Master’s body was converted and connected to Yggdrasil.]
“Converting my body……? Shouldn’t you only be able to connect to Yggdrasil through an avatar made from a game account?”
Converting a human body itself to connect to Yggdrasil was a story that transcended modern technological concepts.
[It is merely the limit of current human technology. It does not apply to YggON.]
7017 was confused.
“Did you say YggON? According to you, I drew you before I died, and now I’ve connected to Yggdrasil through your power? And not by creating an avatar to log in as a game character, but with my actual body?”
[Affirmative.]
It was a story devoid of reality.
Perhaps he was already dead, and all of this was just a delusion?
“Then which Game Labyrinth…… which Divine Game am I connected to right now?”
Ryu Hwi corrected his words, wondering if calling it a “Game Labyrinth” might be rude in front of YggON, which had a direct connection to Yggdrasil.
[You may simply call it a Game Labyrinth. This is “World of Fantazm,” based on an RPG. It has been confirmed to have been produced by Ratia seven years ago. Having identified that Master possesses much information regarding this Game Labyrinth, I selected World of Fantazm.]
“In other words, have I become a gamer of World of Fantazm?”
[Master is not a gamer of any specific Game Labyrinth. Master is not a game account avatar. Master is not subject to any systemic restrictions.]
“That is…….”
[If we must distinguish, Master is a gamer of “Random Box YggON.” I shall inform you of the details once Character Conversion is complete.]
──Please set your character name.
7017 still couldn’t tell if this was a dream or reality.
The miraculous fortune that had occurred in his life.
Receiving the one and only fortune in the world…… it was hard to accept as such because his life up until now had been so miserably trash.
But if this was truly reality.
If an opportunity had truly come.
“Character name…….”
7017 swore.
I shall reclaim everything that was stolen from me.
I shall take everything back from those who took it.
I shall trample over them all.
To never have anything stolen again, I shall reach the pinnacle of this trash-like world.
“Ryu Hwi.”
Character name setup complete.
Character conversion complete.
7017 became Ryu Hwi once more.
* * *
Title : World of Fantazm
Developer : Ratia
Genre : RPG
Yggdrasil reads the information of existing “games” and creates a new game based on the information it has taken in.
Simply put, if you provide “ingredients (source game),” it creates a new “dish (Game Labyrinth)” based on that.
Currently, the ingredients were monopolized by a large game production company named “Ratia.”
Ratia had mass-produced games indiscriminately, and most of them had been implemented as Divine Games in Yggdrasil.
World of Fantazm was also one of the games produced by Ratia.
Among the Game Labyrinths based on Ratia games, it was fairly long-lived, and many gamers played it.
The Linzea Guild and Linpel, who had fabricated false crimes to drive Ryu Hwi to rock bottom, also focused primarily on World of Fantazm.
Ryu Hwi set foot in World of Fantazm.
A game with a medieval-esque fantasy setting.
That magnificent spectacle unfolded before his eyes.
He looked up at the sky.
He looked down at the earth.
Feeling the coolness of the wind brushing his cheek, the firmness of the earth beneath his feet, Ryu Hwi truly felt that he had come to the Game Labyrinth he had so long dreamed of.
The amount of information was overwhelming compared to the World of Fantazm he had experienced through simulation.
A reality that virtuality could not replicate existed here.
He bent down and caressed the earth, the soil of the ground.
“I’ve really come to the Labyrinth.”
It wasn’t a dream.
Nor an illusion before death.
His eyes grew moist. Tears he had held back even when his only blood relative left now threatened to flow.
All the pain, sorrow, and anger he had experienced until now surged like waves. But he held them back and reined in his emotions.
“Is this the Forest of Beginnings?”
The forest he had seen countless times in the simulation.
It was said that gamers entering the Game Labyrinth World of Fantazm for the first time always started here.
“This is where it begins.”
“UR grade.”
“Character conversion of the body itself.”
They were still hard to believe. But there was no doubt that he was here now.
First, Ryu Hwi tried to check his status.
Each Divine Game had its own unique system. In an RPG, it was normal for level-based stats and skill systems to exist.
World of Fantazm was also a typical RPG.
You accumulated EXP to raise your level and stats, and fought while considering skill cooldowns and MP consumption.
Having played the game to death in the simulation, he was familiar with the system.
First, he tried to manipulate the UI to open the status window…….
“Huh?”
No UI was visible in his vision.
Bewildered, Ryu Hwi looked around. But no matter where he looked, he couldn’t find the World of Fantazm UI.
“System, status window. System, status window!”
No matter how many times he tried, the system UI wouldn’t appear.
While he was panicking like that.
[Master, please stop doing pointless things. It is embarrassing.]
YggON appeared.
A robot vacuum cleaner appearance that didn’t suit the fantasy setting.
“Pointless things?”
[I must have told you before the conversion. Master is not a gamer of any specific Game Labyrinth. You are not subject to any systemic restrictions. In other words, you cannot receive any systemic benefits.]
Stats and skills were the system of World of Fantazm.
According to YggON’s words, Ryu Hwi, who was not a gamer of World of Fantazm, could not receive those benefits.
“Then how am I supposed to fight!”
Without receiving system benefits, it would be hard just to escape the Forest of Beginnings, the early tutorial area.
[Sigh.]
UR YggON let out a sigh.
[Unfortunately, the world’s luckiest man who drew this UR Random Box System Device YggON seems to have a low-level intelligence stat.]
It was outright treating him like an idiot.
[Master receives the support of system YggON. Since you permanently belong to the system YggON, other Game Labyrinth systems are unnecessary.]
“In other words, does that mean I have to play World of Fantazm with a completely different system?”
[Fortunately, your understanding is faster than expected. I am slightly raising Master’s evaluation.]
Ryu Hwi had a headache.
“Then how exactly can you help me?”
[My full name is Random Box Device YggON. Have you forgotten?]
“Don’t tell me…….”
[Random box, draw, gacha—please call it whatever is comfortable for you.]
Ryu Hwi collapsed onto the ground.
Did this mean he had to spin the Random Box even after coming to the Game Labyrinth?
“What am I supposed to do with a Random Box? Will my stats go up just by spinning it?”
[Seeing is believing.]
YggON’s lens sparkled.
[Starting the tutorial.]
In that moment, information that hadn’t been visible until now flooded Ryu Hwi’s vision.
=YggON SYSTEM ON=
Alarm!
YggON system login.
Login bonus Day 1 - 1 YggON Ticket.
+Log in for 1 week consecutively to receive a guaranteed SR YggON Ticket.
YggON Pickup!
Increased probability of World of Fantazm items appearing.
You have incomplete Daily Missions!
=SYSTEM OFF=
It was a system UI.
But it wasn’t the World of Fantazm UI that Ryu Hwi remembered.
In the past, there had been a time when “collection games” were popular.
But after Yggdrasil’s appearance, they had disappeared into the back pages of history for various reasons.
The UI now visible in Ryu Hwi’s vision was similar to those collection games.
[Please check your achievements.]
“Achievements?”
=YggON SYSTEM ON=
Achievements
-Drew UR YggON. (Complete)
Reward: YggON Ticket×100.
-Connected to World of Fantazm. (Complete)
Reward: 5 YggON Tickets.
=SYSTEM OFF=
[With this, you have secured a total of 106 tickets. Please execute the Random Box.]
For now, he had no choice but to do as YggON said.
Currently, Ryu Hwi was in a state where he couldn’t receive any system benefits from World of Fantazm at all.
What could he do without level corrections or skills?
It all depended on this Random Box.
Ryu Hwi executed “YggON.”
=YggON SYSTEM ON=
YggON Random Box 10 consecutive draws.
Consuming 10 YggON Tickets.
=SYSTEM OFF=
The Random Box animation appeared.
The animation itself was similar to the random boxes he had done to the point of disgust.
Something game-related would probably appear. Ryu Hwi quietly waited for the result.
Ten shooting stars crossing the night sky.
And the results were…….
N – Wig (Female) +new
N – Toothbrush +new
N – Tree Branch +new
N – Summer Top (Male) +new
N – Toothbrush
N – Iron Ore +new
N – Torch +new
N – Worn Gear +new
N – Iron Ore
R – Short Sword +new
“What the hell am I supposed to do with these?!”
Ryu Hwi shouted without thinking.
The results were so trashy that he couldn’t endure it without shouting.
The only remotely usable thing was one Short Sword.
He had no choice but to spin the Random Box again.
N - Toothbrush
N – Shorts +new
N - Tree Branch
N – Pebble +new
N – Rusty Sword +new
N - Slippers +new
N – Dye +new
N – Worn Gear
N – Shampoo +new
R – Wooden Shield +new
He spun the Random Box once more.
A storm of Ns.
“What the hell is this…….”
Ryu Hwi felt anxious.
Could the Random Box that UR YggON boasted about actually be something unusable?
Although some equipment came out, it was hard to play World of Fantazm without the stat increases from levels.
[Master, are you truly the luckiest man in the world who drew this UR YggON? I am appalled by the miserable results.]
It was blatantly treating him like a fool.
[Master receives the support of system YggON. Since you permanently belong to the system YggON, other Game Labyrinth systems are unnecessary.]
“In other words, does that mean I have to play World of Fantazm with an entirely different system?”
[Fortunately, your understanding is faster than expected. I am slightly raising Master’s evaluation.]
Ryu Hwi had a headache.
“Then how exactly can you help me?”
[My full name is Random Box Device YggON. Have you forgotten?]
“Don’t tell me…….”
[Random box, draw, gacha—please call it whatever is comfortable for you.]
Ryu Hwi sat down with a thud.
Did this mean he had to spin the Random Box even after coming to the Game Labyrinth?
“What am I supposed to do with a Random Box? Will my stats go up just by spinning it?”
[Seeing is believing.]
YggON’s lens sparkled.
[Starting the tutorial.]
In that moment, information that hadn’t been visible until now flooded Ryu Hwi’s vision.
=YggON SYSTEM ON=
YggON Random Box 10 consecutive draws.
Consuming 10 YggON Tickets.
=SYSTEM OFF=
The Random Box animation appeared.
The animation itself was similar to the random boxes he had done to the point of disgust.
Something game-related would probably appear. Ryu Hwi quietly waited for the result.
Ten shooting stars crossing the night sky.
And the results were…….
SR – Parrying +new
Type: Skill
Once equipped, you will be able to use Parrying.
SR – Sword Mastery +new
Type: Skill
Once equipped, you will be able to use Sword Mastery.
=SYSTEM OFF=
“Sword Mastery and…… Parrying?!”
From the Random Box, which he had thought only spat out miscellaneous tools, a “skill” had appeared.
Sword Mastery was one of the skills in World of Fantazm; as your level rose, it granted swordsmanship-related corrections.
And Parrying was…….
A skill that doesn’t exist in World of Fantazm!
In that Game Labyrinth, you could only use things implemented through that Game Labyrinth’s system.
But…….
[YggON’s Random Box is not subject to any restrictions. In other words.]
YggON stated flatly.
[If you can draw it, you can use it transcending system and genre.]
This system truly transcended modern technology.
More than anything, after Sword Mastery and Parrying, upon seeing the contents of the “rainbow shooting star” that appeared last in the 106-consecutive-pull Random Box, Ryu Hwi truly realized that fact.
Rainbow shooting star. That is, SSR rank.
Ryu Hwi had drawn something outrageous through UR YggON.