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Episode 1: Into the Game (Part 1)
There was a game I cherished above all others.
It was a challenging medieval fantasy game.
Renowned for its notorious difficulty, it had left many gamers frustrated, yet it held a special place in my heart.
Why, you may ask?
Because I found myself inside that game.
Moreover, I found myself 500 years into the future after its conclusion.
*
My love for games dates back to my childhood.
After school, I’d eagerly rush to the PC shop, pocket money in hand.
Even now, as a young adult in society, my love for games remains the same. However, my once fervent passion has waned considerably.
The pressures of adult life have made me averse to overly competitive games.
Pay-to-win games didn’t even catch my eye, knowing I couldn’t afford them.
Thus, I predominantly played single-player games.
The sensation of journeying through a fantasy realm without the pressures of competition was ideal for my weary mind.
High difficulty? It only heightened my craving for a challenge.
Perhaps that’s why I failed to realize I was being drawn into the game.
Clashing with soldiers on vast plains.
Mystical creatures soaring through the sky.
Giant dungeons and kingdoms.
It was an open-world RPG game set in a medieval fantasy backdrop, combining all that romance.
With its dazzling graphics and excellent world-building, it captivated me completely.
Even as a young adult, I’d spend every weekend glued to that game after work.
The game’s reputation for its daunting difficulty left countless gamers feeling frustrated.
Yet, for me, it served as a catalyst, reigniting my dormant passion and thirst for challenge.
“[You have cleared Ending 99.]”
Having completed 99 playthroughs from start to finish, the experience was so immersive that it felt as though I could continue endlessly.
Despite the option to continue, I refrained, as the difficulty showed no signs of escalating beyond the 99th playthrough.
It dawned on me that perhaps the game’s endings were limited to the 99th playthrough.
“Is this really the end?”
It had become a game I proudly considered as the defining one of my life, yet it had seemingly reached its conclusion.
Presumably, all DLCs had been released, leaving no room for further updates. Realistically, all that remained was to await the game developer’s next project.
Sensing that a chapter of my life had closed alongside the game’s conclusion, I reclined in my chair.
On the monitor, the Ending 99 scroll ascended. Typically, I would have skipped this scene, having seen it repeatedly. However, this time, I allowed it to unfold, realizing it was the final one.
With majestic background music playing on the black screen, white text began to appear.
Suddenly, another screen appeared.
“[Do you wish to commence the next playthrough?]”
“Wait, what?”
I blurted out in disbelief. How could there possibly be another playthrough beyond the 99th?
Perhaps it was a glitch or anomaly. No one had ever mentioned such a possibility.
Despite my disbelief, my hand, holding the mouse, gravitated towards the YES button.
Click.
And the moment I pressed the YES button…
—————!!!
Suddenly, darkness enveloped my vision.
*
I opened my closed eyes.
I found myself in a dimly lit, damp environment.
“Where am I?”
I remembered the last scene before losing consciousness.
Yes, I distinctly remember trying to finish the game after witnessing Ending 99, and then the next episode play button appeared out of nowhere.
“And the instant I pressed it, I blacked out…?”
I slowly got up.
Initially, the darkness obscured everything, but as my eyes adjusted, I began to discern my surroundings.
Surveying my surroundings, I felt a peculiar sensation on my body, prompting me to glance downward.
“Armor?”
The everyday clothes I was wearing were gone, replaced by armor. To be precise, it was armor suitable for a knight.
Yet, what struck me most was the uncanny familiarity of this armor.
“Could it be… This is the armor my game character wore at the beginning?”
In the game I played, players could select their character’s class.
[Wandering Knight] [Barbarian Warrior] [Mage] [Cleric] [Rogue] [Paladin] [Dark Wizard] [Beggar].
There were a total of 8 classes to choose from, each with different starting stats, skills, and equipment.
Naturally, I opted for the most conventional choice: [Wandering Knight].
Being fond of melee characters, a knight with robust attack, defense, and health appeared as the optimal choice for traversing this hardcore game.
And it turned out to be true.
The armor I was wearing was the basic armor given when choosing that knight class.
Though basic in design, the equipment didn’t necessarily lack in performance.
In this game, equipment doesn’t come with grades. Each piece has distinct characteristics, meticulously balanced to maintain gameplay integrity.
A unique aspect of this game was the possibility of defeating the final boss with the humble rusty iron sword provided at the start. Though, in reality, the game’s difficulty made such a feat nearly impossible.
“Why am I wearing this, though?”
I looked around.
Now, the familiar darkness inside this space kept poking at a corner of my memory.
“This setting, this arrangement… It’s all strikingly familiar.”
The Trial Shrine.
This was the tutorial area players encountered first when starting the game.
I’ve encountered it countless times. How could I fail to recognize it?
A modest yet grand temple carved within the depths of a cavern.
The surreal glow of faint fluorescent stones, emitting a bluish light, bathed the surroundings.
Newcomers would marvel at the spectacle but soon find themselves cursing its challenges.
That’s because it demonstrated insane difficulty right from the tutorial area boss.
Approaching a nearby wall, I ran my hand lightly across its surface.
I felt the stone fragments beneath my fingertips crackle.
Taking a sniff of the dust, a nauseating odor filled my nostrils.
“The texture feels genuine. This can’t be a dream.”
Instinctively, my expression grew solemn.
Upon opening my eyes, the environment was akin to the game. Even the armor I was wearing matched that of the game character’s.
I don’t know why I’m here.
But if there’s a high likelihood, it’s probably because I clicked the next episode button before fainting.
Honestly, it’s utterly absurd, but since this is the reality unfolding before me, I had no choice but to accept it.
“For now, let’s move.”
Remaining within the dark and damp confines of the shrine for too long seemed likely to unsettle my mind. I feared it might even trigger claustrophobia, a sensation I’d never experienced.
I walked on.
My foremost priority became exiting the shrine swiftly.
As I pressed on, the initially uncomfortable armor began to feel more natural, my body adjusting to its weight and form.
Naturally, my mind buzzed with countless thoughts.
“What has become of me? Have I truly traversed into the game’s realm? If so, does my physical form now mirror that of the game character?”
As I walked, the space in front of me opened up, revealing a small circular arena.
My steps halted abruptly.
If my memory serves me right, this is the section where the tutorial boss appears.
The game garnered infamy for its brutal difficulty, beginning with the tutorial boss.
Commonly referred to as the “Newbie Slaughter Zone.”
The majority of newcomers faltered at this tutorial hurdle, crumbling under its weight.
Naturally, this section wasn’t designed to be conquered from the outset.
It served as a pivotal section where death was a prerequisite for advancing to the next stage.
The tutorial boss was nothing more than a warning thrown at those starting the game.
-This game is this difficult, so even if it gets harder later on, it’s not our fault.
-So, if you’re going to give up, quit the game here and ask for a refund.
A truly tear-jerking warning.
While most would heed this caution with humility, I stood apart.
Following that emotional ordeal, I defied fate by breaking through the barrier where my demise should have been inevitable.
The incomparable thrill of that moment was the primary reason I couldn’t part with this game.
“But that sentiment holds true only within the confines of the game.”
If this is reality.
Now, the game’s unforgiving difficulty poses a direct threat to my existence.
In the center of the circular arena, there it was.
One knight knelt with his head bowed as if dead.
He wasn’t a living knight but rather a golem, triggered automatically upon a playable character’s entry into this area.
Yet, this golem, boasting a distinctive dragon-shaped armor design and notorious for its brutal difficulty, garnered both criticism and praise.
“The problem is, that’s my opponent now.”
Although it kneels presently, memory serves that it’ll rise to about 2.5 meters tall. Armed with a halberd boasting a range exceeding 3 meters.
I grasped the weapon at my waist.
All I possess is a regular longsword at my side and a medium-sized kite shield strapped to my back.
With equipment resetting each round, I’m left with only the default gear bestowed upon me.
Thus, stability hinges on the shield.
In this game, there exists a skill known as parrying.
Executing the shield swing precisely at the enemy’s attack apex not only deflects the blow but also offers an opening for a counterattack.
Parrying, in essence, is the wandering knight’s most formidable asset.
“If I time the parry right, I can block the attack.”
With familiarity of the tutorial boss’s patterns, countering becomes entirely feasible.
“The problem is, that was possible in the game, right?”
It’s unrealistic to believe I can deflect attacks through well-timed shield swings in actuality.
Dependence solely on the shield could easily result in being cleaved by the halberd.
Drawing a deep breath, I steeled myself.
Reluctantly, I faced the truth.
This wasn’t a game.
The situation now was all too real.
But I couldn’t stay stuck here forever.
To escape this shrine, I had to surpass that tutorial boss.
‘That’s the only way to go.’
I forced the fear out and took a step forward.
Honestly, it’s terrifying.
The me from before wouldn’t even have considered facing such danger.
But strangely, instead of feeling nervous, my body was hot with excitement.
I can’t explain it, but I feel braver and more confident than ever before.
In my left hand, I held the shield, and in my right, the sword.
It felt strangely natural in my hands as if it should have been the first weapon I ever wielded.
The surge of newfound courage was overwhelming.
‘Alright. Let’s do this.’
I crouched down and eyed the tutorial boss.
It remained kneeling in silence.
Soon, it would raise its bowed head, crimson eyes glowing through the gap in its helmet.
With a thudding sound, it would rise, grasping the halberd placed beside it, assuming its stance.
I recalled. That was its introductory cutscene.
‘First, the halberd beside it… Huh?’
At that moment, I sensed something was off.
The halberd that should have been beside the tutorial boss wasn’t there.
‘What? Where could it be?’
It wasn’t entirely absent. There was something resembling a handle of a halberd beside it.
If you could even call that nearly broken thing a handle.
I carefully observed the tutorial boss’s condition.
Unbeknownst to me, something was amiss with its condition as well.
By now, it should have lifted its head, yet it remained frozen in place. Soon, I understood why.
‘It’s broken, though?’
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