They even rationalized their terrible evil actions as the law of the jungle or the rights and benefits of those who were more advanced than them. And they have been involved in it even today. They enjoyed limitless freedom and pleasure.
But the game came to them one day.
- What's the best job to survive in a ruined world? Choose one right now.
"Hey, what the heck is this?"
"Can you see this too?"
- Your selection of the first job is over now.
* For those who failed to make the choice, seize the next chance!
"Oh my God…"
Just like those who they had toyed with, they were also embarrassed by the message.
Kieeeeeeeeh!
"What the heck is that? Goblin?"
"Yeah, that's right! Run away!"
They were struck with fear. After all, they were just humans, who could not overcome their fundamental limits.
"Give me that sword! Give it to me quickly!"
A game similar to that of Earth in another dimension has begun.
But the problem was that it was not just the monsters that they confronted.
"What the heck is that one?"
Woooooooo-"
"Airship?"
"Man, isn't that magic engineering airship that usually appears in the later stage of the game?"
The current game was much more difficult than the one in the past.
***
About an hour after the game started, tens of thousands of people in Earth Zero were gathered in a dome-shaped 'shelter'. They were there for an emergency evacuation.
All of them were holding shabby weapons. They were their basic weapons as soon as they chose their jobs when the game started.
"Hey! What the hell is this?"
"Has the game system caused an error?"
"Please give me a proper explanation!"
They could not wait calmly because they had already witnessed the massacre by monsters that appeared outside the shelter, as well as the monsters that appeared in the game.
So the government officials stepped in.
"Come on, the International Martial Command is checking it now! Since we have made the system, we can solve the problem right away. So calm down, everybody!"
However, they could not convince the people.
"If you were us, do you think you can feel relaxed right now? Our players were hit with a nuclear bomb not too long ago, but you said you were on top of the situation, right?"
"Fix the problem right now! And you will have to compensate for the damage we have suffered!"
The collapse of 'Neo Alexandria', which took place about a year ago, shocked the people on Earth Zero a lot. Because of the revolt of the players, who were believed to be nothing more than toys in their eyes, and the unprecedented explosions, the largest city on Earth, Zeron, completely disappeared.
Right at this very moment, they seemed to recall that terrible incident.
After lodging a strong protest, they gathered here and there and sat down in groups.
They have made various assumptions about the current situation.
"I wonder if the game system has been hacked."
"Huh? Hacking? Who did it?"
"Well, that's…."
There was only one enemy they could think of.
"Necromancer?"
He was the strongest player on Earth 32, who eventually became the winner of the game by killing the 'World Eater', and he was the one who first rebelled against Earth Zero beyond the three options given to him.
"No, that's nonsense! How could the savage human beings not only understand our technology but also hack it? That's impossible!"
They struggled to deny their worst guess.
"By the way, hacking or not, if the game has just started, we are not safe here at all. You know that, right?"
"Of course, I know because I have watched the game broadcast so many times. Soon they're going to stop the quest from getting out of the shelter."
Goblins could not break through the iron gates of the shelter, but those who enjoyed watching the game for a long time knew that a bigger disaster could come.
"There could be a dungeon here. You remember that apartment survival quest on the Chinese server in the Earth 8 survival game, right?"
"Oh, I remember. It was such a great episode, so I watched it several times recently."
"That's right. It's still on the top of the replay list. Anyway…"
In the meantime, one suspicious guy was watching their conversation carefully.
"Wow, look at these guys! It's going to be fun."
He was a young Asian man.
After spitting out such words, he giggled. It looked like he was sneering at them.
Sensing something strange, they turned their glances at him.
"Isn't it ridiculous that they are engaged in such serious conversation like the regular game club members? God, these guys are crazy."
The man still giggled alone, and eventually, a middle-aged man came up to him and asked, "What are you so funny about?"
The young man shrugged, then said, "Pardon? Oh, isn't this game so much fun? I guess this game will be as exciting as that apartment episode before."
When he said that, they became silent all of a sudden. It was not the right time for him to mention it in this situation, no matter how childish he was.
In other words, he went over the line.
"What? What the heck did you say?"
"I'm talking about this situation. Isn't it pretty exciting? Why are you guys so upset? You know you guys can't survive with a mindset like that, right?"
"You must be crazy, bastard!"
As if he could not stand it anymore, the middle-aged man raised his voice.
He strode over to the young man and began to point his finger at him.
"People who couldn't get into the shelter are dying right now! How can you crack such a joke?"
When the middle-aged man scolded him, they began to chime in one by one.
"Yeah, that's right. Watch your language! A lot of people here can't even contact their family members!"
"No matter how crazy the world goes around, how can't you tell the game from reality?"
Despite such simultaneous accusations, the Asian man did not budge a bit.
"Hmm...game and reality? Is there anybody who can't tell them apart? Hahaha. Well, as they say, normal is a concept for the majority, so I must be abnormal here."
"What the hell is this guy talking about?"
"Kick him out of here right now!"
Without changing his expression, however, that man watched the situation with his arms crossed.
At that moment someone raised his hand and pointed at him. His index finger was trembling.
"He's a player!"
Player?
Strictly speaking, all the survivors here were 'players' the moment the game began.
But none of them admitted they were 'players' because the player referred to the low-level human beings used in the game.
"Pardon?"
In other words, the 'player' was not supposed to exist in this place, namely, Earth Zero.
"That's right! He's one of the colleagues of the Necromancer on Earth 32! He is the highest-level thief! That crazy bastard wearing weird clothes!"
That was true. He was none other than Hanho, who was widely known as the crazy guy wearing strange clothes, a player with such images, to those living in Earth Zero.
"Man, why is he here?"
At that moment, those who came to Hanho and pointed their fingers at him stepped back.
Since all of them enjoyed watching game broadcasts, they recognized Hanho belatedly.
"Well, I came here because I heard you guys were having great fun these days," said Hanho, with his arms crossed. He felt great as if he were a celebrity because they recognized him.
"How about it? Isn't it a little more fun now? Then, let me show you something more interesting. Come on, everyone, look at me. Let me start!"
Comments