TL: SWAN
PR: Hayath
6th Episode.
[Maxed likeability from the Start?]
– Grade: Rare
– Description: A title given to those who max out the NPC’s affection during the tutorial.
– Effect: Accelerates the increase in NPC’s Likeability.
All stats +2.
This title was one of the ‘hard-to-obtain’ rewards, even in Demrok.
Naturally, it was to be expected. This title was granted only to those, whose actions or results were deemed to be more than enough, to deserve it.
One had to act more fiercely than others, and produce results decisively.
“A rare title is indeed precious.”
Among them, a rare grade was a satisfactory achievement.
From common, rare, heroic, to legendary.
The Title grades ranged from common, rare, heroic, to legendary.
Each grade had significant differences in abilities, and the rare grade could be useful in various situations.
During the Demrok era, Do-hyun utilised the rare grade titles the most.
And this grade system seemed to be in place in Godose as well.
The importance of the rare grade was expected to be similar here too.
“A good start indeed.”
In that sense, obtaining a rare grade title from the tutorial was a very pleasant start.
Moreover, it was an option that helped with likeability points. Although it didn’t help in combat directly, in the long run, it could be even better.
“Fortunately, Godose doesn’t use a gacha system for affection rewards.”
Surprisingly, they seem to have made some adjustments reflecting on the feedback.
Well, that’s why Godse could swallow up the whole world. If it had been operated like Demrok, even as the first virtual reality, it would have faced a lot of controversy.
Do-hyun finished checking the rewards and lifted his head.
“Hmm.”
I saw Charlie with his eyes shining, sporting a compassionate expression that seemed to be a far cry from the frustrating demeanour he had, during their initial encounter.
“Thanks to you, we were able to reach here faster than expected. It’s all thanks to you.”
His voice had softened noticeably.
‘The way you just fought in battle… is it really that easy?’
When you think about it, he hasn’t done much. But in this kind of situation, it’s natural to feel grateful to Do-hyun, who quickly cleared out the demons.
Even though it was a battlefield, the atmosphere had somewhat become calm, and he gestured forward.
“Now, we just need to go there.”
What he pointed at was the door beyond the corridor.
Finally, this tutorial was coming to an end. Going through that door would lead to the final event.
“Once we eliminate the dark sorcerer inside, we can decorate this war with victory…”
While Charlie was running through the corridor, he continued speaking.
“….!”
About a hundred meters apart.
Creak.
The corridor they had just passed, suddenly started collapsing.
But that wasn’t the end.
An unpleasant black light was seeping out from beneath the crumbling floor.
Charlie was taken aback by the sudden change.
“Oh my god…! Has the summoning already begun?”
It was because the summoning had progressed faster than they originally planned.
To make matters worse, grotesque creatures were emerging from the collapsed floor, including the ones they had seen a while ago, along with creatures resembling bats.
Someone had to stop them.
“Oh no…! I’ll take care of this place; you go ahead! Just go inside there. Make sure to take down the summoner!”
“…?”
“Originally, something like this should be handled by me, the leader… but I feel like I can trust you with this. No, I would rather ask for your help. Oh, hero… could you please lend your aid?”
In that moment, Do-hyun absent-mindedly found himself staring at Charlie, forgetting the situation.
He wondered if he had misheard something.
Perhaps misunderstanding his intentions, Charlie began to express his gratitude and started praying.
“May the blessings of Arrenthia be bestowed upon the hero of this war…”
For Do-hyun, it was a perplexing situation.
“…I’m the one going in? Not you?”
This was a kind of event that was definitely set to happen in the tutorial of Godose.
‘It’ would be summoned, and Charlie would enter to confront the monster first. Then, after the creature’s roar, he would die, breaking through the wall, and ‘it’ would emerge.
Even Do-hyun, who was new to playing God’ose,knew about it, as it was an event that happened to everyone universally.
But now, this event has changed.
‘They say it changes a bit depending on what the user does, but could it really change to this extent?’
It was a strange occurrence.
Charlie had barely intervened in the battle, and clapping his hands seemed like a minor detail that wouldn’t disrupt the progress, but… this was an event that was supposed to happen inevitably, wasn’t it?
As they approached the door, a message popped up.
[Only one person can enter at a time.]
[Upon death, the seal will collapse, and all the status ailments of the boss will be lifted.]
[Do you really want to enter?]
A rather alarming message. I had never heard of such a message appearing in the tutorial. Some might know about it, but at the very least, it wasn’t a general route.
And in Demrok, they called such things…
‘Easter eggs.’
Or…
‘Hidden Pieces.’
A mechanism deliberately hidden within the game.
And such mechanisms usually boasted a high level of difficulty, with rewards that diverged from the usual.
If God’ose was similar to Demrok, this was likely the case here as well.
He didn’t exactly know the principle behind how the hidden piece was triggered, but perhaps Charlie’s recognition and Likeability played a significant role.
“Lucky me.”
That was really the only way to express it.
Who would have known that such a secret was embedded here? At this moment, Do-hyun felt like he could easily accept Charlie’s exaggerated reactions with a pleasant mood.
[Do you really want to enter?]
“Yes.”
Do-hyun wasn’t the type to decline such a hidden piece.
With a resolute answer, as he opened the door, a dazzling light enveloped Do-hyun.
And when he opened his eyes, a different landscape unfolded before him.
Roar!
“Why, why is this happening? I am the one who summoned you! Listen to me! No, no! Aaargh!”
Something large and dark, stained with darkness, was devouring the person who seemed to be the summoner.
No, it was hard to call that thing a person.
Overall, it had a silhouette similar to a person, but the body it revealed, was similar to that of a demon.
[Dark Summoner Contracted with the Abyss]
– Title: One Contracted with the Abyss
– Type: Hybrid
– Characteristics: Dark magic, summoning, curse
– Description: A sorcerer of terror, contracted with the abyss. Seeking to conquer Arrenthia by summoning ‘it.’
The revealed information also indicated that it was not human.
But Do-hyun’s gaze wasn’t on it.
It was on the darkness, black as ink, swallowing it. The pupils glowing red within that darkness, resembling a reptilian creature.
[Imprisoned Blood-Bound Draconic Being]
– Title: Legendary Named Boss
– Type: Dragonkin
– Characteristics: Currently sealed.
– Description: A draconic being of the abyss bearing the title ‘Blood-Bound’. Information about them has yet to be disclosed to humans, and they have been transmitted as the source of fear. Currently, all abilities are sealed due to imprisonment, and the movement of the body is restricted.
“…Legendary?”
Do-hyun, having confirmed its information, let out a hollow laugh, seemingly astonished.
God’s Oase drew many elements from Demrok.
It consisted of grades like Common, Rare, Heroic, and Legendary.
The title Do-hyun obtained, as well as all the items and skills, were assigned grades.
And the same applied to monsters.
But not all monsters were like this. The grading was reserved only for monsters with the title ‘Boss.’
And among them, there are a special type of boss ‘The Named Boss’.
‘A unique boss with its own name.’
They were unique entities that bore a name representing themselves.
Unlike bosses that respawn upon death, they were finished once they were slain.
Irreplaceable, unique bosses.
Because of this, they were endowed with a setting of having lived for ages, which made them boast a higher difficulty even within the same grade.
‘A Legendary Named Boss…’
Such a being had the prestigious Legendary title, even appearing almost black in its display.
‘That’s why they say it’s impossible to defeat them it.’
Now it all made sense.
This monster wasn’t designed to be captured in the first place.
It was a boss monster tasked with an absolute mission to kill the user unequivocally to progress through the predetermined event.
That was the true identity of the tutorial boss.
It wasn’t that strange after all.
In games, it was familiar for gamers to encounter monsters in tutorials that were impossible to defeat.
However, there was one puzzling aspect.
‘In the video, everything appeared as a question mark except for the name…’
Even though I thought it would be powerful, I didn’t expect it to be this overwhelming.
Perhaps there were those who knew its true identity.
‘Well, in about a year and a half, there could be some who may know about it. But in that amount of time, most hidden pieces would have already been uncovered.’
Of course, even if they did know about it, no one would dare to try and capture it.
Now that he had come this far, he had to make a choice.
Whether to defeat it.
Or to cleanly give up.
As if to aid Do-hyun’s dilemma, their eyes met, and the beast let out a roar that could make one shudder just from hearing it, despite being about 10 meters away.
And the messages that followed were even more chilling.
Roar!
[‘You have heard the roar of the imprisoned Blood-Bound Draconic Being.’]
[‘Your physical abilities are reduced due to roar of the overwhelming presence.’]
[‘Movement speed reduced by 20%.’]
[‘Attack speed reduced by 20%.’]
[‘Defense decreased by 30%.’]
[‘Magic resistance decreased by 25%.’]
“…No conscience, huh?”
The creature, already so formidable, was unrelentingly applying debuffs.
It seemed as though it was determined not to be fair, especially when it came to facing ‘It’. However, it was somewhat of a fair condition to a certain extent as well.
Clank, clank, clank…
The creature’s hands, feet, torso, and even its neck were all restrained by the bindings, keeping it from crashing into the wall.
Like a guard dog protecting its territory.
Any attempt to go beyond a certain range was being blocked by the restraints.
Though its arms seemed somewhat free, the creature swung them, but at a slow pace.
– HP: [1,000,000 / ???]
there were apparent signs of injuries with blood trickling from its entire body, it seemed to possess a pitifully weak vitality for a Legendary Named Boss, as mentioned in the description, all abilities were sealed.
Apparently there were signs of injuries, with blood dripping from its entire body. It seemed to possess a pitifully weak vitality for a ‘Legendary Named Boss’, as mentioned in the description, and all its abilities were sealed.
In short, it was like a decaying piece of debris, with its limbs severed and its dying state.
Nevertheless, it had an incredibly brutal arm, which if it landed a hit, would undoubtedly be fatal, given its monstrous size.
Logically, it wasn’t a boss meant for a level 1 user to defeat.
‘If I die, the seal and status ailments will be lifted, right?’
Presumably, in the original tutorial, it was Charlie’s death that had broken the seal, allowing it to regain its complete form.
If that’s the case…
‘…Isn’t it worth a try?’
Perhaps this was the only chance.
The chance to defeat an unbeatable boss.
Similar situations had occurred in Demrok as well.
While they were discovered by chance, facing outrageously difficult hidden pieces always placed Do-hyun at a crossroads of choice.
And every single time, Do-hyun’s choice remained consistent.
“Alright, let’s do this.”
Kaiser was not a man to shy away from such challenges.
