Vol 1 Chapter 4
"Mr. Kang Mu-heon, do you really think games are just a waste of money and time?"
"...Aren't they?"
He glared back at him as he retorted.
"Your denial is so strong, it's making me, as someone in the game industry, feel a bit fired up."
Yoon Seok-ho said this and rested his chin on his hand.
"Alright. I'll give you a very special gift, Mr. Mu-heon. Until April 9th, keep an eye on the information about THE MIST. By then, the gift I'm sending will arrive."
"I don't need it."
He snapped and exited by pressing the port number. The last thing he saw in the room was Yoon Seok-ho smiling while Ahn Ho was at a loss.
After that, he spent two months ignoring the overheated media atmosphere about THE MIST, whose identity was gradually being revealed.
However,
[ A package has arrived. ]
"Who..."
"Hello! This is Korea Delivery. Come on, please step aside. Let me in."
April 9th. It was a while after opening the door that he found himself staring at the large capsule being suddenly carried in, feeling as if he'd been hit on the back of the head.
He immediately connected to Saturn Co., Ltd.'s VT port.
"Welcome. This is Saturn Co., Ltd.'s virtual port line. What brings you..."
"Please connect me to Branch Manager Yoon Seok-ho right away."
A different guide from last time appeared and tried to greet him, but the moment their eyes met, he spoke with a trembling voice, clearly frightened.
"B-Branch Manager?"
"Yes. Right now."
The guide started tapping the hologram without even properly responding.
"Um... It seems the Branch Manager is meeting with someone else first..."
"It doesn't matter. Please connect me."
"But may I ask what your business is..."
"It's a very personal matter regarding THE MIST. If you tell him it's Kang Mu-heon, he'll receive me well, so please connect me."
"I-I'll connect you. 3, 2, 1."
The guide finally connected him, and he looked straight ahead, enduring the oncoming dizziness.
It was a different room from last time. The other person who was said to be meeting first wasn't visible, but that didn't matter. He couldn't have imagined that seeing Yoon Seok-ho's smooth face again after two months would irritate him this much.
"Ah, Mr. Kang Mu-heon. It's been two months. How have you been?"
He waved his hand as if he had been waiting for him, with an expression that showed no surprise at all.
Ignoring the unnecessary words, he opened his mouth.
"What is the meaning of this?"
"The meaning of what?"
"Take the capsule back right now."
He raised one eyebrow and smiled playfully.
"Judging by your words, it seems the gift arrived safely. Do you like it?"
"I don't have a hobby of receiving such things, so I'll return it."
"Oh my, getting too angry is bad for your looks. If you don't have a hobby, you could make this your hobby from now on."
He quietly glared at Yoon Seok-ho. He didn't know what he had eaten for the past two months, but it seemed he had enough nonsense and madness to spare.
"Stop joking around. I'm going to return it right now, so keep that in mind."
"Hmm... That's troublesome."
Yoon Seok-ho frowned slightly for the first time.
"That's a special capsule made for people like you, Mr. Kang Mu-heon. It's a collection of cutting-edge VT technology that can't be compared to ordinary capsules. If you return it here, it will be immediately disposed of."
"Go ahead and do that. I'm not going to use it anyway."
At his answer, Yoon Seok-ho shrugged.
"Actually, the official price of that device is 11.99 million won. Considering that a normal general-use capsule costs 1.99 million won, it's about six times more expensive."
For a moment, he doubted his ears.
Considering that the dedicated goggles or capsules needed to play normal VT-line games cost at most 200,000 to 300,000 won, with a monthly usage fee of around 50,000 won, that price seemed like something no one in their right mind would pay.
"...Who would even play that game?"
As he said this in disbelief, Yoon Seok-ho grinned.
"Because it's THE MIST. Of course, we're offering compromises like interest-free installments for 36 months or more. And since we started selling in March until today, the day before the opening, the number of devices sold in Korea alone is about 100,000, 100,000 units. And they're still selling like hotcakes."
There really are a lot of crazy people in the world.
It seemed like talking any further would only give him a bigger headache. He put his hand to his temple and turned around.
"I don't want to participate in this mad march, so I'll be going now."
If he had cut off the connection right there, he might never have encountered the turning point of his life again.
"Mr. Kang Mu-heon. Do you know why I specially gave you that capsule for free?"
He turned around, puzzled by Yoon Seok-ho's suddenly lowered voice. In Yoon Seok-ho's eyes that met his, something shining was rippling, just like when he first introduced THE MIST.
Momentarily captivated by that light, he shook his head.
"I don't know."
"It's because your eyes were too sad. It might not be my place to say this as someone who's just met you, but Mr. Mu-heon, you're not living your life in an enjoyable way at all right now. Isn't that right?"
The moment he heard those words, a feeling resembling shame suddenly washed over him. It felt as if a secret he had been hiding, not meeting anyone, had been exposed in an instant.
Even though he felt indignant, he couldn't refute it.
"I'm the type of person who simply can't leave eyes like that alone."
Yoon Seok-ho smiled and opened his mouth again with a strangely powerful tone.
"Don't you want to live your life again? An opportunity to meet another version of yourself is right in front of you, so what on earth are you trying to avoid! This is precisely the time to challenge your life once more. I've been working all this time to create such a game."
Those words, strangely enough, lodged themselves in his dry heart.
As if he had seen the ripples forming in his heart like a stone thrown into a calm river, Yoon Seok-ho continued speaking.
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Jin Soram, the top-ranked hunter representing South Korea's Rift Phenomenon Management Headquarters, is stronger than anyone else and lazier than anyone else. As soon as he arrives at the office, he buries himself under a blanket and falls asleep. When he goes out on a mission, he causes accidents and returns to the office, often shirking his duties.
"Do you know how it feels to play a game that's already messed up? ...Anyway, the next round will come, so this time, I'm just going to play it recklessly."
In fact, his true identity is someone who has regressed through three lives, trying to save the world from the Great Rift but failing each time. After repeating a life where he couldn't sleep peacefully even for a day, he became completely exhausted before this life even began.
"I know. You worked hard, Jin Soram."
And then there's Han Tae-un, the man who saved Soram and died in all three previous lives. As he did in every life, he comes to Soram's side once again. The Great Rift is approaching soon. It's impossible to resolve it in this life without any preparation. Soram vows to save Tae-un in this life and die himself. At least, he won't let Tae-un save a failure like himself again.
"For now, until then, let's sleep..."
As Soram sluggishly lives his life waiting for that moment, a gradual change occurs in his heart.
'I thought this was a messed-up round... but I want to live a little longer here.'
Leonardo Blaine, the true war hero of the Raina Logia Empire and the commander of the Armsilver 11th Squad, is dishonorably discharged for disobeying orders during the final battle that could have led the Empire to victory in the territorial war. People criticize and point fingers at him, and after being released on parole from prison, he disappears without a trace.
Three years later, his name has been forgotten by the world. The Council has been persistently pursuing him, but he has proven difficult to capture. Frustrated by this, Hugo Agrizendro, the commander of the Council's army, decides to personally apprehend him.
"Since when have you been watching me?"
Leonardo was calculative and astute, so it wouldn't be surprising if he had been observing Hugo for some time now. However, Leonardo's answer was something that even Hugo had not anticipated.
"From the very beginning."
Graduate student Yi-han finds himself reborn in another world as the youngest child of a mage family.
– I’m never attending school, ever again!
‘What do you wish to achieve in life?’
‘I wish to play around and live comforta-‘
‘You must be aware of your talent. Now go attend Einroguard!’
‘Patriarch!’
My future would be guaranteed once I graduate. For my future!
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