Nam Hojin was never the most popur guy. Whether in elementary or high school, he was always a reserved young man who, despite having a good appearance, didn't like to talk to others. And that was how it was his entire life.
"Hojin is a strange kid!"
"Hojin is a weird boy!"
"Hojin should disappear!"
That was what he put up with on a daily basis. But... In reality, none of that mattered that much. After all, every day when he got home, he immersed himself in the world of games, until, 5 years before the present moment, Nam Hojin discovered the game that would change his life:
"Chronicles of God's Disciples"
A Korean MMORPG that, as soon as it was released, everyone started pying. Within a week, there were already 10 million pyers. Within a month? 100 million. And the growth was exponential! Within the game, however, he was never a person to join guilds or make friends; He was a true "Lone Wolf". At the beginning of the game, it was a game screen like any other:
[ WELCOME TO CGD! ]
< HOME >
< CAMPAIGN MODE >
< PVP MODE >
< CREDITS >
And, with just one click, he could start pying; He took the "Shadow Disciple" css, and, after just one month of pying, he became a "Necromancer". But... Inside? He still felt nothing. Only that game gave him a little excitement.
<< Currently, March 21, 2024, Seoul >>
It was just another ordinary day in the life of Nam Hojin. At 7:30 in the morning, he was studying at his school, as always, alone, in his corner, while humming the song of his favorite game; Chronicles of God's Disciples. It was something between a calm jazz and a dark rock, total opposites, but somehow it created a good harmony in the game. The css was math, and while most of the css was doing the calcutions the teacher had given or were doing other calcutions, he was doodling in his notebook and drawing a picture of his game character. He remembered his status window...
╔════════【? STATUS ?】═════╗
║ ? Strength: ? 1000 (Max)
║ ? Agility: ? 1000 (Max)
║ ? Stamina: ??? 1000 (Max)
║ ? Intelligence: ? 1000 (Max)
║ ? Vitality: ? 1000 (Max)
║ ? Senses: ?? 1000 (Max)
║ ? Mana: ? 1000 (Max)
║ ? Free Status Points: ? 0
╚════════════════════════╝
He was simply historic. Even after 2 years of the game's decline in performance, where, at its peak, it could reach more than two billion pyers, he kept pying. He kept achieving EVERYTHING. He wanted to be remembered for something; He wanted to have all the game's achievements, all the items, all the skills, the top 1 in each Dungeon, the top 1 globally, nationally, regionally, in his guild, in his css and in EVERYTHING! That's why... He didn't stop pying. There was only one skill left for him to complete the game: "Third Person View". A skill that was impossible to achieve: You had to kill a GM (Game Master) to earn it. But, it had been 2 years since there were any more GMs in this game, after all, who would want to be a master of a failed game? But he didn't care. He was going to get that skill ANYWAY. But now, it was just a normal day... At least, until that moment. Time comes and goes, it was already noon, and he could finally go home, py his game...
"Hey, Hojin!" A female voice called him from behind, and he already knew exactly who it was; Oh Hyerin. A girl who, for some unknown reason, always tried to get his attention.
"What do you want?" Hojin asked, his neutral face unchanging.
"Can we do the chemistry homework at your house today?" She asked, shyly.
( What is this girl doing...? ) - He thought, while maintaining his expression.
— At my house? - He asked, pointing to himself with his index finger.
— That's right! - She replied, with a small smile of excitement.
( What the hell... She's not going to give up, is she? ) - Hojin thought, his expression becoming a little grayer.
— Ahhh... Maybe. Can you come to my house today at 5:00? - He asked, scratching his hair for a moment.
She nodded her head as if to say "yes" with excitement, and, before turning to leave, she blew a kiss to Nam Hojin, who, without reacting, just accepted it and turned to leave too. With his hands in his pockets, he looked at the clear sky with his blue eyes, and, before he could realize it, he was already on the subway to his house, using Google on his cell phone. It seemed like just another normal activity, until his eyes widened;
"The game 'Chronicles of God's Disciples', which had a lot of hype between 2020 and 2023, will be closed this year in 2024."
— Angeek Portal
That news... For the first time in his life, he felt...
A sense of loss.
Emptiness.
He was about to turn off his cell phone, but before he could, he received a notification;
"1 New E-mail has arrived for you."
Hojin sighed, and then clicked on the E-mail, which, as he read it, he realized that it looked like a letter:
? From: @DevelopersofChroniclesofGod'sDisciples
? To: @NamHojin069
— Hello, dear pyer. You have won a special reward! We, the Chronicles of God's Disciples development team, have been following your progress closely, and we are very happy to say that today, you are special. Our game is about to be taken down, but please don't forget about it. Here's something for you.
With love, the Chronicles of God's Disciples Development Team!
As he finished reading, he gave a small smile... That game might not have much meaning to many, but for him, it was a part of his own life. Of his own story. But, upon closer inspection, there was an attachment there:
"stupdate.exe"
It was something for him to download, and even though it was an extremely heavy game, he checked it and realized that the file was only 4 MB. With a slightly surprised face, he clicked to "download" the file. It was the st time in his life that he would py the game he loved so much...
SHHHHHK—
Abruptly, the subway stopped. For a second, everyone who was sitting down was thrown to the side. Those who were standing fell to their knees on the ground, and at the same time the subway suddenly stopped, another sound surprised them;
BZZZT!
The power in the subway and tunnel went out. Panic set in. People started running around, and then, when Hojin looked at his phone again, the E-mail had been deleted. And before he knew it, a bright blue status window appeared in front of him;
╔═════【? INFORMATION ?】════╗
║ ? Name: Nam Hojin
║ ? Age: 18 Years Old
║ ? Height: 1.84 Meters Tall
║ ? Blood Type: O-
║ ? Css: ???
║ ? Level: 1
║ ? Rank: F
║ ? Skills: ??? ║ ? Artifacts: N/
╚════════════════════════╝
╔════════【? STATUS ?】════╗
║ ? Strength: ? 5
║ ? Agility: ? 5
║ ? Endurance: ??? 5
║ ? Intelligence: ? 5
║ ? Vitality: ? 5
║ ? Senses: ??? 5
║ ? Mana: ? 5
║ ? Free Status Points: ? 0
╚════════════════════════╝
With wide eyes, he tried to understand what was happening; The game... Had it become reality?! Little by little, everyone around him opened their own status window, but before that, they received a question;
"What css will you be blessed with, warriors?"
And everyone answered; Warriors, Archers, Shooters, Tanks, Spearmen, Druids and others...
But unlike everyone else, Hojin didn't get that question. He simply has "???" where a css should be. With an angry smile on his face, he asked himself;
— Didn't these bastards tell me they had a gift for me?! - He clenched his left fist as he spoke softly.
But while the atmosphere was tense and quiet, a voice emerged inside the carriage;
— My compatriots! - A young but firm voice echoed through the train. — Let's go! We can face these evil forces with our new abilities!
Oh, of course... Everyone received a brief expnation about what would happen to the world at that moment; Dungeons, monsters, ranks... But again, Hojin didn't get any of that. It was starting to get weird.
— These monsters are trying to invade Korea and the world, but... We won't let them, will we?! - He shouted, with a smile on his face.
Before he could continue with his speech, the subway doors opened by themselves, and then, everyone was able to leave. With his hands in his pockets, Hojin walked along with everyone else until they left the tunnel, but what they found was something no one expected; A post-apocalyptic Seoul! Fallen buildings, people running while being hit by debris or torn apart by monsters, and a rge crack in the sky;
"The Hunt has only just begun..."
END OF CHAPTER 1.
