RGRB 11

RGRB

? Views, Released on October 12, 2025

Episode 11 — Built a Wooden House for Living

“So… you’re saying you became the village chief?”
“Yeah.”
“Wow…”

Kim Min-soo nearly spilled his coffee.
The news was that shocking.

“So that’s why you’ve been so tired lately?”
“Yeah. There were a bunch of useless houses in the village, so I had to demolish them. Man… even though I was just moving my avatar, I swear my real body got sore — like actual muscle pain.”

It really did feel that way.
Even though it was all virtual, his body in the real world felt stiff and aching.

“That’s called phantom pain.”
“Phantom pain?”
“Yeah. Just because it’s virtual reality doesn’t mean it’s perfect. You’ve heard those stories, right? People under hypnosis touching a cold kettle but still getting burn marks?”
“Yeah, I think I’ve seen that.”
“Same concept. Even if your body isn’t moving, your brain is experiencing it. So naturally…”
“It affects your body, huh?”
“Exactly. Which is why you need to rest.”

Juhyeon nodded slowly.
Come to think of it, he remembered seeing a TV debate about the dangers of full-immersion VR games.

“So that’s what was going on.”
“Still… that’s amazing. You actually became a village chief. And you even found a hidden piece? Damn…”

Kim Min-soo gave a hollow laugh.
He’d been searching for over half a year and hadn’t found one,
but Juhyeon stumbled upon it so easily.

When Juhyeon said he was going to “build a house in-game because real estate is too expensive,” it had sounded ridiculous at the time.

“But he found a hidden piece doing that?”

His stomach twisted — maybe from the coffee,
or maybe just from sheer envy.

“Damn it. I’m jealous.”

“Wanna come visit sometime?”
“No.”
“Why not?”
“Because I know you. You’ll just make me work. Why would I go?”
“…That’s…”
“You’re not gonna deny it, are you? Last time I came to your place, you made me help put up wallpaper.”

Juhyeon flinched a little at that, and Min-soo snorted.

“Besides, I’ve got an active quest going right now, so I can’t go anywhere.”
“Fair enough.”

Too bad.
Min-soo had been playing Illusion for a long time — his level was probably high.

“He would’ve been perfect labor…”

With all the work left to do, every extra pair of hands counted.
But Min-soo had wriggled out of it neatly.

“So that chair you made really sold for 50 gold and 787 silver?”
“Yeah.”
“That’s incredible.”

Min-soo stroked his chin thoughtfully.
That meant the chair had sold for roughly 507,800 won in real money.

“Guess I just got lucky.”
“Lucky? Come on…”

Luck alone doesn’t earn you 50 gold.
Especially not in Illusion, where everything was done through a live bidding system.
Those veteran players didn’t make mistakes like that —
which meant they thought his chair was worth that much.

“You know… maybe you should just quit your job and sell furniture full-time.”
“Well…”

Juhyeon had thought about it too.
Illusion could make you money.
In fact, more and more young people were starting to earn real income from the game.

There were even rumors —
a blacksmith who sold a sword for 30 million won,
a farmer who grew a rare sweet potato that went for 300,000 won.

“It’s not impossible…”

“I’ll wait and see how things go first.”

He answered carefully, and Min-soo took another sip of coffee.

“Fair enough. Can’t just quit a real job suddenly. Be smart about it.”
“Yeah.”
“Anyway, it’s about time to head back. The manager’s gonna flip again.”
“Let’s go. But hey, really — you sure you don’t wanna visit my village? I’ve got so much to— hey! Hey!!”

Min-soo didn’t even look back, slipping out of the break room while Juhyeon called after him.

Inside the Game

“Status Window!”

[Status Window]
Name: Aren
Level: 12 (EXP 3.55%)
Class: Carpenter of the Stars
HP: 1,400 / 1,400
MP: 1,300 / 1,300

[Attributes]
Strength: 16 + 3
Stamina: 11 + 3
Agility: 11 + 3
Wisdom: 10 + 3

[Special Stats]
Dexterity: 86 + 31
Remaining Stat Points: 2

“Two levels up already.”

Apparently, demolition counted as carpentry work —
he’d gained job EXP and leveled up twice.

Without hesitation, Aren dumped both points into Dexterity and closed the window.

“All the debris’s cleared too.”

It had taken about a week to demolish everything, clean up the rubble, and level the ground.
Work that would take heavy machinery a few days in real life had taken much longer by hand.

“Good work.”
“…”
“What, dead already? If you are, I’ll bury you nicely over there.”
“Not dead. Just too tired to answer…”

Alfredo looked completely drained.
He had been working side by side with Aren the whole time, after all.

[Quest “Village Cleanup” Complete!]
[You have gained experience.]
[Immigrant arrival rate has increased.]
[You can now construct Residential Wooden Houses.]
[New Quest: “Build a Residential Wooden House.”]

[Build a Residential Wooden House]
Grade: D
Description: The village has been cleaned.
Now, construct a residential wooden house so immigrants can settle here.
Success Condition: Build a residential wooden house.
Reward: EXP, Job Skill, Title.
Failure Penalty: Lower immigrant arrival rate, reduced reputation.

“A residential wooden house, huh…”

The wide, empty land did look lonely without any buildings.

“Not much information on this part yet.”

As Min-soo had said —
among all Illusion players, Aren was the only one known to hold a village chief title.

“I’ve heard big guilds are trying to earn noble ranks or governorships in-game,
but no one’s actually succeeded yet…”

There were no precedents.
Aren might be ahead of everyone else —
but that also meant he had no information to rely on.

“But what do they mean by immigrants?”

Alfredo wiped his brow and explained.

“There are many people across this continent without homes.
Aren, you can invite such wanderers and let them settle here as immigrants.”
“That many? Why?”
“Some flee from greedy lords who overtax them, others from places with poor security… reasons vary.”
“Hmm…”

So, increasing the immigrant arrival rate meant more people would come to live in his village.

Still, with so little information available,
every decision felt like stepping into the unknown.

“Looks like I’ll have to figure this part out myself too.”

‘It won’t be easy, but…’

“Building a house? Well…”

Aren grinned.

For him, building a house wasn’t all that difficult.

“Let’s go.”
“Urgh… Where are we going?”
“Where do you think?”

Just thinking about building a house again made his hands itch with excitement.

“We’re going to buy materials.”

* * *

“Alright~ Let’s get started, shall we?”

After stopping by Rete Village to buy materials, Aren laid them down neatly and spoke.
He’d spent all the money he earned from selling that chair.
Now he was broke again — but he wasn’t worried.

‘Money can always be earned again.’

He took his place and scanned the open space.

‘It’s best to start from the inner side of the village and build outward.’

If he wanted the place to look nice, he couldn’t just throw houses around randomly — placement was key.
He picked up his shovel and got to work.

The most important part of house construction was the foundation.
If the groundwork was sloppy, no matter how beautiful the house looked, it would eventually collapse.

‘First, level the ground…’

That was the grading process — clearing debris and evening the surface before building.
Once he’d flattened the land cleanly, Aren began moving briskly, setting up the structure.

“Bring those wooden posts over here. I’ll set them up.”
“Yes, sir. But… what exactly are we doing?”
“Making the foundation frame.”
“The foundation frame?”

Aren nodded.

“You need to make a solid foundation if you want a sturdy house.”

“I see. Ah, hold it tighter there! If it falls, we’re doomed!”
“Y-Yes, sir!”

He dug into the earth, driving wooden posts deep into the ground and securing them tightly.
Once fixed, he connected the posts horizontally with beams and nailed them down.

‘That should do it for the skeleton.’

Now the base frame — the bones of the house — was complete.
All that remained was to fill it in.

He worked busily, laying the floor, erecting center pillars, and installing beams to support the roof.
Then came the walls, and finally, the roof itself.

‘This is fun!’

To others, it would have looked like back-breaking labor, but for Aren — who once worked as a carpenter alongside his father — it was pure joy.

For him, construction was like a hobby.
Just like assembling a model kit piece by piece, building a house followed the same rhythm — laying the foundation, erecting the frame, putting up the walls and roof.

The satisfaction of seeing it all come together — that couldn’t be put into words.
He wasn’t tired or miserable.

Knock knock. Clang clang.

‘What a strange village chief…’

Alfredo watched in disbelief as Aren worked tirelessly, handing him materials as needed.

The outsiders — “the gifted ones” — could normally use special abilities for such tasks.
If Aren used one, he could finish the house instantly.

‘And yet he’s hauling, hammering, carrying… doing it all by hand?’

Maybe he hadn’t learned the right ability yet.
That was the only explanation that made sense.

Knock knock. Clang clang.

“Phew! Alright, that’s done… Next…”

Even though it was exhausting work, Aren showed no sign of fatigue — just a small, content smile.

‘I really met a peculiar master.’

By the time a full day passed and Aren logged back in after work, the construction was complete.

Ding!

[Hardworking Builder]
Grade: B (Unique)
Effect: STR +2, VIT +2
Increases STR and VIT gain by 20% when completing construction work.

[Stellar Architecture Lv.1]
Grade: B (Passive)
Description: Harness the power of the stars to build faster and more efficiently.
Effect: Construction Speed +20%, Efficiency +10%, STR & VIT +20% during construction.

Aren had earned a title and a skill — the kind of reward that would make Minsu cry in envy.
But rather than focus on that, Aren looked at the finished house before him.

“Even I’ve got to admit — this turned out great.”
“Indeed. It’s magnificent,” Alfredo agreed.

Aren inspected the completed structure.

Ding!

Aren clicked “Yes.”

“At last, I can rent it out!”

Alfredo smiled brightly.

“So, what happens now?”
“Now settlers will hear about the village and start coming. Then you can collect rent from them.”

“Rent, huh…”

Aren stroked his chin.
He’d started Illusion just to have a home of his own.
Then he rediscovered the joy of carpentry — and now this hobby had turned into something much bigger.

‘Not bad at all.’

He didn’t know how much rent he’d make, but it was an experience he could never have in real life.

“Still, how will settlers even find this place?”
“Rumors spread quietly, my lord. As your reputation grows, more settlers will be drawn to your village.”