Chapter 4 ….
“What’s the first thing you want to do after discharge?”
It was the question soldiers about to finish their service heard most often.
And the answers were usually simple.
I want to sleep at home all day.
I want to have samgyeopsal with a shot of soju.
I want to lie in bed, eat fried chicken, and watch Netflix.
People whose freedom had been suppressed came to appreciate ordinary life—and wanted it back.
In that sense, Dohyeon was no different.
“Games.”
“…What?”
“I said I want to play games.”
“……”
His daily life as a hardcore gamer had consisted of nothing more than a moderately sized room, a computer, and a VR device.
He desperately wanted that life back.
At first, his fellow soldiers stared at him blankly, but they soon understood.
“Games? You mean God of Savior?”
“Oh, that first full-immersion VR game? Damn, I get it. I’ve been dying to play it too. Just my luck—I got my draft notice right after it launched…”
“What kind of game is that? You should’ve said you wanted to play God of Savior.”
“When we get discharged, wanna hit a capsule room? Let’s form a party.”
To people now, God of Savior was no longer a game only shut-ins played.
It was a culture. A world.
In fact, it was harder to find someone who didn’t play it.
Even among older folks, not knowing God of Savior made you seem out of touch.
Unfortunately, with God of Savior dominating the world, there wasn’t a single person stuck in the military who didn’t want to play it.
“…Is God of Savior really that amazing?”
“I heard it’s like another world…”
“Oh, you guys haven’t played it? Damn, what a bunch of cave dwellers… It’s insane. Bring three diapers when you go.”
Even the juniors smoking nearby started showing interest.
Whenever that happened, the guys who had experienced the game outside would puff up proudly and launch into heroic tales.
Those who hadn’t played listened with childlike wonder.
Before long, 90 percent of military conversations were about God of Savior and women.
Every time, Dohyeon had to test his patience.
It really was a VR game…!
The sequel to Demrock—a game he had dismissed as impossible.
Who would’ve thought it would actually become full virtual reality?
Why did it have to release exactly when he enlisted?
It was so frustrating he could cry blood.
He normally didn’t believe in God, but this time his faith was surging.
At this point, it really felt like some deity was personally screwing him over.
And so, after enduring an eternity-like year and a half while hearing news about God of Savior—
The moment he was discharged—
Bang!
“…The capsule! Where’s the capsule?!”
“What the—Oppa, you’re back? Your hair got long.”
“Your brother comes home and the first thing he asks about is the capsule. When he was little it was ‘Mom, Mom’ all the time. Guess kids really don’t need their parents once they grow up.”
“Mamiii, you’ve still got your daughter~”
“You stop that. Honestly, you two have no middle ground.”
The moment he got home, Dohyeon searched for the capsule like an addict looking for drugs.
Watching TV, his younger sister Hyuna and their mother Cha Misuk clicked their tongues at him.
Normally he would’ve snapped back—but right now he didn’t care.
All he wanted was to see the capsule as soon as possible.
“We put the capsule in your room. Two delivery men carried it—goodness, why is it so heavy? Kids these days really play games on things like that?”
“Mom, you don’t know God of Savior? If you don’t, people call you a loser these days.”
“Oh my, of course I know. They talk about it on TV all the time. But it looks scary, so I couldn’t play something like that. Aren’t they afraid of fighting those monsters?”
“Mom, your son is the best at killing them. Total butcher.”
Half-listening to their conversation, Dohyeon stepped into his room—
—and froze.
His eyes filled with emotion.
“…Ah…”
Its radiant form.
The smooth oval shape and elegant curves were breathtaking.
As he approached and gently stroked the capsule, a wide smile spread across his face.
So this is the capsule…
It felt completely different from just seeing it on broadcasts.
Maybe it was because he had painstakingly saved up his now-decent military salary to buy it.
It was a used entry-level capsule he bought for about 4 million won, but pride swelled in his chest like he had just bought his first car.
“Son, aren’t you going to eat?”
“I ate already. I’ll eat dinner later.”
Giving a vague reply to Cha Misuk, Dohyeon immediately threw himself into the capsule.
The cushioning that enveloped him felt pretty nice.
It used to be expensive, but now that nearly two years had passed, capsules had become much cheaper.
Compared to before, the quality was better and the sync rate higher.
Alright… shall we log in?
Dohyeon skillfully began operating the capsule.
He had already memorized the controls from watching countless videos.
The same went for God of Savior.
He hadn’t studied everything, but he had checked the general structure on the way home.
It’s very similar to Demrock.
Since it was a sequel, many aspects were alike.
Which made sense.
God of Savior was set in the future generation after Demrock.
The world setting, cities, and various other elements—
Many things had changed, but since they shared the same roots, the system itself looked familiar enough.
He had only reviewed the basics for now, but detailed guides could wait.
A year and a half was more than enough time for information to pile up online.
With a billion players, God of Savior was especially well documented.
Click.
After turning on the switches and finishing setup, he put on the helmet-like gear.
His vision went dark.
Then messages appeared.
[Scanning iris.]
[Checking ID card.]
[ID card verified.]
[Synchronization complete.]
[Would you like to connect to God of Savior?]
“Yeah.”
The moment he answered, his consciousness blurred and the world turned white.
When his vision returned, he stood in a pure white space.
A female AI voice echoed.
[Welcome to the paradise of adventure.]
[Please create your character.]
[Gender cannot be changed. Appearance adjustments are limited to hair, eyes, and minor physical restoration. Other changes are allowed within safe biological limits.]
Dohyeon looked at the full-body mirror in front of him.
It reflected his current appearance.
Barely covered in only the important areas.
Though he had grown it out, his hair still screamed “soldier,” and his body looked noticeably more solid than before.
Still looks too military.
Not like he wanted to advertise he had just been discharged.
Each small adjustment instantly changed his appearance.
It felt almost magical.
Though in truth, he barely changed anything.
He only grew his hair longer.
Otherwise, it was basically identical to reality.
There’s not much I can really fix anyway. No need to waste time.
This was definitely different from Demrock.
In Demrock, where the five senses weren’t simulated, you could freely change even your gender.
Some so-called customization masters could work miracles even under these restrictions—but Dohyeon didn’t have that kind of talent.
Nor the patience.
After finishing customization, he finally looked more like a civilian.
As he admired himself—
The voice spoke again.
[Please choose a nickname.]
A nickname…
Anyone who played God of Savior would have to think carefully.
Normally, game nicknames couldn’t overlap—but in God of Savior, they could.
With a billion players, it made sense.
But Dohyeon didn’t hesitate for even a moment.
“Kaiser.”
The name that had been with him from the very beginning of Demrock until its shutdown.
To him, Kaiser was as meaningful as his real name.
He had never considered anything else.
[Is the nickname ‘Kaiser’ correct?]
“Yeah.”
[Nice to meet you, Kaiser.]
[Your hashtag is Kaiser#312543.]
[Character created.]
[Moving to the tutorial zone.]
His vision darkened again.
* * *
“Wow…”
Dohyeon let out an honest gasp.
He was standing atop a castle.
A classic medieval fantasy fortress.
It wasn’t quite as beautiful as the otherworldly landscapes he had seen in videos, but the torchlight cutting through the darkness and the towering walls made it feel like he had stepped onto a battlefield.
The cool night air brushing his body.
The smell of burning.
The sensation of his feet on the ground.
Even the faint tactile feedback when he wiggled his fingers.
Every sensation felt real.
So real he almost wondered if he had been transported into a fantasy world rather than starting a game.
It was on a completely different level from Demrock.
So this is VR…
As he blankly stared beyond the castle walls—
The voice returned.
[This is the site of the tragic past battle of Arren Castle.]
[Please select a weapon.]
Snapped back to reality, Dohyeon turned instinctively.
Numerous weapons floated in the air.
Seeing such game-like mechanics in such a realistic world felt oddly jarring.
[Crude Sword]
—A worn and dull sword.
It should still be capable of cutting people.[Crude Spear]
—A worn and dull spear.
It should still be capable of piercing people.…
[Crude Bow]
—A worn and frayed bow.
It looks like it can fire about fifty more times.
Swords, spears, bows, daggers, maces, crossbows, staffs…
Many weapons floated there.
Dohyeon chose without hesitation.
[You have selected Crude Sword.]
[You can use the basic sword skill ‘Heavy Strike.’]
[Tutorial begins.]
The sword—his most used weapon back in Demrock.
There wasn’t a special reason.
It just seemed the most versatile.
And it had suited him.
“Hey!”
The moment he picked the weapon, a soldier came running from afar.
His urgent expression and bloodstained armor showed the situation was dire.
Seeing Dohyeon just standing there, the soldier grabbed his wrist roughly.
“What are you doing here?! We don’t have a second to spare! The other mercenaries have already joined the battle—get moving!”
[Party formed with Knight Commander ‘Charlie.’]
Party Members
—Charlie
—Kaiser
Dragged into a hastily formed party, Dohyeon was practically pulled into the castle.
It was the typical event-style tutorial seen in many games.
But inside the castle—
It was chaos.
Soldiers and monsters lay bloodied, pierced by swords and arrows.
The relaxed atmosphere from moments ago vanished instantly.
And the deeper they went, the worse it became.
“Graaah!”
“Kaaaah!”
Fallen soldiers.
Others desperately fighting grotesque monsters over their comrades’ bodies.
Even mercenaries could be seen among the fallen.
“…It’s already this bad… Damn it.”
Charlie squeezed his eyes shut in anguish, then hurried forward.
He was genuinely grieving.
There was no way simple data could perfectly reproduce the tremor in his eyes and hands.
“They’ve joined forces with the monsters… If the rumors are true, they’ve made a pact with that ‘creature.’ If we don’t stop it, it will descend.”
That was why he couldn’t even close his comrades’ eyes before rushing ahead.
If the creature descended—
It would be over.
And Dohyeon knew exactly what that creature was.
He had seen it many times in videos.
It wasn’t a monster meant to be defeated in the tutorial.
“Hurry. Through here—it’s close.”
They had just come down the stairs and crossed the corridor when—
Fwooosh—Thunk!
Something sliced through the air.
Dohyeon stopped.
Arrows slammed into the ground right in front of him.
It almost looked like the arrows had deliberately avoided him.
“…!”
Charlie, who had been about to deflect them, froze in shock.
Then he muttered,
“Did you dodge that knowingly? No… that can’t be. You’re quite lucky.”
Stopping like that to evade arrows instead of deflecting them—
That was practically impossible.
Luck was the only reasonable explanation.
“Kikik—.”
“Kirrik—.”
The shooters were monsters.
They resembled gnolls—
But with small horns on their heads.
Five of them in total.
“Already pushed this far… We have to break through.”
Charlie took his stance.
The monsters grinned and raised their weapons.
Two archers.
Three wielding blunt weapons.
An annoying formation.
Charlie was troubled. Time was critical.
“First, I’ll—!?”
That was when—
Dohyeon dashed forward.
