Chapter 12 …
Geniuses draw attention even before they step onto the stage.
How could an awl be hidden just because it’s inside a pocket? Even if no one noticed before they stepped onto the stage, they were bound to attract attention soon enough.
Of course, there were rare exceptions.
“Was it six months ago…? That rookie who maxed out favorability showed up? I heard he even pulled a Mythic God.”
“The whole industry flipped out. Do you know how much heat we took for failing to recruit him back then…?”
“Ugh. But come on, how often does a case like that happen? Every time I hear about that guy my heart drops. I’m worried the manager’s gonna lose his shit again.”
Since that day, the number of scouts had only continued to grow, while valuable rookies with worthwhile traits were rarer than beans in a drought.
And if those traits were combat-related?
“They’re telling me to bring in at least one this month or else… Might as well tell me to go die.”
“Exactly. And newbies these days aren’t just clueless newbies. They all know their own value. If their traits are that good, why the hell would they join some mid-sized guild like ours instead of a major one?”
“Sigh. Your fate is my fate, man. Let’s stop whining and go find at least one prospect.”
Grumbling as always, the scouts had no choice but to head out in search of talent.
“Yeah, that one’s hopeless.”
“Hmm… what about him? Looks like a combat class.”
“Look at the way he’s swinging his sword in the air. I’ll bet my one year of experience he doesn’t have a single sword-related trait.”
“He could have a Hero God, you know?”
“Hey, you think this is my first day? At this stage you can’t judge talent just because they rolled a decent class. The traits have to back it up before it’s worth investing. Unless it’s a Mythic God or at least a rare Hero God…”
“That guy looks decent though. His eyes are alive.”
It had already been a year and six months since the game launched.
Those with experience had now reached the level where they could roughly judge someone’s potential at a glance.
It was know-how earned by approaching every newbie they saw without fear or shame.
Thanks to that, scouts were often treated like the in-game equivalent of “Do you believe in God?” street recruiters—but their discernment had improved because of it.
Their criteria weren’t anything grand.
Just as cult recruiters could uncannily pick out kind and gullible people, scouts judged newbies through their expressions, tone of voice, and conversations.
Some even went further and read their eyes—and strangely enough, their accuracy rate was fairly high.
Newbies who obtained good traits tended to give off a different aura from the start.
“You just can’t help but show it off.”
“It’s basically like starting the game after winning the lottery. Of course it shows.”
“If it were me, I’d be shouting it all over town.”
For that reason, scouts closely watched newbies’ eyes and expressions. And because of that, the players they avoided most tended to be very similar.
“Hmm… his eyes are completely dead.”
“He looks like a civil service exam repeater living in a cram dorm. I’m actually curious what kind of trait he pulled.”
“Judging by that broken mental state, he’s definitely not cut out for a combat class.”
They all gave off the same kind of atmosphere.
It was then.
One scout nudged his colleague and gestured with his chin.
“Hey, look at that guy.”
“Huh? …Whoa. That’s one hell of a bomb.”
They were looking at a man.
He had a fairly masculine and pleasant appearance, but he stared blankly into space with unfocused eyes. His lips even moved as if he were muttering to himself while looking at nothing.
This was exactly the kind of newbie scouts avoided the most.
People like that usually had such terrible traits that they had to seriously consider deleting their character—and often their god draw was the worst possible too.
“Tsk tsk, looks like he really stepped in shit… What the hell did he pull? The Lazy Donkey God or something?”
“Worst gods are too many to count… but judging by him, his traits must be awful.”
“Wasn’t the officially known worst trait Foot Eater?”
Foot Eater.
Literally an ability that slightly increases teleportation speed when you eat the feet of insects or animals.
Not by much—just a tiny bit.
You’d think, what kind of trash trait is that? But the reason it became famous was because of how the user obtained it.
Someone named Charlie told the player to “go suck on feet,” and in anger the player actually did it—unlocking the trait.
Proudly enough, the bizarre story’s protagonist was Korean.
“No way he got something like that.”
“Traits are insanely diverse… honestly, he might’ve gotten something even worse.”
“Hmm… whatever it is, he’s cooked.”
In reality, they had never seen anyone with that kind of reaction appear again in high-level content.
Nine times out of ten, those players either quit the game or deleted their character and remade one after 60 days.
A 99% guaranteed dud.
“You never know. Maybe he’ll just play casually without leveling. GodOS has plenty to see and do.”
“True… I heard some people just play GodOS to date and hang out. Paying that much money just for that… sheesh.”
“Let’s just focus on our own work.”
Because of that, the scouts stopped paying attention to the man.
They didn’t have enough time even to check all the other newbies.
That was the reason.
“Excuse me. Ah, I’m not a weirdo. I’m Bae Jin-cheol from the Peacemaker Guild. The thing is…”
“…Huh? Do you like sashimi? Trying to get something for free—wait, what did you just say!?”
“Hey, I’m not a scout. Want to buy an item? I’ve got a package on sale just for newbies right now.”
Scouts, newbies, and even merchants.
In the chaotic central plaza, the only reason Dohyun could keep his own space intact—
was because information was floating before his eyes.
[Blood Oath Necklace]
[Grade: Hero]
Description: A necklace bound by the blood oath of ‘Charlie,’ the knight commander of Arren Castle. Only his liege may possess this necklace.
Level Requirement: None
Equip Restriction: Charlie’s Liege
Physical Defense +61
Magic Resistance +53
Strength +4
Agility +2
Vitality +1
Attack Speed +5%
Movement Speed +5%
Special Option: Defense and Magic Resistance increase whenever a certain amount of EXP is gained.
Special Option: Unlocks at Level 35
Trade: Not possible
‘…Jackpot. Is this for real? A Hero-grade item right from the start?’
It was the information of the necklace he received from Charlie—something he hadn’t checked earlier because of his class advancement.
And even the options were extraordinary.
‘Ah… I seriously feel like I’m gonna collapse from sugar shock.’
With the sweet rewards exploding one after another, Dohyun was screaming internally, while people subtly avoided his vicinity.
They had no idea.
That the man they were avoiding not only possessed the coveted combat traits they desperately wanted—
but had five additional traits on top of that.
Not to mention he had drawn a one-of-a-kind god in the entire history of GodOS, and possessed both a legendary title and a Hero-grade necklace.
Kaiser—
had officially stepped into GodOS.
* * *
What is the first thing newbies do after finishing the tutorial?
Sightseeing the realistic otherworld scenery?
Trying fantasy restaurants? Avtartel’s signature crimson beer?
Those were all nice, but for users who awakened combat traits, seven out of ten shouted the same thing:
“RPGs are all about hunting!”
“Monsters! Find monsters!”
“Those cocky goblins are dead meat.”
In GodOS, hunting was king.
Mesmerized by high-level boss raid videos from top-10 guilds and veteran players, they were desperate to grow stronger as quickly as possible.
Flashy magic.
Dazzling swordsmanship.
Unbreakable shields.
Holy effects…
They possessed none of it—but when heading out to hunt, they were warriors and mages just the same.
Still, even they followed one rule.
“Gotta pick up quests first.”
“Guidebook quests are mandatory.”
“Let’s go see Uncle Dante first.”
“Goblins can wait.”
Quests.
Like most RPGs, quests in GodOS were highly efficient.
Instead of blindly grinding monsters, grabbing one or two quests—even if it meant running errands in town—was faster.
Considering the quest rewards, they were practically mandatory.
Because of that, GodOS users were obsessed with finding quests, and after 1 year and 6 months, most quest guides had already been fully released.
[Beginner Essential Quest Guide]
The so-called newbie bible was one of them.
“This is insanely well organized.”
“Honestly the creator deserves an award.”
“No useless steps. You even get a rare item—only an idiot would skip this.”
Follow the route in the guide and you could not only reach Level 12—the usual graduation level from the beginner city—but also fill out the Adventure Log and obtain a Rare-grade item.
‘Objectively… it’s a well-written guide.’
Since it still ranked at the very top of the bestseller index, Dohyun planned to follow the route.
That was the advantage of being in the later wave.
You missed the thrill of discovery, but you could comfortably walk the path paved by the pioneers.
Finding Dante wasn’t difficult.
The guide explained it kindly, but honestly there was no need to check—
you just had to follow the crowd of players rushing in one direction.
‘As expected, following where the crowd gathers is the golden rule.’
Some things never changed, whether in reality or in games.
When Dohyun arrived in front of a small hut, he saw players gathered in a tight cluster, frowning and grumbling.
“That’s Dante! Hurry and—wait, why is there a line?”
“Damn it, I need to grab the quest and start hunting. Why is the line this long?”
“Ugh, even in VR they couldn’t fix this chronic problem.”
An enormous crowd.
Players were already getting dizzy from the delay when they were itching to start hunting—but their complaints quickly died down.
“Oh ho, quite a crowd again! Then without further ado—please slaughter those foolish goblins multiplying without any sense!”
Ding—
[Quest ‘Goblin Cleanup’ has been generated.]
[Goblin Cleanup]
Grade: Normal
Description: A quest requested by Dante, a senior hunter of Arde.
The number of goblins has been rapidly increasing, and Arde lacks enough hunters to deal with them.
For a senior hunter like him, handling them personally isn’t cost-effective.
Thus, he requests the apostles newly arrived in Arde to take care of the troublesome goblins.Defeat Goblins (0 / 40)
Reward: 80 Silver, a certain amount of EXP
Failure Risk: Dante’s favorability may decrease
Time Limit: 24 hours
[Would you like to accept the quest?]
‘…Huh?’
Thanks to Dante’s bold move of immediately issuing a mass quest the moment he arrived—
Dohyun was able to accept the quest right away.
