Episode 17 — Solved the Basic Needs (2)
“Team Leader, what do we do? Are we just going to watch this happen?”
“Haa…”
The Black.
First Operations Team.
At the words of team member Oh Kyung-tae, team leader Kim Jun-ha let out a deep sigh and scratched his head irritably.
“What can we do? It’s not like that guy’s exploiting the system.”
If Aren had exploited the system or used illegal programs like hacks or bugs, they could have imposed penalties.
But Aren was creating a village through perfectly normal gameplay.
There was no justification for punishment.
“But if we just leave that player alone, won’t it get messy? The overall flow—”
“I know.”
Kim Jun-ha rubbed his head.
Even though Illusion was a game that players shaped themselves, there was still a general flow designed to be followed.
The operations team made sure things didn’t stray too far from that.
‘Who would’ve thought anyone would actually find that hidden piece…’
It wasn’t even made to be found in the first place.
‘No one’s gonna find this anyway, hahaha.’
That was the mindset when they created it.
No one expected a crazy player would appear, someone who ignored convenient skills just to manually build houses.
The situation was becoming troublesome.
It wasn’t serious yet, but who knew how it might develop later.
‘For now, we’ll just wait and see. It’s not like something huge will happen… right?’
“Team Leader.”
“What now?”
“There are tons of reports saying the NPC for the tutorial quest isn’t showing up in Lete Village. And the CEO’s on his way up.”
“…”
Guess I’m working overtime today.
* * *
[You have achieved an incredible feat.]
[You are the first Outsider to fully analyze and understand the structure of a clothing shop and restaurant.]
[Building comprehension has reached 100%.]
[New skill acquired: “Star Design LV. 1.”]
Aren returned to the village after buying materials from the Carpenter’s Guild.
‘And now I’m broke again.’
He’d spent most of his 133 gold earned from selling furniture.
“Looks like we’ll be eating bread again for a while.”
“Can’t be helped. We need to share it with the villagers too.”
“We really need to solve the food problem soon. We can’t live on bread forever—we deserve something tasty.”
“Yeah.”
He had just wanted a house in the game.
But things had gotten way out of hand.
“Let’s rest for a bit before starting again.”
Aren sat down on his chair at home and took a short break.
‘Oh right, I got a new skill.’
He checked the details.
[Star Design LV. 1]
Grade: A
Type: Active
EXP: 0.00%
Description: Allows a pre-construction virtual simulation to test structure and efficiency.
Mana Cost: 100
Cooldown: 10 seconds
Effects:
-
Building completion quality +10%
-
Material durability +10%
-
Resource consumption –10%
-
Maintenance cost –5%
‘So that’s what it does…’
He couldn’t fully tell from the description alone, so he activated it.
“Star Design!”
[Skill “Star Design LV. 1” activated.]
[Select a building to simulate.]
[Village Chief’s House / Residential Wooden House / Restaurant / Clothing Shop.]
‘Only buildings I fully understand, huh? Let’s go with…’
[You have selected “Clothing Shop.”]
Miniature components appeared on the table—tiny planks, beams, and pieces he could actually touch.
‘So this is the floorboard, and this one’s a pillar?’
“Ah! I see!”
Now he understood what the skill did.
He began assembling the miniature parts roughly into shape.
[Structural balance mismatch detected.]
[Horizontal alignment off.]
[Central pillar under excessive load—high collapse risk within 1 month.]
The tiny shop promptly collapsed.
“Amazing…”
It was an incredibly useful skill.
Even with modern architecture, no matter how precise the calculations, small variables could ruin everything.
You never really knew until the building was finished.
‘But with this skill… I can see the finished product beforehand.’
He could test structures in real-time and see how they reacted.
It didn’t take much time, and there was no penalty for failure.
‘Man, if this skill existed in real life, that’d be amazing…’
His mind began spinning.
He hadn’t liked copying the Rete Village shop’s design anyway.
Now he could make one of his own.
‘Let’s change it up.’
His creative urge kicked in.
Aren’s hands moved fast—assembling, rearranging, balancing.
[Balance mismatch.]
[Right pillar under excess load.]
[Poor drainage—leak risk detected.]
[Collapse likely within 5 months.]
It kept falling apart.
Five, six, ten tries later, the miniature still wouldn’t hold.
But Aren’s smile never faded.
‘This is fun!’
He loved making things.
Even though he wasn’t an architecture major, he knew woodwork.
‘Dad taught me.’
He remembered helping his father build houses for clients.
‘If I do this… and put the display racks here…’
This wasn’t just construction—it was creation.
Aren’s masterpiece was taking form at his fingertips.
After countless trials—
[Unique Clothing Shop Miniature Completed.]
[“Star Hands” and “Star Design” skill EXP increased.]
[Job EXP gained.]
[Item Acquired: Unique Clothing Shop Miniature.]
“Did it work?”
It stood firm.
The structure and interior were exactly as he envisioned.
‘Changing from pine to oak worked, huh?’
He remembered his dad saying oak could handle more load.
He’d also moved the weight support to the inner walls for a cleaner design.
Then he noticed something.
“What’s this?”
Even though the skill ended, the miniature remained.
“Inspect!”
[Unique Clothing Shop Miniature]
Grade: C
Description: A miniature of a custom-designed building crafted by a skilled carpenter.
When used, it projects a construction guideline.
User Restriction: Aren
Durability: 1/1
“A guideline? Can I actually use this?”
He went to the prepared construction site and used it.
[You have used the Unique Clothing Shop Miniature.]
[Select location.]
After selection, the miniature vanished, and a holographic projection appeared.
A faint, transparent outline of the shop shimmered in the air.
“Ah… so that’s how it works.”
Like a guide track for singers recording a song, it showed where each pillar and wall should go—so no mistakes could be made.
“Village Chief? Are you here?”
“Yeah, Alfredo. You see this?”
“Yes, I can see it.”
That meant everyone could.
Aren wouldn’t need to shout directions anymore—just follow the visible guide.
‘I can handle the finer details myself.’
It was incredibly convenient.
Aren smiled and unpacked the materials from the guild.
“What are you doing?”
“Sir?”
“Start working! The pillar base goes here—see it? Move!”
“Ah, yes, sir!”
Alfredo instinctively followed orders, carrying wood and hammering nails.
Aren rolled up his sleeves, grabbed his saw and plane, and joined in.
Then—
BEEP!
“What’s that sound?”
“Ah… I must’ve misaligned the pillar.”
Apparently, the guide emitted an alert whenever they strayed from the plan.
That meant mistakes would be rare.
“Fix it. That part’s crucial.”
“Yes, sir!”
Alfredo adjusted the beam and resumed work, thinking to himself:
‘Why am I doing this so naturally?’
Was he a butler or a carpenter?
His identity was in crisis.
Clang, clang.
They built, sawed, and sanded.
“Sandpaper, 400 grit.”
The golden sandpaper instantly changed texture.
‘What a handy tool…’
Swish, swish.
Aren’s hands moved smoothly, polishing the wooden planks to a soft gleam.
[You’ve perfectly smoothed the wood surface through delicate sanding.]
[Dexterity +1]
Aren was having fun.
What began as a simple dream of owning a home had become something deeper.
‘Creating things… is fun.’
In reality, he’d had to live within limits—debts, taxes, endless work.
But here, in Illusion, he could simply do what he wanted.
‘That’s the beauty of this game.’
He enjoyed every moment.
As the building’s shape slowly came together, he grew more eager to see the final result.
He added racks, fitting rooms, decorations—loving every part of the process.
Five hours later—
[You have completed construction of the Clothing Shop.]
The clothing shop was finally finished.
