Chapter 30. An Uninvited Guest (1)
“Ugh… finally lunchtime?”
After working nonstop, Joohyun stretched his hands and cracked his fingers before glancing at the clock.
12:30 p.m.
Lunch time.
‘What was for lunch today again? I hope it’s pork stir-fry…’
“Hey, what are you doing? It’s lunchtime. Let’s go eat.”
“Is it pork today?”
“Nope. Fish cutlets.”
“Ugh.”
He gagged at the word alone.
“You really hate fish cutlets, huh?”
“They taste awful. Smell all fishy…”
“True, but what can you do? You eat what they serve.”
“Yeah, but fish cutlets can’t power me through the afternoon. Pork stir-fry, at least, gives me strength…”
“Are you addicted to pork stir-fry or something? You’re always talking about it.”
“Pork stir-fry is the food of life. The first bite amazes you, the second hooks you, and the third makes you realize you’ve lived for this. It never gets old, never!”
Kim Minsoo just shook his head, half amused, half resigned.
Sometimes he couldn’t tell what was wrong with this guy.
They grabbed their trays and sat down together.
“So, how have you been lately?”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean Illusion, obviously. Don’t tell me you thought I cared about your boring real life?”
“…”
“Come on. Who’d be curious about a guy whose life is just home, office, home, office?”
“…Fair.”
Joohyun had no rebuttal.
He used to spend his free time at his father’s workshop, tinkering for fun.
But after cleaning out that workshop one last time, the hobby stopped.
All that remained was routine.
“So, come on. How’s it been?”
“Hmm… same as usual. Oh! I did get a commission recently — to repair a wardrobe.”
“A wardrobe repair? From who?”
“The lord of Legrian’s estate”
Joohyun continued to eat his fish cutlet in silence.
One bite—instantly regretted.
“Ugh… disgusting. By the way, what’s with your face?”
“You mean… you actually met a noble NPC?”
“Yeah. Why? Is that supposed to be a big deal?”
“Of course it is!”
Minsoo’s voice rose without meaning to.
The whole cafeteria turned toward them.
He laughed awkwardly.
“Ahaha… sorry, everyone. Please enjoy your, uh… delicious fish cutlets…”
When the eyes finally turned away, Minsoo leaned in again.
“Whew… okay, explain. What exactly happened?”
“Well…”
Joohyun told him everything — the wardrobe repair, clearing the quest, earning the reward, raising affinity — even how he hunted and defeated a dungeon boss.
“Ugh…”
By the time he finished, Minsoo’s stomach hurt — not from food poisoning, but from envy.
Sure, he was happy for his friend. But this was too much good luck.
“Is that really such a big deal?”
“Of course! Do you know how hard it is just to meet a noble NPC, let alone get a quest from one?”
Minsoo clenched his jaw.
He’d played Illusion for dozens of hours without ever triggering a noble quest.
And Joohyun, who’d only started a few days ago, already had one.
He’d even built a village.
‘This bastard’s enjoying the game better than me…’
He was dying of jealousy.
“Unbelievable… I grind for hours and get nothing, but this guy just finds a noble quest like it’s lying on the road? What is he, the protagonist of a novel or something?”
“What?”
“Sigh… never mind. Let’s just eat.”
“Oh, by the way, is it normal for the ‘Dexterity’ stat to rise so fast?”
“Dexterity?”
“Yeah. Every time I make or repair furniture, it goes up a bit. I thought that was normal?”
“Wait. That’s impossible. Normally you’d have to carve hundreds of logs just to raise Dexterity by one point. You’re saying you got a point just by fixing one wardrobe?”
“Yep.”
“…Show me your status screen.”
“Here.”
Joohyun pulled out his phone mid-lunch and showed him.
Minsoo’s eyes nearly popped out.
“Wait—167 pure Dexterity? You?!”
“Why?”
“…That’s a ranker-level stat. Are you serious?”
He lowered his voice this time.
“That means your raw stat level is 167. That’s insane.”
It didn’t make sense.
Joohyun’s current level was only 37 — far from high.
And yet his Dexterity stat was beyond what anyone at his level could possibly reach.
“Even the number-one blacksmith had only fifty-five Dexterity at your level…”
“Really? I just thought it was supposed to rise like that.”
“Special stats don’t rise easily. My crafter friend’s level 70, and his Dexterity is only 88.”
“Huh. That’s lower than I thought.”
“It’s not that they’re low — it’s that you’re absurdly high.”
There was definitely something off about Joohyun’s growth speed.
“There’s even a saying among players: ‘To raise one point of Dexterity, you need to make two hundred weapons.’”
Dexterity became harder to raise the higher it got, requiring exponentially more effort.
‘But this guy gains one point per furniture piece? Is it his unique class? Or… something else?’
Maybe the Illusion system itself recognized that Joohyun’s real-world dexterity was already extraordinary.
After all, rumor had it that marathon runners in Illusion gained stamina faster; scholars gained intelligence; agile people gained agility.
The game somehow mirrored reality.
‘Come to think of it, he was always good with his hands… fixing stuff that looked beyond repair.’
He’d noticed that much.
But not to this degree.
Minsoo composed himself and finally said,
“Anyway, you really need to be careful.”
“What do you mean?”
“There are players after your village. Big guilds, even. They’re planning to take it.”
“Really?”
“Don’t just brush it off. I’m serious.”
“I know. Don’t worry — I’ve already prepared for that.”
“If you say so. Anyway, done eating?”
“Yeah.”
They cleared their trays and stood up.
“We still have time. Coffee in the break room?”
“Coffee? Sure. But first, I need the bathroom… my stomach…”
“Go ahead.”
Minsoo ran off in a hurry.
“Guess it’s urgent? Must’ve eaten something bad.”
In truth, his stomach hurt from jealousy, not food.
But Joohyun, of course, didn’t know that.
“Definitely the fish cutlet. If it’d been pork stir-fry, this never would’ve happened… tsk.”
And that was that.
In-game.
“Alright, then.”
Aren logged into Illusion and, as usual, began inspecting the village.
After a round of patrol, he returned to the village chief’s house.
‘Time to start building something new.’
He opened his bag and took out a quest reward item.
“Check.”
[Blueprint: Lumber Mill]
Grade: C
Description: A blueprint that allows construction of a lumber mill.
Usage Condition: Carpenter only.
“You’re planning to use that now?” Alfredo asked.
“Yeah. I can’t keep buying wood from the Carpenter’s Guild forever. It’s time to be self-sufficient.”
“True. Traveling back and forth is a waste of time.”
“Exactly.”
Aren activated the item.
[Blueprint registered successfully.]
[‘Star’s Design’ skill can now construct: Lumber Mill.]
“Star’s Design!”
[Star’s Design skill activated.]
[Select a building to simulate.]
Available: Chief’s House, Wooden Residence, Restaurant, Clothing Shop, Guard Post, Lumber Mill.]
“Lumber camp.”
[You have selected a logging camp.]
A miniature model of the mill appeared on the table.
It didn’t require much adjustment — just a comfortable resting space for the lumberjacks.
Aren’s hands moved with practiced ease, shaping the small model.
[You’ve successfully designed a Lumberjack for your woodcutters.]
[‘Star’s Design’ skill EXP increased.]
[Job EXP gained.]
[Item acquired: Miniature Lumberjack.]
Satisfied, Aren smiled at his handiwork.
It was a solid result.
Alfredo, who had been quietly watching, handed him a glass of water.
“You’ve completed it?”
“Yeah. Now we just need to find a good spot to build and—”
“Aren, sir!”
The door burst open.
A guard ran in, panting, his expression urgent.
“Aren, sir! There’s trouble!”
Aren instantly sensed it — something serious had happened.
“What is it?”
“Armed outsiders are approaching the village! There are a lot of them!”
“Outsiders? You mean players?”
“Could it just be a large group of visitors, perhaps? It’s happened before,” Alfredo suggested.
And it was true — groups of players often came to sightsee after hearing about the new village.
But the guard shook his head.
“No, sir. At first, we thought so too. But they’re fully armed.”
“Armed?”
“Yes, and their intent is clear. They’re coming for the village.”
Aren fell silent.
‘So it’s finally happening.’
Just as Minsoo had warned — players were coming to seize his village.
He’d expected it… but not this soon.
Taking a deep breath, he steadied his thoughts.
“What about Hansel?”
“The captain went out ahead to intercept them. But we need to move quickly!”
Ding!
[Quest Generated: “Malicious Invaders Targeting the Village!”]
[Malicious Invaders Targeting the Village!]
Grade: A
Description: Unknown outsiders are heading toward your village.
Their goal is clear: your home.
Objective: Defend the village.
Reward: Experience, Title, ???
Failure: Village occupied, Village Chief title revoked.
[Do you accept?]
Aren didn’t hesitate.
“acceptance.”
The air grew heavy.
Tension rippled through the quiet streets.
A storm was coming to the village.
