Chapter 61 - Is Elden Soul Hard? (1)

As the opening sequence ended, the game logo, which had appeared in golden letters, also dispersed. The light intensified, and black fragments fell like rain.

<The source of existence, Soul.>

The light grew even more intense as the narration resumed.

<This was the only fragment of Soul I had left.>

As the narration ended, the light burst, and Lee Kyungbok was finally able to move.

"Ah, finally it's starting. Let's see..."

Lee Kyungbok turned his gaze. Full-length mirrors surrounded him in a circle, each with a label attached.

[Warrior]

[Knight]

[Thief]

[Assassin]

[Mage]

[Cleric]

...

In the mirrors, Lee Kyungbok's appearance matched the labels.

- Wow, hahaha, the God Player's body looks so cool!

- The Warrior looks like a real tough guy, hahaha!

- The Knight's costume is super sexy!

- The Cleric looks like an idol with his blonde hair, hahaha!

- Is this a country?

- Ah, hahaha, just use the presets, streamers!

- The God Player would have lived well even if he was born in the Middle Ages.

The viewers marveled at the various outfits of Lee Kyungbok reflected in the mirrors.

"I can't do the customization because the immersion is set to the highest, so I'll just choose the background."

Character background setting.

The Elden series traditionally divides the player character's background into several categories.

The starting equipment, stats, and spells vary depending on the background.

- If you're physical, you should obviously be a Warrior, right?

- No, no, if you're physical, an Assassin is perfect.

- Thinking about boss fights, a Cleric who can heal themselves is also good.

- Let's just go with the cool Knight!

- Ah, hahaha, if you want cool, go with the Mage.

The viewers recommended their preferred backgrounds for various reasons. Lee Kyungbok quickly waved his hand as he read the chat.

"Ah, I already decided on this before starting."

Question marks quickly flooded the chat.

"I heard from a friend who's an editor. The Elden series has no restrictions, and character development is free. So, they said to just choose what you're drawn to."

- That's right.

- Seriously, hahaha, you can learn all the spells eventually.

- The starting stats are different, but you can adjust them as you like, hahaha!

- Still, the difficulty varies a lot depending on the background.

Viewers who had played Elden Soul before nodded in agreement. Lee Kyungbok stood in front of one of the mirrors.

"So, I chose this."

He was wearing light armor with metal reinforcements.

The label on the mirror he chose read:

[Warlock]

The chat started to buzz as soon as he confirmed it.

- Warlock on the first playthrough?

- Even so, Warlock is quite challenging...

- Rather, a Mage would be better!

- Oh! A Warlock can only use one spell at the beginning!

The viewers expressed their concerns.

A Warlock, as the name suggests, uses "warlock spells." However, they are only given one spell at the start.

Therefore, they have to focus on melee combat in the early stages.

- The Warlock's stats are pretty harsh, hahaha.

- Seriously, hahaha, their health and strength are terrible.

- But their intelligence and focus are good...

- The luck stat is also low, so they don't get good items.

- Ah, this might be tough.

- Spoiler) Just go for a quick reset.

The problem was the starting stats for the Warlock background. The stats important for melee combat are low, while the stats for warlock spells are high, but there are no spells to use at the start.

In the Elden series, there are no restrictions on backgrounds, so few people choose the Warlock with its many penalties.

However, there were still a few.

"From the reaction, I guess I made the right choice."

Lee Kyungbok smiled brightly as he read the chat. The chat was once again flooded with question marks.

"I asked for the hardest background from the start. I said in the interview that I wanted to try something difficult."

- Even in the notoriously difficult Elden Soul, you're seeking more difficulty!

- Ah, hahaha, the God Player is the God Player!

- If that's your intention, it's perfect, hahaha!

- How come the God Player's enthusiasm never wanes, hahaha?

- Is this what foreigners feel when they see Koreans eating spicy chicken?

- Ah, hahaha, it hits home!

- But if the God Player is really that good, he might be able to do it with a Warlock on the first playthrough, hahaha!

The viewers immediately understood Lee Kyungbok's answer. With the opposing opinions gone, Lee Kyungbok completed his choice.

<Warlock, the seeker of the source.>

<That was me.>

The narration continued, and the other mirrors disappeared.

<But I could not remember anything else.>

<However, the wish left in that small fragment of Soul was clear.>

Cracks appeared in the Warlock's mirror, as if someone was applying pressure, and the mirror shattered into pieces.

<Find the oldest soul, the Elden Soul.>

The narration faded away, and the screen went dark.

Lee Kyungbok blinked his eyes.

His senses activated as if he had just woken up.

"The starting location seems to be a cemetery."

He stood up and looked around. He was surrounded by mummified corpses.

When he brushed off the dust on his body, a musty smell rose.

Lee Kyungbok frowned slightly.

"This place is really dusty... It looks like an abandoned cemetery."

- Now you have to figure it out, hahaha.

- Alright, no advice from the veterans!

- Seriously, hahaha, the Elden series is known for being unforgiving.

- Ah, hahaha, you should try to increase your affection with Yoo Dahee!

- Even the God Player has a good chance of meeting Yoo Dahee, hahaha!

- In the Elden series, it's common to learn by dying, hahaha!

The viewers remained silent, as watching a streamer struggle is one of the pleasures of watching a difficult game like the Elden series.

'Well, I'm not completely clueless.'

Lee Kyungbok didn't agree with that "common knowledge." His innate abilities and instincts told him the positions of the enemies and items lurking outside.

Thanks to this, finding his starting equipment was not difficult.

"Ah, this is a bit old, but it should work."

Lee Kyungbok found an old hand axe, a broken longsword, and a wooden shield with missing teeth among the corpses.

- Oh, hahaha, he found it right away.

- Careless streamers don't even check their equipment and just go out, hahaha!

- You'll get a proper lesson and wake up, hahaha!

- Seriously, the mental training effect is great, hahaha!

- In the Elden series, it's foolish to go out without equipment.

The viewers were quite satisfied.

['Oldtimer's Guide' has proposed a quest!]

[Condition - Escape the cemetery wearing only the 'Broken Longsword']

[Reward - 100,000 won]

A quest proposal came in as if it had been waiting.

"Ah, thank you for the quest. The broken longsword is this one, right?"

Lee Kyungbok showed the broken longsword. The chat filled with laughter.

- Why force an oldtimer's play from the start?

- Ah, don't you know? The broken longsword has been a symbol of oldtimers since ancient times.

- Info) The broken longsword is a traditional starting equipment in the Elden series.

- I know, Speed Wagon!

- Ah, hahaha, I couldn't use that thing at all.

- It's embarrassing to even call it a weapon, hahaha!

The broken longsword was blunt and had a short reach due to the broken blade, making it practically no different from bare hands.

- But it's a Warlock, not another background, so this is a bit...

- Seriously, hahaha, you haven't even fought yet.

- No, no, with the God Player's physical abilities, this should be easy.

- ??? : You could just use your bare hands, right?

- Ah, hahaha, it really seems like it.

- Please ban spoilers!

- Don't forget the God Player's punch in the Korean spicy chicken!

Some viewers were worried, but most expected him to accept the quest.

As expected, he did.

"Thank you for the quest. I'll try it with just the broken longsword."

Lee Kyungbok smiled and put the hand axe on his waist and the shield on his back. The viewers were satisfied, as they had expected.

However, if they knew his true thoughts, they would have been a bit surprised.

'Let's see how it goes, and if it's manageable, a bare-handed play might be fun.'

Lee Kyungbok lightly swung the broken longsword and nodded.

"Hmm, I get the feel of it."

- Huh?

- If it were another streamer, they would ignore it, but the God Player sounds serious, hahaha.

- Of course, it's serious, hahaha!

- Ah, hahaha, all the dead are gone.

- Defeated by a broken longsword? Died in shame, hahaha!

While the viewers were chatting, Lee Kyungbok left the room. His body suddenly stopped.

'It's a cutscene.'

The sound of footsteps filled the corridor. Lee Kyungbok's body, which had lost control, moved toward the end.

"...Soul."

"My Soul..."

A growling voice came from beyond the corridor. As he stepped into the room,

A sword flew toward him with a whoosh. He quickly rolled to avoid it, and an arrow embedded itself nearby with a swish.

The view returned.

"I can feel the Soul...!"

"Raaaaa!"

There were undead with emaciated bodies but glowing with ghostly energy.

The environment began to slow down, and a strange golden shape appeared before him.

The shape, completed with a flash, changed to Korean.

['Ember in the Ashes']

Lee Kyungbok naturally read the words in his mind. At the same time, the broken longsword glowed red.

- Oh, hahaha, it shows you how to use spells.

- It does for spell-casting backgrounds.

- The God Player should know this, hahaha.

- Fact) Even if you know, you'll still die.

- This is amazing, hahaha!

The chat reaction made Lee Kyungbok realize the cutscene's intention.

'You cast the spell by reciting it in your mind.'

However, he didn't have time to think further. The cutscene ended, and control returned to him.

The concept of cutscenes was different from those in games like Bio Crisis.

'This is a combination of a Warrior and an Archer.'

Lee Kyungbok's eyes quickly darted around.

There were four undead.

Two on each side wielded longswords, and two in front were drawing their bows.

Reading the developer's intention was not difficult.

'Run or dodge? They want to teach survival first.'

Fighting in this situation was difficult. Blocking the sword attacks from both sides was hard, and even if he blocked them, he couldn't block the arrows coming from the front.

For a normal person, that is.

'There's no need to do that.'

His innate abilities stirred. His senses collected information as if covering the space. The trajectory of the flying arrows and the paths of the undead's sword swings were clear to him.

In that, he saw a path.

Lee Kyungbok decided to follow it.

- Why are you just standing there, hahaha?

- You didn't expect it to be this difficult, did you?

- You have to dodge first!

- Ah! Oh no!

Just as the worried chat messages were about to continue, Lee Kyungbok moved.

It wasn't a big movement. It wasn't a flashy action.

He simply parried the incoming sword. A clang of metal and sparks flew.

A very simple action.

However, the following situation was not simple.

"Grunt."

The sword that Lee Kyungbok parried changed direction and pierced the neck of the opposite undead.

The undead, staggered by Lee Kyungbok's parry, was then hit by an incoming arrow in the head.

What about the remaining arrow?

Lee Kyungbok twisted his waist and extended his arm toward the archer. A red trajectory, created by the breaking sound, severed the bowstring of the archer.

It was the remaining arrow that Lee Kyungbok had caught.

'The spell can be applied to arrows, it seems.'

Lee Kyungbok didn't hesitate.

He immediately ran toward the struggling archers and swung his weapon. The sizzling sound of burning flesh and the glowing blade pierced the archers' necks.

"Huh."

Lee Kyungbok exhaled and turned around. There were no more moving undead.

- ?????

- What? What happened?

- Did you defeat them all?

- Ah, hahaha, I can't even say anything, hahaha!

- (Game talk) (Game talk) (Game talk)

- You made a legend from the start?

The chat was in chaos.

As if waking from a trance, the viewers expressed their amazement.

- You're supposed to escape through the corridor and fight one-on-one, right?

- Seriously, hahaha, you should defeat the swordsmen first and block the arrows with a shield or roll to approach.

- Ah, hahaha, I expected the parry, but I didn't expect him to use the undead's sword to defeat the undead.

- This is a two-for-one, hahaha!

- The arrow the God Player threw was the one he caught, right?

- Right, hahaha, and he used it to cut the archer's bowstring.

- What a crazy move, hahaha!

- But that actually happened.

- Seriously, hahaha, the spell was applied, so it worked perfectly, hahaha!

It was hard to believe, but it happened right before their eyes. Lee Kyungbok spoke while looking at the chaotic chat.

"Since I only severed the bowstring with the arrow, the quest shouldn't fail, right? But using the undead's weapon to defeat the undead is