Chapter 3

“Ugh...”

She stirred and opened her eyes, frowning as her vision gradually came into focus. The furniture, with its unfamiliar yet somehow familiar design and color scheme, stood out.

Thinking it might still be a dream, she closed her eyes and opened them again, but the slow, vivid movement of a speck of dust in the sunlight was all too real.

“Huh?”

She blurted out in confusion. Something was off. Realizing this, she sat up abruptly with wide eyes. The moment she recognized the unfamiliar landscape, she froze in shock.

“Wh-what...?”

Panicked, she looked around, but there was nothing realistic or modern to be found.

The polished wooden floor, the princess-style canopy bed, the small table with a vase of flowers, and the delicate pink sofa—all were peculiar designs that were hard to come by in reality. Yet, they were strangely familiar to her.

“Could this be... the interior of my personal room in the game...?”

The image that flashed in her mind was the guild hideout from the game. The personal room, a perk for guild masters, was part of the guild’s shared hideout and could be decorated at the owner’s discretion, much like a house in the city.

Since the houses in the city could be purchased with a considerable amount of cash, she had been content using the free guild personal room.

She had recently completed her dream interior by gathering materials and commissioning carpenters. Now, she looked around in amazement, unable to understand the situation.

But when she noticed that her outfit was identical to her in-game character’s, she was so startled that she jumped out of bed. Without any conscious thought, her body moved naturally toward the mirror.

Standing in front of the large full-length mirror, she instinctively covered her mouth.

“No way.”

The bulky male character from the game was nowhere to be seen. Instead, a small, frail woman, her real self, stood in the mirror.

She stared at her outfit in disbelief. Apart from her face, she looked exactly like her character in the game Nord World.

“Could this really be... my character...?”

Even the white cash outfit, which she had grown tired of, was eerily realistic and intricate, like a well-made cosplay costume.

Then she remembered, didn’t they have a festival like this in the country? Some kind of offline surprise event?

‘No way...’

As she muttered in disbelief, her face gradually turned to fear.

“What is this? Is this real...?”

Her heart sank. Had she been kidnapped last night? Otherwise, there was no way such an absurd farce could happen.

Then, a vague memory from before she woke up surfaced.

“Oh, right... I accepted the pre-reservation... and then I must have fallen asleep?”

No matter how she thought about it, it was strange. She had no memory of logging out, and she couldn’t tell if this was reality or the game.

But it felt more like reality. Because there was nothing floating in her field of vision or in the air.

It felt like she had been brought to a movie set in a cosplay outfit.

“Could I really have been kidnapped?”

Feeling absurd yet pale, she swallowed hard and looked at the white door.

The only thought in her mind was to open the door and get out.

She carefully grabbed the doorknob and slowly opened it. The bright light and the chaotic corridor outside came into view. It looked like a famous cathedral, something you’d only see abroad, but it was also a familiar indoor scene from the game.

And in that familiar setting, people dressed like cosplayers were everywhere.

“Damn it! What is this?!”

“Is this a hidden camera? Huh? No, it’s not, right?”

“Who the hell did this?!”

“Come out right now?!”

“This is kidnapping and imprisonment, isn’t it? I’m going to sue!”

The atmosphere in the corridor was serious. Everyone was in a panic, shouting angrily into the air.

There were plenty of people crying, and many had collapsed or were lying on the floor in despair. Some, who were neither crying nor in despair, were wandering the corridor like zombies, looking for something.

It was a scene of chaos.

She stood there, pale and unable to do anything.

As she was frozen in terror, people suddenly started making meaningless gestures in the air, as if pressing something.

At the same time, a faint notification sound rang in her ears, a familiar sound to players. The confusion quickly spread.

She was startled by the familiar notification sound and gasped when a transparent window appeared in front of her eyes.

Player Information

Name: Lidian / Guild: Dawnlight (M)

Level: 70 / Class: Saint / Secondary Class: None

HP: 2500 / MP: 4250

She didn’t need to think long. It was the information of her character from Nord World, and the familiar system screen.

Lidian’s lips moved in disbelief. The red, blue, and green bars floating above the information window were designs she had seen countless times in the game.

‘HP, MP, EXP...’

Muttering the terms reflexively, Lidian was startled.

“What, what is this? Am I still in the game...?”

Lidian was confused.

The screen in front of her eyes made it seem like she was in the game, but she didn’t understand why she looked like her real self. Had the in-game customization been removed? But even then, how could the gender she set at the beginning be changed? It must be some kind of error.

Lidian looked around anxiously. The reactions of the people nearby were similar.

Many were as bewildered as Lidian, having lost their in-game customization. In the incomprehensible situation, they all looked up at the air in confusion.

Soon, translucent information windows began to appear above people’s heads, one after another. Some were IDs she had seen a few times in the game.

It was a surreal scene, something you’d only see in media. Yet, it felt so real, both strange and eerie.

The corridor quickly turned into a scene of chaos. It was an absurd situation, as if they were trapped in a virtual reality game. The discomfort only grew with time.

Maybe it’s just a bad dream. Lidian frowned and did what one would typically do in such a situation.

The sharp pain from her fingernails digging into her arm was unmistakable. The skin turning red and the tingling pain were too vivid to be from a virtual reality game.

‘Then...’

Lidian’s face turned even paler.

Reality? Game?

“No way...”

Amidst the screaming people, Lidian slumped to the ground.

Everyone was in a panic.

Some of the more adaptable players started heading outside with serious expressions. Those who were at a loss began to follow them one by one.

As people rushed out, Lidian hesitated for a moment before hurriedly followed.

If all these people were really players from Nord World and this place was inside the guild castle, then outside must be the center of the capital, Midgard.

Running out with the increasing crowd, Lidian was mesmerized by the unfamiliar yet familiar landscape of this other world, which she had seen countless times in the game.

* * *

It had been two weeks in real time.

Lidian and the other players from Nord World were still trapped in this strange world.

For almost a week after they opened their eyes, new players appeared sporadically throughout Midgard. Then, suddenly, it stopped. No more players arrived after that.

The players in Midgard were in chaos for a while. There was no log-out button to be found anywhere.

Some of the buttons they were familiar with in the game were also missing, including the messenger function linked to their real-world phones.

Was this a game or reality?

For a while, many debated this topic. Most believed it was reality. If it were a game, their real-world appearances wouldn’t be reflected, and they wouldn’t feel pain. All virtual reality games in Korea were legally regulated to prevent the sensation of pain.

Without the restriction on pain, the players’ fear became more real.

“It might have been what they meant by the pre-event. The period when people gather...”

Player Information

Name: Hern / Guild: Dawnlight

Level: 43 / Class: Archer / Secondary Class: None

HP: 1500 / MP: 550

Standing next to Lidian was Hern, a new player she had been helping for the past three months.

Except for his identical in-game outfit, he looked very much like his real self.

He had been cut off from the game without warning, and everyone thought he had quit.

Hern appeared two days after Lidian was brought here. If not for the guild member connection notification, she wouldn’t have known he was there.

Hern, who had just turned twenty, said he had been playing when a friend from another guild sent him news about an event.

“What do you think will happen to us?”

“Yeah, I wonder.”

“Hern, you said you have friends in other guilds? Is your friend here too? Are you not with them?”

Hern scratched his head. Of course, he wanted to be with his real friends. But he couldn’t leave Lidian, the guild master, alone.

Even though she was four years older, she was shorter than him. For Hern, who had a strong sense of responsibility for his younger sister, it was unacceptable.

“I’ve received a lot of help from the guild master. I can’t leave her alone in this situation. Besides, he has close guild members. How can he survive in this unfamiliar place alone? And the guild master doesn’t know many people here.”

“Hmm. I’m fine... but it’s reassuring to have you around. I feel a bit guilty...”

“Well, everyone has their own reasons. Anyway, I’ll stay with you until the situation calms down.”

Lidian smiled apologetically at Hern’s playful smile.

With the change in circumstances, Lidian couldn’t maintain the distance she used to keep from her guild members. Although she had played the game for a long time, this was the first time she was interacting with someone she met in the game as a sister.

Hern, who was four years younger, often seemed more mature than her.

When she played as a male character, he was shorter and smaller than her. Now, with her real body reflected, the roles were reversed.

“By the way, I was really surprised. I thought the guild master was a man, and a middle-aged one at that.”

“Eh, really?”

“Of course. The customization for male characters... Wow, you’re not even bald. I heard there are many men who play female characters, but I’ve never seen someone who customized their male character to look like a burly, bearded uncle. And you never talked about personal things, and your tone was so serious that I thought you were a gay uncle...”

Lidian blushed at Hern’s chuckling words.

As Hern said, her in-game character was a middle-aged, burly, and somewhat peculiar-looking male.

Well, it was a matter of personal taste.

There was a reason she unintentionally adopted a mysterious concept.

Lidian had always avoided online relationships, so she was the type who rarely talked, let alone shared personal stories. She never even looked at voice chat. She had a few acquaintances she occasionally chatted with, but they weren’t close friends.

Well, it’s understandable that there would be misunderstandings. Lidian smiled awkwardly.

“Characters are a matter of personal taste. And I didn’t expect this to happen...”

“True. We should respect personal tastes. But there are some good points. At least it helps filter out weirdos.”

Hern chuckled, recalling the initial atmosphere among the players.

Because the players had brought their real-world bodies into this strange world, those who had lied about their gender or age in the game were exposed.

It was surprising that they could be deceived even with voice chat, but if someone was determined to lie, it wasn’t impossible.

Lidian nodded, remembering them.

“Are they still fighting? What’s the point? We should all work together to find a way back.”

“True. It’s meaningless. Fortunately, the high-ranking players are trying to understand the situation and lead the others. Some are still uncooperative, though.”

“Two days later, they said they would make a statement.”

“Yes. The guild master of the ONE guild, Leon, is going to speak in the square. The high-ranking players are meeting in the guild castle day and night. It’s really something to see these game addicts come together...”

Apart from the fact that the characters’ appearances were their real selves and they could feel pain, everything else was almost the same as the game. It was so similar that it felt like they were playing the game.

However, without any official announcements, the players were in constant confusion.

Many were still crying, unable to distinguish between reality and the game. The large guilds, composed of top-ranking players, were the ones who tried to maintain their composure and help manage the situation.

They quickly started gathering information about this sudden situation and were comforting and calming the panicked players.

“Some players are trying to go to the field without fear. I don’t know if it’s safe. In this situation...”

“Of course, there will be... monsters, right?”

“Right. If they fight, it will be a bloody battle.”

“...It will be unbearably painful.”

“It’s different from the days when we just moved our bodies in the capsule. We feel real fatigue. And unlike typical virtual reality games, where pain is blocked... now, the pain sensitivity is open. Beyond the pain, what will be the end result? In such situations in novels, you either come back to life or die permanently.”

Hern shrugged and laughed. Although it was a joke, Lidian couldn’t take it lightly.

Death. It was a matter of everyone’s survival and her own life. Lidian, who had just recovered her mental state, shuddered at the vivid fear.

“By the way, are you getting used to the controls? Last time, you seemed to have trouble.”

“Ah, yeah. I’m doing what I usually do, but it feels a bit strange to think I’m using my real body. Some things are different from what I’m used to. It’s tiring and painful to move my real body. And it’s embarrassing to cast spells with my own voice.”

“Ah, I can relate. It’s embarrassing, really. It’s too realistic. Unnecessarily realistic. This is like a real dimension shift, isn’t it? But it’s better for casters, who only need to memorize spells. For fighters, who have to move their bodies, it’s a mess. Especially the pain. Even a slight touch hurts a lot. The tanks, who are always getting beaten by monsters, are in a mess.”

“Ah, that’s true. It must be hell for tanks.”

“The worst part is that potions can’t be used. With the cash items except for clothing becoming useless, it’s a complete disaster that you can’t use potions even when you’re bleeding.”

In terms of gameplay, the most important things are the player’s HP (Hit Point) and MP (Magic Point).

HP represents the player’s health. It decreases when hit by monsters or attacked by other players. Naturally, if the value drops to 0, the player dies.

On the other hand, MP is the energy used to cast spells or skills. It decreases with each use.

While a player doesn’t die immediately when MP reaches 0, the inability to use survival spells and skills can lead to death.

HP and MP are converted into numerical values based on the player’s base stats and item settings, and higher values are advantageous for survival.

There is also an EXP (Experience Point) gauge, which shows the experience points needed for leveling up.

These three gauges are always visible as thin bars above the player’s information window.

The green EXP bar wasn’t a big issue. The problem was the HP and MP bars.

After being trapped in the game, there were some changes to the system. One of the most significant issues was the potion function.

Red and blue potions are items that restore HP and MP, respectively. They could be purchased with a small amount of cash from the cash shop and were easily obtainable with gold from merchants.

They are essential items for gameplay, but currently, only clothing items from the cash shop are usable, and all other items are unusable.

Since these items are crucial for survival, this is the biggest issue at the moment.

“Even for casters, it’s a disadvantage. The good thing is that defense affects pain sensitivity, but it still hurts. I plan to go to a low-level training area later to practice using my body. They say that as long as you’re not a complete klutz, you can move to some extent.”

“Eh, really?”

“Yeah, we don’t know what will happen in the future.”

Lidian nodded heavily, understanding a beat later.

‘Can we really go back?’

It was still too early to say. As Hern said, she might have to get used to this mysterious system.

In the worst case, she might have to... Lidian shook her head. Words have power. She needed to shake off these ominous thoughts early.