Chapter 76

Apparently, they tried something from afar without revealing themselves…but I couldn’t sense anything at all.

Murderous intent? It was too soft for me, someone who can’t even detect curses cast directly on them. No matter how much murderous energy they exuded, it would be futile unless they personally approached and stabbed me with their sword.

I didn’t dodge boldly; I just wasn’t aware of it.

However, there was no need to explain the situation in detail, so I decided to let it pass.

“Well, regardless, I’m glad everything turned out fine.”

“Yes! And…”

Just as Scarlet seemed about to say more, a crew member’s voice called out from a distance.

“Hye-young-ssi! You have to go for the next scene!”

“Ah! Yes!” Scarlet raised her voice and bowed towards me once again before crossing the filming set with light steps.

‘She is full of energy.’

Compared to when I saw her at the club, she seemed like a completely different person now, bursting with vitality. It was clear that she genuinely enjoyed filming.

“Oh…I heard she used to be an idol but she is really pretty. Is she your girlfriend?” Ilwol suddenly asked, causing me to shrug my shoulders.

“Just work-related acquaintances. By the way, where can I sleep?”

“A-Ah, I will show you. You also need to sign the contract.”

I received an employment contract from Ilwol, the foreman of the stunt team.

The conditions weren’t bad. The daily wage was 7 million won and there were additional bonuses depending on the difficulty of the stunt. Moreover, the scenario had already been completed so there weren’t many variables.

“This is your accommodation. It might be narrow but it has its own shower room. Meals will be served whenever the alarm sounds.”

I didn’t know if it was because I was a sword master or not, but Ilwol personally guided me as the team leader.

“The filming of stunts starts tomorrow morning. Please wait for when you are called.”

“Yes. Is there anything else I need to know?”

“There are a few more things but you will naturally get used to them while working. Then.” Ilwol lightly waved goodbye before leaving, and I took a simple wash.

”…”

I looked at the mirror on one side of the bathroom. White muscular skin was visible. My body, which had been covered with various scars and discolored patches, now looked clean like a well-maintained celebrity. It was the power of Rebirth. If I hadn’t succeeded in Rebirth, I would’ve died from excessive bleeding or sustained various disabilities regardless. The Ice Queen’s attack was that fatal. With my internal organs torn apart, including my heart, it was a situation where I would die before fully utilizing my regeneration ability.

‘She really was strong… Unexpected.’

The combat capabilities of the Ice Queen were truly extraordinary. It couldn’t be explained simply by her being a legendary hero.

As soon as I repelled her ice spear, she changed her attack method to coldness. Then when she realized I had resistance against cold, she switched to destroying my body. This level of battle sense couldn’t be obtained after just one or two fights.

‘What if we fight now?’

The thought suddenly occurred but I shook my head.

‘It’s better to wait until I adapt more to Inner Force.’

There was no need to rush anyway. Having made this decision, I set up automatic hunting and went to sleep.

On the next day, filming began.

“Come on, let’s move faster! Move according to the guide displayed in augmented reality.”

“Ah! What will happen if you avoid before the attack comes? You have to count ‘one-two’ and then move!”

“Ilwol-ssi! It is good now but can’t you transform bigger? About five metres?”

Time flew by quickly. I fought against minions created by Dreamwalker mages, battled alongside another minion dressed as a soldier or acted as a villain killing extra actors. There was nothing particularly difficult about it.

“Ah, even though you have no experience, you are doing really well. Have you studied acting before?”

“It isn’t acting. Just threatening to kill them if they don’t give me what I want and setting the mood with a few words.”

I received more praise than expected while continuing filming. The time wasn’t too long either. It took just over 10 hours out of 24.

During downtime, he played games on his phone.

Wow, even though I’m in another dimension, my game still works.

The gate had been stabilized by massive machinery after being opened with Ultimate Magic through the dimensional door. Although Dreamworld gates were unpredictable and couldn’t be maintained indefinitely, this one could remain open for at least three months to up to half a year.

“Oh, Nemesis stocks have risen again…”

I shouldn’t have checked, jae-yeon regretted as he entered the castle to restock potions and other consumables.

“Well, things are going great anyway.”

The city was packed. It was quite unbelievable, actually. In most combat-focused MMORPGs, players briefly visited cities before moving on. However, despite their abnormally large size compared to those found in other online games, Revenge’s castles now felt cramped due to the sheer number of people flooding them.

The problem was that this phenomenon wasn’t happening in just one castle but almost all of them.

Kars: So many people! Moreover, it is hard to distinguish from reality!

Kim Dooon: Ku. Kustomizing well done. Handsome.

Taengyangnyang: Huhu. Is it okay to sell pet charms for diamonds? I bought 13…

Knight Cain: Ah, I didn’t expect virtual reality to be like this… I need to quickly change my avatar to a female character.

When Nemesis announced through technology exchange with Legion that they would make Revenge as a virtual world, I naturally thought they would create a new server. Revenge was suitable for busy modern people as an idle game.

With quests and hunting automatically running with just one touch, what was the need for perfect immersion unique to virtual reality? It seemed natural that everything would be redesigned in a new way. However, unexpectedly, Nemesis used the existing Revenge world and solved the problem differently than I expected.

‘Separating characters.’

The avatar character where the player directly experienced the virtual reality, and the servant character which hunted and played automatically like before. The Player could log in as their avatar, bring along their servant or send them to hunt automatically while adventuring in the virtual world themselves.

Grrumble!

”…Hm?”

I was lying down at my accommodation and watching the game screen when dark clouds suddenly gathered out of nowhere. It wasn’t happening in Dreamworld but rather in Revenge.

“Which crazy person has obtained another Mythical item?”

It was really amazing. How many people with ridiculous amounts of money were there for this to happen? However, what followed was somewhat different from my expectations.

Grrrung!

Ku-gong!

Girin: Eh? What is it? The buildings are being sucked into the ground!

Sixfold Fist: The color of the castle walls is changing!

Cocokochijidan: Wait… Could this be…?

While people were surprised, the castle expanded rapidly. The castle walls became taller, and various facilities started filling up inside. Finally…

[The Temple of Ice (Legendary) has been upgraded to the Mythical domain!]

[The selection of the castle lord is ongoing.]

[A castle of dreams, thrills and fantasies!]

[One-day Land (Mythical) has appeared!]

The appearance of the castle changed from its incredibly neat and majestic medieval form. And what it became was…

“Wow. I heard that the castle lord was Director Il-sung but…”

It was an amusement park.

Cocokkchijin: Wow! A Mythical Castle! How much does it cost?!

ReturnKnight: Roller coasters, observation wheels, haunted houses, zero-gravity fountains…

Exharde: Bumper car racing!! M-me first!

The landscape of the castle had completely transformed. Cheers erupted at the sight of colorful lights and amusement rides scattered everywhere.

Despite this magnificent scene…

“Ah. Damn.”

My heart was torn apart.

“The stocks will rise even more…”

However, regardless of my pain, continent-level events continued one after another.

[The Temple of Fire (Legendary) has been upgraded to the Mythical domain!]

[Castle Lord’s Selection is underway.]

[A Castle of Pleasure and Illusions!]

[Succubus Land (Mythical) has appeared!]

[The Temple of Earth (Legendary) has been upgraded to the Mythical domain!]

[Castle Lord’s Selection is underway.]

[A Castle of Steel and Giants!]

[Gigas Land (Mythical) has appeared!]

“Wow, damn.”

It wasn’t possible for any castle to be upgraded to mythical rank. Only the castle lords located at flower shops could make this choice, similar to the myth class selection. However, nobody actually had a mythical castle yet. The cost of upgrading was enormous, and there were no significant benefits even if it was achieved.

‘Well, what’s the point of creating an amusement park in a game that people barely explore?’

However, after the technology alliance with Legion made virtual reality indistinguishable from reality…the situation changed completely. It became worth spending billions of dollars on it.

“I want to go inside once… Ah, I should’ve brought my access device?”

It was impossible. The access device wasn’t small, and bringing such things to work would be absurd.

Nemesis – 15,188,000 won (+253,000 won) ↑

“Ah! My eyes!”

I carelessly opened the stock program and rolled around on the bed.

‘I shouldn’t have checked! I shouldn’t have sold the stocks! No, why did they skyrocket right after selling?’

I was overwhelmed with regret. Despite always making profits from stocks, my heart felt sad. Human greed truly had no end.

“Ah, can I open the shop? Ha. I need to buy 34 shares…”

While lamenting, it happened.

Bzzt.

A strange sound rang out as the lights in the single room went off. That wasn’t all.

“Wueong!”

Cheeda, which had been displaying Revenge on its screen, made a strange noise and closed its eyes.

”…What?”

I abruptly sat up in bed. I wanted to check the time but even the clock was turned off.

“Come out!”

“Lie down!!”

“If you make any sudden moves, your head will be crushed!!”

There was chaos outside along with menacing voices. Then the door broke apart, and a gun the size of a human body aimed inside the room.

“Come out.”

”…”

I stared blankly at the giant outside the broken door. It was a gigas—a cutting-edge weapon that rewrote the history of war in the macrocosm. This amazing weapon provided both strong physical strength and a huge spiritual force to its operator. However, why would there be a gigas suddenly appearing in the Dreamworld?

Click!

At this moment, I heard a heavy metallic sound. A gun barrel large enough for a human head was pointing at me.

“This is your last chance. Come out.”

”…”

First, I raised my hands and came out of the room. Outside, numerous people had been dragged out like me.

“Grr… M-My mana isn’t moving!”

“I feel weak…”

“It doesn’t make sense. How can such a high level mana nullification field exist?”

“Don’t move! Stay still!”

While people were unable to use their strength, rough-looking men rushed over and forced them onto their knees. They pulled hands behind backs and applied heavy steel handcuffs.

Click!

Of course, it was the same for me.

‘Ah, this posture is uncomfortable.’

Due to my developed arm muscles, the position of having my arms pulled back wasn’t comfortable. While assessing the situation around me, I subtly adjusted my shoulders. However, at that moment…

Creak!

‘Oh.’

I hastily stopped moving and realized something.

‘They feel like paper.’

Yes, they felt like paper. Not as thin as tissue paper but similar to letter paper. Carefully holding the steel handcuffs, which could tear apart at any time, I observed the atmosphere around me.