Chapter 6: The True Identity of the “Kind” AI

Waiting patiently for a moment, Bibi suddenly snapped her head up. Her thick lips were pressed firmly together as if she had reached a decision. She raised a thick green finger.

“I can’t just tell secrets to anyone. Of course, the story would be different if you were a true hero.”

“I’m pretty sure I am one? I just finished the tutorial a bit ago—”

“First, you’ll have to prove that you’re a hero.”

Bibi cut me off and began reciting the quest requirements.

“Bring me 5 globs of Giant Slug Mucus and 5 manes from Orange-flower Lions.”

Ah, right. Just do the quest, is that it…

As soon as Bibi finished speaking, the Village Chief’s quest, which had been sparkling on the right side of my vision, was updated to Bibi’s quest. It seemed I just needed to kill some Giant Slugs and Orange-flower Lions. I tried to burn the names of the monsters into my brain, but it didn’t seem necessary. The black-armored NPC beckoned me to follow and started moving.

[Friend] PoongPoongieLove: Hey Eonha, you okay? Did you escape alright?

As I followed close behind the black armor, a message arrived from Seongjin. It was a rather random question. Escape? Escape from what? Thinking about it, I suppose I did need to escape—from all those people crowding around just to catch a glimpse of the face of the guy who cleared Nightmare difficulty.

I wasn’t exactly the one who fled, but since the result turned out okay, I guess it’s fine.

[Friend] BlueberryWhiskey: Yeah, luckily I avoided them and I’m following the main quest.

[Friend] PoongPoongieLove: Wow, thank f*ck ㅠ I really wondered what was going on today.

[Friend] PoongPoongieLove: I thought the whole world was conspiring to make you quit gaming.

Well, from Seongjin’s perspective, it probably seemed that way. Choosing Nightmare difficulty from the start and struggling for over 30 minutes, only to come out and find a sea of people making it hard even to move. Of course, since the two events were related, the expression “the whole world was conspiring” was a bit of an exaggeration.

[Friend] BlueberryWhiskey: Why are you being so dramatic about the world conspiring LOL.

[Friend] PoongPoongieLove: Han Kyutae, that bastard, hasn’t sent a word because he’s busy grinding his repeat quests, sh*t ㅠ

[Friend] PoongPoongieLove: Come to think of it, the main quest might be a bit tough, you okay? Want me to help?

[Friend] BlueberryWhiskey: No, it’s not tough at all?

[Friend] BlueberryWhiskey: Are the Slugs and Orange Lions strong?

[Friend] PoongPoongieLove: Huh? You already got the quest?

[Friend] PoongPoongieLove: Those guys aren’t strong at all lol;; Eonha, you’re lucky.

Was I lucky? I had simply followed the NPC’s lead and had a conversation. For this situation to feel “difficult” as Seongjin suggested, the monsters required by the main quest would have to be randomized.

[Friend] BlueberryWhiskey: Is this game a bit RNG-based?

[Friend] PoongPoongieLove: It’s more grind than luck? But it gets better later on.

Did people repeat the process of canceling and re-accepting quests until an easy enemy appeared? While I was distracted for a moment interpreting Seongjin’s words, the super-advanced AI—which seemed to be a concentrated hub of Korea’s high-tech science—spoke up.

“Why aren’t you moving faster?”

“Where are we going?”

“We have to go outside the village.”

Contrary to his appearance, which was completely concealed by a helmet, his tone was quite kind. His voice was as sweet and pleasant as a voice actor’s. It sounded like a voice I had heard somewhere before, but since my own voice was slightly modulated, it was likely just a misunderstanding.

While following the black armor, I didn’t stop taking in the scenery. The village, with its impressive pastoral background, seemed to be a place where humans and Orcs lived together. I could see green-skinned Orcs and light-pink-skinned humans conversing here and there. Amidst all this, the crowd that had scattered earlier was nowhere to be seen.

‘Sephiroth is moving toward the Newbie Zone Village Entrance! Escape immediately!’

A voice rang out along with the sound of a fanfare. Apparently, when there are few people around, the Shouts work in this manner. I stared blankly at the red text flowing across the top of my vision along with the voice, then tilted my head in confusion.

Aren’t I headed toward the Newbie Zone village entrance right now?

I was already at the edge of the village. It seemed I could leave in just a few more steps. I scanned the surroundings once, but as expected, there wasn’t a soul in sight. Unless Sephiroth was using Stealth, it seemed he wasn’t in the vicinity.

This must be the village exit, and the entrance is somewhere else.

I thought simply and nodded. I walked leisurely, one step at a time, behind the black armor. Following the NPC as he exited the village first, I also stepped through the exit.

Now, it would be time to part ways with the kind NPC and start hunting field monsters, right? Just as I was about to lightly loosen my body with that thought—

Whoosh!

The sound of something rushing through the air descended from above. Instinctively, I ducked, shifted my center of gravity to my left foot, and spun to the side.

Thud. Before I could even process it, a massive axe slammed into the spot where my right foot had just been. Cr-rack. The ground split open.

“Wha—what the?”

I muttered blankly, staring ahead. The AI Berserker who had been guiding me until a moment ago was now personally trying to split me in half with an axe.

“You’re fast.”

Tsk. I heard the sound of someone clicking their tongue. It came from the Berserker NPC. The way he lifted the axe from the cracked ground and slung it over his back was identical to the Berserker I had seen inside the tower.

Wait, wasn’t that fight supposed to end on the 5th floor?

This NPC was more persistent than I thought. Moreover, he seemed faster and more sophisticated in his attacks than when I saw him in the tower. I considered running away, but I figured I had a better chance of winning—whether it worked or not—by fighting him head-on rather than taking an axe to the back of the head.

“How long are you going to keep reusing this NPC?”

Swallow the sweet, spit out the bitter. A moment ago, I didn’t care about the redundant use of an NPC, but now I had suddenly switched into “furious game designer mode,” thinking that reusing assets was a deception. But it couldn’t be helped. The black armor I had fought on the 5th floor was so strong that I never wanted to cross blades with him again.

And they backstab me like this.

But it seemed I wasn’t the only one confused. The NPC looked around as if he found the situation absurd.

“NPC?”

And only after hearing that bewildered voice did a single name glowing in blue catch my eye.

[Sephiroth]

The character name of the person I had firmly believed to be an NPC—the one who had just tried to split my skull.

Sephiroth seemed to have already purged that brief moment of confusion from his memory as he readjusted his grip on the axe. Vroom. The sound of the axe slicing through the empty air was threatening.

Just what the hell is going on here?

[Friend] PoongPoongieLove: Hey, I’m sending this because I’m worried.

[Friend] PoongPoongieLove: If you happen to run into Sephiroth, just log out immediately.

Seongjin seemed to have sent some kind of message, but now was not the time to check it.

I tilted my head back, dodging the flying axe. A bright red aura was boiling around the double-headed axe. The blade of the pitch-black weapon was so polished it looked like I’d be finished if even a single blow grazed me.

It looked like I was about to become the “one more soul” for the Lord.

“Have you suddenly gone crazy?”

“…….”

“Hey! I asked if you’re crazy!”

“Calling me crazy… what a terrifying thing to say.”

If the Orc Chief was a person who only pretended to listen when spoken to politely, Sephiroth seemed to be a guy whose ears only perked up when spoken to informally. Sephiroth’s voice, which I could finally hear only after mixing in some profanity and informal speech, was a headache in its own right.

Did he take the wrong medicine or something? I shouted in hopes that he would snap out of it, but my voice seemed to have only piqued Sephiroth’s anger instead. Sephiroth, standing with his weight on his right foot, seemed to hold the axe at a slight angle before rushing toward me.

It felt as if only Sephiroth and I existed on this map. All my senses were focused on him as he flew toward me. As soon as I saw the axe blade sweeping upward in a large arc, I put strength into my right foot and pushed off the ground.

Zip. The moment I sprang away, the massive axe blade slammed into the earth. Boom! The ground shook as if it were being flipped over, and a thick cloud of dust rose into the air.

This crazy bastard is really trying to kill me!

Because the game stimulated my five senses with unnecessary vividness, it really felt like I’d be done for if that axe hit me. Even as I kept telling myself it was just a game character dying, the sight of that blade flashing in the light as it flew toward my head made my (not yet split) skull feel chilled.

Wait, was he really that offended by me calling him an NPC?

“Let’s talk this out!”

Instead of words, an axe blow flew my way. He had been so kind as to guide me through the village; did he suddenly change his concept to “stoic city man”?

The standoff dragged on. I looked for an opening to counterattack since things had turned out this way, but no such opening appeared. Running around and barely dodging his attacks was the best I could do. The axe, each swing more bone-chilling than the last, drew patterns on the dirt floor.

Ugh, how much longer do I have to keep doing this? Isn’t this initiation ceremony a bit too grand?

Having barely dodged another terrifying attack, I shouted out in pure spite.

“You crazy bastard, talk to me!”

“I have to do this properly, don’t I?”

“What?”

I blinked, my eyes wide at words whose intention I couldn’t understand.