Chapter 2: Why Are All My S-Ranks Like This?

In this game, players begin with four character cards.

As with most gacha systems, the probability of pulling an S-Rank from the initial set was abysmally low.

In that situation, rejecting Baek Eun-hoo, the very first S-Rank to appear, was unthinkable, even if this was just a dream.

“Isn’t money everything in a capitalist society?”

Ju-an immediately opened the skill window and pressed the sponsor button.

<The Constellation, Creator of Sacrifice, sponsors Baek Eun-hoo with 1,000 coins.>

Baek Eun-hoo frowned.

His sharply focused blue eyes rippled deeply.

—Who asked you for coins? I said we should sign a contract.

<The Constellation, Creator of Sacrifice, expresses fondness toward Baek Eun-hoo.>
<The Constellation, Creator of Sacrifice, asks him to wait just a little longer.>

—I don’t plan on waiting long.

<The Constellation, Creator of Sacrifice, smiles and waves.>

At that moment, a new message appeared in the system window.

<The solo-play dungeon will close. 10 seconds remaining. Connection will be terminated. 8 seconds remaining.>

—Looks like it’s time for the door to close. I’ll make good use of the coins you gave me, but don’t think you’ll be able to avoid me next time either.

The dungeon before his eyes vanished, and the skill window he’d left open shut down as well.

Then, light began to pour in where the system window had been, so bright that he couldn’t even keep his eyes open.

When he opened them again, an unfamiliar place he had never seen before spread out before him.

****

<Welcome to the Village of Wisdom. The residence of the Constellation, Creator of Sacrifice, is located next to the potion shop.>

The village was a place where bodiless Constellations (players) wandered with their incarnations, checking quests, enhancing weapons, and returning after being defeated by monsters.

But… a residence?

The game had skill windows and inventories, sure, but houses didn’t exist.

It would’ve been impossible to create a personal home for every user.

Suppressing his confusion, Ju-an took in the unfamiliar village scenery.

Centered around the lake, where players respawned upon return, were weapon and potion shops, a blacksmith for enhancements, and several unidentified buildings lined up in a row.

As he wandered through the village, marveling at the graphics quality that felt almost real, he noticed glowing letters atop a roof.

<Constellation, Creator of Sacrifice>

It was next to the potion shop.

‘Is this… my house?’

When he opened the door and stepped inside, he found a room structured similarly to his real-life apartment.

Thinking he needed to calm himself down first, he sat on the edge of the bed.

Suddenly, a piercing siren blared, and a status window popped open.

<Awakener Gong Se-yoon is requesting connection. Accept matching? Y / N>

Gong Se-yoon?

Just the name made his heart sink.

Gong Se-yoon was the youngest among the S-Rank incarnations.

On top of that, due to a status abnormality, his skill performance varied drastically depending on whether he was energetic or depressed.

Normally, once acquired, skills manifested stably, but Gong Se-yoon’s could drop as low as D-Rank depending on his mental state, making him extremely tricky to handle.

‘What should I do? Should I just pretend I didn’t see it?’

But he was still S-Rank.

Giving him up might mean filling that slot with a lower-ranked character instead.

<Cancel matching? Y / N>

“Ah, screw it. How am I supposed to give up an S-rank?”

‘I know every detail of this game, all the way to the ending. I should be able to handle at least one Gong Se-yoon.’

The moment Ju-an approved the connection, Se-yoon appeared, crying alone in the empty room.

His forehead rested against his knees, hiding his face, but his well-proportioned body and fine brown hair fluttering softly were exactly as Ju-an had imagined.

“Wow… seriously, who designed this character’s appearance? I want to recruit them immediately.”

Just then, Se-yoon lifted his head.

A beautiful young man with a tragic expression sniffled, looking as though tears might spill at any moment.

His eyes and cheeks were flushed red, while his face remained pale as snow, evoking an almost instinctive sense of protectiveness.

“Poor thing.”

The words slipped out of Ju-an’s mouth without him realizing it.

Se-yoon stopped sniffing and wiped at the corners of his eyes with his hand.

<The Constellation, Creator of Sacrifice, pities Gong Se-yoon.>

—Why did you come so late? Do you know how long I waited…?

What?

‘Does he know who I am?’

‘Earlier, Baek Eun-hoo had clearly said I was a Constellation he’d never seen before. But Gong Se-yoon was acting as if he already knew me.’

Still, seeing him cry like that was painful.

<The Constellation, Creator of Sacrifice, gently strokes Gong Se-yoon’s cheek.>

Startled, Gong Se-yoon rubbed his cheek repeatedly—then suddenly burst into heart-wrenching sobs.

—Hng… hic…

“Ah, damn it. Did I mess up?”

He’d only patted him because he genuinely felt sorry, but it seemed he’d triggered Se-yoon’s depression point.

Since conversation would be impossible while he was crying, checking the status window first felt like the smartest move.

<Awakener: Gong Se-yoon
Current Rank: S (Ice Attribute)
Current State: Depressed

Skill Ranks:
Cold Blade (SS → D), Calm Predator (SS → D), Lament of the Water Surge (SS → D)>

“Wow… he’s even worse than Baek Eun-hoo.”

Gong Se-yoon’s stats were jaw-dropping as well.

Not only had he acquired all pre-update skills, he’d even enhanced them to SS-Rank.

Unless he did nothing but eat and hunt all day, these stats made no sense.

Then again, given his risk factor, Ju-an had intentionally designed Gong Se-yoon as an overpowered character.

Regretting that he’d even considered passing up someone like this, Ju-an looked back at him.

Gong Se-yoon, having stopped crying, suddenly widened his eyes and stared straight ahead.

As his drooping gaze sharpened, an icy chill befitting a frost-type character radiated from him.

—What are you doing? You don’t pity me anymore?

<The Constellation, Creator of Sacrifice, shakes their head.>
<The Constellation, Creator of Sacrifice, pats Gong Se-yoon’s back in comfort.>

That only made Gong Se-yoon start crying again.

‘Why does he cry more when I comfort him? Well… I’m the one who designed him like this. I can’t blame anyone else.’

When things are sad and painful, there’s only one cure: financial treatment.

Ju-an entered the skill window and immediately hit the sponsor button.

<You sponsored 1,000 coins.>

Perhaps because he’d already pressed Y earlier, no warning message appeared this time.

Unlimited coin sponsorship.

So this is the developer’s privilege, huh?

A bitter smile crossed his face.

—What is all this? Constellation, I never asked you for coins.

He’d stopped crying, but now his eyes sharpened again, giving Ju-an an ominous feeling.

<The Constellation, Creator of Sacrifice, asks what he wants instead.>

—Hic…

<The Constellation, Creator of Sacrifice, tells him to stop crying and speak.>

—If I speak without crying… will you listen to me?

<The Constellation, Creator of Sacrifice, nods, then stops midway.>

—No! That’s not fair!

Whew.

‘That shaved ten years off my lifespan.’

He’d almost been swept up in the mood and forgotten the most important rule: never casually agree to anything Gong Se-yoon asks.

It was a relief he corrected himself in time.

Regaining his composure, Ju-an told him to speak first.

Se-yoon spoke in a voice thick with tears.

—Th-then… I want to… hic… contract with you, Constellation, Creator of Sacrifice. Please… please contract with me. Other Constellations hate me because… depending on my state, I can’t use my skills…

Unable to continue, Gong Se-yoon burst into loud sobs again.

After crying for a long while, he finally managed to continue.

—No one loves me. I don’t have any friends. I’m always alone.

The words “no friends” pierced Ju-an’s heart.

‘Ha… Why did I make his backstory so miserable?’

Of course, uncovering each character’s narrative was a core part of the game’s appeal, so he couldn’t just omit it.

But seeing a character who felt so alive suffering right in front of him was mentally exhausting.

Still, he couldn’t just agree to a contract.

And giving coins would only make him narrow his eyes again.

<The Constellation, Creator of Sacrifice, gently asks if he has any wish other than a contract.>

—No! There isn’t! I only want a contract! I don’t need anything else!

There was only one way to resolve the current situation: get Gong Se-yoon out of his depressed state.

If only coins could change status effects too, but that wasn’t possible.

Then what was he supposed to do?

—Hurry… please contract with me. Quickly. Hurry.

‘You’re not a kid, you’re already twenty. Why are you this impatient?’

Ju-an patted Gong Se-yoon’s back.

Gong Se-yoon pressed his lips tightly together.

Remembering that Se-yoon had been too busy crying to protest whenever he was stroked or patted before, Ju-an tried it again, and surprisingly, it worked.

After barely managing to calm him down, Ju-an checked his own status window.

<Constellation: Creator of Sacrifice
Contractors: None
Party Members: None
Coins: Infinite

Skill Ranks:
Sponsorship (Sponsor coins to cure an Awakener’s abnormal status or gain favor),
Buff (Triples stats and provides various combat support skills)>

Was this a simple system error?

Or had the game’s mechanics become distorted because this was a dream?

Either way, no matter how much he searched the status window, there was no option to disconnect from Gong Se-yoon.

He couldn’t swap him out with another character card either.

With a sigh, Ju-an opened the inventory window on a whim.

Since the game prioritized character equipment, Constellation items were scarce.

And with enough coins, anything could be purchased anywhere, making inventory items largely unnecessary.

Even so, he’d opened it for one reason: to find the book-shaped item labeled “Guide for Constellations.”

Maybe, just maybe, it explained how to temporarily suspend connections with individual characters.

—Hey, what are you doing? Are you messing with me right now? Ignoring me?

—I love you, Constellation.

—No… you’ll hate that, won’t you?

—You’re the Constellation, Creator of Sacrifice, right? Hey. Constellation! Constellation!

Ignoring Gong Se-yoon’s persistent calls with all his might, Ju-an calmly opened the guide and searched for the relevant section.