ocean-life Chapter 197
Chapter 197
[Translator - Helga ]
[Proofreader - Lucky]
Chapter 197
Time flew by swiftly.
The sequel to War of the Gods: Infinite Defense, set in Teverland, was now in production. Only one week remained until its launch.
“It’s our turn now,” said Lee Gabin, addressing her comrades.
“Are you sure we can do this without master’s permission?”
“If our master finds out we tampered with the forced awakening program, we’re doomed.”
“That’s why we need to keep it a secret. Min Kyungsoo plans to tell our master about it right before War of the Gods 2 goes live, so we just need to keep it hidden until then.”
“Heh, what’s there to hide? We’ll be gone from this world after today anyway.”
“Is that so?”
“Don’t get careless just because we’re disappearing.”
A sense of relief was evident in their expressions, as though they felt they had fulfilled their purpose with this one final act.
At that moment, Bergo, who had been living under the guise of the Hunter Association President, broke his silence.
“But you know...”
The other lords immediately yelled in unison.
“What now?”
“Give it a rest already.”
“Don’t tell me you’re about to say something about being afraid to die, are you?”
Bergo bristled under their harsh remarks.
“I just said one thing!”
“Oh, really?”
“Sorry, we thought you were rambling again.”
“My bad.”
They pretended to apologize, but this was a familiar scene.
It always went this way whenever Bergo tried to speak. Even if he hadn’t said a word during the entire conversation, he could barely get a chance to talk at the end.
In their fast-paced chatter, they often assumed Bergo had been chiming in all along.
Lee Gabin and Amon took charge of the situation.
“Just join in the conversation earlier. Stop waiting until the very end. Anyway, what do you want to say?”
Bergo let out a deep sigh before finally speaking.
“When we disappear... do you think our master will be sad?”
“I hadn’t really thought about that....”
“Would someone as strong as our master feel sorrow over disobedient subordinates like us?”
“And we’ve only been with the master for a year on this earth.”
“Then, probably not.”
“That’s a relief. I was worried our disappearance might make the master sad.”
“Come on.”
“Do you really think so?”
Despite their words, they each fell into their own thoughts.
What if it really happened?
Bergo continued, breaking the silence.
“But what if master finds out we’re gone and uses divine powers? Have any of you thought about that?”
“No.”
“Not at all.”
“I didn’t think it was even possible.”
“Hm....”
Clap!
Lee Gabin clapped her hands together.
“Even if master grieves, he’ll overcome it quickly. So let’s devote ourselves fully to fulfilling the master’s wish.”
“Of course.”
“This will go down as a legendary moment in our family’s history.”
“Hah, my contribution will stand out the most!”
Even in their final moments, they continued to bicker with one another.
Fwoosh...
The door to the lab slid open, revealing a massive, glowing red core.
A dense mass of mana, fused together to form a single entity.
It was a magical core.
But not an ordinary one—this was a Blood Crystal Core created entirely from Blood Mana Stones.
This was the heart of the forced awakening program.
“Is everyone ready?”
At Lee Gabin’s words, Amon, the chairman of the Daehan Group, nodded firmly.
So did Sayatan, and Bergo- who had been posing as the Hunter Association President.
Every single lord gathered there unleashed their full magical power.
As they did, an overwhelming torrent of knowledge began to pour out from the Blood Crystal Core.
They used that knowledge to begin repairing the errors embedded within the core.
It was a task requiring two simultaneous efforts:
One was outputting their magical power at maximum capacity.
Those watching the showcase went wild.
This frenzy spread not just in Korea but also to China, Japan, Asia, and even America.
The Korean government was flooded with inquiries.
Min Kyungsoo’s claims had turned out to be true.
Today was the day people could awaken through the game.
What’s more, there was no need for a bulky VR headset to connect to the virtual world.
All it took was a simple finger ring to log into War of the Gods 2.
You could connect while working.
While shopping at the grocery store or attending school.
Anywhere, anytime.
Even more surprising was the price of the VR device—it was just 500,000 won.
Previously, VR devices started at a million won.
High-end VR rigs had cost tens of millions, but this was unbelievably affordable.
Awakening, for just 500,000 won?
It was a price that even those with limited finances could somehow manage to afford.
Maybe that’s why.
The entire world was buzzing with talk about War of the Gods 2.
“When are you logging in?”
“Of course, as soon as I get to school. That’s why I’m heading there so early in the morning.”
“Let’s hurry and try it out. They say it’s completely different from War of the Gods 1.”
Two high school students on a bus chatted excitedly, their faces glowing with anticipation.
The same was true for office workers heading to work.
“I should’ve taken a day off today.”
“Right? It’s been so long since a game got my heart racing like this.”
“You’re nervous because there’s a chance you might gain mana, right?”
“That too, but I’m also a gaming nerd, so I can’t help being thrilled. Isn’t that why you’re heading to work so early, too?”
“Ahem, let’s get to the office quickly and log in. If we’re late, we’ll waste time wandering around looking for hunting grounds, and we’ll fall behind on leveling.”
“Who do you think I am? Just follow my lead.”
From the crack of dawn, excitement was in the air.
The servers were set to open at exactly 6 a.m.
People rushed to their destinations, eager to log in as soon as possible.
TVs and billboards were filled with advertisements for War of the Gods 2.
Everywhere you went, the game was the talk of the town.
At home, even Min Kyungsoo couldn’t help but click his tongue in amazement.
“Looks like it’s really happening, just like you said. It feels like everyone is ready to log into Teverland. Even veteran hunters are making inquiries.”
Meanwhile, Han Chanyul sat leisurely in the living room, tearing apart a piece of morning bread.
“They’re all asking if they can get stronger by logging into War of the Gods 2 themselves. It’s chaos out there.”
If there was one key difference in War of the Gods 2, it was that players couldn’t use pre-existing characters.
Only their true selves.
They had to grow stronger as themselves.
This feature struck a chord with people’s desires.
To grow stronger.
It was everyone’s dream.
To become powerful, earn lots of money, and protect their loved ones.
For them, War of the Gods 2 was a game for awakening.
That was the case for now, but things would change in the future.
Han Chanyul had designed it so that Teverland would become humanity’s second home.
Teverland was both a game and a reality.
If someone thoughtlessly killed those they assumed were NPCs, they would be branded as criminals, and if they died there, they would lose their mana.
At first, he considered making death permanent, but decided that was too harsh and changed it.
Anyway, since Teverland’s residents were much stronger than most hunters in this world, anyone recklessly attacking others would pay dearly.
They’d eventually learn to behave on their own.
“Should I log in after all this time? Oh, by the way, I show up as the NPC named Ray, right?”
“Why are you asking when you already know?”
“I just felt like asking again. When are you logging in?”
“Right after I eat.”
“Hehe, then I’ll log in first.”
“You’re not going to the office?”
“I’m the chairman, you know. I’ll just work remotely.”
“That’s what you call working remotely?”
“Teverland is set up so I can take calls there too. So, remote work is totally possible.”
“Let’s see if you can call it work once you’re gaming.”
As Han Chanyul took another bite of his bread, Min Kyungsoo’s phone buzzed.
Min Kyungsoo’s face twisted in annoyance.
“Ugh, don’t these people ever sleep?”
It was an international number.
[Translator - Helga ]
[Proofreader - Lucky]