novelraw Chapter 209: Mini-Game (4)
Chapter 209: Mini-Game (4)
Translator: Dreamscribe
Arsilan Saga Episode 5's main event, Arsilan Defense, had been revealed!
The original Arsilan Defense was an indie game uploaded to Arsilan Worlds' game platform. It had been released for free and had great gameplay, climbing all the way to third place on the best-of list. The newly released Arsilan Defense was built on that indie game's foundation, incorporating various ideas from the Heroes.
Only the basic framework resembled the original; everything else was filled with the Heroes' ideas. The Heroes whose ideas were adopted received generous Arsilan Contribution Points and prize money.
The very first mini-game to appear in Arsilan Saga.
What would it be like?
The Heroes had already grown far too accustomed to the Creator God's spectacular presentations and the massive flood of content released every week.
And that came with side effects.
'Ugh! Real life is so boring.'
'I need some kind of stimulation!'
'Fresh stimulation! Dopamine! More dopamine!'
'Guys, let's not get our hopes up. It's just a mi.ni.ga.me after all.'
'The Lord of Despair's entrance scene was at least somewhat fresh, I'll give it that.'
By now, hardly anything could stir their emotions.
Interpreted charitably, it meant they were unshakable in the face of any hardship, but from the perspective of FS Games' developers, it was an incredibly harsh situation. Moving the Heroes' hearts required an enormous amount of effort.
Despite saying they weren't getting their hopes up, the Heroes' bodies couldn't lie. The moment the PV trailer dropped and Arsilan Defense went live, every single Hero stopped what they were doing and pulled up the login screen to access Arsilan Defense.
"Huh? If you use Mobile Mode, you can play it like a phone game."
"Full Login is probably better, right?"
Heroes who were busy with other things could enjoy it by pulling up an Information Window in Mobile Mode, just like the games offered on Arsilan Worlds. Repetitive tasks could be handled comfortably through auto mode. It truly felt like a mini-game.
Naturally, it was also possible to go fully inside, just like logging into Arsilan Saga.
"Hmm...."
The Hanwoon Group chairman was restless.
He absolutely could not focus on the meeting.
Was it because of Hanwoon Group's future?
No.
Hanwoon Group, long rivals with Osung Group, had seen the gap between them widen enormously, but it was still doing well. In fact, by focusing on fields that didn't overlap with Osung Group, it wouldn't have been an exaggeration to say the company was experiencing its golden age.
"Hmm...."
The chairman was glaring at a report with a grave expression.
He was staring at the report while lost in entirely different thoughts, but to the executives, the sight made them break out in cold sweat.
They had originally planned to pat themselves on the back over this quarter's performance. But the mood wasn't right for that now. The executives exchanged nervous glances and took a moment for some collective self-reflection.
They had posted the best results in company history, but come to think of it, it was all thanks to the chairman's directives. The executives recalled those directives.
The chairman had looked just as serious as he did now when issuing those orders.
'Plant diligently.'
'The harvest schedule must be observed without fail.'
'Dig the ground and money will come.'
Pearls of wisdom, every one of them.
The brilliant minds of Hanwoon Group had quickly interpreted the chairman's directives and delivered the best performance in the company's history.
"...I'll need to dig."
The chairman's murmured words sent a shiver through the room.
Everyone quickly contacted their secretarial staff, ordering them to review related materials. Two years ago, Hanwoon Group had acquired a drilling company, but it had yet to produce any notable results.
So why was he bringing this up now?
The executives of the Future Strategy Office, the people who designed Hanwoon Group's future, felt a chill run down their spines.
After giving up the competition with Osung Group, the two companies had been able to establish a strategic partnership. A joint venture was even under review, and the technology Lee Jinwoo had unveiled at a recent presentation came to mind.
Near the end of the presentation, he had introduced precision exploration technology and a new material that could turn the world upside down.
The executives gazed at the chairman with eyes full of admiration.
While Korea's major corporations were being swept aside by Lee Jinwoo, FS Games, and Osung Group, the chairman had been envisioning Hanwoon Group's future long in advance.
"We'll review it immediately and submit the report!"
"Ugh..., this was no time to be throwing a celebration over our earnings."
"Come on, everyone! Let's get to work."
The meeting ended earlier than scheduled.
The chairman headed straight for his office. His pace was brisk, as if something urgent demanded his attention. His secretary followed behind with an expression of deep respect. The chairman begrudged even this wasted time!
Once back in his office, the chairman immediately canceled all his remaining schedule. He had only attended the executive meeting because it couldn't be pushed back.
"Leave me."
"Yes, Chairman."
The secretary bowed deeply and withdrew.
The chairman would be alone in his office, wrestling with the future of Hanwoon Group. These were the kinds of concerns an ordinary person like himself could never comprehend.
'Is he gone?'
The moment the secretary left, the tense expression on the chairman's face finally eased.
He rose from his desk and placed his hand on the bookshelf against the wall. The bookshelf swung open, revealing a hidden space behind it. It had originally been built to store important documents, but not anymore.
Far more precious things were on display there.
What bliss!
Sera posters covered every inch of the walls, and the space was packed with merchandise he had personally commissioned. He locked the door and quickly pulled out his Soul Link.
ForRiceMoney: Got held up by a meeting, running late.
LifeHunter: Not like it's gonna make a difference anyway, is it?
ForRiceMoney: Gotta do what you gotta do.
LifeHunter: ㅋㅋㅋ just retire already.
ForRiceMoney: Like you're one to talk.
LifeHunter: I'm basically retired lmao
ForRiceMoney: Must be nice, man. My damn kids keep screwing up so I've got at least 10 more years.
The Hanwoon Group chairman, ForRiceMoney, owned a massive farm in Arsilan and was supplying the imperial household with premium-grade rice.
The reason he had been so restless was the Arsilan Defense PV trailer. A rare material had been visible on the enormous fragments shown in the video.
[A] Tears of the Earth
An extremely rare material found only deep underground.
It is known to be formed when massive Magic Stones are compressed under extreme pressure. Most of the Mana is lost in the process, but the space once saturated with Mana becomes imbued with new properties. When processed through alchemy, it can grant high-rank options.
Every alchemist in Arsilan had invested heavily in trying to create the Philosopher's Stone. A clue about the Philosopher's Stone had been discovered at the Alusion Grand Library, and it mentioned Tears of the Earth.
ForRiceMoney shook his head.
That material should never be wasted on something like the Philosopher's Stone. It must be used solely for rice!
'For the rice...!'
If Tears of the Earth were applied to rice, it would birth the ultimate rice variety!
'Rice that actually tastes like premium beef...!'
That was ForRiceMoney's ultimate goal.
Because it was found so deep underground, it had only appeared at auction once. From that day on, ForRiceMoney had begun leveling his Mining skill. His plan was to delve deep into Arsilan himself and mine the Tears of the Earth with his own hands.
His obsession was so intense that he had amassed a pile of hidden skills, and titles related to mining had stacked up in droves. By the time he came to his senses, he had become Arsilan's greatest mining expert.
'The earth and rice are always honest.'
Everything in the earth led back to rice!
Raising children might not go the way he wanted, but rice farming in Arsilan never betrayed him! Perhaps that was exactly why he clung to rice even harder.
ForRiceMoney: Suddenly feeling sad....
LifeHunter: Quit your whining and get in here.
ForRiceMoney: K.
In any case, LifeHunter had recognized his abilities and recruited him as a party member the moment Arsilan Defense launched. Upon entering Arsilan Defense, a character's base abilities were heavily restricted, but skills could still be used as-is.
ForRiceMoney logged into Arsilan Saga.
The sight of golden waves stretching out before him soothed his mind and body. The rice currently stockpiled in his warehouses was being exported to Levannas. The rice trade was turning a tidy profit.
He was even donating rice for free to Levannas orphanages, trying to cultivate the next generation of rice lovers.
[Would you like to access Arsilan Defense?]
ForRiceMoney accessed Arsilan Defense. Rather than using Mobile Mode, he performed a Full Login. His body dissolved into particles of light and was pulled beyond Arsilan's borders.
He could see the gouged-out Arsilan.
A mass of land the size of the Sillion Empire had been dug out so deeply that the planet's core was exposed. The motionless form of a Planet Devourer, looking as though it were dead, was also visible.
[Ella's Authority and Helby's starlight settle upon you.]
[Generating an Avatar for use in Arsilan Defense.]
[An Avatar has been generated based on your current appearance.]
Windows similar to the ones from his first time logging into Arsilan Saga appeared. It was the Avatar creation screen.
The Avatar was a chibi-style SD character.
Rendered through Arsilan Saga, it looked like a beautifully crafted figurine or doll. Though generated based on his current appearance, it could be freely customized.
'Hm, cute.'
It had no stats, but even the outfit he was currently wearing had been faithfully reproduced. ForRiceMoney didn't bother adjusting anything and logged in.
"Oh, ohh!"
The gouged-out land of Arsilan.
He spawned on top of an enormous fragment floating above it. Countless others packed the surrounding area. Quite a few of these massive Fragment Lands were drifting nearby as well.
There were Heroes and Arsilanians alike. An icon floating above each head indicated whether they were in Full Login mode or Mobile Mode.
The tiny Avatars swarming everywhere were somehow both cute and unsettling at the same time.
'My stats are...'
Stats had been cut by over 70%.
In exchange, those stats were reflected in the Avatar's other abilities. A tutorial was helpfully provided, and quests had also appeared.
[Tutorial] Craft basic tools!
- Stone Shovel (0/1)
- Stone Pickaxe (0/1)
- Shabby Bag (0/1)
- Low-grade Crafting Box (0/1)
Heroes could be seen punching the ground with their fists. ForRiceMoney followed suit and started digging, and after a while, dirt and stone popped up as icons.
When he touched them, they went into his Inventory.
The Inventory wasn't shared with his main body, so it was completely empty.
Within the Inventory, there was a space for combining items. When he put in the stone and dirt, a flash of light burst out and they transformed into a shovel.
ForRiceMoney gripped the shovel in his hand.
[F] Stone Shovel
Can dig the ground, and can copy chunks of dirt, sand, or rock. Each copy consumes light gauge; resources cannot be copied. Ignores gravity and can fix copied chunks in place.
When he dug the ground, a dirt-shaped icon appeared and was absorbed into the shovel. When he brought the shovel to an empty space, a chunk of dirt was generated.
"That's pretty cool."
The urge to dig surged within him!
The Heroes next to ForRiceMoney were nodding along and chatting. They could talk as if there were air around them.
"Crafting? Now that's a familiar system."
"Yeah. So you upgrade from copper tools to gold tools, that kind of thing?"
It was an intuitive system already used in many games.
"Huh? Guys, these crafting recipes are insane. I tried buying a cosmetic item and tossing it in to combine, and...."
There were cosmetic items available to dress up Avatars.
They could be purchased through the Information Window, and the prices were reasonable. Combining cosmetic items with various materials produced entirely new things.
"If you cut up a cosmetic item and add it in...."
"Oh, a stone cloak was created."
"What even is a dirt hat."
There was no such thing as a failed combination, and changing the materials even slightly would produce something new. On top of that, using a Crafting Box enabled even more creative combinations.
"I bet Magical Engineering applies too, right? If you put in a blueprint, a Magic Stone, and materials then spin it...."
"Whoa...."
"So could you make a shovel with a Mana engine?"
"Ohhh! Let's get the materials and try it right now!"
ForRiceMoney crafted a stone pickaxe and began digging in earnest.
LifeHunter: Where u at?
ForRiceMoney: X 323, Y 123, Z 8,876
LifeHunter: Got it. See the island-looking thing next to u? We're there.
ForRiceMoney: See it. Gonna get settled in first.
He kept digging deeper and deeper.
Minerals rarely seen in Arsilan were everywhere.
Once he crafted a bag, he was able to store a decent amount of gathered resources! For bulk storage, he would need to build a Storage container.
CRUMBLE!
After descending to a considerable depth, he heard a wall collapse next to him and a Hero emerged.
"Oh? Guild master?"
"PeachFarmer! Hey. I heard you moved your farm to Alusion...."
"Yeah, I'm planting peach trees over there."
He was a Hero belonging to Fruit Merchants, a sub-guild of the now-massive Farmer's Union. The guild master of Farmer's Union was ForRiceMoney.
"Guild master, did you just log in?"
"Yeah, you?"
"I've been on for two hours. Here, take this."
PeachFarmer handed over a low-grade Crafting Box.
"Oh, thanks."
"Party up?"
"Sure!"
The two formed a party and began mining.
The Main Quest was to build a massive landmass over the gouged-out space. Good tools were needed to build according to the blueprints.
The two dug like maniacs.
PeachFarmer wore a satisfied expression.
"It's nice not needing any lighting."
Light emanated from their bodies, so even deep underground, their surroundings stayed bright.
"A Magic Stone vein!"
"Ooh!"
They filled their bags with high-quality Magic Stones and climbed back up. So many Heroes had been digging that the massive Fragment Land looked tattered and worn.
'Now I can make iron tools.'
ForRiceMoney pulled out his ores and started combining.
"Guys! Check this out."
A Hero who had been peering into a Crafting Box nearby held up a Magic Stone flickering with a blue glow.
"I combined it with an F-rank wind spell! I put a strap on it too."
When the Hero slung the Magic Stone over his shoulder like a bag, ForRiceMoney and the surrounding Heroes all looked at him. The Hero channeled his Mana, and wind burst out of the Magic Stone, shooting him rapidly upward.
"Whoa, it's a jetpack."
"Insane...."
The Heroes were awestruck.
The Hero, rising slowly into the air, waved happily, clearly enjoying himself. ForRiceMoney watched him, then tilted his head.
"But dude, how do you steer that thing?"
"Uh...?"
Unfortunately, he could not steer it. The wind simply kept blasting out, carrying him endlessly upward with no way to stop.
"Ahhh! AAAGH! Guys, help me!"
"Just take it off!"
He tried, but his Avatar's arms were too short; all he could do was flail helplessly. The Heroes watched in silence as he vanished into the distance.
"Hmm."
"Guys, can you make food here?"
"Looking for Heroes to gather materials with."
Work resumed as though nothing had happened. The Arsilanians inhabiting the Avatars were already so used to the Heroes' antics that they didn't bat an eye.
ForRiceMoney looked at PeachFarmer.
"I think combining something like explosive magic would work well..., oh! PeachFarmer, you're a mage, right?"
"Yeah, after my Third Class Change, it made growing peaches way easier."
ForRiceMoney looked around, searching for a more efficient method of rice-related productivity. He could see the other Fragment Land where LifeHunter was. It was on the smaller side.
The Avatars were subject to Arsilan-like gravity thanks to Ella's Authority, but the Fragment Lands and items were not.
ForRiceMoney pulled out a sizable Magic Stone.
"With one this big, what rank of magic could you pull off?"
"I could probably manage up to a C-rank Aero Bomb."
At ForRiceMoney's request, PeachFarmer placed the Magic Stone in the Crafting Box, made a flat dirt board, and drew a magic circle on top of it.
[Crafting complete.]
*[E] Low-grade Storm Stone
An elemental stone imbued with the wind-attribute spell 'Aero Bomb.' Can fire a compressed burst of wind that explodes after 60 seconds.
When ForRiceMoney fixed the low-grade Storm Stone to the ground, the Heroes nearby approached with expressions full of curiosity. ForRiceMoney activated the low-grade Storm Stone. Compressed wind erupted outward in an explosive burst.
THUD!
The Fragment Land they were standing on shifted slightly to the side.
PeachFarmer's eyes went wide, and so did every other Hero's.
ForRiceMoney grinned and pointed at another Fragment Land floating nearby.
"Guys, what if we stick a bunch of these on and ram it? Smash that thing in one shot?"
"Whoa..., that's creative as hell."
"Sounds like a terrible idea though...."
The Heroes nodded.
The Arsilanians did too.
"Let's do it!"
"Let's go!"
Everyone mined with a united purpose, then crafted Storm Stones. They carefully adjusted the angles and loaded one side with as many Storm Stones as possible. Even if this succeeded, there was no guarantee it would lead to any actual gain, but trying was what mattered.
It seemed like it would be fun, at the very least!
If they were lucky and it went as planned, the Fragment Land would shatter, exposing a wealth of resources that they could simply scoop up! ForRiceMoney gave the nod, and the Heroes activated every single Storm Stone with grins on their faces.
* * *
LifeHunter nodded.
His hunters had been gathering resources through their hunts and had managed to upgrade their Crafting Box. The plan was to connect this Fragment Land with the gouged-out section of Arsilan and clear the quest.
"There are so many fragments."
Jamshik said with a look of amazement.
Looking up, enormous Fragment Lands drifted all over the place. It looked almost like an asteroid field. Rare minerals embedded in them were visible even with the naked eye.
Jamshik looked at LifeHunter.
LifeHunter, transformed into an SD character, was actually pretty cute. The pointed fangs were a charming touch.
"Hyung, it says we need to build a Storage and keep things in it for a few days before we can take them to Arsilan. We can even get building blueprints from Arsilan Worlds."
"Hm. Not a bad system."
They needed to install a Purifier in the Storage to purify the materials.
Information like that was beginning to trickle in on Arsilan Worlds.
"When is ForRiceMoney joining up with us?"
"Let's make some progress on the quest first and...."
There was no rush.
The plan was to build a base here and then take their time enjoying the various content.
"Oh! I found a Random Box!"
"Good work. Put it in the Storage."
"Yessir!"
A hunter brought back a glowing box that had been lodged deep underground. To open it, they would need to progress through the Main Quest and obtain a 'key.'
The hunters cobbled together a makeshift Storage out of piles of dirt.
A sense of pride was plain on everyone's face.
LifeHunter placed the vampire's Blood Magic and a stone into the Crafting Box and combined them, creating a Blood Stone Pickaxe.
ForRiceMoney: Yo, you digging right now?
LifeHunter: Taking a break. About to start.
ForRiceMoney: I'll make it so you don't even have to dig.
LifeHunter: BS
ForRiceMoney: Look to your side.
LifeHunter scowled and turned to look.
"Huh?"
"What, what the?!"
"Why is that coming this way...?"
An enormous Fragment Land was heading straight toward them. It had seemed slow at first, but it was steadily picking up speed. LifeHunter used his keen eyesight to examine the approaching Fragment Land.
On top of it, ForRiceMoney was waving his tiny, adorable arms.
"That crazy son of a...!"
KRAKOOOM!
The two Fragment Lands collided.
A tremendous shockwave tore through the area. The Fragment Lands shattered on impact, and the Heroes standing on them were flung out into the void of space.
Both Fragment Lands exploded apart into pieces.
"Hm."
Well, that didn't work.
ForRiceMoney nodded as he was sent tumbling sideways.
* * *
Ella was in the lab, enjoying Arsilan Defense in Mobile Mode while basking in the cool breeze of the air conditioner. Discovering and collecting minerals was surprisingly addictive. She had gathered various materials and even built a cozy little house on top of a Fragment Land.
"Done!"
She gazed at the completed house with a look of pride.
Now it was time to decorate the interior!
She was planning to show it off to Jinwoo, who was working on various things in the lab, once it was fully finished.
She thought it would be fun to hang out inside the house together with Jinwoo.
That was when it happened.
"Wh, what?!"
The Fragment Land shattered into pieces, and her house along with all the resources she had stored were blasted away. She stared at the Information Window with a blank expression.
Drip!
A single tear rolled down her cheek.
"Hm? What's wrong?"
Jinwoo looked at her with a bewildered expression.
Thud!
Ella collapsed onto the sofa face-first, burying her face in it.
Her anguished wail echoed miserably through the lab.