Skeleton Master Chapter 034

Recently, these places have been sprouting up like mushrooms - establishments with capsules that exist solely for connecting to Illusion.

Just like PC cafes with their computers.

"Hmm, seems nice?"

"Should we go?"

"I'm in!"

"I'm good with that too."

Everyone seemed to be in agreement.

"Let's pay the bill first then."

"Okay."

After paying, they gathered outside the restaurant.

Min-woo approached and tapped Kang Moo-hyeok on the shoulder.

"Ah, well..."

"Let's go. It's been a while since we've all gotten together."

Once they connect at the capsule room, their levels will surely be revealed.

"We can all check each other's levels too."

"Hmm."

"Let's have fun."

Suddenly, those words struck a chord.

Have fun?

Min-woo's words brought back the thoughts he had pushed aside.

Did he really need to hide it?

No, maybe it wouldn't even attract any attention in the first place.

Maybe these were just needless worries.

Shouldn't he just act as his heart desires?

Of course, with his old personality, he might have hidden away due to the pressure.

But now his life was different from before.

While completely changing one's personality might be difficult, becoming more proactive wasn't such a hard thing to do.

Isn't this a new life?

It's a fresh start.

Whatever direction it takes would be fine.

He just wanted to be the one steering that course.

So, no more hiding.

Perhaps it was this change in mindset.

It felt like a wall that had been blocking him had crumbled.

It was an incredibly refreshing feeling.

"You're coming, right?"

"Of course, I am."

The smile on his face looked relaxed.

*

After arriving at the capsule room, they paid the fee upfront and were guided to their room.

They would be using the six capsules stationed there.

"Alright, so where should we meet?"

"Well, the continent is Forma, right?"

"Yeah. That's where Asian players connect."

"How about the Vir Kingdom in the center?"

"The Vir Kingdom, huh."

"It is the central location after all."

"Hmm, sounds good?"

"I'm in."

"Me too."

"Then let's meet at the Central Fountain in Vir Kingdom."

After deciding on the location, he immediately went into the capsule and lay down.

When the door closed, only darkness remained. In the strange silence that followed, a familiar mechanical voice hit his eardrums.

[Scanning body.]

['Moo-hyeok' user confirmed.]

[Please enter password.]

Milky way.

As he thought it in his mind, the light drew closer.

[Connection established.]

Soon, a light appeared in the distance.

The light rapidly approached, enveloped his retinas, and in that moment, a new world entered his vision.

This scene had become familiar now.

He closed his eyes briefly.

When the subtle sensation disappeared, he opened his eyes.

It was the place where he had logged out.

Step.

He left the Ogre Hunting Ground and returned to the village where the Warp Gate was installed.

Unlike the kingdoms and empires, in front of the sparsely populated village's warp zone, a woman was staring at the sky with a bored expression.

Even though Moo-hyeok approached closely, she remained dazed, seemingly unaware.

"Excuse me."

"......"

"Excuse me!"

Only then did she startle.

"Ah, y-yes, yes!"

"I'd like to use the warp."

"Oh, yes. I'm sorry!"

The way she bowed her head was quite cute. Her features were round too.

"Where would you like to go?"

"Vir Kingdom."

"That'll be 1 gold."

1 gold. Even converted to real money, it was just slightly over 10,000 won.

It wasn't a waste to pay 10,000 won to instantly travel tens or hundreds of kilometers away.

"Here you go."

"Thank you. Please step onto the warp zone and close your eyes."

As Moo-hyeok stepped onto the warp zone, the previously dazed woman began muttering in a low voice.

Then, a strange flow of energy could be felt from all around the warp zone.

In that moment of observation.

Whoosh.

The world distorted as if it were a lie.

Ugh...!

When the distorted world returned to normal after a mild dizziness, the cute woman had disappeared, and instead, a burly man was occupying the space in front of the warp zone.

"Welcome to the Vir Kingdom."

Only then did he realize this was the Vir Kingdom.

"Ah, thank you."

He stepped down from the warp zone with a slightly dazed expression.

Whew, I'm dizzy.

He pressed firmly against his throbbing temples as he headed toward the plaza.

How far had he traveled?

Gradually, other users began to appear.

Their numbers increased exponentially until he was swept up in a wave of users before even reaching the plaza.

"Looking for a knight who can tank Carnivorous Trees!"

"Seeking DPS with AoE damage!"

But he wasn't easily swayed.

He pushed through the crowd of users with determination. Thanks to that, he was able to reach the Central Fountain without getting lost.

"Oh, over here!"

Min-woo, who had arrived first, came into view.

"You're early?"

"Yeah, I started in the Vir Kingdom."

"Ah, I see."

"By the way, what level are you? Your gear..."

Min-woo's eyes narrowed.

He couldn't help it, as several items Moo-hyeok was wearing had extraordinary options.

As such, even at a glance, they looked quite different from ordinary armor.

"Me?"

"Yeah, your items look really good?"

Moo-hyeok grinned.

At that expression, Min-woo's brows furrowed.

"What's with that look, what level are you?"

"31."

That number pierced Min-woo's eardrums sharply.

He heard the number 31.

Moo-hyeok standing before him?

Didn't he say he'd only started two months ago?

He shook his head.

His brain naturally began filtering the information.

What remained was just the number after removing the word 'three'.

"Ah, your level is 11?"

It was a natural assumption.

After all, who could believe someone would reach level 31 in just two months?

It's not like he had shown any particular talent for gaming either.

Plus, thinking that he had been quiet during gatherings because he was embarrassed about his low level added weight to this assumption.

Nevertheless, there was one thing that made him doubtful.

It was because of the items.

"But somehow your items look even better than mine."

The things Moo-hyeok was wearing.

They looked similar to or even better than the equipment Min-woo was wearing.

"Can you add Luster?"

"No."

"Then? What's your method?"

Moo-hyeok just found Min-woo's reactions amusing.

First hearing 31 as 11.

Now asking if he could add Luster to the items.

Still, he should explain the method.

With a slight smirk, he answered.

"Just wear good stuff."

"Good stuff? My items aren't bad either..."

"Mine have quite a few options. Some even have two or three..."

"What? Two, three? That must be super expensive! Where did you get the money for items like that?"

At this rate, it seemed they wouldn't reach an understanding.

Wiping the smile from his face, he looked at Min-woo.

"Listen carefully."

Perhaps it was due to that serious expression.

Gulp.

Min-woo unconsciously swallowed.

Why?

What could it be?

At that moment, a low whisper reached his ears.

"My level isn't 11, it's 31."

"What?"

"I said it's 31."

"31?"

"Yeah."

"But you said you've only been playing for two months?"

"That's right."

"And you're saying you're level 31?"

"Yes."

"Really...?"

Moo-hyeok nodded. Then Seong Min-woo suddenly threw his head back and burst out laughing.

"Pff, pfft. Hahahaha!"

He pointed his finger while spraying spittle.

"Two months, you reached level 31 in just 2 months? Heheh! Hey, even a dog passing by wouldn't believe that nonsense!"

At that moment, everyone around turned to look.

"Huh? What's this?"

"Did someone just say they reached level 31 in two months?"

"Two months to 31?"

"That's hilarious. Heh."

"Is this supposed to be a joke?"

Suddenly, Moo-hyeok's expression hardened.

Min-woo's unstoppable laughter quickly began to fade.

Then, looking at Moo-hyeok's stern expression, his pupils trembled uncontrollably.

Could he really be level 31?

Confusion suddenly struck him.

How should he handle this situation?

Trying to act casual, he led Moo-hyeok away. Then, stopping in a less crowded area, he asked again.

"Are you really level 31?"

"Yes."

"Really?"

Moo-hyeok sighed.

"What's your nickname?"

"Oh, I'm Iron Fist."

He immediately sent him a party invitation.

['Would you like to send a party invitation to 'Iron Fist'?']

Conversely, Min-woo saw a different message appear.

['Moo-hyeok has invited you to join their party. Would you like to accept?']

Min-woo nodded reflexively.

Then the party window automatically opened, and when he saw the level displayed there, a bizarre expression crossed his face.

Because he really was level 31.

What had been hard to believe had become reality.

"Whoa..."

He stared at Moo-hyeok with a blank expression.

Min-woo mumbled.

"So, you've really only been playing for two months?"

"That's right."

"You swear?"

"I told you so."

It must be shocking.

Illusion's influence had already spread across the entire world.

Asia, Europe, North and South America, Oceania, Africa - countries worldwide were enjoying Illusion.

Of course, since the continent you could choose in Illusion was determined by the continent your country belonged to, it wasn't possible to meet players from other continents right now.

However, those belonging to Asia could easily be seen around them right now.

That's how many users were enjoying Illusion.

And there was an established formula.

If you invested 12 hours a day purely in hunting, it took 5 days to reach level 10.

It took 15 days to go from level 10 to 15.

And it took 20 days to go from 15 to 20.

In other words, you had to play like a complete no-lifer for 40 days just to barely reach level 20.

It got even harder after 20.

It took another 25 days to reach 25, and a month to go from 25 to 30.

In other words, for someone who just started to reach level 30, they would need to play like a no-lifer for over 3 months, and it wouldn't be strange if it took 6 months playing normally.

That was the formula.

The widely known formula for Illusion's leveling speed.

But level 31 in two months?

It was natural not to believe it easily.

"How?"

"I got lucky. I discovered dungeons early on."

"Ah..."

"Twice in a row."

"Whoa...!"

"Got a title too."

"*gasp*"

Finally, Min-woo started to accept it.

"Why didn't you tell us earlier?"

"I'm telling you now."

"Then what about at the restaurant?"

"Just because."

Min-woo remained dazed for a while.

Then suddenly he started laughing.

"Heh, well that's amazing. And this is going to be fun."

"What is?"

"I mean when Young-chan comes in, his reaction is going to be hilarious."

Actually, Moo-hyeok was looking forward to it too.

What kind of expression would he make?

"I'm curious too. By the way, you've accepted it now?"

"Well, when there's a number 31 right in front of my eyes, what can I say? Plus, you said you found two dungeons and even got a title? The dungeon rewards must have been incredible?"

"They were."

"Wow! Then I guess it could be possible. Ah, I want to discover a dungeon too!"

"Next time I find one, let's go together."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"Oh, yes!"

That response brought a smile to his face.

"Should we head to the plaza now?"

"Ah, right."

Once again, they made their way through the crowd toward the central fountain.

They could see that the others had arrived. Young-chan raised his hand with a proud expression.

"Over here."

They approached and stopped in front of them.

"Shall we form a party first?"

He seemed eager to show off his level.

"Let's just hunt nearby casually. Don't worry about it. Between friends, I should at least carry you this much."

He scanned the surroundings.

Finally looking at Moo-hyeok.

['Destroyer has invited you to join their party.']

[Would you like to accept?]

He smirked and accepted.

"Alright, everyone's in the party. Now then..."

Destroyer, that is, Young-chan, suddenly trailed off.

It was because he had seen an incomprehensible number in the party window.

He rubbed his eyes and looked again.

Turned his head to look at Moo-hyeok.

Back to the party window.

The others, except for Min-woo, also noticed something was off and checked the party window.

As they checked each person's level one by one, their eyes stopped at Moo-hyeok's level.

Meanwhile, Young-chan's head kept moving left and right, his brow deeply furrowed. Then he barely managed to part his lips.

"Your level is..."