Hero, Please Save This World!

The game I played was a virtual reality fantasy RPG, set against a backdrop that blended medieval aesthetics with steampunk elements.

Its primary objective was to defeat the demons plaguing this world and save it, yet players could fully enjoy the game without necessarily following the main storyline. In fact, more people opted not to see the ending.

Players were free to pursue whatever they desired. One could simply raise crafting or production skills to engage in trade, delve into politics to become a king, or even join and operate within specific in-game factions.

Additionally, if time permitted, minor activities like dating or decorating one’s home were also possible. The game boasted an insane degree of freedom.

While this might make it sound like a fantastic game, 『The Garden』, as I knew it, was a game where fresh newcomers, or “newbies,” had all but vanished.

Players could do anything, precisely because the game gave no specific instructions on what to do.

‘Alright, I admit it. It might be a little challenging for new players to get into. But how incredibly fun is this game? Why don’t people realize it? It’s truly lamentable. You can enjoy it however you wish!’

There was, however, a minor issue. While the central narrative revolved around defeating demons, vanquishing those very demons was the most arduous task in the entire game.

Consequently, the already scarce influx of new players dwindled even further. Most games introduce combat early on, but this game’s battles were truly monstrous. Even a nameless, generic mob could instantly kill an unwary player, demanding extreme caution.

It wasn’t simply a matter of leveling up, acquiring good equipment, and brute-forcing your way through.

It seemed the developers had set the difficulty high to emphasize the demons’ immense power, but they had overdone it, leading to this predicament. Ordinary wild beasts or humanoid NPCs could be dispatched with absurd ease.

Frankly, if one desired a life simulation or other casual activities, there were plenty of superior games with higher sensory immersion levels. There was no real need to play this one. It wasn’t an era where virtual reality games were a rarity, after all.

Rather than living in constant dread of demons that could appear at any moment, it was far better to relax and heal in another game.

“This is starting to get a bit boring, too. Perhaps I’ll go hunt ‘Medusa of the Funeral’ for old times’ sake.”

The game’s intricate combat system was only challenging for true beginners who knew nothing about it. After some experience, everything eventually clicked. I, however, found the game’s disgustingly difficult combat immensely enjoyable.

Though it was an older game, I had logged in almost every day since its release, provided nothing else came up. Consequently, I quickly grew accustomed to the game, and with time, everything became progressively easier. As my in-game character grew stronger, my own gaming skills ascended to match.

Ordinary gameplay simply no longer satisfied me.

Thus, I began to eradicate demons in increasingly varied ways each day.

My armor grew lighter and lighter, my weapons increasingly paltry. Eventually, I would intentionally inflict myself with various status effects and even impose self-made time limits. Moreover, while most bosses didn’t respawn, I installed a respawn mod to hunt them daily.

“Why! Why do you do this? How many more must you kill to be satisfied?”

‘Did this guy even have dying lines?’

My ultimate form, finally perfected, involved slaying demons while stark naked, armed with nothing but a rusty fork.

Struck by a palm-sized fork, ‘Zeras of Lamentation’ collapsed, spitting blood. Among the boss-tier monsters, Zeras was my absolute favorite. While his attack power wasn’t particularly high, his patterns were so utterly dreadful that he had slain more players than even the Great Demon King, the final boss.

Most players detested Zeras. Not only was he difficult to catch, but his rewards were also utterly worthless. He dropped nothing but a token, took an infuriatingly long time to defeat, and wasn’t even a mandatory boss. Only advanced players occasionally hunted him, mainly to prove and flaunt their skills.

“Something worse than this demon…”

‘That’s odd. I’d definitely set all event cutscenes to auto-skip by default; I’d seen them far too many times. Besides, I don’t recall Zeras having a line like that in his event scene at all. Was it just too long ago when I last saw it? I wonder if there was a new patch. I’ll have to check the settings later.’

Zeras of Lamentation was, quite literally, a demon that ‘made wails erupt spontaneously.’ He had no human dialogue, only loud, monstrous roars.

‘Damn it. Isn’t this a lore break?’

Hearing Zeras, still writhing on the ground, speak, a surge of irritation welled within me. Wasn’t this guy supposed to be a vengeful mass of flesh incapable of proper human speech?

I promptly decapitated the fallen creature. Zeras then dissolved into black smoke and ashes. Picking up the token he dropped, I noted it was my 1,140th. It truly struck me how many I had hunted.

[The Void Hero ‘I Want to Bang Faust’ has vanquished Zeras the Demon of Lamentation. As you did not reveal your name, it will not be known to the people.]

Still, the clear judgment seemed to register correctly.

‘I’ll just hunt ‘Medusa of the Funeral’ today and then log off.’

Incidentally, the title ‘Void Hero’ could be obtained by defeating demons while keeping one’s name private. It granted +1 Level to Stealth. Naturally, it had no other functions. This was because without leaving a name after defeating a demon, one’s fame would not increase. Only the fact that someone had vanquished a demon would be known, and even then, very slowly.

In the world of 『The Garden』, ‘Fame’ was an incredibly crucial statistic. High fame made progression significantly easier and led to greater rewards. Of course, I had no need for it. I’d already experienced all that during my beginner days. Now, actively seeking out status effects, a better environment would only be a nuisance. Where was the challenge in that?

‘Should I change my name? Seeing it every time feels strange.’

‘Faust’ was a popular character in this game. Even in a world brimming with beautiful people, he was exceptionally and overwhelmingly handsome. Yes, he was a male NPC.

While I had created this nickname, it wasn’t meant to be taken literally. I had chosen it thoughtlessly because the phrase was popular during the game’s release season. Now, I was too embarrassed to even mention it to others. Knowing that popular phrase would invite comments like, ‘Oh, is that pervert still standing there?’

‘No, on second thought, nobody else sees it anyway. It might be better to create a new character than just change the name. Next time, instead of a human male, I should try a pill bug. Someone once uploaded a video of a rabbit character defeating a demon with a body slam; I should try something similar.’

Just then, a strange system message appeared.

[O Void Hero ‘I Want to Bang Faust’! You have vanquished more demons in this world than anyone else! Please, help us! Save this world with your power!]

“What is this now? An advertisement for a new expansion pack?”

Occasionally, when a game expansion was released, the system would announce it in-game. Although it was a single-player experience, connecting to the game required an online connection, thus ensuring basic internet access.

[Main Quest Updated. Please check your journal.]

[Initiating synchronization for new progression. 12%… 23%… 42%…]

“Shit! No! I need to hunt Medusa of the Funeral and then reboot! Pause!”

[You have received a divine summons. It cannot be refused.]

“What kind of crazy talk is this?! Damn it, logout! Stop the update! If I reboot, I’ll have a two-hour delay in game time before reconnecting! They’re weak to sunlight!”

[O Void Hero, may blessings be upon you….]

“Why a bug now of all times?!”

And then, everything went black.

I seemed to be trapped in the game world. Probably.

When I next opened my eyes, I wasn’t in my room with the game capsule, but in the Frost Cave where I had defeated Zeras of Lamentation. Initially, it felt peculiar, but I was pleased that I hadn’t been disconnected.

Game time progressed twice as fast as real time. A few minutes outside could translate to hours, even days, within the game. A reboot would mean an equivalent waste of time.

It was only after I had hunted Medusa of the Funeral that I realized something was amiss.

A spot where I’d accidentally been hit during combat had hurt so intensely that I nearly lost my mind. Pain perception settings were explicitly prevented from exceeding a certain level. They were forbidden because one could potentially die from shock! Startled, I tried to quit the game.

I couldn’t log out.

Honestly, no matter how many demons I’d defeated or how much I enjoyed combat, I wasn’t some lunatic who wanted to risk my actual life. The first time I went after Medusa of the Funeral, I hadn’t known this, which was why I’d rushed straight in.

Medusa’s attacks were truly nothing, by my standards. The hit I took was merely a graze from being distracted. But it hurt like hell! It was just a scratch, yet my stomach felt like it ripped open, almost spilling my guts!

I stopped trying to die after three or four attempts. No matter how many times I died, no system window appeared; I simply revived automatically. Continuing to try was too painful, and the sensation of dying was utterly horrifying. Each time I revived, it was in the same spot, with the exact feeling of death lingering. Damn it all.

When I cried out to log out, the system message relentlessly, heartlessly, insisted I check my ‘Quest.’

[CRITICAL — 「Salvation of the World」

O Void Hero ‘I Want to Bang Faust’, you have vanquished more demons than anyone else in the most atrocious ways. We desperately require your abilities. Please, eradicate the demons of this world and save it. May fortune be with you….

Reward: Return to the real world, a slight increase in luck, a blessing.

Failure: Complete death, destruction of this world.]

The rewards were pathetic. Wasn’t returning to my own home a given? They’d suddenly abducted me, arbitrarily forced me into saving the world, and threatened death if I failed! A small increase in luck? A blessing? What a joke! Was any of that worth risking my life for?!

Was it at least fortunate that I hadn’t installed the difficulty-adding mod? I had naturally installed it at first, but then uninstalled it due to numerous bugs. Phases would constantly fail to advance, and the game would freeze and crash.

Deleting it then turned out to be a stroke of genius. Even so, it remained the highest difficulty. Now that I thought about it, the respawn mod was also gone. It truly meant I had to eliminate the demons completely. Since they weren’t reappearing while I was here, it seemed the mod had indeed become defunct.

Aside from the infinite inventory mod, nothing else functioned. To begin with, I hadn’t installed much. I had tried various things out of curiosity initially, but after adapting to the game, I hadn’t bothered to install anything further.

Some basic services had also disappeared. The map wouldn’t open, teleportation was impossible, and the settings window wouldn’t even appear.

I had no idea what to do. They told me to hunt demons, but I was terrified. I knew I would revive if I died, but there was no telling how long that would last. The mention of ‘complete death’ meant I could potentially die permanently in battle. Yet, I couldn’t simply remain here.

‘No, no matter how much I loved the game, who would want to live here permanently?!’