Chapter 16: The First Collaboration with Tsupi (3)

The map ‘Warrior’s Märchen’ is a public server. Because of that, I couldn’t manage or operate it alone, so Märchen’s developers were frequently present.

“Tsupi. An NPC keeps following me. What should I do?”

[Ignore it. It’s probably just bored.]

Because of this, the developers, who usually stayed idle in the map, would start following any new player that appeared. Even if that player was another developer.

Following people around just to relieve boredom—it was so pitiful that it made my heart ache.

‘They haven’t actually become NPCs, right?’

That thought naturally crossed my mind.

Anyway, I stepped out of the room and ignored the NPCs trailing behind me as I explored the village. It was an ordinary rural village—nothing special, nothing strange.

One thing, though. The graphics were noticeably exceptional compared to other games.

• Whoa, what is this? The sunlight effect is insane.
• How did they implement the reflection?
• Why is Yuwol looking around so cute? Seriously.
• I wanna pinch their cheeks, lol.
• 100
• How can you call that an NPC? Their name is literally displayed above their head.
• I’m going to scold Tsupi and the developers, lol.
• 100
• But seriously, how high does your system spec need to be for this?
• The graphics are too good.

“You’re right. This could work as a healing server just as it is. If they add things like fishing, farming, or other tycoon elements, it’d be fun.”

It was still an unreleased map. Even though it was the first map Tsupi and I introduced, it was still more accurate to call it ‘in development.’

Like in Maple Story, you could move to another map by progressing through the stages. But what would be the point of going to an empty map with no terrain or features?

This village was the only map created for mere visual display.

Speaking of which, where did Tsupi go?

I looked around when I suddenly realized I couldn’t see the spirit.

[Did you hear that? They want fishing and farming to be available too.]

Tsupi was off in the distance, lecturing the NPCs.

As I watched that scene with mild amusement, Tsupi seemed to notice my gaze.

[Gasp. I should get going now. Good luck~.]

Then, instead of running away, Tsupi swiftly returned to my side.

“You can talk to NPCs? I didn’t know that function existed.”

[Well, I am a spirit, after all.]

“You’re very confident.”

• What the…
• What even is this, lol.
• Confident! They’re really committed to the concept.
• Spirits can talk to NPCs, huh.
• Calling them NPCs in the first place is hilarious.
• So you guys never intended to stick to the concept, huh?
• What kind of function is that, lol.
• This is just too funny.

Tsupi walked forward confidently, and though it looked odd, I let it slide. Märchen was a company you weren’t supposed to try to understand.

Anyway, I walked alongside Tsupi and continued exploring the village.

It wasn’t particularly big or small—just an ambiguous size. It took about twenty minutes to look around.

The village’s size was proportional to real-world measurements. That’s why it took roughly twenty minutes to see both the outskirts and the inside.

“It’s well made. I don’t know who built it, though.”

[Right? The sunlight is especially well done. They implemented it perfectly.]

“I liked how the wind made the grass and leaves sway the most.”

[You’re subtly getting more formal again… Are you upset with me?]

“Oh, look, there’s a blacksmith over there.”

• LOL
• The sunlight is the GOAT.
• No… I can hear the sound of people getting split apart!
• How did they even implement the wind movement?
• Who built this…
• Märchen is a company that makes the impossible possible…
• If they keep developing this, they might actually create a full game.
• It feels like standing at the boundary between reality and the virtual world… But somehow, it works so well.
• I feel like I should be shouting ‘Link Start!’
• Yuwol is changing the subject, lol.

“I’ve explored the entire village now. There’s a blacksmith, shops, and all sorts of things. Surprisingly, everything you’d need is here.”

[They said the interior isn’t implemented yet, but from the outside, at least?]

“The NPCs look so pitiful.”

[That’s their job, so what?]

This spirit was truly heartless. But I couldn’t argue since Tsupi had a point. All I could do was watch the NPCs (developers) with pity.

Anyway, Tsupi and I explored the village, visited the forest, and even hunted a few monsters disguised as animals.

“Oh, my experience points increased.”

[Mine too. Wouldn’t it be more fun if they added a party system?]

“The NPCs are so pitiful…”

Defeating monsters wasn’t difficult. Since this was the starting village, they didn’t even attack. To put it simply, they were like tutorial monsters.

After taking down a few more, I leveled up.

“Level 2. But what’s the benefit of leveling up?”

[Hmm… doesn’t it just feel good?]

“So it doesn’t actually do anything yet.”

• LOL
• Haha, what’s even the point of leveling up?
• Go to the blacksmith and get some gear.
• Maybe there’s a level requirement for items and equipment?
• Are there stats too?
• It does have a fantasy feel, but something about it feels vague.
• 100
• LOL
• I wanna play too.
• If they register this in the main team, it could make billions.

Even though I leveled up, nothing really changed. Stats weren’t implemented yet, and just like the viewers mentioned, neither equipment nor items were available.

Right now, it was literally just a constructed map.

It would probably develop further from here. But knowing Märchen, it wouldn’t take long. They were a company full of monsters.

‘But this is a KR-exclusive server, right?’

Unless Märchen signed a contract with other regions, this would remain an exclusive server for KR. But somehow, that didn’t seem likely.

Maybe not immediately, but if there were future collaborations with overseas Märchen branches, Warrior’s Märchen might be needed someday.

Before that, the overseas Märchen team would need time to adapt, so they’d probably release it before any collaborations happened.

Thinking about that, we returned to my room.

The map exploration lasted about 40 minutes, but both the viewers and Tsupi and I were satisfied. This was peak relaxation.

[Yuwol, can I say this?]

“Huh? Uh… yeah?”

• ????
• Emergency announcement?
• Huh? Uh… yeah? LOL
• Polite speech isn’t easy…
• What are you trying to say, Tsupi!?
• The queen is about to leak something!

As we returned to my room and chatted for a bit, Tsupi suddenly turned toward me and asked.

I wasn’t sure exactly what Tsupi wanted to say, but I had a feeling it might not be suitable for the broadcast, so I messaged instead.

[Muil: What is it?]

[Tsupi: That you’re the one who developed the map. Can I say it? My mouth is itching…]

[Muil: Oh, that’s all? I don’t mind.]

Thankfully, it wasn’t anything serious.

Besides, my contribution to the map was just the initial concept. The rest was entirely built by Märchen’s developers.

‘Calling myself a developer feels a little dishonest…’