Chapter 3

People who play RPGs are usually divided into two types.

The first type is those who study the game, level up through the optimal route, reach the raid stage, learn the raid strategies, and then proceed accordingly.

The second type is those who don’t look up anything, just go with the flow, and join so-called “head-on parties” to tackle raids without checking any guides.

I was, of course, the first type.

When playing RPGs, I enjoyed quickly getting through the boring leveling phase, moving on to raids, coordinating with many people, overcoming mechanics, checking meters, and dealing high damage.

I initially planned to play Legacy of Raid the same way I played other RPGs, but my mindset changed.

The reason I chose the first type was simply because I found the process of reaching max level boring. I thought RPGs were all about raids, but Leore was different.

Ding!

I leveled up.

From level 1 to level 2. A faint light enveloped my body, and the words [Level Up!] appeared before my eyes.

It’s fun. This is a very basic RPG scenario where a level 1 character kills a level 1 goblin and reaches level 2, but this moment feels incredibly enjoyable.

I think I’ve fallen deep into this game, into this virtual world. I immediately erased my initial plan from my mind. If this is fun, then surely other aspects will be fun too.

I don’t want to spoil that fun in advance.

Since I leveled up, I immediately opened the menu.

‘No stat system?’

Unlike old games, there was no system where you allocate stats upon leveling up to get stronger. Stats increased automatically.

As soon as I completed the tutorial quest and pressed the finish button, I received experience points.

First, to understand the basics of Leore, I followed the tutorial quest.

I returned to the starting village, bought and drank potions, bought basic equipment, tried it on, dismantled it, sold it, and so on. The tutorial kindly explained the basic systems.

Completely immersed in the realistic virtual world of Leore, I quickly finished the tutorial quests.

After completing all the quests, I reached level 5, and the final tutorial quest was about the combat system.

Basically, it had a slightly different system compared to PC RPGs.

In the RPGs I’ve played so far, you attack enemies with skills or basic attacks, or dodge and defend. But Leore felt more like mixed martial arts.

Both players and monsters can attack, defend, parry, and dodge, and each body part takes different damage. What’s scary is that even with the same stats, performance varies depending on the player’s influence.

Of course, in PC RPGs, damage can vary depending on the player’s skill, but once you reach a certain level, the DPS (damage per second) becomes consistent. In Leore, however, the difference is said to be very significant.

‘But they even explain this in the tutorial. Interesting.’

If it were the old me, I would have just pressed the skip button, but Leore doesn’t have a skip button.

After finishing the combat tutorial, the most surprising part was the job system. This game has jobs, and you can change them.

It’s a system where simply equipping a different weapon changes your job. For example, if I’m holding a sword, I’m a swordsman, and if I’m holding a staff, I become a wizard.

In short, there’s no penalty for changing jobs.

‘Interesting.’

After completing all the tutorials, I received a message to start exploring the world.

First, I sat down somewhere and opened the menu. Excited about the virtual world game, I hadn’t checked the options earlier.

The first thing to check in any game is the options.

‘There’s… almost nothing?’

Usually, game options include graphics, sound, key bindings, and more, but Leore only had one option.

It was the combat assist option.

Reading the description, it was a feature to assist movement for those unfamiliar with combat.

The strange feeling I had when I first killed a goblin must have been due to this combat assist option.

I immediately turned off the combat assist option. It’s more fun without it.

After finishing my preparations to enjoy the game, I ran to the hunting grounds, of course, managing my stamina.

Now that I’m used to killing goblins, I was cutting through their heads and exploring when I found a monster much larger than goblins.

“Wow. An orc?”

A monster that looked exactly like the orcs I’ve seen in various media.

LV 15: Orc Chieftain

Unlike the goblins, the Orc Chieftain’s name was in red letters.

Moreover, there was a large red circle around the Orc Chieftain. As I got closer to the circle.

Ding!

[Field Boss]

Level restricted area.

Field Boss. So that’s why it was in red letters. Since it’s a virtual reality game where dying doesn’t matter, I entered the red circle without hesitation.

I didn’t think I could defeat a level 15 Field Boss at level 5, but I considered it all part of the experience and charged at the Orc Chieftain.

Unlike goblins, the Orc Chieftain wielded a massive axe. It looked like one hit would kill me.

“Woooooah!!!”

A deep roar echoed as the Orc Chieftain noticed me. It swung the massive axe in its right hand towards me.

The strange sensation that always controlled my body when killing goblins was completely gone.

I raised my right hand purely by will to block the descending axe with my sword.

The massive axe clashed with the beginner’s one-handed sword.

Clang!!!

A vibration ran through my body, and I was knocked back with a sharp sound.

“Ugh…!”

The vibration was stronger than expected, making it hard to move. Judging by the impact and sound, I successfully parried, but the level difference caused me to be pushed back.

At least my health didn’t drop much.

As I charged at the Orc Chieftain again, I noticed something strange.

Information flooded my mind like a tsunami. The Orc Chieftain’s attack trajectory was drawn in my head.

This time, I chose to dodge instead of parrying.

The Orc Chieftain’s axe narrowly missed me.

“Hyah!”

With a cute battle cry, I thrust my right arm and slashed the Orc Chieftain’s exposed left side.

Swoosh!

10!

A heavy impact sound, the feeling of the hit in my hand, and the damage number appearing on the attacked area.

Fortunately, the level difference didn’t prevent damage.

‘Oh no!’

Distracted by checking if damage was dealt, I wasted time. Feeling a massive amount of information from the right, I twisted my body and deflected the axe charging at me with my sword.

Clang!!!

Another parrying impact and sound echoed as I was pushed to the side.

“Ugh…!”

The forced parry caused a strong vibration in my body. The problem was that the Orc Chieftain’s attack was coming while I couldn’t move.

Trying to recover from the game’s cooldown even 0.1 seconds faster, I exerted all my strength, and perhaps because of that, I managed to dodge the Orc Chieftain’s axe again.

Whoosh!

The sound of the wind being cut by the deadly axe.

And so, the battle began.

As time passed, I became more familiar with Arang’s body.

What is physicality in a virtual reality game?

In real-world games, physicality means making judgments and accurately controlling them with your fingers on the keyboard and mouse.

Then, in a virtual world game?

It’s the ability to control the entire body, meaning combat sense.

The funny thing is that Arang’s physicality is incredibly high despite being a delicate young girl with no limbs.

Clang!

A clean parry. Unlike before, a light sound accompanied the knockback. This time, there was no cooldown. I had deflected the Orc Chieftain’s axe before it could fully exert its power.

All the information unfolding before my eyes entered my mind without delay, and my body acted almost instantly.

What I thought was executed by my body without delay.

Swoosh!

5!

The one-handed sword cleanly passed through the Orc Chieftain’s ankle.

The damage was low, but the Orc Chieftain knelt. A perfect groggy state.

Thinking I had the upper hand, I moved to stab the Orc Chieftain’s neck, the weak point of all living beings. But at that moment, the Orc Chieftain’s eyes glowed red.

“Groooaar!!!”

With a roar that shook the ground, the massive axe in its right hand swung horizontally.

An attack far surpassing all previous ones.

“Hyah!”

Already anticipating the attack from the Orc Chieftain’s right shoulder movement, I bent my knees slightly and leaned my head back with a cute battle cry.

The massive axe grazed my hair as it passed by, and the strong, fast attack left the Orc Chieftain with a long cooldown.

Having only performed a dodge, I had almost no cooldown, so I attacked the Orc Chieftain’s right arm with my one-handed sword, then positioned myself and aimed for the left chest where the heart was.

Then, I jumped up without thinking about cooldown and stabbed the one-handed sword into the Orc Chieftain’s neck with all my strength.

Thud!

Finally, I slashed with the one-handed sword still embedded.

Swoosh!

Unlike the goblins, a spectacular effect and overwhelming particles exploded, filling my vision.