Chapter 23
Chapter 23
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 23
Chapter Title: A Brief Respite
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Jae-wook was sitting at a cafe table, waiting for the others.
Having bought a personal capsule with money earned from a part-time job and taken a leave of absence from school, Jae-wook had been completely immersed in 'Astria Online' for a while. It had been a long time since he'd gone out in the middle of the day.
Jae-wook, who had ordered an iced Americano and was sipping it while fiddling with his smartphone, saw a short woman enter the cafe.
He waved at her with a welcoming smile.
"Dayeon, you're here!"
The short woman called Dayeon approached with a sullen expression and sat across from Jae-wook.
"Hey, Lee Jae-wook. How long have you been here? Look at you, already drinking coffee. I was grinding levels right up until our meeting time. Aren't you leveling up, 'Cherni'? You seem to have all the time in the world."
"Nam Dayeon. We haven't seen each other in a while, and you're already starting a fight? Or should I call you 'Beimerung'? You can't speak in the third person out here, can you?"
"Aaaah~ I can't hear you."
Jae-wook and Dayeon started bickering the moment they met.
"Chris asked to see us first. For someone who was so fired up about leveling, to suggest we take a breather... she must have her reasons."
"True, I only came because Chris called."
Jae-wook grinned, his face taking on its characteristic mischievous expression.
These days, every day was enjoyable for Jae-wook.
After starting 'Astria Online' and clearing dungeons with Chris, he had become financially comfortable.
As a vanguard player, the profits he made from early clears of elite dungeons and selling weapons were more than enough to cover the cost of his capsule and his tuition.
"I'm thinking of making this my career path. Seeing kids in the virtual reality department make money in various VR metaverses, don't you think the RPG market, with an outstanding game like 'Astria Online', could become a stable source of income in the future?"
"I don't know. RPGs are so volatile with every patch. There's no such thing as an eternal cash cow. If the game dies, you just have to find another one."
"Sigh. I heard Death of Death is already interning at a major capsule company."
"That's Chris's father's company, right? Death of Death has a bright future ahead of him. He said he was too busy to come today, right? And yet he still plays the game relentlessly."
The conversation between Jae-wook and Dayeon drifted toward their seniors.
Chris, a senior in the same department as Jae-wook and Dayeon, was a second-generation mixed-race individual with an American father and a Korean mother.
Of course, having lived in Korea since birth, she also had a Korean name, but she preferred to be called 'Chris'.
"There are people who use their real names as their nicknames in Astria Online. Chris is a prime example."
"Hehe. It doesn't sound awkward, does it? Her English name is pretty, too."
*Tinkle, tinkle.*
In the middle of their conversation, Jae-wook and Dayeon heard the cafe door open.
Turning his head at the sound, Jae-wook saw a woman with red hair.
As if to prove the old saying, "speak of the devil," the subject of their conversation, Chris, had appeared.
Chris approached Jae-wook and Dayeon with a bright smile.
"My dear juniors, you're already here?"
"Chris! It's been a while!"
"Even though we saw each other in-game just yesterday."
Jae-wook glanced at Chris's hair.
It had always been a brownish color with reddish tints, but now Chris's hair was dyed a vibrant red, just like her character's.
"Hah, did you dye it a primary color? You must be the only one who can pull off such eye-catching red hair, Chris."
"It's pretty! The bright red hair! You look just like your 'Chris' character from Astria Online!"
"Hehe, well, I didn't customize anything except the hair color."
Jae-wook shook his head.
"This is the second time I've seen such a striking hair color in real life."
"Hm? You've seen someone else with hair this vibrant in real life?"
"I saw someone when I was working part-time to buy my capsule. Well, that's not important."
Recalling the girl he had seen during his part-time job, Jae-wook changed the subject.
"So, what's the reason you called us out here while we were busy leveling up?"
"It's nothing much. We've been rushing for over a month, right? I thought we should catch our breath, meet up outside, and talk face-to-face."
Her relaxed demeanor left Jae-wook puzzled.
"In the last zone, you were pushing us to level up quickly, but now you're so laid-back."
"Because there's no need to rush anymore."
At Chris's words, Dayeon, following Jae-wook, also looked confused.
As if to clear up their confusion, Chris continued.
"I've already figured out the location of the next elite dungeon. I've also identified the entry requirements."
"Th-then we should be grinding levels even harder...!"
Chris cut Jae-wook off.
"Hear me out. First, the entry level for the next elite dungeon is 30. But the entrance is blocked right now."
"Blocked?"
"Yeah. It seems to be the kind of dungeon that opens only when certain conditions are met."
Chris opened her smartphone and showed her juniors a screenshot.
It showed a large fortress with its entrance sealed by a huge magic circle.
"See the sealing magic circle at the entrance? It's blocking players from getting in. And there's a gauge in the center of the circle."
"It's slightly filled?"
"Yep. From what I've confirmed, it fills up a tiny bit every time players clear the four 'Divine Beast Dungeons,' the normal instance dungeons in this zone. At this rate, it should open around the time most players who've entered this area reach level 30."
"What does that mean?"
"It's a way of controlling the content consumption rate. We've all been rushing nonstop up to the level 25 zone, right? Even the vanguard players must be feeling the fatigue."
"Oh."
Jae-wook nodded.
If this was the case, they wouldn't have to sacrifice sleep to level up. They could explore other content while waiting for the dungeon to open.
Chris grinned.
"So, it means we can take it easy for a while. But when the dungeon's opening day gets closer, we'll need to be on high alert."
"The competition for the first clear will be a lot fiercer, then."
"Yep. Getting the first clear won't be as easy as with the previous elite dungeons. The difficulty will be significantly higher, too."
Only then did Jae-wook feel a bit of the pressure lift.
It wasn't just about the money; the thrill and sense of accomplishment from clearing a high-difficulty dungeon with his party members were indescribable.
In games like 'World of Warthunder,' a raid-based MMORPG once enjoyed by people worldwide but now lost to history, countless players had challenged raids of extreme difficulty for the glory and achievement of a first clear.
"In classic online raid games, a first clear could sometimes take over a month."
"For now, it's just an elite dungeon, but if a legendary-difficulty raid dungeon comes out later, we might actually have to schedule our attempts over several weeks."
"That's all fine, but the game's control difficulty is too high."
"That's how all virtual reality games are. 'Astria Online' assists player movement with coordinate-based skills like 'Backward Evasion,' but the synchronization rate limit is a huge factor. This game's max is about 20%."
"Isn't there a way to increase the sync rate by hacking the capsule or something?"
"It's not entirely impossible, but that's illegal, you know? You're aware that my father is the president of a capsule company, right?"
Jae-wook flinched under Chris's sharp gaze.
"Besides, with current VR technology, the limit is 40-50% at best. Exceeding that can be dangerous for the user."
"Why is it dangerous?"
"You've heard the story, right? About the person who froze to death in a non-operational walk-in freezer."
Jae-wook slapped his palm. It was a topic he'd heard about once during a virtual reality lecture.
"This is why I tell you to study hard and not just play games. A high synchronization rate means your senses, even pain, feel more realistic."
"True, considering you have to die and respawn repeatedly in VR FPS games or during dungeon runs in 'Astria Online'."
"Yeah. The pain experienced upon character death could send your real body into shock."
"Th-that sounds incredibly dangerous."
Jae-wook broke out in a cold sweat.
"Well, you're all good at the game, aren't you? I have faith in my party members."
"Beimerung is confident she can be Chris's right hand!"
Chris patted the head of Dayeon, whose eyes were sparkling.
Watching them with a chuckle, Jae-wook suddenly thought of a question and asked Chris.
"Um... what would happen if someone played 'Astria Online' at 100% synchronization?"
"Hm? Hmm. Of course, it would depend on how sharp the user's senses are, but if someone with exceptional reflexes played, wouldn't they become a truly broken character? They might even be able to solo all the dungeons we struggled to clear as a party."
Chris paused for a moment, then grinned.
"Even setting aside the realistic pain... could modern people, who cry over a simple paper cut, handle it?"