Maetan's Dog
"You got a Player License?"
"You? With that computation grade? Don't you need to be at least D-class to be a Player? Weren't you an E?"
"I went up one rank. I'm a D-class now."
The day after my first dive into the internet as a Player.
I carried out my duties as a goblin just like any other day. The hype surrounding the goblin who defeated an A-class Player had finally died down, and the Goblin's Forest had returned to its usual quiet self.
Before clocking out, I told my seniors in the goblin cave about getting my Player License.
As expected, both of them were surprised, though their reactions differed slightly.
"Wow, our rookie really worked hard, huh? I heard it takes ten years of blood, sweat, and tears just to raise your rank by one."
"Why on earth would you want to do something so dangerous?"
Unlike the Handaxe Goblin Senior, who praised my efforts, the Longsword Goblin Senior tried to distance himself from me.
"Hey."
"No, I'm just worried. I heard people bring back viruses every single time they dive into the internet and come back. Are you really going to be okay?"
"If you're talking about rogue AIs, we pass through quarantine at the Monolith Gate before returning to Intra-Maetan."
"Quarantine, my foot... Those AIs are incredibly cunning. Honestly, I don't trust that quarantine process at all..."
"Hey, Janggo, what's gotten into you? Our rookie finally became the Player he always wanted to be. Didn't you use to cheer him on?"
"That was... because I thought he'd never make it... Look, kid. If you need money, just say the word. I can hook you up with something. Doing manual labor in the real world is a hundred times better than risking your neck as a Player. I heard you're in great shape, too."
Senior Songo tried to stop Senior Janggo while glancing at me, but Janggo wouldn't back down.
"Sure, plenty of people dive into the internet chasing a fortune, but in the end, they're gambling with their lives. Isn't staying alive the most important thing?"
"Ah, drop it already! When Player Kang Yeolchan came by, you were more than happy to tag along on his training. Why are you only being like this to our rookie?"
"How can you compare the kid to Kang Yeolchan?! Yeolchan is an A-class! He has a track record! But our rookie is only D-class! The absolute bottom tier! You know as well as I do, Songo! Do you have any idea how many D-class Players die every single year?!"
"Well... sigh... I don't know anymore..."
Senior Songo turned his head away, unable to find a counterargument.
I had heard the statistics during the licensing process. The survival rate of a D-class Player after three years was less than fifty percent. They either died or had their Neck-Hubs extracted, permanently losing their access.
Even among those who survived, most could no longer function as proper Players.
"Remember that time a low-grade Player came back to Intra-Maetan without realizing they were infected by an AI, and it caused absolute chaos? You remember, right, kid? Look, I know you worked hard to reach D-class just to get that license. But forget about being a Player, okay? Now that you're D-class, why don't you apply for a department transfer instead..."
Just as Senior Janggo was trying to persuade me again...
"Hey, the next shift is coming in. Why haven't you cleared out of the break room yet?"
A booming voice echoed from the depths of the cave as a massive goblin emerged.
It was Manager Kim Seongtae, controlling the Goblin King.
"Yes, sir! We were just about to leave. You got that, kid? Think about it carefully."
Senior Songo and Senior Janggo logged out of the Goblin's Forest.
Just as I was about to follow them out, Manager Kim Seongtae called out to me.
"So, you became a Player?"
"Yes, sir. That is correct."
The Goblin King stroked his chin as if lost in thought.
"Don't let becoming a Player get to your head. No matter what, don't forget that your primary job is still being a goblin. Understood?"
"Yes, sir."
Just because I had become a Player didn't mean I was relieved of my existing duties.
"You may go."
I pulled up the Intra-Maetan console window and selected logout.
The Goblin King kept his eyes locked on me until the very moment I vanished.
"...Not exactly the reaction I was expecting."
It seems the status of a Player in Maetan is much lower than you thought, Mister.
Logging out of Intra-Maetan, I opened my eyes on the bed in my room.
Senior Janggo's lukewarm reaction left a strange, lingering taste in my mouth.
Rumble.
As my mood dipped, a wave of hunger washed over me.
First, I needed to stuff something into my stomach.
After paying for CC's avatar, settling the hospital bills, covering the fees for the Player License, and subtracting my living expenses over the past few days, I had about eight million Maetan points left.
It felt like a small sum compared to the initial thirty million, but it was still more money than I had ever held in my life. If I only spent it on food, I could eat like a king for months.
What are we eating? I want something sweet! ♪(´▽｀)
Lately, CC had developed an obsession with food.
Sharing my senses through the Neck-Hub connected to my brain, she was endlessly curious about anything edible.
After all, the 'C' in AC-C stands for Curiosity! ♥
Thanks to her, I was trying new foods almost every day. I was open to most things, but I really wished she would stop making me eat those sweet, nutty red bean jellies.
"We're going to the Garden today."
The Garden?
"My pockets are lined. There's a friend whose sales I need to boost."
I headed toward the western edge of Maetan, the deepest corner of the civilian zone.
Passing by the graffiti-covered walls where shady characters still loitered, I arrived at the Garden's building.
As usual, a bunch of meatheads with flower tattoos were huddled around a burning oil drum.
"Yo, meatheads. Is Hee-cheol in?"
"What bastard dares call our boss by his—gasp!"
"Shit, it's him again! Run!!"
The moment they saw me, they bolted without looking back.
It was a severe case of déjà vu.
I knocked on the iron door they had been guarding.
Thud, thud, thud! Thud, thud, thud!
After pounding on it for a while, the peephole slid open.
"Ah, shut up! We're not even open yet, why are you—gasp!"
"Hee-cheol. I'm here."
Clack. Click. Clank. Clunk.
The sound of multiple locks engaging echoed from behind the door.
That actually hurt my feelings a bit.
"Why are you here again, boss?! We really don't have any money, I'm tellin' ya!"
"Hey, you make it sound like I only show up to shake you down..."
"Ain't that the truth, boss?! All we got are memories of gettin' beaten up and extorted by you, ya know!"
"Hey! Not today! I have money! I came as a customer! A customer!"
"!!"
Hee-cheol's eyes widened, trembling violently.
Was the concept of me being a paying customer really that shocking?
"For real, boss?"
"Yeah. I have money. Lots of it. I came to boost your sales today."
"...Just wait a second, boss."
The heavy clanking of locks being undone echoed.
Soon, the massive door, supposedly forged from the armor of the Machine Species, screeched open.
"You know from experience, right? Locking the door is useless. I can just punch through the wall."
"Still, we can't just open it up willingly, boss. We gotta show we resisted to the best of our ability so it looks good in court, ya know."
He was actually planning to take this to court?
Suddenly, my desire to boost his sales evaporated.
"But is it really true, boss? You really... came to use our establishment?"
"Yeah. I'm here as a customer today."
"You ain't pullin' my leg, right, boss?"
"Yes! I even have the money! Want me to show you?"
I tapped my Neck-Hub as I spoke.
Only then did Hee-cheol lower his guard, a bright smile spreading across his face as he stepped closer.
"Whew... To think the day would come when you'd walk in as a paying customer, boss... I'll make sure you get the absolute best service today. We're treatin' you like a VIP!"
I followed Hee-cheol deeper into the establishment.
Usually, I ate in the main hall right by the entrance, but this time he led me to a private room tucked away in the back.
It was a dimly lit but cozy space, furnished with a sofa large enough to lie down on.
The sofa wasn't some cheap, springy piece of junk either; the moment I sat down, I felt like I was floating on a cloud. It was top-of-the-line.
Was this the VIP life?
"Hey, get Min-jae ready."
"Yes, sir!"
Hearing Hee-cheol's order, a subordinate quickly left the room.
"Min-jae is... our ace, boss. His skills are top-tier. Seriously. He usually picks and chooses his clients... but today, I'm assignin' him to you as a special favor."
"Huh? Oh... uh... sure..."
Did this bar have multiple chefs? It didn't seem big enough for that.
A moment later, the subordinate returned, placing a tray with a hot towel, a bottle of water, and a jar filled with some sticky liquid on the table.
"Now, since it's your first time, should I explain how it works, boss? Honestly, you don't even need an explanation. Once you log in, Min-jae will take care of everything on his own."
"Explain?"
"Yes, boss. First, plug the USB into your Neck-Hub... Oh, do you have a preferred avatar or situation in mind? You can choose once you're inside, but if you tell me now, we can customize it for you in no time."
Wait.
Something was off.
"...What exactly are you trying to sell me?"
"Didn't you say you came as a customer, boss?"
"Yeah."
"To our shop?"
"Yes."
"...Didn't you come to buy some 'flowers'?"
...I had temporarily forgotten that while the Garden was registered as a bar, it was actually a cyber brothel.
"How could you forget that, boss? Man, what a huge misunderstanding."
"I always come here just to eat, so it slipped my mind... And what kind of bar owner immediately jumps to that conclusion just because a customer walks in?"
Dishes of food were brought in one after another and laid out on the table.
"Sometimes we get drifters who just drink and look around before leaving, but you're the only customer who comes here strictly to eat, boss."
Despite his words, the food served was of exceptionally high quality.
Judging by the dishes that weren't on the usual menu, it felt like they had gone out of their way to treat me.
Ah... Mister... this is so delicious... But the greasy stuff is getting a bit heavy. Can we get something refreshing? T_T
I put a piece of sour-tasting meat into my mouth and chewed. I had no idea what it was, but it was incredibly tough.
"But boss, where'd you get the money to pay for all this?"
Hee-cheol, who had been watching me eat, suddenly asked.
"Didn't I pay off my entire tab last time?"
"Back then, I just thought a guy who survived a near-death experience had turned over a new leaf, ya know. But then you disappeared for a while and suddenly showed up again, so I figured, 'Ah, he's here to shake us down again...' People don't change that easily, boss."
There was no need to tell him about the thirty million points I had received.
"I got some extra income."
"Extra income, boss?"
At the mention of money, Hee-cheol leaned forward.
I hesitated for a moment before speaking.
"I became a Player."
"What?!"
Hee-cheol jumped up in shock.
In the process, he bumped into the table, knocking over a water cup.
But he didn't even care as he blurted out:
"With your computation grade, boss, how..."
"It went up recently. I'm D-class now."
"For real, boss? They say it takes ten years to raise a computation grade... Wait, maybe it's faster because it was a low grade to begin with... Anyway, congratulations! So you're buyin' this with the money you made as a Player?"
He congratulated me surprisingly easily.
I recalled the Longsword Goblin Senior's overreaction.
"Hey, by the way... is the public perception of Players that bad?"
"Why do you ask, boss?"
"A senior colleague at work didn't seem too thrilled about it."
"Ah... well, that's only natural, boss."
Hee-cheol said, wiping the spilled water off the table with a hot towel.
"Did you pass the Aptitude Test, boss?"
"Yeah. I got a perfect score."
"A perfect score?!"
Hee-cheol jumped up in shock once again.
Every single one of his reactions was so dramatic.
"For real, boss? Wow... I thought you were a total badass, but... you're actually a softie, ain't ya?"
"What are you talking about?"
"Think about it, boss... The Aptitude Test is designed to measure whether you'll make choices that benefit Maetan in a crisis... Getting a hundred points on that means..."
Hee-cheol smirked slyly.
"It basically means you're Maetan's obedient little dog, ain't it?"