5-Star Character - Ryushia
Everyone harbors their own private fantasies. Transmigration to another world, regression, status windows—the usual suspects.
Lee Jinwoo, an ordinary twenty-year-old, was no exception. He nursed an impossible dream of his own.
“Huk… huff…”
“Kihihihihi…”
Still, if he absolutely had to possess someone, he wanted to wake up inside a magnificent game world overflowing with things to enjoy.
“Huk—this can’t be… No!!”
Drip.
Blood flowed. He couldn’t even tell where it was coming from.
“What kind of trash game is this? Why is the beginner difficulty so insane?”
He had installed the game and been possessed within ten minutes.
His knowledge of it was zero. He had received some guidance from the mascot called Labi, but that was nowhere near enough to conquer a hardcore disaster famous for slaughtering new players.
“Khuk… I don’t want to die…”
“Grrrr…”
This was completely unfair.
Being thrown into a game he had never touched was bad enough; the fact that it was a notorious newbie-grinder only made it worse.
“…Is this the end?”
Strength had already fled his arms and legs. His weapon was broken, and he was surrounded by a swarm of goblins.
“I wanted to at least try dating…”
Shing!
One goblin raised its dagger. He closed his eyes in resignation, and—
KWAAAAAAAAANG!!!!
“?!”
A silver flash exploded before his eyes, accompanied by a deafening roar.
“Keeeeeeeek!!”
“What the—?”
A moment ago he had given up all hope, yet something radiant had flown in and blown the monster apart.
“Hoo… So you’re the newbie who sent the help request?”
Whoooosh.
From within the swirling cloud of dust emerged a slender silhouette. The power radiating from it was anything but ordinary.
Swish.
“…”
The black-haired girl turned, looking straight at him.
Her long hair whipped wildly in the wind, her snow-white skin smudged with soot and blood. A black jacket hung loosely from her shoulders, and the high-leg leotard hugging her hips was undeniably sensual.
“Gulp…”
Just seeing her standing there stole his breath.
“You’ve worked hard. Leave everything to me from now on.”
For some reason, despite her fierce appearance, the gentle, trustworthy tone of her voice melted the tension from his body.
“Grrrrk!!”
The hobgoblin pack, enraged that their hunt had been interrupted, snarled at the mysterious woman. She chewed on her fury and spat it back at them.
“I will not spare a single one of you.”
Shing!
The moment the blade left its sheath, moonlight spilled forth even though no moon hung in the sky. Her squinted eyes opened a fraction, revealing crimson irises that glowed with seductive menace.
The sight was both cruel and breathtakingly beautiful.
[TIME OVER]
“Ah! Two seconds short again.”
A young man playing the game as usual let out a heavy sigh.
“I even gave him the new weapon, but I guess it’s still too much for a non-expert.”
The game he was playing was Genesis RPG.
It belonged to the wave of open-world mobile titles that had flooded the market a few years earlier. Its vast scale, spectacular cinematics, and uniquely designed characters had earned it a loyal following, but relentless power creep and catastrophic balance issues had turned it into a has-been.
“She’s so beautiful… It really is bittersweet that she’s become obsolete.”
— It is interesting. There are still many stronger than I.
Thud.
A new raid had launched. He had been attempting it for six straight hours, only to fall short of a new record by two seconds at the final boss.
His main, the 5-star standard character Ryushia.
Upon release she had dominated tier-one leaderboards with superb utility, nearly nonexistent recovery frames, and overwhelming DPS. Long straight black hair reaching her waist, a single mischievous cowlick, a soft voice, and mysterious squinted eyes that hid a secret intensity.
Yet beneath that quiet demeanor lay dazzling, agile swordplay. And, as a side note, her bold high-leg leotard paired with nothing but a jacket had caused quite the stir when she first launched.
Her figure was… exceptionally curvaceous. The way her body moved when she swung her blade or rolled across the ground had drawn countless male players. She had practically been the mother of the game.
Of course, power inflation had reduced her to relic status.
— Ahaha… Did you enjoy yourself? Your little hero play.
She had even betrayed the party midway through the story, which further tarnished her reputation. To him, however, she remained a soulmate who had cleared every raid by his side.
Even a fully limit-broken Ryushia could no longer crack the top ten on the latest raid rankings.
“Thirteenth place… What a shame.”
That rank had been clawed out through extreme crit optimization and perfect buildcraft. Past that point, the leaderboard was nothing but shiny new characters. He had hit a wall.
The company’s desperate milking of its player base had left the game dying and the community stagnant.
Ding.
“Hmm? A support request?”
It had been a long time since he last saw one. The game was so dead that help requests from the absolute beginner zones were rare.
“New… A newbie! I smell fresh meat!”
Drawn by that crisp beginner aroma, he clicked accept without thinking.
“Wait… huh?”
Thud.
I lost consciousness on the spot.
Clunk.
“Miss Ryushia, are you all right?”
“…Yes?”
When I finally opened my eyes, I found myself inside a pitch-black vehicle beside a man in a black suit. He was watching me with cautious eyes.
“Ah… It’s nothing…”
“Understood. Please inform me if you require anything.”
I answered in a deliberately calm tone despite the panic surging inside me. He nodded and turned away.
‘What the hell is going on?’
Who was that man? Why was I inside this car? I had definitely been playing the game. I had accepted the newbie’s support request.
After that…
“Wait, why has my speech been so formal since earlier?”
Even my inner monologue came out in polite, refined language. More disturbing was the thin, delicate voice itself. I used to have a deep male voice—where had it gone?
— Aaaah! You’re here, you’re finally here! The veteran who’s going to save us!!
“Yes?”
While I was still piecing together my memories, a tiny creature with white hair and red eyes popped into view.
“…Labi?”
— Yep, yep! It’s me, the adorable mascot of the god-tier game Genesis—Labi! Don’t worry, the others can’t hear our conversation!
She looked like a miniature fairy, small and charming, with striking ruby-red eyes.
“…Are you telling me this place really is the game?”
— Exactly! Just look at yourself!
The little fairy puffed out her chest proudly as she explained.
“My… appearance?”
When I looked down at my body, I saw the familiar leotard. And below that… unmistakable, overwhelming curves.
— You have work to do in that body.
“This is a woman. I’m a man.”
— Huh? You just had the highest proficiency with Ryushia, so I picked her for you.
“…”
Her matter-of-fact tone left me speechless. Why was she so casual about shoving a healthy man into a stacked female body?
Before I could recover, Labi rattled off the current situation like a machine gun.
“So this world isn’t a game but actual reality, the hero I’m supposed to guide is on the verge of death, and that’s why they summoned a veteran like me? I still don’t see why I have to help.”
— I’ll throw in a mansion over two hundred pyeong and the land title transfer papers.
“Is it station-adjacent?”
— Yes. Capital region, great transportation, schools nearby. No taxes for life. Enough wealth to live like a king—roughly a hundred million a month?
“Deal.”
I had been hesitating a second ago, but the offer made my decision instantaneous. This was too good to pass up.
“But I’ve never swung a sword in my life. How exactly am I supposed to fight?”
— Ah, one moment! Activating the filter now!
> GAME FILTER ACTIVATED
> SPEECH MODULE OVERRIDE — FORMAL REGISTER ENFORCED
— All right! Now feel what’s inside you!
Whirr.
I closed my eyes even though I still felt confused, reaching inward.
— Abandoned by the nation. Redanis’s greatest masterpiece… I am Ryushia.
— It hurts! I hate it!! Please… please stop…
— No… I don’t want this…
— I’msorryI’msorryI’msorryI’msorryI’msorryI’msorryI’msorryI’msorryI’msorryI’msorryI’msorryI’msorryI’msorryI’msorryI’msorryI’msorryI’msorryI’msorryI’msorryI’msorry.
“Ugh…?!”
A violent headache struck, and suddenly I could feel everything.
The keyboard and mouse I had used because phone controls felt too sluggish—their exact sensation was now etched into my body. Powerful mana surged from within, an energy on an entirely different level from before. My body grew light as a feather.
— I cursed this world, so I shall curse the world in return.
…Along with that came a ferocious killing intent and horrific memories. They probably belonged to Ryushia, the criminal syndicate’s living weapon. Her backstory had always been pretty bleak.
“Hehe. This is going to be fun.”
— Hii… Hic?
Labi flinched at the murderous aura, but I paid her no mind and steadied the power roiling inside me.
“Miss Ryushia?”
The man had noticed something strange and tried to speak, but I ignored him. The one controlling this body right now wasn’t Ryushia—it was me, the rank-thirteen player.
I suppressed the madness and moved with a veteran’s instincts. Basic attacks, unique skills, ultimates—everything.
I would wield Ryushia’s moonlight sword techniques with perfect freedom.
“By the way, where exactly are we headed?”
— We’re probably infiltrating the academy on the Second Finger Emily’s orders.
“Then it’s fine to kill all these men, yes? A perfect chance to farm essential materials…”
— Uh… huh?
Defeating Redanis combatants dropped Redanis’s Token. Since they were the protagonist’s sworn enemies anyway, wiping them out would grant me breakthrough materials and leveling resources, making me even stronger.
…Besides, after what they had done to Ryushia in the original story, I couldn’t possibly forgive them. I would pass judgment in her place.
— W-wait?! Those guys are all level 30 to 40! You’re only level 20…
“Quiet.”
Chzzt.
I ignored her, gripped the sword hilt, and closed my eyes. This was a game, after all. There was no need to feel guilt toward mere monsters—especially trash like them.
“…What are you doing?”
The man stared at me in confusion.
The instant I took hold of the blade, a murderous impulse surged like a geyser. I controlled it and slowly drew forth the lunar energy dwelling within me.
They still had no idea what I was about to do.
The skill I would use was my unique ability. The longer I charged it, the more powerful it became.
Stage 1 — Half-Moon Slash.
Stage 2 — Full-Moon Slash.
Stage 3… would not be necessary yet.
Full-Moon Slash
“I will end this in a single strike.”
Whooooooooong!!!!
Immense lunar power began condensing along the blade. Right now I felt omnipotent, as if I could cut through anything in existence.
“W-wait—!!”
“Full-Moon Slash!”
Sgeeeeeeeeeeng!!!!
I released the sword before the condensed moonlight could run wild.
Kwadudududuk!!!
The blade traced a perfect circle like the full moon. Everything the lunar light touched was sliced cleanly in two.
“Keheok?!”
“What the—?! Enemy attack?!”
The vehicle’s roof split open. Combatants nearby were bisected with looks of pure shock still frozen on their faces.
Shwaaaaaaaaak!!!
— Kyaaaaa?!
When blood sprayed everywhere, Labi shrieked and ducked her head.
— Hey!! There are more than twenty of them! We’re finished!
“Ah.”
More enemies remained inside the vehicles outside the skill’s range than those who had died in the initial blast.
Screeeeech!!!
“Whoops?”
The driver had been cut in half, causing every surrounding vehicle to slam on its brakes at once.
Clunk!
“Kugh… You dare do this to our men…”
“What is this?! Has she gone berserk?!”
“…Ryushia is uncontrollable. Subdue her.”
Countless hostile eyes gleamed as swords were drawn. The survivors glared at me with pure murderous intent after I had just slaughtered several of their comrades.
Hmm. Maybe I had been a little hasty?
— What are we going to do?! Our newbie is going to die… Waaah!!
“Do not worry.”
I gently comforted the sobbing Labi amid the carnage.
“If I simply kill them all, the problem disappears, yes?”
— Heh?
When I opened my squinted eyes and smiled for her sake, Labi recoiled in terror.
“Kill her!!!!!”
Dududududu!!!!
At their leader’s command, the remaining organization members charged all at once.
“…Moon Sword.”
Shuk!
I drew my blade lightly and drove it into the nearest soldier’s throat.
“Ke… keok…!!”
Blood bubbled from his mouth. His eyes rolled back as he let out a beastly groan.
“This game filter is incredible. It doesn’t even feel like I’m killing people, so I can slice away without hesitation.”
Crack.
I twisted the sword once for a confirmation kill. The man collapsed like an empty sack.
Thud.
— Hic!
“…”
The sight of me taking lives without so much as blinking left everyone around me pale with horror.
Perhaps that last line had sounded a little psychopathic.