Chapter 1
Chapter 1
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 1
Chapter Title: ACT 1. The Beginning of the End (1)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Prologue. End of Tutorial
Do you need a reason to play a game?
To get straight to the point, I used to think not.
That is, until I played this game.
-Ugh, this shitty game. I’m out. gg
-Tried to get a refund, but I was 1 minute over the 1-hour playtime limit, so no refund for me lol ahaha
-Read the reviews and dodged this bullet.
“It is a shitty game.”
Reading the comments on the review page, I chuckled mid-sip of my drink.
A shitty game. No words suited this game better.
The difficulty, perhaps aimed at the hardcore crowd, was so outrageously high that no new players ever joined. Even those who prided themselves on enjoying difficult games were left speechless.
For a brief moment, it gained some traction as streamers started playing it one by one, but no one actually stuck with it.
It was just that hard.
Even streamers who claimed to have mastered difficult games often gave up in exhaustion before clearing Chapter 3, so there was no need to elaborate on the difficulty.
-It seems fun, but it’s exhausting.
-They did a great job with the apocalyptic aspect. But maybe too good a job. It’s a literal apocalypse. No matter what you do, it’s doom. Seriously, no hopes, no dreams.
-Honestly, if you asked me to name a game with no hope or dreams, this would be in the top five. It's just tantalizing enough to keep you hooked, but I eventually gave up too.
-If you're thinking of trying this out of curiosity, don't. You'll regret it within the first hour.
-I heard the Strategy King-nim is still playing it, though.
Scrolling down a few more times, I saw reviews from famous streamers.
A game with no hopes or dreams.
That was certainly true.
Even now, having reached what was nearly the end of the story, I still wondered, ‘Is there any hope in this game?’
“I guess I’ll find out for sure today.”
I casually placed the empty drink can nearby and switched my screen back to the game.
On my monitor, the game I’d poured hundreds of hours into was glowing in a kaleidoscope of colors. On the sub-monitor next to it, my streaming software was running alongside the chat window of YouTX, a popular streaming platform.
[Strategy King is playing End of Apocalypse!]
A streamer.
It’s what I’d been doing for a few years now.
Today, I would see the ending of this game.
[1. Obey.]
[2. Disobey.]
[3. Remain silent.]
[4. Pretend you didn't hear and walk away.]
“I’ll go with 4 here.”
I selected one of the choices on the screen, triggering an interaction between the characters.
The 3D quality was so exceptional it felt like I was watching a movie filmed with real actors.
Although I was a streamer, I had virtually no viewers.
Just the occasional person dropping in while browsing for something to watch.
I used to have a decent number, but they’d all left by now.
It was probably my own fault. It was only natural they’d leave when I kept clinging to a game like this.
-Why do you keep playing this?
A viewer who had been watching asked casually.
The count had been at 0 just a moment ago.
Looking closely, I recognized the username as one that had appeared frequently in my donations.
jun0501.
He was someone who’d stuck around even when my viewer count dropped to single digits, but even he hadn't been around lately.
‘The reason I keep playing this…’
It was a question I’d never considered.
I had experienced all the pros and cons others mentioned, and I knew the cons far outweighed the pros.
That’s why it was called a shitty game.
A tragic flop that seemed to have good intentions but a terrible execution.
Yet, for me, this game had something more.
Something special that had made me fall so deep into it.
“I wanted to see the end of this story.”
-Ah, I think I know what you mean.
A smiling emoticon followed his message.
To put it generously, it was perseverance; to put it harshly, it was stubbornness.
-Still, sticking with it for nine months is pretty incredible in its own way. Most people couldn't last a week, let alone a month.
“That’s around the point where you get stuck no matter what you do.”
You could never clear the game by only paying attention to the given choices.
Funnily enough, this game that presented choices had a progression system that required you to *not* follow them.
Waiting without picking any option would cause the choices to change, and selecting an option before the other person finished speaking would also lead to a new development.
In other words, ‘choices that aren't there.’
You had to account for all those unusual actions.
“I doubt anyone else has made it this far.”
-Probably not lol. What chapter is this now?
“Chapter 48.”
-Holy crap.
Though it was just three words, I could tell just how dumbfounded he was.
Most people couldn't handle it and quit by Chapter 3 at the latest.
Always with the complaint that they had no idea how to proceed.
And that was after many had already dropped out because of the absurd difficulty before that.
Making it to Chapter 3 was considered a major accomplishment.
-The atmosphere has changed a lot from the early to mid-game.
-Oh, this is where the story goes this way?
After that, we chatted about this and that.
Was it because he was my first viewer in a long time?
His simple words felt incredibly welcome.
-The sky has been gloomy and the weather’s been bad lately. Be careful not to catch a cold.
The viewer count, which had briefly been 1, returned to 0.
He hadn’t come to watch the game.
He was just curious about how a streamer he once enjoyed watching was doing and had dropped in for a moment.
Familiar solitude returned.
After that, the viewer count flickered between 1 and 2 for short periods, but it always went back to 0.
My gaze drifted to the sky outside the window.
It looked like it would rain any second, but it never did.
Suddenly, I recalled that the beginning of this game had a similar atmosphere.
***
How much time had passed since then?
The game’s atmosphere was clearly signaling that it was reaching its climax.
A story was coming to an end.
I could feel the ending drawing near.
This time, I could truly see it.
The one and only ‘True Ending’ that I had never been able to reach before.
[Congratulations.]
[You have cleared the game.]
[Ending 00. ‘End of Tutorial’]
A wave of euphoria and exhaustion washed over me simultaneously.
The lingering feeling of a story concluded tightened its grip around my throat.
An indescribable emotion welled up inside me, leaving my mouth agape, unable to form any words.
‘Finally.’
The feeling echoed in my mouth.
After a long pause, I forced my fingers to press Enter, and the next message appeared.
[All data will be deleted.]
[Transmitting deleted data to the server.]
There are some games like that.
Games that leave a lasting impression by deleting all your data after you clear them.
But they usually ask for the player's consent first. This game didn't even have that.
As I watched my play data slowly being erased, I felt a sense of relief wash over me.
“It took so long to get here.”
Throb.
A pain shot through my head.
Have I been playing for too long?
I realized I had pulled an all-nighter playing the game.
I was too focused on finishing it today.
I smiled wryly and collapsed onto my bed.
I’ll organize the strategy guide after I wake up.
As I was thinking that, my eyes slowly drifted shut.
***
[The set time limit has been reached.]
[Verifying clear status… 23%, 57%, 81%, 100%]
The loud beeping of a machine woke me from my sleep.
It wasn’t an alarm.
Did I forget to turn off my computer? I don't think so.
[Verification complete.]
[1 person. Kim Se-hyeon.]
My name?
What could be calling my name?
Shaking off my drowsiness, I forced myself to sit up.
Outside the window, I could see the sun had passed its zenith.
And at the same time, there was another ‘window.’
[A special reward will be given to the player who has cleared the game.]
A translucent blue window.
The kind of thing you’d only see in a game, a so-called ‘system window.’
I must still be half-asleep.
Dismissing it as such, I was about to question whether I’d truly become addicted to the game when—
‘Wait.’
Suddenly, the name of the ending I had just reached came to mind.
End of Tutorial.
The moment I thought it was a rather unfitting name for an ending, a series of other things flashed through my mind.
[You have met the conditions to proceed to the hidden ending.]
[You have only one chance.]
[You must reach the True Ending in this one attempt.]
[Good luck.]
One thing I could understand.
I had cleared the game, but what I’d reached wasn’t the True Ending.
Ending 00.
Only then did what I had glimpsed as the data was being deleted flash in my mind like a collision.
[Ending 01. A Death Too Soon]
…
[Ending 99. Uroboros]
[Ending 00. End of Tutorial]
[Ending 100. ???]
There was still one more ending I hadn't reached.
[Commencing the main story.]
Chapter 1. ACT 1. The Beginning of the End (1)
A jolt, a shock that seemed to run through my entire body.
It seemed it wasn't just my body that had shaken; a picture frame on the wall fell to the floor with a dull thud.
[The main story will now begin.]
The computer was off.
And yet, a distinct blue window-like object floated before my eyes.
I slowly got up and moved away from the computer.
The window followed.
No matter where I turned my head, the window was always right in front of me.
…This isn't a hallucination.
“Aaaargh!!”
A blood-curdling scream jolted me to my senses.
I rushed to the window and looked outside to see crowds of people running away from something.
A black, dog-like monster with no eyes or ears, only a nose and a mouth, was indiscriminately attacking people.
It was a very familiar sight.
No, I already knew what this was.
‘The very beginning of… End of Apocalypse.’
Could it just be a coincidence?
Even if the world suddenly turned into a fantasy, what were the chances it would perfectly match the game I was just playing?
Before that question could even fade, another, equally ‘familiar’ window popped up.
[You will now be issued a weapon.]
[You may select your desired weapon.]
I bit my lip and pressed ‘Confirm,’ and a new window appeared.
The images of dozens of different weapons blurred my vision.
It was identical.
Identical to the beginning of the game, ‘End of Apocalypse.’
This was definitely reality.
But what was happening was a game.
‘If this is really happening,’
I took a deep breath and calmed my mind.
I didn't know why this was suddenly happening.
But no matter how unrealistic it seemed, as long as this was reality…
‘I need to adapt, fast.’
Time waits for no one.
If I’ve really returned to the beginning of the game, there’s only one thing to do.
I immediately selected a pair of daggers.
Better than some useless sword.
It’s a weapon that’s much easier for a beginner to handle, and more importantly, nothing is as useful as this in the early stages.
[Hunter's Dagger]
A pair of daggers commonly used by hunters.
Greatly increases the attack power of the first strike against beast-type monsters.
‘It’s just a weapon to get me through the early game anyway.’
[Ch.1 – A Changed World]
Escape from the danger zone.
Reward: 1000 Coins
※Failure to escape within the time limit will result in death.
After I chose my weapon, the next window naturally appeared.
The main quest of the first chapter.
A vague explanation with no mention of where or how to escape.
And yet, an extreme consequence of death upon failure.
The moment I saw that window, my last remaining doubt vanished.
The game was starting over.
Not a game played on a computer, but a game based on reality.
[Your reward for clearing Ending 00 has arrived.]
[You have acquired the Unique Ability, ‘???(EX)’.]
[You have acquired the Trait, ‘One Who Started from the End (S)’.]
[Through the effect of ‘One Who Started from the End (S)’, you have acquired the skill, ‘Extreme Eye (S)’.]
As I was preparing to leave the house, a new system window popped up.
Unique Ability, Trait, Skill.
These weren’t things you could normally get all at once right at the start.
Unless you had ‘talent.’
[Character Information]
Name: Kim Se-hyeon
Gender: Male (26)
Strength: 1 Stamina: 1 Agility: 1 Mana: 0
Unique Ability: ???(EX)
Trait: One Who Started from the End (S)
Skills: Extreme Eye (S)
The first thing that caught my eye was the trait.
One Who Started from the End.
I didn’t even have to think about why I had gotten it.
A dry laugh escaped my lips.
A reward for clearing Ending 00.
To think that something that was just a game had actually affected reality.
[Extreme Eye (S)]
Eyes that have elevated the function of 'seeing' to its absolute limit.
Allows you to see things invisible to the normal human eye.
① Can check a target's information.
② Can see through to the essence of things.
③ Can perceive the flow of mana.
‘To get this right at the start.’
The corners of my mouth curled up on their own.
Being able to check a target's information is a huge advantage.
There’s a significant difference between fighting an opponent whose information you know and one whose you don’t.
As for seeing the essence of things and perceiving the flow of mana, their true value would become apparent as I progressed.
My stats were at their most basic level, but unless you were an athlete, everyone would be the same.
It was one of the top three eye-related traits you could get, so this was one less thing to worry about.
‘What’s this Unique Ability?’
Its name and effect were just question marks, so I couldn't figure out what it was.
All I knew was that it was EX-rank.
The highest rank in existence.
‘There were only five EX-rank abilities…’
It wasn’t any of the ones I knew.
It was definitely a good thing, but I wasn't entirely pleased.
You could only have one Unique Ability. Once you acquired one, it was impossible to even get rid of it.
Knowing which Unique Abilities were definitively good, I bit my lip in disappointment.
Looks like I won't be able to use this for a while.
‘And besides this reward, the fact that there’s nothing else means…’
It was clear that I had no talent in that area.
A bitter taste filled my mouth, but I quickly accepted it.
I was just a guy who played games, after all.
Crash!
The sound of a window shattering came from inside the house.
Only then did I realize I’d made a mistake.
This is a game, but it's also reality.
Just because I’m checking the system window doesn’t mean the game will wait for me.
“Grrrrr…”
When I went into the living room, there was a monster much larger than a normal dog.
Broken glass shards glittered in its stiffly raised fur.
The window on the balcony was broken.
It must have broken in through there.
‘Death Bite.’
A monster designated as E-rank, out of ranks E through S.
It was the lowest rank, but it wasn't something you were meant to kill in the tutorial.
[Leave the house.]
The game screen replayed vividly in my mind.
The reason the monster entered the house was to force the character outside.
To show that the house was not a safe place.
It was just there for that role, so if you ran away quickly, you could escape safely.
It even had a setting where it had an injured leg, so it couldn't chase the fleeing character.
That’s why, after a few repetitions, I would use a taunting emote as soon as I encountered it and then run away.
I had always followed that path until I reached Ending 00.
But this time, a strangely different thought came to mind.
‘The way I played before couldn't get me to the True Ending.’
My breathing quickened.
My thoughts began to accelerate with a mix of tension and excitement.
[Due to the unique effect of ‘???’, you will remain calm.]
‘I have to do more, as much as I possibly can.’
My eyes slowly narrowed.
The mental shock of my reality suddenly changing vanished as if it had never been there, and my mind grew cold and focused, just like when I was concentrating on the game.
There’s no time to grow leisurely.
I need to get stronger, faster and more surely than I ever did in the game.
‘I’ll kill it, right from the start.’
It wasn’t that the thought had never occurred to me before.
Even with its injury, the monster wasn’t something a character with starting specs could defeat alone. That’s why I’d never acted on it.
But this time is different.
[Using the skill, ‘Extreme Eye’.]
Information about the monster floated above it like a hologram.
Its current state. Its weaknesses. The parts of its body where it was putting its strength.
Advantageous information for offense and defense was pouring in before the fight even began.
Seeing that I wasn’t running and was instead showing signs of fighting, the Death Bite let out a low growl and lowered its stance, as if displeased.
‘Here it comes.’
The monster’s movements looked like they were in slow motion.
At what timing, and how it would attack.
Even with a body no different from an ordinary person's, I could see and dodge it, that's how well I understood the monster's information.
Shhhk!
I managed to evade the monster's attack by a hair's breadth.
A part of my sleeve caught on its teeth and tore, but I wasn't injured.
If anything, the monster’s reckless attack with its injured leg backfired.
Its muscles must have been damaged, as it could no longer move its leg at all.
“Grrrr…”
“Looks like you can’t even stand now, huh?”
The light in its eyes was still alive.
But it wasn’t strong enough to kill someone with a glare alone.
I gripped the dagger in my hand in a reverse grip and plunged it into the Death Bite’s neck.
Plunge!
[You have completed the achievement, ‘First Blood’.]
[You have been rewarded with 400 Coins.]
Seeing the system window pop up before me, my lips twisted into a smirk.
I was strangely calm despite having killed a creature of this size.
In fact, the sense of relief from achieving my initial goal was stronger.
‘The achievement reward is 400 coins, just like in the game.’
First Blood. An achievement you can get for killing your first monster.
Coins could be used for everything.
Increasing stats, strengthening skills, purchasing items.
And overall ‘survival.’
[Using 400 Coins.]
[Strength 1->2]
[Agility 1->4]
I should save some, but I could afford to spend them for now, so I used all the coins I earned to increase my stats.
I can just earn more coins later. Now is not the time to be frugal.
I retrieved the dagger from the monster’s neck and stepped outside.
“Wh-what is this?”
“What in the world is going on!”
“Aaargh! Help me! I don’t want to die!!”
As soon as I stepped out of the building, screams echoed from all directions.
Among them were people I knew.
The college freshman who had recently moved in. The man who walked his dog every morning. The middle schooler who made a racket coming home late every night. The part-timer at the convenience store I frequented.
They were, without a doubt, real people from my reality.
The same progression as the game. Characters from the game exist, but so do real people.
That could only mean one thing.
‘I haven't entered the game; reality and the game have merged.’
‘End of Apocalypse’ was a game that used modern-day Seoul as its setting.
Even the starting point, Eunpyeong District in Seoul where I lived, was the same.
‘How is that possible?’
A game and reality merging. It was hard to believe.
But it was happening. And it wasn't like I could figure out the reason right now.
Accepting it as ‘just the way things are’ made it easy to adapt.
But apart from that, the situation was quite serious.
“G-get away! You damn monster!!”
“Mommy!”
With more people than I’d seen inside the house gathered together, it was utter chaos.
The streets were already littered with the cold bodies of those who had been killed by the monsters.
No matter how many times I had seen this situation in the game, seeing it with my own two eyes was different.
My mouth felt dry.
I swallowed down the urge to gag and looked around.
Black gates were opening everywhere, and monsters were pouring out of them.
The E-rank monster, Death Bite, which I had just killed inside.
In reality, it was a monster you couldn’t kill at the very beginning of the game.
The only reason I was able to kill the one that came into my house was because it was already injured.
That’s why the main objective was to simply ‘escape’ this area as the quest stated, without fighting.
Of course, I had no intention of doing that.
‘To make use of the knowledge and information I have, I need to follow the existing quests, but…’
I’ll follow the quests, but not exactly as they are.
I’ll twist the situation as much as I can.
To make it as advantageous for me as possible.
‘I’ll kill them all and then move on.’