One Million Points
One Million Points
005.
"Do you really think you'll adapt well anywhere else when you can't even hold out here?"
It wasn't like I wanted to become part of the 'NEET youth' by choice either. I had worked like a dog for a year at a small business while enduring that kind of gaslighting.
But as it turned out, holy shit. That place was literally the most soul-crushing 'shitty SMB' in all of Korea.
Right after quitting, I generously collected my severance pay and squeezed out every last drop of unemployment benefits, living off my slowly eroding bank account with a broken spirit.
And so my account balance, which was finally about to hit rock bottom, suddenly swelled back up.
<Deposit: 2,100,000 KRW.>
"This... is actually real?"
Leaving about four silver coins as souvenirs, I exchanged the rest. Just like that, I had three months' worth of living expenses.
Since it was my first real win in a long time, I immediately ordered fried chicken. Then I sat down in front of the computer to figure out what kind of stroke of luck this actually was.
It was fun and helpful, but an extremely suspicious mod. After all, there's no such thing as a free lunch in this world, right?
"Ah, right."
I distinctly remembered there being a <Send Gift> feature in addition to <Receive Gift>. Since nothing in life comes free, if it gives me something, shouldn't it be trying to get something back from me?
I clicked the <Gift> emoticon button, and this time I clicked the <Send Gift> button.
- You can use points to send real-world items into the game.
As expected, it felt totally ridiculous, but it was a feature that let me use points to gain an advantage in the game.
Nothing particularly special was felt yet.
"What. Was I mistaken...?"
However, I noticed something in blue text right below it.
"What's this?"
I clicked on it.
<Point Shop>
- You can use real cash to replenish points.
"Ah, what the hell!"
My brain flashed, and everything finally made sense. Once in a while, there are people who make money through game mods.
This mod was one of those products.
They mixed an AI mod into the game and created in-app purchases, intending to commercialize it in the shadows.
'Right. I almost got drained of points yesterday too. If someone has plenty of cash but runs low on points, they might get tempted and buy immediately.'
There was definitely a sales tactic designed to induce that impulse.
Clearly, the mod creator's business seemed to tread right on the borderline between illegal and legal.
"Who gives a shit? It's complete easy money for me."
In the process, I was currently participating in the mod creator's beta test, and thanks to my good skills, I got to enjoy it, play well, and snatch up rewards.
At the very least, they won't pull a scam and run away with my stuff.
A sudden curiosity washed over me.
"Then will they really send literally anything?"
It was a game mod straddling the underground anyway. Driven by curiosity, I pressed <Receive Gift> once again.
The UI popped up, and a cigarette caught my eye. The one that 'Long-term Service Unit 1' had owned.
'No way.'
In the domestic translation, this was called a cigarette, but in the original game, it was actually weed. It had been forcibly localized due to domestic sentiment.
It was a great subject to test with. The price for receiving it was only 50 pt. I clicked it.
- "If that is your desire, gladly."
Soon, Vivian knelt and prayed, and the in-game cigarette vanished.
[ Balance: 3,200 ]
After that, I spent the day eating chicken while contemplating and refining the settlement, and sure enough, another package arrived the very next day.
Rrrrip. I tore open the box.
It was something resembling a cigar, neatly wrapped in paper-like material. I picked it up carefully. I knew what tobacco smelled like. Picking it up gingerly, I took a sniff.
I froze.
It wasn't tobacco. My hands trembled slightly.
'This crazy bastard. He actually sent real weed by courier.'
This mod creator was definitely no ordinary person.
I already knew he was an oddball from the moment he sent packages without me ever giving out my address after installing the mod right upon reading his email.
But I didn't expect it to be to this extent.
However, for me, it wasn't a bad thing.
'...For me, this is a miraculous opportunity.'
I hurriedly shoved the received weed, package and all, deep into the back corner of a drawer.
I re-examined the items I had seen yesterday under <Receive Gift>. I remembered that a settler had been listed there.
[ Vivian: 1,000,000 pt ]
Sweat formed on the hand holding the mouse.
If this mod creator really sends weed via courier for 50 pt, and actually sends 3 million won worth of silver coins right to my house for 300 pt...
A settler that requires a whopping one million points to receive...
Beyond my monitor screen, Vivian can be seen offering a prayer before her meal.
- "Outer God-nim, thank You for allowing us to eat our daily bread today as well. Please do not abandon us."
Although I've only known her briefly, Vivian is so earnest toward me. Vivian is so diligent.
Suddenly, X-tomi came to mind. It was a manga featuring a female protagonist who absolutely obeyed the main character. I used to feel envious while reading it.
I don't really know what I'm stepping into. Maybe they won't actually send a real person. But I had a gut feeling that it wasn't a lie.
I wiped my dry face with my hands.
"I really need to do this properly. This whole thing."
I adjusted my posture and sat upright.
I have to gather points.
Whether I receive silver coins as gifts from the in-game world into reality, exchange them, and top up my points...
Or smartly complete quests to hoard points...
This little world inside the game mod will become my personal flowerbed.
The sun was now setting, and darkness was creeping over the in-game world.
Just then, around fifteen people loaded heavily with cargo on four cows entered our area.
They intended to pass through.
- "Let's head over that way."
- "Yes, Merchant Leader. Let's go."
"Oh, a merchant caravan!"
Filled with curiosity, I panned the screen toward the caravan and observed them. Coming from the edge of this region, they were heading right toward where our three sisters' settlement was located.
- "Beyond that hill looks like a good spot to spend the night. The sun is setting, so pick up the pace."
"Oho. The dialogue for outsiders is super realistic too."
In this game, merchant caravans pass by like this occasionally. Ordinary players would trade with these caravans.
Of course, I traded with them when they showed up too, but trading wasn't my main goal. Especially not in the early game. I was just hoping to hit a jackpot somehow, so this turned out great.
"Ehehe, perfect timing. Very nice."
I was rubbing my hands together.
However, whether she heard the approaching presence from afar or not, Vivian—who was wrapping up her day inside the settlement—started in surprise.
- "G-Girls, douse the lights!!! Someone's coming."
Then she hurriedly peeked through the wooden planks to assess the situation and began praying.
- "Outer God-nim! I-Is danger approaching?"
Since the misunderstanding would be cleared up amicably once they met anyway, I tried to save my points.
- "O-Outer God-nim... Have You abandoned us? Are You not watching us right now? Outer God-nim, please do not abandon us. I truly have no one but Outer God-nim."
"No, wait. That's..."
The prayer rising up was far too desperate.
"Ah...... I surrender. Take my points."
With this level of devotion, it was only polite to let myself get sucked dry of points once.
- Do not be so afraid. It is simply a merchant caravan passing through this area. You can go and try selling something like rabbit skins to them.
Click. I pressed send.
[ Balance: 3,100 ]
Vivian collapsed once more as she offered her prayer.
- "Ah, thank You. Thank You. Please do not abandon me. Please do not abandon us. I will do everything You command."
"Ehehe. Man, oh man."
Seeing her react like this was so adorable that I couldn't help but laugh. I don't know how this mod is coded...
...but it gives me a sense of omnipotence, as if I truly became a god.
"No matter what happens, I'm definitely going to save up money and buy Vivian."
I stared intently at the monitor.
Vivian soon headed outside as I instructed. And bare-handed at that, carrying only a few items to trade.
Even though she must have felt it was dangerous herself, she seemed to blindly trust my words.
As Vivian stepped abruptly out of the darkness, the Merchant Leader flinched and took a step back.
- "Whoa! Wh-What the! Wh-Who are you!?"
At the Merchant Leader's shout, a man holding a torch hurriedly stepped in front to block her path.
- "Hello. I am a settler residing here. Are you a merchant caravan?"
The Merchant Leader patted his chest in relief while scanning Vivian up and down.
- "...Ah, what the. A human? I mean, what are you trying to do, popping out all alone in the middle of the night, lass? Nearly had a heart attack."
If anything, that side seemed more startled. I chuckled at the sight.
'Well, yeah. If a woman comes out to meet you all alone in a place like this, anyone would find it suspicious.'
Setting-wise, they'd probably feel that popping out alone like that means she has backing, right? Normally, no fight happens here unless you attack them.
- "I'm sorry for startling you. Seeing that you were a merchant caravan, we... wanted to do some trading."
Only then did the Merchant Leader seem to lower his guard slightly, turning toward the cows.
- "Trade? As you can see, we're a raw materials caravan. Medicine, cloth, leather, wood, iron scrap, even dried meat. We've got everything except what we don't have. But do you have the money to buy?"
Vivian did [ Took out a few rabbit skins from her breast ]. The Merchant Leader smacked his lips.
- "Rabbit skins, huh. I'll give you one silver per pelt. But with this, a single pouch of medicine is the best you can get."
- "I'll exchange them for silver coins."
'Oh...'
Trading was automated too. Settlers would look and exchange what they needed on their own. This mod was so convenient because it handled general things like this by itself.
- "...Then by any chance, have you heard any news from outside?"
However, as an unexpected conversation unfolded, I couldn't help but focus on the screen.
- "Outside news? Right, I heard Loven Village up north was raided and burned down not long ago. Times are ominous, so be careful."
Instantly, Vivian's character trembled.
- "...Wh-What about the people of that village?"
'Wh-What's this? Is this like Vivian's backstory setting?'
- "There's talk that a few survivors fled down to the Lower Village in the south. Well, I don't know beyond that. Are you folks settled down and living over there?"
As the Merchant Leader engaged in gathering information as well, Vivian nodded and paid the price for asking about the village news. It felt as if the Merchant Leader was staring at Vivian's group.
- "...Tsk, living in a place like that... Well, this is also a twist of fate, so if I pass by with goods to sell, I'll drop by. If you need anything or have stuff to sell in the future, deal with us."
They soon made preparations to camp in the area, and Vivian returned to the settlement.
- "O-Outer God-nim. I dedicate our very first profit from trading to You. Please accept it."
Ting—. A popup suddenly appeared.
- <Receive Gift> Vivian wishes to gift you 2 silver coins. Would you like to spend 20 pt to receive it?
"Ah, right now I don't really need..."
The AI character was incredibly sweet, but right now wasn't the time to drain money from the settlement.
More importantly, there was a sweet trick I needed to exploit immediately while the merchant caravan was here.
Since merchant caravans take aggro from beasts without asking for anything in return, this was the perfect timing to hunt big game for free.
I clicked <No> and then clicked <Give Revelation>.
- You are very commendable. But use those for yourselves for now. More importantly, go call Second quickly. There is something she needs to do right away.
Vivian's character flinched, then hurriedly called Second over. The spunky Second.
- "Huh? Eonni? Me? Why? What is He telling us to do?"
I clicked <Give Revelation> again. Since I could only give revelations to Vivian right now, I had to convey it through her.
- Vivian, could you tell Second to go shoot a rhino with her bow right now?
At first glance, a truly bizarre command. Vivian also paused for a moment at my revelation.
However, there was a hidden exploit in this, and the diligent Vivian soon conveyed it to Second exactly as instructed.
Immediately, literal chaos broke out.
- "What? Eonni, are you crazy? How are we supposed to hunt a rhino with a bow! No way. Is He trying to get me killed? What kind of absurd revelation is that!"
'Hmm... Guess it can't be helped?'
Apparently, whether it was because Second wasn't a believer yet or because her character was naturally like that, it wasn't working well.
What should I do? I definitely need to exploit this trick, but I need a good plan. As I stretched, my eyes caught the Romance of the Three Kingdoms sitting on my bookshelf.
"Ah."
A method crossed my mind. First, I immediately plotted together with Vivian.
[ Balance: 2,600 ]
In the end, Second headed outside into the dead of night with her bow slung over her shoulder, not even knowing where she was supposed to go.
Up to this point, conveying the message as "A moving herd of rabbits has been spotted" had worked effectively.
- "No, seriously, fucking hell. A rabbit herd in the dead of night?"
Grumbling, she reached the designated area and stepped over the bushes, only to freeze dead in her tracks.
- "Hiiik..."
Second was in a [ Covered her mouth with her own hand ] state. Because right beyond the bushes was a rhino.
- "This crazy Outer God!! You said rabbits!!"
Second muttered as she opened her pouch. Since I couldn't send revelations directly to her, I had delivered a Silk Pouch to Second in advance.
< Shoot the rhino >
- "You fucking lunatic!!!"
Second, thinking 'screw it all', drew her bowstring. And then she sprinted at top speed back toward home!
Kweeeeeeeeeeeng!!!
Attacked and enraged, the rhino charged forward.
And the merchant caravan would tank it for her.