The Heavenly Demon Goes Sightseeing in Murim (1)
The Hwaryong Muin? What in the world was that?
When I hesitated to answer, Harin seemed to realize I had no idea and smoothly continued the explanation. Hwaryong Muin was a game created by the developers of Apis, set in a Murim world. It had the appearance of an RPG, but understanding of martial arts mattered far more than character stats. As Harin spoke, I could almost see Enri’s face when she had explained Sky’s End.
She must really love that game.
“I understand what kind of game it is. But why are you telling me this?”
The Hwaryong Muin operations team has taken an interest in you, Heavenly Demon-nim!
It wasn’t just the players enjoying Apis who had grown interested in the various incidents I had caused recently. The people running Hwaryong Muin had also been watching my actions closely and had taken notice of me as a person. Until I started streaming, it had been nothing more than simple curiosity. But once I turned on my broadcast, the situation changed.
They had concluded that if I played Hwaryong Muin the same way I played Apis, it would create more than enough advertising value. They believed the martial arts I displayed could inspire admiration in others. So they had tried to contact me directly to recommend the game, but since I wasn’t checking my messages, they had no choice but to reach out through Harin.
Personally, I think this is a great opportunity! You might even get advertising deals or events later!
“Is that so?”
More than anything, I really want to see you play Hwaryong Muin, Heavenly Demon-nim!
“Understood. I’ll check it out when I get home.”
Yes!
Hwaryong Muin, huh.
“Was that a call from NyanNyan-nim?”
The moment I gave a vague reply to Harin’s cheerful voice and hung up, Enri spoke.
“How did you know?”
“Who else would call Ara and ramble on about Hwaryong Muin besides NyanNyan-nim?”
It seemed Harin’s love for Hwaryong Muin was well-known to others as well.
“What was it about? Did she ask you to try Hwaryong Muin?”
“The operations team apparently took an interest in me. I’ll have to check the details when I get home.”
Just thinking about having to dig through a mountain of unread messages to find one text made my head hurt, but since I had already agreed, there was nothing I could do.
“Are you interested?”
“Hmm, not really.”
It didn’t particularly excite me. After spending so many years living in the actual Murim, why would I want to visit another world based on it? Since the game was populated by modern people, their level of skill would probably be similar to the players in Apis. Even the best among them would likely be nothing special. There might be a few worth fighting, but they would still fall far short compared to the opponents I had faced in the real Murim.
“Hwaryong Muin is actually a pretty good game. It’s considered one of the last masterpieces of wuxia gaming, with excellent quality. And since it was made by the Apis developers, the management is solid too. Your character, the Heavenly Demon, even appears as an NPC. I think it would be worth trying.”
I had been half-listening to Enri when an unexpected word made me freeze.
“Could you say that again?”
“The part about it being a wuxia masterpiece?”
“No. After that.”
“Ah. That the Heavenly Demon appears? She’s an NPC you can rarely meet unless it’s part of the story, but she does show up.”
*
After parting ways with Enri and returning home, I immediately turned on my computer and searched for videos of Hwaryong Muin. Several familiar faces appeared on screen.
‘No matter how much you insects struggle, the result will not change. I am the heavens. It is enough for you to simply bow beneath me.’
There was the Supreme Being, who always looked upon the world with that arrogant tone.
‘Just knock it off already, you bastards. What the hell did I even do to deserve you all ganging up on me every single day? Go bother the old man Supreme Being instead. That geezer has plenty for you to rip apart. I’m broke.’
There was Jijon, the greatest martial artist in the Murim, who usually showed not even the slightest trace of dignity.
‘Struggle a little harder. Do you truly believe someone like me would die from this much?’
There was the sly face of the Hyeolgyoju.
‘For what reason have you come seeking me?’
And there I was. Standing in the main hall of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, surrounded by countless cult members, pretending to look solemn.
Haha. You little rascal. You’re acting serious, but I bet you’re cursing up a storm inside. Back then, you were always itching to shake off the cultists, lock yourself in your room, and figure out how to escape this damned cult of fanatics. I’m certain of it.
Looking more closely, I noticed several other familiar faces lined up beside me in the video. There was no doubt about it. This was indeed the Murim I had lived in. The era was probably when the Divine Cult and the righteous factions split the Murim between them. Those were interesting times. Battles between high-level experts broke out without warning or reason. I had quite liked that period. How could I not cherish the time when I had divided martial arts most fiercely in my life?
Still, I had no desire to return. Just thinking about standing among those fanatics who worshipped me again made me want to bite down on a pipe.
While I was quietly watching the video, a message popped up on my computer saying the Hwaryong Muin download had finished. Well then, shall we try this game set in the era I once lived in? Let’s see just how well they recreated that world.
Given the time period, the faces I missed had probably already left this world. That was a shame. It would have been wonderful to see those dear faces again.
I stood up and lay down in the VR device. Come to think of it, the last time I had played alone, I had appeared on Enri’s stream and the viewers had thrown a fit, telling me not to play by myself. Maybe I should turn on my broadcast this time too.
After stepping into the main hall of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult that I had just seen in the video, I manipulated the menu. When I had first started streaming, I wouldn’t have known what to touch without the instructions Enri had sent. But now it was different. I might fumble a little, but I could turn on the stream without needing her text guide.
Heh heh. I’m almost afraid of my own growth. The day when I no longer need Enri’s help feels close.
Even though I had suddenly started streaming in the middle of the night, viewers flooded into my broadcast as if they had been waiting.
“I got interested in a game called Hwaryong Muin. I was going to play it alone, but then I thought of all of you and decided to turn on the stream.”
Either way, since both characters were based on me, there was no point in calling one real and the other fake. But to those who didn’t know the full story, it might look that way.
“It seems I’m not the only one who’s been waiting for me to play Hwaryong Muin. Harin wasn’t alone.”
“What do you mean by calling Harin an old man? That kid is a girl.”
For some reason, the viewers refused to believe me. No, why was the fact that Harin was a girl even up for debate? From my perspective, I simply couldn’t understand it. I tried several times to convince the viewers, but the chat window kids just waved it off. I’m telling the truth!
Sigh. Really. I can’t tell if these guys are joking or being serious. It’s annoying that I can’t see their faces.
“Anyway, I’ve already downloaded it, so I’ll launch Hwaryong Muin now.”
The first thing that appeared after logging into Hwaryong Muin was the character creation window. I planned to make the appearance the same as always, and I intended to use the name Hwaryeong just like in Apis. But for some reason, I couldn’t use the name Hwaryeong.
Hwaryeong. Baek Hwaryeong. Heavenly Demon Baek Hwaryeong. I tried every variation I could think of, but there were practically no names available.
“What is this?”
Because of other people, I had to give up my own name? Hah. What nonsense. Thanks to that, I had to pout and look for a different name.
I couldn’t use Ara. The name of the doll I liked had already been taken. The name of the animal that appeared on my favorite MyTube channel had been taken long ago. Even the name of my favorite food wasn’t available. This was tyranny. Just because they came first, they get to monopolize names? That’s not fair at all!
The viewers must have found my long struggle with names frustrating, because all sorts of suggestions flooded the chat. Most of them were names I couldn’t possibly bring myself to use. What the hell was “NyanNyanBaekHwaRyeongChaeung”? If I had a name like that, I’d be too embarrassed to show my face in public. You idiots.
Still, not everyone was completely brainless. Among the suggestions, there were a few I could actually use. MintChocoPineapplePizza. It seemed to be a combination of two foods I had enjoyed before. I liked it, so I used it as my name, and the character was created.
“I have no idea what you’re talking about. What’s wrong with combining the names of two delicious foods?”
Judging from the viewers’ reactions, both mint chocolate and pineapple pizza seemed to be foods that people hated. Anyway, modern people really have it too good. To treat such delicious food as something disgusting just because it doesn’t suit their taste… Those kinds of people need to experience starvation once to realize how blessed their lives are.
I ignored the viewers spouting nonsense and continued the character creation process. Next came the choice of faction. It wasn’t about picking one of the countless sects in the vast Murim world. Instead, I had to choose between the righteous path, the demonic path, or remaining unaffiliated.
Why should I have to go to the Divine Cult? I have zero intention of joining them. I do want to meet the version of myself that this game created at least once, but that’s it. I have not the slightest desire to mingle with those insane fanatics. After escaping from that place to the modern world, would I really be crazy enough to walk back into hell with my own two feet?
To express this firm resolve, I considered choosing either the righteous or demonic path instead of remaining unaffiliated. But then I remembered I had no good memories with either side and gave up. In this era, the righteous path was led by those I could only call my enemies, and the demonic path was led by nothing but idiots who lived only for their own desires. Just thinking about being grouped with them made me not want to belong to either.
What was wrong with being unaffiliated? As long as I didn’t join the Divine Cult, it was fine.
I’m not going. Even if I did, I have absolutely no intention of belonging to the Divine Cult.