Games Are Played Like Shit
The game really is played like shit. [JB Comprehensive Account - Savings Deposit] [83,150 won] Fuck. What the hell am I supposed to do now?
Thankfully, I still have about three days' worth of food left at home. If I cut my portions even more, I could probably stretch it to a week. But after that? Can I survive on eighty thousand won? Of course not. I'm not optimistic enough to pretend otherwise.
So I looked up part-time jobs I could start right away. A few places even contacted me for interviews. But as expected, I got rejected from all of them.
"...Well. I probably wouldn't have hired me either."
Whenever I showed up prepared for an interview, everyone was shocked the moment they saw my face. Honestly, I think I'm pretty good-looking by my own standards, but to other people... especially shop owners, hiring me as part-time help must feel awkward. To older folks, I probably just look like trouble.
At least they didn't immediately kick me out. Still, most of them avoided eye contact throughout the entire interview, probably because they wanted to make it clear they weren't going to hire me. Combined with my catastrophic communication skills, it created this bizarre situation where two people were having a conversation without looking at each other at all.
Hmm. It would've been weirder if I actually got hired...
That said, I don't really feel wronged. This silver-white hair, these red eyes—I didn't ask to be born like this...
Grumble—
"Ugh..."
My stomach was protesting. I already don't eat much, and now I'd cut my intake down to a third. It was clearly unhappy with the breakfast I'd given it. But I had to endure. At least until I found another part-time job...
★ 500... 501... 502... 503... 504... Now...
"...How many was that again?"
Day two of the teddy bear eye-gluing part-time job.
"Haa..."
This was what came up when I searched for jobs I could do from home. Typing gigs, handicraft side jobs—there were quite a few things you could do from home, but this was the only one I could start immediately.
It wasn't physically exhausting. The problem was that it felt like my mind was going to snap. I could finally understand why people said to never take this kind of work. The mental fatigue was brutal.
"Nngh..."
But I had to earn at least a little money. Until I found something else, this was all I could do.
Yeah. Don't give up. You already know this, right? What's important is an unyielding heart...
If I just focus, I can get through this. Besides, with this body, even if I push myself, I won't die from something like this...
★
"It's over..."
I had no idea how many eyes I'd glued on. I'd stopped counting halfway through and didn't want to think about it. Still, after four days of nonstop teddy bear eye attachment, I had eighty thousand won to show for it. They said another batch would come in about two days.
That meant I had two days of free time. For the first time in a while, I could actually enjoy New Dimension...!
Of course, there were still problems to worry about before that. I obviously couldn't keep doing this teddy bear eye job forever. The pay was far too low to live on. Four days of nonstop work only got me eighty thousand won—if I did this for a full month, I'd barely make six hundred thousand. Should I really try getting a factory job...?
Well. I don't know, so I'll just play New Dimension for now. I want to rest a little.
★
Even though it had been a while since I'd logged into New Dimension, it didn't take long to realize I couldn't just relax. There was that whole nuclear weapon controversy or whatever it was—completely ridiculous drama. I hadn't had time to check the community lately, but it was obviously still burning.
...Why did even my last remaining sanctuary have to end up like this? It was enough to make me depressed.
〔Even If His Head Gets Bashed In, He's Still a Priest〕
...Speaking of which, there he was again. When was that guy ever going to repent?
"Ah, fuck."
He'd spotted me too and spat out a curse. He still didn't understand my goodwill. In that case... I had no choice but to do what I had to do. If it doesn't work, I'll just keep trying until it does. What's important is an unyielding heart. That had been one of my beliefs back in that other world, after all.
Feeling the comforting weight of my old friend, the warhammer, after two days, I stepped forward.
★
In New Dimension, a class was nothing more than "a system to receive additional skill effects." Since the game advertised itself with the slogan "endless freedom," choosing a specific class wasn't supposed to change how you developed your character. That's why Priests could use swords or spears, and Spearmasters could use magic. The only difference was that a Priest's healing skills would have higher values, a Spearmaster's spear attacks would have longer range, and a Swordsman's sword strikes would deal more damage.
That was all a class amounted to in New Dimension. In other words, there was nothing strange about a Priest player learning sword-related skills.
"Tsk."
Standing before the Priest was a warrior in full-body armor wielding a massive warhammer. Well, not exactly a warrior. He was only using a weapon that warriors typically used—his actual class was clearly Traveler. But that didn't matter to the Priest at all. No matter what weapon he used, the fact that he was an enemy to be defeated remained unchanged.
The Priest immediately stored his staff in his inventory and drew a dagger. The opponent was slow because of the warhammer and full-body armor. To exploit that opening, moving as lightly as possible was crucial, so he didn't change his armor. After all, unless the opponent was wearing the exact same full-body armor, a single hit from that warhammer would be meaningless anyway.
"Huu..."
Clank, clank.
The heavy sound of metal striking metal echoed through the air. To the Priest, it had always sounded like the great bell that signaled death. But if he retreated now, all he would be able to do from then on was run. He couldn't allow that. He didn't want that.
He was a gamer too. He could accept defeat, but he couldn't affirm it.
"Haaaaa...!"
The Priest raised his voice and stepped forward. The opponent lowered his center of gravity and took his stance. Of course, under normal circumstances, it would be impossible to pierce full-body armor with just a dagger. But this was a game. While there might be compatibility between weapons and armor, there was no such thing as absolute. Victory simply came the moment you landed enough attacks to bring the opponent's HP to zero.
"Hup!"
With a battle cry, he thrust his dagger forward. As expected, the opponent blocked it with his warhammer.
Kaang!
The heavy sensation and sound effect were nothing like what you'd expect from a simple game. Feeling it through his fingertips, what welled up inside him was exhilaration.
Thud!
But it was only natural that a dagger couldn't win against a warhammer in a direct clash. The moment he felt himself being pushed back by the force, the Priest retreated. A massive impact rang out, and a cloud of dust rose. Immediately, what emerged from the dust was a strike like a falling meteor.
If he took that hit, the game would be over.
《Acceleration》
The Priest, who had experienced this situation countless times, knew that better than anyone. Using the skill Acceleration that temporarily boosted his speed, he charged forward. If he'd kept retreating, he wouldn't have taken any damage, but he couldn't win that way. After barely dodging the warhammer's path, he immediately swung his right hand in a wide arc.
Kaang!
The dagger clashed with the full-body armor, sending sparks flying. As proof that his attack had landed, an HP bar appeared above the opponent's Inquisitor nickname. But the red bar had only been reduced by about 5%. It was a disappointing number if he wanted to call it a decisive, lethal blow.
Still, the Priest didn't care. In fact, it was more than enough. It meant that if he could land twenty more attacks like that, he would win.
"Hup!"
It was only natural, but the opponent, equipped with a warhammer and full-body armor, was much slower than the Priest. So he had to maintain his momentum while the flow was still in his favor.
Kiiing!
Feeling the unpleasant sensation of scraping against metal, he thrust his dagger again. The opponent curled his left arm to reduce the damage.
'This is my chance.'
When fighting at close range, the one with higher attack freedom was obviously the dagger, not the warhammer. To attack with a warhammer in this situation, the opponent would have to either back away or somehow push him off. The fact that he'd curled up instead meant he couldn't do that right now. Knowing this, the Priest rained down attacks without pause.
The opponent's HP was steadily decreasing. No matter how resistant full-body armor was to daggers, it didn't completely nullify damage, so this was only natural.
'If I've come this far, winning shouldn't be...'
And the moment the Priest thought that, the opponent charged forward with his left shoulder leading, as if it were time for a counterattack. But something like that was well within the Priest's expectations. He simply twisted his body lightly to dodge the charge and prepared to attack from behind.
However—
Thud!
As if he'd already anticipated that judgment, the opponent's body was enveloped in blue light. With a tremendous tremor, another cloud of dust rose.
Skill: Tremor. A simple but reliable effect that pushed away nearby enemies upon activation.
'He still had something like that left?'
With that single skill, the Priest's plan completely fell apart. He'd been maintaining a distance where only he could attack. But in an instant, the advantage he'd worked so hard to secure was rendered meaningless. It had been a mistake to keep some distance while attacking, just in case.
'I should've stuck close enough that he couldn't even make that pushing motion.'
Remaining HP: 100% vs 50%. Looking at the numbers alone, the Priest had the advantage. But he absolutely couldn't let his guard down. No—he couldn't afford to.
'In front of that warhammer, this much doesn't mean anything.'
Even while flustered by the unexpected situation, he quickly calmed his mind and assessed the state of the battle. That alone was proof that the Priest was also a top-tier player.
The dust was slowly settling. As if he didn't want to repeat his earlier mistake, the opponent didn't move at all.
'Charge in here? No. What he's aiming for is definitely a counter. If I force it, I'll lose.'
He had to be certain without showing any openings. After all, if his opponent was a Priest, he would never give up and would stubbornly try to see it through to the end.
Thud!
In other words, even if he stayed still, the opponent would eventually make the first move.
With a sound that tore through the air, the warhammer swung horizontally. It was a declaration that he would not only push his enemy away but also break their balance, making the situation completely his from now on.
But there was no way the Priest didn't know that. Instead, he dashed forward, putting strength into his toes before the warhammer could touch him. And just before the warhammer reached his body—literally by a hair's breadth—he leaped toward the sky.
The warhammer cut through empty air. The Priest wasn't foolish enough to miss that momentary opening. He brought his dagger down with all his might. Even with a helmet on, it was a strike that wouldn't be light. At the very least, a stun was guaranteed.
...If the attack had actually landed.
Whoosh!
"Huh?"
The Priest's vision was suddenly blocked, and at the same time, he felt a powerful vibration in his jaw.
"Kugh?!"
What appeared in his newly cleared vision was the opponent's right palm, extended toward him. The Priest immediately realized that the vibration that had struck his jaw was a long-range attack.
The Priest's body was sent flying backward, and the opponent immediately grabbed his warhammer again and charged forward. Having been struck in a vital point, the Priest was completely stunned. There was no way for him to block the follow-up attack.
"...Hah."
The moment he realized his attack had missed, the judgment to completely let go of his weapon and respond—that was something even someone who viewed the opponent unfavorably couldn't call hacking. That movement had only been possible because of his high understanding of PK.
Watching the warhammer come crashing down toward his head, the Priest let out a sigh of admiration.
Games really are played like shit.
"Fuck."
Along with the highest form of praise a gamer could give to an opponent, the Priest's vision was blocked once more.
Kwaang!
With a thunderous roar, the match was decided.