Chapter 0 - Prologue
Prologue
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 0
Chapter Title: Prologue
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There was a game called Pavarintos.
A famously trashy game.
Outdated graphics like something from the stone age, all sorts of fucked-up bugs.
It was also well-known for its utterly broken optimization, but the game's most infamous feature was none other than its advertisements.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙
"Everyone." "Our game will one day become reality." "So buy the game and DLC to prepare for the apocalypse coming soon!"
What a load of bullshit.
Even viral marketing bullshit has its limits.
Pavarintos's ads had been circulating since its release 13 years ago.
Riding the wave of the doomsday hype back then, it gained some real buzz, but now that success had backfired.
Spamming nonstop brain-dead ads relentlessly for a full 13 years.
Maybe those brain-dead ads had become an art form in their own right, because now if you asked any self-respecting gamer about Pavarintos, they'd go, "Oh, that doomsday game?" But the player count still hadn't budged.
In short, it was a game that died famous.
However, separate from those utterly incomprehensible ads, the devotion the devs poured into Pavarintos was on another level.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙
"Pavarintos Update" "Full. Damn. Release!" "Buy the new DLC now for exclusive bonuses!"
"...What the hell."
Clinging to early access and hawking monthly subscription passes to bleed players dry for 13 years.
I'd figured Pavarintos—bombarding us with hopeless aggro ads—would stay in eternal beta forever, but here it was, actually hitting full release.
For me, who'd lived and breathed this game, it was a deeply moving moment.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙
"On sale now! Just $99.9!"
"...That's expensive."
Not exactly a price that thrilled me.
But what could I do?
Like most surviving trash games, Pavarintos offered no alternatives for those who'd gotten hooked.
For me, who'd sunk 13 years—my whole life—into this game, price was irrelevant.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙
"Purchase DLC: SkyRimWorld?"
So I bought it.
The full release commemorative DLC costing nearly 150,000 won.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙
"Purchasing this DLC applies all previously bought DLC to the full release version."
"...."
The content was utterly ridiculous.
To the point I doubted my own understanding.
'...Are they insane?'
Even shamelessness has its limits.
A DLC that ports your old DLCs to the new version of the game.
What kind of lunatic came up with this nonsense?
I thought I'd grown immune to these mad devs' ballsy schemes, but apparently there's a basement under the bottom.
But there was no helping it.
Like any surviving trash game, Pavarintos was a uniquely irreplaceable pile of shit, and its diehard fans were already brain-dead pig-dogs with mush leaking from their cracked skulls.
With a mindset beyond surprise, I paid for the DLC and started the install.
⚔ STATUS ⚔
Civilization detected.New DLC installed.DLC: Other Race applied.DLC: Subscribe applied.
"...Huh?"
A status window popped up right in front of my eyes.
.
.
.
When I came to my senses,
What floated before me was the familiar character customization screen.
"Create your avatar."
"...."
Pavarintos's character selection screen, familiar as hell.
The only difference was that it wasn't on my monitor—it hovered in the middle of my room in reality.
"...What the fuck?"
This made no sense.
After 13 years of grinding, had Pavarintos's devs finally had their great awakening and pioneered the world's first augmented reality game—
No way in hell.
'No, fuck. What is this really?'
Panicking, I reached out and touched the floating message window.
[Tap.]
Ridiculous, but it had texture. It felt real.
What the hell? Wasn't this supposed to be a hologram or hallucination? Why does it feel solid?
But even amid the panic over this absurd situation, a tiny 'no way' thought crept in.
Holed up in my room grinding a hopeless trash game endlessly—maybe I'd finally lost my mind. Sure, the thought crossed my mind, but I couldn't just dismiss it as my sanity slipping, not with those Pavarintos ads echoing in my head like brain-dead mantras for the past 13 years.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙
"Everyone." "Our game will one day become reality." "So buy the game and DLC to prepare for the apocalypse coming soon—"
I'd always thought it was bullshit...
But apparently, those ads were dead serious.
Which meant... the 'apocalypse' was really here?
It kinda made sense.
Irreversible climate change, rapidly shifting global politics.
Plus the superpower clusterfuck from pulling shit leaders in the gacha. A third world war wouldn't be surprising at this point, so 'apocalypse' didn't sound too far-fetched...
'Calm down first.'
Clutching my pounding chest, I examined the character customization screen. It showed a 3D graphic of me.
"...Wow."
The appearance was eerily realistic.
Seeing myself in such detailed graphics felt strangely off.
Didn't matter, though.
Muscle memory kicked in from years of habit, and I started touching the screen to customize the character.
Character creation was second nature.
Pavarintos took the roguelike philosophy way too seriously.
Your dungeon-delving 'avatar' gets perma-deleted the moment it dies. No matter the level or gear, it's gone forever.
No mercy whatsoever.
Your painstakingly raised character vanishing in an instant was par for the course in Pavarintos. The devs clearly gave zero fucks about making money.
After repeating character creation countless times, my hands moved on autopilot for builds and customization.
[Click.]
And so.
I let ingrained instinct guide my fingers as I built the character.
Class: Mage.
Starting spell: Telekinesis.
Starting gear: Guardian Robe and Mana Arrow Staff.
Race: Vampire.
Attunement penalties: Strength Reduction Maximized, Increased Mana Requirement, Blood Overconsumption, and Bloodlust Impulse.
Stats: All-in on Magic Power, a bit in Willpower. Everything else at minimum.
Avatar gender: Female.
Hair color: Black. Bust size: Maximum.
I input all the settings and hit the select button—
"Ah."
—the moment I did,
It hit me.
....Wait.
This isn't a game, is it?
'No, hold on.'
—Fucked up.
I was pretty sure I'd fucked up.
Years of holing up in my room, grinding nothing but dark vampire mage waifu builds.
After thousands of identical customizations, my damn fingers moved on their own.
Too used to in-game character creation, I'd forgotten this might be 'reality' right now.
"...."
A chill ran down my spine.
Nah, no way.
I could still undo it, right?
Games give you at least one free pass per run.
No way it'd throw me in without mercy like this?
Sweat trickling coldly down my back, I glared at the status window.
⚔ STATUS ⚔
Character creation complete.Transferring to the world of Pavarintos...
"Wait fu—"
Too bad. That hope went unfulfilled.