Chapter 35
That night, heated debates erupted on the largest community forum in Lase, Lase Inven, due to an unexpected bug controversy.
Posts on the free board were updating every second.
-As everyone knows, there are no bugs in Lase. It’s just that a super rookie appeared…
└ No, it’s a bug.
└ Use some common sense. Do you think that time makes sense? It’s definitely a bug.
└ Super rookie lol. Are we talking about baseball?
└└ What the heck? When did you see me? Stop cursing!
└└└ Hey, sir. Do you really think nine seconds is possible? Haven’t you ever fought the Hell Beast in the beginner zone?
The topic of controversy was none other than the boss monster Hell Beast in the starting city, Rayzin.
It was a debate about the newly updated personal record of Hell Beast.
Nine seconds.
Because of this incomprehensible number, the forum was on fire.
-The other beginner towns are fine, but only Rayzin’s Hell Beast seems to be bugged. The previous top record was also a bug.
└ Right. It was around one minute. That was a bug too.
└ They haven’t even done any maintenance since the launch, and now there’s a bug. This kind of minor bug is understandable.
└└ It didn’t seem like a bug until now since there were no bugs.
└└└ These crazy gamers keep talking nonsense! Damn it, now they’re saying the bug that didn’t exist has appeared!! Understand what people are saying!
Although the forum momentarily flared up, public opinion quickly began to lean towards ‘it’s a bug.’
No matter how hard they tried to understand, the number nine seconds made it impossible.
-Anyway, let’s take this opportunity to fix the bug and do some maintenance. I’m still amazed that a game like this can run without maintenance.
└ Yeah, I’m anxious because I don’t know when it will crash.
-The breadcrumbs are all gone, so now the developers should let us live our lives.
However, just as the Hell Beast bug thread was starting to cool down, a new flame was ignited.
-Hey, I found it so unbelievable that I went and checked it three times on my way back, but I don’t think that’s a bug.
└ Ugh, just when the breadcrumb cooled down, you’re starting a new fire. Damn it, we’ve concluded that it’s a bug.
└└ It’s a waste of time banging on the keyboard. Just go see it yourself and judge. (Link)
└└└ Yeah, don’t fall for the fishing link~
Lase Inven boasts the highest number of users among all online communities in Korea.
With so many users, there were all kinds of people, and links like fishing links were posted dozens or hundreds of times a day.
The title “Legendary Loot Video!” led to a picture of an elderly man fishing, so bland that it didn’t even attract any comments.
But still, there were always people who clicked out of curiosity.
-Huh? This is a link to a video? The channel name is Cheonma TV?
-I feel like I’ve heard of Cheonma TV before.
└ He’s the one who did the guerrilla quest yesterday.
-I just checked the link, and it’s real. A new video has been uploaded.
-Cheonma TV’s new video is out!!!
When a new video from the channel that recorded the best video in just one day yesterday was released, everyone’s attention began to shift to that direction, bug or no bug.
-What’s this video about? Will they solve the guerrilla quest accurately?
└ I hope so. I’ve been looking for the guerrilla NPC for a whole day today because of it ㅠㅠ
Inven users hurriedly clicked on the link.
The newly uploaded video on Cheonma TV’s channel was a short one, about one minute long.
However, the reaction brought about by that short video was tremendous.
-?
-???
Once again, the video was presented from a first-person perspective.
After entering the Hell Beast dungeon and waiting for a while, the Hell Beast appeared at the magic circle.
As soon as the preparation phase ended, the charging Hell Beast rushed forward! However, the protagonist of the video skillfully avoided the charge as if expecting it.
Then, this time, the player plunged into the monster’s bosom.
Thunk.
[Growl!]
Woong.
That was it.
As the protagonist of the video thrust the sword deeply, the Hell Beast collapsed as if lying.
No matter how many times they rewound the video, Inven users could only scratch their heads with a ‘?’ floating above.
-What’s going on? What just happened?
└ I don’t know… Something… Something happened.
-Hey, I’ve only been playing Lase for a short time, but isn’t there anyone who can analyze this video?
└ No, whether it’s an analysis or not… Thunk! That’s the end, what’s there to analyze?
The forum exploded, and many users denied reality.
-Oh, it’s a hack. Nothing makes sense other than a hack.
└ Talking about a hack. Are you in middle school? The full dive system is completely immune to hacks.
└└ If it were a hack or a bug, would they upload the video? They’d just keep it to themselves. It’s not like they’re asking for donations or anything.
-I just checked the time precisely, and it was exactly nine seconds from when the Hell Beast charged to when it got sliced.
-Huh, shupel… The old man who was just swearing that it wasn’t a bug was right.
└ Lololol, most of the comments on that post have already been deleted. Lmao.
└└ I’m the one who made those comments, and it’s a bug. I just reported it.
└└└ Lase players are pathetic…
About 30 minutes after the video was uploaded, specific analysis posts about the video began to appear.
“The Perfect Analysis of Hell Beast One Punch Man”
[I’ve been playing Lase full-time since it opened. I’ll summarize this video for you.
First of all, the sword being held looks like at least a hero-grade. And if you look closely at the blade, you can see a slight golden hue, right?
It’s a 3-star skill, Striking.
And there’s a hint of bluishness, so it seems to have water or ice attributes as well.
As you know, the Hell Beast is fire-type, so the damage was probably good.
And when it pierced the throat, the breath flowed back, melting the inside of the Hell Beast, resulting in a one-shot kill. That’s the truth of the video.]
└ Is Lase crazy?
└ Damn, lol, a hero-grade sword in the beginner town. And it’s got attributes on Striking? Ridiculous. Why, don’t they say they have a hidden pet too?
However, no matter what analysis posts were uploaded, the reactions were negative, and the frustration only grew without a clear answer.
But there was one thing that was clear.
-But where did this monster come from?
-Since they defeated the Hell Beast, they probably moved on to Ruana… Are they going to join a guild soon?
-I don’t know which guild they’ll join, but the Teen Guild Weight will definitely be shattered. With that level of gear, whether they have money or not, they’ll gather it all.
-I want to try partying with them…
A unprecedented monster had appeared.
Many people began to pay attention to Cheonma TV.
“Ugh.”
Early in the morning, Jeonghun woke up, quickly finished his morning routine, and headed out of the house.
After filling his stomach at a nearby rice soup restaurant, he promptly logged into Lase!
“Are you here?”
“Yes, I’m here. Did anything happen overnight…?”
Cheonma’s expression was so suggestive that anyone would think, ‘Oh, this person’s about to go crazy from hunger.’
“Yeah, something unimaginable happened. Let’s move to another spot first.”
“Yeah, we should. Looks like there are a lot more people now.”
Yesterday, right after leaving the dungeon, Karpe didn’t return to the city but immediately logged out. In other words, he was still near the dungeon.
“Tanks and DPS ready. Will go when the healer arrives!”
“Oh, a rogue? Well… This dungeon doesn’t particularly have traps…”
“Looking for a level 20 priest. Don’t care about gear!”
“Selling shield eaten by reinforced skeletons! Amazing stats!”
Near Ruana’s pit, the market square was bustling with dungeon recruiters and merchants.
“By the way, didn’t they say the dungeon would convert to a regular one after completing the quest?”
As Karpe dipped his toe into the pit, an alert popped up: ‘Would you like to enter the rare-grade dungeon, Ruana’s Pit?’
“Fascinating.”
With his actions, a new dungeon had emerged, and people around the dungeon were enjoying the game, laughing and chatting.
It felt somewhat satisfying, a pleasant feeling tingling in the corner of his heart.
“I think this should do.”
As they left the pit, the number of users significantly decreased.
After surveying the surroundings, Cheonma told Karpe about yesterday’s events.
“…That’s what happened.”
“That’s random. A room, all of a sudden?”
“Yeah. A room.”
“Well, that’s strange… But still, it’s good.”
A ‘room,’ a space for one’s subordinates, and the puppeteer who manages that space.
It was a bizarre event even for Cheonma, who had never encountered it before, but well, who cared.
What mattered was that this bizarre event was helpful.
“So, specifically, how does this help?”
“You’d be amazed. It’s better to see for yourself than for me to tell you. You probably have changes in your status window too.”
“Really? Status window!”
As Karpe quickly scanned his status window, he indeed found a new entry at the bottom: ‘Room (New!).’
Tap, tap.
In that moment, numerous notification windows filled Karpe’s view.
At the same time, he could understand why this ‘Room’ feature had appeared.
[You have met the minimum requirements to open the ‘Room.’]
[‘Room’ is a hidden function that opens under specific conditions.]
-Minimum of 3 subordinate entities (Achieved)
-Possession of crafting skills of grade 8 or higher (Achieved)
-Possession of exploration skills of grade 8 or higher (Achieved)
-Maximum friendship level with the puppeteer (Achieved)
“Wow, what’s this?”
There were hidden conditions, it seemed.
Even a cursory glance revealed that each condition was not easy.
“…This game really has no end.”
“It looks challenging, but it’s surprising that you haven’t achieved it either, hyung.”
“Each condition? I’ve achieved them all individually. But never all four at once.”
Come to think of it, Cheonma lamented, it seemed he had achieved up to three when he regressed for the second time.
Ding.
“[Once a day, players can move to the Room.]”
[Would you like to move now?]
“Huh? Looks like I can move to the Room too?”
-Well, seeing it with your own eyes would be more impressive. It’ll be more touching that way.
“You’re surprisingly generous with your compliments. If I get bashful, you’ll be quite flustered.”
-Hmph. Get ready to be amazed.
“Alright then, let’s go.”
As Karpe accepted the move, with a ‘pop!’ sound effect, his body instantly moved to a different location.
“Wow…”
Contrary to the name ‘Room,’ the place Karpe moved to was not indoors but outdoors.
-How about that, isn’t it cool?
“Definitely. This is something to brag about.”
Before him stood a Western-style mansion straight out of a comic book.
The place Karpe arrived at was the part of the mansion’s estate that served as the garden.
“Wait, isn’t this a garden?”
It lacked the bushes and shrubs to call it a garden. It was more like a barren land, close to a dirt field.
“Kyu!”
“Welcome, Master.”
“Um, what are you guys doing here?”
“As you can see?”
And from that dirt field, the remaining two subordinates greeted Karpe.
However, their appearance was so different from what Karpe had imagined that he was momentarily speechless.
Tistania was dressed lightly without her heavy armor, wearing a straw hat and carrying a large hoe.
“We’re farming.”
“Kyu!”
“Farming?”
“Yes. Take a look.”
Pluck!
As Tyna deeply dug the ground with her hoe, Mukhyang took out an acorn from her pouch and planted it. Then, she gently patted the soil with her small hands, using the water attribute of ‘Spell of Eight’ to moisten the soil.
“…”
“It seems Hyeong wants an acorn tree, so we’re helping. Building camaraderie among subordinates is important, after all.”
“Kyu! Kyu!”
“Yes, Hyeong. I’m enjoying it too.”
“…I see.”
Growing acorn trees with the combined efforts of the Homunculus and the Epic Pet, created with the Emperor’s painstaking effort…
“It feels like something’s wrong, but if they’re happy, then I guess it’s okay.”
Let’s set aside the question of ‘shouldn’t acorns be planted in the forest?’ for now.
-Hehe. Don’t be too disappointed. Right now, it’s just acorns, but as the Room grows, you’ll be able to cultivate ultra-rare items like the fruit of the World Tree.
“Hyeong, let’s stop here for today. While farming is good, true knights should focus on escorting their Master.”
“Kyu-kyu!”
Mukhyang rushed to Karpe and climbed onto his shoulders. Tyna smiled softly as she watched the scene.
“Now, let me guide you.”
And so began the tour of the grand mansion.
The interior of the mansion was much larger than it appeared from the outside.
-I was terrified when the door opened with the notification that I became a manager.
I was about to go out to catch Mukhyang, who had rushed out when the door opened, and was utterly surprised.
Outside the door was literally another world.
-If other players see this place, they’ll foam at the mouth.
Indeed, Cheonma was so dumbfounded that he foamed at the mouth.
This otherworldly place was scattered with various facilities.
-There are still places we can’t use yet, but they’ll become available gradually.
Training grounds and research labs where subordinates’ experience points and skill proficiency could be increased.
Kitchen gardens and orchards where various magical ingredients and basic materials could be obtained.
Mines where metal materials could be obtained, and more!
“And, I think this place will be the most interesting for you, Master.”
Tyna said so and opened the door to one place.
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