Chapter 1

I’ve liked games since I was young.

The reason is simple.

Since I was always in the hospital when I was a kid, there was naturally nothing to do but play games, and as time passed, games became a part of my life.

But if you do anything for a long time, you will get bored and tired.

“Oh, shit… what’s this AI thinking? Why are you giving a Heal there?”

After some time, no matter what game I played, it wasn’t as enjoyable as before.

It wasn’t a matter of genre – be it AOS, RPG, or FPS. It was all the same.

All the games that came out every year were like garbage. The story and worldview adhered to the norm, and the system lacked depth.

I wanted a game with something a little more special.

Then I discovered [Dungeon and Stone].

Tadadat. Click, click.

The genre was single player RPG.

It was an overseas indie game.

There was no Korean language support, and it used 2D pixel graphics, which had already become rare.

To be honest, it was far from my usual fare.

Still, it was free, so I installed the game to give it a try, and soon I fell in love with it.

“Wow, I almost got killed like a newbie.”

It was a unique game in many ways.

When your character died, you had to start again from scratch.

NPC companions were essential for making progress, and the degree of freedom was also extremely high for a vertical scroller type game.

The skill system and worldview were also attractive, and the story was interesting even though I had to read it in English.

Crucially, I could feel something unknown but special in this game.

Tada-dat, tick-tap.

I, who at the time had just started as a service worker assigned to the subway, began to delve into [Dungeon and Stone] in earnest.

It wasn’t easy.

Combat in this game was not simply done with HP/MP.

Even with full HP, if there is one misjudgement, the character that has been painstakingly nurtured for three months can disappear.

“… Let’s go.”

I couldn’t even get to the mid-game for over two years, so I gave up my pride and searched for a strategy guide.

I couldn’t find any on the Korean portals, so I had to translate and read them from foreign sites, but even that didn’t mean much.

There were not many users abroad either, so there were few related articles with no useful information.

Rather than those who played it for a month or two and called it ruined game, I, who had been seriously exploring this game for two years, had a much better understanding.

So I stopped looking for a strategy.

“Three times up, four times to the left, once down, twice to the left, six times to the top, four times to the right. Finally, avoid the trap… okay.”

Wasn’t this the only game I finally found while searching for one I could actually enjoy? After a while, I decided to just keep trying on my own.

And…

“Whoa.”

So, we have reached this point.

「Gates of the Abyss」

Now my character is standing in front of the portal connected to the final boss room.

Of course, seeing the ending will be after coming here several more times in the future. It’s not a game where you can get the boss with just one try.

Even so, I can feel how nervous I am right now from my stiff fingertips.

“The final boss…”

It may be nothing to some people.

However, for me, it took 9 years to get here.

It would not be an exaggeration to say that we were together all through my twenties.

Even when the call for service workers got cancelled, as well as the day when I went back to school after a long time to apply for reinstatement, and the day I received a letter of acceptance to the job I wanted after graduation.

I have always played [Dungeon and Stone].

「Do you want to enter? 」

As you approach the portal by manipulating the character, a question appears asking if you want to enter.

Of course, I click YES.

However, maybe since this is the final boss room, a different message is displayed once more.

“You may not be able to come back.

“Are you sure you want to enter?”

It’s unnecessary from a player’s point of view.

If you don’t want to enter, why would you come all the way here?

「Yes / No」

As I click Yes, the screen goes to the loading window.

Looking at the darkened monitor, I raise my concentration.

How many patterns does this guy have? What characteristics? Of course, there must also be an instakill move or two. Well, let’s put aside the thought of succeeding on the first try and gather as much information as possible. Maybe I’ll even have to completely redo the character build and skill combos.

My brain, stimulated with excitement and anticipation, is filled with only the thoughts about the final boss.

So, it was too late for me to notice.

「You have reached the abyss」

「Tutorial complete. 」

Tutorial complete?

No, before that, how come these are Korean Hangul characters? Wasn’t [Dungeon and Stone] only supported in English?

“Transmission begins.”

Just as I felt a sense of incongruity, a bright light burst out.

The light was so intense that there’s no possibility of it originating from the monitor.

“Damn, damn it! My eyes!”

In an instant, everything turned white.

Ringing in the ears, and an unknown heat bursting from the skin. My thoughts quickly faded as if I had been injected with a fast-acting anaesthetic.

I was usually confident in my ability to cope with crises, but at this moment, I had no idea what was going on.

Flash-!

I lost consciousness as the light grew stronger.

And when I open my eyes again –

I was a barbarian in the game.