CH 1

Will and Determination

Translated by LyraDhani

Edited by LyraDhani

Abyss Calling. A social game for smartphones. Commonly known as AbyCall.

The genre is probably RPG. It is an orthodox game where you summon followers, train them, and clear various quests.

The game has a variety of useless quests and a training system that is so deep that even the game’s management could not fully grasp it.

The game, which was rumored to have been run with most of the profits earned, is unrivaled in terms of graphics, game system, and storyline, and above all, it is known to use magic stones like hot water – the ultimate pay-to-play game.

“A pay-to-play…game?”

Nanashino muttered these words in shock. Perhaps it was a word that was unfamiliar to her.

I quickly raised the stone and looked at the star-filled sky.

The seven pillars of the Ruins of the Beginning and the seven-colored moon in the sky signify the seven kinds of households that can be called up-the seven races. The Ruins of Beginnings, as the name implies, is the starting point of the game, and it is here that players will summon their first follower after completing the tutorial.

Once the stone was raised to the heavens, I naturally understood how to summon them. For some reason, the strange sensation that shook my brain caused tears to fall from my eyes.

Nanashino was perturbed by my expression.

“!? Eh, um, What’s wrong?”

Nostalgia.

It’s nostalgia that I feel inside me.

Abyss Calling is a game that had already been discontinued. It’s a terrible game from a common-sense point of view. What other game would have been shut down due to legal reasons?

Still, the game was certainly my reason for living. I was a college student at the time, and I spent all of my time, except for sleeping and eating, playing the game.

There were happy memories. There were painful memories. There were memories of killing and feelings of emptiness. And there were things left unfinished.

Even though the game itself is no longer playable, I couldn’t help but be impressed to find myself in a world that resembles it before I know it.

“D-did you get hurt somewhere?”

“Shut up and die.”

“!?”

“I’m sorry, I’m just being so emotional that I’m letting my true feelings come out.”

Nanashino was overwhelmed at the sudden outburst. She probably hadn’t quite grasped the current situation.

I thought about it. Nanashino is a complete liability. A person with no knowledge of games cannot play Abyss Calling satisfactorily. She probably can’t even look at a strategy site and is generally stuck.

But at the same time, if this world has the same system as Abyss Calling, it is certainly better to have other players. Abyss Calling has a huge amount of content, some of which cannot be tackled without the cooperation of other players. No matter how familiar I am with AbyCall, what I can do alone is limited.

When it comes to that, liability is better than nothing.

As I stared at Nanashino, information popped into my head.

Her name, Nanashino Aoba. And below that, I saw a green bar, not an HP bar, but a stamina bar. Unlike in most RPGs,  players don’t die in AbyCall.

If she is an NPC, there would be no stamina bar, and since there are only a few NPCs with Japanese names in AbyCall, she is most likely a player.

After thinking about it for a moment, I decided to go along with Nanashino. It would not be a big burden for me anyway.

Maybe there are others in the same situation besides Nanashino, if there are better players, then let’s quickly cut her off.

“Maybe there are things were don’t understand, but let’s work together to overcome them.”

I smiled and held out my hand to shake hands, and Nanashino’s expression changed to one that looked as if she was staring at something fishy.

She stared at my face and looked at me reproachfully.

“…Isn’t your palm smell terrible?’

“I think I’ll do my best alone because it’s too much trouble.”

“Ahhhhhhhhh. A lie, it was a lie! I’m sorry, I don’t know what’s going on at all…”

Nanashino smiled flirtatiously, whether she was aware of it or not.

That being said, I didn’t think I have explained any of this yet.

I looked at the summoning magic stones and then at Nanashino’s face. Then I looked at Nanashino’s hand, which was holding the magic stone. Nanashino, realizing that she was being watched, hid her hand behind her body as if in a panic.

I was taken aback by the exaggerated gesture.

“I won’t steal it.”

“…”

“I mean, the truth is it can’t be stolen. At least, AbyCall didn’t have that feature.”

AbyCall is a ‘healthy’ game for all ages.

Credit cards can be used up to the limit, but there is no system that allows you to unilaterally take someone else’s magic stone, much less a system that allows you to take away the magic stone given at the beginning.

Nanashino blinked a few times in confusion and looked up at me.

“Um… I don’t understand… what you’ve been saying since a while ago.”

This is no good… I have to explain it completely from scratch. What a pain in the ass.

Well, I’ll just tell her the important things…

I sighed deeply and explained the situation we were in with some guesses.

Nanashino muttered in dismay.

“The world of a game… I can’t believe it.”

“I can’t believe it either. Maybe, it’s a dream.”

But it is too realistic.

The glow of the moon in the night sky. The scent of the night that stimulates the sense of smell, and the feel of the wind on the skin. All of them claim that this is the real world. But to begin with…

“I’m not going to discuss its authenticity with you.”

“…Eh…”

I just think that this is the world of the game and move on. That’s all.

I don’t think about things that can’t be helped now. If this is not a dream, then there will be an opportunity to gather information.

I added one last thing.

“I’ll leave it to Nanashino to decide what to do.”

There are limits to being a liability. Even if it is unavoidable to have no information, a person who escapes from reality is hardly useful.

Nanashino closed her eyes and chewed my words.

I waited a few seconds. When she opened his eyes again, there was light in them. She was still confused but apparently, she had made up her mind.

She said in a muffled voice.

“Under…stood…I’m going to work on that premise, too.”

“Sensible.”

Nanashino smiled tiredly at my words.

“I’m confident…in my comprehension!”

I don’t want you to have confidence in that.

Nanashino gently held out her hand to me. Is it proof that we have decided to cooperate with each other once again?

“Um… I don’t know anything… and thank you, I’m looking forward to working with you. Um…”

“Blogger.”

I took her hand and shook it firmly. A meaningless ritual. If anything happened, I would abandon Nanashino right away.

Nanashino responded to the handshake with a black-and-white look in her eyes.

“Blogger…san…is that your real name?”

“Of course not. I am pure Japanese. Blogger is the username I use when playing the game.”

Black hair and eyes. My height is 170 on average, and my weight is a little lighter than average, no matter how you look at it, you can’t see me as anything other than Japanese.

At my words, Nanashino asked me fearfully.

“…Um…What’s your real name?”

“You can’t tell your real name to someone you don’t know. Think about your manners.”

“…I’m, my real name…”

“…I don’t know anything about that. You said it on your own.”

So it is your real name… Well, it doesn’t matter.

Nanashino looked hurt for a moment but quickly turned her gaze to the Ruins as if giving up.

Although the [Ruins of the Beginning] were called ruins, they didn’t appear to be in disrepair.

There was nothing in the Ruins except for the seven pillars, and the surrounding area was an endless expanse of grassland, but there was a wide road, so it should be possible to reach the town.

She looked at the scene around for a while, but then seemed to regain her composure and looked up at me to ask.

“Um… What do we have to do first?”‘

In the original AbyCall, the first thing a player would do is a tutorial. Use the follower tutorial given to capture the dungeon, and then get the first magic stone as a reward.

But since I already have the magic stone in my hand, I guess the tutorial is now complete.

I looked up at the seven moons once more and said as if in prayer.

“I guess it’s [Abyss Call].”

In Abyss Calling, players, without exception, have a special job called caller.

A caller is, simply put, a summoning mage. The reason it is not called a summoner is probably because the management wanted to create strange originality.

A special kind of mage who uses magic stones to summon, train, and use their follower. Naturally, nothing can be done without the followers.

The [Ruins of the Beginning] is also the place where players attempt to summon their followers after the tutorial. It’s no coincidence that I found myself in this place before I knew it.

Nanashino stared at the magic stone in her hand.

The first five golden magic stones are special magic stones. It is no exaggeration to say that the five magic stones will determine the fate of a caller.

Five golden magic stones. The official name of the five golden stones is [Rarity 7 or higher] and they are the stone that determines the status of the followers.

It is like the SR fixed gacha ticket in social games.

Each follower is ranked by their rarity.

The original magic stone randomly summons a list of followers with a rarity level of 3 or higher, but only the first summon guarantees a follower with a rarity level of 7 or higher.

The higher the rarity, the more powerful they are, and the lower the summoning probability, so this is the first and last big chance.

…By the way, there are up to 21 rarity levels.

“…Call…is it…”

The moment I stood in the center of the Ruins, I had an idea in my head of what I needed to do. Perhaps Nanashino was the same.

With a mysterious look, but without hesitation, she raised the stone to the heavens.

I stepped back and watched the situation. At first, I was going to summon it quickly, but it wouldn’t be too late after watching Nanashino. Then, Nanashino took a deep breath once and chanted the words.

“Abyss Call!!!”

Looking up to the heavens, she saw the seven-colored moons with her eyes like saucers.

One of them shone brightly. White Moon-the white moon shone as a sign that the summoned follower was classified as the Heavenly species.

They are also commonly referred to as Angel species. It is a species that has many individual units with the attribute of light.

And then Nanashino raised a voice that sounded as if she was floating.

“Whoa… What’s this. So cute-!”

I looked down. A small humanoid appeared at Nanashino’s feet.

Can it really be summoned? Before I could experience surprise, I first observed its appearance.

He was about fifty centimeters tall. A small knight only in its form, wearing a white full-face carapace protecting his head and well-polished white half-plate armor. On his back, he carried a sword as large as a kitchen knife.

At the sound of Nanashino’s voice, the figure looked up widely to the heavens to see Nanashino, and with a graceful motion, drew his sword and made a gesture as if offering it at her side.

The gesture caused Nanashino to let out a yellow scream and twist her body. It was the exact opposite of the expression that had been on her face just a moment before.

“Wh-what is this? So cute! Hey, hey, Blogger-san. What is this? Is this my follower?”

I told Nanashino, who was still excited, what it was called. I’ve been an experienced player for a while, so I know most of the followers’ names.

“It’s Iris’s Single Cavalry.”

“Iris? Cavalry? It doesn’t seem to be a name.”

Well, it’s not a proper name.

I sighed and advised her.

“Nanashino, you should do a Reset Marathon, that guy’s not very rare.”

Abyss Calling has a huge variety of followers. In addition, since a large number of them were added with each update, most of the followers are small fries.

This is one of the reasons why Abyss Calling has made a name for itself as an unprecedentedly expensive game.

“Reset…Marathon?”

“After all, he’s a rarity 7.”

“Rari…ty?”

Nanashino muttered with a look of astonishment. Apparently, Nanashino was very unfamiliar with this type of game.

Rarity is very important in social games.

Iris’s Single Cavalry. Rarity 7 heavenly species. A physical attack type follower whose attack, defense, agility, and all other parameters increase on average.

Well, he is not so bad among the vast number of followers. He is well-known enough for me to remember his name, and he has unparalleled potential for a rarity 7 unit.

But at the same time, he is definitely not for beginners.

If I were Nanashino, I would definitely go for a Reset Marathon.

Because the rarity level goes up to 21. In AbyCall, there is a huge variety of followers, and at the same time, the difference in ability between the top and the bottom is tremendous. If it’s a magic stone with the rarity 7 or higher, I want a follower with at least rarity 15 or higher.

Nanashino, for some reason, gave a tearful look to [Iris’s Single Cavalry] who crouched at her feet, then looked up and asked fearfully.

“Um…Is this…failed?”

“No, it’s a decent hit.”

“Eh…Um… Is it weak?”

“No, it’s very strong. In that sense, Nanashino is lucky to have drawn it, even if it is a rarity 7 unit.”

The most common rare 7 unit is useless. They can fight in the first stage of the battle, but after the middle stage of the battle, the lack of power is conspicuous. Iris’s Single Cavalry is one of the few followers among the rarity 7 units that have the potential to fight until the end of the game.

Nanashino’s expression turned puzzled. She looked down at her follower, who didn’t even flinch.

“Then…why.”

Nanashino’s eyes were clingy.

Most beginner users don’t know what kind of followers are strong enough to play the game, so they just keep playing the game without a Reset Marathon, but Nanashino is lucky to get my advice here.

I thought about it for a bit and told her why.

“Well… That guy is pretty strong as he grows, but it’s really hard to raise him.”

Followers are classified according to various factors other than the rarity, and one of them is the type of training. Simply put, it is an indicator of the ease of raising.

And Iris’s Single Cavalry is a typical “big-growth type” unit.

By fulfilling certain conditions, a follower can be upgraded to a new evolutionary stage and acquire a new appearance and abilities, but in the case of Iris’s Single Cavalry, these conditions are incomparably more difficult than those of the other rarity 7 followers.

The final evolved version of Iris’s Single Cavalry is a rare character that was rarely seen because it is too difficult for even a mid-level player to handle.

Since it is impossible at the beginning of the game, it would be better to do a Reset Marathon and wait for a stronger follower to appear rather than growing it patiently.

It would have been great if  [Iris], the one it protects, is the one summoned instead of [Iris’s Single Cavalry]

Nanashino, perhaps because it’s the first time she had obtained a follower, sounded a bit unenthusiastic.

“But if you give it time…it will get stronger, right?”

“It won’t.”

“…”

Nanashino had fallen silent. The single cavalry stood in front of Nanashino with a dark expression on his face as if to protect her from me. However, it wasn’t a wall because I still could step over it if I lift my leg…

Apparently, the follower is loyal. I had a strong interest and admiration for the first moving follower I’d seen, but I kept it down.

“It’s not time that needs to be spent, it’s effort. If you think that giving him time will make him stronger, he won’t be able to evolve.”

I am not trying to bully Nanashino. Rather, I’m not that interested.

There are conditions for the evolution of a follower. Whether it is level, materials, or some other unusual condition, the evolution conditions for Iris’s Single Cavalry are as difficult as the evolution conditions for the rarest of units. It is too difficult for mid-level players to attempt, and top-level players have stronger units and do not care to evolve them.

But it’s not up to me to decide whether or not she wants to go for a Reset Marathon. There are different values, some people use weaker units because they are cute. The first summon is the best chance, but it is not the only chance to summon.

All you need is the determination to know that it is a rough road and still able to move forward.

I’ve given you the information, I don’t care if you falter along the way.

Nanashino rolled her eyes in surprise. Her eyes, darker than mine, reflected my pout.

“Um…does that mean I can make him stronger if I work hard?”

“It’s up to Nanashino to decide whether to go for Reset Marathon or use him as it is.”

It also means that I don’t see enough value in Nanashino to force her for a Reset Marathon. If she had been my sister, I would have strongly recommended her to get a Reset Marathon as an older brother. But she’s a stranger.

Without even a moment’s pause, Nanashino immediately responded.

“I’ll use him as it is!”

“Hmm, that’s good to hear. Good luck.”

“Thank you!”

In response to the rough response, Nanashino said with a blossoming smile.

I didn’t do anything to be thanked. It was Nanashino who made the decision, and she probably misunderstood the amount of effort required. And by the time she realized this, she had already developed a strong attachment to Iris’s Single Cavalry. That’s how many people failed to take the choice of Reset Marathon.

Anyway, I know now that I can summon my follower according to the game. Now it’s my turn.

Nanashino stepped back and I took her place in the center of the ruins. Then, without any resolve or determination, I performed the same summoning of followers that I had performed countless times during the game.

“Abyss Call.”

I let my gaze wander to the heavens. But even without doing so, I could see it.

One of the moons shone. It was a black moon that shone deeper in the darkness.

Then, all five of the [Rarity 7 or higher follower magic stones] in my hand disappeared, and a sign arose.

“Nana…”

Nanashino’s mouth was agape and she made a strange noise.

Then I lowered my face and looked at it.

A shadow was standing there. It was a shadow in the shape of a human being. What made it different from the original shadow was that it was standing on two legs.

It had neither eyes nor a nose. A mouth appeared on its face. The crescent-shaped mouth said to me in a noisy voice.

“Kukuku–so you are my new Lord…”

“It-it spoke?”

Nanashino muttered in surprise.

The dark moon shining in the light of the other moons–The black moon shining is a sign of the summoning of a follower of the Underworld species, also called the Demon species, which is the opposite of the Nanashino.

And I recognized that appearance.

The name of the individual, [Silent].

Rarity 17, demon race. In addition to his high attack power, HP, and evasion rate, he has a unique ability skill that is hard to replace and is one of the followers that has a fairly good reputation even in the game.

It was speaking to me with substance.

“My name is [Silent]. I am the one who brings true silence to this world–“

He was saying a lot of things like he was a great person, but I listened to him and thought about it calmly.

Silent. Silent, huh?

It’s not bad. It’s certainly not bad, right? II am quite lucky to have him as the first follower, and if I had been able to summon it with a normal follower summoning Abyss Call, I would have been a little happy. It’s such a good follower that there’s a term for silent refugees who have trouble drawing Silents no matter how many times they summon them.

However, I used a [Rarity 7 or higher follower magic stone]. It’s a special magic stone that can only be used once. I don’t feel like I can aim for a better character.

There are many more attractive characters in AbyCall. If I am going to make my first follower, I want a pretty girl, and I have a character that I really want to summon, something I have left undone in my gaming days.

Generally speaking, I don’t like the graphics of Silent. If the performance is good, that’s fine, but even if it’s better, it’s not the best.

“Don’t forget your dream. Don’t disappoint me. Then your–“

I thought about it for a second and nodded my head. Ignoring Silent who was still talking about something, I turned to Nanashino.

Silent growled in confusion.

“Mu?”

“Sorry, I’m just going to do a little Reset Marathon.”

“…Eh?”

Nanashino looked dumbfounded. Unlike Nanashino, I have very high ideals. Gamers don’t compromise.

Silent, as if perplexed, went silent. Leaving Nanashino with a curious look on her face, I pick up a sharp stone that had fallen to the ground.

Really. Is it lucky or not to get Silent the first time? If it’s the same rarity 17 follower, it would have been nice to get a [Bright] in the shape of a cute girl or something like that.

I complained about it, but I couldn’t help what I had already drawn.

“Oi…Lord? What are you doing?”

“Reset Marathon.”

“??? How do you do that?”

Nanashino asked.

Abyss Calling’s Reset Marathon is done by deleting your account and re-register.

If it’s a game, you have to redo the tutorial afterward, which is quite a hassle, but apparently, the tutorial is skipped, so it won’t take that long this time.

I stared at the sharp end of the stone. If it pierced me, it would hurt like hell. However, I could not turn my back on the stone.

I tried to smash the sharp end of the stone against my eye. Nanashino gasped.

There was no hesitation. But the moment the sharp edge filled my field of vision, my hand stopped. My vision was darkening, but I felt no pain, and no matter how much effort I put into it, it would not go any further.

“Eh…Eeh…Eeeeehhh? What are you doiiiiiiiiing?!!!?”

It was Silent. Silent caught the stone.

Its shadowy arms extended and wrapped around the stone. Silent’s body looked like a shadow, but its performance was more like a close combat type.

Silent’s scream-like voice lacked any of the dignity that had been there earlier.

I explained to Silent, whose character was quickly falling apart, while trying to stir my eyeballs with the stone.

“Don’t interrupt me. I am going for a Risemara.”

Risemara. It’s the abbreviation for Reset Marathon.

It’s common in other games as well, but it refers to starting the game over from the beginning until you get a good character or item. This much is common knowledge.

The odds are so low in AbyCall that if you are unlucky, it will take about a week to get it.

“I don’t understand what you’re talking about?!”

After hearing my detailed explanation, Silent screamed and shook his head no. Of course, I don’t like pain either. But Reset Marathon is a gamer’s prerogative.

Considering the cause of the problem in the first place, it is Silent’s fault for getting summoned.

But I don’t curse Silent. I don’t put the blame on others. I will do what I can do.

I will just start over. I will keep starting over until I find a follower that I am satisfied with.

While Silent was shaking his head, I swung a stone down to my right eye. My mind was already occupied with the next follower.

Nanashino, who had been stiff until then, jumped on my back and interfered with my arm.

“Blogger-san! Die, you’re going to die, you know!”

“No, it’s okay. I’ll be right back.”

“How can you guarantee that?”

Nanashino screamed. But I remained calm.

“No, if it’s AbyCall, Reset Marathon is a must.”

“What kind of common sense is that?”

Rather, there’s no game without Reset Marathon.