Surviving the Game as a Barbarian ⓒJeong Yungang
I couldn't even beat the D version, and now you want me to beat this in reality?
I might have to live here for the rest of my life.
Well, even that won't be easy.
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Chapter 1: Prologue
I've loved games since I was young.
The reason was simple.
Since I was always in the hospital, gaming was the only thing to do.
As time went on, it became a part of my life.
But you get tired and bored of anything if you do it for too long.
"Ah, shit… Is this AI for real? Why would it heal that guy there?"
At some point, no matter what game I played, it wasn't as fun as it used to be.
It wasn't an issue with the genres, like AOS, RPG, or FPS.
All the games that came out every year seemed like garbage.
The stories and worlds were all cliché and similar, and the systems lacked depth.
I wanted a game that had something more special.
That's when I discovered [Dungeon & Stone].
Tatat.
Click, clack.
The genre was single-player RPG.
It was an indie game from overseas.
It didn't support Korean, and it used 2D pixel graphics, which was rare these days.
To be honest, it was far from my personal taste.
Still, it was free, so I installed it just to try it out.
Before long, I was completely hooked on this game.
"Wow, that damn Priest almost got me killed right at the end."
It was an unusual game in many ways.
When your character died, you had to start over from the beginning.
NPC companions were essential to progress, and for a top-down game, it had an incredibly high degree of freedom.
The skill system and the world were also appealing, and the story was interesting even though I had to read it in English.
Crucially, this game had a certain unexplainable special quality to it.
Tatat, tatatat.
At the time, I had just been assigned as a public service worker in the subway, and I started to seriously dig into [Dungeon & Stone].
It wasn't easy.
Combat in this game wasn't just about HP and MP.
Even at full health, a single mistake in judgment could wipe out a character I had spent three months painstakingly building.
"…Let's do this."
After more than two years of being unable to even reach the game's midpoint, I swallowed my pride and searched for a strategy guide.
It didn't even show up on Korean portals, so I had to translate and read English sites, but even that wasn't very meaningful.
There weren't many players overseas either, so there were few related posts, and they weren't very helpful.
My understanding of the game was much deeper than those who played for a month or two and called it a bad game, as I had struggled and seriously explored it for two years.
So, I gave up on looking for a strategy guide.
"Up three times, left four times, down once, left twice, up again six times, right four times. Finally, avoid the trap… okay."
After all, wasn't this the game I finally found after searching so long for something enjoyable? I decided to see it through to the end on my own, no matter how long it took.
And....
"Phew."
And so, I've come to this point.
「Gate of the Abyss」
My character is now standing in front of the portal that leads to the final boss room.
Of course, I'll probably have to come back here a few more times before I see the ending.
This isn't the kind of game where you can beat the boss on your first try.
Nevertheless, I could feel how tense I was from my stiff fingertips.
"The final boss…."
To someone else, it might be nothing.
But it took me a whole nine years to get here.
It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say it was with me through all of my twenties.
The day I was discharged from my public service, the day I returned to school after a long time to re-enroll, and the day I received an acceptance letter from the company I wanted to work for after graduation.
I was always playing [Dungeon & Stone].
「Will you enter?」
As I moved my character closer to the portal, a question asking if I wanted to enter appeared.
Of course, I pressed YES.
But maybe because it was the final boss room, another message that seemed somewhat grand appeared.
「You may not be able to return.」
「Are you sure you want to enter?」
From a player's perspective, it was an unnecessary bit of drama.
Like I wouldn't enter at this point?
「Yes / No」
As I pressed 'Yes', the screen switched to a loading screen.
Looking at the black monitor, I heightened my concentration.
How many patterns will this guy have? What about its attributes? It'll definitely have an instant-kill skill.
Hmm, I should give up on winning on the first try and just gather as much information as possible.
I might even have to completely change my training method or party composition.
My brain, stimulated by excitement and anticipation, could only think about the final boss.
That's why I was late to notice.
「You have reached the Abyss.」
「Tutorial complete.」
Tutorial complete?
No, more importantly, why is this in Korean? Didn't [Dungeon & Stone] only support English?
「Commencing transfer.」
The moment I sensed something was wrong, a bright light burst forth.
It was a light so intense that I couldn't even imagine it was coming from my monitor. "Agh, fuck! My eyes!"
In an instant, everything turned white.
A ringing filled my ears, and an unknown heat spread across my skin.
My mind quickly faded as if I'd been given an anesthetic.
I was usually confident in my ability to handle crises, but in this moment, I had no clue what was happening.
Flash-!
As I felt the light grow even stronger, I lost consciousness.
And when I opened my eyes again.
I had become the Barbarian from the game.