Choice (3)
Choice (3)
The double-sized bed, the wardrobe, and the computer desk in Lee Hansuâs room.
[Long Live Korean Independence] - 0 members online.
I turn on the computer and enter the chat room.
That guy made a fuss about me being dead because I was a few minutes late last time.
âAnd we can only be together for an hourâ¦â
I plan to get as much information as possible from Lee Baekho this time, since thereâs a big incident.
âIâm the first one here today.â
A spacious room furnished with antique furniture.
Before I can even sit down on the sofa, Lee Baekho logs in.
Everything is fine up to this point.
âHyung!â
But, whatâs this?
He looks very urgent.
âIâm actually in the middle of a battle right now, so I have to go.â
âWhat?â
âI donât have time to explain.â
âButââ
âYou heard about the subjugation, right? Donât participate, even later. Thatâs what I came to tell you.â
âWhat do you meanââ
âSee you next month!â
That was the entirety of our conversation.
Iâm dazed.
But if I calmly organize the situationâ¦
ââ¦Heâs in the middle of a battle?â
One hour in the community is one second in reality.
But to leave in such a hurry?
It means heâs fighting a strong enemy.
Even if he stays here for a minute, only 0.02 seconds will have passed outside.
Itâs proof that his enemy is someone he canât even spare that much time for.
âWhat the hell is he fighting?â
I donât know.
The only thing thatâs certain isâ¦
â¦that heâs closely related to the Noark subjugation.
âWas this bastard in the underground city all along?â
Heâs fighting an enemy in the middle of the night, not even in the labyrinth. Itâs hard to think of anything besides the Noark subjugation.
The subjugation force departed yesterday.
The Kingâs army, the explorer alliance, and even the paladins sent by the temple. It was quite a sight seeing them all marching into the sewers.
âHis last words⦠it means he thinks the subjugation will fail, right?â
Telling me not to participate, even later.
It means that the first subjugation will fail, and a second subjugation force will be formed.
âAh, this is frustratingâ¦â
I return to my room since thereâs nothing for me here. Itâs still three hours until Watchers of the Round Table opens.
I start browsing the web since thereâs nothing else to do.
First, I check the exchange, and then I visit the chat rooms that donât have entry restrictions.
Theyâre all the same.
Everyone is talking about the Noark subjugation.
ââ¦The underground is already in chaos.â
A significant number of players participated in the subjugation.
And from what theyâre sayingâ¦
âI donât know the details since Iâm in the rear, but the atmosphere is really bad. I keep hearing explosions from the front, and those commander bastards arenât explaining anythingâ¦â
âWhy are there so few participants today? Donât tell me theyâre all dead?â
â¦it seems like a fierce battle is taking place in the underground right now.
I canât even imagine how intense it is.
This post on the free board makes it even harder to imagine.
[Ask me anything, Iâm about to die.]
-Got stabbed in the neck, and when I opened my eyes, I was here.
-Iâll be alive for at least 12 seconds, right?
-Damn it.
[EdwardBless77: I hope itâs not an eternal dream. I hope you wake up in your home.]
[âOP: I really hope so.]
[godFLEXyou: Youâve worked hard. Rest now.]
[âOP: Thanks for the comfort.]
[stevencastle: You must have been in the front lines. I heard itâs a living hell there. Did you see Orculus?]
[âOP: I donât know. I heard someone shouting that they were there, but I donât remember. Maybe they were mistaken. I couldnât even see a meter ahead because of those dark mage bastards.]
[teckmonkey: What do you want to do the most?]
[âOP: Reproduce.]
[âteckmonkey: Uh, hmm⦠Iâll refrain from commenting.]
[tunaboot: Where are you from?]
[âOP: I donât know what you mean. If you mean Earth, then Canada. If you mean here, then the Aribeten Clan, I was a high-ranking member.]
[âtunaboot: Of course I meant your hometown. But a high-ranking member of the Aribeten Clan? You were a big shot.]
[â1spring: Whatâs the point, heâs dying now. Goodbye.]
[âionboii: Wow, seeing him coming out like this here, it doesnât seem like heâs just trolling, right? I sincerely offer my condolences. Youâve worked hard. And just ignore the bastard whoâs talking nonsense above.]
Dozens of comments are posted below.
The OP answers each of them as the number of comments increases in real time.
I scroll down, reading them all as if possessed, and then I post a comment.
[Elfnunna: Why are you already giving up? You should log out and try to survive.]
Thereâs a chance if you donât give up.
It might be infinitely close to 0, but itâs not 0.
Iâm proof of that.
However, after posting it, I feel like it was rude, so I add an explanation.
[âElfnunna: Iâve also been stabbed in the neck before. And I even entered a state similar to the countdown in the game. But I could still move my body. I barely survived after killing the enemy and drinking a potion. So why donât you try it too?]
My experiences in the Land of the Dead and the Crimson Fortress.
I hope it gives someone I donât even know hope.
Butâ¦
[âOP: I understand what youâre saying. But Iâm an archer. I canât use your method.]
â¦the answer is complete resignation.
[âElfnunna: You can at least try, canât you?]
I post another comment as if possessed.
And an answer is posted immediately.
[âOP: Sorry, if Iâm going to die anyway, I want to die as myself. Not in this damn body, but as the person my parents gave birth to.]
My mind goes blank as soon as I see it.
I take my hands off the keyboard.
What can I even say?
That itâs not a real body?
That itâs just a manifestation of the identity you think you are?
Well, no one can judge the OPâs choice.
And they shouldnât.
ââ¦â¦.â
I involuntarily look at the wardrobe.
To be precise, I look at the mirror next to it.
I see Lee Hansu.
Click, clack, clack.
I start typing on the keyboard again.
And I write and erase countless words of comfort, like hoping that he rests in peace or that he wakes up in the real world.
But I canât bring myself to press enter.
Click, clack, clack.
Players continue to post comments as I struggle to type.
The OP answers each of them.
[branbran_helmet: This game is trash.]
[âOP; Youâre right, this game is trash!]
Thatâs the last comment.
I refresh the page.
The OPâs nickname, which was at the top, is now blurred out.
ââ¦â¦.â
It means heâs dead.
_________________
I donât know why.
I donât even know his face, and weâve never talked before.
But my heart canât stop pounding.
Thump, thump.
Countless deaths Iâve witnessed since waking up in this world.
The weight of those deaths feels heavier today.
Whatâs the reason?
Scroll-
As if to find the answer, I scroll up.
And I read through it again from the beginning.
Many people asked about his true self, so I was able to glimpse into his life just from that.
Scroll-
He was from Canada.
He was born into a farming family, and his real name was Mac Davis.
His first kiss was when he was 17.
With his girlfriendâs best friend?
Although I think heâs a bit of a jerk, he didnât live a life of sin.
Scroll-
His dream was to be a veterinarian.
The trigger was when he had to watch his dog choke to death after vomiting and getting something stuck in its throat.
But he failed because he wasnât good at studying.
In the end, he helped out on his parentsâ farm and occasionally played games.
Scroll-
Right, he was an ordinary person.
Someone who was decently kind, and sometimes made mistakes and was remembered as a bad person by othersâ¦
Just an ordinary person.
Scroll.
I stop scrolling at one point.
Thereâs a new comment on the comment I left.
[âOP: Your words keep coming back to me. I feel like youâre a strong person. I hope you can clear this game and return. Of course, itâs your choice.]
His words of encouragement, just a few sentences, left for me when I was struggling to write a simple message of comfort.
ââ¦â¦.â
I can feel how thoughtful he was just from the single word âchoiceâ.
Click, clack, clack.
I type on the keyboard, writing a new comment.
Although heâll never be able to see it nowâ¦
[âElfnunna: If I ever go back, Iâll definitely send a letter to the address you wrote above.]
[âElfnunna: Youâve worked hard.]
I leave a meaningless comment and leave the post.
And I lie down on the bed for a while, lost in thought.
How much time has passed?
[03:07]
Only 3 minutes left until the entry deadline for Watchers of the Round Table.
But whatâs this?
Creakâ
The Round Table room is empty, even though I rushed in.
Crescent Moon, Goblin, Fox, Antlerâ¦
And Clown are all gone.
Iâm the only one in the Round Table room.
ââ¦Donât tell me, they all participated in the subjugation?â
I canât think of anything else.
3 hours in the community.
Itâs just 3 seconds outside.
What other reason could they have for not coming here, when they canât even spare 3 seconds?
âI canât believe I got stood up hereâ¦â
After Lee Baekho, Iâve been stood up again.
Before I can even feel the emptinessâ¦
â¦my vision flashes, and when I come to my senses, Iâm back in my original room.
[Minimum number of participants not met.]
[This sessionâs gathering has ended.]
A message appears on the monitor.
Right, so this is what happens when the entry deadline passes without anyone else joining.
The core of the community activity is gone.
âWell, I should at least browse around a bit before leaving.â
In the end, I have no choice but to check the minor news by surfing the web.
Time passes, and itâs time to log out.
ãCharacter is being transported to Lafdonia.ã
Bjornâs room and Bjornâs body.
But it feels a bit unfamiliar today.
Or am I just tired?
âLetâs just sleep.â
I clear my head and lie down on the bed.
Creak.
The bed sinks with a groan, as always.
And so, another day ends.
And three days laterâ¦
âBjorn! Co, come out here! The subjugation force that went underground has returned!â
The army that headed towards Noark has returned.
Only about one-third of them survived.
ââ¦â¦.â
ââ¦â¦.â
The army marches past silently, their shoulders slumped.
The result is obvious just from that.
âThey really failed.â
Things have gotten troublesome.