11 – The Beginning of Development (Part 1)
“I really can’t take my eyes off it.”
It was a lazy weekend morning when there was no need to go to work. I, who threw myself onto the bed as if I had collapsed last night, sat in front of the computer again as soon as I opened my eyes.
In the midst of my obsession with games, I used to do this, but now it’s a bit different from back then. Because it wasn’t just any game.
Yesterday, I unlocked the second stage of the game and made it available for the residents to use freely. They confirmed that they could also gain in-game abilities under the name of traits, but there were various dangers such as terrain and monsters in the game.
During the time I neglected them while sleeping, I hurriedly checked the desktop as soon as the screen turned on, wondering if anything happened.
“Is everything okay?”
Muttering to myself, I moved the mouse and looked at them, who were huddled together on one side of the screen against the backdrop of a wide meadow. It was difficult to count all the residents as their numbers increased, but still, by looking at their expressions and atmosphere, I could grasp what might have happened.
“—.”
“–, —.”
Fortunately, the atmosphere of those who were doing their tasks was not bad. It seemed that nothing major had happened.
Most of them were busy gathering materials to build houses for the newcomers, combining their strength to build tent-like homes together.
There were so many dangerous things coming our way that I thought it would be better to build a proper structure with better materials rather than an amateurish fence. But then I realized it wasn’t a matter of resources.
No matter how good the materials were, without the technology, it couldn’t be done. It seemed to me that they needed technology more than resources.
[Connected Residents: 8/8]
I turned my gaze to another place. The game I kept running.
In the game, which is now an important resource for the residents, including food, eight residents are still logging in and working hard.
“–, —!”
Especially, some of them, like Kun, who have developed the miner’s characteristic, seemed to be impressed by the iron armor set I made for them yesterday and were voluntarily heading to the mine to explore iron ore.
The monsters approaching as if they wanted to develop the miner’s characteristic, were now completely armed with armor, thanks to Leina, who was standing guard, they were working hard with their pickaxes, digging and mining.
“Is it burdensome?”
As I logged into the game and moved my character, I chuckled tiredly. When I appeared in front of them as they were working hard, they were surprised and all bowed to greet me.
Like Leina, who looked cautious and bowed her head, it was a far cry from being treated like a monster and being attacked at our first meeting. But I found this kind of treatment burdensome.
I just wanted to help them, not to receive servile actions.
“Let’s get to work.”
I picked up a pickaxe and started mining the minerals around the mine, just like the others.
As I took the lead and started working, the residents started working again. However, since there was only one person, Kun, with the miner’s characteristic, the rest of them had to take a break, panting, before even mining a single block.
“My goal for today is to gather as much iron ore as possible.”
Having glimpsed at their state, I set my own goal.
In the game, it was to secure the very precious resource of iron, which was the most common but important resource and the related technology to make all items such as mid-tier weapons, tools, armor for the residents who didn’t have it.
I wanted to at least equip those who would play the role of warriors completely. It was just that I couldn’t quite grasp how much land I would have to dig up to arm all of these tens of people.
“—!!”
“Ah.”
And it was at that moment, as we moved deeper into the ground, that the creature appeared before us.
From Noble mtl dot com
A cave goblin sorcerer, a kind of boss monster that only appeared at a certain depth underground.
Its appearance was that of a small cave goblin, clad in a cloak made of leather, holding a wooden staff. Despite its diminutive size, it was a formidable opponent, even for me, who hadn’t fully prepared yet, as I was busy dealing with the residents.
Letting out a resigned sigh, I restrained Leana, who was eager to fight, and quickly pulled out stone blocks piled up in my inventory, blocking the passage through which the creature was approaching.
“–, —!”
In response, Leana, with eyes wide open as if claiming she could handle the situation, loudly spoke to me.
Certainly, her displayed strength was more than sufficient, but considering my nature of attracting multiple subordinates and facing an opponent who applied a special debuff called a curse, I judged it unwise to engage in a battle.
“Do you understand?”
As I shook my head slowly, indicating it was not feasible, she seemed bewildered and immediately lowered her head. Despite her seeming a bit sulky, my thoughts remained unchanged – safety came first.
***
“More iron over here! This way!”
“Now that we’re getting a bit tired, huh?”
A desperate shout from a comrade, and Kun, wielding a pickaxe, hurriedly ran to start mining the iron ore his comrade had found. As they mined, the iron ore block began to gradually break apart.
As the angular blocks crumbled into pieces, the iron ore cascaded down. They picked up the hefty minerals and carried them to the central base being used for this purpose. In the center, a stack of canned iron ore had silently grown.
“I also need to acquire abilities soon, but it looks too difficult with just two people.”
“It can’t be helped. Not everything happens just because you wish for it.”
To Kun, busy moving around, a comrade sighed and lamented. Despite their efforts in mining, acquiring the desired abilities didn’t come easily.
Except for Kun and Leana, there were three others who had joined the mining expedition today. Among them, only one had spent the entire day mining, gaining the same miner ability as Kun.
“Should we head back?”
“It’s about time to go. We need to eat, and everyone is exhausted, on the verge of dehydration.”
It hadn’t been long since he pointed to the entrance of the mine, having absorbed the can ore into his body.
The residents understood his intention, gathered their tools, and came out of the mine. Now it was time to return to the village.
“Still, if we repeat this a few more times, we can get more iron.”
“Just that won’t be enough.”
Despite the exhaustion and soreness throughout their bodies from the difficult journey, there was hope in their words as they shared and divided.
Hope incomparable to when they reluctantly left their hometown and settled in this unfamiliar land.
“Everyone worked hard.”
Inside the arrived barrier, the tribal chief Barun, who had created vast farmland with the remaining survivors, welcomed them with livestock enclosed within a wooden fence.
“Recently, Dirk, who joined our tribe, gained a power similar to mine. It seems mining with a pickaxe is a common condition.”
“Ruso, who harvested all the grown crops and expanded the farmland, also gained a mysterious power. If he plows the land with a hoe, the surroundings are instantly cultivated.”
Inside the barrier, they shared the achievements they had made. The characteristics were not limited to miners. Russo, who used to farm, gained the trait of a farmer. Although they discovered that there were conditions to obtain these traits, not everyone got the traits by performing the same conditions.
“Each of us has something we can do.”
Barun opened his mouth, glancing at someone in the distance. Utilizing resources harvested in the game is impossible without ultimately being touched by his hands through the use of the combination table.
“Do you mean to say we have no talent, Chief?”
“I’m in the same boat. If there’s nothing to gain here within the limited number of people who can come, it’s better for others with potential to come for the sake of everyone.”
Barun decided that those who lacked the talent to obtain traits should return to the village, and those who might have talent should come.
It was a somewhat painful statement, but for them, who had no time to spare, it was a necessary choice for efficiency.
“The problem is how to convey this message effectively.”
Barun continued to agonize as he stood in front of the assembly hall. He wondered if their ability to receive help would lead them to demand more.
What if he angered them and they expelled him, leaving no future?
“Please take a look at this, Chief. These are the things we made with the iron ore we mined.”
“We can easily arm more than twenty people with these.”
The tribe members, unaware of Barun’s concerns, could only admire the shining iron weapons he had crafted.
Returning to the village with these, the whole community naturally erupted in surprise. Items they had never possessed even during the tribe’s heyday now poured in abundance.
“I can’t help but be curious. We must hear how you obtained these.”
“Please calm down. Of course, this time we mined the iron ourselves, but…”
Naturally, the residents wanted to know what was happening beyond the rift where only the ‘chosen ones’ could pass freely.
Without hesitation, they shared their adventure stories with the residents, embellishing and exaggerating the details as they went along.
“No way.”
Thanks to this, when he looked at the monitor after a brief delay from his meal and household chores, he almost spat out the coffee he was sipping.
The residents who participated in the game were gathered, drawing their game characters on the dirt floor, enthusiastically explaining something to others.
[Achievement Unlocked: Initial Faith]
[Initial Faith: 500P]
‘Faith?’
And it didn’t end there. The moment his exploits and achievements were spread among the residents, an announcement from the master program arrived, indicating that an achievement had been unlocked.
[Glitch Occurred: Level 2]
“Oh no!”
The problem was that this achievement had become some kind of trigger.
As if they had been waiting, the atmosphere changed with the notification of a glitch occurring.
Under the sunset glow, a warm, bustling noise drifted towards the village, but the air was soon filled with the appearance of dark, monstrous creatures emerging from the void.
“Those black monsters again!”
“Everyone, arm yourselves. Get ready!”
With urgent cries signaling an emergency, the desperate residents, armed with newly acquired weapons and armor, headed out of the village to confront the approaching creatures.
Although the panic was the same, the situation was different from before. Unlike the previous time when they lacked even decent weapons, this time they had newfound strength.