Mystery Adventure – Episode 1: "The One Who Shouldn't Be There"
The scene opens in a frozen, shattered wasteland. A snowstorm rages. Crystals pierce the sky. A massive ancient dragon—Ice Dragon Lord Zhenveah—spreads its wings atop a crumbling ruin. Beneath it… a lone player stands in ragged armor, breathing heavily.
Zhenveah – Ice Dragon Lord:
"…You again dodge. Pathetic. Are you nothing but a rodent scurrying in the cold?"
MC (clueless, wiping sweat):
"Man, this boss has some serious range spam. But your aim's trash, old lizard!"
The dragon snarls, frost building in its throat. With a massive roar, it unleashes a Divine Froststorm—a high-tier divine magic spell. Blinding white light floods the field.
Zhenveah (mocking):
"You move well, but even snowflakes find cracks in stone. Let us see how long you last…"
Explosion. Ice spikes rain. Yet… the MC casually sidesteps, rolls, ducks under magic, as if he's playing dodgeball. His movements are smooth, tired—but always accurate.
MC (laughing while dodging):
"Heh. I've played every 'Souls-like' there is. You think this cheap spam scares me? You gotta be faster than that!"
Zhenveah's eyes narrow. For the first time… it feels unease.
Zhenveah's (growling):
"…You dare mock me? You… lowly insect… Do you even comprehend what power you face!?"
Zhenveah raises its wings and chants a forbidden spell. The sky turns black. Frost becomes fire. Blood rains from above.
[SYSTEM NOTIFICATION – GLITCHED IN RED]
⚠ DEMONIC RITUAL INITIATED: SACRIFICE SUMMON –DEMONIC TIER ⚠
→ Cost: Life of the Caster
Zhenveah (grinning insanely):
"If I must perish, so be it. I shall drag you to the abyss with me!"
From the magic circle forms a black gate. Screams echo. Chains rattle. A gigantic shadow steps forward—horned, many-eyed, and wreathed in cursed flames.
MC (blinking):
"Huh? Is this a raid event? Wait… this doesn't look like it's supposed to happen…"
The scene flashes. Time slows. The demon lunges at the MC—but passes through him harmlessly. Even the ground around him remains untouched.
[SYSTEM PASSIVE – ACTIVATED]
SOUL TAKER – Phantom Realm (UNKNOWN Tier)
→ While not in combat mode, the user becomes untouchable by all damage and effects, excluding Angelic-class or higher magic.
MC (clueless):
"…Weird. Lag?"
The summoned demon pauses, confused. Zhevrath's dying breath is a shocked scream.
Zhenveah:
"W-WHAT…?! WHY… WHY WON'T YOU DIE?!"
MC (grinning tiredly):
"Guess you just suck."
Mystery Adventure – Episode 1 (Part 2): "The One Who Shouldn't Be There"
Cut from black. The blizzard fades. The screen distorts like corrupted pixels. The massive battlefield fades into a dull, low-resolution white…
Then—BLIP.
Real World – Monday, 8:12 AM
A school bell rings.
Camera pans to a 2D animated school building under a hot sun. Zoom into a sleepy boy's face stuck to his desk in class.
MC (groggy):
"…Whoa… What the hell kind of dream was that…?"
Classmate 1 (laughing):
"You were mumbling something about 'demonic-tier ice dragons' again. Bro, you really gotta stop staying up all night grinding those fake MMOs."
MC (still dazed):
"No, no, I swear… it felt real. Like—crazy real. My character was level 367... I was fighting some boss called Zhenveah..."
Classmate 2:
"You haven't even logged in yet, dummy! Game launches today, remember?"
MC's eyes slowly widen. He glances at his phone.
MC (shouting):
"WHAT—8 A.M.? THE GAME RELEASED 12 MINUTES AGO?!"
Teacher:
"…And that's exactly why you're retaking summer school. Sit down."
Bell rings. Students pour out of class.
Friend:
"Hey, we're heading to the café. You coming?"
MC (rummaging through backpack):
"Nah… I've got work. Night shift again. Gotta save for my gaming setup."
Friend:
"Bro…"
MC (grinning, joking dramatically):
"This is the life I chose. Sacrifice now… so I can game harder later."
Later That Night – MC's Room, 7:47 PM
MC boots up his ancient PC. Fans whir like a dying air conditioner. He downloads "Mystery Adventure" while eating cup noodles.
MC:
"Hyped for this game, but damn... why is the file size 200 GB? Is this a game or a whole universe?"
Loading screen appears: a goddess holding time, a beast splitting mountains, a world shattered in pieces.
[CREATE CHARACTER SCREEN]
MC rotates a basic-looking male avatar.
MC (thinking):
"Hmmm... no cash for skins. I'll just go with the Warrior starter. Balanced stats, simple gameplay. Easy."
He clicks "Warrior." The screen glitches slightly.
MC:
"…Lag already? My potato rig's struggling, huh…"
Class selected. Game begins to load.
[IN-GAME: ??? ZONE – "UNKNOWN FOREST"]
White screen fades into a foggy forest filled with twisted black trees and echoing whispers. Snow falls gently—wrong biome for a forest.
MC (confused):
"…Weird. This ain't the beginner village."
He walks forward. Giant mushrooms glow. Birds screech in reverse audio.
[SYSTEM WARNING]
⚠ AREA REQUIRES LEVEL 350+
→ [Undaunted Forest – Territory of Lost Souls]
MC:
"…Hah? What kind of tutorial is this? …Well, this is fun!"
Something moves in the mist. A giant beast with LV. 376 above its head begins slowly walking toward him.
MC (panicking):
"WHOA—Hey, hey, hey! I'm level 1! I JUST spawned!"
He runs. Chased by monsters. He dodges everything. They swing—miss.
MC (running):
"…Lucky dodges again? Nah. I've played tons of Offline games like this! ..."
After 3 hours of panicked wandering, MC stumbles into a worn-out ancient village.
Undaunted Village – Zone Level: 400+
NPCs stare. He's the only player in this zone.
NPC Blacksmith (Level 423):
"…Scratch his head....How did a newborn reach this cursed place?"
MC:
"Uh… beginner quest?"
An NPC in a hood steps forward. He has glowing violet eyes and carries a staff carved with skulls.
??? (Level 450 – Named NPC):
"You… weren't supposed to appear here."
TO BE CONTINUED