I close my eyes.
And then I ask myself again.
If this were the opening of a really, really unfriendly game, what should I be doing right now?
"First, understand the situation and gather information."
Phew, feels like I'm starting to get my head straight.
Recalling the first task I set for myself, I slowly opened my eyes and checked my surroundings again.
Unfortunately, nothing had changed.
"..."
I'm still in a clearing in the middle of a forest.
The place isn't lit by LED streetlights but by flickering torches.
And most importantly, no matter which direction I look—north, south, east, or west—there are muscle-bound barbarians everywhere...
"Congratulations, young warriors!"
Shit. So I wasn't seeing things after all.
I don't know what they're doing, huddled together in the middle of the night, but their expressions look quite solemn.
Is that guy in the middle the chieftain or something?
Well, that probably doesn't matter.
"Starting today, you will leave the sacred grounds and be reborn as true warriors!"
I let the chieftain's words wash over me and closed my eyes again.
I'm no doctor, but if I had to self-diagnose, I'd say I'm experiencing a blackout.
I have no idea how I ended up here.
"Now, one by one, step forward and choose the weapon that suits you!"
Alright, let's try and think this through.
What was I doing just moments ago?
Let's retrace things carefully, in case there's something wrong with my brain. The memory came back quickly.
I was playing a game.
I was right in front of the final boss room, and suppressing my excitement, I activated the portal. Then, suddenly, a message popped up saying the tutorial was complete and the transmission would begin. A bright light burst out. And then...
I woke up here.
And somehow, this is even more confusing than before.
"Karak, third son of Panun, step forward!"
First, I decided to check my physical condition.
I didn't feel any pain, but you never know.
I looked down—and froze.
…What the hell is this?
"A double-headed axe! Excellent!"
The hands I saw were absurdly large. And surprisingly, they moved according to my will.
While I was at it, I checked the rest of my body—and it was quite the sight.
Not only was I shirtless, but my entire muscular body was covered in all kinds of tattoos.
…No wonder everyone here looked massive—my perspective matched theirs.
I tried to organize my thoughts.
Well, not that there was much to organize.
For some reason, I had become a barbarian without even realizing it.
"Karak, third son of Panun! You are now a warrior!"
Kidnapping, hidden cameras, psychological experiments—you name it.
I immediately discarded all such possibilities. The situation was too bizarre for desperate theories or false hope.
It's more productive to just accept the reality.
What's happening to me right now can't be explained by science or modern knowledge.
And it's not just this massive body—there's plenty of other evidence.
"Next!"
First of all, the language these barbarians are using—it's not Korean, English, or Spanish.
It's a language I've never heard in any media in my life.
The problem is, I can understand it perfectly, as if it were my native tongue.
As if the knowledge had been carved into my brain.
"Ainar, second daughter of Phnelin, step forward!"
Second, this situation feels familiar.
Sounds crazy, I know, but it really does.
At first, everything felt strange, but once I started thinking clearly, a strange sense of déjà vu crept in.
"You chose the sword! A wise choice that suits you well!"
Young barbarians were taking turns choosing their weapons.
That's the only commonality I could see...
But it reminded me of the introduction to Dungeon & Stone.
Specifically, this is how the game started if you picked the "Barbarian" race.
But could this really be a coincidence?
The game I was playing when the mysterious light swallowed me wasDungeon & Stone, and the main character I was playing as was also a Barbarian.
"Ainar, second daughter of Phnelin! You are now a warrior. May the blessing of 'Lafdonia' be with you!"
"…This is insane."
I gave up trying to find more proof.
Lafdonia.
Just hearing that proper noun from the chieftain made everything else pointless.
Now I know exactly where I am.
I'm inside the game world I've been playing for nearly ten years.
"Du– Dungeon & Stone…"
Huh? What's that voice?
Someone just said what I was thinking.
I glanced sideways at the barbarian next to me—and stiffened. Even at a glance, he was different from the others.
"Wh– what the hell? Why am I here…?"
His breathing was ragged, and his eyes were full of confusion.
And he recognized Dungeon & Stone, too. Could he be in the same situation as me?
I felt the need to confirm it, but unfortunately, I didn't even get the chance.
"Who just spoke?!"
A thunderous voice rang out, loud enough to make my ears ring and my head go blank for a moment.
Of course, that didn't last long.
When I saw the chieftain glaring down at me, my mind snapped back to focus.
"Was it you?"
I immediately shook my head. And naturally, I looked over at the barbarian next to me.
Even I was impressed by how quick I moved.
The chieftain turned his gaze toward the other barbarian instead of pressing further.
Sorry, man—but you really were the one who spoke.
"Was it you?"
"Huh?"
"I asked if you were the one who just muttered."
Only now did I notice—the chieftain's expression wasn't ordinary. It didn't look like he was upset just because someone talked out of turn...
"Oh, you mean Dungeon & Stone? But... why does that matter?"
The guy still hadn't realized what kind of mood we were in.
"So it was you…"
There was a brief flicker of pity in the chieftain's eyes as he clenched his jaw.
I felt a wave of dread and unconsciously stepped to the side.
The guy tilted his head and asked:
"Is this part of an event or something? Wait, did I figure it out too fast—"
Whatever happened next, I couldn't see it.
Something flashed.
Then came a chilling sound.
Sfft—
And that was all.
That was the entire event.
Time that felt like a fleeting moment passed, and with a dull thud, the severed head fell and rolled across the ground.
A brutal scene that felt unreal.
My eyes relayed the exact information to my brain.
"..."
A person's head was cut off right before my eyes. I could see the bone, the cross-section of muscle. Blood and flesh sprayed everywhere, something white splattered onto my face. What is that? Fat?
Hmm, not sure.
It's not as shocking as I thought it'd be.
Like in movies or comics, I didn't feel the urge to vomit, nor did I mentally break down thinking this was all just a dream.
Pshhhhh!
Even as a fountain of blood sprayed from the person's neck, only one question filled my head.
Why the hell did the chieftain kill that guy?
"The spirit of an 'evil being' possessed Orm, son of Kadua. Young warriors, erase the words of that evil spirit from your memories!"
The moment I heard the chieftain's declaration, my mind instinctively pieced the information together.
Info 1: I am an evil spirit.
Info 2: If this is found out, I will die.
Info 3: I could have ended up exactly like that guy just now.
As soon as I accepted that conclusion, a chill ran down my spine, even though I'd been fine watching a head get chopped off.
"Vulcan! You must take the body and report this to the temple at once!"
"What about the coming-of-age ceremony?"
"We proceed!"
Despite the bloodshed, the ceremony continued.
Apparently, things like this were normal here—no one even batted an eye. The other young warriors were no exception.
Still, maybe it's because I've played so many unfriendly games?
Even though no one told me anything, I instinctively knew exactly what I needed to do.
—Do not let anyone discover that you are an evil spirit, and complete the coming-of-age ceremony safely.
If this were a more user-friendly game, it would've given me that kind of message.
Etching that new objective into my mind, I forced my trembling body to still. Then, using the others' behavior as a guideline, I mimicked their expressions.
No one could be allowed to feel any sense of oddity from me.
To them, I'm no different from an evil spirit that's taken over a warrior's body.
"Next!"
My heart sank as the voice rang out again.
"Serum, fourth son of Kaenic, step forward!"
I don't know my name.
That's a serious problem—life-or-death level.
If I stay still after being called, it'll definitely look suspicious.
"Next!"
Of course, I could try to play it off like I misheard.
That's likely what would happen.
But if you asked me whether I was confident in that… it'd be a completely different story. What if I was wrong? What if the chieftain asks questions out of suspicion?
I wouldn't be able to answer a single thing.
"Next!"
Maybe it was the anxiety affecting my hormones or something.
Suddenly, overly optimistic thoughts began to creep in.
'If I'm called last, does it matter if I don't know my name?' That kind of weak reasoning.
"Next!"
I felt ashamed of myself.
Relying on luck?
Me, of all people?
I've never been lucky once in my entire life. I mean, look where I ended up just from playing a game.
If someone like me wants to survive this, I need a plan that's based on actual odds.
"Next!"
So I kept observing everyone around me.
While keeping my chin forward, I glanced around with my eyes, analyzing people's expressions, movements, habits—everything.
And in doing so, a method occurred to me.
"Next!"
Of course, even this method doesn't guarantee 100% success.
But time was short, and I had to make a call.
This was the most likely path to survival.
"Next!"
"Next!"
"Next!"
The callouts continued.
Each time, I silently counted two seconds in my head.
And then, after doing that eight times—
"Bjorn, son of Yandel, step forward!"
The moment I'd been waiting for finally arrived.
Two seconds passed after the name was called—and no one stepped forward.
As soon as I registered that, I stepped out. With my shoulders square, I walked confidently toward the chieftain.
Step.
It's not that I wasn't scared.
Even at that moment, I wasn't certain that was my name.
Step.
If my guess was wrong, that crazy chieftain would definitely call me out on it.
And ask, "Who is your mother?"
I wouldn't be able to answer.
But—
Step.
I didn't hesitate.
Even with my heart pounding, I kept my breathing steady and moved forward.
Simple reason:
I had judged that this was my best chance of survival.
"Young warrior, choose your weapon!"
And in the end, my choice was right.
The way the chieftain looked at me showed no suspicion.
The same gentle eyes he'd used with the other young warriors.
I calmed my breath, suppressing the strange excitement bubbling up.
I survived.
It hasn't even been 10 minutes since I opened my eyes.
But I've already accepted the reality in front of me.
To some, maybe that makes me seem strange…
There's no point in denying it.
This isn't some kind of dream.
"Bjorn Yandel."
From now on, I have to live with this name.
No—it's not just the name. I have to completely become this barbarian.
For how long, I don't know.
I don't even know if going home is possible—and if it is, what I need to do to make it happen...
I still don't know a single thing.
Well, maybe if I clear the game's objective, I'll be able to go back?
But even that's just speculation for now.
Honestly, I hope that's not the case.
I mean, I haven't even cleared the 2D version yet—how the hell am I supposed to beat this in real life?
Maybe I'll end up having to live here forever.
"..."
With that in mind, choosing a weapon was important.
I figured dragging things out might look suspicious, but still, I carefully examined each weapon.
One-handed sword, two-handed greatsword, mace, iron club, spear, harpoon, two-handed axe, flail, giant hammer, etc.
There wasn't even a single bow or staff.
To these barbarian bastards, easy-mode classes like healer, mage, or archer don't even exist.
Considering their racial traits, I guess that makes sense.
"Bjorn, son of Yandel! Choose your weapon!"
As my selection dragged on, the chieftain finally began to urge me.
I took one last moment to organize my thoughts.
Barbarians are naturally hopeless when it comes to magic, but they're blessed with overwhelming physical power.
That's why, whenever I raised a barbarian, I always gave them melee weapons and put them right on the front lines.
I did try making a bow-using barbarian once out of curiosity—but it sucked.
Their true strength always showed in close combat.
And among all the choices...
'This one.'
After much deliberation, I made my choice.
"Hmm."
The chieftain, who always reacted with praise and admiration to each selection, gave a strange look for the first time.
I could understand how he felt.
"Bjorn, son of Yandel! You are now a warrior!"
I had chosen a weapon that no one else picked.
At that same time, in a dark room where the flashing light had faded...
「Synchronization complete.」
「Character data and logs have been recorded and sent to the administrator.」
The fan of the once-shut-down tower started spinning again, and the light from the monitor lit up the empty room.
But the system didn't boot normally.
Beep-beep-beep. Beep-beep. Beeeep—
The screen froze on a black DOS background, the beeping matching the rhythm of the text being typed as if by an error.
「The coming-of-age ceremony has been successfully completed.」
「New equipment has been equipped.」
「Total item level has increased by +12...」
「....」
Like someone was still writing in real time, only the sound of the beeps and clicks echoed through the empty room.
Endlessly. Continuously.
Bjorn Yandel
Level: 1
Body: 25 / Mind: 35 / Supernatural Ability: 1
Item Level: 24 (New +24)
Total Combat Score: 67 (New +6)