The collapse rate is 51%.
That’s 31%, a whopping 23% less than when I offered the Prayer of Rest.
It doesn’t align with the purpose of the World Quest, which is to raise the collapse rate to 100%, but it really doesn’t matter.
“After all, I can increase the collapse rate anytime.”
Now that I know it’s vulnerable to confession attacks, I can quickly get it to 100% with just a few lines of confession series.
Above all, the most important thing is not to create a sense of ‘discomfort.’
While it’s true that I need to bring the Celestial Being a happy dream, if it’s too unrealistic, they’ll just revert back to the original nightmare.
So, I decided to follow the original story while swapping the Knight with myself and changing up the story under the pretense of offering an opportunity.
They seem a bit suspicious, but seeing the decrease in the collapse rate makes it look like my plan’s working.
Swoosh!!
The monument loses its light and spins quickly.
As the monument in the center goes in, the stones that lost their light and power pop out and start rolling on the ground.
It seems this is about as far as I can go.
“Phew… Let’s call it a day here.”
[?]
[What?]
[Is it over?]
[Is Lily’s wild adventure finished?]
[Let me continue!]
[What happens if I reach 0%?]
[Eh?]
[Lily wielding a sword is quite cool.]
[Wow.]
[Such a waste.]
It might look like I just edited some text, but with the vast amount that was modified, it has indeed drained my energy.
Moreover, once I rewrite it to a certain level, the contents of the dream are visibly clear to me.
I’ve heard that Giants lack this capability, so it must be one of the special perks only available to Challengers and Users.
Thanks to that, writing the content became much smoother, and it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that I was actively moving and speaking by the end.
In fact, towards the very end, the sensation of aiming with the sword was much clearer than the feeling of just writing it down.
“It seems that rewriting above a certain level allows for immersion, huh… If I leverage this, I might even be able to intervene more excessively.”
If I go beyond immersion and literally dive in, I might be able to trigger more changes without causing any discomfort.
Of course.
[Would you like to log out?]
“Then, see you!”
[Ah.]
Let’s end the session first.
■
Dring…
“Ugh…”
Crack!
As I exit the connector, I stretch.
I’ve spent a staggering 33 hours in this round capsule.
I’ve spent longer times than this, but that was because I either fell asleep or time flowed differently.
I doubt I’ve spent this long without a break before.
“How’s my condition… It’s fine.”
Inside the capsule, my body is automatically adjusted to ensure my bones and other body parts don’t soften.
It also supplies a certain level of metabolism and nutrition, making it the dream tool for gamers.
Up to a certain level, it provides what’s essentially a gamer’s dream tool.
Of course, the source of this incredible technology isn’t science.
Swoosh.
I place my fingertips on the capsule.
With the very weak mana I have in reality, it connects to some kind of ‘power.’
This power does its best to ensure the user doesn’t get hurt or sick, immediately strengthening the defense wall to protect the user when danger approaches.
Moreover, it actually transfers the ‘soul’ to allow users to play the game vividly.
It’s no wonder that even when Deoen strikes globally, there are no rival works, let alone copycats.
“Because they can’t make it.”
From the get-go, this capsule is a product comprised of magic, power, and abilities.
It was a level that humanity, just now breaking free from the universe, could never reach with mere science.
“Hmm…”
Tick-tock, tick-tock.
I flow a speck of mana, which is burning at my fingertips, into the capsule.
“Yep, no chance.”
I’ve been pouring mana steadily since I realized that Deoen isn’t an ordinary game, but it’s been useless.
With my current ‘ordinary’ body, this defense system is completely out of reach.
If I were at Lily’s level in Deoen, I could probably breeze through it, but the reality is far from that.
I pulled my hands off the capsule, made a simple meal in the kitchen, and then sat down at my computer.
Since it was early morning, it was quite dim.
Clang.
I took a bite of the nicely sliced toast.
It’s a toast with bacon, lettuce, and egg, and I threw in some sauce left over from the last production run of Celestial Skewers, which turned out to be quite tasty.
“Mm…”
Click-drag.
As I scrolled down with the mouse wheel, a black-and-white banner caught my eye on the homepage of the search site.
The Devil of Angel, which had been booming since I returned to the internet right after my comeback.
Four years had passed since Deoen started.
It has been a year since I returned.
As time goes on, more people are playing the game, but not everyone is fighting.
70% of Deoen’s players are simply enjoying healing, while 20% are adventuring.
And only the remaining 10% continue to fight.
“5%. No, around 2% might be at a helpful level.”
It’s a bit of an extreme figure.
Even when disasters like the Kraken show up, 98% of users are useless in a fight.
In reality, for the recent Kraken hunt, a whopping 30% of the total users joined in, but the actual contributors didn’t even reach 1%.
Those who enjoyed healing scampered away from the disaster, hastily avoiding the sea and heading inward to the continent.
Some were even protesting, asking why a healing (?) game suddenly turned into a war game.
Of course, Deoen, according to its developer Nutri Company, is officially a ‘dungeon exploration’ game.
Anyway, Deoen, just like the current ‘Hidden Peace’, isn’t a game that shows mercy to everyone, so complaints are bubbling up from all over the place.
Skill is key, but with a bit of luck, you can still reach the upper ranks.
Of course, whether they protest or not, they have no choice in the matter.
Nutri Company says,
“Are you going to quit then?”
In this world, there is only one virtual reality game, Deoen.
There are absolutely no others.
Since it’s not a game made by ‘humans’ to begin with, it’s only natural that no imitators can emerge, and people have to play despite their grumbling.
But hey, the world has always been unfair…
“Not too surprising.”
“Actually, it’s better.”
In fact, the users’ whining is a sign of their ignorance.
“Using the power known as the system, without dying or feeling great pain—if you just put in the effort, you could reach the Celestial or Demon Race in just a few years?”
At this point, it’s almost like being born with dragon-level abilities, or even better blessings.
Just by breathing, you can become significantly stronger compared to the residents of other worlds.
Of course, individual differences can’t be avoided, but just looking at Celestial beings or Yena shows their insane growth rate.
“Growth rate, huh…”
In the future, the users will grow even more.
Just those who stand out right now include Yena, Celestial, Leo, Michael, Knight, Candy Star, Aisha, and Black…
And there are countless talented rankers standing shoulder to shoulder, growing stronger day by day.
One day, there will come a day when they can crush the Celestial and Demon Races with their own hands.
“Upper ranks might be a stretch, though.”
Reaching the upper ranks isn’t just about strength, but you must also reach a level of rank that’s akin to being a god.
“…A god.”
Speaking of which, I had something to ask the gods living in the corner of my soul.
I leaned back in my chair and closed my eyes.
Just like that time, my vision went dark, and I drifted to the other side of consciousness…
.
.
.
■
Swish…
Swish…
Waves flow by.
The golden power covering half of my body.
“Mmm.”
I’ve arrived.
Swoosh!!
As I rose, the golden waves cascaded down.
In the Space of Despair within my soul.
Ever since that time, I can control my consciousness to move into the Space of Despair through sleep in reality.
Conveniently, three figures I needed to see stood before me.
“Lily?”
One was the original Lily Elbrite, ‘Young Lily’.
She was waving her hands in agitation at a gigantic, red crustacean, while the crustacean sulkily crossed its claws.
“Seriously, the Sea King isn’t waking up, so why are you making a fuss, you little monster!”
“It’s chaos! You little monster!”
“Can’t you wake him up?”
“I can’t! They say that person is sleeping, how could I wake him?”
And the other one is Karabus, the crab monster I first reclaimed after my return.
The types of monsters sealed in my soul are diverse, but they can usually be divided into two categories.
One is those that attacked humans for some reason, whether it be unbearable rage or mental assault.
And the other is those that attacked humans just for fun or as a way to vent their anger.
“This damn… huh?”
Karabus was clearly the latter.
He was angrily turning towards me after scolding Young Lily.
“What? She’s not a little kid, she’s a real angel.”
Crack-!
“Isn’t it dead?”
“I heard some nonsense.”
Karabus’s red shell shattered into pieces under the hammer.
As the holy power infused into the broken shell, he returned to his original state.
“Looks like you’ve forgotten everything after such a long time.”
“…Crazy human.”
“Hmm?”
Clang!
Thud!!
It was smashed again.
It flew far away.
“Uaaagh!! I said it properly!!”
“Your mouth is alive and well. Your intentions are so obvious.”
“Ugh… why is it back here! I definitely escaped!”
“Isn’t it nice to be home?”
It’s my hometown, so I should be happy about it.
If I pretend not to be, I might end up feeling hurt.
“If I feel hurt… well, hands might come out a few times…”
“……”
“Oh, you don’t have to worry about getting hurt. I’ll save you no matter how many times.”
You can’t die here in the first place.
The regenerated Karabus lowers its giant body.
Now it looks a bit more like a ‘crab.’
“Hey, just stay still. Seriously! If not, I would have broken the weapon long ago…”
“Wasn’t it unavoidable?”
“……”
“And we have a military commander here too.”
If the first military commander of the Space of Despair is the Pharaoh, then the second military commander is her.
“Hit me more, sister.”
Lasty.
The third among the gods who came to do business.
“That crab was super noisy. If the little sister hadn’t stopped it, I would’ve soaked it in blood and made crab pickles.”
“Lasty Erbenus.”
“Yeah?”
“Did you leave any bloodsuckers behind?”
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