Chapter 6
In the military, time refused to pass no matter how much you wanted it to, but during vacation, it flew by so quickly that a day would pass in the blink of an eye. Getting up sharply when the wake-up call sounded had become so ingrained that now it was harder to sleep in without waking up. When he drank alcohol, he really slept well. Maybe he should call his friends for a drink soon.
“Nah…”
For his vacation, he just wanted to spend time alone playing games. Entering his ID and password at a speed invisible to the eye—something he could do with his eyes closed by now—Ji-won logged into the game, and his character wrapped in Mage costume items appeared.
The costume he had purchased by diligently saving his allowance from middle school—money his parents had given him to buy snacks—sparkled brilliantly. He’d tried to make it look as close as possible to the official Spirit Master illustration. It was a limited item that had now become worth almost a million won in real money. His account, which he had nurtured for almost 10 years, filled him with satisfaction and affection just by looking at it.
[Welcome, adventurer!]
After the loading screen finished and the game started, the familiar welcome message appeared as always. Though any sense of adventure had long disappeared after conquering all kinds of content, Ji-won still liked this greeting.
Usually, when logging in early on weekdays, Ji-won was always alone, but not today. After noticing the only online status in the guild member list, Ji-won greeted the empty guild chat.
[Guild][Hando: Hello Sasa]
[Guild][HolyKnightKnight: Hi]
A reply came immediately, indicating they weren’t AFK. The diligent newbie had been playing since 7 AM, as if they’d logged in right after opening their eyes.
[Guild][Hando: Sasa, you really wake up early lolll]
[Guild][HolyKnightKnight: I always woke up at 6 AM to study]
[Guild][HolyKnightKnight: It’s become a habit]
Ji-won responded with a mix of “ㅠ” and “ㅋ” to show rich reaction to the tearful story of someone who until recently had been a Korean student preparing for exams. After finishing his sincere sympathy, he immediately moved on to what he wanted to talk about.
[Guild][Hando: Did you watch the video I sent?]
[Guild][HolyKnightKnight: Yes, but]
[Guild][HolyKnightKnight: I don’t think I can follow it]
[Guild][Hando: lolllll it’s your first time, so that’s natural]
Last night, Ji-won had found HolyKnightKnight’s profile in the guild notice open KakaoTalk chat room and kindly sent a Holy Knight PVP reference video via private message. Even if they couldn’t follow it right away after watching, it wouldn’t hurt to see it in advance.
[Guild][Hando: If you record following the link I sent you]
[Guild][Hando: I can explain while watching it after the war]
[Guild][HolyKnightKnight: Thank you]
Ji-won had been monopolizing the newbie by using guild chat like a 1:1 chat, but when guild members started showing up one by one with login notifications, he switched to whispers to continue the conversation. Even though he felt his kindness was somewhat excessive, HolyKnightKnight didn’t seem to mind at all.
Playing as he normally would, but using his spare time to help HolyKnightKnight, before he knew it, it was nearly 9 PM when the war would start. Since people usually gathered 30 minutes before, Ji-won used his return skill to go back to the guild headquarters alongside HolyKnightKnight.
[Ppojjo: Well well]
[Ppojjo: You’re familiar with this, right?]
[Ppojjo: The death of your character is my death]
[Chelling: omg;; what a scary game]
Guild members gathered at headquarters one after another to participate in the war. Even guild members with short and sporadic login times showed unusually high attendance rates on Fridays, and the two-story guild headquarters was packed with characters of all varieties. Among them, one character particularly stood out…
[Ddaji: Chelling, what on earth is your outfit concept today?]
Everyone’s attention was drawn to Chelling’s radical new look—a true fashion enthusiast who always decorated their character with expensive and cute cash items. The deep red hair and heterochromia with different colored left and right eyes were relatively normal, but the ghillie suit worn over them was anything but. Moreover, the bright red aura gun held in one hand looked ready to burn the outfit they were wearing, drawing even more attention.
[Chelling: Battlefield Slaughterer concept]
[Chelling: lol]
[Watermelon Doctor: Where did you even get that gun???]
[Chelling: Intimidation factor lol]
[Ppojjo: Just a heavy spender…..]
But most guild members were amazed not by the unique outfit but by the price of the gun Chelling’s character was holding. A limited cash item sold about 7 years ago, it had recently been sold at auction for approximately 1.8 million won in real money—an item definitely capable of intimidation.
Just then, HolyKnightKnight, who had been quietly observing Chelling’s outfit, fumbled around and pulled out a weapon. It was a nail-studded club that didn’t match their dignified uniform at all.
[HolyKnightKnight: Intimidation factor]
[Ppojjo: lolololololololololololololololol]
[Chelling: This is why we raise newbies]
[Chelling: Outfit 100 points^^]
Pleased that someone had played along with their joke, Chelling spammed the thumbs-up motion. Despite being chosen, HolyKnightKnight didn’t approach Chelling but stood silently next to Ji-won’s character, holding up their club. That appearance is one you’d want to stay far away from.
After waiting for quite some time, with 5 minutes left before the war started, it seemed about time to gather buffs. Just as Ji-won was about to ask, Ppojjo beat him to it.
[Ppojjo: Who reached VIP Gold this month?]
In Arc Serenity, VIP levels are assigned when charging cash above certain amounts. To reach Gold level, you need to charge more than 500,000 won per month, which comes with special buffs and items. Among these, the buff could increase attack and defense by 5% for everyone in the same map.
Since most players fight fully buffed with various consumables, it was standard to apply all available guild-wide buffs. So before wars, people known for their big spending habits would be mentioned one by one…
[Watermelon Doctor: Hey hey, I’m counting on Chelling]
Sure enough, Chelling’s name was called first. Everyone in the guild knew they worked at a fairly large company and poured most of their salary into the game. Despite already having good specs, they weren’t satisfied and consistently spent cash monthly to roll item options, apply scrolls, or purchase new cash items.
[Chelling: I’m only Silver this month, sorry]
[Watermelon Doctor: Damn~~ what did you do with your salary last month]
[Chelling: Bought gifts for my parents]
[Watermelon Doctor: Ah, wise spending]
[Watermelon Doctor: Your parents must have been very happy]
[Ppojjo: Jino, did you exceed the amount this month?]
[Jino: No..lol.. I spent almost everything on manyas this month..]
Watermelon Doctor quickly changed tactics and used a looking-around motion to find someone else. But at high levels, players already have decent items and steady gold income, so they spend cash less frequently unless aiming for truly high specs. If anything, they’re more likely to sell their in-game items for real money.
Additionally, account transactions don’t count toward VIP calculation—only pure cash shop usage does—which naturally made it harder to find eligible players. Seeing that waiting wouldn’t yield results, Ji-won summarized the situation.
[Hando: Let’s just go without it]
[Hando: We can do well without the Gold buff, right??^^]
[Watermelon Doctor: Hmm.. reliable]
[Ppojjo: But…..]
[Ppojjo: The guild master is strong, not me..?]
[Ppojjo: I’m just… a support1…]
[Dogaenimnida: Vice guild master is support1~~]
[Dogaenimnida: I’m support4….. maybe?^_^]
While a buff would be better, its absence wasn’t critically disadvantageous. As they settled on going without it, playful chat resumed.
Some chatted with guild members, some maintained their PVP weapons, some went AFK. Everyone was waiting for the war to start in their own way when a whisper came from HolyKnightKnight, who had been standing quietly in the corner.
[HolyKnightKnight>>Hando: Guild master]
[HolyKnightKnight>>Hando: Where do you receive those VIP rewards?]
To this seemingly innocent question, Ji-won kindly explained.
[Hando>>HolyKnightKnight: If you go to the cash shop, your nickname is shown in the upper right corner]
[Hando>>HolyKnightKnight: There’s a reward collection button next to it]
With 5 minutes left before start, Ji-won checked the location of HolyKnightKnight who had suddenly disappeared and found them in the cash shop. Checking what VIP level they are? Figuring they’d return in time for the start, Ji-won focused on gathering potions. Suddenly, a message appeared at the top of his screen.
[HolyKnightKnight’s message: ㅏ]
Along with this single vowel character whose meaning was unclear, golden stardust began falling from the sky—the effect of the VIP Gold exclusive buff, leaving Ji-won blinking in confusion.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
