Laugh and Despair

No one expected it. Screams echoed throughout the town; they were swallowed by despair. Rain poured down, and so did their tears, which trembled as they felt fear. Questioning themselves, one could have avoided it, but no one did. They're stuck in the place they used to enjoy a few moments ago.

The massive development of technology led to the creation of a virtual reality massive multiplayer online role-playing game, known as a VRMMORPG. The next generation of gaming uses a device that sends signals to your brain, creating an illusionary world.

Divine Online took a step into the world of VRMMOs. In the span of 3 months of beta testing, the game gained massive popularity and reached 300,000 pre-registrations. With its 10,000 beta players, the close beta ended and the official release approached.

One of the blessed 10,000 beta players, Haruto, embarks on a new journey. As he prepared to start a new chapter in his life, he logged in, and the game finally began.

As he opened his eyes, he saw a familiar sight. Its world is still as beautiful as it was in beta. Continued to admire the scenery while players started to log in one by one. It took no time for the beginners' town to be filled with different kinds of people.

Time passed, and it's still crowded; however, players began to start their own fantasy journeys one by one, and so did Haruto. Without the need to buy something and stick with the default attire and equipment, he went to the battle ground immediately, fighting beginner monsters such as wolves, slimes, and boars.

He killed one monster after another; he grinded and grinded from one place to another until he reached the forest section. The forest is much farther than the normal hunting ground. On that note, the monsters that spawn in the area are completely different. The further you are from the beginner town, the stronger the variations of monsters are. 

On his way, searching for prey, he heard a scream. Instinctively, he ran as fast as he could and reached the place where the scream originated. 

There, he saw an elf struggling to fight a monster; this time it was a fungi bear. A bear that is controlled by some kind of fungus in the forest. The elf fought back, yet none of its attacks were effective against it. During the beta test, fungi monsters were known as one of the most annoying monsters to deal with because of their unique characteristics. The fungi can't feel anything in the body they took over. Without hesitation, they attack players without the need to retreat, making it hard for new players. However, you can use its characteristics to your advantage.

Haruto sneaked in and sliced its legs; the bear, without noticing that its legs had been cut off, fell down. Haruto then stabbed its head to the ground, making the fungi useless with a body that couldn't move.

Seeing how Haruto defeated the monster so quickly and easily, the elf was amazed at how he executed it so perfectly. Despite having so many questions running through her head, she immediately thanked him for saving her.

Haruto looked at her and chuckled. "Did you get so caught up in your character as an elf that you wanted to see the forest so bad?" 

She then replied and awkwardly laughed, "I got a bit lost after chasing a boar that ran here."

"Thank you for saving me, though; that was quite dangerous." "My name's Akari; nice to meet you."

"Haruto here; nice to meet you as well."

In this day and time, Haruto didn't expect that this very simple encounter would completely change the course of his life forever in more ways than one.

During this unexpected encounter, a light suddenly emerged, engulfing both of them. They were forcefully teleported back to the beginner's town—not just them, but every single player.

Confused, they waited and started to gather information from each other as to why it happened.

"Is this intentional or a bug?" Akari wondered.

A minute passed after they were teleported, and the sky suddenly turned red, and a crack appeared along with it. There, a demon-like creature came out of it, giving an ominous feeling to the players; some trembled from fear.

"Players!" "Heed my call; I, the game master, shall explain the rules of the game now."

"Game master? That thing?" Doubts started to pierce their heads, yet no one questioned him.

"While playing in a new world is fun and enjoyable, nothing can beat the excitement of having to risk something in the line," the game master smiled.

"What's he talking about?" "Has he gone mad?"

During this time, with a loud voice, a guy complained. "This situation is already weird as it is! I ain't here for your bullshit!" "Get this over with!"

The game master caught his attention; "unpleasant, unpleasant, I say" pointed its finger at him. In a split second, the guy was beheaded. Their eyes couldn't believe what they just saw—not by the fact that the game master killed him, but by the fact that blood came out of its beheaded body instead of disappearing.

Due to this sudden event, all of them panicked and ran, only to know that the exit in the beginner's town is no longer there.

"This has become quite a problem; stop and kneel." All of them seemed to stop and kneel down at the order of the GM.

"I ain't done explaining yet; if you want to survive, then shut your mouths off." "I do not wish for any of you to interrupt me."

"This world is ruled by a demon king; all of you will be heroes that will save this land" he said with an unpleasant laugh.

"That is all."

The so-called game master then turned his back and made his way back to the crack, but he seemingly stopped. Moments later, he turned his head and said, "I forgot; take note of this; once you die in here, the device will burn your brains to crisp."

With a creepy laugh, he continued, "Yes, that means you'll die in reality by the time you die here." "Good luck, and may you enjoy your time in here."

And so he went to the crack; the world turned normal, and the crack closed.

One look at the players' faces says it all.

No one expected it. Screams echoed throughout the town; they were swallowed by despair. Rain poured down, and so did their tears, which trembled as they felt fear. Questioning themselves, one could have avoided it, but no one did. They're stuck in the place they used to enjoy a few moments ago.

[Monster Archive]

[Name: Fungi]

Abilities: Control, Numb

It is a monster that has the ability to control monsters and animals as its hosts. However, if the "control" fails, it becomes a nutrient for its host. It can use the abilities of its host, and it doesn't feel any pain at all due to the numb skill.