1.

"Haaah."

He was reminded anew that humans are creatures of adaptation. To think that the simple warmth and cozy air of his home could feel so unfamiliar after just a week away. It was no exaggeration when players said their homes felt new every time they returned from a dungeon. Many of them likely spent more time inside dungeons than they did at home.

Of course, as alien as it felt, he adapted again just as easily.

'Kkyu!'

"Hey. You been good?"

Armor and weapons lay scattered on the floor. He watched Hwangdo fly toward him and swallowed the lingering emotions from the quest. It had been a fleeting mission. He never thought immersion, both the greatest strength and weakness of virtual reality, would follow him here.

"She'll be fine, right?"

He rarely held on to such feelings. He usually forgot quickly and moved on to the next objective. His style was to focus on the reward and achieve the goal, not get invested in the story of a mission. It was also the fastest way to forget.

But the one who kept coming to mind was, of course, the princess.

"She really was beautiful."

Especially the feel of her skin when they had made their final escape…

'No.'

If this had happened before he met Jeong Seora, he might have pined away, agonizing over whether he'd ever see her again. She was, after all, a woman from another world he might never meet again—no different from an NPC in a VR game.

But now, he didn't have to long for a woman from a dream.

['Gold Mission Chapter 1-1' has been completed.]

[You have leveled up.]

[You have acquired 1 'Special Stat Point'.]

Back in reality, his rewards appeared.

"My level..." Buja breathed.

The number that had been stuck at 1 for so long had finally risen to 2.

He immediately invested the special stat points he'd gained into his Gold Power, raising it to a solid nine.

"Here we go," he muttered to himself.

Compared to other players at his level, his stats were overwhelmingly high. Item effects, achievement bonuses, enhancement buffs—these were all advantages exclusive to the Gold Maker class. However, the gap of three stat points per level was significant enough to nullify all of them in the long run.

If he didn't maximize the Gold Maker's unique benefits and find other ways to boost his stats, he could eventually find himself at level ten, twenty, or even thirty, with stats that were merely on par with—or worse than—his peers.

'Phew.'

But he wasn't worried. It wasn't a matter of lacking confidence; he was just savoring the moment.

"A nine percent discount…" he mused, a slow smile spreading across his face. This was real growth. He had finally found a way to raise his class-exclusive stats and was just beginning to explore its potential.

['Gold Mission Chapter 1-2' is now active.]

And just like that, at the end of one reward, the door to the next stage swung open.

* * *

To Kim Buja, it had been just one mission, but for others, it was an entirely different story—especially for Jeong Seora.

"I was wondering where you'd vanished to, leaving all your armor and weapons behind," she said, her voice tight with concern.

"I'm sorry," he replied. "I was dragged into it, too."

After seeing a mountain of missed calls, he had called her back, and she had rushed over in less than ten minutes. Now he had to offer an explanation that was anything but clear.

"A quest?" she pressed.

"I'm not sure where, but it seemed to be a dimension similar to a dungeon. I was disarmed and taken there, and I leveled up as a reward for completing it."

If it had been anyone else, he would have brushed them off with some ridiculous excuse about taking a personal vacation. But with Seora standing right in front of him, her eyes filled with genuine worry, he had no choice but to come clean. Besides, he felt a pang of guilt.

"Were you okay without your armor?"

"It was just a tutorial," he said with a flash of his old confidence. "And you know who I am."

"True," she conceded, a small smile touching her lips. "A scenario quest like that might actually be easier for you, Buja."

Having already heard about the grade of his class, she nodded, even if the concept was hard to swallow. Considering his track record—especially with Hwangdo—it was far better for her mental health to just accept it. Besides, she had a keen interest in such mysteries.

"Can you tell me what kind of quest it was?"

"Uh, well…"

"While we're in the sauna together," she purred, her voice dropping to a whisper. "Deal?"

He swallowed. How could he possibly refuse the temptation whispered into his ear, accompanied by a hand tracing a slow, deliberate path down his chest?

"I'm also very good at scrubbing backs," she added.

"Just backs?" he shot back, his voice a low rumble.

Seora's breath hitched.

"I'm kidding," he laughed, the sound bright and clear. With that one remark, any lingering image of the princess's beauty vanished from his mind without a trace.

* * *

Despite her bold provocation, the intense physical contact he'd imagined never materialized.

"A princess?" she mused later, her expression thoughtful. "An empire falling to an alliance of nations isn't a very common setting. Though it makes sense if the princess was the sole heir to the throne."

Instead of a steamy sauna session, there was a warm, home-cooked meal prepared by Seora herself and a fascinating conversation about the Gold Mission. She listened with rapt attention. Having grown up watching her father, Jeong Cheol, play games, she was no stranger to complex worlds.

She'd played countless titles with him and, even after her own awakening as a player, had never forgotten to check Buja's channel. For someone like her, the idea of another world unfolding within their reality was utterly captivating.

"It's amazing that you were thrown into a new world, but your body was still your own, Buja," she commented. "A character who wasn't there before suddenly appears, yet no one around you reacted strangely?"

"I know, right?" he agreed. "There was no particular reaction. I don't know if it was because we were all slaves, or if they simply perceived me as a slave who had been there all along."

Then came the question of plausibility—the very thing that readers of novels and stories were most curious about. Of course, Buja couldn't offer a clear answer. He didn't know either, and he hadn't even thought to ask. After all, he and the other players had long ago accepted the sudden appearance of dungeons and holograms without question.

Some mysteries were meant to remain unsolved. Seora, understanding this, simply nodded at his non-answer.

"Was the princess pretty?" she asked, her tone light.

Buja hesitated.

He couldn't remain silent in the face of 'that' particular curiosity. He'd expected it. In fact, he'd debated whether to mention the princess at all, worried that Seora might not like hearing that he'd been with another woman now that they'd acknowledged their feelings for each other. But in the end, hiding it felt unnecessary.

'It's not like we're married or anything.'

Besides, nothing had happened with the princess. More importantly, Seora didn't seem jealous; it was pure curiosity. So, Buja answered with practiced nonchalance.

"Not as pretty as you, Seora."

"Oh my," she replied, a delighted laugh bubbling up.

As she burst out laughing, his shoulders squared with pride. Seeing his expression, Seora's eyes twinkled in admiration. "Buja, I know you have a weakness for pretty faces, so for you to even compare me to her, that princess must be quite the beauty. I'd like to see her sometime."

He scratched the back of his head, impressed by how well she knew him. Had there been a video where he was caught staring at beautiful women? He offered an awkward laugh, and the atmosphere between them eased into comfortable familiarity.

"Ah!" she exclaimed.

Amidst the relaxed mood, Seora finally remembered what she'd meant to tell him. "I was so caught up in your story, I almost forgot."

"Huh?"

"The event. Are you going to participate?"

"An event?" The word was unfamiliar but certainly welcome.

"Oh, you haven't seen the hologram?" Seora's expression suggested she already knew the answer. Without asking again, he pulled up the holograms that arrived every twenty-four hours, which he usually dismissed without reading.

"Huh? There's nothing here." There were only a day or two's worth of messages, but none of them mentioned an event. 'What's this? Did it not come just for me?'

"That's strange," Seora said, frowning. "Events are usually announced to all players, and this one doesn't exclude rookie players. Maybe you didn't receive it because you were somewhere else?"

"Hmm, that could be it." 'Does that mean I can't participate?' If he hadn't known about it, he would have just let it go, but now a seed of unease was planted. "What kind of event is it?"

It didn't seem to have started yet, so he decided to wait while she filled him in. He'd heard of events before—annual or cyclical opportunities for players to compete, earn rewards, and grow. They were massive affairs that drew the attention of the general public and involved staggering amounts of money. But that wasn't what he was asking about. He wanted to know about the format, which changed every time.

"This time it's an MVP event," she began to explain. "They select an MVP for each dungeon."

But Buja held up a hand, stopping her. "Ah, just a moment."

[24:00:00]

.

.

[Loading unreceived messages.]

['Event' is now active.]

"I got it too," he said. Seeing was believing, and it was always faster to just look.

[Event]

▶ Type: MVP

▶ Grade: Legendary

▶ Period: November 1, 2022, 00:00 ~ November 30, 2022, 23:59:59

▶ Rewards

→ 1st Place: Legendary Item Random Selection Box

→ 2nd–5th Place: Special Item Random Selection Box

→ 6th–10th Place: Unique Item Random Selection Box

→ 11th–30th Place: Epic Item Random Selection Box

→ 31st–1,000th Place: Rare Item Random Selection Box

→ 1,001st–100,000th Place: Normal Item Random Selection Box

▷ Rewards are distributed by dungeon star-rating.

▷ Random items are limited to accessories, weapons, and armor.

▷ Items will be appropriate for the corresponding dungeon star-rating. There is a very low chance of receiving an item one grade higher.

▷ Ranking is calculated as follows:

→ Normal (1), Rare (3), Epic (10), Unique (25), Special (100), Legendary (500)

▷ Ranking is determined by the total score from dungeons cleared within the period.

▷ You must be inside the dungeon at the moment of clear for the score to be counted.

"Since it's a Legendary-grade event, people from all over the world will participate," Seora noted. "The rewards are insane, too."

"A random item box limited to weapons, armor, and accessories? Isn't that the best prize ever?"

"It's incredibly rare," she confirmed. "It's basically a lottery ticket with no losing numbers."

This was the reason Special and Legendary items circulated in the world, even though dungeons of that grade were rarely cleared. Events like this gave players a shot at obtaining items they could otherwise only dream of.

"The competition is going to be fierce," Buja stated.

"It's a festival, and it's hell," Seora agreed, a troubled look settling on her face. "Especially this MVP event." The better the event, the more vultures it attracted. Still, it was an opportunity she couldn't pass up, which meant she had to figure out how to claw her way to the top.

Buja also fell into a moment of deep thought.

"If you participate, Buja, you could at least get a Special item, but it won't be easy," Seora analyzed. "Just looking at the scoring system, I can already think of several loopholes. It'll be hard to win on skill alone." She nodded, affirming her own assessment. She was right. But that wasn't what he was contemplating.

"An accessory would be best, right?" he mused aloud. "Or maybe a Legendary weapon would be good. Armor wouldn't be bad either."

He then debated whether to eat chonggak kimchi, young radish kimchi, or napa cabbage kimchi… He was gulping down a cool, tangy bowlful as he mulled it over.

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