Not much to say, except I never thought I would get this kind of reception. I actually though I would get… ambivalent responses and flames. So kudos to you all!
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Dialog Cheat Sheet
Emphasis
Game Text
[Activating game ability]
SHOUTING
Cutting someone o- short
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Uurg. Braaains…
Ah, damn. I feel absolutely awful! You know, I used to be able to pull all-nighters every night for a week without feeling half as crappy as I do now. But the price I pay for 8 hours each night…
Jeez, is that my spine? Is that my spine?! That's my spine!
Oh, nope, just a bulging lump.
Is that a lump? Is that a lump?! That's a lump! Holy-
Calm.
Jesus, that felt weird. That's the first time [A Gamer's Mind]'s activated in a while. I must be getting better at compartmentalizing all of the horrifically traumatic experiences I've had in the past few days.
"Jee-Han, school!"
Fuck!
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Damn, damn, damn, DAMN!
God, I'm going to be late! Why, today of all days, test day!
Why did I grind last night? What stupidity affected me?! Why must I be cursed so?
… Is this my low LUK coming back to bite my ass?
Next LVL UP, I'm putting points in LUK.
GAH! Why am I standing here doing nothing!? I have class!
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Fuckin' sadist. 10 times! 10. Freakin'. Times.
I'm going to have to force myself to sit down for the next couple days. If I was a normal human, that is. [A Gamer's Body] for the win!
"Now that I've dealt with young Jee-Han,"
Bastard. I'm going to get my revenge and it'll be terrifying to behold. Believe it.
"I have an announcement."
Oh my god, did I just imitate Naruto!?
"We're going to- Jee-Han?"
I must repent! Does Korea have seppuku? Or the equivalent?
"Jee-Han."
It doesn't matter, I'll make one if it doesn't exist!
"Jee-Han."
It'll be a fad! Teens from all over will do it! I might be reviled for instigating the massacre of thousands of Korea's youth, but that's better than being known as a Naruto-impersonator!
"Jee-Han!"
Wait… I'll only be known as that if there are witnesses. I speculatively eyed my compatriots, judging my ability to silence them. They ranged from "excellent" (almost everyone), "decent" (the class rep and a few other martial artists), and "LOLFUKNO" (Sun-Il). Hey, don't judge; class rep's won several interschool tournaments. Anyway, when my sight landed on teacher, I noticed something… off about him. Maybe he got a haircut and asked my opinion?
"Ah, your hair looks great, teacher."
I flashed him a thumbs-up. Apparently, my magnificence blinded him, as he stared blankly at me for a few moments.
It happens. He's just got to watch whose gross incandescence he eyeballs next time.
"Go to your seat."
Ouch. Maybe I wasn't sincere enough?
I slunk back to my seat, embarrassed by the class' laughter. I was that transparent? I need to LVL UP [Deception]. Which I did!
The LVL of [Deception] has gone up by 1.
Kickass, am I right?
Teacher man Do coughed and continued.
"Anyway,"
He threw a glare at me. How rude! I should kick his thirty-something ass!
"We'll be having a new student join us."
Instantly, the class was in an uproar. Still, a transfer this late in the year? It's about halfway through my sophomore year and they're adding a student? Odd…
"She's joining us because of some family trouble, so be nice."
Eh? You tell everyone that kind of personal information? I'm never trusting teacher/student confidentiality again.
It's a thing, I'm sure.
The door opened and a drop-dead babe walked through. My heart started hammering madly and I felt a feverish sweat coat my brow.
"Hello."
I gripped my desktop tightly at the alluring sound of her sultry, yet open voice.
"I'm Kwon Shi-Yun. I'll be in your care."
She stood there, flame red hair done up in a loose ponytail and sporting a standardized girl's school uniform that somehow flaunted her ample frame without exposing much of it.
"Why don't you sit there, behind the slow-looking brunette? Near the back of the class."
Dammit, teacher! Oh god, she's coming this way! What do I do, what do I do!?
Calm.
… That barely helped at all!
I froze when our eyes met, her almost glowing honey-colored orbs seeming to burrow into my plainer irises. Hurriedly, I tore my gaze away, trying to form a semblance of calm.
The LVL of [Deception] has gone up by 1.
Not now!
I heard her bag drop to the ground and her skirt rustle when she took her seat.
How the fuck did redhead find me!? Why me!? The one hot girl I absolutely despise and fear had to join my class! And take the desk right behind me!
"Also, since it would be unfair to test everyone but Shi-Yun, I've decided to postpone the test until next week."
… Maybe it's not totally bad, come to think of it.
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I nearly bolted from class screaming gibberish several times through the next couple lessons. Fortunately, my desperate efforts to avoid that made [Deception] go up by 3 more LVLs, making it LVL 6. So it wasn't a total wash.
But that doesn't make up for having her here!
Damn, damn, damn, DAMN!
Calm.
I went from no procs in a day to three procs before lunch. I'm a failure as a man and as a game character.
"So, you interested in the new meat?"
Either I'm too stressed to react like I usually do, or [Deception]'s doing something for me. Probably the latter. I snorted.
"Hell fucking no."
I could hear Sun-Il's silence.
"… I thought you like redheads? Are you being… what's the word?"
Sun-Il wasn't into manga or manhwa very much. 'Not enough time' he says.
"Tsundere?"
"Yeah, tsundere for her?"
"Maybe repetition will get through to you. Hell. Fucking. No."
Sun-Il shrugged and wandered off to do… something. Read? Get lunch? Secret sex meetup?
Gah, gotta get my mind out of the sewer and back in the gutter where it belongs.
You know, come to think of it, I wonder why no one's clustered around redhead's desk? She's hot and a transfer student; either one would guarantee attention, but both should make her an instant celebrity. Magic, maybe? Some kind of someone-else's-problem-field?
Badass. That would almost makes up for the threat she poses to me and mom if she taught me it.
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Well, either she forgot my face or she enjoys watching me squirm. Judging by her personality… it could be neither, either, or both.
I suck at analyzing people, by the way.
"Ah, attention, everyone!"
The rather ditzy strawberry-blonde (pink) substitute for chemistry class called the class' attention… I said that with a minimum of frustration. Am I becoming used to these impossible hair follicles?!
"Your actual substitute teacher has arrived, so I'll pass the class off to him."
I glanced at the opening door before freezing. If I concentrated, I imagine I could smell hints of cologne. His polished loafers clicked rhythmically against the tiled floor.
I swallowed heavily, trying to remove the lump in my throat.
He set a chromed metallic briefcase on the desk, spinning sharply to face us. Me. He looked timeless, with a face that could be anywhere from 20 to 50. A formally cut suit almost clung to his muscled frame.
"I shall be your new chemistry teacher for the rest of the term and possibly beyond."
He- he's going to teach here!?
"My name is Hwan Sung-Gon."
He subtly evaluated each student in the room, hidden eyes boring into each individual. Did he just stare at me a bit longer than everyone else!? What do I do, what do I do, what do I do, what do I do, what do I do-
Calm.
"Now, what page were you on?"
The class representative almost jumped up to answer him with page 192. Now that I think about it, everybody calls her Class Rep. I thought that was a manga-only thing, but it apparently occurs often here, in real-world Korea. Gah, not the time! Young-looking sub in the room!
The new teacher nodded, light glinting off of his sunglasses. They gave him a mysterious air, only compounded by the slicked-back hair and hard countenance.
Dammit, first redhead, now Agent K!? How many orphaned babies did I cannibalize in a past life?!
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Being between redhead and Agent K was like getting in-between… you know what, fuck it, I'm too stressed to come up with an apt comparison. The sparks were flying between them. Well, they were from redhead. Agent K, true to his namesake, was calm and collected throughout the day. I struck an uncomfortable middle ground between pissing myself and beating the shit out of both of them.
… I've become waaay more violent ever since this game thing. Should I see a psychiatrist? You know, talk about how my life's become an RPG and I now kill zombies at night to LVL UP. I mean, I'll lose a lot of my dearly-held freedoms, but the drugs. Pretty, pretty drugs.
Ahem.
So, yeah, where was I. Drugs? Gah, hell no.
What are they even doing here anyway? Somehow, I doubt this is related to me; if they could discover which school I went to, they could just as easily discover my home address. And so far, they've ignored me, I think. So, each other? There was that previously-stated tension. But why come here to battle or spy on the other? Maybe their descriptors will shed some light.
I turned to redhead.
"[Observe]."
Soul Blaze Fist User
LVL: 34
Kwon Shi-Yun
A member of the Yuhonmoon Clan and an adept practitioner of the Soul Blaze Fist Style. She has a deep devotion to her clan, almost inhuman stoicism, and all the tact of a rock. A particularly callous rock.
That… that told me almost nothing about her. Damn, Maybe Agent K'll throw me a bone?
Black Summoner
LVL: 46
Hwang Sung-Gon
An enigmatic figure even in the Abyss, he appears to lack the personal ambition characterized by most magicians. Instead, he seems intensely focused on a faraway goal, focused enough to disregard the dangers of his path.
… Much, much more interesting. K, I think you've given me the biggest bone in the slaughterhouse. Abyss: a chasm or hole; moral or intellectual depths. Is this the name for a hidden society of magic-users and mystical martial artists? It's certainly more intimidating that 'Wizarding World.' Less sexist, too. Unless all female magic-users are called wizards instead of witches.
Also, what's his objective? Intensely focused… it's a girl. He's in love with someone who's dead or dying right now! And he needs forbidden or ancient magic to restore his love to him! How adorably romantic~!
… Is what some sissy would say. I think it's stupid, not romantic at all. Because I'm oblivious to love, romance, and women in general. No fucking clue about any of that. Yep.
Totally oblivious.
So that some lends credence to the theory he's behind the zombies. But why? Why do this?
…
The Soul Stone Shards! They're crystallized essence of the soul, no fucking way they can't be used for healing or necromancy. But these're shards, implying bigger and better pieces are out there. Maybe he doesn't know that? Or it's a hit-and-miss process to summon the monsters that drop bigger stones? Or zombies can drop the full gamut.
Or plot convenience. The story writers can't have all have had amazing ideas.
*RING*
Gah! What the shitting-
Oh, lunch's over.
I just spent all lunch brooding over redhead and Agent K!?
Fuck them and fuck me, too. And Sun-Il, bastard didn't warn me about lunch.
I glared at him when he walked in the class, but he only smirked cheekily before sliding into his seat. Smarmy bastard.
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What're my skills right now, anyway?
I paused in my walk home to surreptitiously eye my surroundings for observers. Seeing only an old man sweeping off his porch, I ducked behind the corner into an empty alley.
"Skills."
Eh? When'd my screen change?
Instead of a grid of boxes, each filled in with a skill icon, a scroll down list of skills appeared with icons to the sides of the skill they represented.
Oh, there was an options portion with a style changer in the upper right. I was on 'list', as opposed to 'grid'. Whatever, I guess.
[A Gamer's Mind] LVL: MAX
[A Gamer's Body] LVL: MAX
Yeah, they came as LVL MAX, right? Useful as hell, let me tell you.
[Rip] LVL: 3
… I'll be honest with myself, I completely forgot about this. Eh, not like it's important, anyway. I have more powerful skills and I can't see this branching off into anything useful.
[Observe] LVL: 8
I got a LVL UP in [Observe]? Weird I don't remember getting an update. Either I am unperceptive as fuck or the game doesn't give me a message every time.
[Power Strike] LVL: 9
Ah, the mainstay of my melee arsenal! Only fitting it's my highest LVL skill.
[Ax Mastery] LVL: 9
Nice. Though, I might think about getting a sword or dagger soon. I'm not a huge fan of axes, so something a bit more… refined would be appreciated.
[Energy Bolt] LVL: 5
Ah, my magic skill! Why, why couldn't you be more effective!
[Cooking] LVL: 2
… Fuckin' OJ. It was good when I opened it! Opened it! OPENED IT! IT HAD NEVER BEEN OPENED BEFORE I CRACKED THE FUCKING SEAL!
[ID Escape] LVL: 2
I should probably start grinding this. If I ever get ambushed, the ability to cancel their Illusion Barrier would be handy.
[Energy Burst] LVL: 3
My other melee skill. Only works with bare hands, but at LVL 20, I can use it with weapons.
[Deception] LVL: 6
… Man, I got sooo many LVLs out of this today.
[ID Create] LVL: 2
Higher LVLs give better enemies, more enemies, and greater variety in these enemies. So don't grind it, just let it rise naturally.
[Unarmed Mastery] LVL: 4
Pretty sweet if I ever lose my weapon. Also handy since it got me over my fear of hand-to-hand combat.
I notice I lack a lot of passives right now. I should get more of those; passives boost my stats automatically and my stats kind of suck right now. I guess I could LVL UP some more, but I want to specialize in magic, dammit! And I can't d that if I'm worrying about "survivability" and "viability" and "usefulness".
… Damn, now I'm depressed.
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Ah, what to do?
Sun-Il's off doing some "special training", I don't have any more homework, and I'm still not interested in games again. Maybe it's because my life's a game right now.
My life's a game…
I really have to get used to this shit, don't I?
Lessee, what do I need for another zombie-hunting expedition?
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"[ID Create]."
The by-now-familiar flash of light surrounded the sky before dissipating. I have got to learn why that appears.
Eh, whatever, grind time! I've got 5 more sandwiches, cobbled together from various scraps of meat, and 7, count 'em, 7, glasses of milk, I'm ready for anything!
So, where are the zombies?
Something collided into my back, sending me to the road with a whoosh of breath.
I turned around and smashed my ax's head into the zombie's side, throwing it off to the side. Wow, that's a really light zombie. Gah, and fast!
I could barely bring up the haft to block the next swipe.
"[Energy Burst]!"
It was sent skittering down the road again, though this time it plowed through a conveniently-placed food stall. Eh, what's the HP?
… A quarter!? This thing's pathetic!
"[Energy Bolt]."
The ball of energy kept the zombie down while I dispatched it.
"[Power Strike]."
The now-familiar sound of metal cleaving decayed skull (wow, that sounds worrying) was accompanied by a… snapping, tearing, metallic sound. And my ax seemed much lighter than normal. Ahahahaha…
Son of a bitch, now?! Really?! Gah, fuck my life!
Well, I can probably carry on with my fists. I mean, Big-boned Zombies need unarmed attacks, and nothing else can't be handled without a weapon. Besides, my fists are weapons. Literally, I got a skill for them.
Anyway, yeah. Just-
Holy shit, block!
"You sneaky bastards! Eat [Power Strike]!"
My shattered ax handle dug an inch into the fast zombie's skull. I could swear the thing grinned at me before continuing the assault.
Gah! I could feel my HP drifting away as I clawed at the zombie. It was when I think I hit half HP when I remembered I had not just skills, but Skills.
"[Energy Burst]!"
The skinny deadhead practically flew off me and into a nearby wall. That fazed the undead for only a second before it rushed back toward me. Fortunately, I was ready.
"[Energy Bolt]."
And down he goes!
"[Energy Burst]! [Energy Burst]! [Energy Burst]!"
Damn, I missed the head on the first couple. Ah well, he's dead, at least.
"Now, [Observe]!"
Runner Zombie LVL: 11
DEAD (AGAIN)
A walking corpse. No matter how it died, it hates the living, attacking and devouring their flesh. This zombie is unusually fast and agile. Maybe it recently fell, or perhaps it was fast in life as it is in death.
O-kay. Odd, but workable. Like the Infected from Dead Island, but… weaker. And they don't scream when they attack and don't spot you from across the goddamn map.
So, yeah, these should be easy.
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So, yeah, that wasn't easy at all. With Runners to flank me, Roids to draw my fire, and Big-Boned to herd me, I was almost doomed. Only beating a hasty retreat and aggroing the milling crown one at a time saved my stupid hide. Still, I got a LVL Up out of it, so it's not too bad.
Name: Han Jee-Han
Title: Apprentice Undead Hunter
Class: The Gamer
LVL: 7
XP: 350/7000
HP: 160/160
MP: 235/235
STR: 7
DEX: 10
VIT: 6
INT: 20
WIS: 12
LUK: 5
Points: 5
Money: 0W
… How the fuck do I earn Won? I still have zilch, but I'm pretty sure I have a few thousand stashed away in my room. Eh, whatever.
Where to put my points…
I really want to put STR at an even number; call me OCD if it makes you feel better. Though LUK could use a boost. Or I could get WIS to 15 so next LVL I could get more MP per minute. VIT's always handy, and I suppose more INT is nice. Though DEX'll make those Runners easier.
I just said that all the stats were good. Um, duh?
1 to STR, just because I hate odd numbers? No, 3 to INT, 2 to WIS. No, better idea: all 5 to INT. I could probably make better spells, and it would let me use more skills.
Eh, whatever. My current stats are sufficient for zombie-slaying.
Name: Han Jee-Han
Title: Apprentice Undead Hunter
Class: The Gamer
LVL: 7
XP: 350/7000
HP: 160/160
MP: 260/260
STR: 7
DEX: 10
VIT: 6
INT: 25
WIS: 12
LUK: 5
Points: 5
Money: 0W
Yep, that'll do me.
Eh? What's that? I have that tingling feeling before everything goes to shit…
The ground rumbled as a legion of zombies I'd never seen before rushed out of alleyways, side streets, even buildings. They smashed into each other without care and… fused? They seemed to combine together and form a large mass of dead meat. I have a really bad feeling about this.
My feeling was confirmed when, after the meat pile reached about 3 meters in height, the mass groaned. Honest to god, it fucking groaned. Then the mass seemed to develop divots, which became imprints, which became holes. All creating one central shape with 4 limb-like protrusions coming from the corners.
I was rooted to the spot in grotesque fascination, staring in awe as this completely nonsensical yet ominous occurrence took place before me.
Soon enough, I realized what was happening; the zombies were going Voltron to create some sort of uber-zombie. But I was still stuck. Maybe this was a cutscene of some kind? 'Cuz the CGI is fuckin' amazing.
Several seconds later, the last zombie jumped into the mass and the figure was complete. It was a tall, almost anemic-looking zombie with high cheekbones and no genitalia. The thing stood up and fuck it was at least twice as tall as the buildings around it.
Go team Han, you're our man. If you can't get them, no one can!
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I think I'll cut things off from there.
If anyone's interested, I have a Naruto story in the works. It'll probably be posted before the next chapter of this, if I can learn the mystic art of third-person narration!
Anyway, comments, concerns, love confessions? Then click that shiny review button. You know you want to.
Name: Han Jee-Han
Title: Apprentice Undead Hunter
Class: The Gamer
LVL: 7
XP: 350/7000
HP: 160/160
MP: 260/260
STR: 7
DEX: 10
VIT: 6
INT: 25
WIS: 12
LUK: 5
Points: 0
Money: 0W