A World No Longer the Same
Reina slowly opened her eyes.
Her hand moved instinctively, reaching to the side in search of her mouse. Everything had happened so quickly that her last memory was still vivid. She had been sitting in front of her computer, playing Cosmia Online, when the screen suddenly went black.
But her fingers didn't find a mouse.
Instead, they touched a slightly rough, cold stone surface.
Reina opened her eyes fully.
A vast blue sky stretched above her. White clouds drifted slowly overhead, carried by a breeze she could actually feel against her skin.
Reina immediately sat up.
“What...?”
She was in the middle of a road paved with stone. Medieval-style buildings stood on both sides. The towers of a castle could be seen in the distance, while a large altar stood not far from where she had awakened.
This place felt strange.
And yet, at the same time, Reina knew it very well.
“Belio City...?”
She looked down at her hands.
They weren't the hands of a forty-year-old woman.
They were the hands of the character she had created in Cosmia Online. Blue hair tied into twin tails fell on either side of her head, while two wooden daggers still rested at her waist.
She had become XOXO.
Reina quickly looked around.
She wasn't the only one.
Hundreds of players were waking up throughout Belio City. Some were still sitting on the ground in confusion, others were desperately trying to understand what was happening, while a few had already begun to cry after realizing that what they were seeing wasn't a dream.
“What happened?”
“This is Belio City, right?”
“How do we get out?”
“The logout menu... where's the logout menu?!”
Panic slowly spread through the crowd.
But there was something even stranger than the players' presence in this world.
The NPCs were approaching them.
They were no longer standing in fixed locations, repeating the same movements like characters inside a game. Some helped players who were still lying on the ground get back on their feet, while others tried to calm them down.
Their expressions were alive.
Their movements were natural.
As though they were no longer characters controlled by a program.
Amid the commotion, an official from the kingdom's administration walked toward the center of the plaza.
“Please remain calm!”
His voice was loud enough that the players gradually turned their attention toward him.
The official looked over the hundreds of strangers who had suddenly appeared in Belio City.
“We do not know what has happened. All of you appeared suddenly in our world. However, judging by the equipment you carry, it seems that most of you are adventurers.”
The players exchanged glances.
“For the time being, the Atlas Kingdom requires all of you to register yourselves. We need to know your identities and where you came from to ensure that your arrival is not connected to the Cronio.”
Not long after the announcement, a transparent window appeared before every player.
[BROADCAST — ATLAS KINGDOM]
Information regarding their situation began to appear.
The newcomers were required to register so that their presence would be officially recorded by the kingdom. Beyond that, there were no special rules restricting how they could live.
They were free to remain in the city, work, trade, hunt Mostro, become craftsmen, or live as adventurers. Those in need of work could even accept various requests from the residents, which now appeared in the form of quests.
There was no order to fight.
No one was being forced to become a hero.
The Atlas Kingdom merely asked them to obey the same laws as every other resident of Cosmia.
Reina carefully read through all the information.
One thing was becoming increasingly clear.
They really were in the world of Cosmia.
But this world no longer functioned entirely like a game.
Cosmia had become real, even though parts of the game system still remained.
Among the crowd of players, Reina finally found someone she recognized.
A Knight walked toward her.
“Taka?”
The man nodded.
Tanaka had become the character he had created.
For a while, the two simply stared at each other. There were far too many questions without answers.
“Are we really inside the game?” Tanaka asked.
“I don't know.”
Reina opened several system windows that were still accessible.
Her character status was still there.
Her level was still there.
Her skills and inventory still worked as well.
But there was no button to leave the game.
Reina closed the windows.
“We'll figure it out little by little.”
Tanaka nodded.
Both of them continued using their character names. Reina had no intention of revealing her real identity to the other players, especially not to her students.
However, when she searched around the plaza, Reina couldn't find the four characters she had seen before the strange incident.
“Riz, Mina, Yux, and Han aren't here.”
Tanaka looked around as well.
“Maybe they've already left.”
Reina fell silent.
She knew what her students were like.
Especially Rian.
“Don't tell me...”
Reina's suspicion turned out to be correct.
The four students had already left Belio City.
Unlike Reina and Tanaka, who were still trying to understand their situation, the four of them welcomed this new world with an enthusiasm that the two teachers found difficult to comprehend.
For a generation that had grown up surrounded by virtual worlds, actually being inside an MMORPG felt like an experience they had only ever been able to imagine.
However, Reina had no intention of chasing after them while she was still at a low level.
“Taka, come with me.”
Reina suddenly grabbed Tanaka by the hand.
“Where are we going?”
“To level up. And do exactly what I do.”
Tanaka didn't even have a chance to ask another question before Reina pulled him toward one of the NPCs standing near the plaza.
Beginner Guide.
Reina knew this NPC.
More precisely, she remembered the entire quest chain he offered.
The Beginner NPC gave ten simple requests from the residents of Belio City. Delivering items, meeting certain residents, collecting items, then carrying messages to other people around the city.
To a new player, the quest chain might seem like nothing more than an ordinary tutorial.
But Reina knew something that most players didn't.
Every quest in the chain could be completed one after another without ever leaving the city, and together, they rewarded a considerable amount of EXP for a beginner.
“First, over there.”
Reina ran toward one of the residents.
After receiving an item, she immediately turned around.
“Now, east.”
“Wait!”
Tanaka hurried after her.
They delivered the item to the next resident, received another request, then immediately ran toward another part of Belio City.
One quest completed.
Then another.
And another.
Reina barely stopped to read the explanations because she still remembered the entire sequence.
LEVEL UP!
LEVEL UP!
Tanaka stared at Reina in disbelief.
“How do you know all this?”
“I'll explain later.”
By the time they finished the entire quest chain, both of them had reached Level 10 without fighting a single Mostro.
Tanaka stared silently at his status.
Back when he played Kosmik Online, he had never known about a leveling method like this.
Reina immediately opened her skill menu.
She upgraded Speed Run, followed by Dagger Jump, two abilities that would improve the Rogue's speed and mobility.
“Taka, upgrade your defensive abilities.”
“Which ones?”
“HP and Shield. We don't know what happens if someone dies in this world. For now, defense is more important.”
Tanaka followed her advice.
As soon as he finished, Reina grabbed his hand again.
“Now we're leaving.”
“Where are we going this time?”
Reina looked toward the city gates.
“Pilon Forest.”
The journey to Pilon Forest took far longer than it had when the place was nothing more than an area inside a game.
There was no longer any transition between areas that took only a few seconds. They actually had to walk along paths, through trees, and across the grasslands stretching beyond Belio City.
Reina was becoming increasingly aware that the scale of Cosmia had changed.
This world was far larger than it had ever appeared through a monitor.
After they had traveled quite a distance, the sound of fighting came from beyond the trees.
Reina immediately quickened her pace.
“Taka!”
“I'm right behind you!”
The two pushed through the bushes and finally found the four people they had been searching for.
Mina, Yux, and Han looked exhausted, with several wounds on their bodies.
In front of them, Riz was still gripping his sword.
Several mushroom-shaped Mostro surrounded him.
Happy Mushroom — Level 5
Rian had reached Level 3. His knowledge of MMORPGs allowed him to make fairly good use of the Warrior's basic abilities despite his low level.
But there were simply too many enemies.
His three friends were still only Level 1.
They hadn't formed a party and hadn't participated in the fighting, which meant they hadn't received any EXP from the Mostro Rian defeated.
“Riz! Behind you!” Mina shouted.
A Happy Mushroom leaped toward him.
Rian swung his sword.
Thud!
The Mostro was knocked away, but two more immediately moved toward him.
“There are too many of them!”
Reina immediately rushed forward.
She quickly picked up several items scattered across the ground, then threw a few Eggs toward Mina, Yux, and Han.
“Eat those! They'll restore your HP!”
They didn't even have time to ask questions.
Reina was already moving.
Speed Run!
Her body shot past Rian.
Two wooden daggers were in her hands.
Dagger Jump!
Reina leaped.
Slash!
One dagger struck a Happy Mushroom.
Slash!
The second followed.
Reina twisted through the air before landing and immediately attacked again. The difference in level, skills, and experience allowed her to bring down several Happy Mushrooms in a short amount of time.
Rian stared in silence.
That Rogue moved nothing like a beginner.
“Taka!” Reina shouted. “Protect them! The Mostro in this area will respawn soon. Take them back to the city!”
“Got it!”
Tanaka immediately positioned himself in front of the students.
Shield!
He raised his shield to protect them as several Happy Mushrooms began appearing again among the trees.
“You four, follow me!”
Mina, Yux, and Han didn't argue.
Rian glanced back at the blue-haired Rogue who was still fighting behind them.
Then his eyes fell on the name displayed above the character.
XOXO
Rian's eyes widened.
“XOXO...?”
But more Happy Mushrooms were beginning to appear.
He didn't have time to think about it.
Rian quickly turned around and followed his friends back toward Belio City.
Once they were safely back inside the city, the group gathered together again.
Reina stood in front of her four students.
Of course, none of them knew who she really was.
“You were too reckless,” Reina said. “This isn't just a game anymore. We don't know what happens if someone dies here. There's no guarantee we'll come back to life like we did before.”
The four students fell silent.
“At least learn more about this world before wandering into areas filled with Mostro.”
Mina and Hana lowered their heads.
Yux seemed to realize their mistake.
Rian, however, continued staring at the name above Reina's head.
“XOXO...”
Reina turned toward him.
Rian looked her up and down.
“Are you really the original XOXO?”
Reina didn't answer.
A few seconds later, Rian suddenly laughed.
“Haha! No way.”
Reina raised an eyebrow.
“You must be using that name because you're a fan of the legendary player, right?”
Tanaka, standing beside Reina, remained silent.
Rian looked at XOXO again. Judging by her appearance, he was even beginning to suspect that whoever was behind the character might not be much older than he was.
“Maybe you're just a kid like us.”
Reina stared at her student without expression.
If Rian knew who was actually standing in front of him, Reina was certain his attitude would change in an instant.
“Besides, you don't have to lecture us like that,” Rian continued. “Even if you hadn't shown up, I would've beaten those mushrooms eventually.”
“Riz...” Mina tried to stop him.
But Reina wasn't angry.
She knew Rian was a good student at school. It was just that, like many teenagers his age, his confidence sometimes far exceeded his experience.
“I'm not trying to lecture you,” Reina replied. “I just want you to stay alive.”
Rian fell silent.
“We don't even know whether dying here means we'll come back to life or actually die. So until we know for certain, don't risk your lives just to prove you can defeat a few Mostro.”
Reina then turned away.
“Come on, Taka.”
Tanaka looked at the four students for a moment before following Reina.
They walked away from the plaza.
“You really don't want to tell them the truth?” Tanaka whispered once they were far enough away.
“Not yet.”
“Even after he called you a kid?”
Reina kept looking straight ahead.
“Especially after that.”
Tanaka struggled to hold back his laughter.
To Reina, revealing their identities wasn't particularly urgent. They might no longer be inside a game, but for the time being, she still wanted to maintain the boundary between her life as a teacher and her identity as XOXO.
At least until they understood what was really happening.
Behind them, Rian continued watching the blue-haired Rogue as she disappeared into the distance.
For some reason, one thought refused to leave his mind.
The movements XOXO had displayed in Pilon Forest didn't look anything like those of a player who had only just discovered Cosmia Online.