A dry sandstorm swept across a vast, barren land. In the distance stood grand buildings, excessively adorned with flashy decorations that seemed completely out of place. These elegant structures looked like they belonged on the grounds of a luxurious estate, so exquisitely designed that even their slightly worn appearance added to their charm. Their presence here, in this desolate and contextless place, felt jarringly out of place. The withered trees planted here and there were the only evidence that this location might once have been some kind of estate.
‘Well, who cares if it doesn’t fit. I’m sure the developers had something in mind.’
<Celestial Wind> was a massive major MMORPG that had consistently held the top spot in the popularity rankings for virtual reality games since its release, thanks to its expansive lore and meticulously crafted storyline. Because of the game’s enormous server volume, updates weren’t as frequent as other games, but its existing systems, immersive story, large user base, and regular large-scale updates helped maintain a loyal player base.
The name of the latest main story chapter update in <Celestial Wind> was <Chase>, the first in quite a while.
‘Was the last one the necromancer overhaul update?’
It wasn’t unusual for the game to go long between updates, but even considering the usual cycle, this one had been particularly delayed. That only meant the developers had likely poured their ambitions into every corner of it. This was a game notorious for its Easter eggs and hidden stories, so there was no telling how long everything would take to uncover. A bubbling mix of competitive ambition to conquer all the content and the desire to play carefully and thoroughly began to rise.
Calm down. There’s no point in getting impatient right now anyway.
Like any MMORPG, <Celestial Wind> offered players a wide range of content and freedom of play, but it stood out for placing the highest value on ‘the story itself.’ Players who skipped the story—often dubbed ‘skip rats’—couldn’t reach high rankings, and failing to progress through the main quest in a timely manner made staying in the top rankings a pipe dream.
The reason was simple. The game’s ranking system included contributions to the main storyline, and completing certain conditions within the story would often unlock hidden quests known as hidden stories.
Hidden stories were side quests that branched from the main storyline. Unlike standard quests, they had no quest-giving NPC indicators, nor were they marked on the map. You had to read the quest text and deduce everything from there. Naturally, it was difficult and exhausting.
But still, many players pursued hidden stories relentlessly—for one simple reason: hidden rewards.
Some hidden rewards were practically useless, but many offered outrageously overpowered effects. Since hidden story quests required specific, often obscure conditions, only a tiny fraction of players could access them. Because so few players used the resulting items or skills, they were rarely ever subject to balance patches. It went without saying that most top-ranked players had completed numerous hidden stories.
There was even a viral clip—over 8 million views—of top-ranked player and famous <Celestial Wind> streamer <Nam Wookyung> getting a hidden story snatched by another player while he was casually chatting with fans mid-broadcast. Sure, as a streamer, the views probably made up for losing that hidden quest. But for someone like the protagonist? If that happened right in front of them, they’d be ready to destroy that bastard—even if it meant getting banned from every city.
That was why Limousine had logged into the game in broad daylight the moment the <Celestial Wind> update announcement dropped.
< Clan Elder ‘Americano’-nim has logged in. >
[Clan] Americano: Wow, you’re already logged in?
[Clan] Americano: Mousine, you should get outside and exercise a little ㅠ
[Clan] Limousine: You should play the game
[Clan] Americano: ㅋㅋㅅㅂ fuck why are you getting pissed off at this?
Even though he was only a minute late logging in, Limousine gave a polite greeting to the guild member, pretending to leisurely enjoy the game, and looked around. Even considering that it was right after the update, there were barely any people around.
<Celestial Wind> operated on a system where your class was chosen at creation, and your sect, faction, and even character development paths expanded exponentially depending on your progression in the main story and hidden storylines. Because of this, even players going through the same story arc often start from different points. Limousine and Americano barely had overlapping quests in the last chapter, so it made sense that Americano was nowhere near where Limousine had spawned.
Limousine checked the quest.
< Faint Traces >
There was a report of a red spider lily blooming on a corpse. Following the lead, you’ve arrived at a gloomy, unnamed manor.
Let’s look around and see if there are any clues.
Since all it said was to ‘look around,’ it basically meant to comb through a stupidly massive map that couldn’t even fit on one screen. Walking around until sunset, great. Letting out a sigh, Limousine started moving.
In the previous chapter, the quests followed the trail of an unofficial conflict between the righteous and demonic factions. Just when suspicious inconsistencies were being investigated, the story abruptly ended. At the time, it felt like it was cut off in the middle, making the whole thing feel anticlimactic—but it seemed like this chapter was picking up right from there. Apparently, Limousine’s storyline hadn’t been that critical, as his story contribution score had been rated low, and he’d had a hard time climbing the rankings.
The last update had been nine months ago, but since some parts of the story required player cooperation or prior progress in certain hidden quests, the overall story had only wrapped up three months earlier. After all that running around on the map for half a year, getting such a crap contribution score still grated on his nerves. If the same thing happened this chapter…… he’d destroy everything. Limousine made a firm vow, though it wasn’t clear to whom or what.
The number of pavilions scattered around was surprisingly high. As he approached the nearest one, a carving on the pillar caught his eye. Was it an object related to the story? Limousine absentmindedly brushed his hand over the carving.
< You have discovered the hidden area [Seventh Trial]! Would you like to enter? >
One of Limousine’s eyebrows subtly arched. If there was a seventh, then somewhere there had to be a first. So, which one was the first? He closed the window and looked up, scanning the other pavilions. Heading to the nearest one, he checked the pillar—it was a snake.
“The Twelve Zodiac Signs.”
<Celestial Wind> featured a rare East Asian-inspired worldbuilding, and there were only a few mythologies where animals like snakes and horses would show up together. He couldn’t remember exactly what number the horse was, but thinking in terms of the Chinese zodiac, the seventh seemed about right. Horses were decently fast, after all. Grabbing at random thoughts, he searched for the pavilion with a pillar carved with a rat and placed a hand on it.
“Huh?”
Unlike before, no window popped up. Was this not it? He touched every other pillar on the remaining pavilions, but only confirmed that the pop-up windows still worked fine. The moment Limousine realized it wasn’t a bug, his brows furrowed. Who the hell went in before me?
If this were a normal game, Limousine might’ve assumed only one person could enter at a time and just waited for whoever was inside to come out. But this was <Celestial Wind>. Even if someone came out, there was a high chance no one else would be allowed to enter that spot again, or they’d get a different reward instead. Anyone who entered at this time was definitely the first entrant, so they were sure to get a good reward.
Seeing that the other pavilions were still accessible, it seemed like entering a different one wasn’t an issue. First would’ve been ideal, but second…… Ah, Limousine really didn’t want second. Seriously, who the hell was it? With a sulky turn of the body, Limousine headed toward the ox pavilion he’d seen earlier.
< You have discovered the hidden area [Second Trial]! Would you like to enter? >
He accepted without hesitation, and the screen flickered as the background changed. The way a weapon automatically materialized in his hand meant this was a dungeon. Before he even had time to fully survey his surroundings, something came flying at his head. Limousine instinctively ducked and tightened his grip on the staff.
The combat system in <Celestial Wind> was somewhat unique. Unlike most MMORPGs with clearly divided roles like tank, damage dealer, and healer, this game had a blurred line between roles. Every class had a skill tree that could draw monster aggro, and each had self-healing and defensive skills. While there were classes more suited to tanking or with wide-area healing abilities, good players could tank and survive on their own. Because of that, many <Celestial Wind> players were especially obsessed with their mechanical skill. The more serious someone was about the game, the more that held true.
As for Limousine, he’d practically bet his life on the game.
“Meditation.”
< You enter a state of meditation. Maximum HP, Attack, and Defense increase by 10%. >
As he activated the combat buff, he lowered his body and swept the staff horizontally. Even without seeing the target’s position, the attack landed with a solid, deep impact.
[Aaaargh!]
Looking up, Limousine saw a strapping man at least twice his size stumble back, screaming. Judging by his ridiculous bulk, he was definitely not a player. And since NPCs couldn’t be damaged, this guy had to be a monster. But…… was he not the one who attacked first? Then why start with an attack? Limousine stared at him with a tilted posture.
[Wh-What the? You’re not the one the Rat General spoke of!]
“The Rat General? Who the hell is that?”
[The challenger appearing for the first time in thousands of years turns out to be some random nobody?!]
The man, rubbing his shin with a scowl, grew agitated at Limousine’s disinterested reply. Now that he looked closer, there was an elaborately embroidered ox on the hem of the man’s pants.
[Originally, the one who defeated the Rat General should have come to me…… but instead, some unwelcome guest shows up.]
Judging from that, he must’ve been waiting for the bastard who went into the first pavilion. So doing things in order was the intended path. The hunch he’d had was confirmed, and a crooked grin curled on Limousine’s lips. Well, since this run was already messed up, he might as well make sure that other guy didn’t have too easy a time.
“What, am I not allowed in or something? This discrimination’s gonna kill me.”
Since damage was landing, it wasn’t a monster he couldn’t defeat alone—might take a while, but doable. Should he just kill him and leave? Almost like he sensed Limousine’s impulsive temperament, the man spoke again, perfectly timed.
[Well, ideally it would be the challenger, but I can’t exactly kick out someone who’s already entered. If you overcome this trial, there will be something to gain.]
Now this was an unexpected stroke of luck. Limousine’s mind began spinning. A branching storyline? A hidden-hidden quest?
[Walking a difficult path alone or together—neither is bad.]
“Cut to the chase. What’s the trial?”
[It’s only the second, so it’s still easy.]
The man gave a sly smile. Limousine noticed that his HP bar had fully regenerated. Floating above his head was the name ‘Ox General.’
[Try and take the crystal shard on my crown.]