Guided by the light of the lantern, I advanced through the musty underground graveyard when I heard the voice of a living creature from up ahead. “Kya kya!” It seemed they had noticed our light. No sooner had I heard the pattering sound of running feet than a small, ugly-faced creature with a green body appeared, holding a weapon. A goblin… Compared to the trial2 version, it feels even more realistic.
Sorry, but you’re no match for me with my god-roll1 Skill. I want to finish the tutorial quickly and move on to the main story, so I’ll have you wrapped up fast.
”Gaga!” “Kya kya!” The goblins cried out toward us as if to intimidate. As if to signal that we had entered combat mode, my racial trait ‘Combat Instinct’ activated. Without even needing to use the ‘Combat Instinct’ Skill, I swung my greatsword at the goblins in a single flash. Five goblin heads simultaneously separated from their torsos. As the headless bodies collapsed to the ground, a window opened.
[Please remove the goblin fangs necessary for the subjugation completion report.]
Prompted by the message, I ripped the fangs from the goblin heads rolling on the ground. Ugh! It was gross in the trial version too, but the Closed Beta version is even grosser.
[Reward: 2000 Regil]
[This concludes the tutorial. If you touch the Save Crystal in the plaza, connection from the Solo Server to the Online Server will begin. Please enjoy your V·F·L·O life.]
Along with the tutorial completion message, money was added to my Leather Pouch again. A total of 3000 Regil, huh. I suppose this is meant for me to outfit my initial equipment, but it’s a pretty meager amount. I have a feeling something that could be converted into cash might be hidden in the underground graveyard of this tutorial dungeon, so let me search a little deeper.
As I continued walking while illuminating my surroundings with the lantern, there was an iron door at the dead end of the passage. Something was engraved on the door.
’※▽▲〇×※●□□△◆※※▽▲〇×※●□□△◆※’
The text display seems bugged, but… Is it a specification where I can’t read it because I haven’t learned the corresponding language? As expected of V·F·L·O, which boasts realistic otherworld reincarnation3. The attention to detail is impressive. The fact that there’s a heavily secured iron door with ominous characters engraved on it means there’s a high probability treasure is hidden beyond it. Anyway, even if I die, I’ll just be sent to the Save Crystal at the plaza fountain and receive a Death Penalty for a fixed time, so it’s worth checking out.
When I touched the iron door, a window opened.
[※▽▲〇×※●□□△◆※※▽▲〇×※●□□△◆※ YES／NO]
It’s garbled, but this must be the final confirmation for internal intrusion. The scent of treasure is getting stronger and stronger. I selected YES and forced the iron door open, and a ringing in my ears and a blinding light enveloped my vision. A trap? I can’t see well because of the light, but-my vision slowly returned. It seems it wasn’t a trap in particular. Was it more like an event production? Pulling myself together, I directed my gaze beyond the door.
The inside of the passage was dark and visibility was poor. While being careful of my footing, I pressed steadily deeper along the wall and encountered a new monster. I immediately faced the monster and readied my greatsword. The enemy is a wolf… A monster that wasn’t in the trial version. A wolf with a large frame and jet-black fur, but in the end it’s just a wolf. For an early-game character, it’s probably around the level of a threat. ‘Combat Instinct’ happens to be active, so let me try using it on this opponent.
”Grrrrr!” As I closed the distance with the wolf, the sound reaching my ears became higher-pitched. When the sound reached its maximum, attacking should trigger a Critical Hit. Listening carefully to the high-pitched sound that continued to rise and fall in waves, I closed the distance further to observe the opponent’s movements. I’ll finish this in one strike.
”Grrrrr!” The wolf aimed at my neck and began to crouch, preparing to pounce. The high-pitched sound continued to rise and fall in sync with the wolf’s movements. 3… 2… 1… Now! When the high-pitched sound reached its maximum, I swung my sword down at the leaping wolf. The greatsword, light as a feather, displayed the words ‘CRITICAL ATTACK’, split the wolf cleanly in two, and with the excess momentum, cut into the ground as well.
Whoa. Awesome, that was a clean split! Thanks to the Musclehead Skill, even a wolf goes down in one hit.
But has the Closed Beta version been updated to faithfully reproduce blood expressions and even the internal organs of monsters? It’s really gross… As I watched the wolf lying on the ground with its entrails scattered about, another monster drawn by the smell of blood appeared. This time it’s a giant chicken… It has bright red feathers and a comb, and it’s flashy. This one also wasn’t a monster that appeared in the trial version.
”Kaawk!” From the crying chicken monster, a thick green breath was exhaled. Hm! Poisonous breath! But thanks to my [Steel Body] Skill, it doesn’t affect me! Ignoring the poisonous breath, I approached the giant chicken, and its beak was swung down at me. I hear a heavy bass sound! I’ll Parry it! I discerned the trajectory of the beak, listened carefully to the rise and fall of the sound, and waited for the timing. Now! Trusting the sound, I held my greatsword forward as a shield. The giant chicken’s beak was deflected by the greatsword, which displayed ‘PARRY’. Against the chicken, whose stance was greatly broken, I heard a metallic sound indicating that a Counterattack was possible.
”Alright! Counter attack!” Matching the sound, I regripped my greatsword and slashed upward from a low stance. The greatsword, which displayed ‘COUNTER ATTACK’, cleanly cut through the giant chicken’s body. The giant chicken, unaware it had died, tried to move but slid apart and fell to the ground.
Phew, perfect timing.
I kicked away the chicken’s corpse, which was bleeding poisonously. The chicken’s entrails, cleanly halved just like the wolf’s, were still twitching. They’d make materials, so I should probably take them back, but I don’t want to get dirty. For now, let me think about what to do after I finish exploring. I left the corpses of the monsters I had defeated where they were and proceeded further down the passage.
Trivia:
- The garbled text on the iron door functions as a language gate, implying the protagonist’s translation ability has limits and that ancient or forgotten languages exist in this world.
- The protagonist’s casual attitude toward death and the Death Penalty system reveals that V·F·L·O players treat mortality as a minor inconvenience, hinting at deeper stakes that may later subvert this assumption.
- The ‘Combat Instinct’ sound-based timing mechanic suggests the game world operates on rhythm and audio cues, rewarding attentive players and possibly foreshadowing enemies that can disrupt or manipulate these cues.
Translation Notes:
1 ↩ A Japanese slang term from gacha gaming culture meaning an incredibly lucky pull or draw. Here it refers to the protagonist having obtained an extremely rare and powerful Skill through luck.
2 ↩ Literally “trial play version,” referring to a demo or beta version of the game. The protagonist distinguishes between the trial version and the Closed Beta version, noting differences in graphical fidelity and content.
3 ↩ “Realistic otherworld reincarnation” — a marketing tagline for the V·F·L·O game emphasizing its immersive realism, combining the isekai (otherworld) genre with VR technology.