Chapter 1
— — —
Height 178cm, weight 120kg.
I was once a physical education student who carried everyone’s expectations, but after an accident, I quit school and became a convenience store clerk—a bespectacled, acne-ridden pig.
That is exactly who I am.
As long as my paycheck was deposited on time, I had nothing more to ask for. It was a life without dreams, without goals, and without aspirations.
*Ding-dong—*
A man with yellow hair opened the door and greeted me the moment he walked in.
"Noona! I'm here!"
Finally, my shift was over.
The guy with the bleached yellow hair was a new part-timer who had joined recently; he was bright and had a knack for getting along with people.
I finished the handover and stepped out from behind the counter.
"Good work."
"Yep."
The male students who had been laughing and chatting while eating ramen suddenly went quiet, glancing at me as I limped out of the convenience store.
To be precise, they were looking at my leg.
After the accident, I became a cripple.
That was the reason I quit school after getting injured.
No one could have predicted that I, who had been called a genius in the sports world since I was a child, would end up like this without ever having a chance to spread my wings.
My life, which had once dreamed of Olympic gold, plummeted in an instant.
My parents divorced around that time, too.
My father was supposed to take me in, but he remarried shortly after, leaving me to live alone in a semi-basement apartment.
I only regained my motivation after living like a wreck when I discovered a virtual reality game through an internet ad.
God of Fighters (GOF).
It’s a virtual reality game where you don’t just pull characters, but "Constellations"—star-like entities—to "possess" and gain their unique combat abilities to fight.
With various modes like 1v1, raids, and battle royales, the fun of choosing how to play is quite satisfying.
I started working at the convenience store just to play that game.
Just before I stepped out of the store, I heard the male students whispering to each other.
"Was that a woman? I thought it was a guy with long hair..."
Is it because of my build?
Even though I keep my hair tied back, I’m sometimes mistaken for a man.
"Hey, shut up. This convenience store clerk is super famous at our school. They say the seniors who tried to buy cigarettes here got absolutely wrecked."
"If you got hit once by that fist, you’d probably die on the spot."
I’ve never actually hit any students, though.
I live quietly, treating the game as my real life, so I have no idea why such rumors started.
'Is it because of my face?'
To be honest, even I get startled every time I look in the mirror, having forgotten what I look like.
Because some violent criminal is staring back at me.
I don't know if the store owner started the rumor to chase away troublemakers, or if the students from the nearby boys' high school made up a ghost story after seeing my face, but I didn't care.
I gave a bright smile to the high schoolers who were watching me with bated breath.
*Heh.*
"...?! *Cough!* *Cough!*"
One student who was eating ramen choked and quickly turned his head away, while another slapped the back of the head of the guy who had been talking, bowing his head repeatedly as if greeting me.
The one who got hit also hurriedly turned to look at me and bowed his head.
'Kids these days.'
Cute.
I smiled even more contentedly at the polite greeting from the strangers and left the store.
I know they’re just intimidated by my appearance.
It doesn't matter if people are startled by my size and ugly face, or if they whisper behind my back while watching me limp.
My real life is inside GOF anyway, and this body in reality is nothing more than a survival machine for playing the game.
* * *
*BOOM!*
The enemy I struck flew through the office window and plummeted.
I chased right after him.
As I jumped through the window, a fierce wind slapped my cheeks.
*Whoosh—*
A tall building where every floor was an office, and a full moon looking down from a height even more dizzying than that.
The city at night.
Pure gravity wasn't enough for acceleration, so I kicked off the window frame.
I ran vertically toward the ground.
*Tap-tap-tap-tap!*
Before the opponent, startled by my insane speed, could even cast a defensive skill, my fist slammed into the dead center of his face.
*CRASH—!!*
A skill erupted from my hand, and a red light left a laser-like trail from top to bottom as it struck his face.
Judging by the expression on the opposing player's face, he seemed to be spewing curses right before the hit, but I had the system muted, so I couldn't hear a thing.
He was probably muted, too.
It’s only natural for all sorts of profanity to fly when you’re fighting like dogs, so everyone keeps it on mute.
*Screeeech—!!*
Unable to withstand the abnormal pressure created by the skill, the building's windows shattered in unison.
The glass screamed like the sharp melody of a violin, and the city lights were captured brilliantly like piano keys jumping within the shards.
Countless pieces of glass glittered in the light of the full moon and the night view.
"Ha... I love this realism so much."
My whole body tingled.
I snatched a piece of glass the size of my palm and continued my descent.
*Clench.*
As I gripped the glass shard tightly, I vividly felt the blade of glass digging deep into my palm, accompanied by a sharp, stinging pain.
It doesn't last long.
The pain sensation system in GOF is truly excellent, but the only downside is that it doesn't show blood flowing.
It should show blood flowing and guts spilling out to be truly realistic.
"Don't they make an adult version?"
As I muttered quietly while throwing away the glass shard, the Constellation replied in a reproachful tone.
【Stop talking like a pervert and hurry up and finish him off.】
The red HP bar above the opposing player's head was flickering dangerously, on the verge of depletion.
He was charging his final skill.
I can't lose.
I flicked two fingers, and the Constellation skill window slid forward.
I should finish him with an area-of-effect skill.
"Here I go."
If you're wondering why there's an AoE skill in a 1v1 match, it's because GOF isn't just about 1v1 matches.
As I prepared the Constellation skill, the Constellation chimed in.
【You've already won, you know? It's a waste.】
I know that the consumed Constellation skill energy doesn't reset after one match, so it's better to save it in situations like this, but.
I glared fiercely at the blue star that followed me around like a piece of gum.
"Shut up, you piece of data."
【...】
A game is obviously meant for the player to have fun.
No matter how much it pretends to be a sentient being, the opinion of a star that is nothing more than a piece of data in a game isn't worth listening to.
*Whoosh!*
A long-range skill flew toward me.
I had been descending while keeping my feet braced against the building wall, and I kicked off the wall and leaped with all my might.
As if he had anticipated it, the enemy's rapid-fire attacks chased me relentlessly.
Wow, that grazed me.
Bastard.
【Let's see if you can ignore me once you find out who I am. To treat this body like a piece of data after I explained it so clearly.】
The piece of data chirped.
I really need to send a complaint email asking why the Constellation's chatter to the player can't be muted before the game ends.
【I'll say it again, among the Constellation AIs, there are real Constellations—】
"Shut your trap."
【Damn it.】
As I rushed in with my fist clenched, the opposing player dodged nimbly as if mocking me and raised his middle finger.
He thinks that because he's on the ground, he has the speed advantage.
But he never would have guessed that I would use an AoE skill when the HP gap was this wide.
That was my trap.
As soon as I cast the skill, Constellation possession occurred with a blue flash, and a voice with an accent different from mine flowed from my lips.
"【Attention seeker.】"
This game really needs a system to block Constellation bullshit.
*BOOM!!*
As I slammed my hand into the ground, the Constellation's AoE skill activated.
*Abnormal Gravity Zone Generated.*
Inside the hemisphere where the sticky blue energy spread like clouds in an instant, the enemy's movements became extremely sluggish, as if submerged in molten iron.
The opposing player, who had been cursing with his expressions, flinched.
I closed the distance in an instant, grabbed his middle finger and snapped it, then struck his chin with my other fist.
*CRASH!*
The enemy's body flew up, and a large message appeared in the air.
[K.O!]
[You Win!]
The victory notification appeared.
However, I didn't stop and poured a barrage of punches onto the opposing player's character, which had become incapacitated.
*Thwack-thwack-thwack-thwack-thwack—*
It’s a form of teabagging called "corpse-beating."
Beating the opposing player like a punching bag when they can't even move after the victory is a great way to relieve stress until the very end.
Even the fantastic AoE lightning show that burst out in unison, glittering in the deep darkness.
*Flash,*
*CRACK-BOOM—!!*
"Phew. That clears my head. That was fun."
【Boring. Bring me someone stronger.】
"..."
This damn star.
I glared at the piece of data that was raining on the player's parade, then moved to the waiting room.
* * *
My GOF character is a cool female character, 178cm tall with her hair tied up in a bun.
I chose a decent base model, gave her eyes a charismatic look, black hair, red eyes, and the same height as me, resulting in a character that looked quite sophisticated yet had a bit of a temper.
She was a beauty who looked like she could make a few thugs cry, which perfectly matched my taste.
"If I looked like this in reality, I wouldn't have any other wishes."
Setting aside the fact that she had a handsome, cool face that flowed with charisma—as expected of a VR game avatar—I was most envious of her healthy legs.
Actually, there are many things I'm envious of.
"If I had just a few skills, I'd wipe the floor with those ranker-level Hunters."
Those beings called Hunters are unlucky, enviable bastards who play raid games in reality, and they are superpowered individuals who deal with monsters that pop out of gates with their insane abilities.
They usually belong to guilds or national Hunter agencies.
Guilds made a lot of money from monster hides, mana cores, or magic crystals that could only be mined in gates.
'Must be nice to make so much money.'
There’s a rumor that God of Fighters (GOF) is a training game made for Hunters.
As a ranker in the game, I couldn't help but be deathly envious of those Hunter bastards who awakened and raked in the cash.
‘If I were a Hunter, I’d be raking in the money, too. Though I’d have to fix my leg first.’
In reality, I was nothing more than a convenience store clerk.
They say games are meant to provide the desires and sense of accomplishment that are hard to taste in real life, but sometimes, the massive gap between the game and reality hit me hard.
Especially since I was a top-tier ranker in God of Fighters.
As soon as I moved to the waiting room, I was muttering to myself while looking at the large mirror reflecting my image, when a clueless Constellation suddenly butted in.
【Shall I make it happen? It requires a price, but there’s nothing that can’t be done.】
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