Level Up Inquisitor [EN]: Chapter 3

Chosen One (2)

It had only been a day since Woo-jin barely escaped his brush with death.

As expected, he called headquarters, unleashing a torrent of curses and angry shouts. The developers of Warlord hurriedly dispatched personnel to handle the situation.

Their subsequent actions were exactly as Woo-jin had predicted.

They promised to prevent any recurrence with insincere words, offered compensation to silence him, and requested that he not disclose the incident to the outside world.

Woo-jin felt nothing but resentment toward the game company’s attitude.

‘My life was almost taken, and they’re trying to shut me up with a few measly bucks? I won’t accept it, so take it back!’

…….

It was too much money to refuse.

Woo-jin stared blankly at the black briefcase placed before him.

‘1… 100 million [Korean won, roughly $75,000 USD]!’

His eyes widened.

The briefcase was filled with stacks of bills, and the beautiful woman in a suit kneeling across from him didn’t even register in Woo-jin’s eyes.

As Woo-jin remained speechless and dumbfounded, the woman from Warlord’s development team bowed her head and spoke.

“We apologize for the excessively small amount. As compensation for the initial connection error, we have provided the maximum amount we can offer under the agreement.”

‘Dinky… dinky?’

Woo-jin was even more surprised by her words.

Virtual reality games had always included clauses warning about potential risks. Even if side effects occurred, the only compensation was a refund of the account and device costs.

Of course, the situation would be different if someone actually died, but Warlord’s compensation was on a completely different level from what he had expected.

“First, we have confirmed that the issue was definitely not with the connection device, but rather a case of physical unsuitability that was not detected during pre-testing. You have a unique constitution that is not compatible with the virtual reality system… You are the first such case among users worldwide. However, we have resolved the issues discovered through this personal precision examination, so we can guarantee that you will have no problems even if you play again.”

Woo-jin listened to her words in silence before asking a question.

“W-wait a minute. If that’s the *first* compensation… does that mean the amount will be even higher in the second error?”

“Of course. Our game company is staking its name on making up for a single mistake, so if another critical error occurs, we will no longer be able to claim stability. In addition to public outcry, we would have to pay at least 3.5 billion won [roughly $2.6 million USD] in damages. Of course! That will never happen, so please feel free to enjoy our game.”

The woman smiled and said.

After throwing 100 million won in his face, the conversation quickly wrapped up, and Woo-jin’s house was empty once more.

Woo-jin stared blankly at the 100 million won on his living room floor for a while before jumping up.

“Crap, it’s already time for my part-time job.”

Between yesterday’s events and the feeling that he was living in a dream, it was already time to return to the grind of reality.

His convenience store shift was less than 30 minutes away.

As Woo-jin hurriedly changed his clothes, he glanced at the connection device in the corner of the room.

“What if I can’t get out again if I connect? They say there won’t be any problems… How can I play this if my life is at stake?”

Woo-jin kicked the device out of annoyance.

The woman who had visited earlier said that he could get an immediate refund if he wanted, so he planned to get back the account fee and the device price.

Woo-jin sighed deeply and headed out.

“This damn unique constitution… I can’t play the games everyone else is playing this time either. Well, at least I made 100 million won thanks to it.”

Thinking about the money he had received, his mood softened somewhat.

It was more than enough to cover his immediate living expenses and rent, like a welcome rain during a drought.

However, he couldn’t help but feel annoyed as he headed to work.

“I almost died, what thanks! Damn it.”

* * *

“Ugh, there’s no bigger jerk than that. Why did I have to deal with that kind of person on a day like today?”

Woo-jin muttered as he picked up the coins scattered on the floor.

One of the most troublesome cases to watch out for while working the counter – a drunk and disorderly middle-aged man – had appeared and caused a ruckus.

He immediately started with insults, swearing, and finger-pointing, and the grand finale was throwing all the coins he had at the cashier when paying for his last item.

It wasn’t the first time he had experienced something like this in his two years of working there, but he couldn’t help but feel a sense of futility.

‘Even if I put up with this humiliation and work for years, I won’t even make 100 million won, right?’

Of course, it was a really foolish thought in the eyes of others, but after suddenly receiving 100 million won out of the blue, it was hard for him to shake that thought.

After finishing his last tasks and waiting for about twenty minutes, the next employee rushed in.

“Ah, I’m sorry, *oppa* [term used by younger women to address older brothers or male friends]. Am I a bit late today?”

“It’s okay. The cash balance is correct, and I’ve written down the instructions, so I’ll head in first.”

Woo-jin turned away from her apology, packed his things, and left.

Normally, he would have said something, but he wasn’t in the mood to argue with anyone right now.

‘3. 5 billion… If I hit that jackpot, my life would really be turned upside down…….’

* * *

“Hoo, I’m nervous.”

Woo-jin calmed his trembling heart in front of the connection device.

In the end, he couldn’t resist the temptation of the massive compensation and was about to connect to Warlord.

He even set his phone to automatically report him if he didn’t come out after an hour, just in case.

If the device failed again and a critical error occurred, he would receive at least 3.5 billion won in compensation, and his cramped apartment and constant part-time jobs would be gone forever.

Of course, there was also the possibility that the game would connect normally.

However, Warlord had betrayed him and even threatened his life, so he no longer had any expectations in that direction.

He just hoped that he could safely exit the device without any side effects and collect the 3.5 billion won.

As he entered the device, the door closed, and his consciousness began to fade.

Flash!

Connecting to the game was instantaneous.

Tense, he cautiously looked ahead.

“W-where is this……?”

Woo-jin muttered.

It was definitely inside the virtual reality, but it wasn’t the waiting room that appeared during the first connection, nor the black space that had terrified him.

It was a room with white candles, antique-colored pews, and ornate murals.

It resembled the interior of a lavish European cathedral.

The clothes he was wearing had already changed to the basic outfit in the game, but Woo-jin’s gaze was drawn to the statue of a goddess at the very front.

A beautiful goddess wearing dignified armor instead of flowing robes, with a long sword at her waist.

It wasn’t a common combination.

“I definitely… recognize her.”

Her face was so beautiful that he couldn’t imagine it existing in reality, but he had definitely seen it somewhere before.

“That’s right! She was the one who appeared back then……!”

Woo-jin jumped up from his seat.

He had thought he was seeing things when he was trapped in the black space due to the system error.

But as he continued to look at the statue, he realized that the woman who had appeared before him was the subject of this statue, and at the same time, he was able to figure out her identity.

There were seven gods and seven faiths in the world of Warlord, and the goddess of light, ‘Luce,’ who occupied one of those positions, was the identity of the goddess statue in front of him.

‘Why didn’t I recognize her sooner……?’

Even though Woo-jin couldn’t play the game himself due to his constitution, his interest in virtual reality games was at the level of an expert, so his knowledge of the world of Warlord was also extensive.

He knew everything from geography and history to the power struggles between guilds and trivial incidents.

And of course, he knew the appearance of Luce, one of the seven gods of Warlord, well enough to draw it with his eyes closed.

However, when he actually saw the goddess, he didn’t recognize her as Luce at all.

‘Well, she was completely different from the pictures and statues…….’

When he saw her in internet materials, he simply thought she was pretty or cool, but the actual appearance he saw in front of him was completely different.

A radiant, truly righteous goddess.

‘Then this place is indeed inside Luce’s temple…….’

Creak!

At that moment, the door behind Woo-jin opened.

The person who entered was a woman in a neat white robe, who appeared to be a priestess of Luce managing the temple.

She was startled when she saw Woo-jin and stepped back.

“Who… who are you?”

“Ah, well…….”

Woo-jin hesitated, unsure how to explain the situation.

He hadn’t even created a character name yet, let alone a way to introduce himself.

“This is not a place where just anyone can enter! I don’t know what your purpose is, but you shouldn’t think that you can get away with it lightly!”

“No, that’s not it, I’m from the beginning……!”

“Knights! Intruder!”

At the priestess’s shout, knights in white armor swarmed in from outside the door.

The holy knights of Luce, drawing their swords and shields, approached Woo-jin menacingly.

“J-just a moment, let me explain……!”

Thwack!

Woo-jin, who didn’t even have a chance to explain, was punched in the stomach and collapsed to the floor.

* * *

Damp air and a suffocating dark space.

Woo-jin, captured by the knights, was locked in an underground prison beneath the temple.

Aside from the skull rolling around next to him, he was alone in the solitary cell.

“Where is this place?”

“It’s no use pretending. There’s no way you came here without knowing where this is, is there?”

The priestess was firm despite Woo-jin’s question.

Woo-jin then suppressed the frustration that felt like it would burst out of him and asked.

“No, whether I’m pretending or not, just tell me the location! Where is this place really? Just tell me that.”

“…It is Luce’s Temple located in ‘Dubel’.”

‘Hoo… I see.’

Woo-jin, who had finally heard the priestess’s answer, nodded slightly.

He had been thinking about it while trapped in the prison, and as expected, this place was Dubel, the only major city among Warlord’s starting points that had Luce’s Temple.

However, he couldn’t figure out why the game started in Luce’s Temple instead of the beginner’s square.

Furthermore, the user who created the character for the first time was supposed to choose which city to start in.

On the other hand, Woo-jin had skipped even the basic process of creating a character name, let alone that window, so he began to wonder if a different error had occurred due to his constitution, and whether he could receive compensation.

However, the impatient priestess didn’t even give Woo-jin time to think.

“Our side has just finished sentencing you for the crime of invading the temple.”

“What? There hasn’t even been a trial yet?”

“It has been decided that this case is not serious enough to require a trial.”

Woo-jin sighed in relief at her words.

As expected, even if the other party was someone who couldn’t communicate, they wouldn’t punish him severely just for taking the wrong path.

However, that was just Woo-jin’s delusion.

“Then quickly open this door…….”

“You will be burned at the stake.”

“…Excuse me?!”

[You have been sentenced to be burned at the stake!]

[Don’t worry! Thanks to the merciful goddess’s grace, parchment and a quill will be provided to leave your last words.]