Chapter 2
The holographic window before my eyes flashes frantically.
So what's this new user alert, anyway? [12]
Information about a new user even the head mod doesn't know...txt [38]
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Title : I've figured out the newbie's identity...
Author : Ant Queen
What, like hell I would, fuck, lol. Someone please tell me.
Please take a look at photos of my adorable little ones too, hehe.
Comments
ㄴKing-Jjang Evil Spirit : Jesus fuck, seriously.
ㄴSquint-Eyed Character : No trolling.
ㄴDIP : Hmm...
ㄴGolem King : Here we go again.
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Dungeon Gallery.
A gallery you can access without even needing a computer.
Even in this rapidly advancing twenty-first century, I'd never experienced anything this strange.
It's a gallery I've never seen before.
At this point, it seems the biggest topic of discussion is me.
And that makes sense.
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Title : If the newbie sees this post, leave a comment.
Author : Orange★
I know you're looking at my message right now.
Where are you, you son of a bitch????
This is my first time dealing with something like this, and I'm fucking bewildered...
Reveal your identity right now or I'll ban you.
Comments
ㄴAnonymous Butcher : Did the admin show up?
ㄴSquint-Eyed Character : Hahahahaha, this is the first time I've seen the head mod flustered...
ㄴKing-Jjang Evil Spirit : And with that, the theory that this was the head mod's prank has been shattered to pieces, yeah.
ㄴMental Ward's Top Patient : For real? This isn't fake?
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Some guy who looks like the gallery admin is threatening me.
I quickly left a comment.
ㄴNewbie : Wait a sec, fuck.
ㄴSycophantic Dog : Wow, the man himself has appeared. Hi hi hi.
ㄴAnt Queen : Hey, are you really a new user??
ㄴDIP : Oh...
ㄴI'm the Only One Without Minions : Smells lewd.
ㄴMagic Hero : H-h-h-hello... could you maybe say hi to me once...
This gallery doesn't even have a private message function.
Damn, this is getting a lot of attention.
ㄴOrange★ : So you've finally spoken.
ㄴNewbie : I mean... I didn't know what was going on either, so I was just dazed;;
I couldn't afford to waste the only chance I had to communicate with another person(?) in this situation.
ㄴNewbie : Please spare a thought for the guy who woke up and suddenly found himself inside a cave...
ㄴNewbie : I woke up to find myself inside this fucking creepy-ass cave, so I don't know what's what either...
ㄴNewbie : I wasn't ignoring you on purpose...
After explaining the situation clearly, a moment later.
ㄴOrange★ : For real?
ㄴWhaleWhaleYeah : 'For real?' My ass, lol.
ㄴGolem King : Give me back the cool, aloof head mod I lovedㅠㅠ
ㄴSealed Conqueror : Seeing the head mod lose his cool too, there must really be something going on.
ㄴOrange★ : Hmm...
Newbie : I really don't know anything, so what the hell is Dungeon Gallery?? Besides the gallery, I can see weird hologram-like stuff everywhere—I'm not crazy, am I??
Did my earnest plea break through the text?
His attitude had softened even more than before.
Orange★ : Dungeon Gallery is a community where Dungeon Masters talk to each other.
Orange★ : The weird hologram you're seeing is a kind of power visible only to those chosen by Oblivion, and we just casually call it the system, yeah.
Orange★ : I need to check something, so look under the hologram; there should be a small number written there. Take a photo of that and the status window and send them together.
Dungeon Gallery and Oblivion, huh.
Even after hearing the explanation, there were still so many things I didn't know that I couldn't really understand it.
I'll figure it out as I go.
I operated the screen as Orange instructed.
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LV. 1
Class - Dungeon Master
Dungeon Theme – Null
Population – 0/50
Device count - 0/50
Point - 5000
STR - 3
DEX - 3
CON - 3
MP – 3
UN – Newbie
UC - dm_6_666666666
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Would this work as a screenshot?
I took a photo and sent it.
ㄴOrange★ : So it's not a fake... Then what you're saying is really true?
ㄴSealed Philosopher : Wow, Lv. 1, it's been forever since I saw one.
ㄴGolem King : Sss... this is the real deal, a new Dungeon Master.
ㄴKongKong : The user code is a bit different from ours too, isn't it? Why is it all sixes?
ㄴSquint-Eyed Character : Interesting. Have you ever fended off a wave before?
ㄴSealed Conqueror : Newbie, have you picked a dungeon theme yet??
ㄴSycophantic Dog : Newbie, are you perhaps human??
ㄴI'm the Only One Without Minions : Smells lewd... Newbie, can you tell us your dungeon coordinates too??
No way…
ㄴDIP : Do you like winter?
ㄴKing-Jjang Evil Spirit : Newbie, if you haven't picked a dungeon theme yet, come with me and go with a death theme, yeah.
ㄴMagic Hero : H-h-h-hello... could you maybe leave me one comment...
Once I verified it with a photo, the reaction was even more explosive than before.
The gallery users, like me, seemed to have plenty of questions too.
ㄴOrange★ : From here on out, anyone who comments below this except the newbie gets a one-day timeout.
ㄴAnt Queen : Newbie's cute.
ㄴAnt Queen : Ah, fuck, bad timing.
【This user has been temporarily blocked.】
The heated atmosphere went quiet in an instant.
Is this the power of the guy they call the head mod?
At the very least, in this gallery, the head mod seems to wield absolute power.
Orange★ : Then there's one last thing I want to ask—do you remember anything?
Newbie : Memories?
Orange★ : Yeah. Those chosen by Oblivion gain power in exchange for losing their memories. Dungeon Masters like us also get a dungeon as a bonus. Anyway, do you have memories of where you were born, what you've been through, or, say, your parents?
Newbie : I do have memories...
I actually have a very good memory.
I even remember what I had for dinner a week ago.
Orange★ : This is the first case like yours, so I'm fucking baffled...
Newbie : Really?
Orange★ : Yeah... except for you, none of us has any memories from before we became Dungeon Masters.
Newbie : Hmm...
Orange★ : Anyway, it's not important. How long until the next wave?
Newbie : It says 24 hours...
The head mod didn't post anything for a while.
Looks like he's preparing a long post.
Orange★ : Listen carefully from here on.
Orange★ : The current situation may be bewildering, hard to accept, and maybe even dizzying.
Orange★ : But first, there's one thing you need to know, and that's that the situation you're in is basically the same as standing in the middle of a battlefield.
Orange★ : A dungeon, simply put, is a place where an enormous amount of treasure is buried. That's how people see it. If you conquer a dungeon even once, you can make enough money for three generations to live on, and on top of that, you can gain tremendous power.
Orange★ : So what do you expect? Of course a lot of bastards would want to conquer a dungeon, right?
Orange★ : You're the owner of that dungeon... and the biggest obstacle to those bastards.
Orange★ : Anyway, to sum it up, enemies are going to come pouring in from now on.
Orange★ : A wave is the timing when intruders can enter a dungeon—in other words, the invasion cycle. Dungeon Masters like us have to prepare for invasions.
Orange★ : If you don't want to die, that is.
That's a terrifying story, one that made me want to deny it.
Honestly, I'm not sure I should believe it at face value.
Unfortunately, in this situation, these guys are the only ones I can trust.
It won't be too late to decide whether it's real after I hear the whole story.
Orange★ : What's the dungeon address?
Newbie : Hold on
Dungeon address, dungeon address—this must be it, right?
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Dungeon Protocol Address - (321, 532, 444, 5.)
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Orange★ : Fortunately, it's the Roujinrat Great Mountain Range.
Newbie : Why?
Orange★ : Smart races like humans, elves, and dwarves don't live in the Roujinrat Great Mountain Range. The smarter they are, the more troublesome they get, so that's a relief, yeah.
Newbie : For real?
Orange★ : Yeah, but there are also bastards like trolls that are strong and have great regeneration, so it's not a completely safe place.
Newbie : Those bastards invade dungeons too?
That's a little hard to imagine.
Orange★ : Regardless of race or intelligence, dungeons have a power that enchants all living things. Think of it as instinct. If you're unlucky, even wyverns or dragons can show up.
Newbie : Seriously...
Orange★ : Still, there aren't any monsters that strong there. Don't worry too much.
Orange★ : I also need to start preparing for the wave... If you have questions, ask the people here. You can use the search function too.
Orange★ : We're all just a bunch of idiots, but for us, the world is a fucking battlefield, so there's nowhere else to rely on but here. More or less, everyone will be kind to you.
Orange★ : Repel the wave, and if you have time, check the gallery notices too. Okay?
Newbie : The head mod is a good person... thanks...
Orange★ : No need to thank me. Survive a long time. It'd bother me if the first newbie to show up in decades died.
Newbie : Okay, okay, I'll try my fucking hardest. But am I the only newbie?
Orange★ : Yeah, you're the only one.
Newbie : Why?
Orange★ : To explain that, I'd have to explain Oblivion too, but that's not important right now, so I'll tell you later.
I think of myself as someone who's pretty skeptical.
But.
What I felt through this conversation with the head mod was that, at the very least, these guys don't seem to be lying.
Besides, a guy who's the admin wouldn't have any reason to go to such lengths to lie while controlling other users and spending his own time on it.
Unless I've gone insane and am seeing hallucinations.
It would be better to ask the gallery users for help.
The matter of trust was a separate issue, but in any case, I had no choice but to believe them.
Orange★ : You can talk now, guys, yeah.
ㄴWhaleWhaleYeah : You really have your memories too??
ㄴMagic Hero : P-please leave me a comment just once...
ㄴDIP : If it's the Roujinrat Great Mountain Range, most of them will probably be goblins. Could you share an effective way to hold them back?
ㄴSquint-Eyed Character : But there's no guarantee only goblins will come in. If you're unlucky, trolls or orcs could come in too. I'm pretty well-versed in wave defense. I've even held back the East Kingdom's royal knights before. Would you like to talk with me for a moment?
ㄴSycophantic Dog : What race are you, newbie, by any chance???
ㄴI'm the Only One Without Minions : Don't you want to walk the path of the lone wolf too?
I looked over the countless comments.
So this is that newbie pile-on thing, huh.
This was the first time I'd received such intense attention, but I didn't have the luxury of getting excited.
Newbie : Thanks, everyone. Then let me ask a few questions.
What lay ahead was an unknown hurdle.
If survival was the priority, I needed to gather as much information as possible.
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