The first thought that came to mind when I played this game for the first time was: this game is insane.
The graphics are so realistic that it's hard to distinguish them from reality if you don't look closely plus the insane amount of freedom that allows players to do whatever they want.
Of course, because of that freedom, there were some f**ked up things, but that actually made people go even more insane.
I've been enjoying City of Seoul, or CS for quite a long time now, almost five years. I gave up on a game I had been playing for almost 5 years because of this game, that says it all.
[Welcome to City of Seoul]
As usual, the game started with flashy effects.
If there was one characteristic of this game, it was this: if your character dies, it's deleted permanently.
So, you had to try countless times, which meant that each round had to be very careful.
Of course, even so, it wasn't easy to survive and the average survival time was 30 days.
Nevertheless, seeing many people going insane and surviving for a long time, this game was really something.
"Savior Crowd"
[Survival Time: 1,652 days, 7 hours]
A middle-aged character holding a revolver in the character window and biting on a cigar.
Among the countless characters created and deleted, this character had survived for the longest time, and was my pride.
"At first, it was really hard."
When I knew nothing, I died at the hands of the National Intelligence Service while playing as a villain.
I tried to make a school drama by enrolling in the Hero Academy, but I became a loner and dropped out. Then, as soon as I became one of the strongest positions in the world, the hero association president, I was assassinated.
There were more than a few times when I wanted to break the computer, but I held back when I thought of my bank balance.
However, maintaining the top position in this game where numerous veterans were falling behind was enough to give me a tremendous sense of achievement, so I couldn't give up.
"Well… I'll see the end today."
And what I'm aiming for now is one thing: World Ranking No.1.
This game was basically a single-player game but there was a ranking system that used achievements and accomplishments, and only one person was above me.
[1st place: ImDOG]
He was the one who was barely ahead of me by just one achievement.
In this game, where even 3rd place has a mere 74% achievement rate, his and my achievement rate is currently at 99.8%.
However, because that guy reached 99.8% first, he was still in 1st place.
And coincidentally, the one remaining achievement for both him and me is this one.
[??]
It was a hidden achievement and there isn't even a hint on how to achieve it.
If even [ImDOG], who is in 1st place, couldn't achieve it, it must be an achievement beyond imagination so today, I promised myself that I would achieve 0.2% no matter what.
As I logged into the game, a different reality, almost like reality itself, unfolded on the monitor.
To achieve this 0.2% achievement, I have tried hundreds and thousands of things.
Becoming a hero receiving everyone's praise.
Turning a whole city into a ghost town.
Conquering a police station while naked.
Assassinating the president with a cotton swab….and the list goes on.
It was madness but today I challenged myself because I found a clue.
[ImDOG: I saw your YouTube and you were doing everything to become 1st place, but you'll never achieve the remaining achievements. Give up.]
A message I received from him yesterday.
After reading the message, I asked him if he knew how to achieve it, and he replied with a playful answer.
[ImDOG: Can you live as yourself, using your own nickname? Haha, I don't think you'll ever achieve it.]
"What the hell is this nonsense?"
Although I was taken aback by his message, I replied to him.
[DarkLord of Underworld: What's wrong with my nickname? Would you like to taste the power of the DarkLord? Haha!]
It was a message sent with the thought of "Screw you."
But the guy who received my message left a meaningful reply.
[ImDOG: Really? Then try it out once. Haha, you'll find out tomorrow when you log in.]
With this, the message ends.
In the end, I logged into the game as the guy had told me to do but as soon as I entered the game, there was a loud explosion followed by a message popping up on the screen.
[Hidden achievement unlocked!]
[The details of the achievement will be revealed through challenges.]
[You can only attempt the challenge once, and if you fail, you can never achieve this again.]
[This achievement can only be held by one person.]
[Would you like to take on the challenge? Y/N]
"What, an achievement that only one person can do?"
That's probably why there was no information beforehand, and the message only had one meaning: the guy who was ranked first had attempted and failed this achievement.
Ultimately, it meant that if I could achieve this, I could take back the first place.
"Even if a man can't eat, he can survive!"
I confidently pressed the Y button and at that moment I lost consciousness.
***
In an empty room with nobody inside an alarm sound indicating a received message came from the monitor.
[ImDOG: ZZZ You're really doing that.]
[ImDOG: Then let's do it.]
[ImDOG: Enjoy it.]
And at the same time, all the messages start disappearing.
[Nonexistent user.]
[Nonexistent user.]
[Nonexistent user.]
[Ranking]
[1st place: DarkLord of Underworld]
[2nd place: Hello Stir-Fried Rice Cake]
[3rd place: Fire Pork Belly Guy]
.
..
…
….
…..
….
..
.
***
"Uh?"
The first thought that came to mind was, 'Why does the ceiling look unfamiliar?'
It was a thought that could have come straight out of a novel, so I chuckled and sat up.
"Did I fall asleep while playing a game?"
Rubbing my sleepy eyes, I stretched and looked around, only to realize that something was off.
"…Where am I?"
One thing was for sure: This was not my room.
First, there was the bed that was dimensionally different and much softer, and the fancy wallpaper. And then, there was the size of the room, which was three times larger than my old apartment.
There was a knock on the door.
"Are you awake, Young Master?"
A voice could be heard from outside.
Since I hadn't yet figured out the whole situation, I didn't answer.
'I'm sure I heard a voice…'
The voice came from outside the door once again.
Gradually, the sound of footsteps became more distant.
"What on earth is going on?"
First and foremost, my eyes were drawn to the computer on one side of the room, so I ran over to it and turned it on.
There were three folders and a trash can on the vintage desktop.
[City of Seoul]
[Jikbakguri]
(Notes: Refer to Porn video folder on the Internet.)
[Game Collection]
Although the folder named "Jikbakguri" bothered me, I noticed a more familiar phrase.
[City of Seoul]
I was convinced that it had something to do with the current situation and immediately clicked on the folder.
Inside the folder, there was a game button that I recognized and a Notepad file titled 'Must Read.'
I clicked on the file as if possessed.
[To those who have played [City of Seoul] in advance, as close beta players, thank you!
You are currently in 'New Seoul', the background of 'City of Seoul', also known as NS, the city.
This service is exclusively available to only one player who has achieved the most achievements among close beta players, and it is a service that allows you to experience CS directly.
The game can only be closed when the ending of the game is reached. Please note that [GAME OVER] is not included in the ending.
We hope you enjoy playing!
※ Interface is provided as a special benefit!
You can check the game's interface through an electronic device.]
"These crazy bastards…!"
While I was cursing like that, CS automatically started running on the computer.
[City of Seoul]
[Loading....]
[Synchronization complete. Welcome to the world, Player DarkLord of Underworld.]
And at the same time, a character window popped up.
There was a character I had never seen before.
[Name: Eugene Han Corleone]
[Gender: Male]
[Description: A half-blood born between Vito Corleone, an Italian father, and Han Wol-young, a Korean mother. He is the successor to the mafia organization Corleone.]
"What the…?"
Eugene, Eugene Han Corleone?
Suddenly, my face appeared on the black screen.
In disbelief, I quickly checked my face again in the mirror in my room and realized what was happening.
"Haha… This is me? It's… him?"
The face on the computer and the one in the mirror were the same.The debut release occurred at N-ov3l=B(j)n.
Of course, I had never created a character like this before.
Well, it's not surprising.
"This is really messed up."
I had somehow entered into the body of Eugene Han Corleone, the character in the game.
***
Understanding the situation wasn't difficult because various tutorials and UI appeared when starting the game as a character.
Through them, I learned how to assess my own status and how to identify with myself.
And they also taught how to connect these UIs to portable devices.
[Name: Eugene Han Corleone]
[Gender: Male]
[Occupation: Heir to the Underworld]
[Specialty:]
" … I couldn't even imagine that the nickname 'DarkLord of Underworld'would be interpreted as 'Heir to the Underworld'."
Fortunately, this character, Eugene Han Corleone was one that I knew.
Well, I couldn't not know him.
He was always a third-rate villain NPC who picked on the player and trusted only his father and organization when starting the game as a player character.
An NPC who always made the player angry by harassing them and eventually got killed by me in a fit of rage, and then I died at the hands of the incoming Mafia in the third playthrough.
I shouted back then why are there such crazy NPC's, but it was different in this case.
"This seems better than I thought?"
A character that appears when you become a veteran player and gives players true despair about what real despair is.
Eugene Han Corleone's father, Don Vito Corleone, was also a notorious scammer character in the game.
I had to memorize his pattern dozens of times to finally beat him, considering how much of a monster he was when playing with a mafia concept.
And now, that NPC is my father, and I am the successor who receives the protection of that father and organization.
In this game, where power and authority are determined by the strength of one's own force and the support of one's own faction due to its unique world view, this was a huge merit.
If we only looked at this, it could be said that he was a first-tier character, but …
"There's one problem. This character is only good on the surface, but in reality, he's a complete garbage character."
If you take the Academy route, you can often encounter this "Eugene," and he was a truly useless character.
The hero's characteristics are a type that appears in various risks, and self-improvement, but because he always had a comfortable life, he had no particular characteristics.
Therefore, usually when playing games, he became a villain to gain power most of the time. Then he would die to his father or other heroes, or to me as the player.
"The future looks dark, really."
As I sighed on the bed, saying that, I heard a knock on the door.
"Young master, there is one hour left until the entrance exam for the academy."
It was the voice of the man who had knocked on the door a while ago.
As I was now no different from Eugene Corleone, I decided to act naturally.
"Let's go."
"Yes, young master."
I remember that Eugene was a character with no backbone.
So, if I act like a person without any backbone, no one would suspect anything.
By the way, I never imagined that the entrance exam for the academy would be on the first day of the game.
Of course, in the game's story, it was customary to enter the academy.
But the problem is that I haven't tried the academy route several times.
Around 23 times?
First, I took a light shower in the bathroom attached to the room.
Wow, do the rich have a shower in every room and use this shampoo and body wash every time?
It smells so good.
I quickly dried my hair and went out of my room, and a delicious smell stimulated my nose. It was coming from downstairs.
I went down the stairs and followed the smell, and a large restaurant greeted me.
And.
"You're late."
The man sitting at the head of the table opened his mouth, and at the same time, the refreshing morning atmosphere suddenly became heavy.
Tick-tock, tick-tock.
The sound of the old clock in the dinner sounded unusually loud.
I felt as if I was being crushed all over my body, and my shoulders sagged involuntarily.
It feels like I have to kneel down right now.
A fear that I had never felt in my life took over my whole body.
I raised my head and looked at the person who was waiting alone.
A black fedora hat and a cigar in his mouth, and a scruffy beard.
That man is Don Vito Corleone, the man everyone fears, the ruler of the underworld.
Now, he is the man who is my father.
"I'm sorry, father."
As I said that and sat down, my father looked at me with a surprised expression. His eyes widened.
"It's surprising that you even use polite language. Have you grown up on the day of the academy entrance exam?"
'Is this guy really going to be so disrespectful to his own father, who is the boss of the underworld?'
I couldn't imagine the monster making such an expression with just one apology.
"I'm almost an adult now, shouldn't I change a little?"
"Hahaha! It's good that you're thinking that now. But maybe because I'm being called 'Father' for the first time. I feel a bit sad because I feel so indifferent.."
I answered with a cool smile, seeing his bitter smile.
"…. You'll get used to it soon, won't you?"
"Hoho, yes. That's how it will be in the end. Since everyone else has finished eating, you should eat and leave too."
Father said that and got up, shaking off the remaining ash from his cigarette.
I was left alone in the restaurant and sighed, looking at the unfamiliar surroundings that I still hadn't adapted to.
Can I really adapt to the life of a mafia family?