The streets of Tullabia were shrouded in darkness. Every streetlamp's bulb was either broken or had been taken by someone.
You wonder how they managed to remove them, but in desperate times, people will find a way. Even without electricity, there are plenty of uses for those bulbs.
In some ways, vagrants are quite eco-friendly. Their bodies may reek, but they consistently recycle.
'Thank goodness I borrowed a flashlight.'
The orange beam of the flashlight illuminated the overturned and broken tiles. Kim Ihyeon walked with the flashlight in one hand, the other loosely clenched in a fist.
He was ready to summon and wield the [Infliction Spear] at any moment. Pre-creating it would be safer, but he needed to conserve his strength.
"It is pretty scary. Maybe I should have asked someone to come with me."
He had, of course, heard all kinds of objections. Pavel had openly called him crazy. He had quickly been scolded by Layla, but still.
He had insisted on coming alone.
Why make such a fuss over a simple night walk? To a vagrant, this was everyday life, and he didn't need help from outsiders.
'Not that they could spare anyone.'
Three people. That was the minimum number they had in mind before coming to Tullabia.
If even one person had followed Kim Ihyeon, it would have been difficult to protect the professor.
With his confident attitude, Layla had no choice but to nod. They couldn't force someone who wasn't their subordinate to do what they wanted.
Instead, she had said,
― Please be careful and come back safely.
― If we don't hear from you by morning, we'll assume you're in danger and come to your aid.
― So… for our sake. Please don't just disappear on us, okay?
The memory made him chuckle.
"She's really too nice."
An idealist who doesn't doubt what she believes in. Many saw her as a 'sweet potato seller girl,' and Kim Ihyeon sometimes found her frustrating too.
But being worried about was not a bad feeling.
She hadn't just said it; she had also given him a precious flashlight and a wristwatch. She had taken the watch from Pavel, who had called him crazy.
"Alright, I've come this far, so I better do well."
0-5. The stage that concludes the tutorial.
It doesn't teach much about the game system, but it fits well as the prologue of the story. It ingrains the world of Polaris into the players' minds.
It's what they call a 'defeat event.'
'If you proceed normally, you're meant to fail.'
Here's the general outline.
After the reconnaissance in stage 0-4, the Shadower directly blocks Layla's group.
Overwhelmed by its sheer power, the group has no choice but to retreat. When it becomes clear that there's no chance of victory, Ghost decides to stay behind alone.
Layla and Pavel, with no other option, flee with the professor. Ghost holds off the Shadower, buying time for his comrades to escape.
He manages to inflict significant damage on the Shadower but ultimately dies. The illustration is beautiful, and there's even dedicated background music.
'I don't understand why they love sacrifices so much.'
This is why Ghost is unavailable later. His star rating wasn't even determined. It wasn't shown in the tutorial either.
With Ghost's death, stage 0-5 ends. And the same text as the previous stage appears when the battle concludes.
[Operation Complete]
[Congratulations!]
'That always felt unsettling.'
It doesn't matter who dies, as long as the player survives. There's no hindrance to progress.
But here's the important point.
All stages can be retried anytime.
'Should we call the developers twisted?'
Polaris has several defeat events. Players, following the story, must inevitably witness the deaths of agents.
But only once.
The developers included a strange feature. All 'impossible stages' have pre-determined agents for the first attempt.
Levels and equipment are fixed. Players cannot interfere.
However, when retrying, the conditions change. Players can use their developed agents.
'It's like saying, if we had these strong characters, that character wouldn't have died.'
It's a devilish prank. And since it's a 'retry,' there's an additional reward. Instead of premium currency, you get unique items.
Simply put, mementos.
In 0-5?
[Ghost's Worn-out Notebook].
'Isn't that too much, you bastards…'
Players cursed the developers while also enjoying it as content. They would create 'what-if' scenarios by clearing with the minimum strength required.
If only they had brought a certain agent. If they had a specific piece of equipment, Ghost or whoever could have survived.
Kim Ihyeon had also cleared all these scenarios.
'I know 0-5 inside out.'
The minimum conditions for clearing are as follows.
1. A well-developed 4-star or higher damage dealer.
2. Ten specific 1-star special equipment.
3. Ten characters to serve as launch pads.
Since the damage dealer can also equip the required items, you need a total of ten agents. Including Layla's group and the professor, that's just half.
It's doable.
'I'll be the launch pads by myself.'
So far, he had confirmed the differences between the game and reality. The skill [Special Equipment Creation], which didn't exist in the game.
Considering all the factors, the success rate was high.
'The problem is I might look like a madman.'
That's why he insisted on going alone. He could explain the skill, but it was still too early for that.
Besides, he didn't know if he would ever reveal everything to anyone. This wasn't an ordinary skill, no matter how you looked at it.
'Especially the limited-use abilities.'
Equipment with a set number of uses. How could he explain knowing and creating such items?
He couldn't just say it was game knowledge. He could predict the misunderstandings that would arise.
If he claimed he just figured it out? What if they mistook him for an all-purpose blacksmith who could make anything?
It was better to use his tricks quietly.
'Where should I set up?'
The stage's setting was further ahead. Layla's group would move from early morning and encounter the Shadower at midday.
'I wouldn't know where.'
He might recognize it if he saw it. He remembered the background.
But how would he find and return to such a place? The roads were complex enough.
'I'll have to find a place around here. Sorry, Layla… but I'll be holed up until noon.'
What's the point of planning if he couldn't find his way? Ghost would die in vain.
'The stage will likely start at a similar time.'
From the Shadower's behavior, he could infer. Why would it pick midday after already locating Layla's group?
That's when the Shadower's spell is at its strongest.
'2:17 PM.'
He remembered precisely.
Polaris often marked the time down to the minute when serious events occurred. It was a common narrative device.
Thanks to that, all conditions were met.
How long had he wandered the streets?
"…Oh. Perfect."
He found a garage attached to a house. The space wasn't large. It had a side door and a front shutter. It was in relatively good condition.
He was lucky. Checking inside, it had already been looted, but that didn't matter.
He had found the place.
Now, all that was left was the hard part.
"Phew."
He had to steel himself. Even if he threw up three times, he had to endure.
Kim Ihyeon activated the [Special Equipment Creation] skill. In his hands appeared a can of paint and a flat brush. Two items that came as a set.
"Games are gross."
Special equipment includes not just 'weapons' but another category: 'support gear.'
Polaris is a triple gacha game.
"Alright, let's paint something awesome."
* * *
The next day. Around 1:30 PM.
"..."
"..."
The atmosphere was bleak.
All four of them, including the professor, were silent, and the tension was palpable. Particularly the stares that felt like they were stabbing him from behind.
"...Sigh."
Layla let out a thunderous sigh. Her face, which had been a mix of emotions, softened.
"I'm sorry about earlier. I was too harsh. We're not even that close."
"Well, um."
Tap, tap.
Ghost tapped Kim Ihyeon's shoulder. When he looked, Ghost made a gesture as if zipping his mouth shut.
He meant to keep quiet.
'It was pretty scary earlier.'
When he returned after noon, only the professor and Pavel were in the abandoned house. Layla and Ghost were searching the area.
After reuniting, he heard all kinds of things.
"But I repeat, I'm glad you're safe. If anything had happened to you… I would have regretted my decision."
It wasn't just about letting Kim Ihyeon go alone. She would have blamed herself for his misfortune after getting involved with them.
Pavel might have said it was his own fault. But Layla couldn't see it that way.
"Okay, I was wrong. I lacked the awareness that I was acting with you guys."
As he apologized, Kim Ihyeon had another thought.
'If I join Selbro Logistics Lab, this will happen often.'
He planned to actively use his game knowledge in the future. He would repeatedly do things that others couldn't understand.
Joining the lab would make him safe but also restrict him. He had thought it was all good
, but there were these drawbacks.
'I need to think about it.'
Being treated like a madman was one thing. But there were other practical issues.
'I'll probably join as a probationary agent.'
He was likely to be part of the reserve operations team. Normally training indoors, it would be hard to move freely even when assigned field missions.
If deemed unsuitable as an agent by the personnel department? Would they send him to the mines?
'Damn. Anything but that.'
He would have to think very deeply.
* * *
2:11 PM.
"...Hyun!"
At Ghost's shout, Kim Ihyeon rolled to the side immediately.
There was no hesitation. He had been on edge for over ten minutes.
Crash!
The shadows of the building's debris rose and smashed where Kim Ihyeon had been. The impact left large and small holes in the ground.
'Is it here…!'
Kim Ihyeon quickly regained his stance. He was ready to dodge again, looking straight ahead.
The marketplace. In the middle of the main street.
Swish.
The shadows around gathered in one spot. They clumped together, forming a human shape. Soon, half the shadows peeled away.
A man with a gaunt figure like a sick patient. Jet-black hair and eyes as red as pooled blood.
Exactly as he looked in the game.
'Hello there, Shadower.'
The 'unbeatable' stage had begun.