Chapter 4

Chapter 4
Chapter: 4

## Chapter Title: Logout

‘Hydragon’s Soul!’

The specific titles were seared into my vision.

I was unable to divert my attention from the prizes suspended in mid-air.

『Hydragon’s Soul (Raid)

Invokes and commands a Hydragon (Lv.5).

Power increased by the unique characteristic ‘Beast Lord.’』

To start, the essence of a raid boss.

I was aware such things were possible, but I had never actually laid eyes on one until now.

Despite completing over a thousand hunts, this item had never dropped for me.

This was a top-tier relic that permitted the summoning of a Hydragon through a stone housing its spirit!

The ‘soul’ of a raid boss was the single most difficult treasure to obtain. It could be worn as gear or brought into the fray as an ally, yet its extreme rarity meant none had ever surfaced on the market.

‘Only one has appeared in the five years since the game went live.’

In the hierarchy of boss drops, the Hydragon’s Soul was even more elusive than the others. A single one had surfaced three years prior—and that was the end of it.

Even then, its existence was only whispered about on message boards through a blurry photograph. It was held by a player no one recognized, and the character itself was a total mystery to me.

‘People speculated it belonged to a developer.’

In many ways, securing this soul was a greater feat than finding a unique-grade piece of equipment.

I was paralyzed by the weight of it. In a normal situation, I would have flooded the forums with screenshots.

The realization that it synergized with a hidden trait was the ultimate bonus. A surge of literal energy raced through my nerves.

‘And Michella’s Sword is here as well.’

There was more.

A colossal claymore. A metal slab that appeared to weigh significantly more than 10kg shimmered with a fierce light.

『Michella’s Sword (Raid) (Set)

The blade wielded by the titan knight Michella, the slayer of the original Hydragon. Saturated with the dragon’s hex and the knight’s resolve.

Usage Requirement – Strength 20+

Triggers ‘Michella’s Power (Strength +3)’ when held by a person of integrity.

Gather three components of Michella’s armor to invoke ‘Heavenly Dragon.’』

There wasn’t a superior weapon for navigating the opening stages of the journey.

For those specializing in blades, it offered the highest efficiency imaginable. Equipment that provided raw stat injections usually didn’t appear until the middle of the game.

It even featured a set enhancement.

By uniting the blade, the plate, and the helm, one gained ‘Heavenly Dragon,’ a shape-shifting ability. Draconic wings would emerge from the spine, granting the power of flight for long durations.

‘Michella’s gear is the only way to bypass those grueling nightmare zones. But obtaining it this early is usually a pipe dream…’

It was a tool for pinpointing high-yield grinding spots, obscured vaults, and secret objectives.

However, getting it was nearly impossible. You needed the full trio for the effect, and the drop chances were abysmal.

Michella’s Sword was notoriously the hardest part of the set to find. Luck had truly favored me.

‘But what exactly is this Fragment of the Broken Golden Rule?’

I recognized the first two rewards instantly.

But this. This metallic disc was a total enigma.

『Fragment of the Broken Golden Rule (???)

A shard of the shattered Golden Rule.

Permits ‘synchronization’ between the physical world and Pangeniar. Can be switched On/Off (duration: 24 hours).

Redeemable at the ‘Golden Rule Shop.’』

Every word was foreign. The Golden Rule, the specialized shop—I had never heard of them.

Most shocking of all was the mention of linking with the real world.

“This is madness…?”

The Snake Princess scowled when she caught my quiet remark.

“…It is not madness. Snake Princess Isabella.”

I quickly gathered the items into my inventory.

Snake Princess Isabella von Dersian.

She gave me a lingering, skeptical look before addressing the armored sentinel.

“Provide him an escort.”

“Pardon? But the sovereign gave orders to execute all of them…”

“He is one of the Returned. He must be received with the highest level of hospitality.”

Paysalmer, the sprawling metropolis of the sands.

A realm of total autocracy commanded by the queen!

Within that city, I had suddenly been elevated to the status of an honored guest, provided with a massive, opulent estate all to myself.

‘Who could have guessed that the character I developed would become the second most powerful figure in Paysalmer.’

I sat in the palace, lost in contemplation while staring out at the view.

During the trek here, I had pieced together that Isabella was one of the true movers and shakers of Paysalmer. I saw it in the way the veteran legionnaires bowed to her authority.

The desert’s elite warriors answered only to the monarch or those who held her favor.

“Would you care for a washing?”

Turning toward the sound, I saw five striking women standing in perfect formation.

The estate was at my disposal. It was a private sanctuary, yet it was populated entirely by women. And not just any women, but beauties in the prime of their lives.

…This was essentially a harem.

The level of detail was too intense for a mere simulation. I could see the pulse in their necks. Every inhalation sounded visceral and real.

The women were draped in nothing but translucent fabrics, leaving very little of their curves to the imagination.

Even with the stabilizing influence of the Iron-Blooded Lord’s Heart, the primal reactions of a man were hard to suppress.

“Just attend to my feet.”

“As you wish.”

I kept my tone as flat and clinical as I could.

They gathered water in earthen bowls and knelt before me with practiced grace.

The washing of the feet.

A traditional Paysalmer ceremony for welcoming those from the outside.

If an outsider isn’t washed upon arrival? They are considered property. If they are washed, they are considered a guest of honor.

I was a guest. A person of vital interest to the Snake Princess.

‘The Paysalmer ordeal.’

I realized this entire display was a trial orchestrated by Isabella.

A True Star Awakener wouldn’t succumb to carnal desire. She would be watching for my slip-up. Yet, if I rejected the ritual, I would be branded as a barbarian who didn’t respect desert culture.

Therefore, the only path forward: permit the ritual while staying perfectly detached.

Splash.

The sound of water mixed with the sensation of soft palms touching my skin.

Their hands were perfect. It was skin-to-skin contact.

Ten different hands began to work the stiffness out of my feet.

The sensation was like being brushed by silk.

I struggled to pivot my internal focus.

‘Is there actually a path back to my own world?’

I had been dragged here during character creation.

Yet, references to reality kept surfacing within this simulation.

That implied an exit existed.

‘There’s no visible logout option. No way to force the system to close… wait a second.’

A flash of inspiration hit. I summoned my character overview.

Level: 2

Strength: 24 Stamina: 24 Agility: 24 Intelligence: 24 Mana: 24

…

[Time remaining until Pangeniar Collapse: 7.66%]

I grimaced.

The stat progression was bizarre, but the text at the bottom was what mattered.

It had been 6.12% when I first checked.

Finishing the primary objective had pushed it up by 1.5%.

Did this mean Earth and Pangeniar would merge when the counter hit 100%?

‘There was a notification about a Hall of Fame earlier. What was that about?’

That wasn’t the only mystery.

However, the Hall of Fame question was answered almost instantly.

Just thinking about it caused a new interface to appear.

[1st, 220 points. Randolph]

[2nd, 195 points. Gracia]

[3rd, 187 points. MintChocoDelicious]

[4th, 170 points. Black Night]

[5th, 163 points. Massacre]

…

‘…Excuse me?’

I saw names I knew.

Particularly ‘Gracia’ and ‘MintChocoDelicious’—people I had played Pangeniar with for years.

I had assumed they just stopped playing when they went offline for good.

‘They didn’t quit; they were abducted into Pangeniar just like I was?’

I felt like I’d been hit by a freight train.

It wasn’t just my digital avatar here.

The people I used to raid with were here too.

And more importantly.

‘Logout…’

I could exit. I could leave this nightmare of a game!

“Cease.”

The women working on my feet stopped instantly at the sound of my stern voice.

“Master…?”

“Everyone leave. I require solitude to commune with the celestial bodies.”

“But sir…”

They looked bewildered. Foot washing was sacred in Paysalmer. To end it prematurely was a bad omen.

I understood the risk, but I had no other choice.

“If I miss the window for communion, a Star Awakener’s power fades. Go ask the Snake Princess if she wants to be responsible for my decline.”

“Oh…”

The women bowed their heads.

It was just as I thought; they were all informants for Isabella.

I already knew her motives for bringing me to this place.

“We wish you a successful communion.”

They offered a deep bow and filed out of the room.

…Phew. That was a close call. The flimsy lie actually worked.

Once the room was empty, I sat in a meditative pose. I then focused on the red logout icon blinking at the edge of my peripheral vision.

My surroundings blurred and darkened.

And then.

The environment shifted entirely.

“…”

I sat there, staring at my lap in silence.

I was in my computer chair. I was wearing my stained white tee and the cheap black sweats I bought at the discount market.

There was a bottle overflowing with cigarette butts on my desk.

Everything—the clothes, the room, the mess—was exactly how it had been before I started the game.

‘Was it a hallucination?’

Had I hallucinated the whole thing because I’d become such a shut-in?

But it felt too concrete to be a dream.

Furthermore.

“There’s no way I’d own a coin like this in real life…”

There was a new object on my desk.

The Fragment of the Broken Golden Rule!

The glowing gold coin was sitting right in front of my keyboard.

Beside it sat a small leather container.

The spot where the logout button had been was now a glowing red prompt labeled ‘Login.’

I reached out and opened the leather container. Two items fell out.

“Gah!”

Thud!

A massive sword appeared. The small pouch expanded unnaturally as it ejected the weapon.

When it hit the floorboards, the entire house trembled from the impact.

…There was no mistaking it. This was Michella’s Sword.

And there was the rune-etched stone: the Hydragon’s Soul.

“The game?”

The application window was gone. In fact, the software seemed to have vanished.

I grabbed my mouse and pulled up a browser.

I searched for Pangeniar and tried to access the main hub.

[The requested URL does not exist.]

…The entire website was gone.

It had been functioning perfectly just a little while ago.

I checked the news feeds, looking for any information.

There wasn’t a single mention of the servers being shut down. Searching YouTube only brought up clips that were at least two years old.

‘When did this game actually shut down?’

The videos were proof that it had been an active service. The game was a real product.

People had once been logged in and active.

But at some point, the community and the creators had just stopped existing.

Okay. That was fine.

Here was the theory: if others were brought into Pangeniar like I was, they should be able to log out too. There should be a trail.

‘Only the top performers can log out.’

But what if the number of people who could do it was tiny?

What if it was restricted to a handful?

The rest of the player base might still be trapped inside the simulation.

If that was true, there would be no information available.

‘I should have at least shared my social media handles.’

I had always been a dedicated solo player. I even did the group content alone. I barely spoke to anyone, let alone made friends.

I had never swapped emails or chat IDs.

I cursed my anti-social tendencies as I started typing.

‘Unexplained comas, missing persons reports…’

I typed frantically.

The number of people falling into comas or simply vanishing had surged over the last few years.

There was endless debate online. It had to be linked to Pangeniar.

Rumble!

A sudden jolt shook the building.

The floor vibrated, nearly knocking me out of my chair.

“M-monster!”

“Someone help us!”

Screaming broke out in the street.

A monster? Here?

I threw the curtains aside and shoved the window open. As my cigarette smoke drifted out, I saw a scene from a nightmare.

A terrifyingly large insect, nearly four meters tall, was tearing through the neighborhood.

It had long, whip-like feelers grabbing people off the street and serrated front legs that functioned like guillotines.

It was a sight I knew by heart. I whispered the name without thinking.

‘A Giant Mantis…?’