Return of the Frozen Player

[The 5.5th Floor, ‘Arcade Center’, has opened.]

[‘Arcade Center’ will be available for two weeks.]

[All Players may enter ‘Arcade Center’.]

[It will be difficult, but we hope that as many people as possible would enter this Floor.]

Keen Intuition had told him that the secret was hidden in the System logs.

‘Are you sure that it’s hidden in here?’

- I have a strong feeling that it is there.

At first, he was uncertain. However, after reading over the message logs a few times, he was finally sure about it.

‘You were right.’

Keen Intuition’s words struck true. The hints were hidden in the System logs.

‘Even entering the Floor is a game… This is just like a real arcade.’

When he snorted, Rahmadat knocked on his chest a few times. “Stop snickering to yourself and tell us. What is the so-called truth?”

“Ah, don’t be in such a rush. Just listen to me.” Seo Jun-Ho calmed the others down. “When do you guys think the first Dimensional Elevator was made?”

“Historically, it’s widely accepted that Elisha Otis installed the first Dimensional Elevator ever in the Howard building back in 1857.”

“Of course, you know that, Skaya. That’s the answer.”

“So what is the truth, Jun-Ho?” Gilberto pressed. He finally seemed interested.

“You still don’t get it? In other words, it has been less than two hundred years since the Dimensional Elevators appeared in human society.”

“...!”

At that, the entire party seemed to have realized something at the same time.

“Yes, that’s possible,” Gilberto mused.

“So there was no need to complicate things. It turns out that it was just a riddle,” Skaya said.

“Oh! Then perhaps the System…”

“You’re right, Miss Si-Eun.” Seo Jun-Ho nodded.

The System said so itself.

[It will be difficult, but we hope that as many people as possible would enter this Floor.]

‘It will be diffiicult’ was a huge hint.[1]

Without hesitation, Seo Jun-Ho pressed the Elevator’s ‘open’ button.

“Alright, let’s go.”

They went to the stairway. They ran up the stairs of the Korean Player Association all the way to the 5th Floor and passed right through the steps between the 5th and 6th floors.

“...I knew it.”

Seo Jun-Ho grinned. There was a magic door waiting for them, leading to somewhere.

“Every building in the world should have a set of emergency stairs,” he said.

The way to enter the 5.5th Floor was simple. All they had to do was use the stairs in any building until they were halfway through the 5th and 6th Floors. That was all.

“Let’s go.”

Without further ado, the party walked into the door. When they did, a message appeared before them.

[Congratulations! You are the first to enter ‘Arcade Center’.]

[You have received 3,000 points as a reward.]

A reward for being the first ones to enter the 5.5th Floor. That was already enough to make them happy, but an extra message appeared before Seo Jun-Ho.

[Bringer of Spring’s effect has been activated. All stats increased by 30.]

“Ooh!” Even though he hadn’t taken the Dimensional Elevator, this was proof that he’d entered the new 5.5th Floor from the 5th Floor. Otherwise, Bringer of Spring wouldn’t have been activated, and his stats would have remained the same.

“Hm, this place is…”

“It’s actually an arcade.”

The party members looked around, unable to hide their awe. It wasn’t a metaphor. The 5.5th Floor—Arcade Center—really was a giant arcade.

“Hm. Do we just need to go around and play games?”

“I don’t know. As usual, I’m pretty sure the System is about to give us a message with instructions on what to do.”

Bingo. Right on time, system messages appeared before them.

[Here are the instructions to use the Arcade Center.]

[Play the games installed around the arcade to set and record your records.]

[The first and last Players who reach 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place will get a big point bonus.]

[You may exchange your points at any time for rewards in the shop.]

[We hope you get good scores by using your Skills to the fullest extent.]

[Perpetrators of assault, murder, interfering and cheating on games will be severely punished upon being caught.]

[The System aims to create a happy and healthy game environment.]

“This reminds me of the old days,” Gilberto said. The brim of his cowboy hat was slightly lowered, and he had a nostalgic smile on his face. When he was a child, his parents would hold his hand and take him to game centers. Even if he played there all day, the magical place always made him look back at it when he had to go home.

“Unfortunately, Gilbe, we’re adults now,” Seo Jun-Ho said. He placed a hand on Gilberto’s shoulder before saying, “Apparently, the first and last Players to reach 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place will get a big point bonus.”

“I know.”

The mood in the air changed. They were the first party to enter the Arcade Center, so it was clear what they needed to do.

“Okay, guys! Lesssgo!” Skaya exclaimed.

They immediately separated into six different directions and started playing all kinds of games.

The games were a little different from the ones on Earth. There was a game that tested how far they could throw a ball, there were ones where they had to guess which dice had a higher number, along with shooting games as well as games that tested their reflexes. Obviously, a Player would have to use their Skills in the majority of the games, but luck was also necessary.

[Congratulations! You are the first one to reach 3rd place in ‘Ball Throw’!]

[You have received 100 points as a reward.]

[Congratulations! You are the first one to reach 2nd place in ‘Ball Throw’!]

[You have received 250 points as a reward.]

[Congratulations! You are the first one to reach 1st place in ‘Ball Throw’!]

[You have received 500 points as a reward.]

Indeed, they had a monopoly here, and they just had to collect points blindly.

However, the fun times ended earlier than they had expected.

“Hm.”

It was all because there weren’t many games that allowed them to set their own personal records. There were only about thirty of those games in total. The majority of the games required people to play against one another.

“In other words, we’ll have to play against each other now,” Skaya said. She narrowed her eyes and turned to the others. “If we want to rig the results, it would be very easy to do so… Can you guys lose on purpose?”

“No.”

“Why would I?”

“If I actually try, I’ll win all of them anyway.”

“Geez, I knew this would happen,” she sighed.

All friends were like that. They would have good times together, but they would also compete against each other. However, Skaya actually wanted them to lose on purpose?

“We can’t have that. Come at me, Rahmadat,” Seo Jun-Ho taunted.

“Ha! Are you sure you want to challenge me?” Rahmadat snickered and stepped toward Seo Jun-Ho. “Are you sure you can win? I’m the King of Destruction, Rahmadat.”

“Yeah, and I’m Specter~”

“You guys are so immature,” Skaya said, annoyed. It made her roll her eyes. However, she was also excited to watch the match because the game they chose was ‘Arm Wrestling’.

“All I know is that you can’t beat me when it comes to strength. Can’t you see these beefy muscles?”

“Yeah, they’re all flimsy. On the other hand, my muscles were sculpted from battle.”

They bickered like children. However, the mood abruptly changed once they clasped each other’s hands. Even the amused looks on the other party members’ faces turned vanished as they looked on with serious expressions.

‘Overclocking.’

Seo Jun-Ho mustered his magic and strengthened his body.

“Wow, you’re using magic?” Rahmadat scoffed.

“Didn’t you see the System message? It said to use our Skills to the fullest extent.”

It didn’t mention any kind of restrictions. In other words, Arcade Center fully supported Players using their Skills.

“Alright. If we use magic, there’s no way I’ll lose.”

Rahmadat also mustered his magic. When he did, the pressure on Seo Jun-Ho’s hand grew unimaginably heavy.

‘Shoot.’ Seo Jun-Ho maintained a straight face, but he was far from calm inside. ‘He’s stupidly strong.’

In an arm wrestling match, one could tell how strong one’s opponent was just from how one’s opponent clasped one’s hand. In that case, Rahmadat was like steel, not just stone.

‘I can’t believe I’m struggling this much even though my strength stat is 787.’

What would have happened if Bringer of Spring hadn’t activated when they entered the 5.5th Floor? And what if he didn’t use Overclocking?

Seo Jun-Ho couldn’t help but gulp.

Afterward, he made sure to be extra focused. He could feel that he would lose the instant he let his guard down.

[Before the game begins, please set the number of points you will bet.]

“Bet?” Jun-Ho said aloud.

“Hm. I see. It seems that people can steal each others’ points when they play against each other.”

“What do you want to do?” Seo Jun-Ho asked.

“All in,” Rahmadat said confidently. “I’m betting all 7,550 points in this game.”

“Alright. I’ll bet the same amount, then.”

[The winner of this match will gain 15,100 points.]

[Begin!]

When the match started, the tense air between the two started heating up the area around them.

“Gilbe, what do you think?” Skaya asked.

“Hm. Jun-Ho is strong, but if we consider it in terms of pure strength, Rahmadat has a major advantage,” he muttered.

He was right. Seo Jun-Ho’s arm was slowly tilting to the right.

“Hehehe. Hehehehe!” Rahmadat couldn’t hold back his laughter when he thought about how he was going to tease Seo Jun-Ho for the rest of his life after winning this match.

However, Jun-Ho didn’t just stand by and watch.

Crackle!

“...!”

Rahmadat’s arm started to freeze over. The extreme cold froze not only Rahmadat’s muscles but his cells as well.

“Hey! It’s not fair to use that in a battle of strength…!”

“I don’t recall agreeing to have a battle of strength.”

It wasn’t possible for Rahmadat’s frozen arm to withstand Seo Jun-Ho’s strength when the former couldn’t even lift it anymore. As such, Rahmadat’s hand tilted over just like that, and a message appeared in front of them.

[Congratulations! You are the first one to reach 1st place in ‘Arm Wrestling!]

[You have received 500 points as a reward.]

Seo Jun-Ho shook off his tingling hand and grinned. “I told you that your muscles are flimsy.”

***

Three hours after Seo Jun-Ho and his party arrived at the Arcade Center, throngs of Players descended upon the Arcade Center as if they were in an amusement park opening.

“Dammit! We were too late!”

“You’re saying that we’re not the first ones here?”

“Hmph.”

They looked at the rankings on each game and sighed.

“Look at that. The 5 Heroes and the Saintess swept them all up.”

“Even though we’re late, let’s still try.”

“Yeah. Every time someone plays a game, the scores will get higher.”

“And someone will break the record eventually.”

They were wrong. Despite the Players’ wishes, the 5 Heroes’ scores were too big of a wall for them to cross.

“Dammit! How am I supposed to beat Gilberto Green’s record in a shooting game?”

“It’s the same with Ball Throw. I don’t think anyone can beat Rahmadat’s record.”

“Is the Reflexes Test game broken? No matter how hard I try, I can’t make more than half of Seo Jun-Ho’s score.”

“This is crazy. There’s no way you can play the Healing Test game if you don’t have a healing Skill!”

In the end, the average Player only gained a trivial amount of points from the games.

However, not every Player came here to collect points.

“This is a total scoop! Look at the arm wrestling match between the King of Destruction and Specter! Specter won!”

“There’s a Swordplay Test game here, too! I bet the match between the former Sword Saint Tenmei Mio and the current Sword Saint Kim Woo-Joong will be totally worth watching.”

There were Players working as reporters among the crowd, and they came here to look for exclusive scoops rather than play games like the other Players. Those Players could only roam the 1st and 2nd Floors because of their low levels, so they were thirsty for scoops lately. For them, the 5.5th Floor was an oasis for their starving bodies. In fact, they were actually the ones who published articles about how to enter the 5th Floor.

“This is amazing. I will probably get promoted after this.”

“I’m telling you, the public loves seeing comparisons between the Heroes.”

“Yeah, this Floor is the perfect place for that.”

While tens of thousands of Players were enjoying the games at Arcade Center, an announcement appeared before them for the first time.

[In 1 hour, Players in the 10th percentile of points will be forcefully sent to the ‘Underground Octagon’.]

[If you lose in the ‘Underground Octagon,’ you will receive the Title ‘Loser’[2] and be expelled from Arcade Center.]

1. The word for ‘difficult’ can also be read as ‘tiring’. ☜

2. This term means ‘loser’ in the literal sense. It’s not an insult. ☜