READ NOVEL ONLINE Chapter 3: 3
3. Avatar Creation
"Black Scythe."
The system responded to the nickname uttered without hesitation.
[Do you want to register 'Black Scythe' as your avatar's nickname?]
"Yes."
[The nickname is not duplicated. It has been registered.]
Ryumin chose Black Scythe as his nickname for a specific reason.
'Because it sounds strong.'
Usually, when asked to choose a nickname, most people come up with something random.
Or they spend too much time thinking and let the 30 seconds pass, forcing their real name to be selected.
But through his many regressions, Ryumin learned that choosing a nickname was surprisingly important.
'The nickname determines the first impression others have of you.'
The place they're transferred to through soul transfer is a new world.
In that other world, which can be considered another dimension, they don't use real names.
Everyone strictly calls each other by the nicknames they've set now.
No one wants to reveal their real-world identity.
Everyone wants to wear a mask.
'Using your real name in the avatar creation process is something only a fool would do.'
It's the same reason people don't use their real names in games.
Especially in a survival game where you have to compete by stepping on others, you should hide it even more.
'That's why the nickname is important. It's one of the factors that can determine the first impression.'
There's a fact the angel didn't mention, perhaps intentionally hiding it.
The nickname always floats above the avatar's head.
'Just like in a game.'
Because of this, anyone can see your nickname.
This is why the nickname is considered a key factor in first impressions.
'From my experience, there's nothing good about looking easy to push around. The stronger and more memorable the nickname, the better.'
At first, he thoughtlessly registered his real name or internet ID as his nickname.
But perhaps seeing him as an easy target, flies swarmed around him, and he ended up wasting unnecessary time.
'In this place, you must look strong no matter what. It's good to give a strong impression.'
Later, while thinking of strong-sounding nicknames, he came up with Black Scythe.
'It's my main weapon, and the job I'll change to later is Reaper anyway.'
There are about 30 various jobs in the other world.
They're called classes, and Reaper is a unique class that only one person can have.
'I need to change to Reaper without fail this time too. There's no job stronger than that.'
It's still too early to choose a job, but there's no harm in deciding the path ahead.
[Please set your body type and appearance within 3 minutes.]
[It will be reflected if you strongly imagine the image in your mind.]
[Please say 'Design complete' when you're finished.]
[If you don't decide within the time limit, your original appearance will be automatically reflected.]
'It's time for appearance customization.'
Appearance, like the nickname, is an important part of determining first impressions.
'Usually, everyone would try to make themselves look cool and pretty here.'
They'll focus on grooming their appearance through customization, like plastic surgery to fix parts they don't like.
It's obvious without even looking.
'But if you're smart, you absolutely shouldn't do that. Especially women.'
Beautiful and outstanding appearances certainly have the effect of drawing attention.
It's good for making a good first impression too.
But the other world is a world of survival of the fittest.
If your appearance stands out, you're likely to become a target.
It's especially dangerous for women.
'Everyone's mistaken, but we're not just creating game characters right now. The other world is also clearly reality.'
If you die in the other world, you die in real life too.
Forgetting this point and making wrong judgments, deceived by the game-like system, is common.
'For appearance, it's enough not to stand out. You shouldn't be too handsome or too ugly.'
That's exactly how he looked in reality, but it's better to hide his identity as much as possible, so he changed his appearance.
'An impression that's different from reality but doesn't look easy to push around.'
Ryumin designed his appearance without delay this time too.
He created a cold and calm impression with a sharp nose bridge and jawline, and strong eyes.
He changed his body from the usual small frame to one with moderate muscle.
It was a strong-looking impression befitting the nickname Black Scythe.
"Design complete."
[Customization completed.]
[Creating avatar.]
...
...
[Creation complete.]
[Transferring soul to Round 1 immediately. Good luck.]
Suddenly, a bright light struck Ryumin's eyes.
When he opened his eyes that had reflexively closed, a new world was spread out before him.
'That was instantaneous.'
The setting for Round 1 was a vast prairie.
The kind where cows and sheep might leisurely graze.
Of course, there are no cows or sheep here.
'Though there are monsters.'
Ryumin looked down at his body.
A 180cm tall body with firm muscles was moving according to his will.
It was the body he had just customized.
'I've made it so many times, it feels like my real body now.'
Ryumin had maintained this appearance since the 12th regression.
Perhaps because of that, it felt familiar like his own body even though he had just created it.
He wasn't surprised or flustered like other people.
Because he had experienced soul transfer countless times.
"Wh-where is this? A prairie?"
"I don't know where, but it's nice..."
"It feels peaceful."
People who had created their avatars started appearing on the prairie one after another.
"Huh? My body has changed?"
"Could it be we've entered with the body we set before coming here?"
"Am I really this muscular? Then my face too...?"
"I changed my face to a celebrity's just in case... and it worked?"
As more people appeared, the murmuring grew louder.
People looking curiously at the nicknames floating above others' heads.
People touching their bodies that had changed to look like celebrities, satisfied.
People flustered because they couldn't change their appearance due to exceeding the time limit.
People so captivated by the vast prairie scenery they forgot to be surprised.
While reactions varied, only Ryumin's expression remained indifferent.
He had experienced this enough times to be bored.
Instead, Ryumin's gaze was fixed on one spot.
'It should be about time.'
Shortly after.
Tssst-
A person appeared in the spot his gaze had been resting on.
'He's here now. Hwang Yongmin.'
Hwang Yongmin, with a much more muscular body than usual, was looking around.
'As expected, he only made his body muscular this time too.'
Since he hadn't changed his face, it was easy to recognize him.
The nickname floating above his head was also [Hwang Yongmin], his real name.
He probably couldn't change it because he was flustered.
'Well, 30 seconds is shorter than you'd think to decide on a nickname.'
Looking around, you could find quite a few people besides Hwang Yongmin who had kept their real names.
Just then, he accidentally made eye contact with Hwang Yongmin.
But not recognizing him, Hwang Yongmin quickly looked away.
'Of course he wouldn't recognize me. I completely changed my appearance.'
While Hwang Yongmin didn't know Ryumin, Ryumin knew Hwang Yongmin.
'That's enough.'
As soon as he confirmed this fact, Ryumin took his gaze off Hwang Yongmin.
Having already taken more than enough revenge, he was no longer interested.
'I'll move when it's convenient to use him.'
For now, he's keeping him alive because he has value to be used.
[Kyohohoho, is everyone gathered now?]
An angel descended from the sky with a halo.
Her name was Briel.
It was that angel they had seen before.
[Do you like the new avatars you've created?]
"..."
Everywhere fell silent at the angel's appearance.
'I guess they're this quiet because she left such a strong first impression.'
They're probably afraid their heads might explode again if they act out.
The angel seemed to know this too, twisting her lips in a smile.
[Kekeke, I like seeing your scared faces. Don't worry. I won't kill you as long as you don't act rudely.]
No one relaxed at those words.
[Let's see, with a total of 1,802,910 people, it seems all the humans from Seoul have gathered.]
"1.8 million people?"
"The people here?"
People murmured and looked around.
There were at most 10,000 people on the prairie.
The number of people who had been at Bosingak.
No matter how you looked at it, it didn't seem like 1.8 million people.
Hearing those murmurs, the angel furrowed her brow and answered.
[You think this is the only prairie? Of course, not all 1.8 million are gathered in one place. If they were, would there even be room to stand right now?]
"Ah..."
[Anyway, you inferior humans. They're each proceeding with rounds on different prairies with different angels, so don't worry about it.]
Still, 10,000 is quite a large number.
Enough to make the vast prairie look cramped.
'But this is just the beginning.'
I'm not sure if everyone realizes, but this is a survival game where only half can survive.
As the rounds progress, the number of people decreases exponentially.
Especially as it gets to the later rounds, it becomes more difficult, and more people die without even meeting the clear conditions.
To the point where only I was left in the final round.
'Especially in Round 15, there's an enormous number of deaths.'
At that time, the global player count of 2,000 drops to less than 50.
Not just half, but 97.5% die without making it to the next round.
'In the end, I was the only one who made it to Round 20. Everyone else died.'
Considering it starts with 1.8 billion people, that means an uncountable number of people die.
[Now that everyone's gathered, let's start the explanation. First, try saying 'Status Window' in your mind.]
People followed the angel's words with puzzlement.
It couldn't hurt to try.
"Gasp!"
"What is this?"
Soon after, exclamations rang out here and there.
Everyone was staring into space with their mouths open.
Because the status window wasn't visible to others' eyes.
Ryumin also spoke the activation word like the others.
'Status Window.'
-Name: Ryumin
-Nickname: Black Scythe
-Grade: Novice
-Title: None
-Level: 1
-Job: None
-Strength: 3, Intelligence: 3
-Agility: 3, Luck: 3
-Common Skills: None
-Exclusive Skills: None
-Rune: None
-Gold: 0
-Remaining Stat Points: 0
[???: Unlocked at Lv10]
[???: Unlocked at Lv20]
[???: Unlocked at Lv40]
[???: Unlocked at Lv60]
[???: Unlocked at Lv99]
It was a pitiful status window that wouldn't be strange to sigh at.
Below it were slots for additional features that could be used when certain levels were reached.
'I have to start from the beginning again, but it's okay. I'm confident I can become stronger this time.'
Even Ryumin, who had reached the final round, wasn't strong from the start.
'It took dying twice before I barely cleared Round 1.'
It was a natural result, as he was just a high school student who was bullied by delinquents.
But as he repeated regressions, Ryumin grew stronger.
Gradually, his survival time increased, and he lasted through more rounds.
'It took over 99 regressions before I finally reached Round 20.'
Although he had to sacrifice quite a few lives, it was a miracle that someone so ordinary could reach that far.
'Of course, the seven people who survived to Round 18 without regressions are the true geniuses.'
By Round 18, seven people survive besides Ryumin.
In Round 19, two of these survive, and in Round 20, only Ryumin remains.
'I need to keep at least four people alive until the boss room.'
Ryumin planned to choose candidates to take to the boss room from among these seven people.
There wouldn't be stronger players anywhere else in the world.
That's not to say he won't consider other candidates.
'There were many strong ones among the players who dropped out in earlier rounds too.'
There's no need to strictly match five people for the boss room.
Five is just the minimum condition; more is fine.
'The more survivors, the better.'
The problem is that those who survive to the boss room must be definite allies.
Or Ryumin needs to have strong enough power to control them.
'That shouldn't be difficult.'
Now in his 100th regression, Ryumin was confident he could become stronger than anyone.
After all, he was the only one who reached the max level of 99 in the previous run.
[Now, have you all seen your status windows? If you've played games before, you'll know. You're all at a pathetic trash level right now.]
"..."
[So become stronger. If you survive to Round 20, you'll be stronger than anyone. If you survive and clear up to Round 20 like that!]
The angel curled up the corner of her mouth in a grin.
[Not only will we free you from the survival game, but we'll even grant you a wish.]
"A-a wish?"
People's reactions to the word 'wish' varied.
"Will they really grant a wish?"
"No way, surely not."
While some were skeptical or in denial.
"A wish..."
"So if we just clear the last round, they'll grant a wish?"
Others harbored expectations or greed.
Of course, Ryumin belonged to neither group.
He knew it was a game where even surviving to the final round was a struggle, let alone getting a wish granted.
[Then before the round starts, I'll explain briefly. Everyone, try saying 'Inventory' in your mind.]
'Inventory.'
When he spoke the activation word, an invisible window appeared just like the status window.
Inside was a small stone fragment emitting an emerald light.
[There should be one item given in your inventory by default. Try taking it out with your hand and using it.]
People followed instructions and reached into the air to take out the item.
Then the item information automatically appeared.