SWNOVELXO Chapter 105: Soul Art Online (1)
Living in Louisville comes with a lot of inconveniences.
The most annoying one is that packages can’t be delivered to my home.
In an era where even same-day delivery is possible within Seoul, living somewhere without delivery services is a real pain.
So, when I need something delivered, I use the convenience store’s parcel service. There’s a convenience store just three minutes away from the bus stop, so I go there often.
“Ghostly-flavored potato chips…?”
One day, while picking up a parcel from the convenience store, something caught my eye.
Ghostly-flavored potato chips.
A ghostly flavor, huh?
Hmm. It says it contains 0.000001% spiritual essence?
That’s practically as luxurious as truffle seasoning.
“Looks like one of those gimmicky products popular with the trendy crowd.”
Muttering to myself, I picked up the chips.
After all, I couldn’t resist the urge to find out what a ghost tastes like.
“This, please. Oh, and is there a package under Yoo Hajin?”
At my words, the store clerk finally began placing the boxes onto the counter. One of them stood out from the others.
“A VR gaming console? Do convenience stores sell these now?”
“Oh, that’s not for sale. It’s another customer’s package that hasn’t been picked up yet. It might get returned soon.”
I glanced at the VR gaming console box.
It was so big it hardly looked like a gaming device.
“This is the latest OBE model, right? The one that’s almost impossible to get even on pre-order. It’s selling for over three million won on the market right now. Why would someone not pick this up?”
“Three million won?”
Whoa. Three million for a gaming console?
Now I was intrigued.
The name of the recipient was written on the box.
It said Nayu. Nayu?
“Nayu?”
“Why? Do you know them? If you do, please ask them to come get it. It’d be such a waste to lose something they waited months to receive.”
“Nayu isn’t exactly a common name, is it?”
The store clerk nodded.
Just as I thought.
The name Nayu wasn’t common at all.
“Hang on, let me make a quick call.”
I explained the situation to Nayu.
Nayu’s response?
“Nayu package curious!”
To be honest, I was curious, too.
****
And so, Nayu and I picked up the out-of-body VR gaming console, also known as the OBE console. It wasn’t just one console, either.
“Who sends three consoles, each worth over three million won? Who even sent these to you?”
“Nayu same thought.”
Suspicious as it was, there was no reason not to try it out.
An out-of-body VR console. It’s the only thing people considered a positive outcome of the spiritual awakening phenomenon.
A gaming device capable of replicating all five senses—plus spiritual perception—in virtual reality. I’d heard the only game available for it, Lost Soul Fantasy, was a massive hit.
“Come to think of it, isn’t Lost Soul Fantasy 2 coming out tomorrow?”
The sequel, playable only on the latest out-of-body VR consoles, had been hyped endlessly. A live streamer who got into the beta test even said it was an absolutely divine, mind-blowing game.
“An absolutely mind-blowing game, huh.”
Now I was curious.
I hadn’t cared much for out-of-body VR before. The consoles were ridiculously expensive, and since I couldn’t see ghosts, I wasn’t sure it would even work for me.
But passing up this opportunity seemed like a waste.
“Nayu, should I set it up for you?”
“Nayu nods head.”
I began unboxing the console.
* * *
“It Looks Strange”
Once I finished unboxing it, the gaming console looked bizarre. Actually, could this even be called a gaming console? It looked more like a monitor.
I picked up the manual and started reading.
The setup seemed simple.
Connect the internet cable and power cord to the main unit—which looked like a monitor—and then, while wearing the VR-specific sunglasses, look at the monitor. That’s how you’d enter the digital world made entirely of data.
I decided to give it a try.
First, I set up just one unit.
The house was too small to set up all three. At most, I might be able to squeeze in one more.
Once the setup was complete, Nayu, who had been watching eagerly from the side, stepped closer with sparkling eyes. When I looked at Nayu, she shyly turned her head away.
“Nayu hides excitement.”
Hiding excitement? She wasn’t hiding it at all. And honestly, saying something like “hiding excitement” gives it all away.
“Why are you so excited over a gaming console? You’re not a kid.”
“Nayu denies being a kid. Nayu very mature. Nayu sends flying kiss...!”
Suddenly, Nayu stood up and sent a flying kiss with her eyes tightly shut. Rather than coming off as mature, she just looked adorable.
Afterward, she quickly bowed her head and started mumbling.
“N-Nayu’s face feels hot.”
If you’re going to get this embarrassed, why do it in the first place?
Women are hard to understand.
“All right, it’s ready. Go ahead and try it out first, since it’s yours.”
I handed the VR sunglasses to Nayu. She nodded and put them on.
When she turned on the power, the gaming console—looking very much like a monitor—lit up with a flash. Some chaotic graphics appeared on the screen.
It all looked like pixelated dot graphics, which was strange for something supposedly cutting-edge.
The screen transitioned several times before settling on what looked like a scene from an old game like The Land of Wind and Rain. In the middle of the screen, a 16-bit character that resembled Nayu appeared. I glanced at Nayu. She was staring intently at the screen, her mouth slightly open in awe.
“These graphics suck. Is this really the level of a next-gen console?”
Just then, a familiar voice came from the door.
“Ha, this idiot again. Why does Nayu keep coming here? Does she think this is her house or something?”
It was Jamsuni.
Grumbling, she tossed her school bag onto the floor.
“Hey, I told you to treat your bag with care. And you have your own house, so what are you even talking about?”
“Wait, is this the new OBE?”
Look at her changing the subject now that things aren’t going her way.
I sighed and moved aside to let Jamsuni take a closer look.
She stared at the console, which looked like a monitor, and then spoke.
“The graphics are insane.”
“Right? What kind of ‘next-gen console’ has graphics like this...?”
I was about to say, “Do these 16-bit graphics magically turn into photorealism when you put on the sunglasses?” when Jamsuni cut me off.
“It’s practically indistinguishable from reality. It’s not just uncanny valley-free—it’s, like, super pleasant-mountain.”
“...???”
Could it be that I’m the only one seeing 16-bit graphics?
As Jamsuni gently touched the gaming console, she added,
“And, true to VR, it’s in first-person. Or maybe they couldn’t make it work any other way.”
“...???”
To me, the screen looked like a top-down view from an old game like The Land of Wind and Rain. But it seemed that people who could see ghosts perceived it in first-person.
“Did you buy this?”
Jamsuni asked.
I shook my head and answered,
“Someone sent these to Nayu through the convenience store’s parcel service. Three of them, no less.”
“They sent three of these to Nayu? Is Uncle Park Il home right now?”
“Why? What’s going on?”
Jamsuni frowned, looking uneasy.
“I need to ask him something. I’m taking one of these with me.”
Without hesitation, Jamsuni swiftly grabbed one of the gaming console boxes. This crazy kid was casually walking off with a console worth several million won.
“Hey! Are you out of your mind? That belongs to Nayu! Get her permission before taking it!”
“You said Nayu got it from someone else, didn’t you?”
That’s not the point here!
When Jamsuni stepped outside, I started to follow her, but I stopped at the sound of a groan from Nayu. Her body was trembling.
“Wh-what’s wrong? Nayu, are you okay?”
“N-Nayu in pain.”
I glanced at the screen. A bipedal pig-like monster wielding an axe was attacking a character that looked just like Nayu. Each time the character was struck, Nayu flinched.
“Don’t tell me… Does this game replicate pain?”
Nayu’s character collapsed, her health bar plummeting to critical levels.
The pig monster raised its axe high above its head.
“This is insane.”
I hesitated briefly before pulling off the sunglasses Nayu was wearing.
Her eyes snapped open, tears welling up in her light-blue irises.
“N-Nayu head okay?”
“Yeah, your head’s fine. You’re not hurt.”
Pain replication in VR?
This was a system that wouldn’t help the game’s success at all.
In fact, it could easily cause trauma. If they wanted to sell this as a commercial game, this feature needed to be removed immediately.
I fell into thought for a moment.
Wait—was it intentional pain replication, or were they simply unable to eliminate it?
What kind of mechanism was powering this console?
***
Large corporations often have their own research labs. Similarly, major sects in the martial arts world have their own labs as well.
The same was true for the Ilwol-Oakmoon Sect.
Beneath Gwanak Mountain was an enormous underground research facility, almost unbelievable in its size and complexity. Inside, researchers were thoroughly examining the gaming console with serious expressions.
Meanwhile, a young woman and a man observed them.
“Sojin, the preliminary test results are in.”
“Tell me,” Sojin replied.
Park Il explained.
“The device’s performance is surprisingly low, nowhere near what you’d expect from a modern gaming console. It’s fine if you’re using it as a simple monitor, but its internal specs are barely enough to produce 16-bit graphics. What’s 16-bit capable of, exactly?”
“At best, pixelated images. What about the software?”
Park Il scratched his head, not even understanding what “pixelated” meant.
“Software? You’re talking about the game program, right? Lost Soul Fantasy stored in the console is no different. They say it’s an outdated online game that fits this old-school console perfectly.”
“To think that such a low-spec console and software could produce such a sophisticated and realistic gaming experience…”
Kim Sojin nodded in agreement.
“I think I know who the creators are. If it’s them, they probably half-heartedly outsourced the mundane lower-realm systems and poured all their effort into the spiritual realm systems.”
“Who are they? Omega Tech again?”
“No,” Kim Sojin replied.
“...There might be surviving hereditary shamans involved.”
****
“This Hurts Like Hell.”
“Wow, this seriously hurts too much.”
“Ugh, I think this game is going to give me trauma.”
In the random tutorial area Haneum Valley of Lost Soul Fantasy 2, a group of rookies huddled together around a campfire in the corner, trembling.
“Did they really design this area to be cleared in the early game?”
“If it didn’t hurt so much, I’d chug potions and try something, but…”
Haneum Valley offered the best tutorial rewards but was notorious for its brutal difficulty. Most players who landed here either deleted their accounts in despair or cried themselves to sleep.
The players currently staying were all masochists, determined to obtain the rare tutorial reward at any cost.
Adding to the chaos, Lost Soul Fantasy 2 had a special mechanic: the first player to clear a tutorial zone would receive an exclusive perk. Since no one had ever cleared Haneum Valley, the reward remained unclaimed.
“If you get that perk, you’ll instantly become a top-ranked player…”
Then, yet another unfortunate rookie spawned in Haneum Valley.
The player, whose nickname was Heavenly Demon Descends, stumbled in confusion, running in all directions before suddenly jumping a few times. Without hesitation, they swung their sword and kicked the air before charging straight into the valley.
“Bold one, huh?”
To rush headlong into such a cold, ominously eerie place? That took guts. Especially since the game disabled the use of spiritual powers from the real world.
Even knowing that, they charged forward without hesitation.
Moments later, Heavenly Demon Descends died and respawned.
Without a single complaint, they rushed back into the valley. Then respawned again. And again.
“Is this guy insane?”
“Even if he’s some kind of masochist, nobody enjoys dying repeatedly.”
But Heavenly Demon Descends kept charging forward, dying, and respawning.
Hours passed before a system message popped up:
<Congratulations! Heavenly Demon Descends has become the first player to conquer Haneum Valley!>
“What kind of tutorial zone has this level of difficulty?”
Yawning, Yoo Hajin, the player behind Heavenly Demon Descends, muttered to himself.
He wasn’t wearing the VR sunglasses, nor was he immersed in any “realistic” gameplay. Instead, Yoo Hajin was playing the game like a regular PC title, using a mouse and keyboard connected to the console.
“Why is Nayu so obsessed with a game like this?”
Yoo Hajin couldn’t sense ghosts or spiritual energy.
To him, the game was nothing more than 8-bit graphics with dry, simplistic sound effects.
“But hey, can you make money off this game?”
– – – The End of The Chapter – – –
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