Ch.2[Chapter 2] Gacha Land 1-1

“Oh, my goodness.”

Sir Dominic felt the world change the moment he shook hands with the man in the suit.

Skyscrapers soaring high into the sky. Between them existed incongruous gears and buildings of familiar design.

Electronic billboards displayed advertisements for various clans, and below them hung banners with portraits of those who had recently risen in rank.

The people were diverse—some appeared to be showing off their personal styles and specialties, others wore swimsuits or bunny girl outfits completely inappropriate for the season, and their weapons ranged from guns, swords, and bows to cannons and tanks, with hardly any overlap.

Despite seeing many things for the first time, he understood them through knowledge that had been naturally implanted in him as if it were basic common sense.

“This is… fascinating.”

Sir Dominic behaved like a country bumpkin visiting from the countryside as he gazed at the eye-catching electronic billboards and monitors.

In truth, he was a country bumpkin.

Ferallant, where he had lived, was on the outermost periphery of the empire, a truly remote region. Having lived his entire life in Ferallant and moving from one battlefield to another, this urban atmosphere was bound to feel awkward to him.

[Announcement: In 2 hours from now, at 15:00, there will be a competition between the Ann Grund Clan and the Bjorn Clan at the Northern Arena. Those wishing to watch, please enter through gates 3 to 7 on the west side of the Northern Arena-]

He was startled.

The text that suddenly appeared before his eyes was in unfamiliar characters, yet even he, who was half-illiterate, could read it fluently. A competition, was it? Did that mean fighting? It sounded quite interesting.

Sir Dominic unconsciously began walking. He knew where the Northern Arena was. This too was implanted knowledge deemed essential for surviving in Gacha Land.

Finding the Northern Arena wasn’t difficult, but Sir Dominic soon faced a major crisis.

“Excuse me, but have you joined a clan?”

“…No.”

“Then have you cleared Story Mode 2-4?”

“I’m not sure.”

“If neither, perhaps you’ve purchased a Season Pass?”

“…Where would I buy that?”

“I’m sorry, but you cannot enter without meeting one of these conditions.”

The guard blocking the entrance to the arena spoke with apparent regret. This was frustrating. He understood what the guard was saying, yet he didn’t understand. He knew that conditions were needed to enter the arena, but he didn’t know what would satisfy those conditions.

“Hmm. Where should I go to meet these conditions?”

“Would you mind placing your hand on the arena wall for a moment?”

Sir Dominic followed the guard’s instruction and placed his hand on the wall. Then, these words appeared:

[The following conditions are required to enter the arena!]

[Complete the Story! (Clear 2-4 required) [Go Now]]

[Join a Clan! (Clear 3-1 required) [Go Now]]

[Purchase Season Pass! (Clear 1-5 required) [Go Now]]

“Do I just press ‘Go Now’?”

“At the very least, it will transport you quickly. It’s a technique you should know to survive in Gacha Land.”

Sir Dominic bowed his head in gratitude to the guard and pressed “Go Now.” For now, going through the quickest option, the Season Pass, seemed best.

His body felt weightless as the scenery instantly changed.

While he was looking around at the completely different landscape, something else appeared before his eyes.

[1-1 Basic Training I ☆☆☆]

☆Defeat all enemies

☆Everyone survives

☆Clear within 5 minutes

This must be Story Mode…

Sir Dominic cautiously pressed the text floating before him.

[!] [Do you want to spend 10 Energy to enter 1-1?] [Yes/No]

This is absurd. Sir Dominic felt happy. Although it was full of things he didn’t understand, he instinctively realized that this was appealing to basic human psychology.

Carefully, Sir Dominic pressed “Yes.” Once again, the world transformed.

This time, a pure white space appeared along with a training dummy.

[Welcome to Basic Training. In 1-1, we will test simple movements.]

[1-1 consists of 5 tests. These are very basic, so please pay attention.]

An alien voice echoed. As he looked around wondering who was speaking, he suddenly realized his hand felt heavy.

Looking down, he saw the sword and shield he used to carry. This is… nostalgic, perhaps?

[The first test is movement. Try moving forward, backward, or side to side.]

I followed the instructions and moved my body. After moving in all four directions, the voice spoke again.

[Excellent. Let’s move on to the next test. Try jumping.]

Hop! As I jumped, I heard monotonous applause and strange cheers. There was a “pop!” sound from somewhere, and paper confetti fluttered down.

[Jumping is an essential element of a great game. A truly excellent element! The next test is basic attacks. Try attacking the training dummy.]

Hmm. I was skeptical, but I needed to complete the mission, so I swung my sword. It felt lighter than usual, but the attack still had sufficient weight.

[Basic attacks fill your gauge for special attacks. The special attack gauge increases not only when you hit, but also when you get hit.]

[Next, let’s try a special attack. Use your gauge to attack. During this test, your gauge will remain at maximum.]

…I don’t understand what this means. After pondering for a while, I made a gesture of striking with my shield, and it seemed to work.

[The final test requires everything you’ve learned. Destroy the fleeing dummy!]

As soon as the “final” message appeared, the dummy in front of me started to flee. It moved very slowly, but obstacles appeared here and there, so it took some time.

As soon as the dummy was destroyed, time began to slow down.

“…What on earth is Gacha Land…”

I shook my head at this bizarre experience.

But this was a place I needed to get used to. It might be different from the past, but Gacha Land was where I had to live now.

[☆MVP☆]

[Sir Dominic]

[Contribution 100%]

…No. Seeing my own image appear like this, it seemed I wasn’t going to get used to it anytime soon.

When I pressed the exit button, the world changed again.

[1-1 Basic Training I ★★★]

[1-2 Basic Training II ☆☆☆][NEW!]

Just like that. I suddenly remembered that I needed to clear at least 1-5 to enter the arena. If the difficulty remained the same as what I just experienced, I could clear it within today.

I enthusiastically pressed the next mission. However, an unexpected situation occurred.

[Warning! Insufficient energy. Join a clan to get more energy, serve your lord to increase your energy, or purchase energy through the shop!]

Oh my goodness. What does all that even mean?

I shook my head.

At least one thing was clear. I had to use limited daily energy to progress through the story, and only after progressing through the story could I properly begin my life here.

“No choice then. I’ll have to come back when time has passed.”

As I sighed and turned to leave, another message appeared before my eyes.

[But once a day! You can recharge energy for free! (0 -> 10)]

[Recharge now?] [Yes./Yes!]

No choice, huh? I couldn’t help but laugh.

I raised my hand and clicked [Yes.]. Hmph. How absurd. Whoever designed this situation must have a long life ahead—they’ll be cursed by the bucketful.

I raised my hand again to click on the mission.

[1-2 Basic Training II ☆☆☆][NEW!]

☆Defeat all enemies

☆Everyone survives

☆Clear within 5 minutes

[!] [Do you want to spend 15 Energy to enter 1-2?] [Yes/No]

[!] [Insufficient energy! Too bad.] [I understand…]

…They really will live a long life.

Even I, who lives a messy life, almost cursed out loud.

After observing for a long time until energy recharged, I found that energy seems to recharge at a rate of one per three hours.

With 1-2 costing 15 and 1-3 costing 20, it would be difficult to clear even one in a full day.

Eventually, tired of waiting, I returned to the city center. As if to inform me that considerable time had passed, the sky between the skyscrapers was pitch black, and the electronic billboards and signs between buildings shone even brighter.

I couldn’t help but sigh.

At this rate, I’d go crazy from frustration before I could even start what I wanted to do.

I needed some kind of solution, but… how?

As I walked through the alley, I tried to organize the implanted knowledge. Surely there must be wisdom hidden within it to navigate this situation.

‘Region 1 Story Strategy: Just tough it out at the beginning. If you don’t like it, quit.’

…What I found was too much of a mess to be called wisdom.