Ch.77. Logout

I plow the field.

I dig up nearby trees and plant the seeds that come out.

It’s not just about planting them and being done. I need to water them and make a fence at the crafting workbench as a minimal measure to prevent monsters from invading the field. Once I do that, the tutorial quest ends.

[Quest Complete!]

The tutorial quest that had progressed through 7 steps was finally completed. Looking at the seeds planted in the small garden-like plot of land, I immediately called out to log out.

“Logout!”

[You have completed the tutorial quest. Congratulations!]

[Logout system activated!]

[The owner of the Secret Farming Map can return to their original dimension through the ‘Logout’ system.]

[‘Logout’ and ‘Login’ systems activated!]

[Logout & Login current level: 1]

[Each system requires a 168-hour (7-day) recharge time after use. Please use wisely.]

“…Huh?”

I’ve never seen a system like this in my ten years of playing Farming World.

Both login and logout have a 7-day cooldown?

Does that mean I can only log out once every 7 days?

If I log out now, rest a bit, and come back in 8 hours, I won’t be able to log out again for another 7 days.

If my understanding is correct.

“What kind of bullshit is this?”

So I can’t quit the game whenever I want, but once I enter, I have to play for 7 days straight?

“Isn’t this going to kill me?”

Even though the world has improved to the point where playing games for days on end doesn’t cause health problems, it’s still not recommended.

For top-tier capsules, the recommended time is 48 hours. You can safely enjoy games for up to 72 hours, but after 4 days, the capsule’s nutrients run out.

Besides, I don’t even use a top-tier capsule.

“Huh.”

What started as a simple plan to ask for my map back has turned into a big mess.

Even though I’m a jobless bum with plenty of free time, there’s no way I can play a game for 7 days straight in a capsule.

Of course, reading the system message, it seems like I can level up this login/logout system, and as I do, the cooldown might decrease.

But is that the point?

In this game, every single farming point is extremely important.

Especially in the early stages, where how and where you invest can either lead you straight to becoming trash or make the game so difficult that you might need to restart with a new map. And they want me to use farming points just to log out of the game?

“That’s a shame.”

It was brief, but I was happy.

Just getting a taste of SSS+ made me want to experience other SSS+ abilities.

So I needed to try logging out first.

“Logout.”

After all, I still didn’t know what had happened even after a day.

[Logging out.]

———————

There’s a distinctive smell of old machinery.

Ten years ago.

It was a used model capsule that was sold at a slightly cheaper price as “used but like new,” but after using it for 10 years and fixing minor issues along the way, it now looks like a piece of junk, though it still functions.

I wonder how they made these virtual reality capsules so durable. If Dungeon and Hunter hadn’t come out, would virtual reality still be thriving…

That thought came to me because of the strange feeling I had while logging out.

The familiar smell that usually greeted me wasn’t there.

I opened my eyes.

“Huh?”

It was my room.

A small room with one capsule and one old bed.

Otherwise empty.

I was standing in the middle of my room.

“Why am I…?”

Did I get dementia from being connected to the capsule for over 2 days? Did I forget the memory of exiting after logging out?

I wasn’t stupid enough to not try to make sense of the situation with such realistic thoughts.

While it’s true that I tried to stick to the 48-hour rule during my 10 years of gaming, I didn’t always follow it.

When I was really addicted to the game, I would stay connected for at least 48 hours, and on some days, I even set records by dedicating 72 or 96 hours of my life to Farming World.

I’m only 26 years old.

Dementia is still far off.

Moreover, the feeling of logging out today was different from usual.

If normally it felt like my consciousness flickered, today it felt like my entire body was being sucked somewhere.

Above all, the system message I saw before me freed me from confusion.

[You have logged out.]

[Remaining logout recharge time: 168 hours (7 days)]

“Huh?”

What should be visible only in the game is visible in reality.

What could this mean?

“Did I become a Hunter?”

This could indeed mean that.

The symbol of a Hunter. In a world where status windows, which were once only seen in games, are now accepted as unique to Hunters.

But I interpreted it differently.

“…Could it be Farming World…?”

I’m not sure how to explain it, but the system windows I saw in the Secret Farming Map are visible in reality.

“Farming Window.”

[Farming Window]

– Name: Kim Soo-hyun

– Map: Secret Farming Map (SSS+)

– Time: Day 2

– Stats: Strength (S) Stamina (S) Agility (S) Magic Power (D)

– Abilities:

1. Melee Weapons: SSS+

2. Farming: F

3. Butchery: F

– Farm Points: 700

– Level: 1

– Available Farming Points: 7

– Mana: 50

“Damn…”

The two aren’t different.

The abilities in Farming World are almost identical to those of real-world Hunters.

If the abilities from Farming World have transferred directly to reality, it’s essentially the same as becoming a Hunter.

“…Why?”

What I’m curious about is the reason.

The reason for becoming a Hunter has been researched for years, but nothing has been discovered.

The current theory is simply: just because.

There’s no reason.

Like a natural phenomenon, dungeons appear in the world, monsters emerge, and humans either evolve or are chosen to become Hunters to hunt them.

Just the plain facts.

It’s a supernatural situation that can’t be proven by any scientific phenomenon, but since it’s happening globally to many people, we just have to accept it.

From the perspective of Hunters who become superhumans overnight, I understand the desire to know why they were given this power, whether it’s a blessing or a curse.

But my life has been about thinking, “Do we really need to question it?”

But now that it’s happening to me, an inexplicable unease stirs within me.

It’s good.

Definitely good.

I know better than anyone that it’s good.

When I first saw the Secret Farming Map and gained an SSS+ ability.

Honestly, I thought that if I could receive more rewards like this, I might be willing to give up the map I’ve built for 10 years.

Of course, that thought might have been a rationalization because I had already lost the map against my will and might not get it back, so I was trying to find a silver lining.

But if it’s a reward that connects to real-world abilities.

My 10 years of effort and grinding, which to a third party might seem like a waste of time, could be rewarded in reality?

There’s no need to weigh the options; it’s an unquestionable reward.

The question of “why” will continue to make me anxious and make me think that this ability could disappear at any time.

“This is crazy…”

Only after realizing it do I feel that my body is different from my real body.

Lately, I’ve been spending more time in Farming World, so when I log out, I often feel a sense of powerlessness due to this reverse sensation.

“…Wait a minute.”

The body from Farming World has transferred to reality.

More precisely, the stats of my Farming World character have transferred.

Does that mean my customized in-game character has also transferred?

I hurriedly turned on the bathroom light and looked in the mirror.

“Wow…”

I look handsome.

During my adolescent years, when I first started Farming World, I spent the most time on customization before starting the game.

Using my face as a base, but not making it completely different.

I trimmed my original features to make myself look handsome.

I might not have known much about what makes someone handsome back then, but with the game’s cosmetic assistance system, I created a face that looked like me but was handsome enough that even I could recognize it. I’ve been using that saved customization for every map since.

“Then what about my body…?”

The character has appeared.

So what happens to my original body that was in the capsule?

I checked the worn-out capsule, but I wasn’t inside.

“…What’s going on?”

Is this suddenly turning into a horror story?

Could my missing body be moving somewhere?

While I was worrying unnecessarily:

[Synchronization Complete]

[Your body has been synchronized between Earth dimension and the Secret Farming Map.]

[The synchronized body will be used during login-logout.]

It seems like something has been resolved.