First, I should move from this place.

This open space with no visual obstructions makes it easy for enemies to spot me. I’ll roam around the nearby forest and look for manageable enemies.

If I can level up or upgrade and raise traps, then I’ll just have to work at it steadily.

I enter the forest and walk down an unpaved path.

Even though it’s daytime, it’s dim. The trees are so dense that sunlight doesn’t penetrate.

"Hard to walk. Did they really go this far in replicating realism?"

If you’re only used to walking on maintained, paved roads, just navigating rough terrain eats up mental focus and drains both your mind and body.

"Even if I want to defeat enemies, I don’t have a weapon."

In crafting games, the standard flow is to punch nearby trees for wood, then punch rocks to get stones. Combine them to make a stone axe or a simple spear.

"Gwoooaaahhh!"

I tried punching a nearby big tree, but it only hurt my hand.

...Wait, hold on. Did they not enable pain reduction or suppression?

Even though sensory replication in VR has become possible, reproducing pain would make many games unplayable.

Even if actual injury doesn’t occur, if they reproduce the pain of being shot or slashed with a sword, there’s a risk of going into shock. Plus, there would be people misusing it for criminal purposes.

I just saw a news story recently about a group that was arrested for illegally modifying sensory settings and abusing them.

"Is it a configuration mistake? Or is it that some degree of pain is reproduced, and only excessive pain gets suppressed?"

I don’t know, but I don’t have the courage or recklessness to test it out.

I’ll try to avoid injury as much as possible.

"So, I can’t craft a weapon easily. Then I’ll have to find one somewhere."

I close my eyes and recall the scenery I saw from the mountain summit.

There was a ruined town, wasn’t there? It wouldn’t be strange for weapons or tools to be lying around there.

"If I remember correctly, I saw it with the morning sun behind me..."

I look up at the sky and check the position of the sun.

"That means it’s this way."

I have no gear, and my traps are the weakest. I don’t want to encounter enemies in such a defenseless state.

I have a destination and a goal. Then all I can do is move forward carefully, alert to my surroundings and making no noise.

"There it is, there it is."

Fortunately, I reached my destination without a single battle.

"The traces of fire seem surprisingly recent."

What were once houses are now burnt and collapsed all over the place. Not a single building has its pillars or beams intact.

It seems there used to be a stone wall surrounding the town, but most of it has been destroyed, and the remnants of the defensive wall barely remain. But in that condition, they’re useless.

It’s been thoroughly destroyed, yet the stone-paved roads laid throughout the town remain solid. From a quick look, it also seems like it was a fairly large town.

After passing through a crumbling gate and walking straight ahead, the first thing I saw was a fountain ruin.

At its center is a chunk of stone that appears to have once been a female statue. With no head or arms, it’s impossible to tell what she looked like.

"A town square, huh."

It’s easy to imagine the peaceful days when many people walked around here, and children laughed and ran through the plaza.

Even though it’s a game, the level of detail brings that kind of everyday life to mind.

These days, it’s common to base towns on real-world locations, adjust and improve them for games, so there might be a real foreign town this was modeled on.

Anyway, enough immersion-breaking thoughts. I need to find a weapon.

I’ve been searching for a while now, but I haven’t found any weapons or armor. Despite the destruction... there aren’t even any corpses.

"Well, I guess it’s too much to expect that level of detail in a game."

Given how much realism this company usually aims for, I thought there’d be vivid remnants of fierce battles, but that was unexpected.

Still, my objective hasn’t changed. If this is a fantasy world, there should be at least one weapon or armor shop. Even if the shop is destroyed, there should be a weapon or two left behind.

In front of me are five iron one-handed swords, blackened by soot and slightly melted from heat. One blunt weapon—a mace—with a lump of iron on the end. And three spear tips with the shafts burned away, leaving only the heads.

These are the spoils of an hour-long search through what seems to be the remnants of a weapon shop I somehow managed to find.

There was a barely intact sign of a weapon shop, which is the only reason I found the place.

...Well, that’s probably something the developers left as a hint. Otherwise, there’s no way the sign would be conveniently undamaged.

This kind of consideration is one of the benefits of it being a game. It motivates exploration.

Among the rubble, there were also some pieces of what looked like burnt and tattered leather armor, but none of them were usable.

"This sturdy backpack might be the best find."

It’s on the larger side, so even after putting in the swords and spear tips, there’s still plenty of room.

"Of course, they reproduced the weight too."

I fully understand this game is fixated on realism, but the backpack’s weight really presses down on my back.

Iron swords are pretty heavy.

One sword probably weighs over a kilogram. That’s five swords, plus a mace that’s heavier than any of them, and then the spear tips... It must be around eight to ten kilograms total.

It’s a game, so I wish they had gone easier on the settings here.

But at least I secured a weapon. With this, I finally have a means to fight.

“Next up is food—essential.”

If the game is this detailed, then meals must be necessary too. In fact, I’m feeling pretty hungry.

In VR games, it’s now common to have food elements with simulated taste. The higher the fidelity of taste reproduction, the more it boosts a game's sales—it's become that important.

The reasons are simple and obvious: “You won’t gain weight no matter how much you eat because it’s VR!” “People with allergies can eat without worry!” “Even the sick or elderly can binge without consequences!” It’s all upsides.

There are countless magazines and user videos promoting VR dieting and VR food tours.

“If the weapon shop’s here, then for convenience, the general store should be nearby too.”

In most games, it’s standard to have the weapon shop, armor shop, item shop, and inn located close together.

Another hour later. I lay out the spoils I found on the cobblestone.

Bread turned to charcoal.

Meat that had become a black stick, far beyond smoked.

What looked like jam fused into a lump with melted glass.

And a few other things that used to be food.

“This is a no-go. Just give up on these. The real prize is over here.”

Hardtack and dried fruits. Smoked meat in jars. These were in good condition and looked safe to eat.

Where did I find them? In the corner of some rubble that barely retained the form of what might’ve been a restaurant, there was a hidden staircase leading underground, which turned out to be a pantry.

Since it was a basement, the temperature was lower compared to the outside, and it seemed to have been used for food storage.

I brought back some dried meat and jars from there. With this much, I should be good for three days.

There’s still plenty of preserved food left, so I’ll definitely remember this location. I also made sure to hide the entrance with rubble so other guardians won’t find it.

“Realistic mechanics are nice and all, but maybe it’s about time I enjoy the real thrill of the game.”

All set. Now, I can finally start the game in earnest.

I saw what looked like monsters a few times on the way to this ruin, so I guess I’ll head back to that area.

“Pretty sure it was around here… There it is.”

I hide behind a large tree and peer out carefully.

A humanoid creature with not a single strand of body hair, not even on its head.

Its ears, mouth, and eyes were all grotesquely large—especially the nose, which was big and high-bridged.

Its skin was a dirty green color, its upper body bare, wearing shorts made of animal hide.

It held a wooden club of a convenient size as its weapon. No shield or armor.

“A Copplin, huh.”

A monster with a grotesque appearance but a strangely cute name.

I know that monster well. Of course I do—it appeared countless times in the early stages of Death Parade TD as a common low-level enemy.

The enemies in this game often draw from traditional fantasy monsters, slightly altering their names to give a touch of originality.

Still, ‘Copplin’? What kind of naming sense is that?

“Seriously, that name and appearance just don’t match.”

Anyway, it’s only one enemy.

It’s just wandering around without a care, so it might be quicker to ambush it with this weapon—a mace—but I want to test my abilities while I have the chance.

I quietly set down my backpack on the ground. It’d only get in the way if I kept it on.

Instead of a sword, I chose a mace. As a former baseball catcher, I figured this would be easier to handle.

First, I double-check the situation.

The enemy is about ten meters away. The ground is covered in tall grass, so the Arrow Trap I set can’t be seen from the enemy’s position.

Everything else is ready too.

Alright, let’s do this!

“Hey! Over here!”

I leap out from behind the tree, shout, and raise my mace.

The Copplin turns its head toward me, then grins with a crooked smile.

I was worried it might run, but it’s heading straight toward me.

One step, two steps, three—just one more and—

It stepped on the trap!

The Copplin’s hideous face came flying toward me in an instant.

“Strike!”

As the Copplin was forcibly moved over four traps in rapid succession, I swung full force at its surprised face.

I felt the impact of something breaking through the grip of my hand.

There was a heavy thud as something dropped to the ground. Looking down, I saw the Copplin’s corpse, its face crushed in.

“Ugh… No gore filters either? Is this game okay?”

Since it’s restricted to players sixteen and older, I guess this level of violence is allowed. Even though this is a Japanese server, it’s foreign-made, after all. They’re way stricter with sexual content than Japan, but much looser with gore.

The feedback from defeating the enemy and the depiction of the corpse are both disturbingly realistic.

I quickly look away and let out a deep breath.

As a first battle, it went great. The enemy was caught off guard and full of openings due to the forced movement from the trap. Landing a hit in that moment made for an easy win.

Alright! Let’s keep this momentum going!