Everyone Except Me is a Newbie

Prologue

Mana Sword Online.
A masterpiece RPG created by Team We Plug, despite facing immense ridicule.

Originally, Mana Sword was a console game. However, due to a critical issue, it was remade intonter an online version. That critical issue was money.

Succeeding as a console game in the Korean market was impossible, and Team We Plug was part of Donson, the largest game company in the country. They had to generate revenue.

Thus, they painstakingly created the online version of Mana Sword. It took a year for them to make it.

“Damn it, finally…”

Lead planner Kim Iseo trembled with both fists clenched. He had just met with the executive vice president.

“Lee Kyungyoung gave his approval.”

Lee Kyungyoung. He was the executive vice president of Donson, overseeing general planning and marketing. Without his approval, nothing could proceed.

“Wow! Did he really say, ‘Go ahead!’?”

Junior developer Choi Seoyeon jumped up, imitating the executive vice president.

“Woooo!”

“Hyung! Finally!”

All the developers surrounded Kim Iseo, were ready to break into dance.

“With the condition that items will be turned into random boxes.”

Suddenly, as if cold water had been poured over them, everyone was at a loss for words.

“…No way.”

Four faces, empty and anxious. but Kim Iseo was with a sly smile.

“Anyway, in Mana Sword, weapons are fixed! We’ll only randomize the armor!”

“Wow! That’s awesome!”

“You genius! Haha!”

Exactly. Mana Sword was a game where you continue with the ‘Short Sword’ you receive at birth. The charm of the game lies in the sword evolving according to the user.

“That guy probably didn’t even look at the game content. Haha! I won, Lee Kyungyoung!”

Although the armor had to be randomized, the other elements remained free of luck-based factors.

“Launch date! When’s the launch date!”

The development team leader, who had been eating black bean noodles, said.

“April 1st.”

“……”

Once again, the office was doused in silence.

“…The day after tomorrow?”

“So they won’t do any marketing?”

“Why April Fools’ Day of all days… unsettling…”

At that point, Kim Iseo scratched his head, a habit he had when something was bothering him.

“Ah… that’s the second condition.”

The developers’ faces returned to their initial expressions of despair.

“Phew… well, we can’t ask for more. We’ll have to pull an all-nighter for the final test.”

Time passed, and April 1st arrived. Naturally, the development team hadn’t slept a wink.

On that day, all the developers were sleeping on mats in the office.

“Team leader! Team leader!”

It was the junior developer, Choi Seoyeon, who woke them. She was jumping up and down again.

“Look at this! The number of current users!”

The entire We Plug development team rushed to Choi Seoyeon’s monitor.

“Why are you looking at the number of current users for a game that just launched… without any promotion…”

Even as he grumbled, Kim Iseo looked at Seoyeon’s monitor.

“Wait a minute… what’s this number?”

“Isn’t it almost over a million!? Wow! Barbecue party!”

Seoyeon had grossly miscounted the units.

“It’s not a million…”

Mana Sword Online was too successful, beyond anyone’s wildest dreams. The number of concurrent users on Kim Iseo’s screen was 680 million.

“Six…six hundred and eighty million??”

Kim Iseo felt something was amiss.

“Is there an error in the calculation? Hey, Seoyeon. Is this an April Fools’ joke?”

“No… no…”

After checking, there was no error in the system. Everything was being calculated correctly.

But Kim Iseo’s instinct that something was wrong was right on point.

Boom…

“Huh…?”

A strange vibration resonated from the Donson building, like a deep tremor from an earthquake.

Ding. [You have been chosen by Mana Sword to save this world.]

A message floated in the air.

“This… this is…”

Kim Iseo, dazed, reached out into the air.

“…Our game’s start phrase?”

[You are granted a Mana Sword.]

Whoosh.

With the second message came an eerie chime, and a light began to form above his hand.

The light gradually subsided, taking a specific shape.

“A Short Sword…”

A common weapon given to all players at the start of Mana Sword. A Short Sword was now in his hand.

“Wow! The company must be holding an event!”

‘But it’s not Halloween? Because it’s April Fools’ Day?’

Kim Iseo stared blankly at his monitor again.

He had misread the number. It made sense; who would think the number of concurrent users for a game would be in the billions?

“Damn it, the number of concurrent users is 6.8 billion!!”

With this, the name Mana Sword Online was no longer accurate. It was now Mana Sword ‘Offline’.