Everyone Except Me is a Newbie

The Bathhouse Attack

‘Holy Sword’

In terms of skills alone, the Holy Sword skill could very well be classified as “Mythic (Epic)” grade.

[Skill. Holy Sword (Legendary Grade) Acquired!]

[Holy Sword: Passive Skill. Increases damage dealt to all monsters by 10%. Increases damage dealt to undead monsters by 30%.]

It’s a straightforward and brutally effective skill that boosts damage to all monsters. The reason this skill is Legendary rather than Mythic is its lack of utility in PvP content. It has no effect in player-versus-player battles.

‘Still, with this… I could grow rapidly. Why is this skill even here?’

In reality, the Holy Sword was obtained through a hidden quest. Of course, it wasn’t by pulling the goddess’s cheeks in the prologue.

‘Why is the goddess’s personality like that?’

There were many things that didn’t make sense.

Kim Iseo opened his phone to check Jannelet’s settings.

‘…There’s no mention of her personality.’

It only mentioned that she was a character with a sacred goddess concept. There was no indication of the arrogant and oppressive image she displayed. Her appearance was also supposed to be delicate and innocent.

Another confusing thing.

[Jannelet shows a strange interest in you.]

[Affection +20]

[Current Affection: 10]

Pulling her cheeks actually increased her affection. It was clearly a very rude action.

If Kim Iseo were to uncover a real woman’s naked body and then pull her cheeks to calm down, he would be immediately prosecuted.

“…Is this her taste?”

Confused, he pulled her cheeks again.

Stretch.

“No… No more!”

Whack!

Jannelet’s foot shot out, knocking Kim Iseo’s face.

“Gah…!”

It seemed the effect only worked the first time. Jannelet’s face turned red, and she yelled loudly.

“W-What kind of rude behavior is this!”

“Ah…”

Kim Iseo didn’t know what to say.

“It’s… the way we greet each other here.”

“…Oh, I see?”

“Ahem.”

Jannelet, now embarrassed, cleared her throat.

“If that’s the case, I apologize. Still, don’t ever have lewd thoughts about seeing the goddess in her undergarments again.”

“I didn’t look on purpose…”

“Don’t make excuses.”

“…”

A moment of silence.

“Why are you silent?”

At this point, Kim Iseo considered whether it might be better to punch her in the face rather than pull her cheeks.

Fortunately, that didn’t happen because Choi Seo-yeon came in to change her clothes.

“Oh? J-Jannelet!”

Choi Seo-yeon recognized Jannelet immediately.

“Are you part of this rude person’s group?”

Jannelet asked Choi Seo-yeon, who was stunned.

“…Yes.”

Choi Seo-yeon unintentionally used formal language. She was overwhelmed by Jannelet’s dignified appearance.

“Wow… she’s really beautiful.”

Even Choi Seo-yeon, as a woman, stared at Jannelet’s face in awe.

“Then you must have come because you heard my prayer for salvation. Nice to meet you.”

Jannelet approached and patted Choi Seo-yeon’s forehead, a goddess’s unique way of greeting to absorb bad energy from the head.

“Hmmm… you’re quite beautiful.”

“Y-You too, Goddess…”

Choi Seo-yeon’s face turned bright red.

“Oh, that’s not the greeting here.”

“Uh… What? G-Goddess?”

Choi Seo-yeon looked in surprise at Jannelet, who was stretching her own face.

Her gaze quickly shifted to Kim Iseo, demanding an explanation. Kim Iseo avoided eye contact.

“Hey, Seo-yeon! When are you coming out? I need to change too… Huh?”

Heo Won-moo, who was next in line to change, was astonished, his jaw nearly touching the floor.

‘Long live Donson’s illustration team.’

He silently thanked Donson’s ability to create female characters.

“Are you… a porter?”

Jannelet asked Heo Won-moo, looking at the shopping bags he was holding.

“Ah… Yes…”

Heo Won-moo, mesmerized, replied. He genuinely thought he’d be happy to be her porter.

Jannelet lightly touched his forehead and handed him her clothes.

“Please take good care of these.”

“Y-Yes…”

Heo Won-moo could not hide his ecstatic expression as he looked at the goddess’s attire.

“Are those two also part of your group?”

Jannelet asked, noticing Lee Hae-won and Ji Ho-tae. She approached them to greet them.

“Hmm… Are you a woman? I’m confused.”

“…I’m a man.”

“You’re a very handsome man. Nice to meet you.”

Jannelet patted Lee Hae-won’s forehead and, as usual, stretched his cheeks.

“Ah… Nice to meet you.”

“I-I’m Ji Ho-tae!”

Ji Ho-tae eagerly leaned forward with an expectant face.

“Nice to meet you.”

Tap.

Jannelet’s hand lightly touched his forehead. Since she had to stand on tiptoe, the time she spent pulling his cheeks was very brief.

“Th-Thank you!”

“Hmm? What are you thanking me for?”

“Ah, I mean… Nice to meet you!”

Jannelet looked at the flustered Ji Ho-tae with amusement. She scanned the store and then climbed to a slightly elevated spot.

“It seems this is everyone in your group, so I will give you a gift. This is a token of thanks for responding to my prayer for salvation.”

Ding.

[Quest Completed!]

A message arrived for all Weplug members.

[Reward has been given.]

[Blessing of the Stars: Allows you to change your contracted constellation once. Players without a constellation will be assigned a random one.]

The Blessing of the Stars is an item that grants a new constellation to players without one and gives existing players an additional opportunity to choose. It is a very useful item in Mana Sword and is quite valuable.

“Now, I should introduce myself properly. I am Jannelet, the goddess from the planet Gaia.”

Weplug received Jannelet’s introduction with joy.

‘Alright. We’ve completed the main storyline.’

Jannelet’s quest was part of the main storyline, known as the “main stream” in this game. Completing these quests advances the game and allows for updates. It’s also a limited quest; once someone completes it, others cannot repeat it later. The developers decided that if such quests could be repeated, the sense of mystery would be diminished. 

“…Our planet Gaia has been occupied by the Draconian race. Humans have become slaves, and I barely survived. Now, the Draconians are aiming to invade this dimension as well. I have brought this ‘Stone of Salvation’ to aid you. Will you use it to protect yourselves and accept the refugees from Gaia?”

There’s no fool who wouldn’t accept the main storyline quest. The answer was already decided. Everyone in Weplug agreed.

“Very well. Then you just need to go to the ‘Sanctuary’ filled with divine energy and liberate the Stone of Salvation. Once you do, your weapons will become Mana Swords with boundless power.”

[Your weapons will become Mana Swords with boundless power.]

Her words were broadcast to all players. This explanation was meant for everyone.

As soon as she finished speaking, a quest window appeared.

Ding.

[Main Quest: Escort Goddess Jannelet]

▻ Quest Difficulty: D

▻ Objective: Protect Goddess Jannelet until she reaches the Sanctuary.

▻ Location: ???

▻ Completion Reward: Varies based on affection

▻ Failure Penalty: Destruction

* * *

Kim Iseo looked at the quest window and nodded with a satisfied expression.

‘Got the quest and the Legendary skill. A good start.’

With two Legendary-grade skills and two Hero-grade skills, Kim Iseo was already becoming a uniquely distinguished presence. For some reason, the constellations seemed to favor him greatly.

‘Perhaps because there are few competitors?’

If this were a game, Kim Iseo’s actions so far would be quite average. But this was reality, and his life was at stake. Few could make decisions and act as swiftly as he did. That’s why the constellations’ support seemed to be concentrated on him.

“But Team Leader, it’s really dark right now… Should we proceed with the quest as it is?”

Choi Seo-yeon said, looking outside the window, which was indeed very dark. Kim Iseo checked the time.

‘It’s 10 PM.’

It seemed quite a bit of time had passed.

“For now, let’s find a place to stay for the night.”

They decided to rest for the day instead of continuing with the quest.

* * *

In the nearly destroyed city of Seoul, finding a place to sleep was quite limited. They needed to find a jjimjilbang (Korean spa) underground or a motel-like accommodation in a building that hadn’t collapsed yet.

“…Sigh. Motels are no good. They’re all full. It’s a complete mess.”

Heo Won-moo, who had been checking around, complained.

“Then it seems we have no choice but to go to the jjimjilbang…”

Kim Iseo was troubled. Unlike motels, jjimjilbangs had many potential risks. Especially if he had to sleep next to someone like Jannelet, they’d surely attract unnecessary attention.

‘Unnecessary attention… Wait a moment?’

As Kim Iseo thought, an idea seemed to come to him. A very good way to increase affection.

“Since we don’t have many options, let’s head to the jjimjilbang.”

* * *

The jjimjilbang was more peaceful than expected. To the casual observer, it seemed like just an ordinary jjimjilbang. It was as if the world had stayed the same and hadn’t become a game.

Except for the short swords hanging from their waists.

“Wow. I feel refreshed after washing up. Hehe. How about you, Goddess?”

Choi Seo-yeon, having washed away the sweat from the battle, looked refreshed.

“Hmm. Yes, I’m good as well. Thank you for helping me clean.”

The white skin, now smooth and slightly flushed from the bath, highlighted her beauty.

“Wow… She’s really something…”

“Hmm? Who’s that foreigner…?”

“I don’t know. She’s incredibly beautiful…”

Most people only reacted to the presence of an extraordinarily beautiful foreigner in the jjimjilbang, then went back to thinking about what to eat tomorrow.

However, a few desire-driven men continued to stare intently at Jannelet.

‘…They’ll notice soon enough.’

With so many men staring at Jannelet, it was only a matter of time before someone figured it out, considering her speech and behavior.

Jannelet’s grand speech at UNIQLO had been broadcast to all players.

In other words, they knew her mannerisms and word choices.

“Ha… It’s quite hot here. Someone bring some ice water or something…”

“I-I’ll go get it, Goddess!”

Ji Ho-tae shouted loudly.

“Goddess?”

“Did he just say Goddess?”

“Ah, I guess that woman must be Jannelet.”

Kim Iseo had to work hard to suppress his laughter, exercising his facial muscles.

‘I knew Ji Ho-tae would be the one to catch on.’

Thanks to Ji Ho-tae’s actions, the whole jjimjilbang now had an announcement that said, “This woman is Goddess Jannelet!”

“…Goddess?”

A group of somewhat rough-looking individuals in the jjimjilbang were the first to move. They walked unhesitatingly towards the Weplug members. It was clear that their intentions were not good.

‘Good.’

Kim Iseo subtly made way for Jannelet and stepped back.

The man with a headscarf and full of tattoos on his neck stepped forward.

“Hey, are you Jannelet?”

“Yes, I am. And you are?”

“Come with us. We can do that quest too, right?”

“Quest…?”

“Come on, don’t pretend you don’t know. This NPC. Come here.”

The man grabbed Jannelet’s wrist. Jannelet, surprised, tried to pull away, but the man wouldn’t let go.

“L-Let go! I am with these people…”

“Oh, stop acting up. Just come along!”

“No, I don’t want to! I said no… Ahhh!”

Jannelet finally screamed. Choi Seo-yeon was the first to act.

“Hey! Can’t you see we’re on a mission?”

“Get lost!”

The man, visibly agitated, suddenly swung his sword at Choi Seo-yeon.

Swish!

“Ah…!?”

Choi Seo-yeon froze in shock, unable to believe he would swing his sword immediately. She was completely unprepared for battle.

[Skill. Gale Sword. Activated!]

Of course, Kim Iseo was fully prepared for combat.

Clang!

Kim Iseo’s sword precisely intercepted the man’s blade.

“How dare you lay hands on the sacred goddess! I shall cut off your limbs and kill you.”

Kim Iseo’s words were laced with theatrical tones. Of course, Jannelet had no way of knowing that.

Ding.

[Jannelet’s affection has significantly increased.]

[Shows great interest in you.]

[+30]

[Current Affection: 40]

* * *

[Beginner Tip: Rescuing Jannelet from danger will yield a large affection reward. What’s good about increased affection? Who knows? Maybe she’ll even give you a kiss!]