Three days have passed since we had cleared the tutorial.

STAGE 0 - Clear!

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Congratulations! You have Cleared, Stage 0!

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Rewards:

SSR Reactors

5

SSR Cores

20

SR Reactors

100

SR Cores

500

S Reactors

1,000

S Cores

2,000

More…

X 120,000

LEVEL UP!

Arion Solace

Level. 44 (10↑)

Champion

Click Here for Info

William Von Dakeon

Level. 27 (1↑)

Commander

Click Here for Info

DAMAGE!

Cyrus Iolan

Dead

Ava Iolan

Dead

Soldiers X 20,000

Dead

Arion Solace

Injured

More…

X 100

We had lost 20,000 soldiers. You heard me right. Dead, not injured like Arion, but gone, like Cyrus and Ava.

Cyrus was beyond saving by the time the soldiers reached them. As for Ava, she had used Sacrifice Magic, sealing her fate. Sacrifice Magic drew upon the caster’s life force, consuming all of their remaining lifespan, no matter the spell’s strength.

The result? A spell so powerful, it surpassed anything the mage had ever cast in their lifetime. Ava's sacrifice had wiped out scores of Elite Goblins and Goblin Knights, but it left her body in ashes. The soldiers gathered what remained of her for a proper funeral.

Arion was seriously injured, but the priests assured me he would recover in time. The church, with its priests and priestesses, had taken him in, tending to his wounds and preparing healing potions. He was still unconscious, and the priest estimated it would be at least a week before he woke.

As for the funerals, they would be held next week. With so many bodies to recover and prepare, we needed time. But more importantly, I wanted Arion to be there. To say goodbye to Cyrus and Ava.

The only good news was that Arion had awakened as the Champion of Dawn. Usually, it would take around the midpoint of the game for him to awaken, but it looked like the battle had caused him to awaken early. It was good as being a Knight and a Champion is a huge difference as having Champion would boost his stats.

Arion Solace

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Level. 44

Class: Champion

HP: 132

MP: 220

ATK: 440

DEF: 110

1. Special Skill:

Blade of Sun

2. Special Skill:

Hero’s Blessing

Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

3. Special Skill: (Level. 60)

(Locked!)

4. Special Skill: (Level. 80)

(Locked!)

5. Special Skill: (Level 100)

(Locked!)

Arion had progressed much over the battle and his stats had a huge boost too. To give him how powerful he was, the average soldier MP was 4 or 5 while their ATK, attack power, was at 10.

While I was staring at the stats of the Arion, a voice called out to me.

“Major General William.”

I turned to see Alaric approaching. His left arm was wrapped in bandages, while his right, though functional, bore a fresh scar. Ignoring my stare, he got straight to the point.

“We’ve received reports that many other forts have successfully defended themselves,” he said. “On top of that, eyewitnesses confirm that the goblins are retreating across the front, allowing us to begin reclaiming our lost ground.”

“I see,” I said dryly.

The game’s story had changed. Of course it had. This tutorial wasn’t meant to be beaten, yet here we were, standing on the other side of survival. From what I’d heard from the game developer, the goblin force sent to our fort made up 80% of their entire army, meaning we’d dealt a devastating blow to them.

But why this fort?

Because the one I was stationed at had a direct path to the teleportation gate to World #A-10. The goblins knew that as well as we did. The gate was the key, and the fort protecting it wasn’t far from here. That’s why they had thrown everything they had at us. They wanted that gate for themselves.

Anyway, now at least we got a little breathing room. I looked at the blue screen in front of me.

STAGE 1

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Preparation Time: 2 Weeks

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Enemies:

??? Lv. 10

?

Elite Goblin Lv. 3

57

Goblin Lv. 1

462

It was ridiculous. We had 5,000 soldiers while the goblins had little over 500, all of them below level 10 which was nothing compared to what the tutorial had thrown at us.

I decided we should strike the goblins head-on. The reason was simple: in the game, if the player attacked first before the monsters could act, the next stage would give more time to prepare. My plan was to keep attacking the early stages, buying us extra preparation time for the tougher waves to come.

With that settled, I headed to visit Enoda again. I needed him to craft some new weapons and armor, especially since Cyrus and Ava’s gear had been smashed to pieces during the last battle. Plus, with all the Reactors and Cores we’d collected from the tutorial stage, I figured now was the perfect time to upgrade.

And yes, Enoda did survive since he was at the very back of the line when the fight broke out which was a huge benefit for me since he could craft many things including Arion’s personal sword, Solstice later on.

When I arrived at the blacksmith, Enoda was already busy repairing the fort's defensive equipment. A lot of cannons, catapults, ballistae—both standard and magical—had been destroyed, and he was overseeing their restoration.

“Enoda,” I called out.

He turned to face me, his expression grim. “Couldn’t you at least try to save some of the equipment?” he asked, frustration clear in his voice. “All of our projects got put on hold because of this mess.”

“Sorry, but I need you to craft some armor for me.”

“For who?” Enoda raised an eyebrow.

“One set for Arion, and I want it equipped with an SSR Reactor and four SSR Cores.”

Arion was still progressing, and having high-tier gear would give him the boost he needed. Plus, I knew that by the time we hit Stage 10, SSR Cores would start dropping regularly, so it wasn’t like I’d need them right away.

Enoda sighed but nodded. “Fine. When do you need it by?”

“In about a month. I’m planning to take 1,000 soldiers on a goblin hunt, so that should give you plenty of time.”

He grunted, getting back to his work. “I’ll make it happen. Just don’t destroy all the defenses this time.”

I saw no reason why I would lose, but I didn’t say that out loud as I headed to my room. After all, it would seem strange if anyone knew how I seemed to predict the goblins' moves without scouts or prior knowledge.

Once inside, I collapsed face-first onto my bed. Even after three days had passed since the “tutorial,” I was still exhausted. Yes, I’d beaten it, but at a tremendous cost—20,000 soldiers dead. I had wanted to save as many as possible, but fate had other plans.

I wanted to scream, cry, or let out my frustration somehow, but I knew it wouldn’t help. Nothing would. So, I just lay there, trying to close my eyes and drift off, when suddenly a blue screen materialized in front of me.

So, You still Want to be the Hero, huh?

My eyes shot open at the message.

"Who the hell are you?" I muttered, startled.

Let’s Just say I’m the Game Developer in this World, the One Who is Responsible for Pulling You in.

"The game developer?" I said aloud, shocked. The truth hit me like a brick, and my shock quickly turned into rage.

"What is wrong with you?! Who are you, and what do you want? Why did you drag me into this game? And what was up with the four Goblin Emperors?! You said there was supposed to be one!"

...I can’t explain everything right now, but let’s just say I’m trying to help you get out of this game.

“Help me?” My voice caught in my throat as I spoke.

Help me? Twenty thousand soldiers had died because of that unexpected encounter with four Goblin Emperors, and now the so-called game developer wanted to say they were trying to help?

Seriously, calm down. All I can tell you is that to return home, you’ll need to finish the game—just like before. And I am trying to help you. I can’t give you all the details, but I’ll tell you this:

Don’t trust the game’s story too much if you’re going to change things.

"Don’t act like you’re helping me after all the things you’ve done! I want answers!" I screamed at the now-blank blue screen. But there was no response from the so-called "Game Developer."

Instead, another screen appeared in front of me.

Rewards!

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SSR Chest

X 10

Mercenary Draw

X 10

Adventurer Draw

X 100

Slave Draw

X 100

I waited, expecting more, but the developer didn’t reappear. After a few moments of silence, I gave up, focusing instead on what they’d just given me.

The chests were essentially gacha pulls, offering random items, some useful, others not so much. Then there were the Mercenary, Adventurer, and Slave Draws—tickets that let me recruit characters for my party. I liked to think of them as "heroes," even if they weren’t exactly the game’s main Champions.

Mercenary Draws were the best for drawing seasoned, powerful characters. Even lower-ranked mercenaries were often formidable. The Adventurer Draws could also produce strong characters, but they were more hit-or-miss—newer adventurers who had just started out with the guild were often much weaker.

And then there was the Slave Draw. While it occasionally provided a rare, powerful character, most of the time it gave me the weakest options—people barely capable of holding their own in a fight.

I sighed, staring at the rewards. Useful? Yes. But still... I couldn’t shake the frustration brewing inside me. The developer had thrown these rewards at me like a consolation prize, but I needed more than shiny new items. I needed answers.

I took a deep breath and focused. First, I would check what I'd gotten, and then... I’d figure out my next move.