"103-104..."

I counted slowly and cautiously as I moved forward, quickly reaching my destination.

An unbelievably massive boulder, shaped by nature, had ended up here.

The overall size of the boulder was about the same as my house in the west, maybe even a bit larger.

I recalled the instructions from the game, and soon, the environment around me began to change rapidly.

"A hidden cave revealed with just a simple touch, how cliché."

The sunlight quickly disappeared, and I found myself in a strange cave. I looked behind me and saw a passage extending infinitely.

I looked ahead, and I was met with the same sight.

Anyone unfamiliar with what was happening might panic, thinking escape had become impossible.

But in reality, it was much simpler than that.

I wasn’t sure how players were supposed to know this, but I had found it in the memories of the game’s director.

Even though I knew what to do, I still found it somewhat difficult to move—not because something specific was holding me back, but because my mind had suffered another shock.

This scene around me could only mean one thing…

The memories I had gained weren’t illusions... they were entirely real and accurate.

This cave destroyed my last hope that those memories weren’t real, and that I wasn’t just a filler in some game.

I suppressed my sadness with all my strength, but my facial expressions still twisted unnaturally.

My eyes became slightly wet, but it didn’t move beyond that point.

"I have to keep moving..."

I closed my eyes, calmed myself, and organized my thoughts before I started running.

I ran… and ran… and ran.

It lasted less than a minute, during which I thought about many things.

'It doesn’t matter… I have to finish what I started, at least…'

I took a deep breath as I stopped and opened my eyes.

I was standing in the middle of a strange circle.

Nine stone slabs surrounded me from all sides, even from behind and in my blind spots.

The slabs lit up in a specific sequence the moment I opened my eyes; when the light from one faded, the next lit up, and the same pattern continued.

The entire process took three seconds.

So, each second, I had to memorize the sequence of three stone slabs lighting up.

This test was meant to assess a person’s mental capacity and focus.

Players would eventually resort to searching for the pattern in some browser...

Luckily for me, the light sequence was fixed and didn’t change, so I could simply input the same sequence from the game director's memories.

[9-5-6-4-7-1-3-2-8]

After pressing the slabs in that specific order and pulling them down, they merged into the ground quickly.

The ground was filled with sticky mud, and the area around me was generally dense with trees.

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

Suddenly, strange creatures started emerging from the ground—green like grass and as fragile as it, too.

Anyone around level 10 with moderate ability could defeat many of these creatures.

Since these grass creatures relied on vision to move and attack properly, they were already within my range.

My ability works on several layers—perhaps "dimensions" would be a better word.

The first layer: my regular vision.

The second layer: the target’s regular vision.

The third layer: the target’s manipulated vision.

For my ability to affect the opponent, they must exist within my normal vision (the first layer).

At that point, my mind ignores my own first layer and focuses entirely on the third, as if it were my regular vision.

As for the second layer (the target’s regular vision), it’s completely ignored.

The grass creatures slowly advanced toward me. I quickly manipulated the one at the front, causing it to trip.

Everyone behind it stumbled in that instant, falling to the ground.

Manipulating the perspective of one monster made four others almost incapable of fighting.

I pulled out the kitchen knife I had brought with me earlier and began quickly plucking off their heads.

Their only advantage was their numbers and sharp teeth. Everything else about them was weak and fragile.

As long as they didn’t surround me all at once, they’d never beat me.

Once they were on the ground, they became like bugs struggling to get up after falling.

As soon as these creatures fell, I would stab and pluck them apart as fast as I could. Soon enough, I had defeated them all.

This test clearly wasn’t about strength; the monsters were too weak.

The first test: channeling energy into the cave wall.

The goal of this test was to confirm that the person entering had at least a normal amount of Zen.

The second test: a memory challenge.

As the name suggests, this test ensured that the person had better-than-average focus and memory, and possibly some level of intelligence.

The third test: facing weak monsters.

I wasn’t sure what the goal of this test was, maybe to showcase my skill to whoever designed this trial in the first place?

So, these three tests assessed the following:

1. The examinee can use consciousness energy.

2. The examinee’s mental capabilities are above average.

3. The examinee’s innate skill is showcased.

Clearly, there was a deeper meaning to these three tests, but it was disappointing that the game developers hadn’t thought it through more.

Just puzzles and random monsters... Does this mean the world is trying to give meaning to the random actions they’ve taken? Or is it all just coincidence?

It seems I’ve become obsessed with thinking about such things... things no one should really dwell on...

I looked at the light emanating from a nearby tree, the source of that light being a girl engulfed in a fiery green aura.

She was stunning—her hair as green as her flames, and she hovered just centimeters above the ground.

The aura around her was incredibly pure, and I felt a fresh breeze that filled the cave.

It was as if nature itself had manifested before me...

'Just a programmed character with a predetermined will, mere random data stored on a disk resting on some desk somewhere...'

I couldn’t stop myself. Ever since that incident, I had thought this way whenever I saw someone.

The people at the academy, the people on the streets and trains… even the rulers of the human nation and the strongest creatures on the planet.

All had lost their grandeur and status in my eyes with this way of thinking—'Just data.'

No matter how she appeared before me, no matter how striking her presence...

Her appearance and demeanor were just like in the game, a perfect match... her movements, her facial expressions...

Everything was exactly as it had been portrayed in the game, pre-programmed...

The woman slowly approached me and extended her index finger toward my forehead.

After doing this, she was supposed to give me the first movement of the .

I would then be able to leave and do whatever I needed to do.

I didn’t know why the forehead tap was necessary, it was something the game director added for mystery and drama.

No reason, just something for the players to enjoy...

Suddenly, the woman’s expression changed, as if she had seen a terrible nightmare.

She fell to her knees, clutching her neck with both hands, beginning to choke herself.

Her eyes turned black as if she had been hit by a deadly toxin, and she began crying blood.

A strange green liquid oozed from the corners of her mouth, which then turned into thick foam.

She began suffocating, falling on her back to the ground.

One of her hands remained on her neck, while the other stretched toward me... not for help, but for something else.

Despite all the pain she clearly felt, there was something in her eyes beyond terror.

Something... curious.

I heard a faint sound escape her mouth in that moment, "Y-you won't endure…!!"

Her body then exploded into pure energy, scattering everywhere.

Since her form wasn’t made of flesh and blood, there were no remains except for her clothes and three cards.

I didn’t bother with the cards, too occupied with doing something far more important.

I laughed once, then again.

"This didn’t happen in the game! I made a change!"

A powerful, noble creature had just died before me, a being that had protected humanity since its very existence.

I should’ve felt sorrow for its passing, but the joy of having altered something in this world for the first time overwhelmed me more.

"I can!"