"Hello! The lonely survivors of the world! My fellow doomsday enthusiasts!"
Melon Mask had reappeared after a long absence.
He had gained a significant amount of weight since his last appearance—so much so that he now resembled his pre-war, well-fed self. Flashing his signature bright yet vaguely condescending smile, he took up nearly half the screen.
"Seriously! I completely underestimated Korea. Who would've thought such a small country, wrecked by civil war, would be home to so many geniuses? Damn. This is truly something else. Really."
With a snap of his fingers, a screen popped up, and suddenly, an explosion of dazzling graphics and exquisitely designed characters came to life, launching into a massive, instantaneous battlefield.
I knew this screen well.
This was the very game that the man from FoxGame’s bunker had shown me.
"My friends! Our brilliant comrades from the Korean board have done it again! Can you believe it? That a game like this could be made in a time like this—when war has started and the world is on the brink of destruction?!"
As Melon Mask’s excited voice carried on, the title of the game appeared on the screen in elegant effects.
"The SAGA"
That old Norse word for a tale or history.
A name that had already been used in countless games, but FoxGame had boldly chosen it as the official title of theirs.
Well, not like anyone would be around to sue them for copyright in this world.
"I know, I know what you're all thinking. Everyone's got different hardware, right? Some of you are probably using tablets just to access our VIVA! APOCALYPSE! forums. So, in collaboration with the brilliant developers at FoxGame, we've decided to host SAGA as a cloud-based game using our main servers!"
Cloud gaming—a system where the game runs directly on a server rather than needing to be installed on a player's computer. This allowed even those without high-end PCs to run top-tier games effortlessly.
Given the state of the world, this was probably the best possible way to play a AAA game.
Naturally, the chat was in a frenzy.
ohio7: Unbelievable!
bowwow82: GOAT!
coral8103: This reminds me of the old days with WoW! I had so much fun playing that back then! I'm seriously excited!
X'Ds_Grrrrr: FoxGame... I know them. They developed that text-based MUD. It was fun, even if only for a short time.
mmmmmmmmm: FoxGame! You’re still alive! 😭
Anonymous13: Did they save the entire company? How the hell did they even make this?
Dronx: So Monster Park was just a test stage for network stability, huh?
L-V-R-M: This is really exciting. I was going insane from the boredom lately!
dongtanmom: Yum...
...
...
Melon Mask glanced at Bumpy beside him and smiled.
Bumpy, as always, simply chewed on a romaine lettuce leaf with its grotesque front claws.
I often wondered whether that thing actually had intelligence, but that wasn’t important right now. What mattered was what Melon Mask was saying.
"Starting today, we'll be running the beta test! I'd love to include everyone, but we don’t have the capacity for that. So, sign up using the VIVA_BOT999 account, and we’ll select 100 people via lottery!"
After rattling off his words in a cheerful tone, Melon Mask suddenly narrowed his eyes, his face shifting into a scolding expression.
"And as for you sneaky Koreans! You PaleNet freeloaders! Technically, you’re not eligible, but FoxGame personally requested that I give you all a chance. So, I’ll be setting up a temporary sign-up page for you guys. Use that to create a temp account and apply for the beta test!"
The chat didn’t stop scrolling.
Even though LIVE! APOCALYPSE! had lost up to 30% of its user base due to deaths, the speed at which messages flooded in—what they called regen rate—was just as intense as in its prime.
That’s how excited people were about FoxGame’s latest project.
"..."
But something felt off.
I let out a sigh and looked up at the ceiling.
I knew the truth.
This game had a rather unpleasant history attached to it.
Maybe it was because I had seen the real FoxGame and had been disappointed in what I found.
But what truly weighed on my chest was Dies Irae.
Even after he took down the mutation and convinced his family, there had been some... developments.
*
"Skelton. I'll ask again—won't you join our community?"
Just as I had recognized him, Dies Irae must have recognized my value too.
He was persistent.
"We've got about 50 people now. At first, we were just another group of scavengers, but over time, we refined our ranks, cutting out the weak and forming a solid core. We’ve built enough strength to fend off most threats. Now, we’re looking to expand. Saving that family was part of that. We need real families. Groups made up solely of men may be strong and sharp, but they don’t last long. That sharpness can make them snap."
That’s when I remembered.
Dies Irae was a leader in communal survivalism.
Just like how scholars of old would debate under the leadership of a prominent figure, Dies Irae had his own firm philosophy on survival and was eager to preach it.
"With the Legion faction out of the picture, there’s less pressure on us. And whether it’s a good thing or not, the population is shrinking. That means we’ve got some breathing room—for now. We’re at a stage where we can focus on expanding our community and improving our quality of life. You wouldn’t have it so bad if you joined, Skelton."
I knew he wasn’t lying.
Visit fгee𝑤ebɳoveɭ.cøm for the best novel reading experi𝒆nce.
The state of his community was exactly as he described.
But if he was a staunch advocate of communal survival, then I was just as much a supporter of solitary survival.
"I appreciate the offer, but I prefer being on my own. I’ve got plenty of food, plenty of fuel. Not to sound arrogant, but I also have ties with the Legion faction. Living alone might be risky, but honestly, I still think staying out of sight is the best strategy."
Dies Irae’s expression changed.
Or rather, the atmosphere changed.
His face was still smiling, but the air around him had grown chillingly cold.
"I see. Living alone has its perks."
His voice had shifted.
"But you won’t be able to live alone forever."
"...That applies to you too, doesn’t it?"
"Yeah. It applies to us too. Sooner or later, we’ll all be dead."
Dies Irae turned away.
"Let’s change the subject. Have you ever been beyond the Rift?"
"Beyond the Rift?"
"...I’ve been there."
That was a lie.
The Rift was under the jurisdiction of the Hunters and the Gukwiwon.
As an ex-military man, he wouldn’t have been able to go there.
He wasn’t even qualified.
But then—
"...I saw something there."
A sharp, unmistakable fear flickered in his normally emotionless eyes.
His fingers trembled slightly as he hesitantly opened his hand.
"...Something was controlling the monsters."
"?"
"It could freeze people in place with just its mind. It had to be one of the larger species."
"..."
No way.
A General-Type?
Impossible.
Information about General-Types was classified at the highest level.
Even among Awakened Hunters, only a select few knew about them.
There was no way someone like Dies Irae, an ordinary soldier, could know about this.
And yet—
"It saw me. It held me in the air, just staring at me with those vast, empty, glossy eyes. The moment I met its gaze, I knew."
His voice was eerily steady.
"I knew that humanity doesn’t stand a chance against something like that."
There was truth in his words.
A truth that only those who had faced that nightmare could understand.
"You... were a Hunter, weren’t you?"
My voice trembled in a way that wasn’t like me.
“...At one point, the military tried to create its own Hunters.”
Dies Irae smiled at me, his teeth flashing white.
“I was the only one who survived.”
He turned and walked toward the truck.
“That day, I saw the truth. Humans... can’t win against monsters.”
His voice still carried the echo of fear, but there was conviction in it.
“But.”
He turned back to me.
“We can survive.”
His eyes flickered, following the movement of a rat scurrying into the bushes.
“Like that sewer rat.”
His ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) words filled me with a deep sense of revulsion, but he continued.
“...If we give up our position as the rulers of this planet.”
The truck, carrying Dies Irae and his family, glided away into the setting sun.
I stood there for a long time, watching it disappear into the horizon.
“...”
Dies Irae.
I finally understood what he meant by survival.
A miserable, pathetic kind of survival—one that merely preserves the species.
That’s why he could be so ruthless.
Caught between half-repulsion and half-understanding, I stood there, lingering in the sunset for quite a while.
A message arrived.
I had been accepted into the beta test, along with a direct link to access it.
I logged in for a moment.
I wasn’t an expert, but the game felt well-made.
Compared to Monster Park, which was just a text-based MUD, this was an evolution on another level.
But I had no desire to play.
I wasn’t fond of this kind of game to begin with.
As I idly browsed the menu, preparing to log out, I noticed a section labeled "Credits."
The development team.
I clicked on it.
With a grand, familiar piece of music playing in the background, the names of the developers rolled across the screen like movie credits.
...
“...”
No other names.
Just Foxgames.
Well, except for one.
Special Thanks to MELON MASK
If you removed that ass-kissing line, the credits essentially listed only one person.
It was trying to tell us, with grandiose music and a warped sense of truth, that he made this alone.
Eventually, the people who had actually worked with him would see this screen too, wouldn’t they?
One thing was certain: over on PaleNet’s Game Company Board, where Foxgames frequently posted, his game was receiving nothing but praise.
Anon: Did you see it? The SAGA. Looks like Director Choi made it alone.
Anon: The code is a mess of stolen assets, but if he managed to put it together this well, that’s still skill, I guess.
Anon: I can’t dig into the files, but judging by the frame rate, it runs pretty smoothly. Must’ve been well-coded.
Anon: Was Director Choi always this capable? Weird. When I worked with him, he barely knew the basics.
Anon: That’s taking it too far. He wasn’t completely incompetent—just slow and dumb with his work. Stuck in old-fashioned methods. But this time, it feels well done.
Anon: Still, he must’ve hired a graphic designer, at least.
Anon: But he claims he made it all himself?
...
...
I didn’t know.
I didn’t know what meaning there was in this meaningless praise from strangers.
Foxgames had messaged me right after I received my Shining Armband-Icon from VivaBot.
Surprisingly, the armband-icon allowed me to customize its appearance by uploading my own file. I could even equip or unequip it like an in-game item.
Just as I was about to admire my new armband, a message arrived.
Foxgames: Skelton!
“...”
The skin under my eye twitched.
Next to Foxgames’ username was an icon.
An icon that looked exactly like the executable file for The SAGA.
So he’d received an icon too.
Of course. He was far more valuable to Melon Mask than I was. It made sense he’d get something like this.
I didn’t really want to answer, but for old time’s sake, I did.
SKELTON: Yes.
Foxgames: Thank you! Really, really, thanks to you, I managed to survive and even complete what I consider my final masterpiece!
SKELTON: Congratulations.
Foxgames: Huh?
Foxgames: Why aren’t you using your usual message prefix?
SKELTON: No reason.
Foxgames: Ah... I guess I was a bit rude that day. I apologize. I really wasn’t thinking. But to be fair, I was in a desperate situation. Imagine hearing your own wife argue every night about how you need to be killed. How do you think that made me feel?
So it was true.
His wife had been telling her husband to kill him.
I had seen it with my own eyes.
Foxgames: If you’re still upset, please, don’t hold it in. It’s not much, but I’ve prepared a little gift for you again this time. Yes, a Super Account.
A Super Account.
I had received one of these before.
SKELTON: I appreciate it.
Foxgames: If you ever need anything, just let me know! I’ll do whatever I can!
I could end the conversation here.
Even if there were lingering emotions, ending it now would be the mature thing to do.
But I didn’t want to.
SKELTON: Hey.
Foxgames: Yes, Skelton?
SKELTON: I checked the credits. Your name was the only one listed.
Foxgames: ?
SKELTON: Didn’t you make it with other people?
Foxgames: What are you talking about? I made it all by myself.
SKELTON: I heard a guy handled programming, and a woman worked on the art.
Foxgames: What are you trying to say?
SKELTON: Did you ask for them to be killed so you could pretend you made it alone?
Foxgames: That’s not even worth responding to. What answer do you want to hear?
I couldn’t help but chuckle at that.
Taptaptap.
SKELTON: They’re alive.
For exactly 4 minutes and 12 seconds—an unusually long time—Foxgames was silent.
Then, finally, he replied.
Foxgames: Skelton, have you ever achieved anything in life?
SKELTON: Huh?
Foxgames: I mean things like wealth, status, assets, or honor. Have you ever accomplished anything like that?
SKELTON: (Skelton, confused.)
Foxgames: I’ve achieved all that. There’s only one thing left for me—pride. I worked myself to death for it. Don’t belittle my efforts.
SKELTON: (Skelton Pride Chicken.)
Foxgames: Blocking you now~
And so, our little exchange ended in the most extreme way possible—being blocked.
I didn’t block him.
I wanted to watch.
Foxgames: This patch reflects as much of your feedback as possible. But as a solo developer, responses will inevitably be slow—sorry about that!
At the same time, I unblocked someone I had recently muted.
Dies_Irae69: I told you, didn’t I? Foxgames is nothing like you.
I wasn’t sure.
I didn’t know if Foxgames was truly my antithesis.
Frankly, our lives and philosophies were so wildly different that it was hard to place us as opposites in the first place.
But one thing was certain.
Foxgames was still regarded as a good person in the online world.
“...”
I disabled my armband-icon.