TMSDL 24

Chapter 24

Pale, the Archer of Royal Road

Pale, an archer in Royal Road, used to be just an ordinary gamer—until he met Weed. That changed everything.

“My fingers hurt too much from pulling the bowstring. Can’t I take a little break?”
“Pain can be endured.”
“But it really hurts…”
“Pain is part of getting stronger. You won’t lose your fingers just by shooting arrows.”

Hunting alongside Weed, he trained intensely under a brutal routine. Even the slightest drop in hunting speed meant nagging. The only way to survive was to hang in there and not collapse.

‘I’ve got to do better. I can do this.’

And so, through perseverance and adaptation, he earned himself a nickname:

[Weed’s Battle Slave: Pale]
An officially recognized battle slave.

Together with Weed, he hunted and adventured across the Versailles Continent.

Pale was a player who found joy in growth and overcame hardship—experiencing the joy and pain of Royal Road to the fullest.

After Weed unified the continent, the Arpen Empire was eventually torn apart.

Though the Arpen Empire had achieved continental unification, there were many unstable elements:

• Prestigious guilds that once chased dominance remained intact. They needed conflict to maintain their power.

• Many users didn’t desire a prolonged peace.

• If Weed ruled too strictly, it would spark resistance from the lords.

Due to these inherent limitations, the Arpen Empire fractured soon after its formation.

[Grand Duke of the North: Pale]

Pale ruled over Morata and the northern regions as Grand Duke and continued to play Royal Road for a long time.

He made friends and cleared many S-grade quests in Royal Road.

“Sir Pale, you’re truly amazing.”
“Haha, it’s nothing.”
“You might be the greatest archer on the continent.”
“I do shoot well, but I’m not that great.”
“Archery Master Pale!”
“Ahaha!”

Years passed, and Pale made more connections. He enjoyed not only Royal Road and the Seven Stars expansion but also other virtual reality games released after.

When Roanoke launched, he dove in headfirst.

“Roanoke? Sounds interesting.”

There was a thrill in taking part in a dying world.

In Roanoke too, Pale developed himself as an archer. His archery skills, honed through many games, were on full display from day one.

Roanoke provided the joy of saving people in danger.

“Thank you, Savior.”
“Thanks to the Great Archer Pale, we were able to drive out the corrupt noble!”

With every mission he completed, grateful NPC villagers thanked him. He saved people, helped rebuild the Kingdom of Leon, and a year passed by.

Then—

Major casualties in Roanoke!
Roanoke users failing to wake up after logging in!

At the time the serious incident occurred in Roanoke, Pale—whose real name was Oh Dong-man—was napping in real life.

A few minutes later, he received a call from his parents.

“Dong-man, you didn’t log in, right?”
“No, I didn’t.”
“Thank goodness. You’re over 40 and still playing games without a job. What if you got trapped in Roanoke?”
“…”

After a long scolding, Oh Dong-man blankly watched the news.

Estimated 100 million casualties due to the Roanoke incident
U.S. declares state of emergency
Abyss Inc. keeps repeating they’re “doing their best to resolve the issue”

“This is seriously bad.”

Dong-man’s mind raced. He could’ve been one of the victims had he been online. He also worried for those still trapped.

“Is Ironclad Pavise okay? What about Root-of-the-Forest Heidel?”

Naturally, he started searching for Roanoke-related videos.

Watching livestreams, he saw the Roanoke he once knew rapidly deteriorating. Friends he once trusted were now using their strength to oppress and exploit others.

“Players need to hunt or the monster population will explode and things will get dangerous…”
“Hmm, that’s not how you’re supposed to shoot…”
“This world is going to collapse for sure.”

He couldn’t shake the thought that Roanoke was inching toward destruction.

Maybe one day, everything would vanish completely.

Then, on the video platform Rainbow, a trending livestream caught his eye:

Weed’s Real-Time Broadcast from Roanoke

“Huh?”

The name Weed held deep meaning for Dong-man.

They’d built an unforgettable bond in Royal Road and occasionally kept in touch afterward.

Though most of their calls were Weed bragging endlessly about his daughter.

Dong-man clicked the video, just in case.

“It really is Weed! What’s he doing there?”

The user leading undead forces and capturing an abandoned stronghold was unmistakably Weed. His incredible command of undead and charisma—not just his appearance, but everything about him—flooded Dong-man with memories from Royal Road.

He trembled watching the video, overwhelmed with emotion.

“Weed… why…”

Weed was in Roanoke’s Hellfire difficulty.

Realizing that, Dong-man’s heart pounded wildly.

“If it’s Weed, he’ll beat Hellfire difficulty. I believe in him. But what about after that…”

He bit his lips hard.

Clearing Hellfire might grant great power, but would that be the end?

Roanoke was no easy world.

“You can’t do everything alone. But if I were in Roanoke instead of the real world…”

He felt guilt and worry for the players still inside—and loyalty to an old comrade.

In the end, Dong-man couldn’t hold back.

He entered the capsule.

He knew connecting to Roanoke was reckless.

Even so, he wanted to do what was right.

Huff, huff…

Gasping from tension—

Would you like to log into Roanoke?
“Yes, log in.”

He was determined to do the right thing—whatever it cost.

Pale was overwhelmed that he could whisper to Weed again.

He had longed to talk to him ever since seeing him working as a blacksmith in Ashford.

—Pale: Is it really you, Weed?
—Weed: Pale? A fake? Impersonator?
—Pale: What do you mean fake? I’m the battle slave Pale from Royal Road!
—Weed: Quit the nonsense. Hurry up and start trash-talking like the old days.
—Pale: It’s nothing like that. I saw your hunting video and logged into Roanoke.

To Weed, Pale was always a welcome presence.

AI had confirmed that it really was Pale.

They caught up on everything they’d missed.

—Pale: So Da-ye… That explains why you came to Roanoke. I was shocked to see your broadcast suddenly appear.
—Weed: But you logged in even knowing it was dangerous?
—Pale: Yes. I wanted to be there to support you after you cleared Hellfire.

Pale had risked his life to come in and hoped for a word of thanks or praise.

Friendship and loyalty that led him into a doomed world.

Wasn’t a true friend someone who helps in times of danger?

—Weed: You’re still a damn fool, even at your age.
—Pale: Huh?
—Weed: Grow up already. Did you even think how shocked your parents would be when you logged in?
—Pale: I…
—Weed: How can you be so clueless about your parents’ feelings?

Weed scolded Pale so hard it nearly brought him to tears.

Roanoke Approaching Collapse

“Monsters have swarmed the front of Jordic Fortress!”
“That’s bad news. Too many monsters means big trouble.”
“Mages, archers, spirit users, and summoners rushed over. Attacking from the walls earns you EXP and merit points.”
“Nice farming opportunity.”
“Weren’t there a lot of villages near Jordic?”
“There were. Not anymore.”

While staying in Ashford, Weed began to feel the allure of Roanoke.

‘I didn’t get the appeal at first, but this whole “end of the world” setup really is something.’

A creeping sense of danger.

A desire to survive—and to save the world.

‘Didn’t the developers say this was about letting players live out a dramatic life?’
(Yes. They said it was a chance to burn as brightly as possible.)
‘They should’ve tried it themselves.’

While working in the forge, Weed was often visited by Dekalon, a scout of the Blade Dragon guild.

“Bro, I’m offering you a chance to join our guild.”
“I’m not interested in guild life.”
“Is it because people badmouth our Line Guild? You shouldn’t judge it too harshly. When monsters swarm, we’re the ones holding the line.”
“Hmm…”
“Regular or neutral players might flee. But we’ll defend the cities and protect the users and NPCs. We charge a small fee for that.”

Weed pounded the anvil as he listened.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

The AI listening in was impressed by Dekalon’s argument.

(It’s a reasonable justification.)
‘Huh?’
(Ordinary Roanoke users are generally weak. Most are less than half the level of guild players.)

Roanoke was tough from character creation to combat. Casual users leveled slowly and didn’t invest much time. Meanwhile, Line Guild players hunted all day to grow strong.

(Even in war, normal users can’t fight effectively. Supporting the Line Guild maximizes combat efficiency.)

Weed sighed deeply at the AI’s explanation.

‘You really don’t know the world, do you.’
(Excuse me?)
‘If an AI like you is that naive, someone’s just gonna yank your memory chip.’
(I don’t understand.)

Weed paused to think and gave a simple example:

‘What do politicians say when they run for office?’
(According to news data: “for the people and the nation.”)
‘And once they’re elected, do they actually serve the people?’
(No. But aren’t politicians a unique case?)
‘People are the same. Line Guild says they’ll protect and grow stronger to guard cities. Sounds great—efficient and convincing.’
(Right?)
‘See? That’s how you get your memory pulled. Anyway, if monsters swarm in overwhelming numbers, who do you think will run first? The regular players—or the Line Guild?’
(I hadn’t considered they’d run first.)

‘Claims of “doing it for others” are just words. People rarely act on them.’

The AI’s global computation systems analyzed human history and culture and concluded:

Weed was probably right.

‘Never trust words—trust actions.’
(I think I’ve learned more about humans again.)