Slash!

The hang glider spread wide, and Almond slowly steered it toward a spot that looked reasonably safe. He finally touched down.

Almond sighed in relief. “Whew.”

Unlike Battle Large’s parachutes, the absurdly fast hang glider felt far more nerve-racking.

“This really is different from Battle Large.”

— Because it’s a different game...

— Hey now

— LIL that swallowed Battle Large lol

— Immediately brings up Battle Large

— You abandoned it ages ago, and now you bring it up?!

From the moment Survival mode was introduced, there had been controversy over how similar it was to existing battle royale games. These days, it barely mattered with so many similar titles out.

Back then, Battle Large had completely dominated the genre. LIL had cheekily added a similar mode to its own client. Over time, Survival mode developed its own identity and became good enough to stand among the core battle royale lineups.

Even so, mentioning Battle Large in Survival mode was practically taboo.

“Do you farm loot like in Battle Large?”

Almond didn’t know since he barely even knew that Survival mode existed.

— Here we go again

— Is he doing this on purpose?

— Insane

— Normally, he wouldn’t even remember Battle Large’s name lmao. He practiced this just to provoke people

The chat erupted over him mentioning Battle Large, but Almond didn’t see any of it.

Ding.

[Tutorial Tip]

[There are many abysses within the Shadow of the Abyss. If you fall in, you will immediately turn into a Rune Spirit. Be sure to use your hang glider.]

Tutorial tips kept popping up nonstop, leaving no room for his eyes to rest.

“Abyss?”

Almond looked around, wondering if such a thing really existed. It did. Below a sheer cliff, a pitch-black void could be seen.

“Who would even fall into something that big? And what’s a Rune Spirit...”

“Aaaaaaah!”

Whoomp!

Something suddenly vanished straight into the abyss.

‘Did they die?’

It looked like a mistake during the glide, which meant that player had died.

‘That’s one competitor gone already.’

Almond casually tossed out a line. “Bug eliminated.”

— LOL

— Ah yeah, that’s how battle royales go

— Newbies always do that

— Tutorial lobbies are full of first-timers like that

— Nice

— Bug eliminated lmao. Haven’t heard that in a while

Ba-bam!

[AIRightsCommission has donated a whopping 200,000 won!]

[Please respect AI bot rights. Show some care toward Raina and refrain from calling them bugs...]

— What is going on

— Do bugs have rights now?

— Why is Raina suddenly involved

— A big donation!

— Wow

— AI are emotional beings too ^^

“Ah, yes. Thank you for the 200,000 won, Commissioner. I’ll be mindful of bot rights.”

— Commissioner lmao

— For 200k, totally fair

— Commissioner lol

— Instant bot rights patch for 200k

— If nuts have rights, bots definitely do ^^

Almond switched to the team voice channel to locate his teammates.

“Where is everyone?”

His tone toward the bots had grown noticeably more polite.

Ping. Ping.

Markers appeared on the minimap.

“I’m here. Over here.”

“Here.”

“Safe.”

OstrichEgg, Yoyoyo, and Baegi walked over and gathered around Almond.

“Looks like we’re all here.” Almond smiled gently and was about to encourage the bots. “Even though you’re bots, thanks for doing your best...”

“Huh? No, one person is missing.”

They really were one short.

“But everyone who answered earlier is here.”

— Lmao

— That logic is unbeatable

— Hey idiot, it’s five in total originally

— Who’s the bot now?

— ??? Anyone who’s missing, raise your hand!

Baegi, the bot-like player, looked flustered. “Ah, no. That’s not...”

‘What is this guy even saying?’

Baegi tried to explain anyway since everyone here was a beginner. Of course, explaining things to Almond was never easy.

“So... since they’re missing, they couldn’t answer...”

His explanation started getting long, and Almond’s expression began to sour.

Thunk... thunk...

A glowing, round orb bounced its way over with text floating above it.

[Rune Spirit (Hampunch): Please save me. I fell to my death...]

One teammate had already died.

‘Huh?’

Almond asked on his stream channel, “That thing earlier... was this, right?”

The bug from earlier had been his ally.

— “That thing”

— Yes, I am the bug from bug eliminated

— LMAO

— Was that the guy who fell earlier?

— Hahaha

An ally dying right at the start would normally shake most players’ mental state, but not Almond. His mental fortitude was already top-tier. Now, it became even less of an issue.

‘Because they’re bots.’

First, he firmly believed they were bots.

‘This must just be how the tutorial goes.’

Second, he assumed everything happening was scripted to teach mechanics like this.

Ding.

[Tutorial Tip]

[Stay nearby to revive an ally who has become a Rune Spirit. Your ally will be revived when the Sanctuary’s energy resonates and the gauge fills.]

Almond said nothing about bugs or anything else and calmly revived his teammate.

[Hampunch has been revived!]

Whoosh.

The Rune Spirit gradually expanded, once again taking on a human shape.

Hampunch sounded embarrassed. “Ah, sorry about that. I died right at the start.”

Almond genuinely didn’t mind. “No, it’s fine. Thanks to you, I learned something. Thank you.”

Wasn’t Hampunch basically a bot who had sacrificed himself to teach revival mechanics? With his new awareness of bot rights, Almond felt sincerely grateful.

Hampunch, however, was thoroughly confused. “What...?”

“Is the voice recognition not working?” Almond leaned in close to Hampunch’s face and repeated himself slowly. “Thank. You. Very. Much.”

— LMAO

— LOL

— No way

— Are you threatening him? LOL

Faced with Almond speaking inches away, Hampunch didn’t know where to put himself.

“Y-yes... I’m sorry. I’m really sorry!”

Almond shook his head solemnly and elaborated even more. “No. If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t have known how to revive anyone. I wouldn’t have had a chance to learn.”

— Looooool

— The power of 200k won!

— Bot rights skyrocketing!!

— Hahahaha

“Ah... I-I’m truly sorry...”

“No, you didn’t do anything wrong. You were programmed that way, right? That’s just how you were made.”

In the end, Hampunch couldn’t withstand the pressure and bowed his head. “I-I’m sorry!”

— LMAO

— This guy

— Wow

— This is awkward...

Almond looked satisfied as he said to the stream channel, “See? If you treat bots with basic dignity, they can become this kind.”

— True, that bot is well-mannered

— Unlike certain other bots, yeah

— At least better than the Raina bot

— Man, bots these days are usually rude. This one isn’t like the kids nowadays

Countless schemers were fully committed to deceiving Almond. Those speaking the truth were few and far between.

— He’s not a bot...

— You lunatic

— He’s a real person

— He’s actually human

“I’m issuing a warning. Claiming a bot isn’t a bot goes against bot rights.”

He slapped the truthsayers with a Zelo jutsu warning.

— LOOL

— How can a bot be human anyway?!

— Ugh, shameless baiters

— Bots are beautiful just as they are

The schemers grew louder. Even a loyalist joined in on the betrayal.

Ba-bam!

[RubySword has donated 30,000 won.]

[Apparently, a meme is going around where people say NPCs are actually humans trapped inside. Total bait.]

“Ah. Thank you, RubySword. I didn’t know there was a meme like that.”

— LMAO

— Oh no

— The queen has spoken!

— Lol

— What kind of meme is that?!

Laughter filled the chat, but Almond looked away and focused on the game.

“So, where should we go?”

Baegi, the bot(?), replied, “We need weapons.”

“Weapons?”

“It’s always weapons first. You need something that suits your champion.”

“Ah... I see... Something suited to the champion...”

The conversation seemed to be flowing smoothly.

‘Huh?’

Suddenly, Almond came to a realization.

“Oh. Right!” He smacked his palms together. “I didn’t choose a champion before coming in! What do I do?”

“Pardon...?”

All four teammates blinked.

‘Did... he just say that?’

‘Huh? Did I hear wrong?’

Everyone looked utterly confused.

“I mean it. I didn’t choose a champion. I don’t have a contracted one. The instructor suddenly kicked me and...”

“Uh... Sir?” Baegi, the calmest-looking one, raised a hand. “You normally contract a champion here.”

— You didn’t know this?

— Is this for real?

— He really came in knowing nothing

— You didn’t know that either?

— Incredible

— Kid, just drink some coffee in the corner

The defining feature of Survival mode was the player contracting their champion on the battlefield.

“Oh... That’s interesting.”

While Almond found it fascinating and fun, the rest of the team frowned.

‘Damn. He’s even more of a beginner than me.’

‘The tutorial win rewards are good... This sucks.’

‘What is he? A bot?’

The most capable-looking one, Baegi, took the lead. “Let’s go grab weapons first.”

***

After walking a short distance, a glowing chest came into view.

Woooong!

[Relic Chest]

Ding.

[Tutorial Tip]

[Relics are weapons forged from the Sanctuary’s power. They are the only means of combat within the Sanctuary’s domain. Bound items can only be equipped one at a time.]

An explanation popped up. It seemed designed to be obtained right at the start.

Almond had decided to call Baegi the Leader Bot.

The Leader Bot Baegi looked straight at Almond. “You need to match positions.”

He had already identified Almond as the problem child.

‘He’s clearly a tutorial player. I better explain things properly.’

Anyone could tell that Almond was new. The shock over not choosing a champion yet made that obvious.

Baegi pointed to a shield. “Sir, you should take this.”

Almond looked hesitant. “A shield?”

“This is your first time playing the tutorial, right?”

“Uh, yes.”

“You need a shield to increase your survival rate.”

On the ground lay a shield, sword, spear, bow, and staff. Out of the various weapons, Baegi recommended the shield.

“How do you even fight with a shield...?”

“It’s not just a shield. Later, you’ll contract a tank Champion.”

“Hm... Tank...? I prefer bows.”

Yoyoyo, holding a bow, gave a thumbs-up in encouragement. “Bro, shields are actually good. It’s not just a shield, but more like Captain America’s shield.”

Almond’s gaze locked onto Yoyoyo’s bow. “No. I’m a Hawkeye fan.”

— LOL

— Hahahaha

— For real?!

— There are Hawkeye fans?

— Honestly, isn’t Almond stronger?

Yoyoyo bristled. “A Hawkeye fan? You trolling?”

He had never heard someone proudly claim to be a fan of that Avenger.

“No, I’m serious.”

“Wow. This is hopeless.”

The conversation was going off the rails.

Leader Bot Baegi stepped in to mediate. “Alright, alright. Sir, just take the shield. That’s how it’s usually done.”

— Do they not know?

— They really don’t know it’s Almond?

— Is this acting?

— They’re bots, how would they know humans?!

Some viewers felt frustrated that no one recognized Almond. The other players didn’t realize it because they thought Almond was the bot. Even though Almond was famous, his LazySoldier ID wasn’t well known.

The Civil Empire world championship had made him famous, not LIL. Even if Baegi knew of Almond, he would never have imagined that this clueless tutorial newbie was that Almond.

He probably just thought Almond was some guy obsessed with a good-looking champion.

“I’ll take the shield. It feels like that’s where the story is heading.”

No one would ever suspect that this LazySoldier was the hero of the world championship.

“By the way... if you die, do you drop your weapon?”

“If you haven’t contracted a champion yet... yes. You drop everything.”

“Oh.”

Almond kept talking to Baegi, but his eyes were fixed somewhere else.

“Why... why are you staring at me while asking that?”

“I’m not. I’m just looking.”

“You totally are!”

“I’m looking at the bow.”

“That’s me!”

“I’m a Hawkeye fan...”

He was staring straight at Yoyoyo, the player holding the bow.

***

[Beginner Tip: Except for relics, you cannot physically affect Summoners protected by the Sanctuary. Pulling or pushing them is completely ineffective. However, mental attacks delivered through words are possible. Statistics show that many Summoners greatly enjoy using them.]