I Became a Villain Perfect for Leveling Up - Chapter 001

WeTried Translations

Translator: Goku

◈ I Became a Villain Perfect for Leveling Up

Chapter 01

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Addicted to Defeat (1)

In a Souls-like game, level is more important than you’d think.

The damage and enhancement values of a weapon are always the same, but it’s the character’s level that determines that damage.

So, as soon as the new Souls-like game ‘Desperado Reunion 2’ was released, I focused solely on leveling, hitting the max level of 999 in just one day.

When I posted about it on an internet community, people called me crazy.

This was because I’d holed myself up in an area called the Fortress of Training, where a lot of experience-giving mobs gathered near the starting area, and only leveled up without even enjoying the game.

【HP: 99

Stamina: 99

Magic: 99

Intelligence: 99

Strength: 99

….】

I hadn't even properly played the game, but it felt good to max out all my stats.

I dealt maximum damage no matter what item I used, and there were no weapons I couldn't equip.

A true munchkin character, indeed.

A Soulslike game, by definition, should have that precarious thrill where bosses take dozens of hits to kill, but the player kills in just one or two.

【 BOSS ELIMINATED 】

Having reached max level in just my first playthrough, the situation had completely reversed.

Boss: just two hits! Me: dozens of hits!

I thoroughly enjoyed my omnipotence all the way to the final boss battle, wondering if the game was really this easy.

While I was at it, I also killed every NPC character I met.

It’s a common rule in Souls-like games that NPCs wear the best equipment.

Using cool weapons was a bonus.

Anyway, so I killed every NPC I met and took everything.

After successfully taking everything and completing my weapon and equipment collection, the game became boring.

So, I left a thoroughly negative review out of regret.

『 Not Recommended / Recorded 18.4 hours

- Leveling finished too quickly, and it's not fun.

What’s with putting so many high-EXP mobs in the Fortress of Training, which is just a short distance from the starting area?

I hit character level 999 in 14 hours and went on a rampage.

It's a real regression compared to the previous version. 』

After I casually left the review, a reply from the developer appeared shortly after.

It was my first time receiving a reply to a review in my gaming life, so I opened it with a pounding heart.

『 Dear Player,

We sincerely apologize for the unsatisfactory… 』

…Since the reply was in English, I immediately put it through a translator.

『 Thank you for leaving a review.

We sincerely apologize for providing an unsatisfactory play experience with our game.

However, the area you mentioned, the Fortress of Training, does not exist within the game.

It is not even dummy data that existed when we were developing the game.

We do not know how you entered that area, but if you send us a picture of the area via email, we will send you a small token of appreciation. 』

‘An area not in the game?’

After reading the long message, that was roughly the gist of it.

How did you enter that area? We didn’t make that area.

I initially thought the reply was just typical Souls-like spoiler prevention, but after searching for information, it really wasn't an area within the game.

Looking at my post on the community, it initially drew insults, but now it was only filled with comments asking how to get into that area.

A question arose.

How did I get into an area that wasn’t even created by the game developers?

As if to prove it wasn't a lie, the game was still on, and my character's level was clearly displayed as level 999.

First, I decided to take a screenshot as the game company suggested, so I moved the map and returned to the starting area.

Upon returning to the starting area, when I tried to enter the Fortress of Training.

“…Huh?”

It was as if it had never existed in the first place; the entrance itself was nowhere to be found.

Clearly, if I went a little further from the ruins of the starting area, the Fortress of Training, where monsters gathered, should have appeared right there.

What unfolded on my monitor now was a scene where collapsed debris completely blocked the path.

As if it had always been that kind of area.

“…”

The suspicion I had harbored towards the developers just moments ago completely vanished.

They had told the truth.

I looked around, wondering if I was possessed by a ghost, but the cramped studio apartment had no corner for a ghost to even enter.

Unable to take a proper screenshot, I decided I'd just take a picture of my character's stats and send it, and the moment I opened the status window.

【 Level: -999 】

My character’s level, which had clearly been 999 just moments ago, had become a negative number.

【HP: -99

Stamina: -99

Magic: -99

Intelligence: -99

Strength: -99

….】

Simultaneously, even my stats started displaying errors, and their values became negative.

“What the hell!?”

Suddenly, the screen glitched, and the monitor screen began to crackle as if it were tearing apart.

Kill screen.

Overflow, a phenomenon that commonly occurs in games when a constant exceeds the maximum output value, was happening, and I frantically hammered ALT + F4 to quit the game.

But the game wouldn’t close, and the screen distorted more and more bizarrely.

The screen, which initially displayed a static-filled scene like when turning on a TV in the early morning.

Soon, it was dyed in darkness, intermittently emitting red light.

The frequency of light emission became increasingly frequent, until suddenly the screen was covered in black tentacles.

“Aargh, holy shit!!”

Having absolutely no tolerance for such terrifying situations, I hastily grabbed the power strip under my desk and pulled out every plug I could get my hands on.

Soon, a silent stillness descended upon the studio apartment.

The monitor and computer were completely off, leaving only the ambiguous glow of an LED light.

“…Haa.”

I knew it was clearly due to a bug, but my mind couldn’t calm down easily.

Feeling too uneasy to turn the computer back on, I decided to call my mom after a long time and complain, so I got up from my seat and headed to my bed.

The moment I walked to find my 5-year-old budget phone, placed in the middle of the bed.

Flash-

The monitor screen turned on again.

All the plugs were pulled out, so it was clear there should be no power supply.

Even the computer turned on with it, and the cooling fans spun loudly at full power.

“……”

I was breathless.

It really seemed like I was possessed by a ghost.

As soon as that thought struck me, I was gripped by fear, and I clenched my fist with the intention of smashing the monitor, like a herbivore making a desperate last-ditch attack.

“Dieee!!!”

The moment I swung my fist, tears welling up for my 4K monitor that I was still paying installments on.

《 Player detected. LOADING…》

《 Player has been detected. 》

《 Welcome. Dean (딘) 》

A blue window appeared before my eyes, obscuring my vision, making me stop my punch and jump in surprise.

“What is this now!?”

I waved my hands around, but I couldn’t touch or interact with the window in front of me.

It was as if I was wearing a VR headset; confusion enveloped me for a moment as the window followed my gaze no matter where I turned.

《 Error. Unable to create playable character. 》

《 Initiating emergency patch. 》

《 Error. 》

Suddenly, countless error windows popped up, covering my vision, and I thrashed my fists wildly in all directions as if having a seizure.

What in the world was going on?

Was this reality actually the Matrix?

If so, I had no intention of taking the red pill.

I didn’t want to hide in a labyrinth like underground world, eating strange gruel.

“Blue pill!! Please, the blue pill!”

Not wanting to become someone like Neo, I screamed like a madman, yelling for the blue pill.

《 Patch complete. 》

《 Connecting to game. 》

My cries were ignored lightly, and the window that appeared before my eyes soon began to transform my studio apartment into data.

My precious plastic model collection disappeared, and my cherished comfort blanket from childhood vanished.

Tears streamed down my face in sorrow, but soon the data alteration reached me, and my body began to change shape.

From a reasonably tall 177cm, my legs grew a little longer.

My face size became even smaller than before.

At the same time, my upper body shortened, and my legs lengthened, transforming into a lanky physique.

The realization that I had changed into a tall and thin physique was brief.

《 Acquired 2nd Playthrough Special Bonus.

- Upon death, opponent’s level increases by +10 》

《 Inheriting memories and stats from 1st Playthrough.

Target - Eirene, Carmen, Maeve, Altair, Sigrun 》

Along with the message that I had gained a bonus, a window appeared stating that someone would inherit memories and stats.

Possession.

One hundred percent, this phenomenon was possession.

I was going to the place where I had wreaked havoc as a munchkin.

And there was even someone inheriting memories from my first playthrough.

Among them, the name Carmen sounded familiar.

“…Shit.”

That name belonged to an NPC I had killed to get items.

Then, the others who inherited memories and abilities…

《 Due to an error, Player 'Dean (딘)'s 1st Playthrough level and equipment will not be inherited. 》

Without waiting for me to even ponder who the others were, with the devastating information that the levels I had accumulated in my first playthrough would not be inherited.

“Aaaaargh!!!!”

I was forcibly possessed into the world of Desperado Reunion.

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