Across the dazzling blue sky, the majestic sight of a colossal castle towering in the center of the continent unfolded like a panorama.

  It was a visual masterpiece that naturally drew gasps of admiration, but my gaze was already fixed on the character creation window floating beyond it.

  [Please select your race: Dwarf / Elf / Human / Beast]

  Every second was money in this situation.

  I didn't have the luxury to ponder over racial traits.

  I immediately selected 'Human,' the race with the best balance and equipment compatibility.

  The customization window opened right after, but my finger was already hovering over the 'Random' button.

  Tap-tap-tap!

  After a few random taps, a sharp-looking character appeared on the screen.

  "Okay, this is good enough."

  In an open run, a face is a luxury. I couldn't waste time on a face that would eventually be hidden by a helmet anyway.

  Immediately, the final hurdle appeared: the nickname setting window.

  Normally, I would have used some lazily made name like 'Jaegun123,' but this time was different.

  In games, a rare nickname is an asset traded for massive amounts of money.

  [Angel] – This nickname is already in use.

  [Demon] – This nickname is already in use.

  "Ah, please...!"

  My lips went completely dry. Through the patches attached to my temples, it felt like my heavy heartbeat was echoing inside the capsule.

  A simultaneous global launch.

  Even at this moment, tens of thousands of users were likely snatching up the candidates I had in mind.

  An S-rank rare nickname is an asset that would later fetch millions of won in cash.

  Slipping up here meant taking a loss right from the start.

  [Dragon] – This nickname is already in use.

  [God] – This nickname is already in use.

  [King] – This nickname is already in use.

  "This is driving me crazy, seriously!"

  The list of candidates I had prepared with the mindset of a warrior heading to the battlefield was ruthlessly shredded.

  It felt like millions of won were evaporating with every passing second. My fingers trembled slightly.

  Cold sweat stung my eyes, blurring my vision.

  Every time a word was rejected, the red warning window sharply struck my eyes.

  'Something more unconventional. Something others wouldn't dare touch...!'

  The circuits in my brain spun as if they were going to burn out.

  I had to gamble on how far Liberty Online's filtering system would allow.

  With the feeling of this being my last resort, half in desperation, I entered a name.

  "Savior."

  A momentary silence.

  That short 0.5 seconds the system took to verify the name felt like an eternity.

  Ding―!

  [Notice: Character creation is complete!]

  "...Huh?"

  What popped up before my eyes wasn't a red warning window.

  It was a white approval message pouring down like a blessing.

  'I got it.'

  The tension left my entire body.

  In Liberty Online's simultaneous global launch, I had monopolized this god-tier nickname that slipped past the naming filters.

  Soon after, my vision whited out, signaling the start of the real game.

  ———

  A few nights ago, I was tearing into a chicken leg while waiting for the Liberty Online showcase to begin.

  The phrase [Liberty Online Showcase] floated on the monitor screen, emitting a fluorescent glow, and below it, a red countdown timer was urgently ticking down.

  00:02:00

  "Two minutes left."

  To someone with 10 years of experience as a gold farmer, the showcase of a new blockbuster was essentially a 'business presentation.'

  I glared at the screen with the resolve not to miss a single piece of profitable information.

  Eventually, the moment the countdown hit zero, the screen transitioned with flashy lights.

  A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

  Famous gaming YouTubers with millions of subscribers appeared as MCs to hype up the atmosphere, and soon after, amidst the cheers from the audience, two developers with benevolent yet sharp eyes stepped onto the stage.

  On the stage where the eyes of gamers worldwide were focused, one of the developers grabbed the microphone and began to speak.

  "Hello, everyone. It is an infinite honor to introduce humanity's first virtual reality world to you.

  I am the Lead Executive Producer, Jang Jun-hee. Nice to meet you!"

  As the applause filling the venue subsided, he began to reveal the core systems with a confident smile.

  "Every NPC in Liberty Online possesses their own narrative and intelligence. They think and react according to your actions.

  Build rapport. Special rewards and quests that never existed in the world before will be waiting for you."

  The subsequent announcements were even more groundbreaking.

  "Furthermore, Liberty has no class boundaries. If you hold a sword, you become a swordsman; if you hold a bow, you become an archer.

  Depending on the weapon you use, your own unique stats will grow in real-time.

  Trading, plundering, farming, performing—there is no set path. Only your choices become your profession."

  That was when it happened.

  Just as the atmosphere was reaching its peak, a famous YouTuber acting as an MC threw a sharp question.

  "Producer Jang, the fact is that the capsule price of 25 million won alone is a massive burden for the users.

  We are concerned that if the in-game BM (monetization structure) is as heavy as the expensive hardware, the barrier to entry will be too high. What are your specific BM plans?"

  A momentary silence fell over the venue.

  "As expected, an unavoidable question. Very well, I will tell you just one thing."

  Producer Jang nodded with a bitter smile.

  "Liberty Online considers bonding and cooperative combat with pets as one of its core contents.

  Therefore, a pet grading system exists, and it is true that a 'summoning system (gacha)' has also been implemented to acquire them."

  Even before Producer Jang could finish his sentence, the atmosphere in the venue rapidly froze.

  Sighs of disappointment and cold boos erupted from everywhere.

  "Man, typical! It's just another gacha in the end?"

  "The capsule alone is 25 million won, and they want to suck our marrow dry inside the game too?"

  The murmuring noise washed over the showcase venue like a wave.

  The real-time chat window also began to be plastered with sarcasm, calling it the second coming of K-mobile RPGs and asking where a Lineage-like game would ever go.

  I, too, put down the chicken I was tearing into and glared at the monitor.

  'A pet gacha, huh...'

  It might have been disastrous news for regular users, but the brain of a 10-year veteran gold farmer was turning differently.

  The existence of a gacha meant that the value of items was solidly guaranteed.

  There would be whales pouring money into it, and as long as I could supply the resources and items they needed, the profits would transcend imagination.

  When everyone was cursing and turning their backs, I instead smelled money in this vicious swamp of probability.

  Even amidst the harsh boos and criticism pouring down, Producer Jang tightly gripped the microphone without a hint of panic.

  Rather, a bizarrely confident smile hung on his lips, as if he had anticipated all these reactions.

  "In the process of designing and materializing thousands of pets, we arrived at one fundamental question.

  While providing an equal opportunity for everyone, exactly how great would the thrill be when one breaks through the abysmal probability of 0.000001% to become a 'unique existence'?"

  Producer Jang's voice echoed heavily through the showcase venue via the speakers.

  The audience, which had been in an uproar with boos, was overwhelmed by his strange charisma and slowly began to quiet down.

  "So, we prepared this. Only 12 people across all servers. No matter how much money you have, no matter how high your power is, twelve apexes that you can never possess 'unless heaven chooses you.'"

  As he opened his palm, the silhouettes of twelve radiantly glowing eggs appeared on the screen.

  "The 12 limited, growth-type Mythic pets that will be reborn as the true masters of Liberty Online. The protagonist of this miracle will be one of you."

  In an instant, a suffocating silence replaced the boos in the venue. Even the people who had been criticizing the probability-based items wore expressions captivated by the vain hope and greed of 'What if it's me?'

  I, too, pressed my face close to the monitor.

  0.000001%. That number, which someone might call madness, looked to my eyes like the only ladder to turning my life around.

  "Our Liberty is not a game driven solely by the logic of capital. That is why we have placed purchase limits on this 'Constellation Egg' package."

  Behind him, a massive notification text appeared.

  [Purchase Limited to 2 per Account Monthly / Price: 55,000 Won]

  "No matter how much money you have, it's only twice a month.

  Students, office workers, and even the wealthy individuals here will all start from the same starting line.

  The miracle of 0.000001%. That will only be permitted to the chosen twelve."

  ———

  The moment I blinked, the world flipped upside down.

  The first things to greet me were the fresh scent of grass tickling my nose and the murmuring of tens of thousands of people striking my eardrums.

  When I came to my senses, I was standing in the middle of a massive stone plaza.

  Around me, thousands of users were sweeping in one direction like a wave, their blue nicknames fluttering as if they had made a pact.

  Just then, a transparent hologram window popped up in the top right corner of my vision with a cheerful sound effect.

  [Main Quest: First Step into a New World]

  Mission: Talk to the Tutorial Instructor 'Hans' in the plaza.

  Progress: 0 / 1

  Obtainable Rewards:

  1. [Armor] Beginner's Leather Armor x1

  2. [Consumable] Health Potion x10

  3. [Currency] 30 Silver

  "This is... virtual reality?"

  The scenery visible beyond the quest window was truly overwhelming.

  Medieval-style stone buildings soaring to pierce the sky, the fine cracks in the paving blocks on the ground, and even the texture of the rough hemp clothes worn by passing NPCs.

  It wasn't the lump of pixels I had only seen on a monitor until now.

  This had already surpassed the level that could be captured by the word 'graphics'; it was another real world.

  The moment the cold chill of the castle wall transferred through my fingertips, a thrill intense enough to give me goosebumps ran through me.

  However, the admiration was fleeting. I shook my head vigorously, gathering my dazed senses.

  'I didn't come here for sightseeing. Snap out of it.'

  Even at this moment, thousands of users were passing behind my back and moving ahead.

  Before they could preempt the mobs and dominate the fields, I had to finish the tutorial and get out into the field even one step faster.

  I trampled the lingering emotion with my footsteps and ran, pushing through the crowd.

  As I did, I habitually scanned the menu in the corner of my vision to pull up my current status.

  'Only my nickname is the grandiose Savior; my body is just Beginner 1.'

  The numbers that popped up semi-transparently before my eyes were brutally honest.

  [ Status Information ]

  ────────────────────

  Name: Savior

  Level: 1

  [ Health ] 100 / 100

  [ Mana ] 20 / 20

  ────────────────────

  [ Combat Stats ]

  Attack Power: 10 (+2)

  Defense: 5 (+1)

  ────────────────────

  [ Attributes ]

  ? Strength (STR): 10

  ? Agility (AGI): 12

  ? Constitution (CON): 10

  ? Intelligence (INT): 05

  ? Perception (PER): 08

  ────────────────────

  Numbers that were far too insignificant for the starting point of a 25-million-won life gamble.

  However, inflating these numbers was exactly what I, a 10-year veteran gold farmer, did best.

  Just as I was about to close the stat window, a blinking red padlock icon in the corner of my vision caught my eye.

  'Is this that Premium Shop?'

  Out of curiosity, I lightly hovered my hand over it, and a dry system message popped up.

  [Notice: The 'Premium Shop' can only be accessed after proving your initial settlement contribution.]

  [Unlock Condition: Activates upon completing the main quest 'Subjugation of the Goblin Tribe']

  'So they're saying I have to at least kill goblins for them to open it.'

  To me right now, having poured my entire fortune into buying the capsule, it was basically a pie in the sky anyway.

  To a gold farmer, a cash shop wasn't a place to buy items, but simply a lucrative neighborhood where the whales—who would later buy the stuff I farmed—hung out.

  I closed the window without any lingering attachments.

  In the distance, I saw Hans, a man standing sternly with the title 'Instructor' floating above his head.

  Before the line stretching out in front of him could get any longer, I approached rapidly with agile movements.