TFCG 5

Chapter 5 

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“Is it really okay for me to accept something like this…?”

I asked cautiously, feeling a little burdened. Never in my life had I imagined I’d be entrusted with such a precious weapon, the kind someone would cherish all their life.

“…In my opinion, there’s no one more fitting to be the new owner of this gun than you, Hero. Please accept it.”

“If you put it that way… then I’ll gratefully take it.”

It wouldn’t be polite to refuse after he insisted so much.
Still, what kind of item is this gun, exactly? Can’t I check its description or something?

And right then—almost as if the status window had read my mind—a little speech bubble popped up next to the gun, showing an item tooltip.

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[Retired Air Marshal’s Pistol]
Shooter exclusive, Lv. 40
Combat Power +3,000

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The item’s name was written in blue text. That meant it was a Unique item.
The hierarchy went: Common → Rare → Unique → Legendary → Mythic.
Even a Unique was considered excellent for a free-to-play player.

And this one had +3,000 combat power.

The level requirement was 40, but thankfully this game had a rather unusual system for equipment.

In most games, you had to be level 40 to equip a level 40 item. But here, even a level 1 character could equip it.

The catch: you’d only benefit from 1/40th of its combat power. As you leveled up, the weapon’s combat power would scale up with you.

So at level 2 right now, I’d only get 5% of the 3,000—about 150.

But still, when a training pistol only had combat power of 10, getting 150 meant I was suddenly 15 times stronger.

Of course, it was nothing compared to the Mythic-grade level 60 weapon my hardcore gamer friend Sohyun had once shoved into my hands, but getting such a solid item this early was insanely lucky.

Not that I had helped people expecting any reward.

“Feels like I got blessed for doing a good deed.”

Grinning sheepishly, I carefully accepted the pistol the retired marshal held out.

“I’ll make good use of this. Thank you. Without you today, things would’ve been much harder.”

I bowed deeply in gratitude.

“Oh no, if it weren’t for you, Hero, I might’ve ended up as fish food. Stop by the temple when you get the chance. I’d really love to see how much you’ve grown.”

The old man smiled warmly and bade me farewell.

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* * *

The rescue ship docked at the port.

“God, I’m exhausted.”

Fighting terrorists in a life-or-death situation… it was more draining than I could’ve ever imagined.

What were the odds that a regular civilian like me—who just happened to love games—would go through something this dramatic?

Dragging my tired body, I stepped off the dock.

And then—sudden public embarrassment struck.

A woman stood waiting at the dockside, holding up a huge placard with “To: The Strongest Shooter, Elaine” written in bold letters.

Her neat dark-brown hair was tied back in a ponytail, glasses perched on her nose. That familiar face… it was Belinda, the administrative NPC of the Hero Corps.

In the original game, she did come to meet the protagonist after the tutorial, but never with such a giant sign.

Mortified, I covered my face and scurried toward her.

“Strongest Shooter Elaine, correct? I heard the airship crash-landed. Luckily, you don’t seem to be badly injured.”

Adjusting her glasses with a stern voice, she continued:

“Do you have the invitation letter we sent?”

“Oh—yes, just a sec.”

I hurriedly pulled the invitation out of my inventory and handed it to her.

The famed Hagion Hero Corps, heirs to the goddess Hagiônia’s will.
Normally, joining them required passing a tough series of tests and trials. But the protagonist—an adventurer with no known hometown or origin—was specially recruited, skipping all procedures.

Why? Because he was a Hero chosen by the Goddess.

And the invitation I handed her now was proof of that.

“Registered class: Shooter. And yes, this invitation is indeed one of ours. Pardon me, but may I verify your Goddess’s Mark? Seeing you pull an item from subspace with Her authority does suggest you really are Chosen…”

Goddess’s authority? Subspace?

So pulling items from inventory counted as divine power here. What was just a game mechanic to me, this world treated as a miracle.

“My mark?”

“I’m sorry, but it’s procedure. Some people attempt forgeries…”

Forgery? Of this tattoo? Unbelievable.

Though, thinking about it—it made sense. A palm-sized symbol that guaranteed room, board, and a career all at once? Of course some would try.

Granted, it came with the massive downside of risking your life to save the world…

“And since it’s been centuries since the Goddess last delivered an oracle, if this mark is genuine, we must prepare for the coming calamity…”

“…Wait. Am I really the only Hero chosen by the Goddess in this world?”

Her words made me falter.

Hagiônia only ever chose a Hero when her enemy, the Demon God Phoneros, began stirring again. The cycles were at least a hundred years apart—this time, it had been several centuries.

In the game, “Heroes chosen by the Goddess” were rare, yes—but since it was an MMO, there were still thousands of protagonists.

But here? I was the only one. And that felt suffocating.

“Here.”

I extended my right hand, a bit nervously.

Belinda pulled out a device that looked suspiciously like a barcode scanner, aimed it at my hand, and a red light briefly scanned over my skin.

When it vanished, she spoke confidently:

“Yes, confirmed. No signs of forgery.”

“O-of course. Naturally.”

Even though I knew it was genuine, why was I so nervous? Letting out a long sigh, I nodded.

“In that case, let’s head to the Hero Corps headquarters. The Commander is waiting for you.”

Belinda led the way, and I followed, stepping foot into Mid-Isle for the first time.

It was nothing like the 3D graphics on a computer screen. No matter how well-rendered, visuals alone couldn’t replicate what I was feeling now: the cool ocean breeze brushing my skin, the faint salt tang tickling my nose.

It was breathtakingly beautiful—white buildings gleaming under the sun, the endless blue horizon beyond, and pure air untouched by pollution.

If only I hadn’t just died, only to wake up as some “Hero” in another world… if only terrorists hadn’t already tried to kill me… and if only my “prestigious” Hero name wasn’t Strongest Shooter Elaine.

The staircase leading to the Hagion Hero Corps HQ was lined with flowerbeds on both sides.

Climbing these steps meant formally becoming a Hero Corps member. Once that happened, there’d be no turning back—I’d have to face Demon God Phoneros’s forces.

Am I ready for that? I asked myself.

Of course I wasn’t. Dropped into another world, hit with a terrorist attack right away—when would I have had time to prepare?

Even admitting that I’d landed inside a game world was already overwhelming enough.

But…

“There are terrorists targeting me. This is the safest place I can be.”

The Corps existed to defend the Goddess’s will. Surely they’d protect me—the rare Hero chosen by her—from Phoneros’s fanatics.

After all, once you’ve died once, you really don’t want to try it again.

I didn’t know why this insane phenomenon had happened, but since my early death had been so unfair, I at least wanted to cling stubbornly to life in this world.

And if ordinary people could be caught up in the chaos like today, then staying with the continent’s strongest group really was the best option.

Resolving myself, I clenched my fist.

I can do this! I’m a proud gamer of South Korea!

Sure, I never finished this game, so I wasn’t entirely confident. But I had played all the way to just before the ending.

It was only because I died before finishing that I didn’t even know who the final boss was.

Still, at least I had heard spoilers that one of the early NPCs on Mid-Isle would betray you spectacularly. That much I owed to my hardcore friend Sohyun.

Back then, I’d punched her arm in fury, demanding how dare she spoil things for her precious newbie friend.

It annoyed me then—but now, I was grateful. Without that warning, I might’ve trusted blindly and gotten backstabbed hard.

Not knowing which NPC was the traitor was a problem, though.

Even Belinda here wasn’t exempt. She’d always been the image of a competent, reliable secretary, resolving internal and external Corps issues flawlessly.

But hadn’t I already learned not to judge people by appearances, when that fragile-looking flight attendant tried to kill me just hours ago?

So, glaring suspiciously at the back of Belinda’s neatly tied hair, I followed her inside the Corps building.

Upstairs, a grand set of doors came into view. This was the office of the Hero Corps Commander.

Belinda knocked lightly.

“Commander, he has arrived.”

“Come in.”

Wow—that voice. Amazing. Even through a speaker in the game it had been impressive, but in real life, the resonance was something else.

When the door opened, a muscular woman sat against the backdrop of a wide window overlooking the sea.

It was Clemens Cervik, the current Commander of the Hagion Hero Corps.

The name “Clemens” was usually male—its female form was “Clementine.” Because of that, and because of her high-ranking title, many players assumed she was a man.

But she was a dignified elderly woman.

“Welcome. We’re glad to have you.”

 

Smiling kindly, she welcomed me.