Chapter 99: Escape Depends on Talent (2)

Escape Depends on Talent (2) When Lee Gyeongbok accepted the quest, viewers voiced their concerns. ― Seriously, you're beating this without a highlight?" ― It's not even a physical game, is this really okay? Hdd" ― Ah, lol, godple will handle it anyway." ― The die has already been cast, that's what I'm saying." ― Qdari guys are vicious, really vicious!" But since he had already accepted the quest, there was nothing else to be done. Lee Gyeongbok let out a faint chuckle at their reaction and stood up. "Well then, first things first, let's deal with these shackles." The shackles fastened to his ankle. No matter how much spiritual energy he had, there was nothing he could do without removing them. 'But which one of these is for undoing the shackles, I have no idea.' His spiritual energy told him the locations of the items needed to escape. But it didn't clarify their purpose. 'Maybe I'll figure it out once I get the item.' Lee Gyeongbok once again looked around. But all that was around him was a thick layer of ancient dust. "In movies, they at least give you a saw, but there's nothing here." - A metal saw, hdd - It's an escape room, not a thriller, lol - If Godple had a saw, he'd figure out a way to break the chain - Rofl, perfect-sawing incoming - Nah lol, what the heck is 'perfect sawing' now lol Lee Gyeongbok started walking. He hadn't even taken a few steps when the chain tightened, clanking with a metallic sound. "Hm, even crawling to check the corpse might be difficult with this." There was a large gap between the corpse lying in the center of the basement and Lee Gyeongbok, who was stuck in the corner. Even if he stretched the chain to its limit and crawled, his hand wouldn't reach. - So if you're too short, you can't escape! - Please stop the hate against short people! - What are you on about, lol - Obviously it means 'find another method' - For real, if Godple's height isn't enough, it just isn't happening, lol - He's definitely over 180, just looking at it, lol - With that head size and height, he's got model specs, right? - Like he'd even have a good-looking face, as well! While the viewers chattered away, Lee Gyeongbok turned his gaze to the shackles. "Oh, so the shackles aren't fixed." One end of the shackle was on his ankle, and the other was attached to a pipe on the wall. When Lee Gyeongbok pulled the shackles to the side, the pipe followed. "This way, I can't reach the center, but I can move along the wall." - Oh, lol, found the solution right away - As expected, Max-level adaptability - This is exactly perfect-adaptation, isn't it? - Honestly, just this puts him in the top 20% for sure, lol - What's this about the top 20%? Get rid of the frauds! - Nah, there are tons of people who try to slip out like they're some kind of mollusk, lol - It doesn't hurt because this is virtual reality, lol - If it was real life, it'd hurt so much you'd give up after the first attempt, lolol Lee Gyeongbok positioned himself along the wall as close to the corpse as possible. From here, if he lay down, he could check the corpse. But his gaze wasn't on the corpse. "Hm? This pipe is a lot more rusted than the others, isn't it?" Lee Gyeongbok grasped the chain lightly. "This... I think it'll come off if I use a little strength." - Oh? Looks like it... - 〈This message has been deleted by the moderation bot (Warning 1)〉 - Come on;;; how is that a spoiler!? - Ah, lol, someone dropped a spoiler right away? - King Pago: Be quiet! (whack!) - Stop backseat gaming and just watch Guut! While the chat window got a little rowdy, Lee Gyeongbok gave the chain a tug. With a metallic creaking sound, the pipe snapped. Thanks to that, the shackle was as good as undone, but wisps of air began escaping from the broken pipe. [Gas has leaked.] [Time remaining – 30:00] [Tip. The state of the room may change depending on your actions. Always act with caution!] A system message popped up. Lee Gyeongbok furrowed his glabella. 'What's this? I didn't sense any particular danger, though?' The answer was revealed quickly. - Lol, this is the first time I've seen someone completely normal here - Seriously, the standard move is to try and reach the corpse, break the pipe, and then do a forward roll, lol - It's all thanks to perfect-observation! - Of course, godple does the tutorial differently, too - Geez, I thought my nose would break, thank goodness it didn't hurt or I'd have asked for a refund right away - Making this a mandatory step doesn't make much sense This was clearly a required part of the tutorial, as viewers testified. It was something that couldn't be avoided, so there was no real threat. "30 minutes? That's plenty of time." Lee Gyeongbok immediately flipped over the corpse. The dead body was wearing a vest with many pockets; inside the pockets were tools such as a screwdriver, pliers, and a hammer. - Oh! Found escape items! - Perfect looting—ON! - Sb, what kind of looting is that, lolol - I'm seriously drooling here - Ah, lol, just grab everything since you don't know what you'll need - Maybe since it's the tutorial? You get a lot of items from the start Viewers rushed him. But he didn't touch any of the tools. 'Is this some kind of bait?' The viewers' opinions seemed reasonable, but his spiritual energy revealed otherwise. None of the tools gave off a positive vibe. Surely, they were just a diversion to confuse the player about the escape route. He reached into the inside pocket of the corpse. "This one?" He pulled out the items pointed to by his spiritual energy. In both hands, he held a blue card and a leather wallet. - Oh? Is that a key card? - Ohoho, found it right away, huh? - What? Already over? - Qdari must be seething right now - Qdari guys, lol, must have never played Escapers, lol - ???: What? Wasn't it supposed to be hard!? You tricked me! - 1 million won, 770 million! Viewers were already celebrating as if the game was over. Lee Gyeongbok gave a wry smile at them. "Come on, no way it ends that easily, right? For now, I'll keep the card and take a look at the wallet." Lee Gyeongbok opened the wallet. A wad of cash, a credit card, and a driver's license appeared. On the surface, none seemed related to escape. 'It's inside.' He grabbed the wad of cash and set the wallet down. - Greedy for cash even in an escape game?! - What is this, a pickpocket move? lolol - Capitalist to the bone, hdd - Breaking news: Adam Smith's shocking confession! 'The invisible hand' is Purple's money-grabbing skills! - What, why is he showing up here, lol - They've lost their minds, seriously lol The viewers teased him at the chance. But in contrast to their thoughts, Lee Gyeongbok wasn't interested in the cash. "A business card?" Between the bills was a business card. [Having equipment trouble? Call now. 'ANDY' always finds the answer!] A message below the name and contact. Lee Gyeongbok tilted his head. 'Why would this be considered an escape item?' His spiritual energy indicated it was required, so the blue card, the business card, and nothing else needed to be taken. Lee Gyeongbok stood up and said, "The name on the license is Andy, right? I guess he was a maintenance worker or something." - Oh, that's why he carried those tools? - Andy says he'll give you the answer? - What if you know the answer, lolol - Rofl, he's dead already! - Ahh, I get it! The answer must be necromancy! - Necromancy, please lolol - Suddenly, necromancer vibes While the viewers joked around, he headed toward the exit. The firmly closed iron door looked tough even at a glance. "Let's try the card key, first." Next to the iron door was a lock and a panel. When he scanned the card from the corpse, a beep sounded and a green light came on. - Oh! It worked! - Ah, lol, too easy? - Tutorial is just a tutorial after all - Qdari is crying, lolol But rather than open as viewers expected, the panel light switched from green to yellow, and the screen changed. [□□□□□□] Six blanks with a keypad below. The meaning was clear. "Hm, so this card isn't for the main thing—the main thing is finding the password." - Huh? - It needs six digits? - Was there anything relating to numbers? - Do we have to find something more? - Wait;;; there's only a corpse here - Don't panic, there's still plenty of time - 25 minutes is enough! - Looks like you'll have to double-check the body The exact time left was now 26 minutes and 31 seconds; the six-digit password had to be found within the time limit. Filled with a sense of urgency, the viewers prodded Lee Gyeongbok as if they themselves needed to escape. "No, I've already checked the body thoroughly. Only the tools, this card, and the wallet I looked at just now." His explanation made the chat window grow even more active. - Maybe there's a hidden exit? - Oho, maybe the 'exit' was a fake all along - C'mon, it's just a tutorial, it wouldn't be that twisted - Isn't the password a fake? Maybe use the tools to pry off the panel! - Nah, that's impossible - Why say it's impossible without even trying? - Flathead screw with a Phillips screwdriver possible? - Ah, lol, if so, I agree - Just smash it with the hammer haha - There's plenty of time, just start with 000000 - Nah, don't do that - For real, you're supposed to alternate between the front and back ― National rule" my ass, lolol - Stop with the grind, use deduction! - Is this what collective intelligence is? Viewers each presented their own theories, but most were just jokes, not serious opinions. So, instead of bothering with the chat window, Lee Gyeongbok focused on himself. He tried to use his spiritual energy and felt a different sensation than before. 'Before, my senses would go on edge...' Traps, ambushes, enemy attacks—they all crashed down sharp as shrapnel. To deal with these, his senses sharpened and interwove, activating his sixth sense. But Lee Gyeongbok did not feel any threat now. Thus, his senses had no reason to sharpen. 'I want to know the answer.' His intent had changed too. So far, he'd used his abilities to escape threats and defeat enemies in front of him. But now, what he wanted was an answer to a problem. Since both his aim and the situation had changed, his spiritual energy began collecting information differently. 'My body...?' His usually sensitive senses now felt dull. His vision blurred at the edges, the dusty smell faded, the buzzing light overhead grew distant, and his body felt stiff as if anesthetized. Yet his sense of time slowed, and his mind grew clearer than ever. So, as if floating, he lingered in a state detached from his senses. 〈How should we set the password?〉 Suddenly, piercing the silence, a strange voice came to him. Lee Gyeongbok was surprised, but he focused on this unfamiliar experience. No doubt, it was a new phase in his usage of spiritual energy. 〈It's just the tutorial, so we can't make it too hard.〉 〈Base should be alphabet and numbers, right?〉 〈Yeah. Hope it makes things fun.〉 It was someone's conversation. Just a fragment, but it wasn't hard to understand the context. 'Developers? Am I hearing their conversation?' It was clearly the developers of this game, escapers, talking. But how could he possibly hear developer conversations? As if to answer, one memory surfaced in his mind. 'Grandma, you're not feeling well, so wouldn't it be fine if Aunt cleaned up?' Ever since his grandmother had become a shaman, she never let anyone else care for the shrine. Without missing a single day, she'd faithfully clean and tend to the shrine. Lee Gyeongbok wanted to help, but his grandmother always forbade him from going near it. 'Gyeongbok, it's all for grandma's own sake.' If Lee Gyeongbok ever tried sneaking in, she explained why: 'You see, all living things have spirit, soul, and baek. But soul belongs only to people. Do you know why?' Even though he had plenty of spiritual energy, he never understood the meaning. 'Animals also have spirit and baek, but not soul, because they can't overcome their own instincts. Humans, on the other hand, possess a soul that lets them do so. Have you heard of 'conviction'?' Conviction (信念). A word meaning both faith and thoughts. Grandma smiled at his answer. 'What people treat dearly, their conviction is imbued in it. They entrust a part of their soul to it. No matter how tired or pointless it looks, that's why grandma takes care of the shrine.' She gently patted Lee Gyeongbok's head. 'A shaman keeps the shrine so that their faith and thoughts are settled there. That way, it's easier for the spirits to come.' He hadn't understood at the time. Now, he wasn't just understanding—he was experiencing it. 'Am I... reading the echoes of the developers' thoughts?' The conversation he heard wasn't from the current developers, but from when they created the tutorial. That his spiritual energy could read this meant the developers had sincerely poured their passion into the game. But only for a moment. 'Alphabet and numbers.' As the information gathered, Lee Gyeongbok's mind raced furiously. At the same time, his sense of time and physical feelings returned. A number flashed in his mind; Lee Gyeongbok entered it into the keypad. With a beep, the yellow light turned green, and with a clunk the iron door opened. - ????? - What? What the heck just happened? - Did he solve it? How!? - What was that all of a sudden!? - How did that happen, how did that happen! - Come on;;; was this really a brain power move? Viewers, fired up as they tried to get attention in the chat, couldn't hide their astonishment. Even if it seemed unbelievable, Lee Gyeongbok had solved the problem in an instant, proven by the now open door. Which meant only one thing remained. How did he find the answer? - Was there any hint? - He didn't just guess, right? - If you think about 1 in 10 quintillion odds, maybe not that hard, lol - For real, if you think of 1 quintillion, it's possible - Nah, when he was making it they said they saw something! - Godple-sensei! Give us an explanation! At the viewers' uproar, Lee Gyeongbok caught his breath lightly. Then, with a relaxed smile, he spoke. "The solution is alphabet and numbers." There was confidence in his voice. No wonder, given he'd practically been told by the developers themselves. He held out the business card. "The moment I saw the 6-digit password field, this phrase came to mind. 'Andy finds the answer'? I figured maybe the answer referred to the password here. So I converted the alphabet letters to numbers." As he explained smoothly, viewers became even busier. - So why does that become the answer? - Oh shoot, 6 digits right there - A=1 N=14 D=4 Y=25, 114425 - Insane, lolol, it's real - I was wondering why it's 6 digits when there are 4 letters, lol - Impressive, sb - Did you know, physical skill also includes brain power? As some viewers tested it themselves, the chat window exploded even more. - So it naturally connected for you? - Nah lol, what about the rest of us viewers!? - What do you mean, what, we're just chock full of puns, that's all - Truly, a perfect brain, lol - He's got it all, he's got it all - Ugh, if he's good-looking too, I won't let it slide - What are you gonna do if we viewers don't let it slide? Lol - Gonna report—wedding registration! - Omg, you're a viewer-fangirl, hdd Watching the chat erupt, Lee Gyeongbok chuckled. "It's not that hard, right? I just cleared the tutorial." - Hold on;;; who does a 5-minute tutorial clear! - Ah, lol, even escape rooms can't stop perfection - Turns out the real leak from the pipe wasn't gas, it was double-absurdity - Expected something spicy, but it turned all sweet, lol - No matter how spicy the game gets, you turn it into baby mode - Ah! Baby! As the viewers enjoyed themselves, the surroundings were replaced by a wall filled with countless doors. The tutorial ended, and he returned to the main menu. "Now then, before we start the next game, there's something we should cover, right?" Lee Gyeongbok clapped lightly for attention. The viewers immediately realized what he meant. - Ah, lol, time to settle up the quest - Is there a viewer who burns through a million won in 5 minutes!? - 200,000 won per minute, what the lol - Not even by the hour—by the minute, what is that - Cost-effectiveness totally destroyed, lol - Honestly, the sponsor probably thought he'd take at least 20 minutes Once again, viewers teased Qdari for losing so badly. After all, he was about to cough up 1 million won. But then— "Wait a moment. Qdari-nim? Please wait to settle up, there's something to discuss first." When Lee Gyeongbok suddenly spoke up, question marks filled the chat window. "This game was easier than I thought. Receiving a full million won for just this seems a bit much." - ???????? - What! Who are you?! - Where'd our Godple who awakened to capitalism go!? - Breaking: Purple, black Company becomes Grey Company - What's grey company, lol - Ah lol, you're not going for White Company? - Why's he being all double-absurdity saying it was easy, lol - Double-absurdity is just his breathing at this point - Honestly, once you get in deeper, there's more stuff and puzzles to find - Qdari probably thought that too, watching the videos, lol Lee Gyeongbok smiled at their reactions. "So, here's what I'm thinking—how about this?" The viewers' attention was instantly focused. Of course, he had no intention of refusing the prize. "You know the condition if I fail, right? It's, 'Beg me to allow highlight function.' If you beg to defer quest settlement, I'll let it slide. Otherwise, pay up right away." At his counter-offer, the viewers couldn't hide their amusement. But Qdari, 'Agent Q', didn't immediately reply in chat. - Lmfaooooooooo - Ah, lol, you'll go easy if someone asks - Breaking: Purple's move to Grey Company was fake news - Going right back to Black Company, lol - But this is honestly Godple doing a favor, lol - For real, anyone would take a million won in exchange for begging, that's a steal, lol - If it were me, I'd do it right away - What's there to hesitate! - You're all worse, lol Still, a million won was a lot of money. ― Agent Q: Purple-nim, please, ㅠ ― Agent Q: Please apply the quest in the next game! ― Agent Q: Sorry, was late uploading a bowing photo to Trigger! After Qdari's chat, viewers burst into even greater laughter. - Lololol, really uploaded it, lolol - Wow, he really did, lolololol - A million won per prostration, lol - Absolutely hilarious, lol - Qdari's market value is insane, lol - Ride Purple Coin to the moon! - That's not the 'moon' we mean, lol From the viewers' reactions, it was clearly real. Lee Gyeongbok didn't bother verifying it directly. "With such a plea, I have no choice. I've gained a lot from Qdari-nim, so I'm giving you special treatment, okay?" He teased lightly, then immediately selected the menu. "All right! Now, let's start escaping in earnest!" Once viewers saw the mode he picked, the room fell silent. - Hyung? Did you click wrong? - Competition? You're going for competition mode? - Right into competition after the tutorial? Is this for real? - H-hyung! Only real escape maniacs go there! - Seriously, if you're doing escape in competitive mode, you must have nothing better to do - Why's the broadcast's spiciness level like this! - Ah, lol, truly a streaming genius Despite the viewers' responses, Lee Gyeongbok didn't care. "You all know, right?" Instead, he smiled brightly as he replied. "That I like hard games." *** **New Names, locations, skills, techniques (