There’s a term known as “map exploration.” It refers to the act of traveling through the game world, searching for scenic spots or hidden elements.

Among the players, there were some known as map explorers, who didn’t enjoy the game as it was intended but instead spent their time purely exploring the map. Demon's Saga was no exception.

In fact, since it was a virtual reality game, there were even more players who did this. The game’s stunning graphics and vast world made exploring in itself an entertaining activity.

Despite the penalties of losing experience points, some items, and being unable to log in for a certain period upon death, plenty of players still ventured into high-level zones purely for the sake of exploration.

One of those zones was the forest next to the empire, known in the game as the "Forbidden Forest." It was a high-level area, but there were still those who enjoyed the thrill of exploring the forest and its monsters.

Then one day, as usual, a player posted on the forum, claiming to have found something strange while exploring the map.

That post ignited a huge debate that went on for quite some time.

•  

[Could it be a hidden NPC?]

There are a lot of hidden elements in this game.
Maybe it's an NPC secretly placed there by the developers?
Or maybe it’s a native of that forest...

•  

[Does that even make sense?? Why would the devs hide an NPC there out of the blue? I don’t get it.]
[True, the monster levels are crazy high in that forest. Can anyone even live there? The layout is so complex, it looks impossible to survive.]
[This game is super strict about consistency. If someone’s living in a forest like that, there’s gotta be a reason. They’d have to be insanely strong or have some other explanation. Also, from the silhouette, it looks like a guy, but why would a man live in such a harsh environment?]
[Right? If I were a guy, I’d just chill in the city, living off the women! LOL]
[For real LOL]

•  

[It's probably just a mistake or a photoshop job.]

No matter what, the poster sure knows how to bait people.
+

[For real LOL]
[Definitely photoshopped. That guy just wanted his post to go viral.]
[Maybe it was just a misunderstanding? It could’ve been an object that coincidentally looked like a person.]
[Yeah, but that silhouette is way too human-like.]
[True, I gotta admit that...]
[Or maybe it’s a ghost? Some guy who died in the forest and his spirit got captured in the photo LOL.]
[Creepy.]
[Oh no, now it's turning into an urban legend LOL.]

Speculation ran wild. Some thought it was an NPC, others believed it was fake or just an urban legend. Either way, the mysterious photo from the forest managed to capture the community’s attention.

The best way to find out the truth was to go and check it out firsthand. Unfortunately, no high-level players were available who could actually venture into the "Forbidden Forest" for a hunt.

As with many topics that arise on the internet, the discussion eventually lost steam, with most people deciding it was either a hoax or just another ghost story.

•  

[But seriously, how weak is that player to die to a mere wild boar?]

What level are they, anyway? LOL.
+

[I dunno, probably level 15 or something?]
[Level 15 LOL.]
[What a noob LOL.]
[See, this is why map explorers get no respect tsk tsk...]
[I bet their immersion rate was as low as a freaking rez...]
[Hey, do wild boars look like a joke to you, guys?]

I had secured the wild boar. It didn’t require much effort. It wasn’t even a mutated one, so a single thrust of my spear was enough to take it down.

“Thanks to this, I guess I can finally head back.”

It’s unfortunate that she died, but thanks to her, I secured food. Now, I just need to move my catch back to my place, and…

“…Huh?”

That was when it happened.

Suddenly, there was a strange occurrence with the woman’s corpse.

The cold, lifeless body began to emit a growing glow, and soon, the light slowly started to disintegrate her. The particles of light floating up toward the sky were almost beautiful in a way. All that remained was a piece of her clothing, which seemed completely useless.

Of course, witnessing this right before my eyes left me utterly confused.

“…What the hell?”

What the fuck was that?

Do people normally turn into light particles and ascend to the heavens when they die?

No way. I may not have seen many dead bodies before, but the others I’ve seen definitely didn’t disappear like that.

Which means what I just witnessed is clearly some kind of anomaly.

“What the hell is going on…?”

Thanks to that, I stood there for a while, dumbfounded and in a daze.

Two months have passed since then.

I preserved the wild boar meat, and in that time, I managed to figure out the strange phenomenon that occurred a few months ago.

I had visited the city once during those two months. It turned out the information was pretty widespread, so the informant I met in the back alley didn’t even bother charging me for it.

• "Seriously? You don’t know about this yet? Have you been living in seclusion deep in the forest or something?"
• "Haha…"
• "Man, as slow as you are on the uptake... Seriously?"
• "How much for the info?"
• "Forget it. Everyone knows about this anyway. No need to charge you for something like that."
• "I’m surprised. I thought people around here would charge for anything, no matter what it was."
• "You've bought a lot of stuff from me, right? For that amount, I can afford to show some goodwill. Though, if you really wanna thank me, maybe offer me your body, haha..."

I ended up flipping him off, but that’s beside the point.

The information I got was pretty shocking.

Apparently, beings from another world had appeared.

They come from a different dimension, and when they die, their bodies disappear. Then, after a few days, they resurrect.

And it wasn’t just a few of them—it was thousands, even tens of thousands, who showed up at once.

It was such a huge event that even out in the countryside, everyone knew about it. I was the only one completely out of the loop because I had been isolated for so long.

The world had been thrown into chaos, but from what I heard, people had more or less adjusted to it by now.

The government had acted swiftly, and the fact that most of these “otherworlders” were relatively peaceful helped a lot.

Of course, the countries still had mountains of issues to deal with, but that’s another world’s problem as far as I’m concerned.

As I listened to all of this, I slapped my forehead.

“So, that was one of those otherworlders.”

It all started to make sense now.

No wonder that person seemed so careless with their life. They weren’t worried because they knew they’d just come back to life.

Resurrection, huh? What a broken ability.

“Oh man, I should’ve used my skill back then…”

As I walked back toward the forest after the deal, I thought about it more.

I think I finally understood how to use that "Player’s Eye" ability I had obtained.

It wasn’t something to use when I was alone. I had to use it when one of those otherworlders was nearby.

It wasn’t about seeing things through my own eyes—it was about seeing through the eyes of the player.

This raises an interesting question.

What exactly are these otherworlders?

Who are they, and how did they get here?

Where do they even come from?

Come to think of it, I’m technically an otherworlder too. I wasn’t originally from here; I was someone who died and reincarnated into this world.

If they’re like me in some way…

‘Should I try meeting one?’

For a moment, the idea seemed tempting. But I quickly shook my head.

No. It’s better to leave curiosity as just that—curiosity.

There’s no way I could casually meet with these beings, especially since they’re already interacting with the different nations.

If they somehow found out about my "Demon’s Blood" and decided to turn on me, things would get very troublesome for me.

I had to remind myself—I’m an outcast, a criminal banished from society.

And the chains that bind me are none other than the blood running through my veins.

So let’s not do anything reckless. I’ll continue living quietly, just as I have been.

“Haa...”

With that thought, I sighed, seeing my breath escape in a puff of steam.

It was a clear sign that the weather had gotten colder. Winter was coming, and fast.

Though the "Demon’s Blood" increases my survival abilities, it doesn’t make me some superhuman immune to the cold.

“Guess I’d better start gathering firewood...”

And maybe stock up on more food, just in case.

As I sorted through these thoughts, I made my way back to the cave.

Inside, it was as dark and lonely as ever.

And then, two more months passed.

"Yoo-hoo! Nice to see you all!"

If it’s possible to enjoy playing a game, it’s also possible to enjoy watching someone else play it.
Especially when it's a game with as much freedom as Demon's Saga, players can generate all kinds of content through various playstyles.

Monster hunts, raids, player-vs-player combat, flirting with NPCs, map exploration, and more...
Yoo Chae-rin, a streamer affiliated with [Beep] Entertainment, was one of those people whose main content revolved around Demon's Saga.

As soon as she started her stream, the chat lit up with messages.

[Hey hey]
[You're really hyped today, lol]
[What’s on the agenda for today's stream?]
[Please tell me it's not another grind-fest. Don't tell me it's more grinding...]
[Can we stop with the grinding already? It’s boring. Why don’t you hang out with other players, like the other streamers do?]
[Our streamer is too much of a loner for that~]

"Ah, don't worry, everyone! No grinding today."

[Oh?]
[For real?]
[Then what are we doing today?]

"Don’t be too shocked! Do you know why I’ve been grinding levels like crazy all this time?"

With a bright smile, she revealed one of her new skills—something she had unlocked after reaching level 66.

[Stealth (隱身)]

You’ve encountered countless enemies. Now, you’ve learned how to avoid their sight.
When you activate this skill, your body blends into the surroundings.

[Ohhh, lol]
[A true spying skill, wow]
[That skill costs a lot of points. Did you seriously grind all this time just to unlock that?]
[I always knew Chae-rin was a bit shady, but not this shady...]
[Disappointed, Chae-rin...]

"No, no! That’s not why I learned it! It’s for a new type of content I’m working on!"

As the chat quickly devolved into roasting her, Yoo Chae-rin frantically tried to explain.

"You all kept asking me to do map exploration content."

She continued.

"But most of the usual spots have already been explored by other people, right? So I figured I’d go somewhere that’s not easy for everyone to access."

"And where are you planning to go today?"

She unfolded the in-game map and pointed to a large, ominous forest next to the empire.

"Today, I’m heading into the Forbidden Forest."

A place that had never been fully explored.

No, even those who had entered the forest never made it past the middle layers before dying.

It was one of the high-level maps.

"I’m going as deep as I can."

Exploring the Forbidden Forest—that was her main content for today.