How to Survive as a Genius Spy in the Game

‘Should I just escape to some secluded place?’

The thought that suddenly came to mind was quite charming, but the feasibility of it was close to zero.

As the Empire crumbled and devil worshippers ran rampant, the entire continent had become an unseen battlefield.

It was not uncommon for intact cities to be annihilated, not just remote villages.

Rather than relying on luck to hide, it would be better to strengthen myself.

Besides, now that I was under the duke’s control, I couldn’t escape. Maybe after I’d grown.

It was a problem that didn’t have an immediate solution. I had too little information, even none.

In the first place, I needed to know when this was happening to come up with a rough plan.

‘Damn… Why did this happen?’

My thoughts ultimately turned to the fundamental cause of this situation.

What came to mind suddenly was the message that appeared when I turned off the game. It clearly said that the tutorial was over.

The only meaningful change before entering the game was that.

Back then, I had interpreted it differently.

‘The main storyline of the game is about to unfold.’

Originally, it was impossible to complete the main story of Valhǫll. No matter how you played, you would die abruptly at some point.

As an unknown early access game, I had even used an online translator to search the internet.

No one had seen the end of the story.

The most likely guess was that the story was blocked because the game was incomplete.

I somewhat agreed with that and played the game, finding it enjoyable even with the story blocked.

So, I thought the end of the tutorial would unlock the main story.

But I never imagined that it would be a message to enter the game world.

“Sigh.”

A deep sigh escaped.

I had a grasp on the main story up to what the developers had revealed. But beyond that, I had no idea.

And more importantly, I had to figure out how to survive in this body.

The game and reality were clearly different.

Even if we were facing the same crisis, the judgment of me as a gamer and me as the person involved couldn’t be the same.

While playing the game, I used to get frustrated every time the character made a wrong move due to low mental stats.

But now it was different. In reality, anyone would be confused in this situation.

Moreover, considering that I didn’t even know when I was, it was even more daunting.

‘The game doesn’t even give me the basic information.’

What’s more, I even chose the Stratagem value that I even wasn’t good at.

Ah, I should have just stuck to what I was doing.

‘No, I shouldn’t have taken the statement that the tutorial was over lightly.’

I knew there was no point in regret, but lingering feelings were human nature.

The game had become a reality.

Even if I died here, I didn’t feel like I could retry. That was why I feel more regret.

The risks with Stratagem were too high.

Even minor stratagems, such as creating minor rumors about hostile nobles, were like walking on thin ice.

The consequences of being exposed were beyond imagination. It was like being socially ostracized.

For more impactful stratagems, like assassination, the risks, and consequences were unimaginably greater.

‘No. Such pondering is meaningless.’

It was too late. It was already happened, and regret and worry wouldn’t change anything.

I had to think about how to navigate through the given situation.

It was not about doing nothing; I’d entered a ruthless game where death loomed even if I made an effort.

I didn’t want to die here. To survive, I had to clear the game that had become a reality.

‘Ah.’

Come to think of it, I had outlined a plan before starting the game.

It was a plan to prevent the empire’s division with the princess at the center.

In the game, the princess was a character who left the empire and wandered, making it difficult to encounter her.

But the princess’s mother was the princess of the Haisen Kingdom.

And I was under the Duke of Haisen.

How about I make use of that to establish a connection with the princess?

It seemed like a good idea.

If I gained trust under the duke, it would be easier to utilize the information I have.

‘Wait. The information I have?’

Suddenly, the status window came to mind. I realized I had forgotten the most important thing.

Amidst a series of sudden events after entering the game, I had momentarily forgotten about it.

Given the penalty trait I received, it was necessary to check. Anxiousness started to creep up again.

It felt like a sudden pain in my chest, like a sprain.

‘Please.’

As I prayed silently in my mind, a translucent system message appeared in my mind.

Passing through the section with name and age, I slowly lowered my gaze.

[Death Avoidance] [Winds] [Ironman] [Mysophobia] [Worst Condition] [Eccentric actions]…

Sigh… So that’s why it happened?

With a short sigh, I understood everything that had happened so far.

All the unpleasant feelings of wanting to die and the weakness in my body were caused by my Mysophobia and my Worst Condition.

Of course, being a neglected orphan might have contributed to that as well.

Overall, the first impression wasn’t that bad. There weren’t any traits as terrible as I imagined, like being a cannibal.

I was aware of Mysophobia and Eccentric Action, but the worst condition was a new trait to me.

[Worst Condition]

-Your condition is always at its worst. You can only exert 50% of your abilities.

-However, on rare days when your condition is at its best, you gain a 300% advantage in abilities.

[Eccentric Actions]

-You are captivated by the desire to occasionally engage in inexplicable and bizarre behaviors that you cannot understand.

‘Damn it, so I can only exert 50% of my abilities under normal conditions?’

It was a penalty worse than I had anticipated. Even if I occasionally have a 300% boost, it still seemed too severe.

The Eccentric Actions trait was ambiguous too. There was a risk of things going awry, but there were also benefits.

Perhaps the pickpocket earlier was influenced by the Eccentric Actions trait.

‘But if I exclude the worst condition, it’s relatively manageable, right?’

Not being a heretic or a cannibal, and lacking any perverse desires, gave me some relief for now.

Perhaps because I was worrying about the worst, the psychological impact wasn’t as significant.

Right, I couldn’t change it. Let’s think positively.

If my abilities were only at half-strength under normal circumstances, then I just need to strive harder to push the limits of my usual abilities.

‘And if I make good use of the occasional condition boost, I might even surprise myself.’

Although my body was uncomfortable, I didn’t run away easily earlier, did I?

The Ironman trait would fulfill its purpose when I become an adult, and perhaps it would be offset a bit as I grow older.

But how did I get rid of this?

Even though it was a translucent window, it covered my field of vision, giving me a slightly alien feeling.

It didn’t disappear even when I tried to think of something else.

‘Huh?’

As I pondered, something caught my eye. I thought I had six traits, but it seemed that wasn’t the case.

There appeared to be one more trait indicated by ‘…’ in the list.

Could it be an additional default trait?

As I stared at it, something that wasn’t visible before started to appear.

[Devil’s Blood]

-There is devil blood flowing within you. Be careful. If this fact is revealed, it can become a matter of continental significance.

“Fuck.”

‘Blood’ was an element that couldn’t be added additionally. In other words, the trait ‘Devil’s Blood’ was already inherent to the character as a penalty trait.

I thought the worst was already passed, but apparently, that wasn’t the case.

“…Fuck.”

Feeling overwhelmed and unjustly treated, it felt like my thoughts came to a halt.

I stared helplessly at the flickering system message in front of me.

* * *

Knock, knock.

“Duke, I have brought the child.”

The reception room I arrived at, following Lena’s guidance, had an elegant atmosphere, but it seemed slightly dim for daytime.

The duke was looking at me, resting his chin on one hand.

I respectfully bowed without saying a word.

Before entering, Lena had warned me not to make eye contact, but I disregarded her advice and met Duke’s gaze.

I sensed Lena’s surprise from beside me. There was only one reason why I didn’t follow Lena’s words.

If I were the Duke, I would prefer the talent I brought not to look downcast and intimidated.

After playing the game for over a thousand hours, I knew how to handle situations like this. Most of the time, it worked.

Lena hurriedly made me lower my head.

“I apologize. I will continue with his education…”

Duke swiftly waved his hand.

“It’s fine. Since he is an orphan, he can gradually learn the manners. I actually find it pleasing. Have a seat.”

“Yes.”

As expected, it worked out well.

While Lena stepped back, I sat across from Duke. Duke’s eyes scanned me from my forehead.

It was a careful observation that made me wonder if he suspected me of being a perverse desire individual, to the extent that the uneasiness resurfaced.

“Do you know why I brought you here?”

“I have some idea…”

I automatically changed my way of speaking to a childlike manner. It wasn’t too obvious.

In an instant, a hint of desire mixed into the duke’s eyes.

“Tell me.”

“Maybe because I have skills that could be useful to you?”

The Duke burst into satisfied laughter.

From an objective perspective, it might sound like an obvious statement, but for a young orphan to make such a judgment, it was a distant realm.

Besides, this place was one where formal education didn’t exist.

“That’s right. Since when and how could you use Mystic?”

Mystic referred to the unique trait “Winds.” In the game, unique traits were called Mystics.

The character couldn’t speak about the trait. I pondered for a moment. Should I pretend to know?

Being a game player myself, having a unique trait was quite rare. Would it be right to assume that an orphan would know about it?

However, if the person in question had the mystic called “Winds,” I could infer through the lines of conversation.

“I’m not exactly sure. It didn’t seem like it had been for a long time… About two months ago, when I stole a purse and ran away, it suddenly happened.”

I tried my best to imitate the child’s manner of speaking while maintaining a non-intimidated appearance.

“So, your mystic is related to the wind?”

“Yes.”

“Who knows about it?”

Duke’s voice was gentle, but underneath, it sounded imbued with a menacing aura.

For me, it was a role where I had no way to know.

“It seems like no one.”

“Seems like?”

“I haven’t used it conspicuously in front of anyone…”

In my memory, there was nothing I could say about the things I had done positively. It wouldn’t be too far from the truth.

After all, the power of Winds was still very subtle.

Unless someone like the duke noticed, it would go unnoticed.

The muscular figure that had been chasing after me was clueless about the mystic. The duke nodded his head.

“Let’s see it in action.”

“Yes.”

At the duke’s request, I activated Winds.

In addition to the slight fatigue, what came was not a massive gust but a faint flow of air that couldn’t be compared to the winds of the mountains.

Just like before, I gently created small gaps in the space between my hands or slightly reduced air resistance and pushed it.

“It’s a useful power.”

“Thank you.”

However, the duke’s expression lit up with great satisfaction. I agreed with him.

The better the trait, the fewer explanations it required. That meant it had good versatility.

It could be helpful in unexpected moments.

During gameplay, even though it wasn’t a high-ranking trait, I had seen comments saying that they survived thanks to their “Unyielding Will.”

“Do you know who I am?”

I shook my head.

The duke didn’t seem particularly surprised. After all, I was just a young orphan struggling to get by day by day.

“I am Harvan Brusek, Duke of Haisen and the Chief of Intelligence.”