Translation and Editorial Refinement:
The night was at its peak. A gigantic, otherworldly moon shone in the sky. In a forest clearing near the starting area of a new Korean grindfest game, two low-level player characters sat by a campfire.
Race: Yokai
Type: Kitsune
Class: Illusionist
The first was an anthropomorphic fox. She wore a revealing Asian-style dress that accentuated her lush, furry curves. Sitting on a tree stump, her fluffy tail carefully placed across her lap, she stirred the fire with a twig, occasionally letting out a wistful sigh.
Race: Yokai
Type: Bakeneko
Class: Martial Artist
The second resembled an Asian girl in a kimono, her hair styled in the distinctive "bob" cut. Seated like Rodin’s "The Thinker," her legs spread awkwardly in uncomfortable Japanese sandals, she nervously massaged her forehead with one hand while her other drummed impatiently on her knee.
The silence was broken by the kitsune’s enchanting, velvety voice:
“Actually, the deeply ingrained notion that a male player using a female character is automatically a pervert is fundamentally flawed. In reality, such a player is often a strict heterosexual and a connoisseur of aesthetics. When entering a new game, they instinctively choose the most appealing female character, sometimes out of pure curiosity even trying to undress her or peek under her skirt, understanding they’ll be staring at her back and posterior for most of the gameplay. Similarly, a gay player selects a male character. Meanwhile, an immature schoolboy, unable to separate his identity from his character, opts for the most brutish warri—”
The kitsune was abruptly cut off by the bakeneko, who now clutched her head with both hands:
“Yura, stop. Do you even grasp the situation we’re in? We’re stuck in this godforsaken grindfest, an actual game! Figuring out how to get back? Impossible. Yura! I have a wife, kids, and a grandkid on the way. And here you are, spouting gaming folklore. I don’t care! Although… I’ll admit, the sensations are… bizarre.”
The kitsune, after several attempts, managed to contort her fox muzzle into a semblance of a sheepish smile. Sighing, she responded:
“Alright. I’ll stop, Gennady Alexeyevich.”
It all began that evening when Yura was meticulously scrolling through the latest uploads on a hentai booru. He had more pressing matters—Yura was a second-year university student, and exam season was looming. Yet the mere thought of cramming filled him with such dread and despair that instead of opening his notes, he’d open a window to one of his favorite MMORPGs for a brief escape. That night was no exception—he was relaxing, recharging before diving into the recently downloaded grindfest.
Yura’s attention was drawn to the messenger icon, signaling that someone wanted to interrupt him. Seeing who it was, he grimaced and hesitated for several seconds, debating whether to respond or feign absence. In the end, the better part of his nature won, and he made what might have been the biggest mistake of his life—perhaps even bigger than enrolling in the music department of a pedagogical university.
“Yura, hello. Do you know a game called Hell Grind RPG?”
Yura did know it. And since he couldn’t see his future, at that moment, he was mildly surprised and immensely delighted. He was thrilled by the possibility of soon having a party member in this Korean hellscape. His surprise, however, stemmed from the identity of the one asking.
It was none other than retired military man Gennady Alexeyevich—a master of rush tactics in Arte Online and an expert in skill builds in Mine Online, games he’d played obsessively for years, if not decades.
“Yes,” Yura replied honestly.
“Can you help me with something? Join voice chat. It’ll only take ten minutes,” came the text message. Even through the pixels on the screen, Gennady Alexeyevich exuded an undeniable charisma.
What happened next unfolded quickly and indeed took no more than ten minutes. The acquaintances logged into Hell Grind, meeting at the starting location. Yura, in the form of a fox girl, was circling Gennady Alexeyevich, ready to answer his questions, when suddenly everything went dark for the student.
When the darkness lifted and his senses returned, the two found themselves not sitting peacefully in their chairs at home, but standing in a strange location uncannily similar to the starting area of Hell Grind—a blooming meadow surrounding a massive tree. Judging by the rapidly filling space around the tree, with creatures appearing seemingly out of thin air, it wasn’t just the two of them who had been sucked into the game.
As Yura watched the creatures materialize, a horrifying realization struck him like lightning. Glancing down at himself, he nearly fainted again: instead of his usual athletic tracksuit, he was wearing the familiar, flamboyant dress—complete with a prominently padded chest!
