Pick Me Up!

I swung open the front door, greeted by a rush of cool air that tickled my nose.

“Seems like it’s colder inside than out.”

The frigid chill made my skin prickle, prompting me to brush off the snow that had accumulated on my shoulders and head. I slipped on a pair of cozy indoor slippers, letting my gaze settle on the couch where I had left a bag containing a mouthwatering hamburger lunch box and a refreshing soda from the nearby 7-Eleven. With a press of a button on the entrance shoe rack, I ignited the boiler using the remote control, and then I gracefully collapsed onto the two-seater sofa as if executing a dive.

Grabbing the battery that had been resting on the charging stand, I deftly swapped it into my phone. With a flick of the phone case, I powered it on, watching as the screen illuminated in a bright white glow. Once the fingerprint recognition completed, I smoothly accessed the digital realm through the familiar Windows interface. My finger tapped on the central app I sought.

It was a mobile game released two years ago, developed by Mobius.

Fast forward to the present, and Pick Me Up had become a sensation, boasting an impressive near-billion downloads worldwide.

After a brief loading screen, I found myself on the main interface.

[Welcome to Pick Me Up!]

[T O U C H!]

I tapped the screen, and my senses were immediately flooded with the familiar ambiance of the waiting room.

Inside the waiting room’s office, a blonde female knight occupied one of the seats with an air of grace.

Seris, the grand leader of our main strategy party and the first and last 4-star hero I ever summoned was perched there. She held the title of “super rare,” and her golden locks cascaded elegantly around her emerald eyes.

As I touched Seris’s image, a beautifully drawn illustration of her appeared on the screen, radiating a sense of pride and joy within me. Although she wasn’t a coveted 5-star natural-born hero, she had transformed into an unbeatable powerhouse, even among the majority of 6-star characters.

I closed the illustration by tapping the ‘X’ in the upper-right corner and shifted my attention to the other heroes shimmering in the waiting room’s facilities.

First, there were the heroes diligently training in the training center. Most of them were 1- or 2-star heroes obtained through free draws. Among them, there was a rare chance, albeit minuscule, to land a jackpot exceeding a natural-born 5-star hero. Yet, in most cases, it ended in disappointment. I could relate—I had experienced the same.

In the vast realm of mobile gaming, a clear distinction existed between the haves and have-nots.

Heroes below 3 stars vanished as mere fusion materials for their higher-ranked counterparts. With a tear in my eye, I focused on nurturing 4-star heroes and above, but overall, they remained scarce.

Next, there were the heroes who had successfully completed their training. While not ideal for missions with fewer than 5 members, they proved more than capable when it came to large-scale parties or special missions.

Lastly, my cherished main force—the heroes I had carefully selected and gathered from among the countless available. They had all achieved the pinnacle of 6-star excellence, reaching the 88th floor just a week ago, becoming the first party in Korea to do so. They were heroes who couldn’t be defeated no matter where they were deployed.

The game wasn’t simply a matter of rolling dice based on stat sheets or visible skills.

My mind drifted back to the hardships I endured to secure my place as the 5th-ranked player globally.

“I must have been out of my mind.”

Truly, it was utterly absurd.

Pick Me Up’s subtitle was “Hyper Roguelike Summon RPG,” in other words, a Loglike game.

In Korean slang, it meant a cursed game, where luck played a prominent role.

Luck determined the outcome of the draws, luck influenced the heroes’ abilities, and luck even dictated the outcome of battles.

While I could provide basic guidance, battles unfolded with heroes valiantly fighting on their own. They knew when and how to unleash their skills, or at least, they were supposed to. Yet, there were countless inexplicable moments where heroes became utterly useless.

As memories resurfaced, I could feel the strength coursing through the hand clutching my phone.

“But it’s all in the past.”

It was just a distant memory of a time when I knew nothing about Pick Me Up.

Certain aspects were undoubtedly influenced by strategy and operational know-how.

I had been a witness to it all.

And I was a guy with incredibly bad luck.

I had spun the wheel of fortune thousands of times, yet I had never seen a 5-star hero, not even once, which apparently appeared for anyone ranked below 100. Frankly, I didn’t even have many 4-star heroes—just a handful. Seris stood alone as the exception. Even though the chances of obtaining a 5-star hero were supposedly a mere 0.1%, and 4-star heroes were less than 1%, it still felt incredibly unfair.

However, if Pick Me Up had been a game determined solely by star ratings and blind luck, I would never have achieved my ranking. Skills could overcome luck. In fact, my ability to overcome fate through skill was one of the greatest factors that drew me deep into the world of Pick Me Up.

Today was Friday. I glanced at the status of the waiting room, issuing instructions to the heroes. I had accumulated so many heroes that controlling them individually had become nearly impossible.

I then turned my attention to the announcements.

“Pick Me Up Surpasses 100 Million Downloads!”

“Thanks to the overwhelming support from masters worldwide, Pick Me Up has surpassed a remarkable 100 million downloads! To celebrate this milestone, we are launching a special event. Please see the details below.”

I had exceeded the 100 million mark without even realizing it.

“Open, Advent Dungeon!”

Gems and gold were all well and good, but they were things I could easily acquire. At this stage of the game’s development, they flowed in abundance. Summoning tickets no longer excited me. What’s the point of pulling when you rarely get anything worthwhile?

What I truly needed were heroes to awaken!

This event offered a chance to obtain heroes with the coveted seven-star rating, the so-called dream-grade heroes!

My heart raced as I delved into the event announcement.

[1. From January 27th to February 5th, 20XX, we will distribute 100 gems daily. A total of 1,000 gems can be obtained! However, rewards will not be granted if you fail to log in.]

[2. As a token of appreciation to all the masters who log in, we will provide one premium hero summoning ticket. These tickets guarantee summons starting from a minimum of 3-star heroes!]

[3. The grand finale of the event! Prepare for the reopening of the challenging Advent Dungeon.]

Ecstatic, I let out a cheer upon discovering the details of the third event.

After a long hiatus, the formidable Advent Dungeon at its highest difficulty was finally making a return.

I selected the “Space-Time Rift” option in the main waiting room, located at the bottom-left corner of the menu. The blue summoning portal expanded, revealing a list of dungeons.

“Climb the tower and save the world!”

[Main Dungeon: Current Floor – 88]

“A grand festival of ever-changing dungeons!”

[Daily Dungeon: Isralta Mine (Advanced – 5 hours)]

“Collect various rare materials!”

[Exploration Dungeon: Ongoing Expedition, Sacred City (Time Remaining: 17 hours and 35 seconds)]

“Prove your strength!”

[Advent Dungeon: Difficulty – Supreme]

There it was.