Being a Viking Isn’t Fun – Chapter 1

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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Shio
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‘Is this the infamous soap opera-like game of extramarital affairs that I’ve only heard about?’

In early spring 2022, amid the rise of a malicious virus whimsically manipulating humanity, I decided to play a game called [Europa Kings] that had previously caught my eye.

‘Why are there so many settings?

I’ll leave everything on default and just remove the fantasy elements.’

I heard that the first 10 hours of playtime acted as an entry barrier, but for a moment, I felt dazed by the dictionary-like settings list.

So, I just removed the most noticeable fantasy settings and jumped to the character creation section.

My game didn’t need vampires or werewolves.

‘Let’s start with a random scenario and faction, and just create the character.

To survive, I need to be strong, smart, and charming…

All of my stats have to be perfect.

So, let’s raise everything to the limit.’

If I were a veteran of this game with thousands of hours played, I would have chosen all sorts of bizarre concepts.

But, as a frail and weak newbie, I humbly set the difficulty to beginner and all stats to MAX.

‘Yeah~ I don’t need achievements~ It’s fine if I don’t do Ironman~ Anyway, I was thinking of using the first playthrough to gain some understanding of the game, so there shouldn’t be any major issues.’

Without an ounce of hesitation, I dismissed the warning window and began glossing through the character traits.

Since I barely knew anything about the game, I picked all the traits that seemed useful with a mindset of ‘No reason not to, right?’

‘Oh, genius was a must-have.

Robust?

Let’s add that too.

Handsome?

Hmm… Yes, let’s fulfill all the dreams that can’t be achieved in real life here…’

With a bit of self-loathing, I spent around 10 minutes creating a hero for the ages.

And as the grandiose medieval European-style background music beckoned, I eagerly pressed the start button.

‘Here we go!’

[Click!]

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Scratch, scratch.

A quill pen made from groomed goose feathers danced across the rough surface of parchment, a kind of crude and primitive paper made from thin animal skin.

Anyone could tell at a glance that the man’s hand, gripping the delicate quill pen, was enormous, and that an endless strength welled up from his fingertips.

Rather, it was even more surprising that such delicate work, like writing, was possible with those huge hands.

The man’s two eyes, gazing intently at the parchment, shone with a deep green color and implicitly revealed a firm will.

His long hair, neatly arranged and flowing down, was dyed a deep jet black, and it fluttered above the man’s face, following the shadows that danced with the sunlight.

A strong stubbornness could be felt from the straight nose bridge that stretched down between his wriggling, firm eyebrows and tightly closed mouth.

With a mustache that was shaved off, and a well-groomed beard that stretched from his chin to below his earlobes, one could tell that this man was no longer a boy.

Of course, his formidable physique would deter people from even attempting to say otherwise.

Scratch, scratch.

Scratch, thud.

‘What’s the use of all this?’

Rip, rip.

It was clearly paper made from the tough skin of an animal.

Yet, the man’s strong hands lightly tore the parchment into pieces, as if tearing a flimsy tissue.

‘Let’s not forget.

I am Helgi, I am Helgi Ragnarsson.’

This man’s name was said to be Helgi Ragnarsson.

Helgi, born in 848.

A 17-year-old.

The son of Ragnar Sigurdsson, the Konungr¹ of the Danes and Sviar.

And a dual citizen (with military service completed) of a country that had yet to exist in this world, a country that would only come into existence in the far future – the Republic of Korea.

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Hey~ Shio, here. Hope you all enjoyed [Being a Viking Isn’t Fun]’s first chapter. Since I’m new to this, any feedback would be greatly appreciated. Anyways, haven’t we all chosen the must busted traits in a game without thinking at least once?

Notes:

1: Konungr is an Old Norse term often associated with Vikings and early medieval Scandinavian history and literature, used to refer to a ruler or monarch.

This novel has an incredible amount of images for every single chapter. I’ll post all the maps and illustrations very soon after release.