It was the early days of “Nekoneko.” Even before Godspeed Cancel Movement was invented, there was a video that had captured the attention of the Nekoneko players.
The video’s title was “The Repentant Man.” It was a very short video documenting a man in a white room, incessantly banging his head against the wall.
“It’s been a while since I’ve been here,” I said, stepping into the space filled with the sound of the pipe organ, feeling the church’s unique atmosphere. I hadn’t visited this place in the game world for some time either. Normally, I’d be grateful for it in the early stages, but in this game, churches primarily served to heal status ailments. In Nekoneko, where spells to easily cure status ailments could be learned, players rarely needed to visit them past the mid-game.
However, I wasn’t here to heal status ailments this time. There was another role of the church that every Nekoneko player knew. That was the purpose of my visit.
“Excuse me,” I said, heading further into the church without hesitation. I approached a kind-looking sister standing inside.
“Can I help you?” she asked. This was Marielle, a sister at this church and, in effect, the administrator of a certain room.
“Uh, well…”
Her innocent smile made me feel a sense of guilt. But I decided that this very guilt was the spice that would make my proposal successful, and I resolutely opened my mouth.
“I would like to use the confessional…”
The confessional is, as the name suggests, a room where one confesses their sins to God and repents. However, the reality is a little different. Imagine a small room divided by a partition, where a penitent and a priest enter, and they have a life consultation through the partition. At least, that’s how I imagine the confessional in this game.
The exact reason why such a room exists in the game is unconfirmed. However, it’s said that early advertisements for Nekoneko boasted slogans like, “Event content changes depending on one’s Karma! A sin system that creates new drama!” So, it’s believed to have been created in relation to that.
Ultimately, the “sin system” was never implemented in Nekoneko. Like the indulgences sold at the church (priced at 100,000 Elements, yet useless), the confessional also became a systemically meaningless feature. Nevertheless, it had its enthusiasts.
When I asked Sister Marielle here if I could confess, she replied, “Are you here to confess? I’m sorry, the priest is out at the moment.” She turned me away. It seemed like an event flag, but if you backed down here, you couldn’t use the confessional. If I persisted, she relented, saying, “Understood. Then…” and Marielle herself would accompany me to the confessional to offer her counsel.
In the real world, it might be problematic for a sister to conduct confessions while replacing a priest, but this was in a game, and specifically in Nekoneko. Surely, there was no one who would care about such a thing. Marielle was beautiful, and above all, she was a sister; many players (mostly male) apparently came for confession because they preferred her to the priest.
As a side note, no matter how long one waited, the priest who had gone out never returned to the church. His eternal absence gave rise to various speculations and conspiracy theories, such as “The Priest is the True Final Boss,” “Marielle is a Widow,” “Marielle is the Priest,” and “Marielle Murdered the Priest.” The truth remains unrevealed. To be unromantic, the truth is probably that the character of the priest was never created, and it was a convenient excuse. But it’s a trivial matter.
Now, about the confessional itself, it was a special place, clearly set apart from other locations. According to Marielle, the inside of the confessional was the place closest to God in the world, completely unrelated to the defilements of the secular world. Well, I don’t know about God, but it was certainly a special space within the game. It could be called a complete safety zone. Here, HP, MP, and even Stamina would not change. Even if one were to strike someone with a weapon, no damage would be dealt, and weapon skills or magic could not be activated at all. Only movement skills like Step could be used, but in such a cramped room, attempting to use them would undoubtedly result in hitting a wall or the ceiling, interrupting the skill. There was no reason to use them, and of course, even if one did collide, no damage would be incurred. In a fantasy world of flying swords and magic, this place was a sovereign territory. It was truly a space dominated by God.
… Or so a normal person would think. However, a dedicated VR gamer would think differently.
Weapon skills and magic cannot be used? Conversely, movement skills can be used without consuming Stamina! If you use movement skills in this room, you’ll hit a wall or ceiling and interrupt the skill? Even if you hit something, you won’t take damage, and the motion can be skipped, allowing for rapid repetition! There’s no point in using movement skills? If you use a skill, your skill proficiency increases!
Alright everyone! Let’s charge the confessional wall with movement skills!!
And so it went. Normally, in the early stages, using Step four times without rest would deplete your Stamina. Moreover, without canceling, each action and the subsequent recovery time were long, meaning it could take nearly ten seconds to perform just four Steps. However, in the confessional, where there was no Stamina consumption or damage, this problem was solved. No matter how many Steps you took, your Stamina wouldn’t run out, and even if you crashed into the wall to interrupt a Step, you wouldn’t sustain damage or feel pain.
One Player exploited this, posting a video of themselves performing four Steps per second. The method was simple: press your body against the confessional wall and repeat Steps at the right timing. The flow of activating a Step, hitting the wall and interrupting it, and activating another Step again, would repeat in rapid succession, allowing skill proficiency with Steps to increase at an astonishing rate. To an observer, it looked like someone deeply repenting and repeatedly banging their head against the wall. Thus, the famous video “The Repentant Man” was born.
As soon as this video was introduced, everyone flocked to the confessional, eager to imitate it. Although the types of skills that could be leveled were limited to movement skills, the efficiency was outstanding, and there was no danger. However, there was one unexpected drawback to this proficiency leveling.
Since the confessional had an entrance at the back and a small table for consultations attached to the partition at the front, one would naturally end up using Steps against either the left or right wall. After finishing the long, monotonous task, one might glance sideways and notice. A pair of eyes were watching you, unblinkingly, as you continued to bash your head against the wall.
That’s right. Marielle was intently watching the Player’s bizarre behavior, missing nothing.
To enter the confessional, Marielle’s permission was required. Therefore, whenever a Player used the confessional, Marielle would always be on the other side of the partition. Perhaps Marielle’s AI was weak, or perhaps the Thought Routine set for inside the confessional was too lenient. Even when the Player engaged in the strange behavior of repeatedly banging their head against the wall, Marielle did not react particularly. She would simply assume that the Player who entered the confessional had not spoken, and would say things like, “Was there something you wished to confess?” or “Though it may be difficult, speaking can bring relief.” Her words would gradually change to expressions of confusion, such as, “If you don’t say anything, I cannot say anything either,” or “Perhaps your desire to confess was a lie?” Finally, she would only say, “You may leave through there,” which was heartbreaking in its own way. But the truly terrifying part came afterward. Having exhausted her preset dialogue, she would simply stare at the Player without saying a word.
You might wonder what the problem is. Just listening, it’s not clear. I didn’t pay it any mind. But once I experienced leveling skills in the confessional, I understood its horror. At first, it was no problem. I just felt a little shy being looked at by a beautiful woman. But then, in a moment of distraction, I looked at her and realized her expression and posture hadn’t changed one bit from several minutes ago. Something began to go awry. Marielle, who was supposed to be doing nothing but watching me, became strangely captivating. I would change the wall I was using frequently, but only then would her neck move. Slowly, following my movements. Her eyes would follow me without a word. In the narrow space with no other distractions, no matter how much I tried to ignore it, once it entered the corner of my awareness, it was over. I couldn’t help but constantly be aware that she was watching me. I tried to concentrate on using my skills, but it was no use. Even if I managed to concentrate and push Marielle to the back of my mind, when I suddenly came to my senses, I would find myself looking at Marielle’s face unguardedly.
It was then I realized. I was being watched. Whether I was concentrating or forgetting her, she was constantly observing me. I was being watched. I was being stared at. And when I actually shifted my gaze to Marielle, her eyes were indeed locked onto me. Watching me. Without a single blink, a faint smile plastered on her face, always. She was always watching me!
The repetitive nature of the task makes it easier to enter a hypnotic state, becoming susceptible to suggestion. Possibly due to this effect, about one-third of those who attempted this were driven mad by Marielle’s gaze and fled. Some people apparently didn’t mind it at all, or even said it was a “reward in this industry.” Unfortunately, I was on the nervous side, and I have the bitter memory of fleeing halfway through, unable to withstand Marielle’s stare. This became known as the “Marimite Dojo,” a place that tested not only a Player’s skills but also their sanity.
… However.
I was the only one who knew this world was a game, but at the same time, this world was also reality. In reality, things can happen that don’t happen in games.
“Are you here to confess? I’m sorry, the priest is out at the moment.”
So, after that one push, I stopped Marielle as she was about to head to the confessional, saying, “Understood. Then…”
“No. Um, I would like to have a quiet conversation with God alone. So, if you could just lend me the room…” I spoke the words I had been thinking for a long time. …How about that? I waited for a reaction.
“… I see. Then, please, use the room as you wish.” Marielle smiled softly and said that. (I did it!) I shouted inwardly with joy. At this very moment, I had overcome the greatest hurdle of the “Marimite Dojo”!
Seeing off the smiling Marielle, I entered the confessional. Naturally, Marielle, who had been staring at me the whole time, was not in the room opposite. Even though it was a place I knew well, I felt a sense of freshness. (This way, I can do it.) I moved closer to the wall, getting into position. Now that this had become a reality, I didn’t know how long I could use this place. Although I had psychological resistance to using movement skills against the wall, I cast aside my hesitation and used the skill. (Step!) With a dull sound like a thud, my head hit the wall. But despite that painful-sounding noise, my body felt no pain. It’s okay. I can level up my proficiency without issue in this world too. (Step! Step, step, step!) — *Thud! Th., Th., Thud!* The strange noise from the wall signaled the success of my skill. Encouraged, I continued to increase my Speed. (Step, step, step, stepstepstepstep!) — *Th., Th., Th., Thththththud!* As the Speed of my Step usage increased, so did the Speed of the sound from the wall. I was actually starting to enjoy it. (Stepstepstepstepstepstepstepstepstopstepstepstepstep!) — *Thththththththththththththththththtthtundthththththth!* My concentration deepened. All that came to mind was Step. How could I use Step at an even greater Speed, that’s all that dominated my thoughts. (Stepstepstepstepstepstepstepstepstepstepstepstepstepstepstepstepskiptstepstepstepstepstepstepstepstep!) — *Thththththththththththththththththththththththththtundthththththththththththththtund!* Now I understood why I had fled, bothered by Marielle’s gaze. It was because I lacked concentration. But now, I could do it. With this concentration, I could surpass my limits. Unprecedented. I would achieve five, no, more Steps per second, surpassing the four Steps per second! (Stepstepstepstepstepstepstepstepstepstepstepstepstepstepstepstepstepstepstepstepstepstepstepstepstepslapstickstepstepstepstepstepstepstepstepstepstepstepstep……) — *Ththththththththththththththththththththththththththththththththththththththththththththththththththththththththththtund, ththththththththththththththth……* Let’s go! Beyond the limit! To beyond that period!! It was then. “Um, I heard strange noises from this direction, and a believer came… What on earth are you doing!!” I thought I heard some noise in my ears, but my concentration wasn’t broken by something like that. “Ah, I don’t know what sin you have committed, but this is not allowed! S-simply hurting yourself will not solve anything. God wishes for you to atone for your sins honestly… No, you must stop this now!” It’s proof of lax concentration that I’m bothered by the noise. I need to concentrate more, much more, only on Step… “Stop! Please, stop doing this…!” Suddenly, I felt a soft, warm touch as if it were clinging to my body. What a terrible distraction. But I won’t lose! “Could it be that you are so engrossed in repenting your sins that you haven’t noticed? What strong self-reproach and faith! But if that’s the case, all the more reason why I cannot allow this person to continue self-harming!” If distractions are meant to confuse me, then I will use even distractions as sustenance for my body. When I can no longer feel even this softness that distracts me, I will surely have reached the ultimate concentration. “Someone! Someone, please come! In the confessional, in the confessional—!!” Ah, I can see it. I too can see the next world— After that, I was forcibly taken to the inner room and made to confess thoroughly by Marielle. Well, that is to say… Being lectured by a professional really does resonate with the heart!
