[Prologue]
Click, click!
The man's expression twisted as he stared at the white monitor, moving his mouse.
"This world's seriously going to hell…"
News articles loaded rapidly on the screen before his eyes.
[…A (18 years old) has stabbed three police officers and is currently on the run. A's family reports that his behavior suddenly changed months ago, becoming increasingly violent…]
"Huh? That's our neighborhood."
The incident, where a high school student stabbed three police officers who responded during a dispute with adult men and fled the scene, had occurred not far from the PC café the man was in.
"Kids these days are seriously scary."
-Bro! Come on!
As a youthful voice rang out through his headset, the man quickly closed the article and returned to the game he had been playing for a while.
Royal Ground.
An FPS survival game where 100 players parachute from a plane and fight to be the last one standing.
Just a week after being discharged from the military, he had gotten a studio apartment under the pretense of studying before even re-enrolling in school, but instead had become addicted to this game.
"This is my last round. Seriously, let's get that chicken dinner this time."
-Bro, why last round?
"I have to go register for a class."
-What class?
"I told you. TOEIC!"
-Ugh. TOEIC, really? Just play another round.
"No way. I already feel guilty every time my parents call… 140! Two of them! They're running!"
He was in the middle of enthusiastically shooting at two enemies when suddenly, darkness enveloped everything.
"Ah! What the hell?!"
"Shit! What's going on?!"
"Looks like the power's out?"
"Damn it! In the middle of a raid, of all times…"
The PC café quickly turned into chaos.
Moments later, the lights flickered back on, and a man who appeared to be the manager went around apologizing to the customers.
"It seems like the entire building lost power. I'm very sorry."
What could they do if the whole building lost power?
'Though… it felt like something shook just before the power went out. Was it just my imagination?'
The man turned his computer back on and looked around, but no one else seemed to have noticed any vibrations.
Meanwhile, on the rooftop of the building where the power had just gone out, a fight was raging.
"Weapons! Fall back!"
"Why?! This bastard's nothing!"
Ignoring the suited man's command, the man in a sleeveless shirt charged forward—only to be struck in the chest by a bolt of electricity.
-CRACKLE!
"Gaaahhh!!"
The man in the sleeveless shirt was thrown backward, convulsing violently. Clicking his tongue, the suited man bared his teeth at the student in a school uniform standing before him.
"If you keep doing crap like this, I can't guarantee your safety."
"Huff… Huff… Like you were ever going to protect me in the first place. You already painted me as some psycho freak. I stabbed a cop? You bastards…"
As the student's form flickered and blurred, the three burly men who had been on alert near the fallen man scattered in all directions.
Their movements were perfectly coordinated, leaving afterimages that didn't seem humanly possible.
-Fwoosh!
"Watch for magic! Just hold the line!"
The suited man resumed giving commands as new brutes surrounded the student.
Just as the student's hand began to glow white, the man's voice boomed again.
"Scatter!"
The figures dispersed once more. The student flinched, seemingly having lost his target. At that moment, a slender man in a suit emerged from thin air above him and reached down.
A black net materialized from the man's bare hand and wrapped around the student in an instant.
-CRACKLE!
"This one nullifies most magic. Tear it if you can."
The student gritted his teeth as he glared at the man who lit a cigarette.
"You bastards! Get this thing—!"
-THUD!
Suddenly, the scorched man in the sleeveless shirt rose and delivered a savage soccer kick to the student's face. He then began stomping on the netted boy.
"You little piece of shit!"
"That's enough, Weapon. He's still merchandise. Damaging him is bad."
But the man kept kicking, ignoring the order.
The suited man sighed and stepped in to block him. The scorched man glared, annoyed.
"You're the one who got beaten and messed up. Go take out your frustration somewhere else."
"Tch! Acting like a team leader when you're just a dropout."
"What?"
As the man's face twisted in anger, the other scoffed with his burnt face.
"Am I wrong? You did get left behind. What's a 'team leader' title worth when you've already hit rock bottom?"
The man's eyes narrowed dangerously.
"Then how about we strip ranks and fight it out, dropout?"
The suited man flung his cigarette to the ground. The burnt man backed off and smirked.
"Later. When I've leveled up a bit more, I'll take you on."
With that, he vanished from the rooftop. The brutes gathered around the suited man.
"Are you really going to let him go like that?"
Sigh "What choice do I have? He's still incredibly useful. I'll leave him alone… until he drops out for good."
The man turned from where the other had disappeared and looked at the unconscious student.
"Move before he wakes up."
-Yes, sir!
The man focused intently on the screen, spinning his mouse. Suddenly, his teammate's urgent voice came through the headset.
-Bro! At 200! Sniper!
"Got it! I'll take the shot. You move into the circle!"
The enemy's head filled the crosshairs. The man clicked the mouse.
"Confirmed kill!"
-Nice! I think we're actually going to get that chicken dinner this round!
"Don't let your guard down—stick close to the rock ahead!"
"Ah, enemy here!"
Before his teammate even finished speaking, a notification popped up saying he was dead.
"Damn! How many?"
"Two! You should just retreat…"
Before he could finish, gunfire erupted. The man clenched his fist.
"Nice! Wow! You just wiped out both of them in an instant. Are you sure you're a beginner? Your aim was insane! Are you using hacks?"
"I am using hacks. God-tier hacks! Hahaha."
"Ah, just one more round, c'mon."
"Nope. I really have to go register today."
"Why even bother with school? Just go pro."
"If I did that, my parents would have a heart attack. And come on, I'm too old for that now. Anyway, I'm off. Let's play again later."
"Okaaay. Register your KakaoTalk and message me when you game."
"Will do."
The moment he turned off the game and computer, a deep sigh escaped from the man's mouth.
Sigh…
The joy of gaming passed in an instant.
The moment the game ended, the weight of reality came crashing down on his shoulders.
He still enjoyed games out of habit, but he was no longer young.
'Jin Seoun! You've got to get your life together now.'
With that thought, he started walking toward the TOEIC academy he had looked up earlier.
But in the middle of the bright day, a sudden intense light engulfed Seoun.
In the split second when his vision flashed white, his entire body felt like it was burning, and his consciousness snapped.
In that brief moment before fainting, Seoun was certain of one thing—he'd been caught in a nuclear explosion.
It had only been a week since he was discharged from the military.
'Seriously? I get nuked the moment I'm discharged…'
A blinding white light filled everything in front of him, and searing pain followed. There was no room for more thoughts.
****
Episode 1. Tutorial Skipped.
After blaming his miserable fate for what seemed like the end of his life, he suddenly came to, awakened by loud noise all around.
As he barely lifted his body and looked around, he saw a large crowd of people loudly filling a quiet clearing in the forest.
Hearing unfamiliar languages, Seoun immediately tried to assess the situation.
In the center of the forest clearing stood a giant, mysterious stone statue carved into an unrecognizable shape.
Around the statue, people of all kinds gathered in noisy groups, some chattering, others scanning the surroundings in confusion like he was.
Then it happened.
"100 players connected. System initializing."
"System?"
Hearing the clear voice in his head, Seoun subconsciously repeated the familiar word.
"Language synchronization… 40%… 49%… 99%… Synchronization complete."
As soon as the voice announced 100% completion, all the incomprehensible languages suddenly turned into Korean, and Seoun's eyes widened in disbelief.
"What kind of sorcery is this?! Do you know who I am?! Show yourselves! Cheongsim Sect's Cheongwoon never runs!"
The man shouting while drawing his sword looked exactly like someone out of a wuxia film.
BOOM!
Suddenly, from the towering stone statue at the center of the clearing, an explosive roar rang out, and flames erupted into the sky.
Seoun instinctively turned to the source of the sound.
Even as it burned, the bizarre ancient-looking statue exuded an overwhelming presence.
"This must be the Demon King's doing! Destroy that statue! The magic circle will break!"
A man in a pure white robe, waving a crooked staff adorned with a crystal ball, cast fireballs that looked straight out of a fantasy movie. Seoun pinched his cheek as hard as he could.
The sharp pain brought tears to his eyes.
"So this isn't a dream?"
At that moment, a gaunt, mummy-like man in a black robe blocked the path of the white-robed man.
"Hehehe… Eskrow! At last, the Demon King has answered! Now comes the apocalypse!"
"Khairon! I knew it was you!"
As the two began hurling fireballs at each other, Seoun could feel his mind drifting into outer space.
Then, a clear voice once again rang in his head.
"Game start initiated. Difficulty: Easy. Make it into the TOP 90. Attacks between players are disabled in the current waiting area.""Designated map: Capital of the Kingdom of Kaile. Rewards vary by rank starting from TOP 10. Tutorial skipped."
Familiar terms filled Seoun's ears, and he instinctively moved away from the noisy crowd, focusing all his attention on the voice in his head.
Just then, a small window appeared before his eyes. Inside was a map, with a blinking yellow dot that appeared to show his current location.
"This is just like…"
"What the hell is this?!"
"Is this a map?"
"What's this glowing dot supposed to be?"
[A beginner's guide will now begin for all new players to Cloyd Survival.
This game runs for 100 days, and the map is restricted daily. The repulsion field becomes stronger over time, so avoid staying outside the boundaries.
The game continues until there is only one survivor. Eliminated or victorious players will return to their original world.
Players who do not reach the TOP 90 cannot participate in Cloyd Survival again.
We wish all players the best of luck.
Soon, you will share vision through Argas's Eye. When ready, shout 'Descent' from your desired location to land safely. Those who do not descend will be automatically dropped at the final destination.]
[Game preparing to start.]
'What is this? This is totally…'
"A battle royale?!"
The absurdity of it all forced him to shout aloud.
Seoun trembled as he looked around at the people surrounding him.
From those wielding swords with terrifying auras, to others unleashing blazing fireballs, powerful gusts of wind, and chunks of ice—people with abilities so far beyond his comprehension they couldn't possibly exist in his world. There were even beings with monstrous strength, swinging massive bastard swords while clad in thick iron armor that looked too heavy for a normal human to even lift.
Not a single person resembled a fellow Earthling dressed like him. Naturally, Seoun couldn't help but shrink back in fear.
A survival game against monsters like this? That's insane!
As he blankly watched the irrational powers around him, a sentence flashed through his mind:
"Rewards will be distributed according to rank starting from the TOP 10. Once the game ends or you're eliminated, you return to your original world. However, if you don't place in the TOP 90, you can never participate in this game again."
He didn't know why someone like him had been chosen for such a terrifying game, but the mention of "rewards" strongly piqued his curiosity.
As he watched these godlike figures perform feats far beyond human limits, a greedy thought crept in: If I could return to my original world with just one of those powers…
At that moment, a few figures who had been observing him from a short distance began to approach.
Some of them, having noticed that Seoun's reaction was different from the others, unsheathed their swords as they walked toward him.
Intimidated by their pressure, Seoun instinctively stepped back. Then he remembered that the current waiting room wasn't a dangerous area, and he exhaled in relief.
By then, a man clad in armor and holding a longsword had approached and was now staring him down.
"You. You know something, don't you?"
Just then, a final announcement echoed in Seoun's head:
-One second until game start.
At the same time, a strange sensation overtook him—he could no longer feel his body—and his vision rapidly swept across the sky as if falling from above.
Soon, blazing meteor-like objects began raining down toward the ground.
Get it together. I don't know what this is, but it's clearly like a game log. This is definitely a real survival game. First things first… quick loot run.
The falling stars were all crashing toward the same place.
As he watched them gather above a massive castle, Seoun quickly looked around.
He spotted a mountainous area with small scattered huts.
"Descending!"
As he dropped rapidly, a sickening sensation of weightlessness overtook his body.
"Whoa… whoa, whoaaa!!!"
Any plans to check if others were landing nearby vanished in the chaos. The rapidly approaching ground and trees consumed his entire focus.
With a floaty sensation, he softly landed, his body planting into the earth.
"Hah… hah… what the hell…"
He still couldn't think straight.
Just 15 minutes ago, he had been on his way to enroll in a TOEIC class, feeling fresh and ready.
He wasn't in any condition to adapt to this sudden, extreme change.
Even so, he quickly scanned his surroundings and dashed into the nearest hut without hesitation.
This is a survival game.
Yes. A survival game. Meaning if you don't survive—you die. The powers he saw in the waiting room were beyond his understanding.
He still remembered the terrifying scene: the man who had drawn his sword and leapt into the air, unleashing a shockwave that tore through everything.
There's no way I can survive just by fighting head-on. There has to be something. I definitely heard something about items.
He never even considered that someone might already be in the hut. He barged in, slammed the door, and slumped against it.
As if declaring no one else was welcome.
He wasn't physically exhausted—but his heart was racing and his breath was short.
As the shock faded and reality began to return, his hands started trembling in panic, and fear of the inexplicable situation began to settle in.
They said… if the game ends, I'll return to my world. They said it… So why fight so hard to survive? Maybe it's better to just…
—Smack!
Seoun slapped both cheeks hard and shook his head.
"Get a grip, Jin Seoun! You're a Republic of Korea Army Sergeant. Don't be pathetic."
Regaining composure, he looked around the dark hut.
Quick looting. That's how you stay alive longer.
After his discharge, he had played a game called Log, also known as Royal Ground. He was still a beginner and didn't have much time because of his parents' support and his own guilt—but he understood the basic rules of such games.
Survive by looting and hiding. That's the plan.
This was exactly the playstyle Seoun had used while gaming.
It was the only way a rookie like him could last any decent amount of time. Instinctively, he defaulted to that same survival method.
As he scanned the dim hut carefully, something caught his eye.
"This is…"
He picked up a heavy object lying on the floor, took a deep breath, and exhaled forcefully.
"Whoo!"
As the dust blew off, the solid form underneath was revealed.
"Haah. Looks like I got a dud…"
He looked down at the item in his hand like it was a useless lump.
A crossbow.
Better than a bow, sure, but still not the most appealing weapon.
"Better than nothing, I guess…"
He tried to load it.
The tension in the string was too much to load by hand, so he propped it on the ground, stepped on it, and used his foot to draw the string—just like he'd seen somewhere.
"Arrows…"
A nearby quiver held 20 bolts.
He strapped the leather quiver tightly to his outer thigh and gave a light jump to test it—acceptable mobility.
The crossbow also had a leather strap for slinging it over the shoulder, so it wasn't too inconvenient.
After loading a bolt into the crossbow, he pointed it at the door he'd entered through and pulled the trigger.
—Thwack! THUNK!
With a hefty sound, the bolt shot out, pierced the wooden door, and embedded itself.
"…Whoa. That's way more powerful than I expected."