Chapter Eighteen: The False Dawn
A sharp, shrill sound. The bell. It tore through the lingering haze of oblivion, a sound that a moment ago had signaled the end of a long, boring day, but now felt like a cruel joke. Minwoo's eyes snapped open. The last thing he remembered was the sweet release of a party warp, the scent of Hyejin's healing light, and the feel of her hand in his. Now, he was slumped over a worn wooden desk, the smell of old chalk and polished wood a nauseatingly familiar scent. He was back.
He sat up, his body still screaming in protest from the brutal battle with the Librarian Wraith. A quick glance at the translucent blue screen in his vision confirmed the terrible truth.
[Name: Kim Minwoo]
[Title: First Awakened, The Nameless One]
[Level: 5]
[Class: The Nameless One]
[HP: 101/101]
[MP: 50/50]
[Stats]
Strength: 13
Agility: 14
Intelligence: 11
Vitality: 11
Sense: 16
[Skills: Echo of Light (Cooldown), Shadow Strike (Cooldown), Sword Mastery (F)]
[Stat Points: 0]
The tutorial was not a dream. The pain was not a memory. It had all happened. He looked up, and a collective groan rippled through the classroom. Students were rubbing their foreheads, clutching their stomachs, and whimpering in quiet pain. They looked disoriented, confused, and terrified. A few, however, were different. They were groaning in a deeper pain, the pain of shattered ribs and broken bones that had yet to mend. They were the ones who had fought. He saw a flicker of the same cold, tactical awareness in the eyes of a few of them.
"I see," Minwoo muttered to himself, his voice a low, grim rasp. "The tutorial has ended."
He stood up, ignoring the dull ache in his bones. The classroom was a prison, and he had to get out. He had to go find Hyejin.
He moved toward the door, his movements fluid and silent, a stark contrast to the shuffling groans of the students. His hand was on the doorknob when a new voice, strained and full of terror, stopped him.
"Yah, Minwoo! Where are you going?"
He didn't turn around. He already knew who it was. Hana. The same girl who had tried to warn him the first time the Tower appeared. The tutorial had been a cruel mirror, a second chance for some, and a final lesson for others. Hana's voice was full of a new, raw fear.
"I need to leave," he said, his voice flat and detached, a stark contrast to the boy she remembered.
"Whyyy?" she shouted, the word filled with a sudden, desperate pain that made the entire classroom fall silent. All eyes were on them. "The teacher said to wait!" She took a step toward him, her hand trembling as she touched his arm. "I took... I took on the swordsman class. I thought it would be easy. Minwoo... I let Mina die! I let her die!" Her voice broke, and she began to sob, the guilt and grief of the tutorial a heavy burden on her soul.
Minwoo felt a flicker of something, not pity, but understanding. He knew her. Not the real her, but the one from his past life, the girl who had once stood up to his bullies. He looked at her, and the words, though they were foreign, felt like his own.
"Wait. Mina... she's not dead. She's alive." He felt a strange confidence, a knowledge that transcended his memories. "She's on the last floor. The System... it brought them all back."
Hana's sobbing stopped. She stared at him, her tear-filled eyes wide with disbelief and a flicker of hope. "Really?" she whispered, the raw emotion in her voice replaced by a tentative, fragile trust.
"Yes," he replied, his voice firm. He had no time to explain. "But for now... what level are you?"
The question was a test. A demand for a new kind of trust, one based not on emotion, but on power. She swallowed hard, her eyes still on his.
"I'm at Level 3," she said, her voice stronger, as if the reality of her power was a comfort. She had chosen her path. She had survived. And now, she had a second chance.
"Okay," Minwoo said, a new resolve in his eyes. He didn't offer her his hand. He didn't make a promise. He just gave her a command. "You will wait for me here. I'll be back."
With that, he opened the door and walked into the now-empty school hallway, leaving a bewildered, hopeful Hana behind. He knew this was a different world. He was no longer a pawn. He was a pioneer. And the first step of this new journey was to find his old partner. The real challenge had just begun.