They walked for three days.
Three days of sore feet, empty stomachs, and constant fear. Three days of jumping at every sound, expecting another demon to appear from the shadows. Three days of Jinwoo being completely useless while the others did all the actual work.
But they survived.
And slowly, painfully, they made progress toward the mountain.
Jinwoo learned a lot during those three days. He learned that goblin meat tasted better when you didn't think about what you were eating. He learned that sleeping on the ground was horrible for your back. He learned that Yoon Sora was terrifyingly competent, Sergeant Lee was loud but actually pretty decent, and Park Eunji had a habit of accidentally turning invisible when she was embarrassed.
He also learned that everyone was still confused about what had happened at the temple.
"I still don't understand," Kim Taewoo said on the second night, his stone arms crossed over his massive chest. "That demon could have killed us all. Why did it let us go?"
"Because of him," Officer Hwang Minji said, pointing at Jinwoo. "Because of his weird rule."
All eyes turned to Jinwoo, who was sitting by the fire trying to look invisible. It wasn't working. He wasn't Park Eunji.
"I already told you everything," he said defensively. "It told me to kneel. I couldn't. It got confused and interested and decided not to kill me. I don't know why."
"There has to be more to it," Yoon Sora said thoughtfully. She was always thinking, always analyzing. It was probably what made her a good lawyer. "The demon said something about gods. About how even lesser gods have knelt before it."
"So?"
"So maybe kneeling means something in this world. Something more than just a physical gesture." She tapped her chin. "Think about it. In every culture on Earth, kneeling represents submission. Respect. Acknowledgment of someone's superiority. What if, in this world, it's not just symbolic? What if it's... magical?"
Jinwoo blinked. "Magical kneeling?"
"I'm serious. What if forcing someone to kneel actually does something? Binds them, weakens them, establishes dominance in a real, tangible way?" She looked at Jinwoo with new interest. "And you're immune to that. You literally cannot kneel, which means you literally cannot be forced into submission."
"That's..." Sergeant Lee started, then stopped. "Okay, that's actually a pretty good theory."
"It's just a theory," Yoon Sora admitted. "But if I'm right, then Jinwoo's rule might not be useless at all. It might be one of the most powerful defensive abilities possible."
Everyone looked at Jinwoo again.
He squirmed under their gazes.
"I'm still level one," he pointed out. "I still have terrible stats. I still can't fight anything. Even if my rule does something special, I'm still basically useless in a actual combat."
"True," Sergeant Lee agreed cheerfully. "You're still pretty pathetic."
"Thanks."
"But hey, at least you're pathetic in an interesting way now!"
Jinwoo sighed and went back to staring at the fire.
On the morning of the fourth day, they reached the base of the mountain.
It was even bigger up close than it had looked from a distance. The peak was hidden in clouds, impossibly high, like it was trying to touch the sky itself. The slopes were covered in dense forest at the bottom, then bare rock, then snow near the top.
And there was a path.
A proper path, carved into the mountainside, wide enough for several people to walk side by side. It wound upward in long switchbacks, disappearing into the mist above.
"Someone built this," Kim Taewoo observed. "This isn't natural."
"Which means there's something at the top," Yoon Sora said. "Or someone."
"Could be dangerous," Officer Hwang Minji said.
"Could be safe," Park Eunji countered hopefully. "Maybe it's a village? Or a sanctuary?"
"Only one way to find out." Sergeant Lee cracked his knuckles. "Let's go."
They started climbing.
The path was easier than Jinwoo had expected.
It was well-maintained, with steps carved into the steeper sections and flat areas for resting every few hundred meters. Someone—or something—was taking care of this mountain.
They passed other travelers on the way up.
Most of them were other humans, survivors from Earth like themselves. Some were alone, some in small groups. They all looked tired, scared, and desperate. No one tried to fight. No one tried to steal. Everyone was too focused on reaching whatever was at the top.
Jinwoo overheard fragments of conversation as they climbed:
"—heard there's a safe zone up there—"
"—the System protects certain areas—"
"—monsters can't enter—"
"—finally somewhere we can rest—"
A safe zone. Jinwoo felt hope stir in his chest for the first time since arriving in this world. If there was really a place where monsters couldn't attack, where they could rest and recover and plan...
Maybe he wouldn't die after all.
They reached the safe zone just before sunset.
It wasn't what Jinwoo had expected.
He had imagined a fortress, maybe. High walls, armed guards, that sort of thing. Instead, he found a village—a small, peaceful village nestled in a valley near the mountain's peak. Stone houses with thatched roofs. Narrow streets lined with shops. A central square with a fountain.
And people. Hundreds of people, maybe thousands, all going about their business like this was normal. Like they hadn't been transported to another world just days ago.
[WELCOME TO HAVEN'S REST]
[THIS IS A DESIGNATED SAFE ZONE]
[VIOLENCE IS PROHIBITED WITHIN THESE BOUNDARIES]
[VIOLATORS WILL BE IMMEDIATELY ELIMINATED BY THE SYSTEM]
The notification appeared in front of everyone as they entered the village. Jinwoo felt tension drain from his shoulders. No violence. No monsters. No demons demanding that he kneel.
Thank god,he thought. Thank whatever gods exist in this crazy world.
"We should find an inn," Yoon Sora said, taking charge as usual. "Get some real food, real rest. Tomorrow, we can explore and gather information."
No one argued.
The inn was called The Weary Traveler, which Jinwoo thought was appropriate.
It was a large stone building near the center of the village, with a common room on the ground floor and private rooms upstairs. The owner was a cheerful woman named Martha who claimed to be from Germany, transported here three months ago.
"Three months?" Park Eunji gasped. "You've been here for three months?"
"Time moves strangely here," Martha explained, wiping down the bar. "And new arrivals come in waves. Your group—the latest wave—is the biggest yet. Almost fifty thousand people, they say."
Fifty thousand. Jinwoo remembered the endless field of grass, the countless bodies lying where they had fallen. Fifty thousand people, all with their own rules, their own abilities, their own desperate hopes for survival.
*How many are still alive?* he wondered. *How many died in the first few days?*
He didn't want to know the answer.
Martha gave them rooms—one for the women, one for the men—and served them a hot meal of stew and bread. Real bread, not goblin meat. Jinwoo nearly cried when he tasted it.
"So what now?" Sergeant Lee asked between mouthfuls. "We made it to the safe zone. What's the plan?"
"Information first," Yoon Sora said. "We need to understand how this world works. The System, the rules, the power structures. Then we can make decisions."
"I heard there's a guild," Officer Hwang Minji said. "An organization that helps new arrivals get started. Gives them quests, training, that sort of thing."
"A guild?" Kim Taewoo raised an eyebrow. "Like in those video games?"
"Apparently everything here is like a video game. Levels, stats, experience points, skills." She shrugged. "Might as well play along."
Yoon Sora nodded. "We'll check out this guild tomorrow. See what opportunities are available." She looked around the table. "Everyone get some rest. We've earned it."
That night, Jinwoo lay in his bed—an actual bed, with an actual mattress and actual blankets—and stared at the ceiling.
He should have been relieved. They had made it. They were safe. For the first time since arriving in this world, he could close his eyes without fearing that something would kill him in his sleep.
But he couldn't sleep.
His mind kept going back to the temple. To the demon. To the way it had looked at him—not with contempt or amusement, but with genuine interest.
"I want to see what becomes of you."
What did that mean? What was he supposed to become? He was nobody. He was nothing. He was a convenience store worker with a useless rule and terrible stats.
But the demon didn't think I was useless,he thought. The demon thought I was... interesting.
It didn't make sense. None of this made sense.
He rolled over and closed his eyes.
Tomorrow, he told himself. I'll figure it out tomorrow.
Tomorrow came too quickly.
Jinwoo woke to the sound of Sergeant Lee snoring like a chainsaw. He stumbled out of bed, washed his face with water from a basin, and went downstairs to find the others already eating breakfast.
"Finally awake," Yoon Sora said dryly. "I was starting to think you'd died."
"Just tired," Jinwoo mumbled, sitting down and grabbing a piece of bread. "Didn't sleep well."
"Nightmares?"
"Something like that."
She didn't push further. Jinwoo appreciated that about her—she was observant, but she knew when to leave things alone.
After breakfast, they headed out to find the guild.
The Adventurer's Guild—yes, it was actually called that, Jinwoo couldn't believe it either—was located in the largest building in the village. It was made of white stone and had banners hanging from every window, displaying a symbol that looked like a sword crossed with a wand.
Inside, the building was chaos.
Hundreds of people crammed into a massive hall, all talking at once, all trying to get the attention of the guild staff behind a long counter at the far end. There were boards on the walls covered with papers—quest listings, Jinwoo realized, like something out of a fantasy novel.
"This is insane," Kim Taewoo muttered.
"This is our best option," Yoon Sora said firmly. "Come on. Let's get in line."
The line was long. Very long. Jinwoo spent almost two hours standing in it, shuffling forward inch by inch, while listening to the conversations around him.
He heard a lot.
He heard about monsters—not just goblins, but orcs, trolls, wyverns, and things with names he couldn't pronounce. He heard about dungeons—pocket dimensions filled with treasure and danger. He heard about the different safe zones scattered across this world, each one a haven of peace in an ocean of violence.
And he heard about power.
"—guy with a rule that makes him immortal, apparently—"
"—she can control time, at least a little bit—"
"—entire army of summoned creatures—"
"—most powerful person in Haven's Rest is a woman called the Silver Queen, they say she's killed a thousand demons—"
The Silver Queen. Jinwoo filed that name away for later.
Finally, after what felt like forever, they reached the front of the line.
The guild worker was a tired-looking man with glasses and a receding hairline. He looked like an accountant who had been transported to a fantasy world and was deeply unhappy about it.
"Names," he said flatly.
Yoon Sora gave their names. The man wrote them down in a ledger.
"Rules."
This time, Yoon Sora hesitated. "Is that information public?"
"It's required for guild registration. We need to know what you can do so we can assign appropriate quests." The man looked up. "If you don't want to share, that's fine. But you won't be able to join the guild."
Yoon Sora looked at the others. They nodded reluctantly.
"My rule is that I can see the truth in any contract," she said. "It gives me the ability to identify lies and deception in written and verbal agreements."
The man wrote it down. "Useful for negotiations. Next."
Sergeant Lee stepped forward. "I can control fire. The hotter my emotions, the stronger my flames."
"Combat-focused. Next."
Officer Hwang Minji: "I can create weapons from light. Currently limited to bows and arrows."
"Ranged combat. Next."
Kim Taewoo: "My body can become stone. Makes me nearly invulnerable, but slows me down."
"Tank-type. Next."
Park Eunji: "I can turn invisible. But only when no one is looking at me."
The man paused. "That's... uniquely limiting. Next."
And then it was Jinwoo's turn.
He stepped forward, his heart pounding. Everyone in line behind him was listening. He could feel their eyes on his back.
"My rule," he said, his voice smaller than he wanted it to be, "is that I cannot kneel."
Silence.
The guild worker stared at him.
"I'm sorry," the man said slowly. "Did you say you cannot kneel?"
"Yes."
"That's your rule? Your one rule that shapes your entire existence in this world? You cannot... kneel?"
"Yes."
More silence.
Then someone in line behind him laughed.
It started as a snicker, then grew into full-blown laughter. Soon, half the people in the hall were laughing. Jinwoo's face burned with shame. He wanted to disappear. He wanted to sink into the floor and never come back up.
This is it,he thought. This is my life now. Everyone laughing at me forever.
But the guild worker wasn't laughing.
He was staring at Jinwoo with a strange expression. Not contempt. Not amusement. Something else. Something that looked almost like... recognition.
"Cannot kneel," the man repeated softly. "Not 'will not.' Cannot. As in, you are physically incapable of kneeling, no matter what."
"Yes," Jinwoo said miserably. "My legs won't bend that way. Even if I want to kneel, even if I try to kneel, I can't."
The guild worker set down his pen.
"Everyone shut up," he said.
The laughter died immediately. Something in his tone demanded obedience.
"You," the man said, pointing at Jinwoo. "Come with me."
"What? Why?"
"Because I need to introduce you to someone." The man stood up from his seat. "Everyone else, please wait here. This won't take long."
He walked toward a door at the back of the hall.
Jinwoo looked at his companions, confused and frightened.
"Go," Yoon Sora said quietly. "We'll be here when you get back."
Jinwoo swallowed hard and followed the guild worker.
The door led to a hallway, which led to stairs, which led to another hallway, which led to another door. This door was different from the others—it was made of dark wood, carved with intricate patterns that seemed to move when Jinwoo looked at them directly.
The guild worker knocked twice.
"Enter," said a voice from inside. A woman's voice, clear and cold as winter ice.
The worker opened the door and gestured for Jinwoo to go inside.
He did.
The room beyond was an office, but not like any office Jinwoo had ever seen. The walls were lined with weapons—swords, spears, axes, bows, things he didn't have names for. The floor was covered with a carpet that looked older than civilization. And behind a massive desk sat a woman.
She was beautiful.
Not beautiful like Seraphiel had been beautiful—otherworldly and impossible. This woman was beautiful in a human way, sharp and dangerous and real. She had silver hair that fell past her shoulders, silver eyes that seemed to see right through him, and a scar that ran from her left eyebrow to her chin.
She was wearing armor. Actual armor, made of some dark metal that seemed to drink in the light.
The Silver Queen, Jinwoo realized with a jolt of terror. This is the Silver Queen.
"Leave us," the woman said to the guild worker.
He left immediately, closing the door behind him.
Jinwoo was alone with the most powerful person in Haven's Rest.
The Silver Queen studied him for a long moment.
Jinwoo didn't know what to do. He didn't know what to say. He just stood there, frozen, waiting for something to happen.
"Your rule," she said finally. "You cannot kneel."
"Y-yes, ma'am."
"Show me."
"What?"
"Kneel." Her voice was commanding, absolute. "Kneel before me right now."
Jinwoo felt the pressure of her words like a physical weight. She wasn't just asking—she was ordering, demanding, compelling. Something in her voice carried power, real power, the kind that made people obey without thinking.
His legs trembled.
His muscles strained.
But they didn't bend.
He remained standing, straight-backed and terrified, unable to kneel no matter how much the pressure pushed him down.
The Silver Queen's eyes widened slightly.
"Extraordinary," she whispered.
"I'm sorry," Jinwoo stammered. "I'm not trying to be disrespectful, I just—"
"Be quiet."
He shut up immediately.
The Silver Queen stood from her desk and walked around it, approaching him slowly. She circled him, studying him from every angle, just like the demon had done at the temple.
"Do you know what I am?" she asked.
"The Silver Queen? The most powerful person in Haven's Rest?"
"That's what they call me. But do you know what I was before that?" She stopped in front of him, her silver eyes meeting his. "I was a slave."
Jinwoo blinked. "A... slave?"
"In my country, before being transported here, I was a slave. Owned by a wealthy family. I spent fifteen years kneeling. Bowing. Scraping. Begging for scraps." Her voice was flat, emotionless. "When I arrived in this world and was given the chance to create a rule, I chose power. Raw, overwhelming power. The ability to destroy anything that tried to make me kneel again."
She stepped closer. So close that Jinwoo could smell metal and blood on her armor.
"I have killed demons," she said softly. "I have killed monsters. I have killed men and women who tried to enslave others. But do you know what I have never found? In three years in this world, do you know what I have never encountered?"
Jinwoo shook his head.
"Someone who cannot kneel." She smiled, and it was not a kind smile. "Someone who is physically incapable of submission. Someone who will stand before gods and demons and kings and queens, not because of power or courage, but because they have no other choice."
She reached out and grabbed his chin, forcing him to look directly into her eyes.
"You are going to be important," she said. "I don't know how. I don't know when. But I have been in this world long enough to recognize potential when I see it. And you, pathetic as you are, have potential."
"I... I do?"
"You will." She released his chin and stepped back. "For now, you are weak. Useless. A liability to everyone around you. But that will change. It must change. Because the forces that rule this world—the demons, the gods, the ancient things that slumber in the dark—they will all eventually demand that you kneel. And when they discover that you cannot..."
She smiled again, and this time it was almost warm.
"Well. That's when things will get interesting."
She gave him a quest.
Not through the guild—privately, directly, from her own hand. A scroll with words written in golden ink.
[QUEST: THE UNBOWING PATH]
[GIVEN BY: THE SILVER QUEEN]
[OBJECTIVE: GROW STRONG ENOUGH TO SURVIVE WHAT IS COMING]
[REWARD: UNKNOWN]
[FAILURE CONDITION: DEATH]
"What is coming?" Jinwoo asked, staring at the scroll. "What do I need to survive?"
"Everything," the Silver Queen said. "This world is a battlefield, Park Jinwoo. Demons fight gods. Gods fight ancient ones. Ancient ones fight things that have no names. And caught in the middle are creatures like us—humans, transported from countless worlds, used as pawns in games we don't understand."
She sat back down behind her desk.
"Your rule makes you immune to one of the most fundamental mechanisms of power in this world. That makes you valuable. That also makes you a target. Sooner or later, something powerful will decide that you're a threat—or an opportunity—and come for you."
"And when that happens?"
"You had better be ready." She waved a hand dismissively. "Now go. Join your companions. Train. Fight. Level up. Do whatever you need to do to become strong."
Jinwoo turned to leave, then stopped.
"Why are you helping me?" he asked. "You don't know me. I'm nobody."
The Silver Queen looked at him with those cold silver eyes.
"Because I spent fifteen years on my knees," she said quietly. "And I will support anyone who refuses to kneel-even if that refusal isn't by choice."
Jinwoo nodded slowly.
He didn't fully understand. But he was beginning to.
He returned to his companions in the main hall.
They were waiting for him, worried expressions on their faces. When they saw him, they rushed over.
"What happened?" Yoon Sora demanded. "Are you okay? What did they want?"
Jinwoo looked down at the scroll in his hands.
Then he looked up at his companions-these people who had let him tag along despite his uselessness, who had shared their food and protection with someone who had nothing to offer.
"I think," he said slowly, "I think my rule might not be useless after all."
And for the first time since arriving in this world, Park Jinwoo felt something that wasn't fear or despair or shame.
He felt hope.
[END OF CHAPTER 3]