Screams echoed through the empty city.
It had begun.
Hyun-woo ducked behind a rusted car as a group of players sprinted past him, their footsteps pounding against the cracked pavement. One of them was already bleeding, his shirt soaked red, his face twisted in panic.
They didn't even notice him.
In the distance, something howled — guttural and inhuman. The sound bounced off the buildings, making it impossible to tell where it came from. But Hyun-woo didn't need to know the details. He knew only one thing: survive.
He took a deep breath and held it.
Across the street, a woman screamed. A pale creature — tall and spider-like — tackled her to the ground. It moved unnaturally, its limbs bending the wrong way. Blood splattered across the concrete.
Someone tried to help — a man with a lead pipe — but the creature turned, too fast, and tore into his side with jagged claws. The system chimed coldly:
[Player Eliminated]
The message flickered in red above the corpse before fading.
Hyun-woo watched as the creature killed those humans. Seeing how easily death could come, he had no choice but to only watch their deaths while he sat hidden.
He felt as if his humanity was slipping away, but there wasn't anything he could do.
Hyun-woo didn't move. Not yet.
Most people would run, he thought. They'd die trying.
But this wasn't a game. It only looked like one.
He waited until the creature skittered into an alley, chasing the last of the fleeing group. Then he moved.
Quiet steps. Eyes scanning.
He slipped into a nearby hardware store — the kind he knew would be useful during the early stages.
Tools. Rope. Gloves. Crowbar. Duct tape.
He stuffed what he could into his bag, hands moving quickly but methodically. Every second counted.
Then, in the corner of the store — a faint glow.
A small, flickering object hovered in midair. Not labelled. Not marked. Just… there.
Hyun-woo approached cautiously. As his hand passed through it, a system prompt appeared.
[Hidden Item Discovered: Reinforced Gauntlet (E)]
+3 Blunt Damage
+2 Grip Strength
Condition: 100%
His heart skipped a beat.
So, the hidden rewards were real.
He slid the glove onto his right hand. It fit perfectly.
Outside, another scream. Closer this time.
Then — footsteps.
Someone barged into the store — a boy, maybe seventeen, panting, eyes wide.
"Please — help me!"
Hyun-woo didn't respond. Not yet.
Behind the boy, another creature appeared — the same bone-white skin, mouth too wide.
Hyun-woo recognized it as a skeleton.
It spotted the boy, let out a shriek, and charged.
Hyun-woo moved.
Not toward the boy — toward the creature.
He ducked low and swung the crowbar he'd picked up earlier.
The blow hit clean — right at the joint of the front leg. The creature let out a high-pitched hiss and stumbled. Hyun-woo stepped forward and struck again. This time at the neck.
The reinforced gauntlet absorbed the shock. The crowbar crunched through cartilage.
But the skeleton wasn't done. It lunged suddenly, swinging the rusty sword in a wide arc. The blade sliced diagonally across Hyun-woo's chest — shallow but burning sharply through his shirt and skin.
Pain flared, but he didn't falter.
He staggered back, clutching the wound, but his movements remained steady.
The creature collapsed in a twitching heap.
Hyun-woo dropped the crowbar, reached into his bag, and pulled out a clean bandage. He wrapped it tightly over the bleeding cut.
Not deep enough to stop me... or rather, I almost died.
A system message blinked above the corpse:
[Enemy Defeated: Fractured Skeleton]
Level Up! You are now Level 3.
Achievement Unlocked: First Slayer
Congratulations! You are the first player to defeat a Fractured Skeleton.
Reward: Unique Title "Pioneer" and 2 Skill Points.
Hyun-woo's breath came out shaky.
Not from fear — from adrenaline.
The boy stared at him, stunned.
"H-How did you…?"
Hyun-woo turned slightly, eyes scanning for more threats.
"We need to move," he said quietly. "It's never just one."
Later, in an abandoned rooftop greenhouse...
The boy — Jin-soo, he said his name was — sat wrapped in a dusty blanket, still shaking.
Hyun-woo leaned against the glass wall, resting after his confrontation.
"You knew what that thing was," Jin-soo said finally. "You knew how to kill it."
Hyun-woo didn't respond immediately.
"Have you done this before?"
A long pause.
"No," Hyun-woo said. "I'm just trying to survive."
System Message:
[Time Remaining in Tutorial: 69:12:47]
[Player Rankings: Unknown]
Somewhere, far across the city, a new sound echoed.
A roar.
Bigger than before.
A different challenge was waiting for Hyun-woo.