Chapter 5

[Name: Yuhyun]

Survival Instinct D

Combat Endurance D

Situation Analysis D

“......”

When I came to my senses, I was already checking my status window. How long had I been unconscious? For a while, I lay on the ground, staring blankly at the status window floating in the air. It seemed I had really arrived here.

As my senses, which had been lost due to the aftereffects of the summoning, gradually returned, I got up. A mechanical sound still echoed in my head, and a heavy sense of fatigue weighed down my body, but it was bearable. I held my throbbing forehead and looked up.

A strong smell of water wafted up my nose. I could see a large lake not far away. The lake was so clear that the bottom was visible. The green earth was covered with giant ancient trees, and the lake's surface shimmered beautifully under the sunlight coming from above. It was truly a mysterious scene.

For a moment, I just stared at the lake. The tutorial area is modeled after a fairy dungeon. The scene I was seeing now was probably a direct copy of a fairy's dungeon.

“A large lake... or something.”

Each fairy's dungeon has a different shape. The appearance of the dungeon is determined by the fairy's taste who manages it.

However, the environment of the tutorial remains unchanged. The scenery in front of me was exactly the same as the tutorial I remembered.

I had seen this lake before the regression. But unlike then, when I had no time to spare, I was calm now. I was even pointlessly imagining what kind of fairy might be the original owner of this dungeon.

“Ugh...”

After admiring the dungeon's scenery for a while, I gradually came to my senses. Voices started to rise from the ground. I lowered my head and looked at the owners of the voices.

‘All high school students, huh.’

All I could see were young kids. Most of the people on the trip were elementary school students on a field trip, so it couldn't be helped, but they were really too young. I clicked my tongue as I saw the high school students in their school uniforms.

It would be better if they were a bit older. Men who had served in the military would be more helpful. But all I could see were high school students.

The children, unable to grasp the situation, were still dazed as they checked their surroundings. Their faces were blank, and their mouths were open, which made me want to laugh.

I watched the children for a while, curious about how they would react. What was I like back then? I don't think I had any thoughts. After being discharged from the hospital, I was drowning in alcohol every day.

My life was ruined by the death of my family. If I hadn't felt the fear of death after being summoned here, I would have remained unchanged forever.

The intense desire to survive, which I felt when facing death, brought life to my empty existence. The fear I felt when encountering monsters and adventurers for the first time is something I will never forget.

It was only after facing the death of a person that the time which had been frozen for so long began to flow again. The tingling sensation in my body and the suffocating fear made me come to my senses.

What expression did I have when I killed something for the first time? Unfortunately, I can't remember that. My memory after that is completely cut off.

After a few seconds of silence, the children, who had been checking their surroundings, finally started to talk.

“Is this a dream? Hey, pinch my cheek.”

“...I wish someone would tell me it's a dream.”

“Where are the other kids? Why are only we here?”

There were 20 people in total, including me. Considering the total number of people on the plane, it was strangely few.

Perhaps, the people on the plane were divided into groups and summoned to different places.

The tutorial is the same for everyone. It involves avoiding the monsters invading the dungeon and finding the village inside the dungeon.

I quietly waited as the surroundings became chaotic. The fairy must be watching us, curious about how we would move in the tutorial.

Soon, what I had been waiting for began to appear.

“Tutorial? What is that...?”

“What is this message window? Can you see it too?”

“Yeah, I can see it.”

“Me too.”

The children were reaching out to touch the message window that had appeared in front of them, but their hands only swiped through the air, making them laugh awkwardly.

“This feels like a game. Why do we always start with a tutorial when we play mobile games?”

“Hey, stop joking. Does this look like a joke to you? We've been kidnapped.”

Some had serious faces, while others were laughing. The more composed ones tried to contact others using their smartphones, but it was futile.

“...I can't make a call.”

“Is this Korea? I've never heard of such a place in our country.”

The hand holding the smartphone was trembling slightly. After trying to call several times, they realized it was useless and helplessly lowered their heads.

While the children showed various reactions, the message window continued to appear.

The text in the message window was neat and easy to read, giving a calm feeling. However, for those reading it, it was only confusing. Everyone closed their mouths and read the message window.

“What the hell is this...”

“Are they saying they will kill us?”

“Is this a joke...?”

Someone muttered, but no one responded, and the sound just faded away.

A heavy metallic sound echoed from the ground. It had suddenly appeared in the air and fallen to the ground. The cold, heavy metallic sound made everyone jump and look down.

Various weapons were scattered on the ground. It seemed as if they were trying to respect everyone's individual preferences, as there were unknown cold weapons.

Everyone was stunned, just staring at the things that had appeared before them. A female student stepped forward and cautiously picked up a sword from the ground. She trembled as she held the sword.

“This... it's real.”

Was she surprised by the sword's sharpness or the unexpected coldness? She held the sword and shivered, her lips trembling. Her hand holding the sword was trembling.

A boy who had been laughing awkwardly was now pale with fear.

The message window, having completed its task, disappeared, leaving a mysterious chill in the air. Everyone was frozen.

In the frozen scene, I picked up a sword from the ground that I liked. There were many weapons, but only a few appealed to me.

I could handle most weapons, but I preferred swords. After feeling the familiar sensation in my hand, I chose a shield. A shield that wouldn't hinder my movement was a great help in battle.

“What, what are you doing?”

As I swung the sword a few times to get a feel for it, the children's eyes focused on me. They looked at me as if asking what I was doing. I turned my head without answering.

The creatures finally revealed themselves.

The tutorial had started the moment the message window disappeared.

Without a word, I focused on a spot, and the children, sensing something, followed my gaze.

It was still Wave 1.

Beginner Goblin Adventurer LV.1

The creatures had these tags hanging over their heads.

So, the creatures we would face first were still at a low level.

Look at their shabby appearance.

They wore tattered old clothes and held small daggers that looked like they could only peel fruit. They were poorly equipped and were charging at us with great momentum.

Their bodies were about the size of elementary school students, with thin arms and legs, long slanted eyes, and pointed ears. Their scaly skin was an unpleasant green color. They were creatures of that kind.

They didn't seem like much to look at, but perhaps it was because of the murderous glint in their eyes.

“F*ck! Run!”

A male student, who had been tense, shouted and turned to run. I had thought he would grab a weapon, but he was running without one.

I stood there, watching the children's backs as they started to run. The sounds of their footsteps were getting farther away.

...It's none of my business.

With that thought, I gripped my sword and walked calmly towards the charging goblins.

*

The fight didn't last long. It probably took less than 10 minutes. As I kept slashing the goblins who were charging recklessly, at some point, the surroundings were filled with corpses.

“H-Human! Spare me! I won't invade the dungeon again... *cough*”

I plunged my sword into the face of the goblin who was begging for mercy without hesitation. I'm not a foolishly kind person who spares those who beg for mercy.

Seeing this, I think the fairies put a lot of effort into creating the tutorial. These goblins are probably virtual beings created by the fairies.

The expression on the goblin's face just now felt real.

I wiped the sweat that was running down my jawline, smelling the pungent smell of blood in the air. When the fight was over, there was nothing around.

All I could see were the goblins' corpses.

The children had long since run away, and the goblins who had been chasing them were all killed by me. It wasn't specifically to save the children.

I just wanted to test myself.

To see what I could do in this world. Honestly, these weak goblins weren't enough to properly gauge my abilities. I needed a stronger opponent. A monster or an adventurer who could push me to my limits.

“...But will there be such a thing here?”

Still, I learned that my combat knowledge hadn't disappeared. My body wasn't used to it yet, but it would get used to it gradually.

My memory was still fragmented, but it didn't hinder my fighting.

After resting for a while, I decided to move. I briefly considered where to go but decided to look for the children who had run away. They had left plenty of traces.

Since they had run away recklessly, it couldn't be helped.

Eventually, while following their traces, I found the bodies of what seemed to be the world's native inhabitants. They were quite lucky to find this while running away.

To clear the tutorial, this was a trace that had to be found.

A device to show the players the reality of this world in the tutorial.

In game terms, it was a story event.