Chapter 3

# 3

User Manual for the Reincarnated 003

Adaptation

“W-What should we do now, man?”

“Would I be here if I knew?”

The shock from earlier hasn’t even worn off yet.

As I spoke irritably, Park Deok-gu began to quietly gauge my reaction.

Despite the fact that we’ve been using informal speech since the incident at the starting point, and there’s no particular story on this side, it seems he has decided to accept my informal speech.

“First, we don’t even know what kind of place this is. We should check out what’s around us.”

“O-Outside?”

“Not right now.”

“T-Then, are you saying we’ll go outside eventually?”

“I said not right now.”

This hidden space we found in the maze-like interior is a bit cramped for the two of us, but it’s not bad.

At least, it seems we can secure a minimum level of safety here.

‘Water, food, and weapons.’

I don’t know when, but we can certainly survive.

The question is how long we can hold out.

And whether this place is truly safe.

There’s a lot to think about.

“I never thought something like this would happen….”

“You saw the status windows and the monsters. It’s not a hologram or a game. It’s a harsh reality… I wish it was just a dream.”

“Grr….”

The current situation is a harsh reality. Even though we haven’t mentioned the incident at the starting point, we’ve seen people die with our own eyes, and we’ve confirmed that indescribable monsters have attacked.

Denying reality won’t change anything.

“Isn’t the goal of this tutorial to survive or something? That strange woman definitely said something like that… If so, if we keep hiding here….”

“It’s not that simple.”

“What else is there?”

“The problem is that we can’t predict how long this situation will last. We managed to gather some food and water, but it’s barely enough for a week… And there’s no guarantee that this place is safe. Who knows if this place we’re hiding in is a resting spot for those monsters we saw earlier.”

“Really?”

“That’s what I’m saying. And even if we complete this tutorial… how will we survive after that?”

“What do you mean?”

“I’m not sure, but after the tutorial, we’ll go to a continent. In other words, the situation might get so bad that this dungeon will feel like heaven. There’s no guarantee that the place we’ll enter after leaving here will be safer. Just surviving isn’t enough….”

He tightly shut his mouth, unable to deny my words.

Of course, no one can predict what will happen next. But if we are really chosen players to save the continent, as the woman said, this won’t be the end.

We might have to face countless monsters like the ones we saw earlier, and we might even have to fight other humans.

We might face even worse situations in the future.

“Even if we cower here now, we’ll end up dying the same way when we eventually leave this place.”

“D-Do you have any other ideas?”

“We have to fight.”

“Against those monsters?”

“Have you played games?”

“Are there people who haven’t played games?”

“Status windows, stats, titles, equipment, jobs. Don’t they seem familiar? Think of it as if we’re in a game. What should we do?”

“I don’t know….”

“Level up. We need to become strong enough to protect ourselves. Moving and killing monsters will increase our stats, and as that woman said, we can get jobs. We’ll unlock abilities, and although it will be tough, if we do, we won’t have to run from those monsters anymore.”

“Oh….”

“At least we have a sword and a shield, and we have water and food. Our situation is a bit better than others.”

“But….”

As expected, he doesn’t like the idea of going outside.

Actually, everyone would feel the same way.

Who in the world would want to face monsters that eat people?

However, we have no choice. If we don’t adapt, we’ll be eaten. We won’t survive.

“I’ve thought about that too.”

“Is there an answer?”

“If there’s no answer, we have to create one.”

If there’s no answer, we have to create one. Or, the answer might be simpler than we think.

“We can kill them.”

“How can we defeat monsters that eat people…?”

Thinking about it, they’re not unbeatable.

I don’t remember anything from the first battle.

Everyone was terrified because the monsters attacked from all sides.

But the sensation remains.

The chilling feeling when I stabbed the spear into the monster. I didn’t even use much force.

But my spear easily pierced the monster’s skin.

We were just terrified. We panicked at the sight of the monsters and lost the will to fight.

I was like that, Park Deok-gu was like that, and everyone there was like that.

‘They’re not unbeatable.’

Thinking rationally, they’re not unbeatable.

“We need to think simply. As simply as possible.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean we need to look at them as they are, without being afraid. Of course, it won’t be easy. Right now, we’re trembling and don’t know what to do. You and I both. But if we’re not surrounded or suddenly attacked from behind, we have a chance. Their skin is weak, and their physical abilities aren’t high. None of them chased us when we ran. They all fell behind. Many people died at the starting point because they were outnumbered and terrified, unable to respond properly.”

We can’t be sure until we see it with our own eyes.

But I think my guess is probably right.

Compared to human physical abilities, the only advantages the monsters have are their jaw strength and claws.

Our physical abilities might be superior.

Unlike the monsters who charge at us with their bare bodies, we have spears and swords. In almost every aspect, we have the upper hand.

“Thinking rationally, we can win.”

The problem is that Park Deok-gu isn’t pulling his weight.

Even after my explanation, he still looks uneasy, swallowing nervously.

‘What a frustrating guy.’

That’s when it happened.

“Grr.”

A voice came from somewhere.

It was natural to hold our breath.

Not just me, but Park Deok-gu also took a deep breath.

“Grr!”

We don’t know if the monsters live in groups or if this one was separated from its group.

But we can hear the sound.

“Is this really where they live?”

‘Damn…’

The curse slipped out in my mind.

‘Can we do this?’

We’ll have to face them eventually.

It feels like someone is beating my heart with a club, but I clenched my lips.

I knew that if we ran, we’d be dead.

[Checking the status window of the Monster: Voracious Jaws.]

[Name: None]

[Title: None. You need to try harder.]

[Age: 5]

[Tendency: Instinct]

[Job: Unemployed.]

[Stats]

[Strength: 11]

[Agility: 15]

[Health: 14]

[Endurance: 12]

[Luck: 10]

[Mana: 00]

The information of the monster visible through the narrow gap appeared in my field of vision.

‘We can do this.’

This ability works even against monsters.

A bit of good news.

‘We can win.’

The fear is what we need to overcome.

I couldn’t see it clearly before, but it’s definitely disgusting. The bare upper and lower body, the green eyes, the protruding jaw, and the teeth are particularly unsettling.

The scene of this jaw and teeth biting the neck of an unknown woman keeps replaying in my mind.

‘But…’

The stats are poor.

Our stats aren’t great either, but the monster’s stats are even lower than I imagined.

With these stats, it’s possible.

I gripped the spear tighter.

Park Deok-gu looked at me anxiously, but I had no intention of backing down.

I need to show him that we can win.

“Shouldn’t we go out?”

“……”

I didn’t answer.

My back was drenched in sweat, and my hands and legs were trembling.

‘Damn…’

One mistake and we die. We will die.

But we can’t stay like this forever. We will inevitably face these monsters.

“Even if we don’t go out, we’ll die anyway.”

I took a deep breath and immediately rushed outside.

“Grr!”

‘Damn!’

I expected it to notice me once I was in range, but it was faster than I thought.

It was natural to swing the spear as soon as I moved.

But my body was frozen with fear, and my hands wouldn’t move as I wanted.

“Aaaaaah!”

In the end, I had to scream in frustration and thrust the spear at the approaching monster’s head.

The monster immediately crouched, anticipating the attack.

It was hard to change the spear’s trajectory. I forced my trembling hands to thrust again, and by chance, the spear pierced the monster’s shoulder.

“Grrrr!”

Thud!

I almost let go of the spear from the chilling sensation, but I didn’t have time to hesitate.

“Aaaaaah!”

I pushed the spear into the wall, pinning the monster to it.

I frowned at the monster’s struggling, but I picked up a nearby rock and started hitting its head.

I got scratched by the monster’s flailing claws, but I didn’t feel the pain.

“Damn! Damn! Damn!”

Crack!

The strange fluid and blood splattering on my hands and body were chilling.

My hand didn’t stop hitting.

“Damn!”

Crack!

“Die!”

Crack!

“Grrrr….”

Crack!

“Phew….”

Only after the monster’s face turned into a bloody mess could I put down the large rock I was holding.

“Phew… Phew….”

My heart was racing, and I couldn’t calm down. My arm was covered in a sticky liquid, either the monster’s saliva or blood.

Killing a living being was a first for me.

My jaw was trembling, and I met Park Deok-gu’s eyes through the narrow gap.

His eyes were wide with surprise.

He didn’t think I could do it.

I didn’t believe it either.

[Strength stat increased by 1.]

My guess was right.

When I smiled, the monster cautiously spoke.

“W-What’s your name?”

“Eui-yeong.”

“C-Can I call you Eui-yeong-ssi?”

Instead of answering, I nodded slightly.

Looking at me with a strange expression, I continued.

“If I can do it, you can do it. No, you can do it better.”

“I think I understand, Eui-yeong-ssi. Leave it to me. What should we do now?”

It seems I’ve gained a not-so-bad partner.

We have a lot to do.

I looked at him and spoke.

“First, let’s get out of being unemployed.”

Getting a job. That’s the first step.