Chaos erupted across the field as more monstrous creatures emerged from the shadows. Their twisted forms moved unnaturally, tearing through the confused and terrified crowd. The air filled with screams, the scent of blood thickening.

Kim Sehan remained still. His sharp eyes darted across the battlefield, analyzing the situation while others panicked. The creatures were fast, but their movements weren’t impossible to track. They struck down the weakest first—the ones who hesitated, the ones who begged for answers instead of reacting.

“This isn’t a game,” he murmured to himself, clenching his fists. “This is a culling.”

A deafening screech ripped through the air as one of the monsters lunged toward him. Instinct kicked in. Sehan threw himself to the side, narrowly dodging the swipe of razor-sharp claws. He hit the ground and rolled, his body reacting far better than it ever had in the real world.

His leg—it was healed.

No pain. No weakness.

A rush of realization filled him. This was an opportunity.

Others were running, but one person caught his attention—a young man wielding a broken sword, desperately fending off one of the creatures. He moved with skill, but his attacks lacked power.

Sehan’s mind calculated his odds.

Engage or retreat?

His decision was made in an instant.

Charging forward, he grabbed a jagged rock from the ground and, with precise aim, hurled it at the creature’s head. The impact stunned the monster for a second—just long enough for the young man to drive his sword into its throat.

The young man panted, turning to Sehan. “You... you saved me?”

Sehan didn’t respond. His eyes were locked on the notification that flashed before him.

[You have slain a Lesser Nightmare. +10 EXP]

A system window. It confirmed his suspicion—this world followed game-like mechanics.

And if that was the case...

He turned his gaze toward the remaining monsters.

Then that meant there was only one way forward.

He had to kill.