Darkness.

A cold, suffocating darkness clung to his skin like a second layer.

Lee Jun-Hyuk's eyelids fluttered open. A rotten stench invaded his nose, thick enough to make him gag. He tried to sit up — pain shot through his ribs. His vision blurred, shapes swimming before him.

When it cleared, he froze.

> Corpses.

Dozens of them.

Men and women, old and young — scattered like discarded trash around him.

Some had their eyes wide open, forever locked in expressions of terror.

What is this...?

Panic bubbled up in his chest, but he forced it down. Hyperventilating wouldn't help. Not here. Not now.

A mechanical voice echoed through the cavernous hall:

> [Welcome, Candidate.]

[Tutorial Trial - Phase 1: "Survive."]

[Time Limit: 01:00:00]

Above his head, a translucent timer appeared: [00:59:59].

Tick.

Tick.

Tick.

A shuffling noise broke the silence.

Jun-Hyuk snapped his head toward the sound.

Emerging from the shadows were grotesque creatures — their skin a patchwork of rotting flesh and bone, their jaws gnashing hungrily.

Ravagers.

They moved slowly at first, as if sniffing the air... and then locked their gaze onto him.

They charged.

No time to think. No time to run.

Jun-Hyuk scanned the ground frantically. A shard of metal — maybe a piece of a broken pillar — glinted under the faint light.

Without hesitation, he grabbed it. His hands bled instantly from the jagged edges.

The first Ravager lunged.

Jun-Hyuk ducked instinctively, pure survival guiding his body. He swung the shard — a wild, desperate arc. The metal tore through the creature’s throat.

Black blood sprayed across his face.

One down.

Another Ravager pounced. He pivoted, barely avoiding its claws, but the second creature raked its talons across his back. Hot pain flared.

Dammit.

They weren’t mindless.

They waited, watched, attacked when he was off balance.

Jun-Hyuk gritted his teeth. His heart hammered in his chest, adrenaline sharpening his senses.

Watch their movements.

Predict.

Adapt.

The next Ravager telegraphed its lunge — a slight twitch in the leg muscles. Jun-Hyuk shifted aside a heartbeat before it moved and drove his shard into its side.

A system notification chimed in the air:

> [First Kill Bonus Achieved.]

[Skill Unlocked: Survivor's Instinct (Passive).]

A sudden lightness flowed into his limbs, and for a moment, the world seemed slower — easier to read.

Another Ravager lunged — but this time, Jun-Hyuk saw it.

Predicted it.

Sidestep. Slash.

Another body fell.

And another.

When the last Ravager hit the ground with a sickening thud, Jun-Hyuk staggered back, gasping for breath. Blood — black and red — soaked his clothes. His muscles ached. His vision swam.

But he was alive.

The mechanical voice returned:

> [Phase 1 Complete.]

[Commencing Transition to Next Stage.]

The ground trembled beneath his feet. Massive stone doors at the far end of the hall rumbled open, revealing a staircase spiraling downward into an abyss.

Jun-Hyuk stared into the darkness beyond.

No weapons. No allies. No guarantees.

But he was still breathing. And for now, that was enough.

He clenched the blood-slick shard tighter.

"If this is a nightmare," he muttered under his breath, "then I'll tear it apart with my own hands."

Step by step, Lee Jun-Hyuk descended into the unknown.

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End of Chapter 1.

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