“Ugh…”

I woke up with a slight headache.

‘Ugh… I didn’t even drink last night, so why does my head… huh?’

The reason for my sudden confusion was that the place I woke up in wasn’t my home. Not only that, but I couldn’t understand why I was in a room with strangers.

‘What the…? What’s going on?’

It was a situation that only warranted swearing.

I was sure I came home after finishing work yesterday, had dinner with my sister, and went to bed. Yet here I was, in some strange place filled with people I didn’t know. What the hell was happening?

Looking around, it seemed like everyone else was just as confused, glancing about nervously.

‘…What is going on here? Kidnapping? What is this mess… Damn it.’

The unease stemmed from the strangeness of the place itself. The walls, floor, and ceiling of the plaza were all pristine white.

My hands and feet trembled, and my mind couldn’t process what was happening.

‘It’s not just me. Everyone else… they’re all scared too… Does no one here know what’s happening?’

As I kept thinking, I started hearing the others talking.

“Uh, where are we? Does anyone… know what this is? What’s going on?”

“I don’t know either… What… what is this…”

Just as my hands were starting to sweat from the incomprehensible situation, a voice echoed through the plaza.

[ Welcome, visitors from Earth. We greet you to Eras’ Tutorial. ]

“What the?! What kind of nonsense is this? Earth? Is this some hidden camera prank?”

“They kidnapped us and now they’re talking about a tutorial? What the hell is this? And what do they mean by ‘from Earth’… what the—?!”

I could understand why people were shouting. Whoever was addressing us claimed we came from Earth, which was clearly bizarre.

‘What the hell… Are they saying this isn’t Earth anymore?’

“Ha! You people must be mistaken. I’m Congressman Ha Seung-won! Who’s in charge here? Show yourself!”

[ I am not here to resolve your questions. I understand that you are alarmed and frightened by this sudden situation. However, fear and panic will not aid your survival in this place. ]

The faces of the people started turning pale in real-time. The word survival sent a clear message to most of us—this wasn’t a joke.

‘What the hell… Damn it, damn it! What is this situation? Eras? Tutorial?’

I knew I needed to stay calm and think rationally, but my mind refused to cooperate.

‘Survival… They clearly said survival wouldn’t be helped by fear. Does that mean our lives are at risk?’

The plaza erupted into chaos—men yelling, women crying—an outright pandemonium.

“What are you saying…? Please, send us back home! Please… sniff… just let us go back!”

“Damn it, stop messing around! Where’s your boss?! You can’t just hide behind some speaker—come out and explain!”

[ The tutorial will begin shortly. If you pass, you will earn the right to live in Eras. Failure will result in death. Before we begin, we will provide a brief explanation of the tutorial. ]

‘Fuck… Did they just say failure means death? I have to listen to this.’

I wasn’t normally someone who swore a lot, but this situation was driving me to the edge. Forcing myself to ignore my pounding heart, I focused intently. If failure meant death, then paying attention was non-negotiable.

[ You will see one large door and four smaller doors in your current location. The four smaller doors contain the food and weapons you will need. Each of you may take at least one weapon, and there is sufficient food and water. Take what you need. ]

‘Weapons? Food, sure, but weapons?’

[ Soon, creatures unknown to Earth will begin entering through the large door. You may choose to fight or flee. The decision is yours. Please choose wisely. ]

‘Damn it, how are we supposed to run? There’s no exit besides that massive door…! And monsters?’

[ Earthly ways of thinking will only lead to death here. You are all special. Each of you has unique traits. By thinking or saying the word Status Window, you will see your personal status screen. ]

Someone muttered nervously.

“St… Status Window!”

“What the hell is this?!”

“Status Window!”

I saw people gasping in shock, some collapsing to the ground, others staring blankly at the air.

‘Status Window.’

“Ha…”

The status screen resembled something out of a game. The only difference was that this wasn’t a game—it was my reality.

As I tried to process this information, that same voice spoke again.

[ Your survival will depend on how you choose to grow using your status screen. Jobs and unique traits are categorized into Common, Rare, Heroic, Legendary, and Mythic tiers. Higher tiers result in faster growth and greater potential. Titles are granted based on your actions across the continent. Unique traits are personalized to each individual, reflecting their characteristics and quirks. ]

The barrage of information was overwhelming, making it impossible to concentrate.

[ With consistent effort, you can improve your stats. However, every stat has a personal limit. Among the stats, Magic and Luck are exceptions. The average for an adult male on Earth is 10 for all other stats. ]

‘Damn it… I may not have been athletic, but still, my stats are below average except for agility?’

I could review my status screen later. For now, I thought it’d be useful to check others’ status windows. Starting with the man beside me and the siblings who seemed like students.

The madness had only just begun.

‘This guy’s stats are better than mine, but he doesn’t have a unique trait. So, not everyone is guaranteed to have one?’

It seemed that not everyone was born with unique traits.

‘This girl has a unique trait. She looks like a student, but… are my stats really worse than a teenage girl?’

I knew I was a bit weak, but I didn’t expect to have worse stats than a teenage girl.

‘What? Magic 3? So, someone can start with magic points? And what’s “Guidance of the Fallen God” supposed to mean?’

I wasn’t sure what role the magic stat played yet, but I’d assumed everyone started with 0 since both the older man and the girl had 0 magic like me.

‘Damn, and what’s with that luck stat? 20?!’

[ Now that you have received a basic explanation, the introduction ends here. The goal of the tutorial is survival and progress. We hope you successfully complete it. ]

Rumble—!

The sound of the large door creaking open snapped me out of my thoughts.

‘Damn it! Weapons—I need to grab a weapon quickly!’

As soon as the announcement ended, the massive door began opening. The explanation had mentioned that monsters would come through it, so grabbing weapons and supplies immediately was critical.

It wasn’t just me who thought this; people had already started rushing to the rooms where the supplies were stored.

“Get out of the way! I picked that first!”

“Ah! Stop pushing! Don’t take all the water!”

The chaos was overwhelming with so many people crammed into one space. I quickly slung a bag over my shoulder and gathered water and food first.

Next, I turned to the weapons, which came in various types.

‘A sword is a no-go. I’ve never used one before. A spear might work, but it’s tough to pair with a shield…’

I ran over and grabbed a blunt weapon and a small shield.

The blunt weapon seemed easy enough to swing around, and while I’d never used a shield before, having one felt far better than being defenseless.

The weapons available ranged from swords, spears, and bows to blunt weapons, shields, daggers, and axes. Most people opted for swords, spears, or blunt weapons. A few also picked shields like I did.

Not many chose bows, probably because they were difficult to use and relied on a limited number of arrows.

From outside, we began hearing unsettling sounds—noises I’d never heard before in my life. The eerie cries of monsters filled the air, and fear gripped everyone, myself included.

The only path out of here was through the massive door that the monsters were entering from, leaving no way to escape.

“Damn it! Damn it! These insane bastards! Dragging us here and doing this shit…!”

“Please save me… God, please… Mom!”

“Everyone, calm down! Pick up your weapons! They called this a tutorial, so it shouldn’t be impossible. Stay calm!”

The plaza was filled with screams of panic, anger, and attempts to rally others. Even the ones shouting for calm looked like they could barely control their own fear.

‘Damn it…!’

My hands trembled as I gripped the blunt weapon tightly, swearing under my breath. Then, a piercing cry echoed through the air.

“Kiieeek—!”

The large door fully opened, and red, human-shaped monsters about waist-high to an adult male began pouring into the building.

“Ahhh! Damn it! What the hell is this?!”

“Save me, save me—!”

“Keieeek!”

The monsters had arrived. The nightmare had begun.

Upon seeing the monsters for the first time, most people froze in fear, unable to put up any meaningful resistance. They were mercilessly killed one by one. I was no different—paralyzed at the sight of these horrifying creatures.

‘This… this can’t be…’

The monsters slaughtered people, then used their claws to tear open their victims and devoured their innards right there on the spot.

“R-Run…! Run away!”

Most people didn’t even attempt to fight back. They fled through the large door the monsters had entered from.

The only reason some managed to escape was that the monsters were too busy eating the bodies to immediately chase after the fleeing survivors.

‘Move! I have to move!’

I had foolishly thought this “tutorial” might be manageable to some degree. What an idiot I was.

Just as I was about to sprint for the exit, taking advantage of the chaos:

Thud!

“Huh?”

Something grabbed my leg.

“P-please… Save me! Don’t leave me here…! M-my leg… my leg…! Sniff… Please, take me with you…!”

A woman, whose leg looked like it had been partially devoured, was clutching onto me desperately.

‘Damn it… I need to think rationally. She’s as good as dead. There’s food and weapons here, but there’s no medical equipment. I have to leave her.’

It was an awful choice, but there was no other option. I could barely save myself, let alone someone else.

If her body had been intact, or even if she’d only injured an arm, there might have been a chance to escape together. But someone with a destroyed leg? There was no way she could survive in this situation.

“I—I’m sorry! I’m sorry!”

I shook off her arms and started running.

Hell was everywhere. Blood splattered across the ground, and the air was filled with screams of pain and terror.

“No…! Don’t leave me… sniff… Aahhh…!!!”

I ran mindlessly and finally made it outside, where a dense forest greeted me. Inside the building, the screams of those who couldn’t escape turned into the grotesque sounds of monsters feasting.

But that wasn’t the worst of it.

It wasn’t daytime anymore.

It was night.