It sounded like construction was underway next door, with heavy thuds echoing relentlessly as something massive slammed against the floor. Minguk instinctively hunched over, plugging his ears to block out the noise. But the racket he'd hoped would end soon only grew louder instead of fading.
"Damn it... What time is it, and they're doing construction like this?"
He vaguely remembered falling asleep last night after taking down Uradius and chatting with Chaos. It hadn't been that late. What time was it now, anyway?
Finally, fed up with the nonstop clamor, Minguk sighed and opened his eyes. Gray concrete ceiling and spiderwebs on the walls came into view.
"Huh...? What the hell? Where am I?"
Glancing around, he saw a space about 200 square feet, with a bed he was lying on and some unidentified machines. It sure as hell didn't look like his one-room apartment.
"What the—?!"
Minguk bolted upright, his mind snapping alert like he'd been doused in ice water. At that moment, memories that weren't his own flooded into his head like a tidal wave.
Seconds stretched into what felt like decades. The intense sensation of compressed memories churning and settling in his brain made Minguk clutch his head and scream. A nauseating headache followed, and he bit his lip hard without realizing it.
Only after a long while could Minguk pull himself together. The new memories etched into his brain kept him from feeling as disoriented as before. His head still buzzed and spun, but it was bearable.
That's when a girl pushed open the door to the warehouse-like room. The thumping sounds had apparently been her knocking.
"Oh? You're up. You looked like you were in rough shape lately. Shouldn't you go see a doctor or something?"
She appeared to be in her early twenties, her shoulder-length hair tied back in a ponytail. She wore a gray uniform straight out of a war movie.
"Hyun-ah...?"
"Huh? What? You feeling so sick you're mixing up my name now?"
Oh Hyun-ah. A 1-star Hero who'd succeeded in Mana Awakening just over half a year ago. She'd graduated Hero Academy with him and was currently prepping for the Raid Qualification Exam alongside him to join a raid team.
The new memories told him who she was. Even so, Minguk struggled to accept the memories forcibly implanted in his head. For starters, he had no clue why he was here or what the hell was going on. That's when it happened.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ Welcome to this new world, Han Minguk! We understand this situation is confusing, so allow us to explain briefly. The world Chaos found for you is strikingly similar to—no, virtually identical to—the backdrop of the GGW you know. Naturally, it's a world under attack from the Hordes of Darkness. You, Han Minguk, must team up with Mana-Awakened girls to protect this world from the dark monsters. I was created by Chaos to support you. To help you adjust, Chaos has expended his power to attach 100 Revival Stones.
"...What the hell is this bullshit?"
Minguk stared blankly at the floating window.
What kind of situation was this?
It didn't feel real at all. But the throbbing headache and surfacing memories screamed that it was.
"What? I say my name, and you call it bullshit? Han Minguk, that's too much!"
"Huh? Oh, sorry. Wasn't talking to you, so don't worry about it."
"Yeah, yeah. We've got bigger things to worry about anyway. The Raid Qualification Exam. One week left—you remember, right?"
"..."
Should he say he remembered? Or admit he didn't?
According to the implanted memories, he and Oh Hyun-ah were rookie Heroes who'd Awakened to mana. They were ambitious young people dreaming of becoming true Heroes by fighting the monsters invading Earth.
But no one could just take on the terrifyingly powerful dark monsters. To minimize unnecessary Hero casualties, the World Government only tested and certified those who'd Awakened to mana and graduated from Hero Academy.
Certified Heroes received treatment beyond imagination. As defenders of Earth from the monsters, their perks were no joke. Of course, only those with outstanding achievements got the full benefits.
That's why so many risked their lives battling monsters. Naturally, most Heroes were women, since only women could typically Awaken to mana. Men weren't impossible, but it was extremely rare—and Minguk was one of the lucky few.
"No way you're so sick your brain's fried too, right? You didn't forget, did you?"
"Yeah. Hold on a sec... My head hurts, so give me a minute to sort things out."
"This guy. You really need to go to the hospital."
Ignoring Hyun-ah's words, Minguk sifted through the memories in his mind.
Last night, he'd achieved World First Kill in the mobile VR game GGW, chatted with Chaos, and fallen asleep. Waking up, he'd become Han Minguk in this strange world. The game-like window said Chaos was behind it all.
'Like those isekai comics that are all the rage? Chaos sent me here? What, is that guy a god or something?'
He had mentioned wanting a world like GGW's backdrop if Chaos could make one. It defied common sense, but the window and memories made the impossible feel real.
"This is ridiculous."
Absurd as it was, he couldn't waste time moping.
To learn about this new world, Minguk delved deeper into the memories. He realized it was indeed almost exactly like GGW's setting.
He'd thought it'd be fun if something like this happened. But now that it was real, his mind went blank.
"Can I go back to my original world at least?"
Minguk muttered at the message window. It wobbled like jelly before reforming.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ Yes, it is possible. However, there is a condition. Protect this world from the dark monsters.
"Alright. So I can go back eventually."
The condition was a bit out there, but knowing return was possible eased his unease. His headache began to fade too.
'To fight monsters, I need to raid... The game had a qualification exam too. Silver rank, right?'
The memories recalled a similar quest in GGW: prove your worth to form a proper team.
Simply put, five Heroes combining forces to defeat a Rank 3 monster ten times or more earned Silver rank.
Of course, it wasn't just about clearing. You had to meet a minimum "clear contribution" based on your class. It prevented noobs from pay-to-win or leeching off girls. That's how it worked in GGW.
In this world, Minguk and Hyun-ah had a fixed five-person team tackling Rank 3 monsters. All were Hero Academy grads. Interestingly, the other three had different nationalities.
Probably because the monsters' indiscriminate attacks had erased borders and nations.
'But this guy only succeeded three times so far? With just a week left?'
This world's Han Minguk wasn't particularly talented. As a Ranged Dealer, his skills were average—not great, not terrible. Compared to casual GGW players, nothing special. Perfect cannon fodder for monsters.
His raid gear was decent, but that was it. To fight monsters, you needed a raid team and certification.
"Guess I need to round up a team and take down some Rank 3 monsters right away."
"The others are pissed, you know. Exam's in a week, and you suddenly collapse and can't move? You have no idea how freaked out I was. How you feeling now? You good?"
"Yeah. All better."
Aside from a slight throb in his head, his body felt fine.
"Can you contact the team right now?"
"Of course."
At Minguk's declaration to fight, Hyun-ah hammered the keyboard. Peeking over, he saw she was already messaging the others.
But something went wrong. She spat curses and called to Minguk.
"Ah, that bitch Runia! She betrayed us! Says she's fixed with some other girls and raiding dungeons alone!"
Minguk tilted his head. Was that a problem?
"Oh? Then just find a new teammate."
"What?"
Hyun-ah gaped in disbelief before yelling.
"You forget Runia called the shots? Without her, no one's giving orders! And it's not easy finding someone who can lead against Rank 3 monsters on short notice! Plus..."
She trailed off. Unlike 1-star Hyun-ah, Runia was a natural-born 2-star Hero.
"Ah, right. Runia was handling orders."
Minguk didn't care much about her being 2-star. In GGW, star ratings weren't absolute measures of power.
Unlike his old self, who naturally led girls and called shots, this Minguk followed orders. Runia was the Raid Leader in their team. Without her, the raid was effectively disbanded.
"Ah, this is bad. Exam's in a week..."
"Hyun-ah."
Minguk spoke to her as she clutched her head, shaking it side to side like her mental game's crumbling.
"What about the others? Did they leave too?"
"Huh? No, just Runia. Lin Sha and Ashlyn are still in."
"Of course. Might bail anytime, though."
"So we just need one more teammate for now?"
"Yeah?"
Minguk quickly recalled more.
A standard five-person raid team: 1 Tank, 3 Dealers, 1 Healer. Raid Leader Runia was a Healer. And in this world, as a Ranged Dealer, he'd originally been a hardcore Healer main in GGW.
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