Do-Yoon stood in the middle of the crowd with a small smile on his face.
The giant academy gates were open.
Hundreds of students were gathered there.
Some looked nervous.
Some looked confident.
Some were showing off their expensive weapons and armor.
Meanwhile Do-Yoon was simply standing there with his black cape moving in the wind while trying not to think about the terrifying dungeon he just survived.
His body still felt tired.
Mentally, he felt like he needed sleep for ten years.
But somehow he was still smiling.
Then suddenly—
"BROOOOO!"
A loud voice echoed through the area.
Before Do-Yoon could even react—
Someone jumped directly onto him.
"GAH—"
Both of them crashed onto the ground.
Do-Yoon looked up in confusion.
Then his eyes widened.
"Min-Jae?!"
Park Min-Jae grabbed Do-Yoon's shoulders dramatically.
"BRO YOU'RE ALIVE!"
Do-Yoon instantly became emotional too.
"BROOO!"
The two immediately hugged each other.
Then for some reason both started fake crying loudly.
"I thought you died!"
"I thought I died too!"
"BRO!"
"BROOO!"
Nearby students looked at them with uncomfortable expressions.
One student whispered,
"Why are they acting like this in public...?"
Another student sighed.
"I think they lost their minds."
Meanwhile Min-Jae continued shaking Do-Yoon dramatically.
"Do you know what people were saying?!"
"They said some Player-ranked guy entered a crazy dangerous dungeon!"
"I thought you got cooked!"
Do-Yoon coughed awkwardly.
"Well... funny story."
Min-Jae narrowed his eyes.
"How are you still alive?"
Do-Yoon's brain instantly started creating lies.
"A giant dragon saved me."
Min-Jae stared at him silently.
Do-Yoon coughed again.
"Okay maybe not dragon."
"Then?"
"I accidentally became friends with the boss."
Min-Jae's face became blank.
"Bro."
"What?"
"You suck at lying."
Do-Yoon looked away.
"…Fair."
Before Min-Jae could ask more questions—
A loud voice echoed throughout the entire academy area.
"The entrance examination will begin in ten minutes."
The moment everyone heard that—
The atmosphere changed instantly.
Students became serious.
Some started stretching.
Others checked their weapons.
A few people even started praying.
Everyone clearly understood one thing.
This exam was not going to be easy.
Meanwhile—
Do-Yoon looked dead inside.
"…Ten minutes?"
For him that sounded painfully long.
Min-Jae looked at him.
"What's wrong?"
"I'm bored."
"The exam is literally starting."
"Yes but not now."
Min-Jae looked disappointed.
"How are you this lazy during an entrance exam?"
Do-Yoon ignored him completely.
Instead, he quietly opened his system screen.
The blue transparent screen appeared in front of him.
Min-Jae couldn't see it of course.
Do-Yoon immediately opened the system shop.
The moment he entered—
Thousands of items appeared.
Weapons.
Potions.
Armors.
Magic scrolls.
Accessories.
Food.
Even random strange things he didn't understand.
Do-Yoon's eyes widened slightly.
"…Cool."
He started scrolling through the shop.
One sword looked amazing.
One cape looked legendary.
One potion literally had lightning inside the bottle.
To Do-Yoon—
Everything looked useful.
Everything looked strong.
Everything looked expensive.
Very expensive.
Do-Yoon nervously checked his gold amount.
Then his expression froze.
[Gold: 5]
Silence.
Do-Yoon stared at the number.
"…Five?"
He checked again.
Still five.
He looked around the shop again.
One sword costed 300 gold.
One armor costed 900 gold.
One skill book costed 5000 gold.
Do-Yoon slowly closed his eyes.
"…I'm poor."
Min-Jae looked confused.
"What happened now?"
"I discovered the truth of life."
"What truth?"
"Money is important."
Min-Jae nodded seriously.
"That's actually true."
Do-Yoon sighed deeply.
He kept checking items anyway despite knowing he couldn't buy anything.
At this point he was basically window shopping inside a magical system.
After a while—
Another loud announcement echoed through the academy.
"The entrance examination will now begin."
Do-Yoon instantly closed the system.
Finally.
No more waiting.
Students slowly began moving forward.
Teachers stood around the area while observing everyone carefully.
The atmosphere became extremely tense.
Even Min-Jae became serious now.
Do-Yoon stretched lazily.
"Alright."
"Time to become strong."
Then suddenly—
Purple gas started appearing everywhere.
Students immediately panicked.
"What is this?!"
"Poison?!"
"Magic?!"
Teachers remained calm.
Clearly this was part of the exam.
The purple gas slowly spread throughout the entire area.
Do-Yoon looked around in confusion.
"…Weird."
Then he suddenly felt dizzy.
His vision became blurry.
Min-Jae looked unstable too.
"Bro…"
"What?"
"I think…"
Min-Jae fell asleep instantly.
Do-Yoon blinked.
"…Bro?"
Then Do-Yoon himself collapsed too.
Darkness covered everything.
The next thing Do-Yoon heard was—
WHOOOOOOOOSH.
A loud wind sound.
Then another sound.
VRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR.
Do-Yoon slowly opened his eyes.
Everything was dark.
He couldn't see anything.
Something covered his eyes.
A blindfold.
His hands were tied too.
For a few seconds he stayed silent.
Then—
"…Am I kidnapped?"
Nobody answered.
Do-Yoon listened carefully.
The loud noise.
The shaking floor.
The movement.
Then realization appeared.
"…Oh."
"I'm in a helicopter."
He somehow recognized it from movies and videos.
But honestly—
He didn't care that much.
Instead he leaned backward.
"I'm sleepy."
Then he casually fell asleep again.
Nearby students almost lost their minds hearing that.
One student shouted,
"HOW ARE YOU SLEEPING RIGHT NOW?!"
Do-Yoon ignored him completely.
Some time later—
Do-Yoon opened his eyes again.
This time he felt much better.
The sleep refreshed him slightly.
He stretched his shoulders lazily.
Now he could hear more students nearby.
Some sounded scared.
Some were praying.
One guy was crying quietly.
Do-Yoon tilted his head.
"…Dramatic."
Then suddenly—
An officer-like man grabbed him.
"Stand up."
Do-Yoon stood up lazily.
The helicopter door suddenly opened.
Strong wind entered instantly.
Only now did Do-Yoon realize something important.
They were very high in the sky.
Very very high.
Do-Yoon slowly looked down.
Then back at the officer.
Then down again.
"…Surely not."
The officer pushed him.
Do-Yoon fell.
"…AH."
The wind exploded around him.
His cape flapped violently.
The ground looked incredibly far away.
Other students were screaming while falling.
Meanwhile Do-Yoon still looked bored.
"…This exam is weird."
Then he remembered—
His hands were still tied.
"Oh right."
Do-Yoon activated Blood Rush.
Red energy covered his hand.
A sharp blood blade formed instantly.
He cut the ropes quickly.
Then removed the blindfold too.
Bright sunlight hit his eyes.
Blue sky stretched endlessly above him.
Clouds passed around him rapidly.
Below him—
An enormous ocean.
Do-Yoon stared silently.
"…Oh."
"I'm falling into water."
For some reason he still wasn't panicking.
Instead he used Manipulator's Hand on himself.
His falling speed slowed.
Then slowed more.
Then he started floating slightly.
Do-Yoon smiled proudly.
"I'm actually smart."
For three whole seconds he felt cool.
Then—
SPLASH!
He landed directly into the ocean anyway.
Do-Yoon instantly sank underwater.
His eyes widened.
Bubbles escaped his mouth.
"…WAIT."
The ocean was deep.
Very deep.
Do-Yoon immediately started drowning.
His cape wrapped around him awkwardly.
The water entered his nose.
He panicked instantly.
"I GOT COOKED!"
He tried swimming.
Failed.
Tried screaming.
Failed harder.
After struggling desperately, he finally remembered something.
"Manipulator's Hand!"
He quickly activated the skill on himself again.
This time his body slowly floated upward.
A few seconds later—
Do-Yoon burst out of the water.
"COUGH!"
"COUGH!"
"THAT WAS NOT COOL!"
He floated awkwardly above the ocean while breathing heavily.
His hair was completely wet now.
His clothes were soaked too.
Do-Yoon stared at the sky with disappointment.
"I really thought I was cooking."
A few seconds later he sighed.
"…Turns out I got cooked instead."
The ocean waves moved beneath him slowly.
In the far distance—
Tiny land could finally be seen.
Do-Yoon pointed toward it dramatically.
"Land."
Then he slowly started flying toward it using Manipulator's Hand.
His movement looked incredibly awkward.
Like a flying potato.
But somehow it worked.
As he moved across the endless ocean—
Do-Yoon looked tired already.
"This is gonna take forever…"
He sighed loudly.
"It will took a while now… ughhh."