4 Episode 1 – Starting the Paid Service (4)

Since I had been doing my compulsory military service for more than two years, I had made sure that I kept my body in good enough shape to be able to live properly on a daily basis. I was by no means one of those extravagantly muscled bodybuilders, nor was I a frail man who could collapse to the ground with a simple punch, and I was even somewhat confident about the physical strength I possessed. Yet, as confident as I was, I knew full well that it was impossible for me to cope with three opponents at the same time. Faced with such a situation, and especially with no external help, it was more than necessary that I analyze my opponents sufficiently...

[You have obtained an exclusive attribute.]

[The exclusive skill slot has been activated.]

I stared into the void for several seconds before finally regaining full consciousness. Attributes? Exclusive skills? What the hell did all this mean? Of course, I knew the exact meaning of these words in common parlance, however, what I didn't understand was why they had been used at such a time. It was all unimaginable and incomprehensible, only I somehow managed to get an idea of all this.

It was all similar in some ways to online novels or comics where the main character gets an incredible special system and skills which he then uses to fight his enemies. Just as the people in front of me started to move in my direction, I heard a voice that was neither male nor female echoing inside my head

- Answer. It is possible for anyone who wishes to do so to view their attribute windows, in which are the main information of an individual, theirs personal attributes and personal skills, and the overall of their stats

Unconsciously, I widened my eyes as I pushed away one of my assailants who had approached me far too quickly. It would have been quite sensible for me to start thinking that I had gone crazy when I heard this unknown voice echoing in my mind, however I was far too focused on dodging or parrying my opponents' attacks to really think about it. So it was indeed possible to have skills, although I didn't understand how this was possible. If only I could get a detailed explanation of the skill(s) I possessed, it might help me greatly against the people I was fighting

- Answer. The exclusive skill ■■ allows one to inform its user about the world, allowing them to react and progress more quickly in the environment around them

It would be silly to consider such a skill useless, especially when everything around us is difficult to understand in its entirety, only it wasn't something that was going to help me in a fight. Caught off guard for a few seconds by this realization, I failed to move far enough ahead to manage to avoid a punch to the chin from one of my assailants, causing me to back away. My thoughts stopped, and I realized how stupid I was. Sure, I had a skill that was of little use to me at the moment, but that didn't mean that I only had that skill that I could use. I then silently said 'Attribute Window' in my head

[You can't activate the Attribute Window.]

I tried calling the feature window several times, but the result was always the same. It was impossible to open the Attribute Window and, therefore, I could not know what other skills I might have. On top of that, my body was starting to show signs of weakness and a sharp pain made me grit my teeth. My gaze landed on Lee Seolhwa for a moment, as she looked at me with her eyes trembling with fear. It had to be said that the situation I was in was not very enviable, and I was probably going to die, because I didn't manage to kill a living being before the end of the regulation time of the scenario

I took a deep breath and turned my attention away, to the other side of the subway car. There was a good reason why I had stayed there without trying anything against the people who were attacking me. It was still a little too early to act, and I had planned to wait a little longer before trying anything, but the pain that my whole body was feeling at the moment was starting to become unbearable. The time to act was getting closer, and I started to run with all the strength I had in my legs towards the three men in front of me who wanted me dead

As I had previously imagined even before I came to learn that I possessed an exclusive skill, even though they were in good physical condition, it was not difficult to clear them by hitting them. In a short time, I passed through the middle of the people screaming while trying to kill their opponents and quickly reached the end of the subway train where I retrieved what I had come for before running back again. The three men had quickly gotten up and were advancing towards Lee Seolhwa, but were being held at bay by her

Lee Seolhwa's face expressed an expression of difficulty that instantly disappeared as she saw me getting closer and closer, perhaps she had understood what I had done, nevertheless it was not really important now. Hearing footsteps coming closer and closer to him, one of the men turned to look at what was happening, and his eyes quickly met mine before looking at what I was holding in one of my hands

It was the knife that the man who had been knocked out earlier by Lee Seolhwa that had been sent tumbling away against the ground as a result of its original owner losing consciousness, before finally finding itself hidden from view of the people who were killing each other to manage to finish the first main scenario. The reason why I delayed going and get it was because Lee Seolhwa was behind me and I had to try to temporize as much as possible in order to give him some time to strangle the man on the ground beside her

The thin metal blade of the knife started to pierce the man's flesh, before going even deeper and touching this time one of the vital organs of the man who looked at me before finally losing his life and collapsing on the ground while bleeding to death. I probably should have felt something like disgust at the act I had just done, but nothing came except for several messages

[You have completed the 'First Kill' achievement!]

[100 coins have been earned as additional compensation.]

There was nothing totally surprising that I was the first to kill someone among all the people inside the subway train. It took ten to fifteen minutes to kill someone by strangulation normally, so Lee Seolhwa couldn't have been, and the other people inside hadn't had enough time to kill anyone. The other two men looked at me in horror, their trembling hands waving in the air while their mouths moved without making a sound. Then two of them launched themselves at me, thinking they could take me down with two of them, but it ended badly for them

[You have killed a living thing.]

[100 coins have been earned as additional compensation.]

[You have killed a living thing.]

[100 coins have been earned as additional compensation.]

The lifeless bodies of the two men fell to the ground with a heavy noise as the messages were heard one after another, which drew the attention of the other passengers on the subway train in my direction. I looked at Lee Seolhwa and then at the man she had stopped strangling, before finally realizing that he had stopped breathing, meaning that she, too, had succeeded in fulfilling the requirements of this first main scenario. I smiled faintly as I held out my hand to her, then helped her up before looking at the subway train

There was still quite a bit of time left before the end of the main scenario, and many were still desperately fighting for their lives. Everything was unrecognizable, both the subway train and the people themselves, all of which had changed due to the will of a being that was impossible to compete with, at least only for the moment, I hope. As the time was almost up, some of the people who had not yet managed to kill anyone came towards me. I killed some of them, but the countdown was finally over

[The given time has run out.]

There was a loud noise, and some heads exploded

[Paid settlement will begin.]

[You have killed six living things]

[Kill history: six human beings]

[You have a total of 600 coins]

I let a deep sigh of relief leave me, I had managed to survive. Of course, I felt guilty for the people I have killed during this first scenario, but I was alive

[300 coins have been acquired as a basic clearance reward.]

[100 coins have been reduced for the channel usage fee.]

[Additional compensation settlement will begin.]

One world was destroyed, and a new world was born...