Chapter 1: Normal Life?

As the sun began to set over the vast, modern Seoul city, a young orphan boy named Baek Seo sat on his bed and yawned. He opened the curtains to feel the sunlight but his face suddenly turned pale.

"Where I am?!" He shouted as he looked at the beautiful view of Seoul.

The last thing John remembered was falling asleep in his bed. After attending a long and exhausting high school graduation party, he had been looking forward to a good night's rest. However, when he woke up, he found himself lying in an unfamiliar bed, in a room that he didn't recognize. It was clear that this was not his own room.

John (Baek Seo) couldn't believe his eyes. Was he dreaming? Was this some kind of elaborate prank? He touched his own face and arms, hoping to wake himself up from this bizarre nightmare.

But all of it felt real. He doesn't know why but it was too real for a dream, he can feel the warm sunlight.

A chaotic memory flooded his mind. It was a memory of a young Korean boy named Joon Seo, who was currently a high school student. Joon Seo's parents were both B-Rank hunters who had left enough money for him to live without working until his twenties. However, they tragically died in a dungeon under mysterious circumstances. But the most probable cause is because of monsters.

"Hunters? Baek Seo? Korea? W-What?" He felt a throbbing pain in his head as he tried to comprehend his newfound memories.

After the throbbing pain lessen. His face turned paler as he realized what is going on.

"Solo Leveling!" A comic world. A modern fantasy comic, he can't be wrong after assessing his memories. The concept of hunters and dungeons was the same, it was undeniable. The familiar-looking dungeon entrance is as the same he could remember.

Joon Seo's heart sank as he realized that he was a prisoner in an unknown world, with no idea how he had gotten there or how he would ever get home. The realization hit him like a freight train, stealing his breath and leaving him feeling helpless and afraid.

As the realization sunk in, John stares at the view. It is beautiful. He already knows that it is beautiful in his memories but it's more beautiful seeing it in person.

"This is just like a fantasy light novel I read. Reincarnation trope or somehow my soul fused with the original Baek Seo."

As his clock alarm rang, he realized that it was time for him to wake up. However, he was already awake, and the sudden sound of the alarm made him jump in surprise. It took him a few moments to calm down and remember that he had woken up earlier than usual.

"Oh right, I have school... I should take shower and get ready."

As he got out of bed and stretched, Baek Seo realized with a sinking feeling that he had no choice but to live as a high school student again. He had just already graduated high school in his previous life not long ago and being a high schooler again, it's such a pain in the ass.

* * *

Wearing his high school uniform, Baek Seo walked to school with a heavy heart. As he made his way down the familiar streets, his mind was a mess.

"Guhh... I already read the comic until the end and even the side stories, but I don't have a photographic memory like those cliché fantasy reincarnated MCs who remember everything," he thought to himself. It was true that he had finished reading Solo Leveling, but he was worried that he might have forgotten something crucial.

"I could just live my life as a normal civilian, try to survive until the world gets restarted, and forget all of my previous life and knowledge. But that would be like waiting for death!" Baek Seo thought to himself. He couldn't bear the thought of giving up on everything he had learned from his previous life.

The idea of simply waiting for the world to restart felt like a slow and painful death.

When he arrived at his class, he greeted his "friends" and took a seat. Already overthinking enough, he just wanted to sleep and think of all of this as just a dream.

"I should just sleep... Maybe this is all just a dream." Baek Seo closed his eyes, hoping that something would happen to snap him out of this surreal situation, but nothing did.

"Seo, are you gonna sleep again?" he heard a familiar voice beside him.

Opening his eyes, Baek Seo saw Sung Jinah, the younger sister of Sung Jinwoo, sitting next to him. She was used to seeing him sleep in class, but this time he looked particularly stressed.

"Not exactly... I'm just trying to clear my mind," he sighed.

"Is something bothering you?" she asked, showing genuine concern.

"Thanks for worrying, Jinah. But I'm fine," he shook his head.

"Okay, the class will start soon. Don't doze off," she said, turning her attention back to the front of the classroom.

Baek Seo looked at Jinah, feeling grateful for her kindness. "She is a really kind girl," he thought to himself.

Amidst the usual sounds of shuffling papers and murmurs of conversation, the teacher entered the classroom, greeting the students with a smile and a warm "Good morning"

* * *

Rooftop.

It's currently morning break. As he lay on the floor, he closed his eyes tightly, hoping to drift off to sleep despite the hard surface beneath him. Baek Seo just wanted to sleep but he couldn't. He just couldn't sleep with all of the overthinking.

"What now? I don't see anything extraordinary in myself except that I have an advantage in knowing the future."

"Should I become a hunter? It would be great, but I can't imagine that any hunter could possess growth power like Sung Jinwoo," he mused.

"Even S-Rank wouldn't amount to anything in the end. I need to be stronger than that if I need to interfere in the story."

"But... Why I should interfere with the flow?" He starts to question himself. He has no plans to become stronger than an S-Rank hunter or interfere with the story, as he lacks the capability to do so. Why would he even want to?

As he thinks of the answer. Suddenly, a presence came to interrupt Baek Seo's mind.

Baek Seo heard a male voice calling out to him and turned around to see who it was. "There you are!" the voice exclaimed.

Baek Seo took a glance at the person. It's Gok Taeyang, his friend.

"Seo, where have you been, man? If someone hadn't seen you come here, I wouldn't have been able to find you," he said with relief.

"Tae... I am just clearing my mind, that's all." He immediately recognized Tae from his memories or... the OG's memories of this body.

"Still... I have never seen you going here before. What's up, man? Do you have a problem with Mrs. Kim again?"

"Nah, not that. It's just... should I become a hunter?" Baek ask.

"Hunter? I thought you promise yourself that you wouldn't become one after... y'know?"

"After thinking about it again, I don't have any dreams." Baek sighed.

"Well, awakening isn't something you can buy with money, Seo," Gok Taeyang said with a wry smile. "But let me know if you become a hunter. I'll be sure to tag along and help you out."

Baek Seo chuckled at his friend's remark, grateful for his support. "Thanks, Taeyang. I'll keep that in mind,"

"Haha, you're smiling. Maybe you really have changed," Tae chuckled.

In their friendship, Tae noticed that Baek rarely smiled after his parents passed away. Tae didn't know what had caused this change, but he was grateful that Baek was no longer as gloomy as before.

"Whatever, go to your girlfriend or do something else. I want to sleep." Baek sighed and closed his eyes.

"Are you planning to skip class again? You should be more diligent like Sung Jinah, Seo." Tae chuckled as he left, and Baek could hear his footsteps fading away.

(HKnote: I don't know if Jinah is smart or not but this is my fanfic. JINAH IS SMART)

Baek drifted off into a light sleep, his mind still preoccupied with his thoughts about his newfound knowledge of the world. He dreamed of the future where he became a hunter who has immense power, wondering if he could ever become one of them.

Suddenly, the bell rang, jolting Baek awake. He groggily stood up and clean his leftover food on the floor, feeling unmotivated to attend classes. As he walked back to his classroom, he couldn't help but think about the possibilities that lay beyond his mundane high school life.

* * *

"Finally... School is over." Baek yawned as the bell rang. He packed his things and start to leave the classroom.

"Seo, you forget your paper!" Jinah called out and handed him the paper.

"Ah, my paper math test. Thanks, Jinah." Baek put his paper in his bag.

Jinah weirdly stared at Baek's face. He noticed right away.

"Is there something weird in my face?" Baek stared back causing Jinah to look away in embarrassment.

"No... It's just that I see your math grade has increased. Did you study?" Jinah asked.

"Uh... Yeah?" Baek decided to lie. But since he had just graduated high school in his previous life, he was already familiar with all of the subjects, so although he couldn't achieve the maximum score, he was still satisfied with his results.

"Amazing! I thought you were cheating but I thought to myself that you weren't kind of that person." Jinah beamed,

"Thanks..."

"Well, I have to visit my brother in the hospital, Seo. See you tomorrow!" Jinah looks like she is in a hurry.

"See you..." Baek waves his hand in an awkward way.

"She is a cheerful girl..." he thought to himself, admiring her infectious energy and positive attitude. "But I don't remember that the original Baek Seo this close to Jinah."

But hearing that Jinah will visit his brother in the hospital means that Baek is at the beginning of solo leveling. He sighed with relief. He still has time and... he has to meet someone in the hospital.

-To Be Continued

(HKnote: A pretty normal beginning. I hope my English is bearable! It's not my first language so I hope I am gonna learn more as I write)