MRPO :01

CHAPTER :01

I was completely out of breath. My pounding heart felt like it was screaming. As I dashed down the dirt path, my ankle gave out, and I pitched forward.

Just before I hit the ground, a pair of strong arms snatched me up. My body was swept into the air, and my vision spun.

“Did you really think I’d let you go if you escaped through death?”

His violet eyes gleamed with an ominous light. He was breathing heavily, completely unlike the gentle, considerate man I knew. Terrified by this stranger who looked so different from the man in my memories, I pulled my head back and shook it frantically.

*No. I wasn’t trying to run away. Well, okay, I did just try to flee, but it wasn’t because I actually wanted to disappear forever.*

I was scrambling for words, trying to figure out what excuse would appease his wrath, when another large hand reached out and snatched my left wrist.

“I told you I would die with you. So why?”

*Because I have absolutely no desire to die with you! Do you think I have a death wish like you do?!*

I wanted to scream those words at him, but seeing a forearm thicker than my thigh made my heart shrivel in fear. He had never once frightened me before, so I had failed to realize just how terrifyingly massive he was—big enough to swallow me whole in his shadow alone.

Sensing my terror, his grip loosened. When I gathered my strength and slapped his hand away, he let go without a fight.

But before I could even wriggle out of his embrace, my ankle was grabbed.

Dragged by the ankle, I was pinned onto my back. Long, elegant fingers traced their way up my body and lightly wrapped around my throat.

He wasn’t even squeezing or choking me, yet I couldn’t breathe. It felt as if I were caught in the coils of a giant serpent.

Seeking salvation, I forced myself to look up, only to see him staring down at me with a heart-wrenching expression. I was the one whose life was in danger, yet his eyes were the ones pooling with tears.

“Did you ever stop to think how I would feel, watching you die right before my eyes?”

*Yes. I did. I thought about it a lot. It’s my fault, okay?*

*I’ll reflect on my actions and beg for forgiveness, so can’t you just let me go? I’m really scared now.*

Before I could utter a single plea, his long fingers tightened around my neck, pressing down. I gasped for air, my chest heaving violently.

Staring down at my struggling figure with a chillingly indifferent gaze, he spoke.

“My life belongs to you. So if you must leave, take me with you.”

*How many times do I have to tell you that I didn’t disappear because I wanted to!*

Caught between four men who looked ready to murder me and then commit suicide at any second, I writhed in sheer frustration.

*I’m the victim here! It’s all because of this goddamn system window!*

*Somebody, please stop these absolute madmen!*

* * *

Ever since I was a child, my dream was to become a hero.

A hero who rescues those in danger, and without even looking back, moves on to save others. The resolute sight of their retreating back seemed so incredibly cool.

I knew an ordinary person like me could never become a hero like that. But I used to wonder—if I possessed some hidden, special ability, maybe I could save people in danger.

For twenty-six years, I held onto that dream, even though I knew it was probably just a childish delusion.

But I never meant that I wanted to die in someone else’s place.

*Screeeeeeech!*

I certainly never expected to get hit and die after saving a kid who fell onto the subway tracks.

I saw the train coming from a distance and thought I’d have plenty of time to get out of the way, but before I knew it, the train was right in front of me.

My body was torn to shreds, so I don’t even know how I died. But hey, at least the kid survived, so surely there’d be a newspaper article praising me as a “brave citizen.”

They say a tiger leaves its skin when it dies, and a human leaves their name. Leaving the three syllables of my name, Sung Joo-in, printed in a newspaper article wasn’t the worst way to go.

I didn’t get to be the hero of my childhood dreams, but for an ordinary person, I’d say I did pretty well. I smiled bitterly.

Everything around me was pitch black.

I wondered if a Grim Reaper would show up to guide me since I died saving a life, like in the movies, but there was nothing.

*I guess there’s no afterlife.*

Just as that thought crossed my mind, a mechanical fanfare sounded, and a system window materialized before my eyes.

**[Pitiful Victim – Lv. 1]**

**Excellent! You are a righteous soul who saved another’s life.**

**A new life shall be granted to a righteous soul who died before completing their natural lifespan.**

**Would you like to accept this life reward?**

**[Yes] / [No]**

…Does clicking [Yes] mean I get to reincarnate?

Well, there might not be an afterlife, but I guess the Reincarnation Truck is real.

Though in my case, it was a subway train instead of a truck.

I stared at the system window, which felt even more surreal than a Grim Reaper.

“Pitiful Victim,” of all things. I would have qualified for a Brave Citizen Award if I’d survived, so they could have at least dropped the word “pitiful.”

I reached toward the system window. It was bizarre to see my limbs completely intact, considering my entire body had just been crushed to pieces.

**[Yes]**

Honestly, unless someone had a death wish, I couldn’t imagine anyone choosing [No].

The moment I tapped [Yes], a tiny hourglass began to spin, and a message popped up: **[Loading…]**

Why is this taking so long? Hurry it up! I’m Korean, we don’t do slow!

Just give it to me already. My new life! New body, new life!

If I had a choice, I wanted to reincarnate in a fantasy world like those romance fantasy novels my friend was always reading—ideally as a filthy rich villainess who pretends to avoid the male lead while accidentally triggering his affection flags, landing a sweet, easy life.

Sure, I was a “pitiful victim,” but I did die saving a life. Didn’t I deserve at least that much of a reward?

But the new window that popped up after the loading finished completely shattered my hopes.

**[Beginner Perk]**

**In 30 days, you will rescue 1 person and die.**

*Excuse me? Could you explain which part of this is supposed to be a “perk”?*

I died saving someone, and you’re only giving me a measly thirty extra days? And on top of that, I have to die saving another person? Are you kidding me?!

I wasn’t someone who swore often, but this situation was infuriating enough to make me curse out loud.

“You motherf—”

But I never got to finish the word.

My vision blurred, and I felt a sudden, powerful force sucking my body in.

Wherever I was being sent, I had a terrible premonition that any world that goddamn system window transported me to wouldn’t be a pleasant one.

* * *

My premonition was spot on.

“Oof!”

Dropping out of thin air, I slammed flat onto my back. The ground was made of stone, and it hurt like hell.

“Ow, ow, ow…”

I’m way too young to throw out my back. Rubbing my aching lower back, I pushed myself up and saw tall trees towering over me.

One tree, two trees, three… Basically, a lot of them.

*Is this a forest? Or the mountains?*

Given the massive rocks and the steep slope, I was most likely in the mountains.

But was this South Korea or another world? It was impossible to tell when there was nothing but trees and rocks as far as the eye could see.

I looked down at what I was wearing. The body was definitely mine, but my clothes weren’t the office wear I’d been sporting before getting hit by the subway.

Nor was I wearing the sort of frilly, elegant dress you’d expect in a romance fantasy.

Instead, I was dressed as a traveler, perfectly suited for a mountain trek. Considering the thick coat, gloves, cargo pants, and high-top boots, this place didn’t seem to be primitive, ancient, or medieval.

“Where on earth am I…?”

I needed to get out of this place first if I wanted to figure out where I was.

I began to climb. I figured it would be better to get to high ground and survey the area rather than wandering blindly downhill.

Fortunately, once I pushed past the dense tree line, the view opened up.

“…Whoa…”

The view from the ridge, even before reaching the summit, was absolutely breathtaking. A vast, endless mountain range stretched from one horizon to the other.

Just looking at the sheer scale, this was definitely not Korea. Was I really in another world?

I tried to recall all the novels I’d read and games I’d played. I couldn’t remember a single story or game that featured such a colossal wilderness. The chances of me being inside a world I already knew were virtually zero.

*Did I actually get dimensionally transported? Is this some other planet?*

If I were in a book or a game, I could at least use my meta-knowledge to survive. But with nothing but mountains in sight, I felt completely lost.

Would I even be able to get down before sunset? Looking down, I couldn’t spot a single trace of civilization. I couldn’t even tell if there were people living nearby.

Having only thirty days to live was already a garbage “perk,” but the world I’d been dropped into was just as terrible.

Any hope for a peaceful second life was officially down the drain.

“Of all the places you could have reincarnated me, it had to be here…”

As I was busy cursing out the system for its complete lack of ethics, a holographic screen materialized in front of me.

**[Pitiful Victim – Lv. 1]**

**Remaining Lifespan: 30 days [Beginner Perk active]**

**In 30 days, you will rescue 1 person and die.**

**[Recruiting Party Members…]**

**Current Party Size: (0/2)**

So the system window works here, too.

Beneath the thoroughly unwelcome “perk,” a new line of text had appeared.

*Recruiting party members?*

Was it telling me to group up with others to escape these mountains?

*Wait, is this really a game?*

I’d never heard of a survival or wilderness exploration game like this. Please don’t tell me I’m stuck in some trash game.

“Wait. If I need to recruit party members…”

It was highly suspicious that it was telling me to find party members first, rather than giving me a quest to do or items to find.

Demanding I find party members before giving me a tutorial or a helper NPC meant one thing: I was thrust into a situation that required cooperative play right from the get-go.

Which meant a trial was coming that could only be cleared by working together.

Like hunting a monster that was impossible to kill alone, for instance.

*Don’t tell me this world actually has monsters…*

Just as that realization dawned on me, a beastly howl echoed from the distance.

No, it was too unsettling to be a mere wild animal. It sounded more like some unidentified creature screeching from the depths of a horror movie.

*I need to find a safe zone first. Never mind recruiting party members; if I get attacked while I’m out here alone, I’ll die before I can even try to fight back.*

I immediately thought back to the spot where I had first woken up. If this was indeed a game, the safest spot was already predetermined.

The starting point.

*Let’s head back there and search the area. There might be some starter gear for survival.*

It would be a complete violation of basic gaming decency if they didn’t even give me starting items when there wasn’t even a tutorial.

I quickened my pace and headed back into the forest.

But when I reached the spot where I had first opened my eyes, someone was already there.