[09:00 PM | Seoul Metro Line 2 | Subway Car 4]
[The scenario has begun.]
[Let the game… begin.]
The message burned in Kang Jae-hwan's vision. Not metaphorically. It was literally seared into his retina—no matter where he looked, it hovered like an invasive thought he couldn't blink away.
Screams echoed through the subway car. The emergency lights pulsed red now, flickering in rhythm with the fire pouring in from the torn roof. Smoke twisted in lazy spirals through the cabin.
The creature at the center of the train twitched.
Its skin was translucent, stretched tight over moving muscle. Its two mouth-eyes opened wide, releasing a gurgling shriek that vibrated down into Jae-hwan's bones.
The suit man beside him was frozen, shaking so hard his knees hit the floor.
"No no no no—what is that thing—what the f*ck is happening?!"
Jae-hwan didn't answer. He couldn't.
His breath was shallow. His fingers trembled. His heart punched at his ribs like it wanted out.
But even in that moment—through the rising smoke and blood-curdling panic—his mind raced.
The First Predator has 200 HP. It regenerates 5 HP every 10 seconds. Weakness: Back of the neck, below the spinal seam. Attack pattern: Slash, leap, scream. Loop.
That was what the novel said.
He remembered it exactly. Chapter 1 of The Epitaph of the Forgotten World.
The main character at the time—a bland, overpowered swordsman who would later die 700 chapters in—had survived by tricking the creature into slamming its own head into a broken chair rail. It was luck.
But Jae-hwan wasn't that protagonist.
He didn't have a sword.
He didn't have stats.
He had a phone that no longer worked and a warehouse worker's grip strength.
The monster turned.
Its left mouth curled into something resembling a smile.
Then—
It charged.
A man near the emergency door screamed. "GET IT AWAY FROM ME!"
The thing leapt, clearing the five-meter distance in less than a second.
Its claw ripped the man in half.
Blood sprayed across the windows. Warm mist coated the train.
People screamed louder.
Some vomited.
Some fainted.
Some ran.
It didn't matter.
The First Predator grinned, as if feeding on their fear.
It turned again—slowly—locking its mouth-eyes on the next target: the girl with the school uniform, frozen halfway between two seats, her phone clutched tight in her fist.
"Please…" she whimpered. "Please someone—help…"
[You have 28:33 remaining.]
Jae-hwan swallowed.
He knew what would happen next.
If this was truly following the novel's scenario, the Predator would massacre at least fifteen people before the system unlocked the "Beginner's Shop."
But that wouldn't come for another twenty-five minutes.
Too long.
Too many people would die before then.
And this time, there was no protagonist to stop it.
There was only him.
He didn't know why he could see the messages. He didn't know why the system chose him. He wasn't special. He was barely surviving his own life.
But he had one advantage no one else did:
He had read the whole damn story.
"Hey!" he shouted suddenly, standing up.
The Predator paused.
The entire car fell silent.
It was insane. Beyond insane. But in that silence, with every pair of eyes turning to him—Kang Jae-hwan stepped forward.
"Over here, freakshow."
The creature's mouths twitched.
Someone grabbed his sleeve. The suit man. "Are you insane? Sit down!"
But Jae-hwan pulled free.
He walked toward the thing.
It tensed.
And then—it lunged.
Jae-hwan dove sideways just as the claw swept forward, tearing a chunk of wall beside him. Sparks flew. The plastic shattered.
The creature turned sharply, too fast.
It wasn't stupid.
It had a pattern—but it adapted.
Jae-hwan rolled under a row of seats and yanked the broken metal pole from the debris. It was part of the railing—a jagged, rusted length of steel, sharp at one end.
The girl was still frozen in the middle of the aisle.
Think.
The weakness is the neck. Below the spine. Only exposed when it jumps.
He turned to her. "Run."
She didn't move.
"RUN!"
That time, she did.
The creature twisted, confused by the movement, trying to track her and Jae-hwan at the same time.
It chose her.
It leapt.
Exactly as predicted.
Jae-hwan charged forward.
Screaming.
He raised the steel bar like a spear.
The creature passed overhead.
He turned—aimed—and slammed the sharp edge into the back of its neck just as it landed.
The bar drove in halfway, scraping bone.
The Predator shrieked.
The entire car shook with the sound.
Then—
[You have inflicted a Critical Hit.] [30 Damage dealt.]
[Title acquired: "First to Strike Back"] [+50 Coins earned.]
The creature flailed. The bar was still embedded. It spun violently, catching Jae-hwan across the chest and launching him back into a seat with a painful crack.
He groaned, coughing.
"Ugh—"
The suit man grabbed him by the collar, dragging him backward.
"Holy sh*t—you stabbed it! What the hell is going on? What is this?!"
Jae-hwan looked up, wheezing.
Then—his vision lit up again.
A new screen.
Different this time.
[Exclusive Skill unlocked: "Reader's Insight (Lv. 1)"]
"…Huh?"
[Reader's Insight: Grants the ability to analyze beings and scenarios that originate from known narrative patterns.] [You may now view Basic Information Panels.]
He focused on the Predator.
—
Name: First Predator
Grade: F+
HP: 170/200
Skills: Predator's Leap, Fear Shriek, Regeneration
Weakness: Exposed Nerve Cluster (Back of Neck)
—
His hands trembled.
It was really happening.
The novel—everything in it—it was all real.
And for once in his miserable, overlooked, unread life…
He was ahead of everyone else.
He was the Reader.
And the world was following a script only he had read.
To be continue...