"Damn it! Damn it!"
I sprinted as quickly as I could. I knew it was a bad idea not booking a taxi but what could a poor man on a tight budget do? Thinking about it just makes it worse, it's too late to go back in time anyways, I might as well run with all that's left in me.
"Aaargh!"
"Mr… Han Gyungho?"
As I slammed open the door, a lady in her early fourties called out my name. I looked up, embarrassed. Now everyone's attention was on me. I scratched my head, bowed apologetically.
This is bad. It's my first time coming here, I can't recognize any faces and on top of that, everyone's first impression of me was a messy loser.
"Are you mr. Han Gyungho?"
"Ah, yes. That's me."
I replied awkwardly. Looking at the other people sitting and waiting, I gulped. Seems like this company wasn't that bad. Though this is making me pretty nervous, it's my first time I've met this many people who have the same interest as me.
The lady turned around then spoke.
"Please follow me, Mr. Han."
I let out a quiet gasp. This place is huge… everything around here looks way too fancy for a supposedly small company. Every corner of this building is shouting rich.
"We're here, good luck, Mr. Han."
"Ah, thank you."
As the lady walked away, I turned the doorknob, revealing what's inside. A man around his thirties was sitting on a fancy office chair, his name plate resting on the wooden table inside the room. This room is huge… The air conditioning is amazing too. I could feel myself breathing in a different air. Makes me think about how rich the man is…
The man smiled, standing up and walking my way. He closed the door and patted my shoulder.
"Welcome in, Mr. Han!"
I nodded and smiled awkwardly. He's quite friendly. I went ahead and sat down at a chair that was seated in front of the man's desk. I looked over to black name plate.
"How rude of me! I haven't introduced myself."
The man spoke as he sat back down onto his seat. He leaned forward and continued his speech.
"I'm Lee-jun Won, the HR manager of this company. It's a pleasure to meet you."
He says, reaching out his hand to me. I took his hand and shook it. It was all so strange, it's not like this is my first time at an interview either… something just feels odd.
"Well there's not much to say, I have to be honest. We've seen your works on our digital website and we're very impressed! It's amazing."
"You think so?"
I have never received such great compliments about my novels before. It wasn't much but it was more than enough for someone who had never received any opinions at all.
"Yes! I was wondering if you wanted to join us as a new novelist for our company. We can also offer to print copies and publish your book globally."
My jaw dropped open. The word globally hits me like a train. If I accepted the offer then I'll make tons of money selling copies of my novel…. This was too good of an offer to decline.
Then it came back to me, I haven't asked how much they're paying for this position.
"Ah… how much are you guys paying?"
Shit! Was this too straightforward? I let out an awkward chuckle. Looking down, I've been holding this guy's hand for too long…I didn't even noticed it! I was too caught up in the conversation that I forgot to let go.
I looked back up at the guy's face. Lucky me, he didn't look too weirded out. I quickly took back my hand and sat down.
"Well, since you're going to be new here, we can start off with around 4,500,000₩ to around 10,000,000₩ every month."
The shock waves keep coming. The lowest amount is already more than the amount I'm being paid working as an office worker, but I can't get ahead of myself yet. That's only estimated.
"I would like to know the exact amount if it's possible."
"You're a straightforward man, aren't you? Mr. Han."
Lee-jun Won chuckled, combing his hair with his hand. He then continues after a few seconds.
"We can start with 5,000,000₩ if you're fine with that?"
The amount of money given was shocking. It was way more than how much I made in a month as an office worker. The deal was amazing. I looked up at Lee-jun Won, a smile could be seen across his face.
"That would be great."
I wasn't that greedy. 5 million won wasn't a small number, I was more than grateful to take it.
The man smiled, handing me a pen and a document. I looked at him then down at the paper. I took the pen and began reading the policies and the information on it. Everything seemed normal.
After signing it, I handed the document back to the man and stood up from my seat. Lee-jun Won stood up as well, walking me to the door.
"Today went smoothly thanks to you Mr. Han. I look forward to seeing you publish more of your novels soon!"
"Thank you for this opportunity, I won't let you down."
I bowed down before walking out of the door. I sighed, scratching my head. I was full of excitement but had zero energy to express it.
Walking out of the building, a familiar figure was standing there, his back facing me, the figure turned around. I stood still as I saw him. My eyes shining with hope.
"Ah? What are you doing here Gyungho-ssi?"
"I could ask the same question, why are you here Chin-hae?"
This man, Chin-hae. He was in the same class as me since college, we were great friends. He then graduated and went to university while I was busy finding a job…
He turned out great, silky hair, tan skin, smart and rich too I assume. Girls must be all over him… lucky bastard.
"Ah… a friend of mine works close by and I was going to treat him to lunch."
I looked at him surprised. From the last time I saw him, he was only on holiday to visit Incheon…
"Are you on holiday? I thought you were studying abroad in the states. Didn't you used up all your vacation days last time you were here?"
He looked at me awkwardly, I laughed, putting my hand on his shoulder. He tossed my hand off as I laughed.
"That was 3 years ago, dumbass… And yes, I am here for vacation."
My smile faded. As expected, he was still more successful than me. I sighed. I looked at him. What is this guy doing playing on his phone in a middle of a conversation? Can't believe he's still as childish as ever.
"Hey, I'm still talking with you, you know."
"Yes, yes old man. I'm just texting to see if my friend will come or not."
"Old man?! Are you kidding me?!"
He sure has some guts to call me that… people tell me I'm younger than my age all the time! I sighed.
Chin-hae turned off his phone, walked closer to me, he began talking.
"My friend's not coming. He has a bit more work than expected today, how about I take you to lunch instead?"
What the hell is with this guy? Of course everyone's here is busy with work. I mean, it's not like I know what his friend does for work but in most situations…
"Hey, do you hear me? You still got that habit of zoning out? Gyungho-ssi, you're getting old already, don't keep these bad habits."
He talks too much for sure. I shrugged, patting him on the back and pulled out my phone.
"Which restaurant?"
After the meal, the both of us headed back to my apartment. We both went inside, Chin-hae decided to lay on the bed as I continued my work.
"Hey, you know, your job is being an office worker, right? Why are you still writing novels? It's not like they're paying you a lot am I right?"
I sighed, looking away from the computer to talk to him.
"You know, not everyone has to focus on one job all the time right? Besides I got accepted as a novelist so I'll be making a lot of money soon."
He laughed, getting up from the bed and walked over to where I was sitting.
"How are you always so confident?"
"How so? I'm just saying what's r—"
As I was about to finish the sentence, I could feel the ground shake, I turned to Chin-hae, not like I'm sure that it's really an earthquake.
"Hey, you felt that too?"
He nods, pulling me to run and find somewhere to hide. Before we got far, sounds of people screaming could be heard near us. Was this Some kind of terrorist? Or is some stupid parties again…
As we were hiding under the table, a sudden intense shaking came from the ground we were on. The lights were flickering for a while before shutting off completely. I hurriedly checked my phone, turning on the cellular data. Of course, the news is out already.
Power outage throughout the whole country… this is insane. To be honest this doesn't really affect me, I'm good at working in the dark anyways. I looked over to see Chin-hae clinging onto my shirt.
"What are you scared for? It's just a little earthquake."
He points at a certain corner of my apartment, his finger shaking. Chin-hae began to speak.
"I-it's…."
At the corner, a few light sparks were flickering, after it was gone, a small teddy bear sat there. It looked pretty out of place, I'm not sure I remember it being there.
The plushie looked old and dirty. It had a weird smell to it, something was wrong. I took Chin-hae's hand and ran. We ran to the door, trying to unlock it.
"Damn it.. why isn't it working?!"
I looked behind me, Chin-hae was still there, shaking with fear. He was only 3 years younger than me yet he's acting like a total kid. I could understand…in the end, how could he be calm after what happened that day.
Something's off. Aside from me and Chin-hae, I could feel a presence of another person, no, something. I pulled Chin-hae behind my back, looking around the dark and empty apartment.
Footsteps were coming from the same corner the teddy was sitting. I could feel it, something's coming closer.
"Lee Chin-hae and Han Gyungho, am I right?"
"Who are— no, what are you?"
I looked up and down, inspecting the creature. It was glowing, lighting up the room. I looked behind it where the teddy used to lie. I'm certain it came from the teddy seeing how the bear was split in half with slimy liquids pouring out of it.
The creature had a small body, 1 horn sticking out from the side of it's head with 2 sharp looking fangs sticking out. It was coated in a layer of curly fur, I believe.
I mumbled to myself.
"Horn..fangs…"
Could this be a dokkaebi? I looked over to see Chin-hae's shocked face.
"What the…"
He was looking at the creature. His face went from scared to confused. It wasn't strange for someone to react this way.
"You are now registered in the system. Have fun and good luck."
What does it mean by have fun and good luck? It ignored my question as well… I ran forward to where it was. I need some answers, nothing is making sense. What the hell is going on? Is it really a dokkaebi?
"Hey! I asked you what you are!"
The creature infront of me was flickering, the same light that took the bear here perhaps.
"A guide, you could say."
It snickered and vanished. After the creature disappeared, a screen popped up infront of me. A video was playing.
I looked over to Chin-hae, seems like he sees it too. My head turned back onto the weird film playing infront of me. Looks like it's playing a live footage.
It was a video filmed in Gangnam. In the video, I could see a fluffy looking dokkaebi, it wasn't the same one I saw… this one was different, it's body was a bit more in-shape, wearing a suit with a little tie.
-What the hell are you?!
-Mother I'm scared.
Overlapping screams and cries could be heard, I stared at the screen, trying to squeeze out any details I can.
-Quiet. You all are being very annoying and loud.
The people quickly shut their mouths, staring at the dokkaebi as if they were prays under the claws of a predator.
"Don't you understand? You're…."
As I was watching the video, the words began to fade, I looked over to Chin-hae to see if he's also experiencing it. Seems like it's only me…
[SYSTEM: you are now participating in first-person perspective.]
What is this? I looked at the screen that popped up over the film I was watching. First-person perspective? What the hell does it means…
I closed the tab, expecting to see the video continue. All I saw was another tab, a quest, I assume. Why am I so calm about this? Everything feels so weird now. I can't tell if this was a dream or not.
"Gyungho-ssi… do you see the quest too?"
I nodded and began thinking. This doesn't feel real but it is. These novel like characters… I don't quite get it yet.
[SYSTEM: Welcome message.
Welcome, participants from planet 317! You are now joining in a series of games. Your role is 「404 not found」 ! Congratulations!
—Information
Each game will have different rewards and penalties. There will be sets of rules you must strictly follow every round.
The system is not allowed to help you under any circumstances, it is only there as an inspector.
Participants have a choice to withdraw from each game but will face a penalty for doing so.
To start your journey, we will now grant you a reward for reading. Good luck to all participants!
Compensation: beginner achievement, 100R
Penalty: none]