[Do you even realize that? You haven't taken a single bullet.]
[Newbie, I'm scared. You're not human, are you? You're AI, right?]
[The Three Laws of Robotics: One, kill all humans.]
[LMAOOOOO hey, you screwed up the very first law already hahahahaha]
A continuous display of monstrous performance that no ordinary human could show—something beyond human.
Lee Ji-han's chat window had literally become a boiling pot of excitement.
Of course, his monstrous evasive maneuvers were astonishing enough.
But what was even more incredible was—
Clang!
Bam! Clang!
[How many people have you taken out with that frying pan now?]
[Dunno, but anyway lots of dead ;;]
Ratatatatatat!
Whirr—!
Clang!
[Wait, the one who just died… wasn't that Kim Ppongdda?]
[Don't you know we don't mention Taz?]
[No, seriously, that was Kim Ppongdda hahahaha]
[Newbie, run! Run before you get bitten! End the stream, Ppongdda's fan club people are seriously vicious hahahaha]
Contrary to the viewers' worries, Lee Ji-han didn't even glance at the fast-scrolling chat window.
-Survive until the very end. (22/100)
Instead, in order to become the last survivor—
He simply swung his iron frying pan at every enemy he saw in front of him.
Bang!
Bullets flew at him.
Seeing them, Lee Ji-han twisted his body instantly and dodged.
Hyperfocus Syndrome.
Lee Ji-han had long suffered from this mysterious syndrome, often experiencing strange phenomena.
When his concentration reached its limit—
There were times when everything around him, including himself, seemed to move in slow motion.
In competitions, during practice…
Every time he engaged in gymnastics, the sport he loved, he would feel this same sensation.
But now, inside this virtual reality game, Lee Ji-han was feeling a sensation almost identical to that.
Bang!
Bullets flying in slow motion.
In his eyes, every trajectory looked like it was moving in slow-mo.
Dodging them felt easier than spooning porridge into his mouth.
[Whoa, he's really streaming this?]
[LMAO I came from Kim Ppongdda's stream.]
[This is the live relay, right? They said this is the main stream.]
[LMAO wait, the very first thing I see when I come here is him dodging bullets? And you guys have been keeping this fun to yourselves??]
The viewer count, which had been just 20, climbed to 30, then 40, then 50…
With people flocking over from Kim Ppongdda's stream, the number instantly shot past 200, even in this early morning hour.
[Newbie, save us! Our stream's getting eaten alive!]
[Look, it's full of Ppongdda fan nicks—this basically is Ppongdda's stream now, right?]
[Whoa, Ppongdda, you watching this? He looks like he's cheating!]
[Hey, even cheats can't dodge deflected bullets.]
[He's literally dodging deflected bullets too hahahaha how does that make sense?]
[Ppongdda, he's not a cheater! I don't think so at least!]
[Actually, our Newbie is AI. He's a robot.]
[Not human. Definitely not.]
The chat window instantly descended into chaos.
Clang!
-Survive until the very end. (18/100)
But Lee Ji-han paid no attention to the chaos.
Instead, almost foolishly diligent and steady—
He just kept smashing the heads of enemies in front of him with his iron frying pan.
"Eighteen left now. …But I don't see anyone nearby."
Bzzt!
Suddenly, a sharp sting—and his vision flushed red.
[Newbie took damage for the first time!]
[LMAO how focused was he that he didn't even notice the zone closing in?]
[But isn't it ridiculous that the very first damage he takes is from the zone?]
[Hey hey, Newbie, run. If you stay there, you'll die.]
Though he had never once played a game before in his life, Lee Ji-han instinctively understood.
The shrinking semicircle.
If he stayed here, he would die.
Ratatatatat!
Lee Ji-han began to sprint.
[The zone's shrinking faster than he's running, though? Can he make it out?]
[Fan-nickers, shut up and watch.]
[Our Newbie's a real monster, you'll see.]
[Wait, why is he running so fast?]
[????]
Acceleration stuck to Lee Ji-han's body.
His running speed increased bit by bit, and when it finally reached its peak—
Whoosh!
He leapt.
As if performing a long jump, a leap literally breaking human limits.
Thud!
[No way, he really might be a robot.]
[Whoa;;;; what's the world record for long jump again?]
[Whatever it is, he just smashed it; even if it's a game, still;]
[What are you talking about; this game uses actual physical data as its base.]
[Then that means this is pure physical ability? What kind of monster is streaming right now;;;]
Seeing his vision brighten again, Lee Ji-han paused to catch his breath, then began running once more.
[Newbie, heal up first, heal up!]
[What's the point of healing? As long as he's outside the zone, he's fine.]
[Yeah, and what about bullets?]
[He sees and dodges all of them, might as well not bother shooting.]
Ratatatatatat!
-Survive until the very end. (17/100)
-Survive until the very end. (15/100)
-Survive until the very end. (10/100)
The survivor count started plummeting in an instant.
Given the nature of Zero Ground, as the zone shrinks, the battle area becomes limited.
And so, survivors cornered into the same area are forced to fight.
But in these situations, fighting only reveals weaknesses.
If you take even a little damage in combat, hyena-like players will swarm and tear you apart until you're dead.
[Newbie, go claim the center, secure it!]
[Why isn't he moving into the zone?]
[???? What is he doing???]
'…Then it's better to avoid fighting right now, isn't it?'
Lee Ji-han instinctively understood the rhythm of the game.
When to go in, when to hold back.
He grasped it all instinctively, and instead began circling along the outer edge of the shrinking zone.
-Survive until the very end. (9/100)
[Now he's trying to camp it out?]
[That's not like you, Newbie! You should be brawling like before!]
-Survive until the very end. (8/100)
His judgment was correct.
In just a moment, two more survivors had been eliminated.
Had he gone to the center, he might have been swept up in the chaos and died.
BOOM!
A deafening explosion.
A grenade had gone off.
Whether thrown blindly or aimed precisely, who could say?
-Survive until the very end. (5/100)
Three survivors were wiped out at once.
[Newbie, just hang on until the zone closes now.]
[Surviving as long as possible inside the zone is valid too.]
[Second place is good enough, second place is good.]
[Why did that message repeat, why did that message repeat.]
Zero Ground is only fun if you win first place. You've never played games, right? If you duo with me, you'll see—it's so fun. I'll carry you to first every time.
Humans should always aim for first place.
Why did Kim Soo-ho's words suddenly come to mind now?
In his sharpened senses, Ji-han unknowingly smiled as if he were enjoying himself.
Bang!
-Survive until the very end. (4/100)
-The zone is shrinking.
[Final circle, it's the final circle.]
[This is actually good, Newbie. The zone's near us.]
[Whoa, can't believe it closed like this. It's like the game wants you to win.]
Including himself, only three remained.
Ji-han decided—this was the right time.
Ratatatat!
[? Where you going, Newbie?]
Whirrrrr!
Unlike before, the zone shrank in an instant.
The place Ji-han headed was an extremely narrow line between the safe zone and the danger zone.
[What's there to even find over there?]
Nothing at all.
Even beyond the horizon, there was nothing to see.
But then—
"Footsteps."
[???? You heard something?]
[No no, I didn't hear a thing;]
[Anyone else hear something?]
Ratatatatat!
Footsteps coming from ahead.
[???? Did he turn on wallhacks or something?]
[Who'd be coming from there??]
Ji-han thought: there must be another person outside the zone, besides himself.
The reasoning was simple.
The pace at which the survivor count was dropping had slowed significantly. That meant all fights inside had ended.
And yet, something was strange.
No continued firefights.
Which could only mean—the others were still far apart.
And his guess was exactly right.
Ji-han's lips curved upward.
Like a child happy his guess was correct, he showed a pure, innocent smile.
Whoosh!
Appearing over the horizon was a player lugging a heavy load of supplies.
"Guys, how do you expect me to win by just camping the meta? It's chaos in there right n—huh?"
The survivor before him was simply prey.
Like a predator, Ji-han unleashed a monstrous leap.
"Wha—w-whaaa?! W-what the hell is that!?"
Clang!
The iron frying pan smashed down on the head of the zone-weakened player, finishing them off.
-Survive until the very end. (3/100)
[I just joined—how many kills with that frying pan so far?]
[Unbelievable, but it's the 8th.]
[???? Isn't the frying pan supposed to be super weak?]
[Yeah, normally you'd beat on them forever until they died, while dodging everything else.]
Only three survivors left now, including himself.
From here on, it was a true duel to the death.
Ding!
['Kim Ppongdda' has placed a 50,000 won mission.]
-Newbie, if you survive, take this.
[Wait, huh?]
[Is that real?]
[Is that actually him?]
[Newbie, celebrate—you made it. Hurry up and take the mission and blow up big hahahaha]
[Sorry, streamer, but your channel belongs to Newbie now.]
[LMAO sorry boss, but looks like Newbie's making more money than you now.]
['Kim Ppongdda' has donated 1,000 won.]
-And the guy you just killed should have lots of meds. Loot everything and stock up well.
Full of worried advice.
But Ji-han, just like before, brushed it aside lightly.
[LMAO even ignored Kim Ppongdda?]
[Newbie, you're not supposed to ignore big-shot advice hahahaha]
[Our boy here doesn't even know how to read chat. New viewers, thanks for understanding.]
[LMAO what is this, seriously? Never seen a stream like this before.]
Only aiming for first place, only seeking the true fun of this game—
Ji-han stepped toward the final danger zone.
For a Newbie to win Zero Ground on his very first day was nearly impossible.
The reason was simple.
It was an old game, with even professional leagues. The place was crawling with veterans and pros.
And this was early morning, in the unlimited-tier channel.
It was nothing short of hell itself.
[Why am I getting nervous?]
[Seriously, why is this making me nervous?]
Everyone quietly watched Ji-han.
Ratatatatatatat!
-Survive until the very end. (2/100)
In the middle of the final danger zone.
Ji-han entered an abandoned building there.
Fortunately, the fight was happening outside.
He pressed himself flat against the wall, hiding his body.
Whirrrrr!
The zone rapidly shrank around the building.
This place would be the final battleground.
Thump, thump, thump.
Was this what an Olympic final stage—something he had only ever dreamed of—would feel like?
Ji-han smacked his pounding chest to calm himself, took a deep breath.
Step, step, step.
Footsteps from below.
Once again, the world seemed to slow down.
He had to make a choice.
Tap!
[?????]
[Wait I was focusing, what's he doing???]
Like a climber, Ji-han hooked his fingers into the narrow crack of a doorway, pressing his body flat against the ceiling.
With one hand.
The reason was simple.
His other hand had to hold the frying pan.
Step, step.
The footsteps stopped.
Creeeak.
The door opened.
Perhaps because his body was wedged so tightly up above, the door opened smoothly without catching on him.
"Wasn't there someone in here? Doesn't seem like anyone's…"
Whoosh!
What followed was a scene so innovative, it flipped the genre of the game itself.
"GYAAAHHH!? W-what the hell!?"
Ji-han let go and dropped straight down on the player who had just entered.
Clang!
With a sharp sound, the player's head snapped forward.
Crash!
Ji-han tumbled to the floor along with him.
Rolling on the ground, the other player reflexively drew his gun.
A clean, efficient movement.
Without hesitation.
Ratatatatatata!
Gunfire.
But Ji-han's world was already in slow motion.
Snap!
He instantly tracked the muzzle's direction.
Instead of backing away, he lunged forward, dodging every bullet.
Clang!
The frying pan slammed into the man's face again.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Once, twice, three times.
The frying pan swung again and again.
Ratatatatata!
The muzzle kept spitting fire, but Ji-han dodged every shot with acrobatic moves no one had ever seen before.
He stepped to a rhythm, like performing on a floor mat.
As he sidestepped the gunfire, he flowed into a forward roll—
Whirr!
A smooth somersault followed by a handspring.
Whoosh!
Using the rebound, Ji-han's foot struck the player's chin midair.
"Guhk!"
The player staggered.
But Ji-han didn't stop.
Using the wall as a springboard, he launched at the enemy once more.
These impossible movements—
[Insane.]
[…What the hell is that?]
They froze the chat window completely.
Ratatatatatata!
The opponent fired wildly, with no aim.
But Ji-han easily claimed safe positions in advance.
On the separate face-cam, Ji-han's expression was utterly blank.
His eyes darted impossibly fast, proving that he was seeing and reacting to everything.
[This is seriously insane.]
[Who told a martial arts master to show up here? Huh?]
Even when jokes occasionally popped up, no one responded.
Everyone was glued to watching his fight.
And the fight's conclusion—
Clang!
-Survive until the very end. (1/100)
-Today, I survived.
[Unreal.]
[…He actually won first place?]
[Newbie!!!! You did it hahahaha]
[Take your 50,000 won!]
[So you're playing another round, right?]
[LMAO what do you mean another round, of course he has to hahahaha]
[O-ohh. Heavenly Demon! Heavenly Demon!]
[The Heavenly Demon has returned hahahaha this guy's a real martial arts master!!!]
The once-quiet chat exploded again.
What were the odds of a brand-new player winning first place in Zero Ground on his very first day?
Zero percent.
But the viewers had just witnessed a miracle—a 0% chance breaking into reality.
"…Ah."
Drip.
[????]
[What's that?]
[Is that… a nosebleed?]
"This game… it's harder than I thought. Let's rest a bit."
Click.
The stream shut off just like that, leaving everyone stunned by his lack of manners.
[WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT!!!!!!]
From that day, starting from the moment the stream ended, Kim Soo-ho's chat and countless online communities burned with talk.
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