Deep inside a dense forest, a man was running with all his strength.
His footsteps crushed leaves and snapped twigs as his body moved purely on instinct, as if death itself were chasing him. Sweat soaked his clothes, clinging heavily to his skin. His breathing was rough and uneven, each gasp burning his lungs.
Behind him, countless forest monsters charged relentlessly.
Their eyes glowed crimson in the darkness beneath the towering trees, filled with hunger and malice. Sharp claws tore through the undergrowth, and guttural growls echoed through the forest like a death chant.
The man glanced over his shoulder while running, only for a brief moment.
They were still chasing him.
Good.
A faint smile appeared on his exhausted face.
After running for a while, the man suddenly leaped upward, pushing his legs to their absolute limit. His fingers barely managed to grab onto a thick tree root protruding from a massive trunk above.
He pulled himself up.
The monsters didn't slow down.
They kept charging forward—
And at that exact moment, the ground beneath them collapsed.
A trap activated.
The earth gave way with a deafening crack, and most of the monsters fell straight into a massive pit. Inside, countless sharpened wooden spears awaited them.
The monsters screamed as their bodies were pierced.
Blood splattered everywhere.
The man, now clinging safely above, looked down at the pit—at the monsters impaled on the spears.
His trap.
But not all of them fell.
Several monsters had survived, avoiding the pit by sheer luck or agility. Without hesitation, they leaped toward him.
"Shit—!"
The man's eyes widened.
He immediately swung his body using the tree branch he was holding onto. The monsters' claws slashed through the air, missing him by inches.
Fortunately, they couldn't reach him.
The man grinned in relief.
Using the momentum, he swung once more and jumped, landing safely on solid ground.
He turned around and looked back at the trap, watching the monsters twitching lifelessly below.
"Phew… that was way too close."
Yeah.
That man was me.
My name is Woo Jin.
I'm a 25-year-old office worker from Korea—or at least, that's what I remember.
I don't remember much about my past anymore. All I know is my name, my age, and where I came from. Everything else is gone.
I don't remember how I came to this world.
The only thing I recall is falling from the sky.
I hit the ground with terrifying force. My arm snapped, my leg bent at an unnatural angle, and pain flooded my entire body. Before I could even understand what was happening, I lost consciousness.
When I woke up, my clothes had changed.
They were no longer modern—no shirt, no jeans—but something resembling ancient attire from medieval China. Loose fabric, rough texture, and unfamiliar patterns.
My body was badly injured.
And yet…
After resting for a short time, my wounds slowly healed.
Bones that should have taken months recovered in hours. Pain faded unnaturally fast.
I didn't understand it.
Because I wasn't from this world.
Back to the present.
"Hah… That was really dangerous. I just got lucky."
If I had been even a second slower, I would've fallen into that pit along with them.
This is my third day in this world.
I'm still not used to it, but I've started to understand how things work.
This forest is filled with monsters—dangerous ones.
And they can evolve.
There are two-headed venomous snakes, goblins with snake tails, dark goblins, fishmen, and countless other abominations.
Those names are just what I call them. I don't know their real names.
Every monster here is grotesque and terrifying.
The first time I saw them, I was completely frozen in fear.
I reached down into the pit and dragged out the corpse of a snake-tailed goblin.
"This will be my dinner."
There are no livestock in this forest.
No chickens.
No goats.
No cows.
Not even deer.
Nothing that could be considered normal food exists here.
This forest is hell—a place inhabited only by monsters.
If I want to survive, I have no choice but to eat them.
I hoisted the goblin's corpse onto my shoulder and walked away.
Some time later.
The sky darkened.
I placed the goblin's body on the ground inside a cave.
This cave is my shelter.
Lighting a campfire outside would attract monsters due to the smoke, and that would be suicidal. A cave is safer—protected from rain, hidden from sight, and strategically sound.
I stacked several pieces of wood in front of me.
Using a smaller stick, I began spinning it against a larger piece of wood, trying to start a fire.
Thirty minutes passed.
"Damn it… it won't light."
Why?
Is the wood damp?
No.
I took this wood from a battlefield where monsters had uprooted trees during their fight. It was terrifying, but I managed to grab it without being noticed.
"Hah… my hands are getting tired…"
I kept spinning the stick.
"Ugh… this is starting to piss me off…"
Frustration surged through me.
I stood up, gripping the small stick tightly in my right hand, and threw it against the cave wall.
"Why does my life have to be like this?!"
Everything was exhausting.
What am I supposed to do?
I glanced at the lifeless goblin corpse.
"…You've got to be kidding me. There's no way I can eat this thing raw, right?"
A few moments later—
I ate it raw.
The taste was…
Disgusting.
It was like rotten chicken left out for decades.
What made it even worse was the blood.
Thick.
Green.
It resembled human blood in texture, only the color was different.
The stench was unbearable, making my stomach churn violently.
I stopped eating for a moment, feeling like I would throw up if I continued.
"Ugh… this is absolutely disgusting…"
After a while, I forced myself to continue, slowly chewing and swallowing.
This was my first meal in this world.
I hadn't eaten anything for three days since arriving here.
That's because I kept searching for normal animals.
And found none.
No matter how sickening it was, I had to eat monsters to survive.
Eventually, I finished the goblin meat, my face pale as I fought the urge to vomit.
I desperately needed water.
I walked out of the cave, scanning my surroundings, then started running.
I needed a river or a lake.
A river would be ideal—clear water flowing from the mountains.
A lake, however, could be dangerous. The water might be contaminated, or worse—there could be aquatic monsters lurking beneath the surface.
I ran, stopping occasionally to listen carefully for the sound of flowing water.
Nothing.
I ran again.
Eventually—
I found a lake.
"…Yeah. My luck really is terrible."
I approached slowly, cautiously.
Picking up a small stick, I tossed it toward the edge of the lake, testing for danger.
Nothing happened.
I let out a quiet sigh of relief.
I crouched down and scooped water with my hands.
I was desperately thirsty.
But—
Just as I started drinking—
Something emerged.
A monster crawled out of the lake.
It looked like a crocodile, but with a humanoid body.
Its massive form towered over me, more than twice my size.
Water dripped from its scales as it stared down at me with predatory eyes.
My body stiffened.
"Ah… I guess… my luck really is terrible."