The university café was crowded that afternoon.
Students filled the tables, talking loudly about classes, dorms, and the future. The smell of coffee drifted through the air.
Jin sat near the window.
Across from him sat Emily Turner.
White hair. Bright eyes. A cup of coffee in her hands.
They had bumped into each other earlier when both of their phones received the same university notification.
First Training Session — Tomorrow Morning.
Emily leaned back in her chair.
"Training already," she said. "I thought the first week would be boring lectures."
Jin looked down at the message again on his phone.
Practical Field Training — Attendance Mandatory.
He sighed.
"First day and they're already throwing us into training."
Emily smiled.
"You don't sound excited."
"I came here to live a normal life."
She laughed.
"I heard that during your introduction. You chose the wrong university for that."
Jin didn't answer.
He simply took another sip of coffee.
Emily tilted her head.
"Still… it might be fun."
Jin raised an eyebrow.
"Falling into a death pit full of monsters?"
"Exactly."
She grinned.
"You have to admit that's not normal."
Jin exhaled quietly.
"…Fair point."
Later that night, the campus had grown quiet.
Most students were already inside their dorm buildings.
Jin walked down a long hallway while checking his phone.
Room 217.
That was what the system said.
But the numbers on the doors didn't make sense.
Jin stopped walking.
He looked at the next door.
He frowned.
"Why does a building with rooms in the 1900s have room 217?"
He slowly turned around.
The hallway stretched behind him.
"…Great."
At the end of the corridor sat a security guard behind a small desk.
Jin walked over.
"Excuse me."
The guard looked up.
"Yes?"
"I'm trying to find room 217."
The guard raised an eyebrow.
"In this building?"
"Yes."
The guard studied him for a moment.
"Did you check the campus map?"
Jin blinked.
"…Campus map?"
"It's in your student account," the guard said calmly. "Every student has one."
Jin opened the university app.
He tapped Map.
A full layout of the campus appeared.
A blinking dot showed his position.
Building CC-19.
His dorm building was marked somewhere else.
DD-02.
Jin stared at the screen.
Then at the hallway.
Then back at the screen.
"…I'm in the wrong building."
The guard nodded.
"That happens a lot during the first week."
Jin rubbed the back of his neck.
"Not when you walk across half the campus first."
The guard chuckled.
"Don't worry. The dormitory buildings aren't far from each other."
Jin sighed quietly.
"…Right."
He gave a small awkward smile.
"Thanks."
The guard waved lazily.
"No problem."
The dorm room was simple.
A bed.
A desk.
A wardrobe.
A bathroom with a shower.
A typical university room.
But the window was large.
Jin walked over and opened the curtain.
The campus stretched beneath the night sky.
Streetlights.
Paths.
Buildings glowing softly in the distance.
It looked peaceful.
Jin lay down on the bed.
The mattress creaked slightly.
He pulled out his phone.
Contacts.
A new number was saved.
Emily Turner.
He stared at it for a moment.
Then chuckled quietly.
"My first girl's number at university."
He placed the phone on his chest.
The ceiling above him was plain white.
Tomorrow would be their first training.
Jin slowly closed his eyes.
Morning came quickly.
The campus was already busy.
Students moved between buildings in every direction.
Jin walked calmly across the university grounds.
His black shirt clung tightly to his body, revealing his athletic build.
The carved silver ring on his middle finger reflected the morning sunlight.
In his hand, his phone displayed the campus map.
A blinking arrow guided him toward the meeting point.
Bus Station.
He followed the route across the campus until he saw a group of students gathered beside several large buses.
His class.
Daniel Brooks stood near the front, talking confidently with a few students.
Emily noticed Jin and waved.
"Over here!"
Jin walked toward them.
At that moment Professor Adrian Cole arrived.
Two men followed behind him.
They looked different from ordinary people.
Older.
Calmer.
Their bodies carried a quiet weight.
Students slowly fell silent.
Professor Cole spoke briefly.
"Everyone on the bus."
Soon the bus began moving.
Just before the bus left, someone stepped inside.
Seo Mira.
Short dark hair. Calm eyes.
She walked down the aisle slowly.
Every seat was already taken.
Except one.
Next to Jin.
She stopped beside it.
Then sat down quietly.
Jin glanced at her.
She didn't look back.
The bus continued moving.
Students began whispering around them.
"What kind of training is this?"
"Are we actually going into the Abyss?"
"Already?"
Mira suddenly spoke.
"I think we are."
Her voice was calm.
Jin looked at her.
"Why?"
She nodded slightly toward the front.
"The two men with the professor."
Jin looked forward.
"They look like Descenders."
Mira nodded.
"If the university sends two Descenders with a group of first-year students…"
She paused.
"…then we are almost certainly going to an Abyss."
Jin leaned back in his seat.
"You analyze too much."
Mira shrugged slightly.
"Maybe."
The bus ride was short.
Halfway through, Professor Cole stood up.
"Listen carefully."
The bus grew quiet.
"There is something important you must understand before this training."
He paused.
"Retsu."
Some students frowned.
"Retsu is a special energy found inside Abyss monsters."
"When Descenders kill a monster, a small energy stone drops from its body."
He raised his hand slightly.
"If you break the stone, you can absorb the Retsu inside it."
Murmurs spread across the bus.
"It strengthens the body," he continued.
"Speed. Strength. Endurance."
He paused again.
"But there is a limit."
"After a certain stage, your body can no longer absorb external Retsu."
The bus became silent.
"At that point, your body begins generating its own Retsu naturally."
He looked across the students.
"When that happens…"
"…you are officially called a Descender."
Then he sat down again.
The explanation ended.
From the seat behind Jin and Mira, Emily leaned forward between them.
"You two are very quiet."
Jin glanced at her.
"You're loud enough for three people."
She ignored that.
"I didn't sleep well last night."
Jin nodded.
"Same."
"Probably because of the coffee," she said.
Mira looked at them.
"Did you two go on a date?"
Emily laughed.
"No."
She pointed at Jin.
"He bumped into me yesterday and offered coffee as an apology."
Mira nodded slowly.
"That sounds like a carefully planned pervert strategy."
Jin turned toward her immediately.
"What?"
Emily burst out laughing.
"Pervert!"
Jin groaned.
"This is ridiculous."
Both girls kept laughing.
And the bus slowed.
Then stopped.
The doors opened.
Students stepped outside.
Everyone froze.
In front of them hung a massive tear in reality.
A true Abyss.
Dark.
Endless.
Circular.
Like a hole in the world with no bottom.
Emily looked at Mira with wide eyes.
"…You were right."
Mira crossed her arms calmly.
"It was obvious."
Professor Cole stepped forward.
"This is today's training."
He pointed toward the Abyss.
"You will descend using parachutes."
Then he gestured toward the two men beside him.
"These two are professional Descenders."
"They will eliminate the monsters."
"And your goal…"
"…is simply to experience descending into the Abyss for the first time."
The professor pointed to the driver.
The bus's luggage door opened to reveal parachutes.
When everyone was ready, one of the Descenders stepped forward.
Without hesitation, he jumped.
No parachute.
The second man followed.
Both disappeared into the Abyss instantly.
The students stared in shock.
Professor Cole raised his voice.
"Jump!"
Students hesitated.
Daniel stepped forward with a grin.
"Let's go!"
He jumped.
Others followed.
One by one.
Soon only Professor Cole remained.
He jumped last.
At first there was only darkness.
Like falling through a deep tunnel.
Wind rushed past their ears.
Then suddenly the darkness broke open.
Students gasped.
They were no longer falling toward the ground.
They were falling through empty space.
A vast void stretched in every direction.
And far below, a massive floating island.
Suspended in endless emptiness.
Even the sky above them was empty.
No sun.
No clouds.
Only endless space.
Their parachutes opened automatically.
The two Descenders and Professor Cole fell much faster.
They struck the island and landed perfectly.
No injuries.
Jin narrowed his eyes.
"Retsu."
Daniel shouted excitedly.
"This is insane!"
His excitement spread to the others.
Fear slowly turned into thrill.
They landed across the rocky island.
The terrain was uneven and strange.
Then monsters appeared.
Dark creatures with twisted bodies rushed toward them.
The two Descenders moved instantly.
Fast.
Precise.
One monster died.
Then another.
Energy stones dropped to the ground.
Professor Cole stepped in whenever a creature came too close to the students.
A single strike from him crushed a monster instantly.
The training looked controlled.
Almost safe.
Almost.
Jin watched the fight quietly.
Then a strange chill ran down his spine.
A light tap touched his shoulder.
He frowned.
He turned.
No one was there.
The students stood several meters away.
Strange.
Then a blur.
From the side.
A monster slammed into him with terrifying force.
Professor Cole moved instantly.
But it was too late.
Jin's body was thrown backward through the air.
Toward the edge of the island.
The cliff.
The endless void below.
Nothing to stop the fall.