abcnovels
Chapter 15
Chapter 15
Chapter 15
The End of the Tutorial
Kang Hyeon and Kang A-hyun.
The siblings went out for grocery shopping after a long time.
“Didn’t they say this was the final stage?”
“Yeah. We have to finish it.”
Two months have passed since the day when dungeons were opened simultaneously.
Kang Hyeon still had not graduated from the tutorial.
“Ah, it was long. Really.”
“You’re talking like someone who already finished it.”
“If it wasn’t for that damn 5th stage, I would have finished it a long time ago.”
Kang Hyeon had just completed the 7th stage yesterday, and now only the final 8th stage remained.
Most of the two months had been spent trying to get through the 5th stage, delaying his completion.
“Even now, I can’t believe it.”
The content of the tutorial kept changing daily.
No matter how much Kang Hyeon racked his brain, he couldn’t find a breakthrough.
So he simply decided to get stronger.
When he entered the dungeon, he gave up on the idea of clearing it and focused solely on training and hunting.
And then, the opportunity came.
[Fifth Stage (Stage 5)]
[Prove your wisdom that can overcome any difficulty]
[Clear Condition: Completely clear the nest of the F-grade dungeon Raindrock]
[Failure Condition: Death]
[Tip. The Raindrock guarding the main core of the dungeon is the boss monster. Target its weaknesses]
Finally, a hunt with a clear clearing objective had come.
-Weaknesses? Shit! What’s that!?
Kang Hyeon charged at the boss recklessly.
After a few hours of fierce battle, he was able to thrust his sword into the beast’s head.
It was like forcibly breaking down the door instead of turning the doorknob.
Fortunately, the 6th and 7th stages, which had themes of ruthlessness and dedication, did not pose much difficulty.
He broke through the remaining stages in about ten days.
“Tsk tsk. You should have lived wisely all along.”
“Hey! That wisdom is just talk. It didn’t really matter in the end, did it? If it were you, it would have taken more than a year, man.”
It was just Kang Hyeon’s own thoughts.
“Anyway, it’s really over now.”
“But, by the way…”
“What?”
“When you finish the tutorial, will you go to the Ability User Cultivation School too?”
Kang Hyeon pondered at Kang A-hyun’s question.
“Of course. I’ve worked so hard, I have to make a big score in the dungeon, right?”
“I see… I guess so.”
The world had quickly accepted the reality and changed in just two months.
After the day when more than 1 million people were sacrificed in Korea alone.
The government had established the ‘Ability User Cultivation School’ and offered rewards for clearing dungeons.
They decided to actively utilize the fact that about half of the adult population were ability users.
-Isn’t it unreasonable to dump the government’s responsibilities on civilians!?
-The government is pushing people to their deaths with peanuts!
At first, there was a strong social backlash.
But surprisingly, when the system actually started, an enormous number of people applied to the Ability User Cultivation School.
They wanted to graduate from the school, get their ability user certificates, and enter the dungeons.
“Are you sure you won’t die in the dungeon?”
“Probably.”
“Aren’t you being too carefree about your own life?”
Kung A-hyun’s eyebrow raised slightly at the indifferent response.
“You’ll become like this after dying around 100 times.”
“Hey, even so… You’ll suffer the same way, won’t you?”
Kang Hyeon turned to look at Kang A-hyun.
“Are you worried about me now?”
“How can I not be worried? People are dying so much in the dungeons!”
While a systematic system was gradually being established, many still perished in the dungeons.
The dungeons were that dangerous.
“Ugh, whatever. Do as you please.”
“Wait, do you know that there are only two people in the whole country who have graduated from the tutorial (passed the 8th stage)? With this big brother appearing, the top star position is already secured.”
“Bullshit. Do you think the elite who finished the tutorial in a week is the same as the failure who took over 3 months?”
“Failure? You’ve got some nerve talking to your big brother like that!”
“What, you wanna fight? Come at me!”
The siblings grabbed each other’s collars and shook.
“Huh?”
At that moment, the surroundings started to get noisy.
As Kang Hyeon peeked out, he saw a huge crowd gathered in front.
“Hey, hey! Choi Dong-woo has come, they say he’s going to tackle the boss of the Death Castle!”
“Wow! He’s going for the boss when he couldn’t even clear the regular core?”
Choi Dong-woo.
He was one of the only two who finished the tutorial in South Korea.
Despite his not-so-young age in the late 30s, he was currently the most famous ability user in the country.
Choi Dong-woo, who had gathered like-minded people to form a dungeon assault team, had already perfectly cleared the dungeon five times.
His party strategy had even been adopted as an official curriculum in the Ability User Cultivation School.
“A celebrity has arrived.”
“Oh, you know that man too?”
“He’s more famous than celebrities these days.”
As Kang Hyeon said, the dungeon assault had become a social topic, and the fame of some ability users was now on par with celebrities.
Choi Dong-woo’s recognition was almost skyrocketing.
“That guy looked handsome on TV. Wanna go take a look?”
“No, let’s just do the grocery shopping and go back.”
“Tch.”
***
Ippotranslation
***
That night.
Lying reverently on the floor, Kang Hyeon closed his eyes.
‘I don’t even hope to wake up all at once. It may take months, but it’s okay.’
He focused on just breathing in and out for a while.
Kang Hyeon felt his mind becoming hazy, and at the same time, he opened his eyes.
He was standing in a completely white space.
[Welcome to Kang Hyeon’s tutorial!]
[You have completed 7 stages of the tutorial so far]
[Would you like to enter the final 8th stage?]
“Yes, let’s go.”
Kang Hyeon thought the voice reading the messages sounded more familiar than usual today.
[The Eighth Stage (Stage 8)]
[What is your belief?]
“Huh?”
This was a different message from the usual ones.
There was no talk about courage saving the earth, nor the phenomenon of the body rising up as the world went dark.
Just the pure white space. Then, it was asking Kang Hyeon what his belief was.
“Belief. Belief, huh…”
Although he thought it was a rather abrupt question, Kang Hyeon pondered it seriously.
“Belief? Haha.”
Kang Hyeon thought he was just an average, ordinary citizen.
As long as he graduated from a good university, got a good job, and built a happy family, that was enough.
Nowadays, even that feels difficult and overwhelming, so he didn’t even think about anything else.
In such a world where one can buy people and love with money, what belief could he have?
The reason he had diligently completed the tutorial every night was not particularly special.
He simply disliked being dropped into another world and suffering every night.
He just wanted to protect his precious family in this changing world.
“Wha-?!”
Suddenly, the space around Kang Hyeon began to move rapidly.
Feeling nauseous, Kang Hyeon closed his eyes.
“Ugh…?”
When he opened his eyes, he found himself standing over an unfamiliar city.
The unfamiliar city clearly was not on Earth.
There were living beings that were similar to humans, but definitely not human.
However, it was evident that they had built a great civilization, just like humans.
‘Wow…’
The flow of time in the city Kang Hyeon was observing gradually accelerated.
Monsters appeared in various places, and among them were many he had encountered in the tutorial.
‘What’s that… It’s enormous.’
How much time had passed?
Suddenly, a gigantic entity appeared, seemingly reaching the sky, and all kinds of monsters poured out.
The city let out a scream and then fell silent.
“…”
Hundreds, thousands of such cities flowed before Kang Hyeon’s eyes.
Countless lives were lost.
Feeling the weight of all that, Kang Hyeon was unable to say a word.
[How was it?]
Kang Hyeon had returned to the pure white room.
The voice that had been delivering the messages before now spoke to him.
[This tutorial session is a personal interview with me. Feel free to ask me anything you’re curious about, and I’ll also have some questions for you, making it a beneficial time.]
Soothed by the comforting voice, Kang Hyeon relaxed his expression and opened his mouth.
“Are you a god?”
[I’m a little different from gods. To put it in your language, I’m closer to a dimensional administrator.]
“Will the world become like the just-discovered cities in 5 years?”
[That depends on what you all do going forward.]
At the voice’s response,Kang Hyeon knitted his brows.
“I don’t understand. If you’re such an enormous being, can’t you just stop this situation?”
[I’m not a guardian of the Earth or anything like that. I just maintain the balance.]
“Balance?”
[Yes. Things like this tutorial and the status window you’re using are things I created to maintain the balance. I’ve done my best within my limits to protect the Earth.]
Pondering the meaning of the administrator’s words, Kang Hyeon fell deep in thought.
[May I ask you a question now?]
“Ah, yes.”
[Kang Hyeon, what beliefs and purpose have you lived by so far?]
It was a surprisingly empty question.
Kang Hyeon swallowed a hollow laugh.
“What have I lived for… That’s a very sudden question.”
[Is that so?]
The voice seemed to hold back laughter.
“What’s the reason for asking a question like that?”
[Observing humans during this incident has piqued my interest, you see? All intelligences are fascinating, but humans especially so.]
Hearing the administrator’s words, Kang Hyeon felt unpleasantly irritated.
Kang Hyeon raised one corner of his mouth in a cynical expression.
“Your observation is still lacking.”
[Pardon?]
“At least in my country, there aren’t many people who live thinking like that.”
At Kang Hyeon’s self-deprecating words, the administrator fell silent.
“Just because we were born. We’re desperately trying to live a little more happily, but the reality is that most are just busy scraping by day by day.”
[I see.]
The administrator seemed a bit taken aback by Kang Hyeon’s overly honest and pessimistic response, unlike the other ability users.
[Is there anything you want to protect, Kang Hyeon?]
“My family, my rude younger sister and my parents. I have to protect my family.”
In a changing world, the only thing he could rely on would be his own powerlessness.
Kang Hyeon had endured those horrific times just to protect his family at the very least.
[Don’t you want to become a hero?]
“Haha! A hero?”
[Yes]
“Hero, huh? I used to deny it, but now I know my place well. I’m far from that kind of thing.”
In the past three months,Kang Hyeon had experienced numerous deaths and become rather twisted.
But he had also gained some wisdom.
“Go find that glorious, tiring job for someone else.”
[Based on my observations, heroes are those born with talent. You’re certainly closer to a dunce than a hero’s qualities.]
At the administrator’s words, Kang Hyeon’s brow furrowed deeply.
‘Damn. Are they joking?’
No matter how much of a foul mouth Kang Hyeon had, he couldn’t bring himself to directly curse at this divine being.
[But I’m personally a fan of yours,Kang Hyeon. You have no idea how intriguing and fun it was for me to watch you go through the tutorial.]
“Uh-huh…”
‘This administrator is a sadist. The future of the Earth looks bleak. Wait a minute, something’s off here…’
Suddenly, a hunch arose.
But Kang Hyeon decided to ask the last question.
[And based on my observations, you may become a hero, even though you deny it. You can bet on it with me if you’d like.]
“At least I’ll try not to become a villain.”
At Kang Hyeon’s response, the voice chuckled softly.
“Oh, I just suddenly had a question. Can I ask?”
[Yes]
“How many people have reached this point besides me?”
[You are the 62nd graduate, Kang Hyeon.]
“Huh?!”
The large number surprised Kang Hyeon.
Of course, there were already two people known in Korea.
But he didn’t know there would be so many worldwide.
“Why are there so many people who cleared it?”
[There are more people born with talent and luck in this world than you’d think. And even at this very moment, over 300,000 people are entering the tutorial every day.]
“Still, that’s a lot…”
[Numerically speaking, it’s close to one in a hundred million. And the really important thing is…]
“The important thing is…?”
The voice paused for a moment before answering with a chuckle.
[The tutorial is just a tutorial, that’s all.]
“What do you mean by that?”
[You’ll understand as time goes on. Well, shall we end it here? This conversation has been most enjoyable.]
“Isn’t there a reward?”
Kang Hyeon quickly asked as the voice was about to end the situation.
[You have acquired the title ‘Tutorial Graduate’.]
Tutorial Graduate: A title given to those who have completed all 8 stages of the tutorial.
Effect: All stats +2
Seeing the reward, the disappointment on Kang Hyeon’s face was evident.
“What kind of title is this, just all stats +2? Lack of imagination, isn’t it?”
[Don’t expect too much from the tutorial rewards.]
“Tch.”
Kang Hyeon clearly expressed his disappointment.
[Haha. It was a pleasure meeting you. If the opportunity arises, I’ll see you again. Well then…]
“Wait a moment! Just one more thing, really.”
[Yes, go ahead.]
Kang Hyeon hastily grabbed the departing administrator and suddenly adopted a serious expression.
“The 5th stage of the tutorial… The theme was ‘Wisdom’, right?”
[Yes]
“Does the content change every time?”
A moment of silence followed his words.
[It was a pleasure meeting you.]
“You son of a bitch…!”
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