Chapter 2
“Level -99!?”
When the [Abyss] opened, humanity awakened—and just like game characters, they could now level up.
It was a preparation and a blessing meant to help them resist the powerful Twelve Species that would soon assault mankind.
Thanks to it, humans could at least stand their ground against those monsters.
…Though it was more like upgrading from an ant to a rat in a fight against an elephant, it was still something, wasn’t it?
The max level was 99.
Only five humans had officially reached it.
In this world, level was an absolute measure—and the most important milestone.
Why?
‘Because everything obtainable in the Abyss depends on the Awakened’s level.’
For example, equipment.
Special, custom gear imbued with magic—only obtainable from the Abyss.
To fight the monsters of the Twelve Species, such gear was essential. And that gear’s level could never exceed the level of the Awakened who cleared the Abyss.
‘Damn it, even equipment comes with level restrictions.’
There are two metrics of “power” in equipment.
Namely, [Level] and [Grade].
Let’s say a level 10 Awakened acquires a level 10 sword.
That would be the strongest level of sword they can equip. But if the grade is poor, it could still perform worse than a lower-level, high-grade sword.
Conversely, even a low-level weapon with a high grade could outperform its peers to some extent.
Grade doesn’t matter as much—but the problem is level.
In the Abyss, you can’t acquire weapons above your own level.
And that, right there, was the decisive reason why Park Chan-woo couldn’t help but grimace.
‘…This means even if I clear the Abyss right now, I’ll only get gear at level -99.’
…How did it come to this?
Before his regression, Park Chan-woo’s level was 99.
Naturally, all his equipment was level 99-grade treasure.
As the one hailed as the strongest Magic Swordsman, he only wore gear so powerful it left others speechless.
Of course, if trading were possible, there’d be hope—but anything acquired in the Abyss can only be possessed and used by the one who obtained it.
Attempt to transfer it, and it vanishes.
‘A lot of people got burned early on because they didn’t understand the Abyss rules.’
They’d risked their lives to acquire gear, tools, or skill books—only to see them disappear after trying to pass them on. A bitter, irreversible mistake.
…Anyway.
Park Chan-woo double-checked his [Status Window], hoping—praying—it was just a bug.
* * *
Affiliation: Earth / Human / Republic of Korea
Name: Park Chan-woo
Age: 27
Gender: Male
Height/Weight: 180cm / 71kg
Level: -99
Strength (1)
Stamina (1)
Agility (1)
Intelligence (1)
Mana (1)
Status: Feeblest, Frail, Weak, Nonexistent, Terminal
* * *
“Cough!”
It wasn’t a mistake.
He gave a dumbfounded cough—and blood came out.
‘If a simple cough makes me spit blood and I feel completely drained, then this [Status Window] must be accurate.’
Park Chan-woo fully felt his own condition.
It was a goddamn mess, but it was reality.
He had a pretty good idea why this happened.
―I don’t care what it takes! If what I have isn’t enough, then sell my future too! If that’s still not enough, I’ll offer up my soul—!
At the mention that his offering was insufficient, Park Chan-woo had sold off his future.
Yeah. He’d sold it.
To the God of Offerings.
And this heinous [Status Window] was the result.
What was the point of turning back time like this?
Even just being frail was bad enough, but what did [Feeblest] mean? And [Weak]? What were those things after?
‘[Terminal]. I’m basically a walking time bomb.’
Literally.
It was enough to make him go insane.
Park Chan-woo took a deep breath.
If he got too agitated, his heart might actually explode.
“Awakened?”
“Status Window?”
“Whoa! Something really popped up!”
People in the park stared in awe at the newly appeared status windows.
Meanwhile, time continued to tick down.
《20 seconds remaining!》
《Earthlings, brace yourselves for impact!》
《The Abyss is about to open!》
Park Chan-woo quickened his steps toward the lake.
“Hey, look at that guy!”
“He’s just walking into the water?”
Ignoring the murmurs, Park Chan-woo waded in.
He submerged himself up to his neck, keeping only his head above water to monitor the situation.
Once the Abyss opens, this park will become hell.
There was no escaping it now—it was too late to run.
‘I don’t know if I can clear it in this condition.’
His physical state was terrible, but his memories and experience were intact.
He knew exactly what would happen and how to deal with it.
The first Abyss, right here in Lakeside Park, would spawn—
《Time’s up!》
《The Abyss opens!》
《Come out, come out, wherever you are~》
《Survive for 1 hour against the [Fallen Ghost (Lv.10)]!》
《This Abyss includes 881 participants.》
《Estimated survival rate: 21.7%》
《Higher-grade ‘Boxes’ will be awarded based on survival rate.》
《Multiple hidden quests exist. Don’t give up—challenge them!》
The [Fallen Ghost].
A level 10 monster and a hunter.
Not part of the Twelve Species. They wouldn’t show up for a while yet.
Still, it was more than enough to be a threat to humanity.
Without Abyss equipment, you couldn’t even dream of defeating Abyss monsters.
‘There is a way to get a weapon by completing a hidden quest and use it to defeat the Fallen Ghost…’
But in his current state, it was impossible.
Even if he cleared the quest, all he’d get is a weapon for level -99. He’d be better off cracking an egg over the monster’s head.
All Park Chan-woo could do was hide.
‘The Fallen Ghost hates water.’
He might be able to endure for a while.
Save people?
He needed to survive first.
To fight another day, he had to survive the first Abyss at all costs.
“The sky—it’s turning red!”
“What’s wrong with the ground?”
“W-What the hell is happening?”
When the [Abyss] opened, everything changed.
The sky, the ground, even the trees.
Nothing looked the same.
A crimson sky, cracked terrain, trees with hollow faces like human expressions, countless roots jutting up from the earth—
Screeeeeeeeech—
…and the grotesque howl of the approaching [Fallen Ghost].
“Kyaaaa!”
“A-A monster!”
A grotesque beast at least three meters tall.
An abnormal creature with giant ears, four noses, and eight eyes!
It stretched a hand toward the woman who had screamed first.
Slash!
SPLURT!
《The first death has occurred!》
Its elongated arm severed the woman’s neck.
Blood burst like a fountain, and panic instantly erupted.
“Someone just died—Aaaah!”
“H-Help me!”
《Seven have died.》
《874 survivors remaining.》
《Time remaining: 59 minutes, 12 seconds.》
A game deeply stacked against humans.
You must find a way to fight the [Fallen Ghost] and survive until then.
Even with everyone’s combined strength, it wouldn’t be enough—but in this chaos, only a few could remain calm and think.
‘…Damn it. This sucks.’
Among those few was Park Chan-woo, calmly analyzing the [Fallen Ghost] with a grimace.
In his current condition, there was nothing he could do.
All he could do was watch.
And yet, just standing there felt wrong.
Eventually, Park Chan-woo moved to the center of the lake.
The water was shallow enough that a bit of swimming brought him to the middle.
“Hup!”
Plugging his nose, he dove underwater and scanned the lakebed.
‘There it is.’
A box glowing golden.
A hidden quest—hidden equipment—was down there.
Park Chan-woo dove deeper and grabbed the radiant box.
《You have discovered a ‘Hidden Gold Box’!》
《You have acquired a random item of [Epic Grade]!》
《You now possess the ‘Lizard Slayer Blade (Lv-99, Epic)’!》
“Gasp! Gasp! Tch!”
Barely surfacing, he gasped for air.
A brief swim had already pushed his stamina to the limit.
A bitter taste rose to his mouth as if bile had reached his palate.
Turning his gaze, Park Chan-woo looked at the [Lizard Slayer Blade].
‘Just as I expected.’
Bad hunches never missed.
A level -99 weapon.
He had hoped otherwise, but reality struck again.
Gripping the sword engraved with a lizard, he stepped out of the water.
As he brushed his fingers along its blade, an info window popped up.
Name: Lizard Slayer Blade
Level: -99
Grade: Epic
Description: A blade imbued with the ‘Essence of the Lizard.’ While high in grade, its exceptionally low level prevents the essence from manifesting.
Equip Slot: One-handed weapon
Attack Power: 1
Unique Effect: Increases [Stamina] by 1.
Maybe it was the +1 stamina bonus—
But moving around felt easier than before.
‘A sword with 1 attack power!?’
He’d never seen a stat that low in his life.
Even a rusty blade would have at least 10 attack power.
Should he be grateful it wasn’t a negative number?
‘…Every item and object comes with a minimum threshold. Values can’t go below a certain floor.’
Minimum Threshold.
The absolute floor value that something could possess.
A weapon’s attack power, for instance, could never fall below 1.
Likewise, every stat in the [Status Window] was governed by this. No attribute could drop below 1—that was an unspoken rule.
Same for levels—never below 1.
Yet here he was.
At level -99.
Isn’t that strange?
Even if he sold his future, negative values were never meant to exist.
Likewise, wielding a 1-attack weapon to slay a [Fallen Ghost] should be impossible.
Even if Abyss gear could hurt monsters, the level difference between him and the [Fallen Ghost] was 109.
One hundred million level 1s couldn’t beat a single level 99—so what about a 109-level gap?
He’d die instantly.
“Hey! Ugly freak over there!”
Even so, Park Chan-woo shouted at the top of his lungs.
The [Fallen Ghost] had the sharpest hearing among its senses.
By now, most people had realized that it attacked anyone who made a noise.
Naturally, his voice reached the [Fallen Ghost] first.
Screeeeeeeeech—
But the [Fallen Ghost] didn’t even look his way.
‘…Just as I thought.’
Of all the things that nagged at him when he saw his status window after returning—
One stood out the most.
[Nonexistent].
Could mean he doesn’t exist—or has no presence.
He had never seen nor heard of such a status effect before, but if it was listed, that meant the effect was real and active.
And indeed, the [Fallen Ghost] didn’t recognize him at all.
Even when he shouted, it didn’t glance his way.
Just how far did this effect extend?
Park Chan-woo wondered.
‘…Actually, this could be a good thing.’
If the [Fallen Ghost] truly treated him like he was invisible—
…This might actually work.
Moreover—
‘What kind of reward would I get for slaying a monster with a 109-level difference?’
The curiosity of a mage was beginning to boil within him.
