Jin-Hoo trudged down the hallway of Sunbae High, his gaze fixed on the scuffed linoleum floors as the chatter of his classmates washed over him. It was the same every day—students flowing through the halls like a river, their lives intertwined with exams, social circles, and futures. But Jin-Hoo always felt like he was standing on the shore, watching from a distance. School, for him, was just a background process, something to get through before he could return home and dive into Legends of Valor.
He glanced up at the clock hanging above the lockers. Only a few more hours until freedom, until he could sink into his gaming chair and lose himself in the MMORPG he'd spent the past year mastering. In the game, he was Seric, the fearless warrior with maxed-out gear, taking on legendary quests. But here? He was just Jin-Hoo, the quiet kid with average grades and no remarkable talents.
As he turned the corner toward his next class, Jin-Hoo spotted her—Han Soo-Min. She stood by her locker, her long black hair catching the light as she rummaged through her bag. Soo-Min wasn't like the other girls in their grade. Sure, she was pretty, but there was something else—something mysterious about the way she carried herself, like she knew more than she let on. She had this aura of distance, as if she were always somewhere else in her mind. Jin-Hoo often found himself watching her, curious about the secrets she kept.
"Jin-Hoo!" A sharp voice cut through his thoughts.
Jin-Hoo blinked and turned to see Min-Jae jogging up to him, grinning as always. His best friend slapped him on the back, causing Jin-Hoo to stumble forward.
"Bro, you ready for tonight? New raid drops at 8. We're gonna crush it," Min-Jae said, his excitement palpable.
Jin-Hoo nodded, though his mind was still on Soo-Min, who had quietly closed her locker and was walking toward their classroom. "Yeah. I've been prepping for it all week."
"Of course you have," Min-Jae laughed. "You're obsessed. You've already got every item in the game. What more could you possibly need?"
Jin-Hoo shrugged, adjusting the strap of his backpack. "It's not about the loot. It's about the challenge."
Min-Jae groaned dramatically. "Always the noble warrior. I'm just in it for the epic gear."
As they made their way into the classroom, Jin-Hoo noticed Soo-Min sitting by the window, her usual spot. She was looking out into the distance, her expression thoughtful, as if she wasn't fully present in the room. The teacher, Ms. Park, droned on about world history, but Jin-Hoo's focus kept drifting toward Soo-Min.
He couldn't explain why, but something about her always felt different—like she didn't belong here, like she was a character from one of the fantastical worlds he played in. And today, there was something in the air, a strange tension he couldn't quite place.
Lunch break came, and Jin-Hoo and Min-Jae found their usual spot under a tree outside, where they could talk about Legends of Valor without interruption. As Min-Jae prattled on about his strategy for the raid, Jin-Hoo spotted Soo-Min again, sitting alone on a bench across the courtyard. She had her headphones in, completely lost in whatever she was listening to.
"You ever wonder about her?" Jin-Hoo asked suddenly, cutting off Min-Jae's monologue about skill rotations.
"Huh? Who?" Min-Jae followed his gaze. "Oh, Soo-Min? Yeah, she's kinda weird, huh? Always keeping to herself."
Jin-Hoo frowned. "Not weird. Just… different. Like, she knows something we don't."
Min-Jae raised an eyebrow. "Dude, you sound like you've been playing too much. You think she's some kind of NPC with a secret questline?"
Jin-Hoo didn't respond. Instead, he stood up, stuffing the rest of his sandwich into his mouth.
"Where are you going?" Min-Jae asked, his voice muffled by a mouthful of chips.
"I need to ask her something," Jin-Hoo said, though he wasn't sure what he was planning to ask.
As he approached Soo-Min, his heart began to race. She hadn't noticed him yet, her eyes still distant, her body language tense. He paused for a moment, wondering if this was a bad idea. But something inside him urged him forward.
"Soo-Min," he said softly, just loud enough to get her attention.
She looked up, pulling her headphones down around her neck. For a moment, her dark eyes met his, and Jin-Hoo felt a strange connection, like she was seeing through him, not at him.
"Jin-Hoo, right?" she asked, her voice soft but firm.
"Yeah," he said, scratching the back of his head awkwardly. "I, uh, just wanted to say hi."
Soo-Min raised an eyebrow, clearly not convinced that he had come over just to exchange pleasantries. "Hi."
An awkward silence settled between them, and Jin-Hoo felt like an idiot for not having a better reason to approach her.
"You play Legends of Valor, don't you?" she asked, catching him off guard.
"Yeah, how'd you know?" he asked, surprised she even knew what the game was.
Soo-Min gave a small, cryptic smile. "I've seen you online. You're Seric, right?"
Jin-Hoo's jaw dropped. "Wait, what? How do you know my character?"
"I'm not just some random girl, Jin-Hoo," she said quietly, glancing around to make sure no one was listening. "There's more going on in that game than you think. A lot more."
Jin-Hoo blinked, confusion flooding his mind. "What do you mean?"
Soo-Min leaned in closer, her voice dropping to a whisper. "There's another dimension—a real one—connected to the game. Some people, the ones who know, can cross over."
Jin-Hoo stared at her, half expecting her to laugh and say it was a joke. But her expression was dead serious. "That's impossible. Legends of Valor is just a game."
She shook her head. "No, it's not. It's a gateway."
Before Jin-Hoo could ask any more questions, the bell rang, signaling the end of lunch. Soo-Min stood, slinging her bag over her shoulder.
"Be careful tonight, Jin-Hoo," she said softly, turning to leave. "If you're not careful, you might find yourself somewhere you can't return from."
Jin-Hoo watched her walk away, his mind reeling from her words. He wanted to brush it off as some weird joke, but the look in her eyes told him otherwise. There was something she wasn't telling him—something he couldn't shake.
For the rest of the day, Jin-Hoo couldn't focus on anything. Soo-Min's words echoed in his mind. An alternate dimension? Connected to the game? It sounded ridiculous, but at the same time, the way she had said it, the certainty in her voice, made him wonder.
That night, as he sat down at his computer to log into Legends of Valor, Jin-Hoo hesitated for the first time in months. His finger hovered over the mouse, Soo-Min's warning replaying in his head.
"Be careful."
He shook his head, trying to shake off the unease. It was just a game. There was no way any of it could be real.
But as the familiar game world loaded, Jin-Hoo couldn't help but feel like tonight was going to be different.
And for the first time in his life, he wasn't sure if that was a good thing.