Chapter 1 - "Error: Respawn Detected"

The summer sun blazed over Seoul, turning the air thick and suffocating. The streets buzzed with car's honking, street vendors calling, pedestrians weaving through the endless crowd. But for Seojin, it was just another exhausting day.

Sweat clung to his skin as he trudged home, his cheap sneakers slapping against the pavement. In his hand, a half-empty can of soda offered little relief from the heat. His apartment wasn't far, but every step felt heavier than the last.

Seojin wasn't special. Just another face in the crowd. Another struggling university student from a lower-middle-class family,

living in a cramped apartment with parents who worked themselves to the bone. No matter how hard he tried, the weight of his

circumstances never budged. When he finally reached his building, he barely had the energy to climb the stairs. His apartment

was small, old, and smelled faintly of dust.

The moment he shut the door behind him, he collapsed onto the thin carpet, staring at the cracked ceiling.

"Another day, another failure," he thought bitterly.

The pressure to succeed, to be something more, had long since turned into suffocating

hopelessness. His friends didn't understand. His family barely noticed.

Frustrated, Seojin reached for his laptop and booted up his favorite game. The loading screen flickered to life, and for a brief moment, the weight on his chest lifted. In the game world, things made sense. Progress was clear. Effort meant rewards.

But just as he started playing, his throat dried. The summer heat was creeping back into his bones. He glanced at the empty soda can on his desk and groaned. He needed a drink. Dragging himself up, he stepped outside.

The city's energy hit him instantly-cars zooming past, pedestrians chatting, vendors shouting their deals. Seoul was alive, vibrant, indifferent. Seojin barely noticed. His mind was foggy with exhaustion, and he didn't hear the truck barreling toward him from behind.

A deafening screech. A roar of an engine. A blinding flash of white. Then-nothing.

-----------------------------------------

He woke up on cold stone.

His body ached. His breath came in short, panicked gasps. The air smelled ancient-dust, candle wax, something metallic. This wasn't Seoul. Seojin pushed himself up, his palms pressing against the freezing floor. Towering tapestries lined the massive chamber, each depicting battles against monstrous creatures, warriors locked in combat, and shadowy figures lurking in the

dark. A chill ran through his spine. His pulse pounded in his ears as he scanned the room.

What is this place?

Then-he saw him.

A tall, imposing man stood at the far end of the room, draped in regal black. His hair was stark white, his blood-red eyes gleaming with amusement. Power radiated from him, suffocating the air itself.

Seojin's breath hitched. His instincts screamed at him to run.

The man smirked. "Confused, human? How pathetic." His voice was deep, smooth-yet sharp enough to slice through bone.

Seojin took a shaky step back. The figure moved.

Faster than thought, faster than sight-he was already there. A hand clamped around Seojin's throat, lifting him effortlessly. Air refused to enter his lungs.

The man's grin widened, revealing fangs. "Delicious."

Terror surged through Seojin's veins. He tried to fight, to kick, to claw, but the grip was unbreakable. His vision blurred. His body trembled.

And then-

With a brutal flick of his wrist, the vampire ripped through him. Agony exploded through Seojin's being as his body split in two.

Darkness swallowed everything.

Then-a sound.

A distorted buzz in the void.

[Error: Respawn Detected]

Pain vanished. Death unraveled.

Seojin gasped, his vision snapping back into focus.

He was no longer in that cursed hall. Instead, he lay on a patch of soft grass, the air fresh, the scent of earth grounding him. His body was bandaged, aching but intact. Around him, a small village bustled-simple cottages, villagers going about their lives, unaware of the horror he had just endured.

Seojin's heart hammered against his ribs. What... happened?

Had he died? Was this a dream?

Before he could process the insanity of it all, a glowing notification materialized in the corner of his vision-a hologram-like interface, hovering before his eyes.

[Requirements met to inherit the powers of the Demon King.]

Seojin froze.

What.

The Demon King?

His mind reeled. That vampire-had he transferred his powers into him? But why?

His hands trembled. His body felt the same... but something inside him had changed.

Something dangerous.

He swallowed hard, confusion and fear swirling inside him. But beneath it all, something else lurked- A foreign power pulsed beneath his skin, dark and unfamiliar.

Then-

[ERROR: UNREGISTERED ENTITY DETECTED]

A sudden jolt of pain ripped through his skull. Seojin doubled over, clutching his head as a deafening alarm-like noise echoed inside his mind.

> [WARNING: ANOMALY DETECTED]

[Designation: ???]

[Synchronization Halted—Unknown Variable Present]

[Emergency Protocols Engaged]

His vision fractured.

For a split second, he saw something else.

A dark throne. Chains wrapped around an unseen figure. An eye, massive and ancient, snapping open in the abyss.

Then—his own reflection, but wrong.

His eyes weren't brown anymore. They glowed—a deep, pulsating crimson.

> [Forceful Termination in 10… 9… 8…]

Seojin's breath hitched. Forceful termination?

He didn't know what was happening, but one thing was clear—something was trying to erase him.

> [Override Attempt Initiated…]

[Entity: ??? Rejects Forced Deletion]

[Processing… Processing… Processing…]

The countdown stopped.

A new notification flickered to life.

> [SCENARIO CLEANERS DEPLOYED]

[Threat Level: Low – Target Elimination in Progress]

Seojin barely had time to process the message when the air around him distorted.

They appeared.

Twisted, insect-like humanoids crawled out of thin air, their elongated limbs clicking against the ground. Their hollow, featureless faces twitched as they turned toward him. Their only purpose—to erase anomalies.

> [System Correction in Progress… Eliminating Foreign Entity.]

Seojin stumbled backward, his heart pounding. What the hell were these things?!

One of them lunged.

Move!

Instinct took over. He grabbed a thick wooden stick lying beside him and swung with everything he had. The impact cracked against the creature's exoskeleton, sending it skidding back—but it barely seemed fazed.

The others rushed in.

Seojin gritted his teeth. His head felt like it was splitting apart, his vision flashing with red warnings. His body screamed in pain, but he forced himself to fight.

> [System Synchronization Delayed Due to External Interference.]

What?!

His powers—whatever they were—weren't activating.

All he had was a wooden stick and a will to survive.

One of the creatures swung its clawed arm. Seojin barely ducked in time, feeling the wind from the attack graze his cheek. His muscles burned. His headache intensified.

He swung wildly, smashing the stick onto another creature's head, shattering it. The monster collapsed, shrieking.

But there were more.

And he was losing strength.

One of them leaped toward him, claws raised to tear him apart.

> [Demonic Synchronization at 10%.]

[Suppression Failing…]

[Unsealing…]

Seojin's body convulsed. His vision blurred. A dark energy surged from within, wrapping around him like tendrils of shadow.

The creatures froze.

And in that moment, something inside Seojin awoke.