4:20 PM – A Familiar Yet Foreign Home
The moment he stepped inside, the quiet whispers began.
"The Young Master really came back…"
"I thought he was dead…"
"Something's different about him."
The staff lined up out of respect, offering bows as he passed. Not out of fear, but out of genuine care. The Han family never mistreated their employees—his parents were respected, not just obeyed.
Yet, despite the harmony—despite the warmth in their gazes—Kyung-min felt like a stranger in his own home.
His father and mother had already gone ahead, handling legal procedures with the Awakener Association and their legal team. His sister trailed behind him, eyeing him carefully.
They all expected something from him.
A reaction. A sense of relief. Maybe even a sign of gratitude.
But he felt nothing.
He climbed the grand staircase, passing through hallways that once held childhood memories.
Nothing had changed.
Everything had changed.
4:30 PM – Alone With His Thoughts
His room was exactly as he had left it.
Pristine. Untouched.
Like a shrine to the person he had been before.
He ran a hand over his desk, his fingers trailing over the faint layer of dust.
A year had passed.
And yet, standing here—it felt like no time had passed at all.
His jaw tightened.
He sat down on the edge of his bed.
And for the first time since returning—he let himself think.
The crater. The forest below.
It wasn't just a hole in the earth.
It had been something else.
Something wrong.
His sister said it had always been there.
But he knew better.
The dungeon where he had changed—where he had become something more—it should have been there.
And now, it wasn't.
Erased? Hidden? Or something else entirely?
He exhaled sharply.
It doesn't matter now.
He didn't have the answers.
And dwelling on it wouldn't get him anywhere.
For now—he had other things to worry about.
5:00 PM – The Awakener Association's Visit
A knock at the door.
Kyung-min already knew who it was.
He opened it.
Choi Tae-hyun stood at the entrance.
Dressed in a dark suit, his expression was as unreadable as before.
"Han Kyung-min," he greeted smoothly. "May I come in?"
Kyung-min leaned against the doorway, arms crossed.
"You tracked me here?"
Tae-hyun's lips twitched slightly.
"The Association doesn't need to track people. We just follow up on unusual awakenings."
Kyung-min exhaled through his nose.
"And you think I'm unusual?"
"A missing person reappearing in a C-rank dungeon after a year with no records of awakening?" Tae-hyun's head tilted slightly. "Yes. I'd say that qualifies as unusual."
Kyung-min met his gaze evenly.
"I don't remember."
A beat of silence.
Then—Tae-hyun smiled.
"Of course you don't."
He didn't press.
Didn't push.
He simply nodded.
"If you ever do remember… the Association would be happy to hear it."
A pause.
Then—
"Take care, Han Kyung-min."
And with that—he left.
5:30 PM – His Sister's Suspicion
Kyung-min sat on the rooftop balcony, staring at the sky.
His sister sat beside him.
For a long moment, she was silent.
Then—
"You're different."
Kyung-min didn't react.
She continued.
"You're stronger than an E-rank."
Her voice was careful. Testing.
Kyung-min sighed.
"Think I faked my awakening?"
"No."
Her fingers curled against her sleeves.
"You're hiding something."
Kyung-min didn't answer.
Because she wasn't wrong.
Instead—
He reached out.
Messed up her hair.
She scowled.
"That's not an answer!"
He smirked slightly.
"Then stop asking."
6:30 PM – Checking His Status
Kyung-min finally opened his status window.
🔹 [STATUS WINDOW – HAN KYUNG-MIN]
🔹 Level: 1
🔹 Rank: E
🔹 Class: Revenant Necromancer
🔹 HP: 335/335
🔹 MP: 525/525
Attributes:
🔹 Strength: 20
🔹 Agility: 25
🔹 Stamina: 25
🔹 Intelligence: 60
🔹 Perception: 30
🔹 Free Stat Points: 0
Active Skills:
🔹 Summon Zombies (Lv.1)
(Revives nearby corpses temporarily. Mana Cost: 10 MP per summon.)
🔹 Summon Skeletons (Lv.1)
(Summons 5 skeletal warriors. No corpse required. Cooldown: 5 seconds. Mana Cost: 10 MP per summon.)
🔹 Abyss Step (Lv.1)
(Moves through shadows. Can now carry others. Cooldown: 5 seconds. Mana Cost: 10 MP.)
Passive Skills:
🔹 Undead Persistence (Lv.1)
(Summoned creatures last 10% longer before decaying.)
🔹 Mana Affinity (Lv.1)
(Slightly reduces mana consumption when summoning undead.)
He scowled.
Everything was weak.
He needed to get stronger.
7:00 PM – The Path Forward
For the next two months—
He would lay low.
Train.
And when the time came—
He wouldn't be weak anymore.
7:30 PM – The Weight of Normalcy
The house was quiet.
Kyung-min sat at his desk, hands clasped as he stared at his status window one last time.
It was pathetic.
No, he was pathetic.
This system—this damned system—had stripped him bare. It had taken everything he had fought for.
His fingers tightened into fists.
But he wouldn't stay like this.
Weak. Helpless. Powerless.
Not again.
He closed the window with a slow exhale. Dwelling on his loss wouldn't change anything.
His gaze shifted to the window, where the city lights flickered in the distance. The world had moved on without him.
And yet—here he was. Starting from the bottom.
The sound of soft footsteps approaching his door pulled him from his thoughts.
A familiar knock.
His butler.
"Young Master," the voice came from beyond the door. "Dinner has been prepared."
Kyung-min hesitated for a moment.
He wasn't particularly hungry.
But this was his first night home in a year.
And his family was waiting.
"…I'll be there," he finally said.
7:45 PM – A Seat at the Table
Dinner was a quiet affair.
His father sat at the head of the long table, his mother beside him. His sister sat across from him, eyeing him carefully between bites.
The staff moved silently, bringing out course after course of food.
Kyung-min ate in silence.
His mother was the first to speak.
"Do you feel alright, Kyung-min?"
He looked up, meeting her worried gaze.
"I'm fine," he said simply.
His father set his utensils down. "You need rest. You shouldn't push yourself too fast."
Kyung-min nearly scoffed. Rest?
After everything?
After a year of surviving hell?
After losing everything?
But he didn't argue.
Instead, he gave a small nod.
His sister narrowed her eyes slightly, not believing a word of it.
"Oppa," she started carefully. "You're planning something, aren't you?"
Kyung-min paused.
He didn't answer right away.
Because the truth was—yes. He was planning something.
And she knew it.
But she wasn't ready to hear it.
Not yet.
So instead—he just smirked slightly.
"You think too much."
She scowled. "You do too much."
Their mother chuckled softly, the tension breaking just a little.
"At least some things never change."
But Kyung-min knew—everything had changed.
9:00 PM – A Return to Discipline
After dinner, Kyung-min returned to his room.
He didn't sleep.
He didn't rest.
Instead—he trained.
The private gym in the estate was still the same as he had left it. State-of-the-art equipment, a large sparring space, and everything an awakener could need.
He stood in front of the mirror, staring at himself.
An E-rank.
He clenched his fists.
That would change.
Tonight—he would start.
He dropped into a stance.
And began.
10:30 PM – Pushing Limits
Sweat dripped down his face. His breath came in steady, controlled exhales.
Every movement was calculated.
Every strike, every shadow step—practiced over and over.
His skills were weak.
So he would refine them.
He activated Abyss Step, flickering from one end of the gym to the other. The cooldown reset—again. He used it immediately, faster, more efficiently.
His mana pool was small.
So he would build his endurance.
He summoned skeletons—five at a time. Let them stand for as long as his mana allowed. When they decayed, he summoned again.
It wasn't enough.
Not yet.
12:00 AM – A Long Road Ahead
Hours passed.
Kyung-min stood in the middle of the gym, breath steady, muscles burning.
He checked his mana.
Nearly empty.
A bitter smirk crossed his lips.
This was going to take time.
But that was fine.
He had nothing but time.
For the next two months—
He would train.
He would grow.
And when the time came—
He would no longer be weak.