Consciousness returned slowly.
Like something dragging him up from the bottom of a deep, endless ocean.
Park Jison's fingers twitched first.
Then his eyelids fluttered open.
But what he saw—
Wasn't the gap behind the school.
Wasn't the cracked concrete, or the narrow walls, or the faint morning light.
Everything had changed.
He was lying in a vast, silent space.
Black.
Endless black.
And within that darkness… faint streaks of crimson light drifted like veins pulsing through a living void. They moved slowly, almost rhythmically, as if the space itself was breathing.
Jison didn't move at first.
His mind couldn't catch up.
"…huh…?"
A weak sound escaped his lips.
He blinked several times, trying to focus, trying to make sense of what he was seeing—but nothing changed. The strange black-crimson world remained exactly the same.
His body tensed slightly.
That's when he noticed something even stranger.
The pain was gone.
Completely gone.
His nose—fine.
His body—light.
No dizziness. No weakness. No burning agony tearing through his muscles.
Nothing.
"…what…?"
Confusion replaced the fading remnants of pain.
Slowly, cautiously, he pushed himself up.
This time—
His arms didn't shake.
His body didn't collapse.
He stood up effortlessly.
Jison froze in place.
He moved his hands, clenched his fists, shifted his weight from one leg to the other.
Perfect.
He was perfectly fine.
"…What the fuck…"
The words slipped out under his breath.
His breathing became uneven again—not from pain this time, but from something far more unsettling.
He turned his head, scanning the endless void around him.
Black.
Crimson streaks.
Nothing else.
"Where am I…?"
His voice echoed faintly, swallowed almost instantly by the vast emptiness.
He turned again, faster this time, his eyes darting around as if expecting something to jump out at him.
"What is this place…? All black… with crimson lights…"
There was no answer.
No sound.
No presence.
Just him.
Alone.
His thoughts began to spiral.
This place… it wasn't something he had ever seen.
Never heard of.
Never imagined.
A cold realization crept into his mind.
Slow.
Heavy.
Unavoidable.
His legs gave out beneath him as he dropped to his knees.
His hands gripped his head tightly, fingers digging into his hair.
"What…?"
His voice trembled.
"…Am I really…"
Tears began to form at the corners of his eyes, blurring his already unstable vision.
"…dead?"
The word felt unreal.
Impossible.
"How the fuck can I die like this…?"
His voice cracked, breaking completely as the emotions he had been suppressing flooded out.
"My fami—"
He couldn't finish.
The thought alone was too much.
Too heavy.
But then—
It appeared again.
That light.
Right in front of him.
The same black-crimson glow he had seen before losing consciousness.
It hovered silently, flickering softly like a heartbeat.
Jison froze.
His tear-filled eyes locked onto it.
His face twisted awkwardly from crying, his expression almost distorted.
"What is this…?"
His voice was hoarse, uneven, barely holding together.
Slowly, hesitantly, he raised his hand.
His fingers trembled slightly as he reached toward the light.
"…Is this the last thing I'm seeing…?"
A bitter, broken whisper.
His fingertips touched it.
The moment contact was made—
The light flickered sharply.
And then—
A screen appeared.
A translucent, crimson holographic screen, floating right in front of him.
Jison flinched slightly, his eyes widening in shock.
"What the fuck…?"
The screen was blank at first.
Just a glowing red surface.
His breathing grew heavier as he stared at it, completely unable to process what was happening.
Then—
Text began to appear.
Slowly.
Line by line.
---
[Do You Accept Login Quest System]
[YES] [NO]
---
Jison's eyes widened even further.
His mind froze for a second—
Then exploded with recognition.
"Wait…"
His voice trembled, but there was something new mixed into it.
Something like disbelief.
"Is this… a system…?"
Images from novels he had read flashed through his mind.
Protagonists.
Quests.
Power.
"No way…"
A shaky laugh escaped him.
"No fucking way this is real…"
His face was still wet with tears, his voice still broken—but despite that, a faint, almost insane smile began to form.
If this was real…
If this was actually happening…
Then—
Without hesitation, he raised his hand and pressed the glowing option.
[YES]
"Well, I don't care…" he muttered, a strange excitement creeping into his tone. "…if this makes me the main character."
The moment he selected it—
Everything went dark.
His eyes shut on their own.
And then—
They opened again.
Jison blinked.
The black-crimson space was gone.
He was back.
Behind the school.
Inside the narrow gap.
Lying on the cold ground exactly where he had collapsed before.
"…huh…?"
He quickly pushed himself up.
And stood.
Easily.
Too easily.
His body responded perfectly, as if nothing had ever happened.
No pain.
No injuries.
Nothing.
His hand shot up to his face, touching his nose carefully.
"…what…?"
It didn't hurt.
Not even a little.
His breathing slowed as confusion took over again.
What the fuck… was that…?
He looked around.
The same gap.
The same walls.
The same reality.
He let out a long breath.
"…yeah…"
He muttered to himself, trying to stabilize his thoughts.
"…I was dreaming."
It had to be.
There was no other explanation.
No fucking way something like that was real.
Still…
His fingers lingered on his nose.
Perfectly healed.
And somewhere deep inside him—
A quiet doubt remained.
Jison took a slow breath and stepped forward, leaving the suffocating narrow gap behind him.
Each step felt… strange.
Too light.
Too normal.
The fuck… my mind's gone mad because of that fatty's punch.
He ran a hand through his hair, trying to steady himself, trying to convince himself that everything he had just experienced was nothing more than a fucked-up hallucination.
A dream.
Yeah.
That had to be it.
He took another step.
Then another.
And then—
It appeared again.
Right in front of him.
A crimson holographic screen.
Jison froze mid-step.
His body stiffened instantly, his pupils shrinking as the screen flickered into existence like it had been waiting for him.
"...What the fuck…?"
The words came out as a whisper this time.
Not loud.
Not panicked.
Just… stunned.
Text began to form on the screen.
---
[Date: July 7, 2026]
[Time: 11:35 AM]
-->[Login]<--
---
Jison instinctively stepped back.
His heel scraped against the ground as his breathing became uneven again.
Wtf… I thought it was a dream…
His eyes locked onto the glowing text, scanning it again and again as if it might suddenly change.
Or… am I still dreaming?
He swallowed hard.
Then something clicked.
His gaze sharpened slightly.
Wait…
He looked closer.
The date.
The time.
That's today…
A faint realization crept in.
And… yeah… that's the current time…
As if responding to his thoughts—
The numbers shifted.
---
[Date: July 7, 2026]
[Time: 11:36 AM]
-->[Login]<--
---
Jison's breath hitched.
He watched the time change in real time.
One minute.
Exactly one minute.
"…shit…"
This wasn't random.
This wasn't broken.
This wasn't a dream.
His heartbeat quickened, thumping loudly in his chest.
This is real…
The thought felt insane.
But everything in front of him was proving it.
Slowly, cautiously, he raised his hand.
His finger hovered in front of the glowing option.
For a brief moment, hesitation flickered across his face.
Then—
He pressed it.
[Login]
The screen reacted instantly.
It flickered once, then shifted—
The previous text vanished, replaced by something new.
---
[Login Completed]
[Quest: School Is Boring]
[Objective: Skip School]
[Reward: (Random Skill ×1)]
---
Jison stared at it.
His mind went blank.
"…What…?"
Then it hit him.
"WHAT THE FUCK?!"
His voice echoed louder this time, filled with disbelief and panic.
"Skip school?! No, no, no… I've never done that shit in my whole life!"
His hands shot up to his head, gripping his hair tightly as if trying to hold his thoughts together.
"This is crazy… this is fucking crazy…"
He crouched down near the wall, his back hunched, his fingers moving to his mouth as he began biting his nails anxiously.
His breathing turned erratic.
Sweat started forming on his forehead, sliding down the sides of his face.
Why the fuck does this system want me to skip school…?
His thoughts spiraled rapidly.
This is bad… what if a teacher catches me? What if someone sees me? What if—
"No… no… I can't do this…"
His voice trembled as he muttered to himself, shaking his head repeatedly.
"I can't…"
But then—
The screen appeared again.
Closer this time.
Right in front of his face.
Jison flinched, his eyes widening as new text forced itself into his vision.
---
[Warning!]
[If Host Did Not Complete His Quest, The System Window Will Not Appear Again]
---
Silence.
Absolute silence.
Jison stared at the warning.
His thoughts stopped.
Completely.
The weight of those words settled in.
No system.
No rewards.
No… whatever the hell this was.
Gone.
Forever.
His breathing slowed.
Then deepened.
Something shifted in his expression.
The fear didn't disappear—
But something darker crept in alongside it.
Hesitation.
Conflict.
Desperation.
His fingers slowly lowered from his mouth.
His body straightened.
He stood up.
This time—
There was no trembling.
No visible panic.
Just a quiet, heavy tension.
"…fuck…"
He muttered under his breath.
Then—
Without another word—
He turned.
Walked out of the gap.
And instead of heading toward the school building—
He chose the opposite direction.
Toward the exit.
Each step carried uncertainty.
But he didn't stop.
Not this time.