Thirty years ago, underground labyrinths—more commonly known as dungeons—suddenly appeared all over the world.
Countries across the globe sent their troops to explore the dungeons and discovered that they concealed countless opportunities for humanity.
From magic crystals that could replace fossil fuels to miraculous potions capable of curing all kinds of diseases.
Realizing the immense potential, every nation began actively sending forces to explore the dungeons. However, due to the high demand for magic stones and other resources, governments could no longer supply the market.
As a result, they chose to open the dungeons to the public. Thanks to that decision, a new age began—an era people would later call the age of great adventurers.
Adventurers were the term for dungeon explorers. They fought monsters to raise their levels and earned money by selling crystals and valuable items found inside the dungeons.
A skilled adventurer could earn billions in a single month, prompting millions of people to try becoming adventurers themselves. As a consequence, death cases were reported everywhere, caused by human carelessness and greed.
The government was forced to review the regulations regarding adventurers. Eventually, they decided that only those who had awakened were allowed to become adventurers.
Previously, anyone could be an adventurer, but the new rules stated that only people with abilities were permitted to take on the job. It sounded unfair, but the rule was created to prevent needless deaths.
This regulation was applied simultaneously across the world, so everyone felt its effects immediately and without exception.
In truth, the rule wasn't even necessary, since non-awakened adventurers were already quitting on their own. Aside from the fear of dying, they realized that real-world jobs yielded more income than being an adventurer without abilities.
Because of this, the number of adventurers worldwide dropped drastically. The awakened were very few—out of a thousand people, at most only twenty-five would awaken.
After the initial chaos settled, the era of great adventurers continued to this day. Currently, adventurer is one of the most promising and desirable careers among young people.
.....
My name is Akio. Today, I finally turned eighteen and was ready to undergo the awakening ceremony at the Temanggung branch of the Adventurer Association.
Although it was called an awakening ceremony, it didn't guarantee that I would awaken an ability and become a great adventurer. You could say the awakening ceremony was merely a stimulant meant to trigger the awakening of those with talent.
If someone lacked the talent to become one of the awakened, then undergoing the ceremony would be pointless.
"Think again—I'm always lucky when buying lottery tickets to the point the shop auntie scolds me. And yesterday I even found a four-leaf clover, a symbol of luck. I definitely have the talent to awaken—definitely!"
"Number sixty-six, please come in!"
"Finally, it's my turn."
Feeling nervous, I stepped into the special room for the awakening ceremony.
"Your name is Akio?" the association staff asked, wearing a professional smile.
"Yes."
"Today is your eighteenth birthday?"
"That's right."
"Happy birthday. Please place your hand there."
He pointed at a glass sphere one meter in diameter placed at the center of the room, without even looking at my face.
"Ugh, alright."
"No need to be nervous. Awakening can't be forced. If you don't have the talent, there are still plenty of career paths you can take, like becoming an association staff member like me."
"..."
I knew he was trying to calm me down, but the opposite happened. Instead of relaxing, I grew even more nervous and hesitated to touch the glass sphere.
"Akio? I know you're nervous and unsure, but there are many young people waiting behind you for their turn."
"Ugh, sorry… I'll touch it now."
With a pounding heart, I reached out and touched the sphere.
One second passed—nothing happened.
Two seconds passed—still nothing.
Three seconds—nothing.
Four seconds—still nothing.
Five seconds—still absolutely nothing.
"Sigh…"
The association staff let out a breath, and my heart shattered along with my expectations.
'So I really can't awaken?'
Just as despair washed over me, the glass sphere reacted and emitted a beautiful pink light.
"I awakened! I awakened!"
The staff jolted at my shout. He stared at the sphere and rubbed his eyes repeatedly to make sure he wasn't seeing things.
"Pink? Looks like I need to get my eyes checked later."
I didn't hear what he said—I was way too excited.
"Congratulations! You've officially awakened and are now eligible to work as an adventurer," he said, sharing my happiness.
I nodded energetically and approached him to register for my adventurer license.
Those confirmed to have awakened could immediately register as adventurers to obtain a license.
The adventurer license served as an identification card recognized by every country in the world. In other words, adventurers no longer needed passports to travel abroad.
The registration process wasn't complicated—just show your ID card or student card, and the association staff would handle the rest.
A few minutes later, I finally received my adventurer license. It looked like a national ID card but with a chip like a debit card.
"Ha ha ha! Now I can enter my first dungeon!"
Clap! Clap! Clap!
"Congratulations! I hope you become a successful adventurer someday."
I nodded and left, unable to wipe the happy smile off my face.
"Alright, time to head to the dungeon and see what ability I got!"
.....
Inside the beginner dungeon, I stared at my status screen with a confused expression.
"Harem Leveling? What kind of weird ability is this?" I muttered while opening its description.
It said that Harem Leveling was a unique ability that increased leveling efficiency inside dungeons. I had no idea how effective it was, since I couldn't test it without a female partner.
A girl could only be considered a partner if we held hands for more than one minute. Honestly, that condition was pretty tough—I never had a girlfriend, and aside from my mom and little sister, I rarely spoke to any girls.
"Should I just give up on this ability? Even though it's a shame to waste a unique skill, there's nothing I can do."
It was disappointing, but I quickly felt better after remembering that my main goal had already been achieved: becoming an adventurer.
Even if my ability was useless, I could still level up in the beginner dungeon until I became strong enough to explore higher-level ones.
Punyu!
A blue slime suddenly appeared in front of me.
Without hesitation, I lifted my baseball bat and swung it hard.
Pyar!
The slime burst like a soap bubble violently popped.
(Obtained a small amount of experience points)
"Alright, time to level up! Slime-chan, here I come!"
... .. .
To be continued...