[Stage 2 will begin in 10 minutes. Use this time to rest and prepare.]
I sat against the cold stone wall, eyes closed, listening to the sounds around me.
Crying. Vomiting. Someone praying in the corner.
Jun-ho was sitting a few meters away, still clutching his sword. His hands were shaking.
'Twenty-eight survivors.'
Four dead in the first stage. Four people who'd been standing next to me minutes ago, now just corpses being slowly consumed by dungeon monsters in that chamber behind us.
I should've felt something.
Guilt. Horror. Grief.
But when I searched my chest for those emotions, I found... nothing.
Just cold calculation.
'We need to organize.'
I opened my status window.
[Name: Park Min-jae]
[Level: 2]
[Title: First Blood (Awarded for first kill in tutorial)]
[Class: None]
[Stats]
[Strength: 9]
[Agility: 10]
[Stamina: 11]
[Intelligence: 18]
[Endurance: 13]
[Luck: 8]
[Magic: 00]
[Stat Points Available: 5]
Five points.
The system's reward for leveling up.
I considered the distribution carefully. In the operating room, every decision mattered. One wrong choice and the patient died. This was no different.
'Strength won't help much. My advantage is precision, not power.'
'Agility though...'
If I could move faster, strike faster, I could exploit weak points before enemies could react.
I allocated three points to Agility, two to Endurance.
[Agility: 10 → 13]
[Endurance: 13 → 15]
Immediately, I felt the difference. My muscles felt... lighter. More responsive. Like the difference between a dull scalpel and a freshly sharpened one.
"Hyung-nim."
I opened my eyes.
Jun-ho was standing in front of me, still pale but standing.
"Don't call me hyung-nim. Just Min-jae is fine."
"But you're older—"
"We're in a dungeon where formality doesn't matter." I stood up, testing my improved agility. "You did well back there."
"I didn't do anything. I just... I just ran."
"You survived. That's what matters."
He looked down at his sword, still stained with ghoul blood.
"I killed one. Just one. And I almost threw up."
"But you didn't."
"How are you so calm?" His voice cracked. "You killed nine of those things like it was nothing."
'Good question.'
How was I so calm?
Ten years of medical training. Thousands of hours cutting into human bodies. Maybe that had desensitized me. Or maybe there was something wrong with me to begin with.
I'd always wondered why other residents broke down during their first trauma surgery while I just... worked.
"I'm a doctor," I said simply. "I'm used to blood."
It wasn't the whole truth, but it was enough.
"Listen," I continued, "Stage 2 is starting soon. We need to—"
"Everyone! Gather around!"
A voice cut through the chamber.
I turned.
A man was standing in the center of the open space—mid-thirties, muscular build, holding a wooden shield and sword. His voice carried authority.
'Leadership type.'
About fifteen survivors started moving toward him. The rest stayed where they were, too shocked or traumatized to respond.
I watched carefully.
[Surgical Precision activating...]
[Target: Unknown Male]
[Weak Points: Standard human vulnerabilities]
[Physical Assessment: Above average strength, good endurance, no combat training]
Interesting.
My attribute let me assess people too, not just monsters.
"My name is Park Deok-gu!" the man announced. "I know we're all scared. I know we just watched people die. But if we want to survive, we need to work together!"
'Park Deok-gu.'
The name stirred something. Confident. Loud. The type who'd been popular in school, good at sports, probably never questioned his place in the world.
The opposite of me.
"We need to form groups!" Deok-gu continued. "People who can fight in front, people who can't in the back. We protect each other. That's how we survive!"
Noble words.
Naive words.
I stayed where I was, leaning against the wall.
"Min-jae-ssi," Jun-ho whispered. "Shouldn't we join them?"
"Not yet."
"But—"
"Watch."
I wanted to see how this played out. In surgery, you observed before you cut. Same principle here.
More people gathered around Deok-gu. A middle-aged woman. Two young guys who looked like college students. An older man in a security guard uniform.
"Good!" Deok-gu smiled, trying to project confidence. "See? We're stronger together! Now, those of you who grabbed weapons, raise your hands!"
About ten hands went up.
"Perfect! You're our front line. The rest of you, stay in the middle. If anything gets through us, run to the back—"
"And then what?"
I spoke up.
Everyone turned to look at me.
Deok-gu's smile faltered. "What?"
I pushed off the wall and walked toward the group slowly.
"I said, and then what? If monsters break through your front line, what exactly do you expect the people in the back to do?"
"They... they run."
"Run where? We're in a dungeon. There's nowhere to run to except forward."
Silence.
I could see the reality dawning on their faces.
"Who are you?" Deok-gu asked, defensive now.
"Park Min-jae. Doctor."
"Doctor..." He looked at my hospital badge, still clipped to my shirt. "Okay, Doctor Park. If you have a better idea, let's hear it."
'Careful.'
I wasn't trying to take over. Leadership meant responsibility, and responsibility meant people would blame you when things went wrong.
I just wanted to survive.
"I don't have a better idea," I said honestly. "Your plan is fine. Form groups, protect the weak. It's logical."
Deok-gu relaxed slightly. "Then what's the problem?"
"The problem is you're assuming we can protect everyone." I looked around at the gathered survivors. "We can't. Stage 1 proved that. Four people died, and that was just the tutorial's warm-up."
"So what do you suggest?" a woman asked. "We just abandon people?"
"I'm suggesting we be realistic." I kept my voice even. Clinical. "Some of us will die. That's not pessimism, it's statistics. The system said only the worthy survive. That means not everyone here is making it out."
"That's horrible," someone muttered.
"It's truth."
Deok-gu stepped forward, positioning himself between me and the group.
"Listen to me," he said firmly. "I don't care what this guy says. We're not abandoning anyone. We stick together, we fight together, we survive together. That's it."
Murmurs of agreement.
I almost smiled.
'Good.'
Let him believe that. Let them all believe it.
When reality crushed that belief, they'd break. And broken people made mistakes.
I'd survive their mistakes.
"Fair enough," I said, stepping back. "I hope you're right."
[Stage 2 beginning in 60 seconds.]
The announcement cut through the tension.
People scrambled to their positions. Deok-gu's group formed a rough line—shield bearers in front, sword users behind them, unarmed survivors in the back.
I stayed off to the side with Jun-ho.
"Why didn't you join them?" he asked.
"Because groups slow you down."
"But don't you think—"
"Jun-ho." I looked at him directly. "In an operating room, there's a hierarchy. Attending surgeon at the top, residents below, nurses and techs supporting. Everyone has a role. Everyone follows protocol."
"Okay?"
"But if the patient starts dying, protocol goes out the window. The only thing that matters is who can save them. Not seniority, not position. Competence."
I hefted my short sword.
"This dungeon is the same. Deok-gu can play leader all he wants. When things go wrong—and they will—I'll do what needs to be done."
[Stage 2 beginning now.]
[Dungeon Type: Narrow Passage]
[Enemies: Corrupted Ghouls (Enhanced), Carrion Rats]
[Objective: Reach the end of the passage]
[Warning: Passages will collapse behind you. There is no retreat.]