The world did not fall apart when the System arrived. The System. Nothing really bad happened. People were scared that the world would end or something. The System showed up and everything was pretty much okay. The System is still here. We are all still alive.
Something got changed it adjusted.
What scared people was that. It was the thing that terrified people the most that was what it was.
One day the sky was filled with writing that was a blue color. This writing was something that every single person, in the world could see. And then something strange happened. The rules that people had to follow in life basically changed on their own without anyone saying a word. The rules that governed how people lived and interacted with each other were rewritten and it was like nobody even noticed it was happening it was so quiet. The sky and the pale blue text and the new rules were all suddenly there and people had to deal with it.
[System Online]
You are now allowed to go into the dungeon. The system says you have permission to enter the dungeon. This means you can go ahead and explore the dungeon. Dungeon access has been approved for you.
From that moment on, strength was no longer abstract.
You can measure the data. It can be displayed for everyone to see. The information can be ranked so people know how it compares to things.
People who made deals, with beasts or spirits or things from places became known as Contractors.
Guilds just appeared out of nowhere. Started growing.
Cities had to be changed because of the dungeon zones that were there.
Ordinary people figured out fast where they fit in.
The Contractors were the ones who formed these contracts with beasts, spirits or foreign entities. That is how they got that name.
At the bottom.
Kang Ji-Hoon was standing with all the people around him Kang Ji-Hoon was right there, in the middle of the crowd.
This guy is seventeen years old. He has a body and a face that people do not really notice. The guy lives in Sector G, which's a part of town that nobody really cares about. It is away from the big shiny buildings where the Neo-Seongnam guilds are.
His parents disappeared a time ago when a small dungeon fell apart. The official story is that they were " losses". Nothing was done to figure out what really happened. The guy and his family did not get any money to help them out. Neo-Seongnams guild towers are still far, from Sector G, where the guy lives.
Ji-Hoon had been getting by fine since that time. Ji-Hoon was living a quiet life.
Some people learned how to battle monsters. He did something different. He spent his time taking broken things in dungeons, like old equipment and fixing computer terminals that the System was not using anymore. He also collected items that guilds had thrown away. The dungeons were not a place he went to. He worked with the dungeon equipment and he repaired the abandoned System terminals and he salvaged what the guilds left behind.
The person cleaned up after the people. He made sure everything was nice and tidy after the people made a mess. The person did a job cleaning up after the people.
People like him were not supposed to be part of the Systems story. The System is a deal and people like him do not usually get to be part of it. The Systems story is for people not for someone, like him.
People thought that was true. At least that is what everyone believed about it.
The Awakening Evaluation showed up all a sudden it just arrived without any special announcement or anything.
Every person has to go through this at some point when they're seventeen years old. You get one chance to get a contract. This is your one chance to actually mean something to be someone who matters, to have the contract that everyone wants the contract that makes you important.
The Central Evaluation Hall was really crowded and loud with people waiting to see what would happen. The names of the candidates appeared on screens as they walked up, to the front.
A boy called for a strong boar with steel all, over it. People were really happy. They cheered.
A girl brought a wind serpent into being. The applause that followed was really loud. The wind serpent was something to see and it made the applause sound even louder.
Something crazy happened when a dragonkin showed up the whole hall almost fell apart.
Power is really beautiful when it belongs to someone, than you. I mean power is great when someone else has it.
Ji-Hoon stood near the back his hands were, in his pockets. His face looked calm. Ji-Hoon did not feel nervous all. Ji-Hoon was not feeling hopeful either.
The man had figured out a time ago that it is not a good idea to expect anything to happen. He had learned this lesson. It had stuck with him. The man just went about his life without expecting anything from anyone or anything. He had learned ago not to expect anything.
When they said his name, Kang Ji-Hoon nobody got excited. There were no whispers about Kang Ji-Hoon. Nobody showed any interest, in Kang Ji-Hoon.
He took a step forward. Put his hand on the evaluation crystal. The evaluation crystal was right, in front of him. He touched the evaluation crystal with his hand.
Nothing really happened to me.
The crystal did not glow. The crystal did not reject him either. The crystal simply vibrated, softly as if the crystal was unsure.
[Scanning…]
[Authority Conflict Detected]
The standard contract was denied.
Rumors started to spread over the hall. People were talking about something, in voices and it was getting everyones attention. The hall was filled with murmurs.
"Another failure?"
"No mana response at all."
The evaluator stepped closer, ready to end the evaluation process. The evaluator was really ready to put an end to the evaluation process.
The floor just disappeared from, under Ji-Hoons feet.
The world just fell away, from me. Everything else just. The world fell away.
The silence took over. It replaced all the noise that was there before. It is really nice to have silence of noise. Silence is what replaced the noise.
Ji-Hoon stood on a plain that had no color. There were no walls like you would see in a dungeon. There were no monsters either. Ji-Hoon did not see any messages from the System. All Ji-Hoon saw was the ground that went on forever. The ground had a lot of footprints on it. These footprints were all lined up. They looked like they were made by people who were walking in a very disciplined way. The footprints went on and, on and Ji-Hoon could not see where they ended.
Ahead of him stood figures in worn armor.
Human figures.
The people did not move. The people did not breathe. The people just waited.
A voice echoed it was not loud. It was not threatening, but the voice was really heavy.
You are walking by yourself. It is just you walking alone.
Ji-Hoon frowned slightly. He said "I have always felt that way, about Ji-Hoons life Ji-Hoons own decisions and what Ji-Hoon wants to do." No that is not what Ji-Hoon said. Ji-Hoon said "I always have".
The pause that came after that felt like it was, on purpose. The pause that happened next felt deliberate.
That is why you are a candidate, for this because you qualify. You have the skills and experience which is why you qualify.
The voice told us what the System had gotten rid of. The System had removed some things. The voice was explaining what those things were. The voice was talking about the System. What it did.
This all started a time ago. It was before we had beasts. It was also before we had guilds.. It was even before we had those flashy contracts that let people use power from other worlds. Then the System was trying something different. The System had tested another way of doing things.
Human forces.
There are units that do not need any help to work. These units use the magic that's already inside them. They do not need to borrow magic from places. Units, like these also do not have any creatures to protect them.
Only command.
People did not want this thing. The responsibility that came with it was too much to handle. The power it gave was very subtle. It required people to be in control to be disciplined and to make decisions on their own without any help, from others. Humanity rejected it because it was just too hard to deal with.
The authority was completely sealed. All of the authoritys records were deleted. People forgot that the authority even existed. The authority is now a thing of the past.
Until now.
Ji-Hoon did not survive because Ji-Hoon was strong. He did not make it because of how tough Ji-Hoon was. Ji-Hoon was not able to survive and it was not because Ji-Hoon was weak or anything it was just that being strong did not help Ji-Hoon in this situation.
The man survived because the man relied on no one. He was all alone. That is why the man was able to survive. The man did not need anyone to help the man. That is the reason the man made it through.
That was enough.
The people, in charge have given the okay for authority inheritance to happen. Authority inheritance is now approved.
Things got real again. Reality snapped back into place.
The evaluation hall just stopped moving it was completely still. Everything, in the evaluation hall was silent and frozen in place the evaluation hall was not making a sound.
Behind Kang Ji-Hoon was this one knight, in armor. The knight was kneeling down on the ground really quiet, with his head bent down.
Not a summon.
A deployment.
The System showed some words, on the crystal.
[Authority Type: Legion Command – Locked]
[Deployment Limit: One Unit]
[Growth Condition: Solitary Conquest Only]
Laughter came after that. It was not long before people started laughing. The laughter followed immediately.
"One soldier?"
Is that really all there is?
The person, in question is not able to form a party. He is having trouble getting this party together. Forming a party is something he cannot do.
Ji-Hoon did not say anything.
The man had a vision and something new showed up in it a new interface had appeared in his vision.
No stats.
No rankings.
No power numbers.
Only structure.
Only control.
One last message showed up that only he could see.
The strength of a Legion really grows when people, in the Legion have to survive on their own. This is how the Legion becomes stronger. The Legion gets stronger when its members can survive by themselves.
When you walk alone the command will follow you. Walking alone is what you need to do. Then the command will follow.
Ji-Hoon finally got it.
This power was never meant for groups of people it was meant for something much smaller this power. The idea of this power being used in a place is just not what it was intended for this power.
This thing was meant for someone who would actually step into the darkness. The darkness is a scary place and this person is going to be, in it.
Alone.
End of Chapter 1