002- A Fragment of a Past Life

The surrounding scenery flew by in a blur.

Like a racehorse, all the nerves in his brain focused on a single point, and everything but his forward vision melted away.

If I get caught, I die.

That single thought whipped Jinwoo onward, causing his adrenaline to explode.

How long had he been running like that, with bloodshot eyes?

Jinwoo noticed something strange.

'Have my feet always been this fast?'

Jinwoo was still running. His whole body cut through the wind.

Now that he noticed, he realized he was running at an unbelievable speed.

He hadn't measured it, but he was faster than most track athletes.

Years of training at construction sites had given him decent muscles, but he was never a good runner.

Moreover, this wasn't a track or even flat ground. The footing was uneven, and his path was filled with obstacles.

The rocks and low-hanging branches that blocked his way were chaotically arranged, requiring his full attention to avoid.

And yet, he was running this fast, and for this long.

'I'm not as out of breath as I'd expect, either.'

A full-on sprint should normally leave one's entire body in agony after just a minute.

But how many minutes had he been running?

Driven solely by the will to live, he had no idea how many minutes he had sprinted at full tilt.

And yet, he still had a little energy left.

"Heok… haak… huuu…"

After running for a good while longer, Jinwoo finally managed to stop.

He leaned against a large tree trunk, gasping for breath. The sound of his wildly beating heart echoed like a ship's horn.

Without even a moment to catch his breath, Jinwoo scanned his surroundings.

No sign of the Elf pursuing him… nothing.

It was possible he just hadn't noticed, but for now, nothing was in sight.

'If it had followed, an attack would have come by now.'

The silence meant he wasn't being followed.

Perhaps the Elf had no intention of chasing him in the first place.

The official had said Elves unconditionally try to kill humans, but there must be individual differences.

There might be Elves who would chase down a fleeing human with gritted teeth, and others who wouldn't bother.

It seemed this Elf was the latter.

'Thank God.'

Jinwoo clutched his chest in relief.

His breathing was still ragged and his heart was still pumping, but the extreme sense of crisis that had been flooding him with adrenaline was gone.

Feeling all his physical and mental energy drain away, Jinwoo collapsed.

Even so, he still had the presence of mind to crawl into the bushes for minimal concealment.

'Time… 40 minutes have passed!?'

He checked his wristwatch and saw that 40 minutes had gone by.

He was stunned that he had run like a madman for 40 minutes straight.

It was clearly a run that had pushed him beyond his limits.

'Come to think of it, there was a message earlier.'

Once he calmed down, he remembered the message that had flashed by.

The message about a Fragment of a Past Life arising and his feet becoming faster.

'My past life self must have been quite a runner. Was I a track and field athlete?'

Well, he couldn't know for sure. This was the only ability he had unlocked so far.

Still, the thought of having something to rely on made Jinwoo feel much better.

The fact that he had to survive alone in this forest had weighed heavily on his mind, but now he had at least one weapon of his own.

And it was even better that it was related to running.

Whether escaping a dangerous situation or chasing prey, there was no ability more useful than being fast.

'Huu… I should get moving.'

He had rested for less than five minutes after a 40-minute sprint, but it was time to move.

Although he had run far from the stream, he couldn't be completely at ease.

He had heard that Elves had a very wide range of activity, which was maximized in a forest, the 1st Floor.

Dwarves usually dug into the ground or mountains, so you didn't encounter them often, and Orcs chased whatever prey was in front of them, so they had no set territory.

Elves, on the other hand, had a habit of using a specific point as a base and hunting in the surrounding area as if on patrol, and in a forest, that radius was said to become unbelievably large.

He didn't think a mere 40-minute sprint was enough to escape that radius.

'Let's be careful.'

He had run like a madman before, but now he was much more cautious.

Come to think of it, he must have made a huge amount of noise for 40 minutes, from his breathing to his footsteps.

It was lucky that no other species or monsters had been drawn to the sound.

From now on, he would aim to get as far away as possible while staying as quiet as he could.

He set his direction to be as far from the stream as possible.

Whether Elf or monster, nothing could live without drinking water. So, when he needed to hide like this, moving away from the stream was the answer.

'Good thing I brought some water.'

The water wasn't very clean, but he had brought some. It was enough to last a few days.

Jinwoo used every bit of knowledge he had to walk in a direction away from the watercourse.

He was still a novice hunter, so it wasn't perfect, but he was generally moving in the right direction.

He continued like this for three hours.

In that time, he didn't see a single hair of an Elf.

"Huuu…"

Only then did Jinwoo relax a little and look up.

The color of the sky was starting to change.

It looked like there was still some time before sunset, but he had heard that dusk fell quickly in a forest.

He needed to find a place to stay for the night, and fast.

Perhaps because he had been meticulously observing the surrounding terrain to get his bearings, he was able to find a suitable cave fairly quickly.

It wasn't a deep cave, just a small one about the size of two rooms.

The entrance was also naturally split into a long, thin opening, perfect for hiding.

'First, traps.'

Jinwoo took out some wire from his inventory and set it up in the surrounding area.

The traps weren't lethal; they were basically just alarms.

He attached empty cans he had prepared in advance, so that a sound would ring out if the wire was tripped. He set these traps all around the cave.

After finishing his work, he entered the cave.

Gathering dry branches and fallen leaves, Jinwoo went inside and used a fire stick to start a campfire.

Chick, chick. The sparks ignited a thin vine, and soon the kindling began to burn.

Of course, he didn't forget to cover the entrance with several layers of large leaves to hide the light from the outside.

He couldn't do anything about the smoke leaking out… he would just have to hope it wouldn't be very visible at night.

'A shame about the fish.'

Warming himself by the fire, Jinwoo licked his lips.

To put the fish in his inventory, he had to kill them and turn them into corpses. He had planned to catch them all at once and process them all at once, but ended up having to abandon them.

If he had known this would happen, he would have gone through the trouble of catching, killing, and storing them one by one.

'Still, I have plenty to eat.'

It wasn't like he had no food. He had a basketful each of fruits and mushrooms.

The mushrooms might be poisonous, so he decided to take them to the Bureau. He also set aside any suspiciously vibrant fruits.

Fortunately, there were also many fruits he recognized, like apples and pears, so he could eat those.

Jinwoo took out a few apples and skewered them one by one on a branch.

He didn't bother peeling them, just brushed off the dirt and mud.

He stuck the apple skewers near the campfire and roasted them slowly.

He took a bite of a well-roasted apple.

"Kuhh."

Perhaps because it was roasted, the flesh was soft and the sweetness was stronger.

The peel was a bit of a hindrance to the texture, but it was nutritious, so he couldn't pass it up.

Isn't there a saying that most of a fruit's nutrients are in the peel?

'Roasted apples are a delicacy, too.'

The refreshing taste was gone, but the richer, lingering sweetness was impressive.

Savoring the roasted apple, Jinwoo took out a few Blocks to eat with it.

It was hard to get all the necessary nutrients from fruit alone, so he had no choice.

"Ugh."

Just yesterday, he had eaten the Blocks and found them reasonably tasty, but eating them now was different.

How could it be this tasteless?

Even though this was a product known for being relatively delicious among Block foods, it tasted so bad it felt like his mouth was rotting.

It felt like eating cardboard with a slightly pleasant scent.

'Still, the nutrition is solid…'

Frowning deeply, he managed to eat a few Blocks.

After eating a few roasted apples as well, a moderate feeling of fullness came over him.

He could eat more if he wanted, but in a situation like this, overeating was poison.

Having eaten just enough to feel slightly full, Jinwoo cleaned up his spot and rested.

'Where's the blanket…'

The Bureau had supplied him with various items, including a blanket.

He wrapped the inconspicuous, military-green blanket around his body, curled up like a shrimp, and closed his eyes.

The crackling sound of the campfire next to him was like a lullaby.

Perhaps because he had been through so much, both physically and mentally, sleep came quickly.

And the next day.

"Haaaaaam."

Jinwoo woke with bleary eyes and let out a huge yawn.

Shaking his head to clear it, Jinwoo cautiously approached the cave entrance.

He slightly parted the leaves covering the entrance and checked for any signs outside.

It was silent, with nothing in sight.

He hadn't heard the sound of cans clanking during the night, which meant no one had approached the area.

'Good.'

Relieved, Jinwoo stepped out of the cave.

But then.

'…Huh?'

On the ground, next to the entrance.

He saw a pile of a dozen or so dead fish.

Jinwoo was momentarily stunned, but when he saw the object next to them, his face went completely pale.

'Holy shit!'

The hand net he had left at the stream was propped up against the wall.

---

There was no need to wonder who the culprit was. It was yesterday's Elf.

'What does this mean?'

His mind was a mess of confusion.

To follow him all the way here and just leave the net and fish… what did it want?

His first thought was to leave immediately.

He put the net and all the fish into his inventory, then the blanket. He stomped out the faint embers of the campfire and scattered the ashes inside the cave.

Coming back outside, Jinwoo checked the wires he had set up nearby.

He had placed them on every possible path to the cave entrance, but not a single one was damaged.

He had tried to hide them, but it had somehow avoided them all and approached like a ghost.

'Damn it.'

A chill ran down his spine, and Jinwoo started walking quickly.

The three-plus hours of travel yesterday wasn't enough. He had to go farther, for longer.

Taking out his compass to check his direction, Jinwoo set off in the same direction as yesterday.

The time was around 6 AM. Today, he planned to walk in a straight line until just before sunset.

'I have to get away.'

He didn't know what the Elf was thinking, leaving just the fish and the net, but it seemed it had no immediate intention of killing him.

Was it quietly observing him, or was this just a momentary whim?

In any case, that Elf must have its own purpose for entering the Gate. It wouldn't be watching him all day.

So, in the meantime, he had to focus on escaping its territory.

'It's a waste to lose a whole day, but…'

How many fruits could he have picked during this one day? If he was lucky, he might have even found a rabbit and gotten some meat.

But no matter how much he loved eating and money, his life came first.

As for meat, he had the dozen or so fish the Elf had brought, so he would have to be satisfied with that.

Jinwoo spent the entire day just moving.

He didn't even stop for lunch, just kept walking and ate a Block when he got hungry.

He had no mental energy to spare for thoughts like "this tastes bad" or "this is awful."

He had no idea how long he had to walk, or whether the Elf's surveillance had ended or was still ongoing.

The presence of an unseen enemy felt like it was constantly gnawing at his nerves.

Perhaps because he had been so focused on escaping, the sun suddenly set and it became dark.

'Crap! I didn't find a place to sleep.'

The forest after sunset was insanely dark.

The shantytown near Jinwoo's house had no proper streetlights and became pitch black at night, but the forest night was even worse.

Without a flashlight, he couldn't see even 30cm in front of him.

'But a flashlight is…'

He had brought one, but he couldn't use it.

Turning on a flashlight in the pitch-black darkness would be like advertising his location to enemies. Even if it wasn't the Elf, there were plenty of other dangers like wild animals, monsters, or other species.

In the end, Jinwoo had to rely on a single staff, fumbling and walking silently through the darkness.

Just then.

Krrrrng…

At the low growl, Jinwoo froze.

It was a very faint sound, but thankfully he hadn't missed it. Since he couldn't see, he had his ears wide open.

He turned toward the source of the sound and saw a pair of glowing eyes in the darkness.

'An animal. A wolf?'

All he could see were the shining eyes, so he couldn't be certain, but it was likely a wolf or a similar beast.

Realizing that Jinwoo had noticed it, the creature, which had been showing aggression, hesitated for a moment.

Holding his breath, Jinwoo raised the staff he had been using as a walking stick.

It wasn't just a simple stick, but a standard-issue weapon from the Bureau. It was said to be a sturdy staff that could rupture a thigh with one hit.

Jinwoo and the pair of eyes in the darkness faced off in silence.

The position of the eyes lowered slightly. Is it crouching?

Just as Jinwoo tensed the hand gripping the staff, feeling like it was about to pounce.

The presence moved from behind him.

There's more than one!

"!"

Heeong!

Jinwoo whipped around, swinging the staff frantically.

There was no time to see what was there. He just swung blindly.

Thwack!

Kkaeng!

Fortunately, it seemed to have hit its mark. The wolf that had been ambushing him from behind yelped and was thrown back.

Without a moment to appreciate the feel of the impact, Jinwoo immediately turned back to the front.

The wolf he had been in a staring contest with was just leaping up to attack him.

If he had spent even a second longer on the wolf behind him, this one would have had its fangs in his neck.

CLANG—!

Jinwoo struck the wolf in front as well, but this time he didn't stop there.

His instincts screamed at him. In this disadvantaged 2-on-1 fight, he had to completely crush one of them when he had the chance.

'The staff is too slow!'

If he beat it to death with this club, it would die eventually, but it would take too long.

What he needed was a weapon that could sever its lifeline in a single blow.

As it happened, he had a knife he used for chopping up kindling or cutting through undergrowth.

Drawing it, Jinwoo rushed at the wolf that was struggling after taking a blow to the jaw.

Seeing the glowing eyes move in the darkness, he momentarily pictured the creature's form in his mind.

His target was the nape of its neck. In one motion, he lunged for it—

[A Fragment of a Past Life arises. Your sword shall become faster.]

…!!

Shunk—

The dagger plunged in faster and more accurately than Jinwoo could have imagined.

He had expected it to get caught on bone, but the sensation in his hand was like stabbing tofu.

The knife slid smoothly into the wolf's neck, cleanly severing major blood vessels and the cervical spine.

—Keongkeong!

No time to be impressed. The wolf from behind had already recovered and was charging at Jinwoo.

'What is this?'

It was strange.

It was still true that he couldn't see anything but the glowing eyes.

But strangely, the wolf's form was being drawn in his mind.

It was as if a faint flame or heat haze was imprinting the wolf's shape into his consciousness.

'A sword!'

A sword. He knew it instinctively. A knife was good, but longer was better.

Fortunately, among the Bureau's supplied items was an iron sword.

An iron sword, a staff, a bow and arrows. These were the weapons the Bureau provided.

Switching the knife for the iron sword, Jinwoo swung at the charging wolf as if wringing out his waist, and.

[A Fragment of a Past Life arises. For that, too, is a sword.]

As the sword cut through the space, Jinwoo was even more surprised.

The blade that split the darkness sliced through the wolf's body without a hint of resistance, unleashing a torrent of hot blood.

Panting even more heavily than he had after sprinting for 40 minutes, Jinwoo stood in shock at what he had just done.