Ding! Gacha System Online
I knew it. The tedious consultation with the doctor finally came to an end. It hadn’t actually taken that long, but it felt like hours had passed. With surprisingly light steps, I left the hospital and thought to myself,
‘I still don’t know what kind of ability I awakened… I should check one by one.’
Usually, the Outer God you contract with explains everything, but for some reason, my Outer God remained completely silent. Even when I shouted at the sky, there was no response at all.
‘Then first…’
When someone awakens, there are generally three major categories.
The famous Heart, Technique, and Body.
Heart refers to the expansion of one’s mental imagery itself. Your imagination is amplified, broadening the range of abilities you can wield. Hunters with talent as magicians often awaken in this category.
Technique is exactly what it sounds like—skills. From swordsmanship and other martial techniques to the creation of magical tools. In a way, it covers the widest spectrum of all.
Finally, Body is literal physical enhancement. Awakened individuals already possess far superior stamina compared to ordinary people, but this category pushes it even further—immense strength, vast mana reserves, that sort of thing. It’s the most basic type of awakening, yet also the most crucial.
‘Let’s start by checking my physical condition.’
I immediately headed straight for the gym.
It was already early summer, so I arrived drenched in sweat. I had been doing high-intensity training for over a year in preparation for my awakening. After teaching myself through YouTube videos, I had managed to surpass a 400kg total on the big three lifts.
But that was only by ordinary human standards. Now that I had awakened, I was sure I would be on an entirely different level.
With great enthusiasm, I gripped the barbell and lifted it.
“Wait… why does it feel even lighter than before…?”
Exercise form is incredibly volatile. Let your guard down for even a moment and you lose the feel for it—that’s especially true for the big three. On top of that, I had been bedridden for a whole week, so the muscle loss must have been severe.
‘Then… maybe it’s my mana…?’
But the pathetic trickle of mana I originally possessed showed no change whatsoever. I tried circulating it using the meditation techniques I learned at the academy, but I felt nothing.
“So… it doesn’t seem like I awakened in the Body category…”
That meant I had to check the others.
‘Since I’m already here, I might as well finish the workout…’
Even though the weight felt lighter, I pushed through the full two hours like always. No matter how urgent things were, I still had to do what needed to be done.
After finishing my sets, I moved to the empty lot where I usually practiced swordsmanship. I had a wooden sword hidden away in the corner there.
I began practicing the forms I had learned at the academy with everything I had, but—
“What the fuck?! Nothing’s changed at all?!”
There was no sign of the sword moving faster, no sudden clarity in my sword paths, none of the typical effects of awakening. And no new technical insights came to mind either.
‘Then maybe it’s Heart…?’
It felt a bit random. After all, someone like me with practically zero mana wouldn’t be able to do much even if I developed my mental imagery.
Still, just in case, I closed my eyes and let my imagination run wild. I pondered and explored what kinds of techniques I might be able to use. But—
‘I don’t feel anything at all…’
With that, I had checked all three categories. The result?
“I don’t think I actually awakened at all…?”
In truth, although I had checked them separately, awakening normally boosts every category to some degree. Even if you awaken in Heart, your physical abilities should still far surpass those of a normal person.
I probably should have realized it the moment I stepped into the gym. I had just been clinging to the desperate hope that I might have specialized in something else.
I had definitely heard the awakening melody while suffering from erosion in that gate. Was it nothing more than a hallucination I heard right before dying?
“Ah… fuck…”
An overwhelming sense of despair washed over me. The soaring joy and excitement I had felt crashed straight into the gutter in an instant.
“I knew it…”
What luck? What miracle? It would have been better if I had just died back there. It would have been better if I had saved Min-young and ended it right then and there. What was the point of a piece of trash like me surviving?
“Sigh… let’s just go home…”
With slumped shoulders, I trudged back toward my house.
The road home was one I had walked hundreds of times, but something was different today.
Several demonic beasts the size of wild boars were roaming around.
‘Looks like a gate is about to open.’
About two years ago, South Korea had far fewer gate occurrences compared to other countries. Thanks to that, it had once been known as the safest country in the world. That was all because of the existence of suppressors.
But then an S-class hunter called Arthur appeared like a comet and went around destroying every single one of them.
When I first heard the name, I actually thought it was a woman. Everyone knows King Arthur is supposed to be female, so why a guy would use that name is still a mystery to me.
Anyway, that Arthur guy eventually went missing, and now South Korea had become just like every other country—gates popping open without warning at any time.
‘Well… the hunters will probably come and clean them up soon…’
The presence of these small demonic beasts was a sign that a gate would open soon. They were like the advance party—leftover scraps that leaked out before the gate fully materialized.
Normally, once these things started appearing, the hunters stationed in each neighborhood would quickly take care of them. Of course, an ordinary person could probably kill one if they tried hard enough. After all, even a normal person had a chance of winning against a wild boar if they went all out, right? It was about that level of threat.
‘Just in case, I should hurry home.’
I quickened my pace, but then—
“Ugh… ugh…”
A terrified voice came from inside an alley.
‘What the…?’
I paused and looked into the alley. There, I saw a girl who looked like an elementary school student facing off against a demonic beast.
“D-don’t come any closer…”
And right in front of her—
“Grrrrrrrr…”
—was a boar-type demonic beast in an aggressive stance, ready to attack.
“God damn it!”
Without hesitation, I sprinted toward the girl.
Of course I knew. The hunters would be here soon, and some pathetic failure who couldn’t even awaken would only end up getting hurt if he jumped in.
But she was just a kid. She was clearly terrified. It was an adult’s job to help in a situation like this!
‘I should have brought that wooden sword!’
I had stupidly put it back in its hiding spot, so I had no weapon. I looked around, but there were no steel pipes or bricks I could use.
“Are you okay? Run away, quick!”
I stepped in front of the girl to shield her, but—
“KRRAAAAAANG!!!”
The beast charged at me with terrifying speed.
‘Why is this thing so aggressive…?’
Low-grade demonic beasts usually weren’t this vicious. Maybe it was a special variant, or maybe it just had a particularly shitty personality.
Crunch—
“Ugh!”
I raised my left arm to block, but it sank its teeth into me as expected. I could feel its sharp fangs digging into my forearm.
“You fucking bastard!!!”
I clenched my right fist and slammed it down hard on the beast’s thick hide. But it didn’t even seem to feel the impact as it snorted aggressively.
Thud—
It lowered its head and started shoving me toward the wall. As expected of a demonic beast, its raw power was immense. Well, wild boars are strong too, so it made sense.
“Hngh… hngh…”
Desperately, I pulled my right hand back and jammed my fingers straight into its eye.
“KYEEENG!! KYEEENG!!!”
The beast let out a pained scream as its eye was stabbed and staggered backward. Taking the opening, I grabbed one of its thick tusks with my freed left hand.
Crack—
I felt its tusk snap.
After that, it turned into a complete dogfight. We rolled around on the ground, biting and gouging at each other. I even bit its ear and the back of its neck with my own teeth.
Driven by a surge of adrenaline, I kept fighting until—
Shhhhhhh—
“Kyeng… kek…”
I must have torn into its artery. A massive amount of blood gushed from the demonic beast’s neck as it collapsed.
“Haa… haa…”
My entire body was covered in blood, and my clothes were torn to shreds.
When I turned around, the girl was still there. She hadn’t run away.
“A-are you okay…?”
“Yes… thank you…”
I wasn’t okay at all. But at least you’re safe. That’s what matters.
“The hunters will be here soon. Go home quickly.”
“Okay… Thank you, mister.”
The girl gave a polite bow and left.
‘Mister, huh…’
I didn’t even have the energy to correct her. The arm and shoulder where the beast had bitten me hurt like they were being torn apart. I had lost too much blood. My mind was growing hazy.
But I couldn’t rest easy right now.
Because an unbelievable sight was unfolding before my eyes.
You have offered a soul!!
It’s a rather pathetic soul, though…
Anyway! Gacha System activation complete!
‘What the hell is this? Gacha System…?’
The traits and skills you have acquired can be used immediately!
There are also plenty of special items available!
(※ Caution: Nothing in this world is free! From now on, you must diligently offer 'souls' to activate the Gacha tab.)
‘Traits and skills? Offer souls? What the hell does that mean…?’
Special New User Event! ★10-Draw Gacha★ Provided Immediately!
Would you like to spin the gacha right now?
(※ Caution: We are not responsible for any deaths caused by the results.)
[Yes]
What the hell was all this? The surreal sight before my eyes snapped me back to full alertness.
I had never heard of any ability that created semi-transparent message windows like something out of an anime. None of the hunters’ abilities I knew about worked like this.
And gacha? Was that even a real thing…?
Also, why the fuck were the only choices “Yes” and “네”? If they’re the same thing, why list both…?
‘Let’s get home first…’
This was no time to go to the hospital. Whether I collapsed from blood loss or not didn’t matter right now.
I had to get home quickly and roll this insane ten-draw.
“Hehehehehe…”
Bleeding profusely, I walked toward my house laughing like a madman.