Chapter 1
Chapter 1
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: penny
Chapter: 1
Chapter Title: Isekai Slave Hassan
-----------------------------------------------------------------
'San-ah, for people, health is the top priority. Everything else will follow as long as you're healthy.'
That was what my father would always tell me whenever he got the chance, grabbing me by the shoulders.
My father, Daesu, grew up in extreme poverty during his childhood, never once having a full belly and constantly plagued by minor illnesses.
He said that even managing one meal every few days made the sky look bright yellow. Just thinking about it now breaks my heart.
Haunted by the hunger of his youth, my father eventually opened a health center to fulfill his dream of eating his fill while staying healthy.
Health Center San-gwa-bada.
He named it by taking one character each from my name and his.
After years—decades, even—of consuming juices and extracts from all sorts of things every single day,
my father ended up excessively healthy.
He even appeared on TV as a muscle-bound grandpa in his sixties who could bench 500 kilos as a baseline, but that's not the point.
The real issue was that he didn't just eat those bizarre foods himself—he tried to feed them to his son, me, too.
"Close your eyes tight and eat. It tastes just like shrimp. Look, it even has about the same number of legs. You gotta eat it alive for the best effect."
"Ah, no, it's mo-ving—gah!"
"This one's boiled into a broth, you know. Pinch your nose and swallow it down. Don't taste it. Absolutely do not taste it."
"Guh-ehk."
"San-ah, this here's rock stew infused with the vital energy from the mountain behind our house—"
"Gwahhh! Gwahhh!!"
"You rascal, must've been too delicious for words. Nobody else gets this—I'm giving it to you 'cause you're my son, got it?"
Thanks to my overzealous father, I ended up eating a ton of stuff and experiencing all kinds of flavors. Among guys my age, I doubt anyone's tried as wide a variety of ingredients as I have.
When I tell my acquaintances about it, they usually ask what things tasted like.
Honestly, I had no desire to describe their names or flavors. Just recalling them made me feel like I'd puke up whatever I'd eaten last.
Even without thinking about it, the smells of all the things being juiced and boiled at the health center always lingered at the tip of my nose, which was a real hassle.
Puking smell.
Looking back now, I really, really hated that unique health center stench.
It clung to my body like a sticky film, forming an invisible barrier that trapped me.
If I could see smells, there'd probably be thick, murky green clouds swirling around me.
During puberty, when everything felt extra sensitive, I'd go through a full bottle of Febreze every week just because of that smell.
Of course, I was probably overreacting back then, and now that I'm older, it's all just fond memories—but anyway.
Thanks to my overzealous father and his weird foods, I grew up pretty sturdy compared to my peers, becoming a healthy young man who never caught so much as a cold.
"Father, thank you."
I bowed toward what I imagined was wherever he might be.
If I'd grown up a sickly weakling, constantly wheezing, I'd be rolling on the floor here in this underground labyrinth, right alongside those pale skeletons.
Underground labyrinth.
That's right. An underground labyrinth.
Anyone wondering why I, a guy living in 21st-century modern South Korea, am roaming through an underground labyrinth?
Honestly, I'm so curious about it myself that I'd love to ask someone.
Of course, if I rack my brain, I'm not completely without guesses as to why.
*
That day was when I was heading from Seoul to my hometown in the countryside for college break.
Sweltering heat. It had rained lightly the day before, so the humidity was at its worst, making everything sticky and miserable.
Feeling the gross sweat on my back and underarms, I headed to the taxi stand to hail a cab.
Hoping the taxi's AC would be cranked up nice and high.
"Excuse me, hey—"
Just as I grabbed the door handle to get in, someone called out from behind me, and I reflexively turned around.
There stood a stunning beauty about my height, slim and elegant, wearing a sky-blue off-shoulder dress.
Whoa.
Her appearance was so refreshingly clean it felt like coolness was bursting out of her. Not just pretty or sexy—beautiful was the word that fit her best.
A foreigner?
Blonde ponytail, blue eyes, ears a bit long and pointy, but that's just foreigner features, right? Anyway, that wasn't important right now.
The most beautiful woman I'd ever met in my life had stopped me!
Any guy would get flustered one way or another.
"Who? Me?"
"Yes, you. Could you spare just a little time? It won't take long."
The Korean coming from this foreign woman's lips was smoother and crisper than most locals', hitting my ears perfectly.
I tensed up a bit, my English phobia kicking in, thinking maybe she wanted directions in a foreign language, but thankfully, that didn't seem to be it.
"Time?"
I had nothing urgent anyway—just unpacking at home. So I got a bit curious about what this foreign lady wanted to say.
"It'll just be a minute. Here, take a look at this first?"
She pulled a flat device from the shoulder bag slung at her side.
One of those latest tablets you see advertised on TV and the internet. She fiddled with it using her slender fingers for a moment, then played a video for me.
Pshhh, bapshhh.
"Brothers and sisters of the world. If I told you there exists a single path to unity in this chaotic world, would you believe it? At our New Heaven Testimony Tabernacle Sanctuary, along with the bright side of life—"
The video quality looked like a group project slapped together overnight. But the real horror wasn't the quality—it was the content.
"The primordial chaos deity is the light of the new heaven—!"
Fuck.
Actually, I'd had a bad feeling the moment she pulled out the tablet from her bag. No, I should've realized it the instant this street woman approached me.
This is a cult.
It's common knowledge that cults and heresies use young, pretty women to lure in men during missionary work.
They target naive-looking guys, exploiting their pure hearts to lead them astray—a truly vicious tactic. And surprisingly, it works pretty well.
"What do you think?"
When the video ended and she asked me, I hid my disappointment and confusion, replying as politely as possible.
"I don't believe in that stuff. Thanks for your effort."
This is 21st-century South Korea. Freedom of religion. You've gotta be civil even to shady cults and heresies.
But apparently, my response was too lukewarm.
"Hey, let's go to a café and talk. Your karma—no, your ancestors' merits are so unique and alien. There's stuff we need to discuss about the ritual and the estimate—"
Suddenly, she grabbed my arm and started babbling nonsense, trying to drag me off somewhere.
A gorgeous foreign beauty clinging to me like this.
Even if I live another few decades, I doubt it'll happen again. But a cult? Come on, that's not right.
"Come on, this way. Preferably a café with fewer people—"
No, why's she keep trying to drag me somewhere?
A place with fewer people?
I started getting scared.
What if she drags me to some secluded spot, clubs me over the head, and I wake up imprisoned in a cult prayer hall?
Or maybe get sold off to some deep-sea fishing vessel.
That thought made me realize I had to shake her off.
"I-I'm busy. We already do ancestral rites four times a year! L-let go of me."
Squeeze.
But thanks to that foreign woman's sturdy build, her grip on my wrist was no joke.
I'm 179 cm tall, and after discharge from the military, I've got plenty of muscle—I shouldn't be getting dragged around by anyone. What kind of woman has this much strength?
"Hey, let go."
"What's going on? What's the deal?"
"Huh?"
When I yelled, I felt people's gazes turning toward us. Only then did she flick her blue eyes around and release my wrist.
"Well, at least read this then."
Still looking a bit regretful, she shoved a small booklet into my hand.
"Believe in the Chaos Lord and receive salvation. No one knows when the great renewal will come, so you must prepare. Especially students."
And with that, the bizarre encounter ended.
I turned my gaze from her retreating back to the booklet in my hand.
As my pounding heart calmed and I blinked at it, I saw the crude design on the cover and huge text in an ornate font.
『Brothers and sisters reading this. Spare a moment to receive the word. You too can go to the world of salvation. Let's all shout 'Chaos Eternal!' to prepare for the great renewal. -New Heaven Testimony Tabernacle Sanctuary.』
New Heaven Testimony Tabernacle Sanctuary?
"What the hell is this?"
New worlds, new heavenly orders—standard cult and heresy stuff.
So I didn't bother reading the text on the back.
I just crumpled it up and tossed it into a trash can. What a weird happening—thinking that, I got into the taxi.
*
...But in hindsight, I should've properly checked what was written in that booklet.
"Chaos Eternal!"
After I shouted the ridiculous incantation, letters floated up before my eyes.
『Name: Hassan Lv. 7
Strength: 2
Agility: 2
Vitality: 3
Karma: 137
Status: Dusar's Curse』
"Heh, fuck."
Looks like I'm screwed.
It took me about two years to accept that.
Two years.
730 days.
Time for a newborn baby to start walking and speaking simple words.
Time for a green recruit to don his discharge uniform and walk out the battalion gate.
In other words, two years is more than enough to change a person thrown into an unfamiliar place.
"Hey, Hassan, why're you grinning like an idiot by yourself? You crazy? What's with the 'eternal' crap?"
Whack.
Someone smacked the back of my head hard, snapping me out of my thoughts. What I saw was a dim corner of an underground ruin.
Of course, not a single ray of sunlight—
Just the sound of dripping water from somewhere, damply echoing in my ears.
Grrr...
From the deep darkness at the end of the corridor came an eerie panting from some unknown thing, sending chills down my spine.
"Hey, you bastard. Hey, ignoring me again? You've been spacing out all day. Get your shit together, or I'll dock your pay today."
"Ah, yes, got it. I'll be careful."
I rubbed my stinging head and bowed my head as apologetically as possible.
The woman's face, flickering in the torchlight, was scrunched up like a ferocious monster, but of course, I didn't say that out loud.
"Do it right. Get careless in a dungeon, and you're done."
"Yes, I'll be careful, Elfriede-nim."
"Good. We're camping here tonight, so hurry up and set up the campsite. And once it's done, massage my shoulders and legs. My feet are killing me from all the walking."
"...Yes, got it."
I glanced at Elfriede.
Dressed in tight leather like any adventurer, with a silver ponytail tied back and ruby-red eyes. Long lashes and upturned cat-like eyes made her striking—an elf woman named Elfriede.
She looked exhausted and irritated, so I had no choice but to eye her warily while setting up tents and a campfire.
Clatter clatter.
I unpacked the heavy load I'd carried all day and busily pitched tents for four people.
But none of the other four party members—not even the ones whose spots they were—lifted a finger to help.
Well, that's because I was the baggage carrier and odd-job slave for that wicked fairy bitch or whatever she was.
Slave.
That's right, a slave.
A human stripped of personal freedom and will, forced into 24/7 inhumane labor.
In this world where concepts like human rights or minimum wage don't exist.
Dropped into this barbaric hellhole like an abandoned orphan, after two years scraping the bottom, I'd finally fallen to slave status.
"Fucking slow. The sun's gonna rise outside at this rate. Need a whipping to wake you up? And the tent's sagging!"
"I'll fix it!"
Fuck, she won't help but nitpicks, and resorts to physical abuse at the drop of a hat—worst kind of scum. My body's always covered in cuts and bruises because of it.
"Hurry up! Hurry! Lazy Samaritan bastard. You only work right after a beating! Huh? This is why you black-haired fuckers—"
Smack— smack.
"Ugh, ack! Oh, shit!"
Still—
Today's whipping hurt less than usual.
Not because Elfriede went easy on me or anything. Just my mood.
Taking the beating and the insults felt bearable today. The reason? In my pocket.
Jingle.
I desperately fought back a grin as I felt the weight of the coin bundle hidden deep inside my leather vest.
If we get out of this underground ruin safely and I get even a little pay,
I'll finally have scraped together those thirty silver pieces I'd planned for.
30 silver.
Saved bit by bit from food allowances and tips during a year and a half of slavery.
With this money, I can do a lot.
Eat over a hundred bowls of mystery-ingredient soup.
Or buy a healthy, black-haired barbarian slave with striking features.
Smart folks might've guessed by now.
I'm planning to buy my freedom legally with this. Buy my freedom, then become an adventurer like those damn jerks.
Once I rank up as an adventurer, even a foreigner like me will get a status. And this inhumane life will end!!
"Your hands stopped! Daydreaming again!"
"Whipping. Troublesome."
"Fuck, you haven't been beat enough!"
"Gekek-!"
Smack— smack.
Just endure today.
Just today.
Tomorrow, once we exit this underground ruin, everything changes.
Imagining tearing up my slave contract right in front of that prickly, rude Elfriede's face, I diligently laid out her sleeping bag inside the tent.
[Author's Note] Hello, thrilled to meet those who waited and all you new readers. Let's start again!!!! A light, non-serious smut piece perfect for a quick read in your spare Noblesse time!!!!