Chapter 2: First Awakening

The light faded. Kim Do-hyun (김도현) gasped. He landed on a cold metal floor, knees first. His hands touched rough steel. It felt real. Cold. Hard. Heavy. He lifted his head slowly. He was inside a giant underground bunker. The ceiling stretched so high, it looked like a cave built by machines. The walls were smooth and dark, covered with glowing white strips that gave off light like a hospital. Rows of strange machines lined the sides. Pipes ran along the ceiling. The air smelled like iron and oil. He was not alone. Hundreds of others had appeared with him. People stood up slowly, blinking, some coughing, some rubbing their heads. There were students, adults, even older people. All of them had been pulled from different places. Some looked scared. Some looked amazed. In the far corner of the room, something bright exploded. Do-hyun turned quickly. A girl stood there with flames wrapped around her arms. Her eyes glowed like a spirit. Her long red hair danced in the heat. The fire did not burn her. Instead, it curled around her gently, like it belonged there. A voice shouted: "That girl! Fire affinity!" Within seconds, three men in fancy coats rushed over. They looked like they came from different guilds. One held out a card. Another held a small badge. The third one bowed lightly. "Would you consider joining us?" "Please accept our offer." "We’ll train you well." Do-hyun swallowed hard. He had never seen real fire magic up close before. Not like this. It was beautiful... and terrifying. This world was not like his old one. Here, power mattered more than anything. Suddenly, a soft voice came from beside him. "You alright, man?" Do-hyun turned. A young man stood there, wearing a clean blue uniform. His voice was kind, but his eyes were sharp. Do-hyun sighed. "I guess. I don’t know. Whatever. Just tell me what my talent is." The man nodded and pulled out a slim metal device from his waist. It looked like a scanner. "Open your Awakener System," the man said. "It should be in your head now." Do-hyun blinked. Then he felt it. A small ring of warmth in the center of his mind, like a button waiting to be pressed. He closed his eyes for a moment. A soft chime rang inside his head. A glowing blue window appeared before his eyes, floating in the air. [Awakener Status Window] [Name: Kim Do-hyun Strength: 0.7 Reflexes: 0.51 Stamina: 0.636 Endurance: 0.539 Magic: 0.130] Do-hyun stared at the numbers. His face twitched. He looked at the man. "My stats are kinda... Gabby?" The man frowned. He took a quick look at the numbers. Then his eyebrows raised high. He blinked twice. "These numbers are... honestly, really low." Do-hyun looked away. His cheeks burned. The man scratched his head. "Well, whatever. Numbers can change. Let’s see your talent. That’s the important part." A second window opened. [Talent Unlocked:] [Type: Summoning] [Name: Cloning] [Level: 1] [Consumes energy to summon an identical replica of the summoner. Clone copies appearance and basic functions. Connected to the original by shared perception. Number of summons: 1. Cooldown: 24 hours.] Do-hyun blinked. He read it again. And again. "A clone?" he whispered. He looked at the man. "Could I use this... in daily life?" The man shrugged. "Depends." A second man in a gray suit approached and said, "So what is your talent, kid?" Do-hyun hesitated. "Cloning." The man contorted. His lips closed as though he had tasted something sour. "Cloning? Really?" Do-hyun blinked. Is this bad? The man heaved a sigh. "Many individuals wake up cloning. But it is generally feeble. Nothing but ghost images. Like illusions. They are not able to fight. They are not able to carry. They only appear frightening briefly. That’s all." Do-hyun looked at his window once more. Was his clone like that? It stated common senses. It told the same. It is real, he thought. The man shook his head. "You at least woke something. At least I am not trash, I suppose." The latter word hurt a bit. Do-hyun stared down. His hands clenched. A loud voice bellowed out in the rear: "Come on! Show us something, fatty!" A thick-chested man with a shaved head was punching the air. All looked to him. Some laughed. Others merely spectated. "Use your skill! Don’t be shy! We wanna see!" Do-hyun froze. His lips parted, but he made no sound. Eyes. Eyes, eyes, eyes. Watching. Judging. Waiting. His chest was tight once more. "I... I hate crowds," he said. He turned aside. His guide came over and nodded. "There is no need to make it. You will have a complete scan later." They went to the extreme end of the bunker. There, Do-hyun sat through his last routine check. His eyes and chest were scanned by a machine. Another put a metal bracelet on his left wrist. The system buzzed: [Awakened confirmed. Likelihood of further awakening: 73 percent.] He looked at the number. The man smiled a little. "Not bad, seventy-three. We shall have more of that later." Do-hyun nodded, in silence. He arose. The light over the door was green. Time to go.