2025-10-30 17:55:09Episode 6 – Slave Job for the Brain
The flickering blue glow from his triple-monitor setup lit up the room like a low-level spell. It was late morning, but the curtains were shut. Kim Do-hyun (김도현) sat in his chair, slouched forward, chewing on the edge of a chopstick. His eyes were dry, but he refused to blink. He was reading every single thread on the Awakened Status Web Archive. There were over 700 pages of user reports, system screenshots, theories from lunatics, and occasionally, gems of actual knowledge. “The stats you’re born with at Level 1, that’s it,” said one commenter. “You can improve them, but only through awakening paths. Training might move them by like... 0.01 per month. Useless.” Do-hyun exhaled slowly and sat back. “So unless I awaken something wild, I’m stuck being a fat gamer with slightly better stamina.” He cracked his knuckles and opened a second tab. This one was an archived research dump from a known data miner named [ManaDoctor22]. Hidden stats are real. They're just not visible until you awaken or get scanned by an S-Class Awakened examiner. Known hidden stats: Regeneration, Mentality, Tenacity, Luck, Spiritual Sync. Regeneration allows your body to naturally heal without potions or medical help. Mentality controls how you resist mental-type skills or curses. Tenacity helps you survive death-level wounds. Nobody knows how to raise these. Do-hyun chewed the inside of his cheek. “If regeneration is hidden… and it’s part of vitality... then maybe I do have something inside me waiting to pop.” He opened his system again and stared at the same plain window. No changes. No surprises. Just slow progress from clone running. His real body got thinner. Reflexes ticked up. But... he needed more. And fast. Because life in his apartment was no longer sustainable. He glanced at his banking app. ₩921,350. Roughly 700 dollars. “That’s grocery money. Rent’s already overdue. Electricity bill... pending disconnection.” His clone was out there sweating under the sun, but he was in here drowning in bills. And worse? He was eating double now. His real body needed food. But so did the clone. He learned the hard way that if the clone ran on an empty stomach, it vanished within minutes. Apparently, even magic clones obeyed the laws of metabolism. “I’m a commander,” he muttered, fingers drumming on the table. “Like in a game. I’m the brain. My clones are the pawns. So I just need more pawns. Or... I need one pawn doing everything I can’t.” His hand trembled toward the job board tab. He had used it in the past. Gig work. Most of it was trash. “Translator needed. Must be fluent in 7 languages.” “Design 3D models for dungeon portals in Unreal Engine 5.” “Teach kids mana breathing techniques (must be C-Rank Awakened).” Too complex. Too skill-based. He scrolled fast, filtering by ‘no qualifications’ and ‘manual labor’. That’s when he saw it. Job Title: Warehouse Laborer Company: Crazy Monkey Logistics Description: Carry boxes. Follow orders. Get paid daily. No questions asked. Location: Busan outskirts Pay: ₩90,000/day Contact: Kwon Beom-gu His eyes narrowed. “Crazy Monkey? What kind of cursed company name is that?” The listing even had a low-res monkey in a hard hat. He clicked it. Three reviews. “Sketchy, but they pay.” “Don’t talk too much. Just work.” “The guy running it’s kinda crazy. You’ll know when you see him.” Do-hyun rubbed his temples. “This screams red flags. This is the kind of place where people go missing in webtoons.” But... ₩90,000 a day. That was more than game farming got him in three days. He picked up his phone and dialed. Ring... Ring... A gruff voice answered. “Yeah?” “Uh, hello. I’m calling about the job opening for the warehouse.” “Good. You got hands?” “Uh… what?” “You got two hands? You can lift boxes?” “Yeah…” “Then you start today.” “Oh. I mean, I was planning to—” “No. You’re coming today. I already lost a guy. Show up before 3.” “Wait, where exactly—?” The call ended. Do-hyun stared at the phone. “…What the hell just happened?” Two hours later, Do-hyun stood near a rusty chain-link fence on the outskirts of the industrial zone. The air smelled like oil and river sludge. Buildings here were half-abandoned, concrete cracked, old metal vents breathing warm fog into the sky. A wooden sign creaked on chains: CRAZY MONKEY LOGISTICS – NO CAMERAS – NO QUESTIONS – NO REFUNDS He took a deep breath. “Let’s do this.” He found the gate open and stepped inside. A large man stood beside a shipping container, scratching his chest with a crowbar. He had a shaved head, cargo pants, and sunglasses, even though the sun was behind the clouds. On his neck, a tattoo of a monkey skull grinned. “You Kim?” “Yeah.” “I’m Beom-gu. You work, you get paid. You don’t work, you disappear.” “I’ll work.” “Good. Do not speak to anybody. You saw something strange, you did not. Got it?” “…Sure.” Beom-gu tossed him a pair of gloves. “Inside there is a shipment. Just boxes. Take them to the loading dock. Pile them up. It is not your back that you use, it is your legs.” “Got it.” Do-hyun entered the container. And at once called Number 1. There was hissing smoke. The clone was at his side, already perspiring at the call in so near a heat of industry. “Orders, Master?” Do-hyun said, in a low voice, “Move the boxes. Pile them up to perfection.” The clone set to work. Do-hyun was sitting in the corner, sipping water, and watching. Box by box, Number 1 trudged along. His shoulders were moving as gears of a machine. Balanced. Measured. Efficient. The warehouse was filled with the thumps of cardboard and skidding pallets. Other workers looked at him. One of the guys murmured, “Is this man doing everything?” Another replied, “I believe he has a clone ability. Lucky bastard.” Beom-gu walked by with a piece of gum. He gave the clone an eyebrow, then Do-hyun. “You are not as dumb as you are pretty.” Do-hyun responded, “I am poor. That is how people are creative.” Beom-gu laughed. “You are hired on a full-time basis. Be here tomorrow. Whether they are clones or not, I like people who shut up and lift.” At the end of the day, Do-hyun was in his room, lying in bed, watching the ceiling fan lazily rotate. A new message flashed on his wrist. [Stamina +0.05] [Strength +0.02] [Vitality +0.01] He smiled. Then arose. His clone had been working all day, day in, day out. He had not done a thing. But his body... got better. He mumbled, “I am a manager. The clone is my employee.” His bank app vibrated. [₩90,000 received from Crazy Monkey Logistics] His belly rumbled. He launched his food app. Time to feed the real body... and the clone's too. This was just the start.
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Episode 48
Episode 48 – Midnight Reflection and New ResolveThe hazy night air wrapped itself around them like a cool cocoon as Kim Do‑hyun (김도현) slowly opened his eyes to the night sky. His vision blurred, then cleared, revealing a handful of faint stars peeking between the rooftop buildings. He lay on the cold pavement, the city’s faint hum under his ears, breathing shallow and slow. The taste of dust mingled with adrenaline in his mouth. Faint cobblestones pressed into his cheek. His body felt heavy as if someone had dumped a sack of stones inside him, even though relief had come in the form of unconscious reprieve minutes ago.Kim Do‑hyun's head rang with echoes—system messages still floated through his consciousness like ghostly whispers: Level 3 unlocked… can summon three clones… reflex increased… strength... speed... endurance… vitality… He could almost taste the data flood: metallic, electric, sweet with possibility. But the cost had been steep; his own body
Episode 47
E47: The Rising Flame and the Fall of ThreeThe roar of the explosion hadn’t fully faded when a thick curtain of smoke rolled across the battered street like a slow gray tide. The charred air reeked of scorched asphalt and burnt polyester, sharp enough to sting the nose and burn the throat. Rubble and splinters of shattered sidewalk lay scattered around the impact crater, and at its center, something massive had been hurled back.Kim Do-hyun (김도현) was still hunched low near the ground, his hands bracing his knees, lungs wheezing with each shallow breath. His ribs ached from the last brutal strike he had taken, and his abdomen still felt like a twisted knot of fire from where that mountain of a man had crushed him. His fingers were trembling slightly, half from adrenaline, half from pain, but his eyes were steady, locked on the aftermath.Out from the dispersing smoke came the sight that snapped everyone's attention—the fat boss, the towering bruiser who ha
Episode 46
E46: The Mammoth ChargesThe heavy thud of footsteps against the cracked pavement made the air tremble with unease. The fat, hulking man who had been calling the shots—now shirt shredded down the side, exposing skin that looked almost unnaturally dense and veiny—was moving forward with a kind of terrifying calm. Despite his absurd size, there was no sluggishness in his step. No hesitation. Just pure, mechanical intimidation.Kim Do-hyun (김도현) stood his ground. Or at least, he tried to.Inside his chest, his heartbeat was thumping like a drum on the edge of snapping. His muscles were shaking—not from fear, but from pain that had begun catching up to him like a debt collector. The last blow from the Tarzan-looking brute hadn’t just knocked the wind out of him. It had rattled something deeper. A nerve maybe. Or his spine. He couldn’t tell anymore. His vision flickered at the edges like a TV losing signal. Even the breeze on his skin felt distant now
episode 45
Episode 45 – Burn, Break, SurviveKim Do-hyun (김도현) stood his ground, his knees slightly bent, posture low, body angled sideways to reduce his exposed area. His muscles were tensed, not in fear but in readiness. His lungs pulled in tight, steady breaths as he tracked every movement in front of him. Oh Min-joo (오민주) stood behind him, her hands trembling, face pale with a cocktail of fear and adrenaline swirling behind her eyes. But despite her visible anxiety, she bit down on her bottom lip, drawing a tiny drop of blood, and made her decision.With a sharp inhale and a flick of her wrist, she conjured another radiant sphere of flame into her palm. This time, the glowing orb pulsed with a concentrated, unstable intensity — like a miniature sun packed tight with fury. She shouted, voice cracking but fierce, “Step back, or I swear I’ll burn straight through you!”She didn’t wait for them to laugh again.The sphere shot forward like a missile, trailing
episode 44
EPISODE 44 – Fire in the PalmThe tension in the air was like thick molasses. Every second dragged with weight, and every breath felt loud. Kim Do-hyun (김도현) remained in his fighting stance, heels anchored into the stone beneath him, knees slightly bent, shoulders lowered, eyes locked forward with calm intensity. His right arm stayed loose but ready, and his left hand hovered near his waist, prepared to either block or grab depending on how the next second unfolded. He could hear his own heartbeat now, thudding in rhythm with the tension rising around him. The muscles in his neck flexed, and the breath that passed through his nose came out like cold steam.Then it began.The first guy to charge looked like a living jungle beast. Long black hair whipped around his face in wild tangles, like vines shaken by a violent gust of wind. He had no shirt on—just a sleeveless combat vest half-zipped and stained with what might have been sweat or old blood. His arms w
episode 43
EPISODE 43 – A Crowd Gathers, and Trouble UnfoldsThe plastic bench Kim Do-hyun (김도현) sat on wasn’t particularly comfortable, but it served its purpose. It was old, slightly faded from years of sun exposure, and bolted into the stone pavement of the city park’s open square. Around him, trees swayed softly in the humid night breeze, their broad leaves whispering overhead like gossiping spectators. Streetlamps dotted the walkways, casting golden halos over patches of grass and the winding concrete paths. From somewhere nearby, the smell of warm fishcakes and spicy tteokbokki drifted from a food stall, mixing with the distant noise of traffic and quiet conversations.He exhaled heavily through his nose and leaned back, neck stiff, trying to recover from the constant clone hopping he had been doing. His mind still buzzed faintly from the gun practice session earlier. The recoil of the Desert Eagle, the sharp sting of air against his clone’s cheek, the incredi
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