"Porter Huey, you came back alive today, and I heard Dave was a real scumbag as always." A female receptionist spoke firmly and casually to the boy seated beyond the counter, before collecting the written report file from the boy.

Her bright gray eyes and brown hair shimmered under the light as she sifted through the raid details before slotting the file into a pile behind the counter.

"Rumors do spread fast. I did indeed make it back alive," Huey replied calmly, with a reverent smile, though the pain coursing through his body reminded him of the near-death experience. “Kuek! But I almost died, though."

"If that's the case, then that's great. But Dave and the other guys always get on your nerves. They lack discipline," the receptionist expressed her concern, momentarily forgetting that Dave and the others were just outside.

"You know he could hear you," Huey whispered, partially covering his mouth. Though it was unlikely he could hear from this distance, adventurers often had heightened senses.

The receptionist's expression reddened in embarrassment as she realized her oversight. Murmuring and hiding her true intention, "Hell if I care.”

But she did care; she could lose her job if higher-ups found out she had bad-mouthed an important adventurer.

Seeing her flustered expression, Huey spoke teasingly, "You look cute when you're embarrassed, hehe.”

"Shut up, don't take advantage of me!" Upon being teased, a sharp knock from the vexed receptionist interrupted him.

"Ouch! What was that for?" He groaned, feeling a big bump forming on his head. "Why did you do that? That hurts, you know." The pain overwhelmed him, and he slumped against the counter, seeing stars.

Witnessing this, the receptionist began to panic, attempting to use healing magic on him. "Ah, sorry! I forgot that you were already hurt. Let me heal you." She extended her hand.

Speaking of magic, a hundred years ago, multiple events struck the world out of nowhere. Later on, science proved that a planet similar to this one existed beyond the sky. On that planet, a certain event occurred, and it exploded. As a result, the fragments of that world started hurtling toward this world.

And part of this world started to fuse with those fragments. That event was called [The Collision]. That's how the varieties of monsters got introduced into this world. With that, 45% of the world's areas were affected. Eventually, those areas were called the [Monsters' Expanse].

Humans were caught off guard, lost control over that land, and weren't given any time to prepare for these monsters. As an inferior species, humans couldn't do anything. But fortunately, along with the disaster that came from the other world, the natural limit humans were born with and the limitation of potential caused by the natural law of the world was completely shattered by the law of mana.

Those inherent abilities and skills awakened by the law of mana were completely different in various people. Those individuals who were able to train and utilize their potential to regain control over the land were known as adventurers. And that's how the era of adventurers began.

However, those unable to tap into this mana or awaken compatible combat skills were dubbed 'awakened'. One such individual was the receptionist.

"Hey, stay still. Let me heal you up," she said, as faint gleams of green aura enveloped Huey's head, causing a tingling sensation. Although her healing ability was modest compared to specialized adventurers, it was sufficient to mend the teen's injuries.

Shortly after, the gentle green aura enveloped the boy's body. ‘Uh, isn’t this sensation... that?’ Right away, Huey recalled the low-rank portions he received when he was once hospitalized. He felt a sensation similar to what he was feeling right now. If he were to put this feeling into words, then it’d be like a refreshing warmth stitching his bruises and wounds before leaving again—something like that?

SHU!

As the green aura slowly dissipated, Huey couldn't help but feel a bit rueful. Getting up from his seat, lightly jumped up and down on the spot, and stretched his body this way and that. ‘It didn't hurt anymore.’ 

"How can this be?! Miss receptionist, do you have healing abilities?" Huey's eyes sparkled with amazement as he curiously questioned the receptionist.

"Ah, yes. But it's not something to be proud of," she tilted her head awkwardly. "It's very little and couldn't heal deep wounds." Her cheeks flushed faint red, feeling saddened at her skill incompatibility.

But the boy's amazement skyrocketed. His head, which felt like it might explode, was calm now, and his stiff muscles had lightened as well. Though his fatigue wasn't gone, he could move around more.

The effect, in a sense, was top-notch. 'Isn’t this amazing?' Huey’s eyes now resembled circles as he sat back with a sincere smile. "Don't look sad; your healing skill was sufficient. If not, I would be unable to go into the monsters' expanse next week. Be proud of it." 

His smile grew brighter, reassuring the young lady that her potential wasn't worthless but amazing. At the boy's sincere gratitude, her expression brightened as she nodded, looking proud.

'Heck, I'm thirsty!' That was unexpected; this sudden thirst caught him off guard as his parched throat urged him to get up. "Miss, I will be right back.”

"Okay," the receptionist, whose face was slightly flustered, responded, smiling sincerely for the first time in a while.

It seems today ended without any problems. He received healing from the receptionist, who relieved him of the unlucky predicament he was in.

'What a lucky day this was,' he couldn't help but feel grateful once again, his movements feeling light as he walked upright unlike before. As his attention darted around, he noticed only a few adventurers remaining in the team quarters hall—a building filled with prestige and luxury.

The marble structure hall depicted vivid images of seasoned adventurers seated around steel tables, chatting or checking the briefing board for upcoming raids and rewards. On a normal day, not a weekend, the ambiance of extravagance would be jam-packed with adventurers gearing up for missions into the monsters' expanse.

As Huey strolled forward, the few around gave him passing glances. Some gossiped about him being a decoy, claiming it was the only role he was useful in, labeling him a pathetic weakling. With some sneers, he wondered if they wanted to make a ruckus, but that wasn't the case, so he simply continued his stride.

Finally reaching the end of the team quarter hall and down the passageway, a vending machine came into sight. The sun's rays shone brightly, tingling his skin as he blinked, adjusting his gaze to the intensity of the light, and walked toward the vending machine.

"Look, there's that dumbass who dreams the impossible; can anyone even become a professional author these days?" Dave, the adventurer, sneered, glancing at Huey before turning to his friend. Speaking of Dave, he's twenty years old and was a typical delinquent. However, after awakening a few months ago, he made a name for himself in the team.

"Hey, at least he graduated from the Academy.”

"Hmph, so what if he graduated from college? It's all about ability these days, isn't it?”

"Well, that's true. Someone I know told me that people have no right to dream if they have no privilege.”

"People have no right to dream if they have no privilege. How did those words spew out of your dumbass brain?”

"Don't make fun of me. Would ya?”

"Pfft! Yeah yeah!”

Their conversations became drowned out as the boy walked far from them.

Huey, who caught a peek at their gossip, clicked his tongue; he had no choice but to agree. Just as they stated, this teen dreamed of being a professional writer; he studied English and learned how to write a novel.

He graduated from a prestigious academy, and he was also a bit active in many book clubs to build his writing skills to submit to a publisher.

‘However, a 28-year-old academy graduate is right here.’ His lips pouted as he confidently selected a bottle of water and inserted the silver coin remaining in his back pocket into the coin slot.

CLUNK!

Shortly, the bottle of water descended into the pick-up box.

Fifty gold coins per day, to put it simply, amounted to ten 'bills' four times a month for this random, replaceable employee. He had been covered in bruises and wounds just a while ago, having run and evaded the monster's attacks as a decoy. If his bones were to break, he would be out for months.

'If I die, it's over,' he assumed as he picked up the bottle of purified water, gnashing his teeth in frustration. It was painful being a decoy, but he had no choice. It was because of [mana comatose], one of the symptoms that had afflicted many people around the world after the collision, causing them to fall into a coma for unknown reasons with almost zero chance of waking up.

'Technically alive, but with zero chance of waking up,' he thought as he unscrewed the lid and gulped it down.

'Mother,' he couldn't help but recall his comatose mother lying in a hospital, breathing but unconscious. She had fallen victim to this illness five years ago. The doctor had stated that the illness had been slowly affecting her even before then. If only he had known earlier, he would have admitted her to the hospital. But he couldn't. He had just been an ordinary academy student when he received the news that his dear mother had been admitted to the hospital. Now, he had to do this job, even if it meant risking his life.

'I can't give up on my mother for gold coins,' he mused, as the water relieved his fatigue and thirst just a little. He encouraged himself even more. Mother would wake up someday... someday.

"Ha-ah…" he breathed. "Without a doubt." He clenched his fist tightly and threw the crushed empty bottle into the trash bin.

* * *

Beyond the forbidden reinforced border wall known as the [Monsters Expanse], in a land spanning billions of acres where no civilization could coexist, an extreme fluctuation at a molecular level occurred rapidly, resulting in the creation of an extensive, almost 10-meter crack.

This unexpected event took place in a terrain vastly different from the general view of the tropical forest, instead appearing as a tundra landscape. As the vista began to distort, the cracks in space scattered like broken glass.

The location to which this rapid formation connected remained a mystery to everyone. Despite numerous attempts by adventurers to enter the crack, none have yet returned.

After a few moments, something slowly emerged from the crack. It was a muscular giant—a creature with snow-white fur, reddish facial features, and a height of 6.5 meters. Its figure resembled that of a sturdy primitive man, with forward-protruding molars. The hideous giant monster began to sniff continuously as it stepped out.

With grunts, the monster began to move slowly in one direction. Emitting a loud vibrating sound, it moved further, choosing a path slightly west of the border based on the arid scent it perceived. Stubbornly, the monster walked toward the borderline.