[Entry Requirement: Party led by a Level 20+ player]
[Guaranteed Rewards: High-Value EXP Card, Weapon Upgrade Materials]
[Random Drops: Fine Equipment (1%), Rare Equipment (0.5%), Epic Equipment (0.1%)]
Tsukikawa Shū glanced at his status panel — Level 20, just enough to qualify.
"I wonder how long a dungeon run takes," he murmured.
The listed drop rates weren't exactly generous, but compared to any modern gacha system, it was heavenly.
A 1% chance for fine gear? 0.5% for rare? Even 0.1% for epic wasn't that bad when you considered this wasn't just luck — it was real combat.
In games, your power was virtual.
Here in the Inner World, strength was survival.
And best of all — no microtransactions required.
No gacha rolls, no pity counters.
Just raw effort.
It was like farming artifacts in Genshin Impact, except the grind was real and the stakes were your life.
Shū chuckled to himself.
He'd love to dive into that dungeon immediately, but first things first — food.
"A shame, really. I packed plenty of rations this time," he sighed. "Came in planning to grind levels… but finding food comes first."
He scanned the ruined cityscape, eyes sharp, searching for any building that might still hold supplies.
Behind him, Hiratsuka Shizuka followed, clutching the front of her sleep shirt to keep herself covered, slippers scraping softly against the cracked pavement.
"You've… been here before, haven't you?" she asked.
"This is my second time," Shū replied. "The first run lasted three days."
"Three days and you're already this skilled?" Shizuka's eyes widened.
The calm, calculating youth before her hardly resembled the lazy, unmotivated student she knew from school.
Here, he moved like a predator — quiet, poised, efficient. A wolf stalking through a dead city.
Trailing behind him, Shizuka scrolled through the system's chat window — messages flashing faster than she could read.
Most were pure panic.
Not just newbies; even those who had survived the first incursion were breaking down.
Plenty had come prepared — food, medicine, tools — only to realize that the system had stripped them of nearly everything upon entry.
This time, hiding wasn't an option.
You had to fight.
At first, the global chat was chaotic but hopeful — nervous introductions, panicked jokes, cries for help.
But as the hours passed, the tone darkened.
"Please… anyone have medicine? Got bitten by a spider…"
"I can't move anymore… someone… help…"
"Please, I'm begging you, I can't hold on…"
Each desperate message was followed by silence.
Five minutes later, the sender's ID vanished.
One by one, the names disappeared — deleted by death.
From the fragments of messages, Shizuka pieced together the situation:
A species of giant spiders, hiding in dark corners, striking without warning.
One bite and you were paralyzed — then eaten alive.
By now, the number of pleas had grown unbearable to read.
Each one ending abruptly, replaced by emptiness.
This world had no mercy.
And then she looked up — at Shū's steady back moving ahead of her, silent and focused.
The difference between him and those dying players was staggering.
"If they post bounty requests on the forum," Shū said suddenly, "the system won't delete their messages. Might give them a slim chance to be found."
"But… they're all beginners. What could they even offer as payment?" Shizuka muttered.
Shū didn't answer. He didn't need to.
The silence said everything.
This world ran on one truth — only value could buy survival.
Shizuka's fingers tightened on her collar.
If she hadn't met Shū when she spawned in, she probably would have been one of those doomed newcomers.
And to think, she'd been worrying about flashing someone a few minutes ago.
How laughable.
She sneaked a glance at Shū.
He wasn't even looking at her — just focused on scanning the area, every sense on alert.
"Really…" she muttered to herself. "I'm a grown woman, and I'm worrying like a schoolgirl in front of this kid…"
She sighed, embarrassed. "Some adult I am."
"Let's stay here tonight," Shū finally said.
They stood before an abandoned hotel, half-collapsed but still structurally sound.
"Looks safe enough. Close to the eastern dungeon too."
The further you went from the city center, the more dangerous it became.
For anyone under level 10, this zone was practically a death sentence.
For Shū, though, it was perfect — quiet, resource-rich, and free from competition.
They stepped into the hotel lobby—
And immediately, seven or eight giant spiders stirred from the shadows.
Their bloated bodies glistened, multiple eyes glowing faintly red.
As soon as they spotted the group, all of them reared up and lunged.
These outer-city spiders were stronger and faster than their downtown counterparts — monsters that had already claimed dozens of lives that morning.
But this time—
Shū didn't even need Gotō Hitori's help.
Drawing his katana, Murasame, in one hand and hefting his Skullcrusher Hammer in the other, he moved without hesitation.
A flash of steel —
Three spiders split in half midair, green ichor splattering across the dusty floor.
A low thud —
The hammer came down, pulverizing another spider that had tried to crawl underfoot.
Limbs twitched, then stilled.
The air filled with the stench of acid and rot.
Shizuka stood frozen, eyes wide.
Moments ago, she'd read desperate cries about these exact monsters — creatures that had slaughtered countless players.
And yet, in Shū's hands, they were nothing.
"You…" she breathed, her voice trembling between awe and disbelief.
"You're way too good at this… why are you so familiar with killing them!?"