CHAPTER 4: A SKILL
Yo-han stood frozen, his eyes burning as he rubbed them over and over until the skin was raw. The blue holographic window didn't flicker. It didn't disappear. It remained there, a glowing testament to an impossible reality.
"A skill… I actually have a skill," he whispered.
For a man who had been told his entire life that his 'Potential: F' meant he was a dead end, this was more than a miracle it was a glitch in the universe. But as the initial shock began to fade, he squinted at the floating text again. The joy in his chest was replaced by a cold, creeping uncertainty.
"The description is… wired. It's more than wired, it's insane."
[Description: Anytime you die from any Fatal blow you would be brought back to life...]
"So, in order to even use this thing, I have to die?" Yo-han felt a shiver run down his spine. "It's not a shield that prevents death. It's a reset that happens after the fact. It means I have to feel the blade, feel the fire, feel the end… and then just wake up?"
He shook his head, trying to clear the morbid thoughts. He was an F-rank. He was used to pain. He looked back at the obsidian shrine and the matte-black treasure box resting in the statue's hands. The hunger for survival, the need to pay off his debts, and the burning desire to shove his success in Naim's face outweighed his fear.
"Keep that aside for now," he told himself, slapping his cheeks to focus. "Focus on the prize. No monsters in sight. This is an easy win. Finally, a break for Yo-han."
He stood up, a small, triumphant smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. He began to walk toward the shrine, his pace quickening with every step. The treasure was right there. He could almost feel the cold metal of the silver chains. He reached out his right hand, imagining the skill stone or the high-grade artifact that lay inside.
Then, the world tilted.
Yo-han blinked. He felt a strange, cold sensation in his shoulder. He looked down at the floor, and for a second, his brain couldn't process what it was seeing. There was a hand lying on the dusty stone a hand wearing the same frayed leather glove he had bought second-hand last year.
He looked at his right arm. Or rather, where his right arm used to be. A clean, silent cut had severed it at the shoulder. There was no pain yet, only a terrifying, hollow silence. Then, a thin line appeared across his vision no, across the room. A wire, thinner than a strand of hair and sharper than a diamond blade, had been strung across the path.
He tried to scream, but his throat suddenly felt wet.
[Ding!]
[You have received a Fatal attack.] [Status: Deceased.] [Unique Skill: 'Fatal Reset' has been activated.]
"GAH!"
Yo-han lunged forward, gasping for air as if he had been underwater for an eternity. His heart was hammering against his ribs like a trapped bird. He frantically clutched his right shoulder, sobbing with relief when he felt the solid muscle and bone still intact.
He was back at the entrance of the chamber. The violet torches were flickering exactly as they had minutes ago.
The shock was paralyzing. He stayed on his knees, his breath coming in ragged bursts. He hadn't just seen his death; he had experienced the split second where his soul had been severed from his body.
"Haa… haaa… I see."
A jagged, dark laugh escaped his lips. He realized the cruelty of the Tower now. A treasure box sitting in an open shrine with no monsters? It was the ultimate bait. It was a trap designed to kill anyone greedy enough to walk forward without a high-tier perception skill. If he didn't have Fatal Reset, his journey would have ended as a pile of butchered meat on a hidden floor.
Yo-han stood up, clenching his fists so hard his nails drew blood. The terror was still there, but beneath it, a new feeling was growing: a cold, clinical anger.
"You think this is enough to stop me?" he screamed into the empty hall, his voice cracking. "I've been treated like trash my whole life! I've been stepped on by 'Conquerors' and ignored by the world! You think a few invisible wires are going to make me turn back now?!"
He dashed forward.
He knew where the first wire was. As he approached the spot where he had died, he dropped into a low slide. He felt the faint whistle of air just inches above his head as he passed under the lethal thread.
"Phew…" He breathed a sigh of relief, stopping to steady himself.
He realized the mechanics of his new life now. Fatal Reset didn't just bring him back; it sent him back in time to a 'save point' just before the encounter. This was his opportunity. He was an F-rank with the lowest stats in history, but he had something no high-ranker had: the ability to memorize the future.
He moved carefully, shifting his weight to the right side. His body was still heavy, and his limbs ached from the lingering trauma of the previous "life."
"I can't even move my right hand properly," he gritted his teeth. "My stats are too low. I'm too slow, too clumsy..."
He took one more step, his foot landing on a stone that felt slightly more recessed than the others.
Click.
"SHIT—"
THWACK. THUD.
A heavy stone slab, lined with poisoned spikes, swung from the ceiling with the speed of a falling star. It didn't just hit him; it obliterated him. His vision went black before he even felt the impact of his head being crushed against the floor.
[Ding!]
[You have received a Fatal attack.] [Status: Deceased.] [Unique Skill: 'Fatal Reset' has been activated.]
[You have been respawned.]
Once again, Yo-han found himself at the entrance of the chamber, gasping for air, the taste of blood still fresh on his spectral tongue. He didn't collapse this time. He just stood there, staring at the shrine with eyes that were starting to lose their light.
He was the weakest Raider in the world. He was slow, he was weak, and he had no offensive magic.
But he could die. And he could die as many times as it took to win.
"Again," he whispered, his voice cold and hollow. "Let's go again."