CHAPTER 1

Paid Service Begins (1)

"I'm Dokja."

I actually introduce myself this way to people, and it often leads to misunderstandings.

"Oh, are you an only child?"

"I am, but not that kind of 'Dokja'."

"Sorry? Then what do you mean?"

"My name is Dokja. Kim Dokja."

Kim Dokja (金獨子).

My father gave me that name so I could become a strong man, even on my own.

But thanks to that name, I've ended up just living as a perfectly average, lonely bachelor.

To sum it up:

Kim Dokja. 28 years old. Single.

Hobby: reading web novels on the subway after work.

"You're going to end up falling into your phone at this rate."

A noisy subway.

Instinctively, I lifted my head. Curious eyes were staring straight at me.

It was Yusangah from HR.

"Oh, hello."

"Heading home?"

"Yeah. You too, Ms. Yusangah?"

"Just got lucky. The manager went on a business trip today."

An empty seat opened next to me, and Yusangah plopped down with a soft thud. A faint scent wafted over from her shoulder brushing mine, making me tense up without realizing.

"Do you usually take the subway?"

"Well, actually..."

Yusangah made a gloomy face. Come to think of it, this was the first time I'd seen her on the subway after work.

That made sense. Everyone at the company knew the rumors—from Assistant Manager Kang in HR to Director Han in Finance—about all the guys lining up to drive Yusangah home every evening.

But what she said next was unexpected.

"Someone stole my bike."

Your bike?

"You commute by bicycle?"

"Yeah! I've been working overtime a lot lately, and I figured I wasn't getting enough exercise. So it was a mix of reasons, really."

Ah, I see.

Yusangah smiled sweetly. Seeing her this close, I could understand why guys got nervous around her.

Still, it wasn't relevant to me.

People all live within their own genres, and Yusangah lived in a different one than I did.

Once our awkward conversation ended, we each looked down at our phones. I reopened the web novel app I'd been using, and Yusangah... wait, what's that?

"Puedo prestarme dinero."

"Sorry?"

"Spanish."

"...I see. What does it mean?"

"It means 'Can you lend me some money?'"

Yusangah answered confidently.

Studying even on the subway ride home.

Definitely a different genre from mine.

But... where would you even use that phrase?

"You're really dedicated."

"And what are you reading so intently, Dokja?"

"Oh, I..."

Before I could react, her eyes landed on my phone screen.

"A novel?"

"Yeah, well... I guess you could say it's for studying Korean."

"Wow, I love novels too. I haven't had time to read lately, but..."

That was unexpected.

Yusangah likes novels?

"Like Haruki Murakami, Raymond Carver, or Han Kang..."

Of course.

"And you? What authors do you like, Dokja?"

"You probably wouldn't know them."

"I've actually read a lot. Try me!"

Moments like this really make it awkward to say that my hobby is reading web novels.

I glanced at the title on my screen:

"The World After the Fall"

Author: Sing Shang Xiong

No way I was going to say, "I'm reading The World After the Fall by Sing Shang Xiong."

"It's just a fantasy novel. You know... something like The Lord of the Rings..."

Yusangah's eyes lit up.

"Oh! The Lord of the Rings! I saw the movies."

"They were great."

A short silence followed.

Yusangah still seemed to be looking at me, as if waiting for me to say something.

This was starting to get uncomfortable.

I decided to steer the conversation elsewhere.

"It's already been a year since we joined the company. It was around this time last year. Time flies."

"Right? Back then, neither of us knew anything. Remember?"

"Yeah. It all feels like yesterday, but our contract terms are already ending."

Judging from Yusangah's expression, I realized I'd brought up the wrong topic.

"Oh, I..."

I had forgotten.

She'd already been promoted to full-time employee last month for her outstanding work with a foreign buyer.

"Right, that happened. Sorry for the late congratulations. I really should've studied a foreign language too."

"Oh no, Dokja! There's still the performance evaluations left, and besides..."

Yusangah's voice, as she tried to cheer me up, was admirable—even if I didn't want to admit it.

Her face practically glowed, like the world's spotlight was shining on her alone.

If this world were a novel, the protagonist would be someone like her.

Honestly, it was only natural.

I didn't put in the effort.

Yusangah did.

I read web novels.

Yusangah studied.

So it only made sense that she became a full-time employee while my contract was ending.

"Hey... Dokja."

"Yeah?"

"Um, if it's okay with you… would you like me to tell you the app I use?"

For a moment, Yusangah's voice sounded distant.

Like I was drifting far away from the world.

I focused my eyes, trying to anchor my mind that felt like it was floating, and stared straight ahead.

Across from me in the subway sat a young boy.

He looked to be about ten years old.

Holding a bug-catching net in one hand, the boy sat next to his mother, smiling brightly.

"...Dokja-ssi?"

What would my life have been like if it had been different?

If the genre of my life had been something else...

"Kim Dok..."

If my life's genre weren't realism, but fantasy...

Could I have been the protagonist?

I don't know.

That's probably something I'll never know.

But if there's one thing I do know, it's this—

"It's fine, Yusangah-ssi."

"Sorry?"

"Even if you told me about that app… it wouldn't matter."

That my life's genre is undeniably 'realism.'

"Because a reader has a reader's life."

"What? What does that mean...?"

"There are just people like that, you know."

And in this genre, I wasn't the protagonist. I was the reader.

"A reader's life..."

Yusangah looked at me with a serious expression, so I waved my hand to show her I was really okay.

She probably genuinely felt concerned for me. Being in HR, she likely knew how my performance had been.

"You always say such profound things, Dokja-ssi."

"Huh?"

"Then I guess I have Sangah's life, too."

With a look of quiet resolve, Yusangah returned to studying Spanish, and I turned my gaze back to the web novel I'd been reading.

Everything returned to how it was before—but strangely, I couldn't bring myself to scroll.

Maybe I was feeling the sudden weight of reality hanging from the end of the scroll bar.

That's when a notification popped up at the top of my phone.

[You have 1 new email.]

The sender was the author of The Ways of Survival.

I opened it immediately.

—Dear reader, the paid service begins at 7 p.m. today. This will help you. Best of luck.

[1 attachment]

Now that I thought about it, he did say he'd give me a gift.

Could this be it?

...Maybe I really am a reader by nature. Just getting one email like this made me feel excited.

Well, living as a reader isn't all bad.

I checked the time.

6:55 p.m.

He said the paid service would start at 7. That left exactly 5 minutes.

I opened my favorites list in the web novel app.

I was the only reader of this story—at the very least, I should leave a congratulatory comment for the author.

But...

—This work does not exist.

I tried typing "Destruction" into the search bar over and over, but the result was the same.

The page for The Ways of Survival had vanished without a trace.

Strange. Do they usually delete a work's page without any notice just because it's going premium?

And then, the subway lights went out with a click, plunging the train into darkness.

SCREEEEEECH!

The subway jolted violently, groaning with a loud metallic screech.

Yusangah let out a small scream and grabbed my arm.

The sound of people stirring filled the air.

She was gripping my arm so tightly that I barely noticed the inertia of the emergency stop—my focus was on the pain in my left arm.

The train came to a complete stop about ten seconds later.

Voices of confusion erupted all around.

"What the...?"

"What's going on?"

In the darkness, smartphone lights flickered on one by one.

Still holding my arm tightly, Yusangah asked,

"W-What do you think is happening?"

I forced a calm tone.

"Don't worry. It's probably nothing serious."

"Really?"

"Yeah, worst case it's probably a suicide attempt. The conductor will make an announcement soon."

No sooner had I finished speaking than the conductor's voice echoed through the train.

—Attention passengers. This is an announcement. Attention passengers...

The noisy surroundings quieted. I spoke again with a sigh of relief.

"See? Nothing serious. Now they'll apologize and get the power back on..."

—E-Everyone... run... everyone...!

What?

A loud beeeep cut off the announcement.

Panic erupted in the train.

"D-Dokja-ssi? What is this...?"

From the front car of the train, a blinding light flashed.

Then came the sound of an explosion—followed by something like a giant drum being torn in half.

Something in the darkness was approaching us.

And then, just by coincidence, I looked at my watch.

7:00 PM

Tick. The moment seemed to freeze.

Then, I heard a voice.

[The free service of Planetary System #8612 has ended.]

[The main scenario has begun.]

It was the moment the genre of my life changed.