NOVEL NEXT Chapter 1 - Transmigration
Twenty-three year old Yoo-shin Jeong suddenly found himself in another world.
It was a completely unexpected event.
He was on his way home after buying cigarettes and a drink from a convenience store late at night.
Everyone was asleep at that hour.
Yoo-shin stood in the middle of the street and put a cigarette in his mouth.
Ssss. Ssss.
The lighter wouldn’t work.
“Ugh. Why isn’t it working?”
Annoyed, he flicked the lighter again, and this time, the flame appeared.
He lit his cigarette and took a long drag, filling his lungs with smoke.
“Phew. Huh?”
As he exhaled the smoke and looked up, he realized he was standing in the middle of a forest.
Long-eared, beautiful women were kneeling on the ground. They were tied up with ropes.
They looked just like the elves described in books and movies.
When he turned his head, he saw rough-looking humans standing beside them.
The swords and bows in their hands made them seem even more menacing.
A one-eyed man cautiously asked while looking at Yoo-shin,
“Who are you?”
“Who are you? And where is this place?”
“…”
The men looked at him suspiciously. However, he didn’t make a move.
“Where is this place? I was definitely on my way home. Gah!”
Followed by the loud thud and a sudden warm sensation on the back of his head, he was knocked off balance and the ground rushed up to meet him.
As his consciousness flickered and everything darkened, he heard a casual voice behind him.
“Boss! I got him.”
“Turns out he was just a bumbling mage. Good job.”
Yoo-shin passed out.
Clank. Clank!
The rattling woke Yoo-shin.
A gag was stuffed in his mouth, and his hands and feet were bound in iron shackles. His neck felt stiff bearing the weight of his head for a long time.
“Mmmph.”
Looking around, he saw the elves.
They too were gagged, their lifeless eyes staring blankly at the floor of the wagon.
Clunk!
The wagon stopped, and a rough voice echoed.
“We’re camping here for the night!”
“Ugh! This is tough.”
Grumbling voices echoed from around him.
Creak.
The back door of the wagon opened, revealing the one-eyed man from earlier.
“Drag that mage out. Time for some interrogation.”
At the man’s command, two young men stepped forward and yanked Yoo-shin out of the wagon, throwing him roughly to the ground.
“Mmph!”
Schwing.
A sharp sword was pointed at Yoo-shin’s throat.
“Listen, mage. One wrong word, and you’re done for. Don’t even think about casting any spells.”
The gag was removed from Yoo-shin’s mouth.
“I’m not a mage.”
“Then what’s this artifact?”
The one-eyed man held up the lighter.
“That’s just a tool for lighting fires.”
“How do you use it?”
“Turn the round wheel while pressing the button.”
The one-eyed man fumbled with it a few times before finally managing to light up a flame with the lighter.
“Hah! What an interesting thing. But you’re saying you’re not a mage?”
“What’s a mage? And where exactly am I?”
The one-eyed man let out a hollow laugh.
“This guy is hilarious.”
“Excuse me?”
“Let’s think about this logically. A guy falls out of nowhere, and you’re telling me you’re not a mage? Do I look like a fool to you?”
Yoo-shin’s head throbbed, and the man’s tone became more menacing.
‘Should I just tell the truth?’
Judging by the one-eyed man’s expression, it didn’t seem like he would believe him.
“Come on, answer me.”
Yoo-shin gulped nervously.
“I think I came from another world. I don’t really know either.”
The one-eyed man and his subordinates burst into loud laughter.
They laughed heartily for a while as if they found it genuinely hilarious.
Suddenly, the one-eyed man stopped laughing, grabbed Yoo-shin by the hair, and ordered.
“Kneel.”
His subordinates kicked Yoo-shin’s knees, forcing him to the ground.
The one-eyed man pressed his gleaming sword against Yoo-shin’s throat.
“Do you know what I hate the most after ten years of hunting slaves?”
“…..”
Yoo-shin’s body froze in fear as his life was suddenly threatened.
“It’s lying. People always claim they’re this or that. Some say they have special skills, while others claim they’re valuable and should be freed or spared.”
The man continued.
“Liars are the type who lack any sense of self-awareness. They’re full of this unfounded confidence that they can fool everyone.”
The one-eyed man added.
“Mage, if you’re going to deceive someone, at least make an effort.”
“I’m telling the truth! I really just fell out of nowhere!”
The one-eyed man chuckled again.
“This mage lost his mind. It looks like you think your buddies are coming to rescue you and you’re just stalling for time. Too bad, you’re done for.”
“Damn it.”
The sword pressed harder against his throat.
The one-eyed man’s remaining eye was indifferent, emotionless.
‘Is this how I die?’
Whoosh! Thunk!
An arrow flew from somewhere and pierced the one-eyed man’s head. In the next second, he dropped to the ground without a sound.
“Boss!”
“Ambush!”
The men immediately dove for cover, crawling quickly toward their weapons and shields.
But the arrows were faster.
With each whistling sound, another scream followed.
Thud!
A large wolf beastman landed in front of the kneeling Yoo-shin.
“Don’t move a muscle, human.”
“Huh?”
As the evening sky darkened, a wolf beastman with red ears and a tail emerged from the forest.
“Karine, we’ve found him.”
The beastman called Karine wagged her tail slightly.
“Set him free.”
Several other beastmen who had followed Karine climbed into the wagon.
Clank! Clank! Clank!
The sound of breaking chains could be heard repeatedly.
Everyone inside the wagon was released.
“Ugh.”
The red-haired wolf beastman stretched her arms upward, her large chest straining against the leather armor, almost spilling out.
The situation was quickly under control.
Ten strong wolf beastmen gathered, finishing off the humans who had been struck by arrows with their swords.
There were many screams mixed with the clatter of clashing swords, but no groans of resistance.
Even Yoo-shin, who had come from the modern world, could sense the overwhelming difference in skill between the slave hunters and the wolf beastmen.
Thud.
A severed human head rolled to a stop in front of Yoo-shin.
“Black hair? Why is a northern barbarian here?”
Still kneeling, Yoo-shin looked up.
The red-haired wolf beastman, presumably Karine, stood over him with her arms crossed and looked down.
“Bow your head.”
A rough hand grabbed Yoo-shin’s head and slammed it into the ground.
“Ugh.”
The blood from the slave hunters’ necks flowed across the ground, soaking Yoo-shin’s face in it.
The blood had a metallic, sticky taste.
“Speak.”
The hand gripping the back of his head tightened, pushing his face further into the ground.
“Randolph, let go of his head.”
“But, Karine—”
“Randolph.”
“… Understood.”
The pressure on his head eased, and Yoo-shin lifted his face.
“So, are you going to talk? What’s a northern barbarian like you doing here?”
Barbarian.
It was clear they had already assumed he was from this world.
He had seen elves and beastmen.
There was no denying the reality staring him in the face.
He had fallen into another world.
The people here were treating the situation as if it were some sort of joke.
He wasn’t keen on repeating his earlier mistake.
He didn’t want to risk his life again, especially against those stronger than the slave hunters.
Giving a simple, neutral answer seemed like the safest option.
“I was walking in the forest when I was captured.”
“Hah!”
Karine scoffed, then picked up the lighter dropped by the one-eyed man.
Click. Click.
Karine easily lit a flame with it.
“Interesting. Randolph, release this man’s chains.”
“Yes.”
With a short response, the chains broke and Yoo-shin’s hands and feet were set free.
“Alright, human. Let’s go our separate ways. I’m taking this artifact.”
Karine put the lighter in her pocket and led the elves and wolf beastmen away from the clearing in the forest.
Yoo-shin relaxed from his kneeling position and slumped down onto the ground.
He wiped his dirt and blood-covered face with his hands.
Looking around, all he saw were severed heads and bodies.
He was the only one left alive.
“Damn. Damn this other world.”
He still had no idea why he had fallen into this strange place.
“Status window!”
Nothing appeared.
“Status!”
No response.
“Screw it.”
Yoo-shin stood up.
He couldn’t just sit there.
He needed to gather supplies to survive.
Mysteries could only be solved if he stayed alive.
He began searching the headless bodies.
He found pouches containing copper and silver coins, water, jerky, and some hard bread, all of which he stuffed into a bag.
He also stripped off the best-looking hardened leather armor from one of the corpses.
Without a head, it was easy to remove.
He strapped a sword to his waist, grabbed a round shield, and was about to leave the clearing when he noticed that it had already grown dark.
Night had fallen.
He had the nerve to handle headless bodies, but walking through a forest at night, especially without a moon, was a different matter.
Deciding to spend the night in the wagon, Yoo-shin climbed inside.
* * *
Morning came, and dawn’s light brightened the surroundings.
Yoo-shin stepped out of the wagon.
The scene was the same as the night before—headless bodies scattered everywhere.
He slumped to the ground, leaning against one of the wagon wheels.
His stomach growled, painfully reminding him of his hunger.
He drank from his water pouch and chewed on a piece of jerky to quell the hunger.
Where should he go now?
He felt a heavy sense of despair settle over him.
Smack!
Yoo-shin slapped his own cheek.
“First, get out of the forest. Then, find the nearest village.”
He spoke his plan aloud. He decided to take things step by step and figure out the rest later.
Standing up, Yoo-shin gathered his belongings and began walking. Instead of the dense forest, he followed the wheel tracks left by the wagon.
Safety, he reasoned, was more important than adventure.
The two horses that had pulled the wagon were taken by Karine, the red-haired wolf woman, and the massive wolf beastman, Randolph.
Yoo-shin couldn’t forget Randolph’s name, as he was the one who had slammed his face into blood-soaked mud.
It seemed they too had followed the wagon tracks since hoof prints were clearly visible.
Yoo-shin frowned.
He didn’t like the idea of trailing behind Karine and her group, but he was sure it was the best choice for now.
He walked for what felt like several hours, until he started smelling something metallic and sickening—blood.
Yoo-shin immediately drew the sword from his waist.
The weight of the sword was far heavier than a kitchen knife, causing his body to tremble with tension.
He moved slowly into the bushes beside the road, carefully staying as quiet as possible.
What he saw on the road was a horrifying scene.
Translator’s note: If you like the novel, please don’t forget to leave a review on NU or a comment. Happy reading!