Shadow Monarch: Multiverse Ascendance

"Why do the inspectors want to see me?" I asked, unsure if these were the right words, but I had to say something.

"Don't you remember what happened?" he asked me with some suspicion in his voice.

Someone in my position would have been sweating bullets if asked this question, but I had been waiting for it, as I already had a perfect answer.

"I'm sorry, but my recent memories are kind of foggy, so it's harder for me to remember exact details. You know it wasn't a small event, and I am still in shock," I said with a sad face, glancing at both of them who also had sad faces. They understood my position as I continued to grasp the situation. "So I would greatly appreciate it if you could please explain to me what happened."

Hearing this, both of them looked at each other with sad faces, nodding. The one who gave me the card started to explain the story as he was aware of it.

As I heard the story, I couldn't stop myself from smiling, as I was well aware of what this world was and who I am. I had a few clues before, but they confirmed my guess.

And as the first word that came out of their mouth was "Double Gate dungeon," I knew this was Solo Leveling, Only I Level Up, and I was most likely Sung Jin-Woo. But I still needed to look in the mirror to solidify my guess.

It was a great world, and I was the successor of Monarch of Shadows, Ashborn, who was the King of the Dead and the strongest Ruler, the Greatest Fragment of Brilliant Light.

Just with this alone, I could do so much... Hii, my excited heart, calm down. They were still here. Taking a deep breath, I thought, noticing that my heart rate was going up, and the machine was monitoring it, so they noticed it too.

"Mr. Woo, are you all right?" asked the other guy when he saw how my heart rate was spiking up and how fast the machine was beeping.

"No, I am fine. It's just that the story is catching up with me, reminding me of the commanders I lost," I said with a bitter smile as they both flinched and nodded with sad faces.

"So, Mr. Woo, after we admitted you here, you were asleep for three days," said the other guy.

"I WAS SLEEPING FOR THREE DAYS?!" I asked, wondering if it meant it took my soul three days to take over this body or if I just arrived here and instantly took over the body. Well, it didn't matter; what mattered was that I was here now.

"What happened to Miss Ju-Hee and Mr. Song Chi-Yul? Are they safe?" I asked, doing what any sane person would do.

"Yes, they're safe, but..." he hesitated for a few seconds and then spoke. "Hunter Song Chi-Yul's missing arm will most likely impede his work from now on, so he may retire if he chooses to. Hunter Lee Ju-Hee is still receiving treatment due to her extreme trauma. It's uncertain if they will stay as hunters," he said with a bitter face.

"And other hunters like Kim Sang-Shik…"

"No... it's fine, that's enough," I said, interrupting the other man in mid-sentence.

It was understandable, as no human being would be in good shape after experiencing that unless they had seen many gruesome deaths.

"The number of people who survived the double lair is six. Although hunters are in danger every time they hunt, it's rare for a massacre like this to occur," said the guy who was most likely Woo Jin-Chul. I wasn't aware of the other guy; after all, you can't remember everyone's name and appearance if they only appear a few times in the story.

"When the inspectors and the White Tiger Guild reached the scene, they were all gone. In that room, only you were lying on the altar... No statues or anything the others described were found," he said. I knew very well, and I would soon be meeting him again. But before that, there is much to do.

The Architect, creator of the system, hidden boss of the Double Dungeon, and moderator of the System. He is not going to leave anything behind, that's for sure, but for now, let's just follow the script.

"THAT CAN'T BE...!" I said, feigning a shocked expression.

"We couldn't believe it either. If the survivors' testimonies had differed even a little, or if some of the deceased's body parts weren't found there, we would've considered a different explanation. This is just our theory, but..." he paused for a few seconds, and I waited for his words, knowing they were true. "WE BELIEVE YOU HAVE RECEIVED THE 'DOUBLE AWAKENING'!" he exclaimed, his voice growing louder with hints of excitement.

I knew very well what the Double Awakening was.

DOUBLE AWAKENING?!

A hunter's stats are determined when they receive their initial awakening or power. However, some hunters get awakened again after the first time. There have been cases of C-ranks skyrocketing straight to an A-rank or a B-rank jumping directly to S-rank.

He took out a device from the bag he was carrying. The device was made of pure gold and green, with a purple gem on top of it and a wired meter attached to it. I knew exactly what it was and what they were going to do with it.

"This is the magic power detector. All you have to do is place your hand on the mana crystal," said the other guy as he placed the device in front of me.

So this was a mana crystal. I wanted to try something, but not now, not in front of them. I had to find a few Essence Stones and Mana Crystals and try it later when I am alone.

I did as instructed, and he looked at the score with a disappointed face. I knew what his thoughts were, as I was sure it was showing a score of 10, worse than that of an experienced man with guns. And they say I am a hunter. It's laughable, but not for long...

I knew what his thoughts were. I guess trash is trash, through and through... These were his thoughts, and I am sure of it. And I don't blame him for it.

"Even the lowest E-rank is at least a 70," said the other guy.

"What's the result?" I asked, without showing any shame.

"It looks like we suspected you for no reason," said the guys as both of them got up and started to walk out with a very disappointed face.

Well, that was rude. They didn't even speak a single word or wish me good luck or get well soon. I see how weak people are treated in this world. "It's a new feeling," I thought to myself as I was about to open the system window. But before I could do that, the door of the ward opened again, and holy fuck...

"Brother, what are you doing?" said the young girl, most likely Jin's sister. Holy fuck, she's hot. Hot damn... look at her. She's sexy as hell.

Don't get me wrong or anything, it's just that I never knew a real woman could look this good. I used to know a pretty beautiful woman, but I know there is a huge difference between them. Fuck, I need to control my wild wolf nature. While I was lost in my thoughts, she continued to speak.

"Your head's not hurt as well, is it?"

So, she's Sung Jinah. I won't lie, she's indeed beautiful and has a nice body. She's really a beauty, but I find her somewhat lacking in an important aspect. Her chest is too small. If she didn't have a nice round ass, I would think she's a pretty boy. Plus, she's too young.

Control yourself. She is your sister, and hmm, okay, I don't have time to play with women. They can come later. I don't need them right now, especially because power decides everything in this world. For now, I need to find monsters to kill and build my own power.

"Didn't I tell you to stop getting injured? Do you know how worried I was?!" she yelled at me.

"...SORRY," I said, knowing she was worried about sisterly love. It's hard to get.

"The others all returned fine, so why are you always the only one getting injured?!" As she continued to yell, I ignored her and opened the window to see if something was different from the initial story.

[MESSAGE]

"UNDERSTAND? IF YOU GET HURT ONE MORE TIME, I'M GONNA QUIT STUDYING AND WORK INSTEAD, SO YOU CAN QUIT BEING A HUNTER!"

[MESSAGE]

[-YOU HAVE UNREAD MAIL]

Seeing it, I nodded. Nothing seemed to be different, which was good, but let's not jump to conclusions so soon. I thought as I opened the unread mail.

[MESSAGE]

[WELCOME, (PLAYER) (UNREAD) (DAILY QUEST: PREPARING TO BECOME STRONG) HAS ARRIVED (UNREAD)]

And when Jinha saw me ignoring her, she glared at me. "Aren't you getting late for high school?" I said, completely ignoring her glare and what she remembered.

"I'll be going for now," she said in a hurry as she walked out of the room.

"Let's go."

And once she was out of the room, I sighed and looked at the new windows that popped up.

[ALARM]

[THE SYSTEM WILL HELP THE 'PLAYER'S GROWTH.]

[ALARM]

[IF HE FAILS TO OBEY THE SYSTEM'S ORDERS, THERE MAY BE A PENALTY.]

[ALARM]

(YOUR REWARDS HAVE ARRIVED.)

[ALARM]

(YOU HAVE COMPLETED ALL THE NECESSARY REQUIREMENTS OF THE SECRET QUEST 'COURAGE OF THE WEAK.')

This is something similar to when Jin was left on the altar...

[ALARM]

[DAILY QUEST: PREPARING TO BECOME STRONG) HAS ARRIVED (UNREAD)]

So it's usual to check if conditions are the same.

CHECK.

[QUEST DIRECTIONS]

DAILY QUEST - GETTING READY TO BECOME POWERFUL

GOAL:

(INCOMPLETE) PUSH-UPS [0/100]

(INCOMPLETE) CURL-UPS [0/100]

(INCOMPLETE) CURL-UPS [0/100]

(INCOMPLETE) SQUATS [0/100]

(INCOMPLETE) RUNNING [0/10 km]

WARNING: FAILING TO COMPLETE THIS DAILY QUEST WILL BRING A PUNISHMENT ASSOCIATED WITH THIS QUEST.

So it's similar to the quest window that was shown in the Manhwa, but fuck, how can this pathetic body do these quests?

But I don't want to do the penalty quest as I'm sure I don't have the plot armor to survive in a desert against huge monsters.

And I don't have much time, so let's just be done with this, I thought as I saw 6 hours remaining to complete the quest.

It seems like a lot, but in reality, I know it's not. Running 10 km alone is going to take me nearly 3 hours, if not more, with this weak body. And it's the OPM training regimen.

But let's start by checking the "Status," I said out loud, which I didn't need to, but I did it for the feeling. And soon, a blue window popped up in front of me.

NAME: SUNG JIN-WOO

JOB: NONE

TITLE: NONE

LEVEL: 1

HP: 100/100

MP: 980/980

STRENGTH: 10

VITALITY: 10

AGILITY: 10

SENSE: 10

INTELLIGENCE: 74

REMAINING POINTS: 0

FATIGUE: 0

I see, so it's the standard RPG stat. Besides the tiredness or fatigue meter, I had to say it's very weak compared to even an office worker in this world. Now I understand why he is called the weakest hunter in the world.

"HahahahahHAHAHAHA!!!" I couldn't help but laugh, even though my voice was hoarse and it hurt to laugh with a dry throat.

But aside from that, it seems my intelligence was recorded in the stat. And that's why MP is so high, as both MP and Wisdom correlate to each other, which is pretty good. As MP is the most important for the Shadow Monarch.

An innocent kid died just like that, and now I have taken over his body.

As far as I can remember, this Jin, even though he was dealt a bad hand with a series of unfortunate events, never let it consume him. Even though he was a pushover and bullied by everyone in his childhood, his work, and by everyone who came to know that he was the weakest, he didn't give up until his heart stopped.

I find myself letting out a smile when I think of this kid's spirit.

"Fuck those bitches... I'll live my own life from now on," I muttered as I stopped laughing.

Now let's begin. So with that, I jumped out of bed and started doing some push-ups. I planned to switch between curl-ups, push-ups, squats, and running, as I would get tired very quickly if I completed one thing at a time. But mixing between them gives me time to breathe.

*No One's POV*

Since then, the patient Jin-woo, even though he was wounded and out of shape, persisted in completing his daily mission. He knew the consequences of not doing so after remembering Sung Jin-woo's Solo Leveling. The rewards for this were stat recovery, +3 stat points, and a random box.

Naturally, the doctors and nurses tried to persuade the boy to rest, but as soon as they heard he was a hunter, even though the weakest, their motivation to convince the young man lessened, and they left him on his own.

Even though Jin-woo noticed this, he didn't say anything and continued his routine while ignoring the snide comments about his constitution.

*Next Day*

Ring~

[The Daily Quest has arrived.]

Jinwoo's eyes shot open. Sitting straight up from the bed, the first thing Jinwoo did was check the time; it was a little past 4:30 in the afternoon. There was roughly 7 hours and 30 minutes of breathing room until midnight.

'Good.'

He opened the message box.

Ring~

Daily Quest: The Preparation To Become Powerful

Do 100 Push-ups:

(Incomplete) (0/100)

Do 100 Sit-ups:

(Incomplete) (0/100)

Do 100 Squats:

(Incomplete) (0/100)

Run 10 kilometers:

(Incomplete) (0/10)

*Warning: Failing to complete the Daily Quest will result in a Penalty Quest.

"Same thing?" He uttered reflexively. No, perhaps this was a very good thing. Compared to a possibly difficult quest, this was much better. Even if it strained his body, it was at least something that could be completed with time.

He went to the floor and began the push-ups.

"One."

He couldn't afford to be dragged to some strange place and be forced to run for his life again.

"Two."

He got lucky last night. He didn't feel like he would get lucky again.

"Three."

He paused to look up at the quest screen; the numbers were rising accordingly with each push-up.

Ring~

"You've succeeded in doing 1 push-up.

Do 100 Push-ups:

(Incomplete) (7/100)

Ring~

"You've succeeded in doing 1 push-up."

Do 100 Push-ups:

(Incomplete) (8/100)

As if testing the System, he performed a half-hearted push-up, going only partway down, but it did not register on the screen. He understood why his weak attempts last night did nothing.

'Sigh… really?'

Although exasperated, he did not let up the strength in his arms. 50 push-ups remaining. After that would be sit-ups.

Then squats...

Then running...

3 hours later.

Do 100 Push-ups:

(Complete) (100/100)

Do 100 Sit-ups:

(Complete) (100/100)

Do 100 Squats:

(Complete) (100/100)

Run 10 kilometers:

(Incomplete) (9/10)

"Pant, pant, pant, pant,"

Having run a lap around the area outside, Jinwoo bent over, huffing. His heart felt like it was about to explode, but he knew he could not stop here.

'If I think about the effort up until now…'

He entered the hospital gates and completed the last stretch of his run.

Ring~

Distance ran: 10km.

You've succeeded in running 10km.

It was finally over.

"Pant... pant..."

He fell to his knees. His lungs were on fire. His forehead and back were soaked.

"Pant... pant..."

Sweating profusely, he attempted to control his breathing when a familiar message arrived.

Ring~

You've completed the 'Daily Quest: The Preparation To Become Powerful.'

The reward for completing the quest has arrived.

Would you like to verify? (Y/N)

He almost wanted to forget about it like yesterday but changed his mind. He wanted to confirm just what this damn reward was.

"Yes."

Ring~

You've received the below rewards.

Reward 1: Status Recovery

Reward 2: Stat points +3

Reward 3: Random Box x 1

Accept all?

'Why are there so many?' was his first thought after looking at the reward screen. But after thinking about it, he noticed some useful rewards and rewards he was curious about.

Feeling like he was about to pass out any moment from now, the first reward caught his eye. Having experienced the penalty involved in failure, he knew there was a good chance that its rewards were just as real.

'It couldn't hurt. Probably won't throw me in the Penalty Zone after offering me a reward.'

"Accept."

It's been 3 days since then, and right now, Jin-woo has one random box as he used one stat recovery on himself already on the first day.

It feels amazing to use stat recovery.

"Ugh... Status," Jin tiredly said as he took a seat after completing his daily run outside.

NAME: SUNG JIN-WOO

JOB: NONE

TITLE: NONE

LEVEL: 1

HP: 100/100

MP: 990/990

STRENGTH: 13

VITALITY: 11

AGILITY: 11

SENSE: 11

INTELLIGENCE: 75

FATIGUE: O

REMAINING POINTS: 3