PRSR | Chapter 1.1

There are times when the world does things you just can’t understand. But for someone like me, just an average Joe, those stories didn’t seem to matter.

At least, that’s what I thought.

Until now.

“…Where am I?”

When I came to, I was lying flat on the ground. I clutched my throbbing head and tried to make sense of my surroundings. The last thing I remembered was drifting off to sleep, sprawled out comfortably in bed. But when I opened my eyes… here I was, face down in a field of grass.

“…Is this a dream?”

The sensation of dirt and grass pressing against my palms felt so vivid, almost as if to assure me that this wasn’t a dream.

“Where the hell is this!”

“Is this some kind of dream?”

“Who the hell are you people? Don’t come near me!”

The area around me was chaos. People were screaming, running around in a panic. Judging by their outfits, they must have been dragged here without warning.

There was a man in a crisp business suit, clutching a briefcase—probably on his way to work. Another person wore pajama bottoms with a blouse, like they had been interrupted while changing clothes. Someone was dressed for hiking, and another in a uniform. All of them—at least a hundred people—looked wildly out of place in this sprawling grassland.

I glanced down at myself. I was in my usual blue, plain-patterned pajamas, the kind I always wore to bed.

“…It’s got to be a dream.”

It had to be. No matter what, this had to be a dream. Even though something deep inside me kept saying otherwise, I clung to the hope that this was all just a bizarre nightmare. I just needed to hang on for a bit, and I’d wake up. I had to.

“AAAAHHHH!”

Just as I thought that, something happened, as if to mock me.

“What… what’s going on?”

A piercing scream rang out in the distance, and then the panicked crowd collectively turned around and bolted in my direction. Their faces were painted with sheer terror and despair.

“R-run! Run for your life!”

“AAAAHHHH!”

“Get out of the way! Don’t block the path!”

I barely had time to think. Instinct took over, and I scrambled to my feet, joining the others as we ran aimlessly.

“Hah… hah…”

I hadn’t gone far before my chest felt like it was on fire, my breath catching painfully. Despite starting near the front, one by one, the others began to overtake me. Did everyone here secretly train for marathons or something?

“Huff… huff…”

If I kept running like this, I felt like my heart might just give out. Slowing down, I glanced behind me.

The crowd that had been blocking my view just moments ago had cleared out, leaving the horrifying scene completely visible.

“…What the hell is that!”

Something was coming—fast. Zombies? Monsters? I didn’t know, but whatever it was, it wasn’t human. Its sickly green skin and grotesque form made that abundantly clear.

“AAAHHH!”

Thunk! Several people who had been too slow or hesitant were struck down by the monsters’ crude weapons. Bright red blood splattered across the grass where they fell.

“M-move… I have to move…”

I was at the very back of the group now. If those monsters lifted their heads to find their next prey, it would undoubtedly be me.

“If I stop here, I’m dead!”

Forcing my trembling legs to move, I ran, even as my entire body protested. I needed to close the distance between myself and the others. Whether we fought those monsters together or escaped to some safe place, I couldn’t afford to be left behind.

Thankfully, catching up to the group wasn’t too difficult.

“The path is blocked!”

“Don’t push! It’s a dead end!”

“What the hell are you talking about? There’s clearly a way forward!”

“Stop spouting nonsense and get out of the way!”

The group had stopped abruptly, everyone piling up against what appeared to be an invisible wall.

“Shit! Can’t you see those things are right behind us? If there’s a wall, break it! Make a damn exit!”

“Move! Just move!”

“AAAHHHH!”

Screams and shouts echoed everywhere. Some people felt along the invisible wall, searching desperately for an opening, while others pounded on it, trying to break through. Still others shoved their way into the crowd, trying to hide in the throng of bodies.

Was this what hell felt like? A white-hot panic overtook my mind, freezing me in place.

“Please… if this is a dream, wake me up. Wake up, damn it!”

Please!

“AAAAHHH!”

The monsters had reached us, their massive weapons swinging down toward the cowering people.

And then…

The world stopped.

“…W-what the?”

“The monsters… they’ve stopped.”

“We’re alive! We’re still alive!”

The rampaging monsters froze mid-swing. Even the grass, which had been swaying from all the commotion, stood eerily still. The gentle breeze that had been blowing just moments before? Gone.

“What the hell is going on!”

“This… this isn’t right.”

“What… is this?”

The crowd, which had been paralyzed with fear just moments ago, erupted into murmurs and whispers. Some of them tilted their heads, staring upward at something invisible.

Everyone except me.

“What are they looking at?”

Their gazes were all over the place, as if they were seeing different things. I followed their eyes, scanning the empty air, but there was nothing there.

“What are they all staring at, dammit?”

Just as I was about to grab the person next to me and demand answers in frustration, a radiant light spilled out from the empty sky, accompanied by a calm voice.

[Welcome to the Tutorial Field.]

“…Tutorial Field?”

I tilted my head toward the source of the voice, but all I could see was the clear, blue sky.

“Who’s there? Show yourself right now!”

“Where is that voice coming from?”

“It’s from up there! The voice is coming from the sky!”

A few people around me craned their necks, looking for the owner of the voice. Apparently, they couldn’t see the speaker either. I felt relieved, oddly enough—at least I wasn’t the only one in the dark this time.

[In three months, Earth will face an invasion from a Higher Dimension.]

As the murmurs around us grew louder, the voice continued speaking.

[The Managers of our dimension have determined that modern Earthlings will struggle to adapt to the coming changes. As such, we have decided to grant new powers to select individuals.]

[You have all been chosen.]

[The Tutorial Field has been constructed in a form most familiar to Earthlings.]

[Here, you will train and hone the powers given to you.]

New powers? The most familiar form? The gentle voice rattled off a string of incomprehensible phrases before falling silent. Moments later, a deeper, more authoritative voice took over.

[Say ‘Status Window’ to begin the game.]

“What kind of nonsense is this?!”

“Status Window.”

“Wait, don’t say it! Something’s about to start!”

“S-Status Window.”

“Stop saying it, I said!”

Despite the frantic warnings, more and more people began murmuring “Status Window.”

“Everyone saw the Quest Window earlier! The first tutorial quest is to eliminate all those goblins! We need the Status Window for that!”

“Open the Status Window and distribute your stats! This is just like a game!”

A few people stepped forward, explaining the situation in detail. Thanks to them, I was able to piece together what was happening.

Apparently, the thing everyone saw earlier in the sky was a “Quest Window,” which laid out our objectives. It even provided details about the monsters chasing us—they were goblins. Our task was clear: hunt the goblins.

At least, that’s what I gathered. I couldn’t see it myself.

“…Status Window.”

Blending in with the crowd, I quietly murmured the words. Nothing happened.

“Status Window!”

I tried again, this time a bit louder, but still, nothing appeared.

“What the…?”

Looking around, I saw others staring intently at empty air, their expressions serious.

“Is it just me again? Am I the only one who can’t see it?”

First the Quest Window, now the Status Window? Why? Was the universe singling me out for some reason? What did I do to deserve this?

“It’s starting!”

The world gave me no time to dwell on my misery. Time, which had seemingly frozen earlier, resumed. The wind blew once more, blades of grass swayed, and the green-skinned monsters resumed their assault, brandishing their weapons.

Amid the trembling crowd, a few brave souls charged at the goblins.

“Watch out!”

Thunk! Someone’s determined swing knocked a goblin flat onto the grass. Spurred on by that sight, more people joined the fight.

The earlier warnings about danger were quickly drowned out as the group easily dodged the goblins’ clumsy attacks and struck back. Although most people were still frozen in fear, the few who stepped forward were enough to turn the tide.

Some grabbed weapons dropped by the goblins and wielded them against the others. One person even conjured flames from their hands, hurling them at the goblins.

It was as if this really was some kind of game.

Thud.

The battle, which had dragged on for over ten minutes, ended when the last goblin collapsed under the weight of a sword strike. Despite the overwhelming number of bystanders, barely a tenth of the group had actually participated in the fight. Yet even with so few fighters, the goblins had been dealt with easily.

It was almost as if these monsters had been designed specifically to be easy targets for us.

“…Tutorial.”

The voice from the sky had referred to this place as the “Tutorial Field.” If the word tutorial meant what I thought it did, then it made sense why the monsters had been so weak.

Those creatures weren’t here to kill us. They were here to give us experience points.

“Is this seriously turning into a game?”

Whatever. I didn’t care about that. What mattered now was figuring out why I couldn’t see what everyone else could.

“There’s no way to find out the reason right now. For now… I can’t let anyone know that I don’t have a Status Window.”

Everyone around me was acting similarly, almost in unison. That meant no one else here seemed to be missing their “Quest Window” or “Status Window.” In a situation like this, being different was dangerous. Standing out would only bring trouble.

“I can’t draw attention to myself.”

I crouched down as much as possible, praying fervently.

Please, let no one have noticed my strange reaction. Please, let me fade into the background like I’m not even here.

“…Huh?”

The moment I shouted those thoughts in my mind, everyone around me vanished.

“…Huh?!”

Wait. That’s not what I meant. I didn’t mean for everyone to disappear and leave me behind!

“Hello? Anyone?”

The people who had been with me just moments ago were nowhere to be seen. The goblin corpses, the bloodstains on the grass—everything had disappeared without a trace, as if none of it had ever been here.

“Is anyone there?”

What the hell was happening? Where was everyone? Where did they all go?!

“Hello?!”

I started walking, searching for anything—a person, a path, anything—but I quickly hit an invisible wall. I pressed my hands against it and walked along its edge, but all I saw were the swaying blades of grass.

I was completely alone.

No people, no paths, no escape routes. Not even a single monster.

“…Hah.”

The vast emptiness of the space overwhelmed me, and I collapsed to my knees. A suffocating wave of anxiety swept over me. I clutched my chest, trying to calm the painful tightness squeezing my heart. As I pressed against my chest, I felt something soft and squishy.

…Soft?