ITDG 02

Chapter 2

Tap. Tap. Tap.

Dermo sat in front of an old wooden table, shaking his leg.
He still couldn’t believe what had happened to him.

Trapped inside a game.

It was the kind of story you’d only ever see in novels or comics.

“Log out.”

Beeeep—
[(%)$@#]

He knew it wouldn’t work, but he tried anyway.
He was clinging to the hope that this situation wasn’t real.
All he got back was an unpleasant system sound.

His leg kept trembling.
Was there any way to quit the game?

No matter how hard he thought, there was no way to end it on his own.
That meant only outside intervention could help —
someone forcibly shutting down the capsule from outside,
or the developers noticing the issue and fixing it.

“Haah…”

He let out a deep sigh.
But only for a moment. Dermo stood up, went to the shelf,
and began pulling out bottles of liquor.

Complaining or analyzing the situation could wait.
First, he needed to finish this damn tutorial.

Psitaku would come to kill him as soon as the sun set.
And if this really wasn’t just a glitch,
then even death inside the game might have consequences.

Clatter. Rattle.

A cart rolled through the ruins of a village.
It was piled high with liquor bottles—
so high they looked like they might topple at any second.

The cart stopped in front of a ruined house where the demon was hiding.
Dermo looked up at the sky.
The sunset painted the horizon red like spilled paint.

I need to hurry.

Night was coming.
He must’ve spent too much time inside the mansion.
There was no more time to waste.

It was almost time for Psitaku to move.
He had to act fast.

He grabbed a bottle from the cart
and held it to the torch in his right hand.

Whoosh—

The rag stuffed in the bottle’s mouth caught fire.
A Molotov cocktail.

Dermo hurled it into the building with all his strength.
Glass shattered inside.

He didn’t stop there—
He lit another, threw it, and another, and another.
The sound of shattering glass filled the air.
Smoke began to pour out from inside.

Checking the cart again, he saw he was only halfway through the supply.

Maybe I made too many, he thought,
and tossed another bottle inside.

The flames grew larger, illuminating what had been hidden in darkness.

Kraaaah!

Psitaku’s scream echoed from within.
The sound of chaos and destruction followed.

Thunk.

Dermo tossed the torch aside
and drew his sword.
He could see the demon trying to escape through the fire.

[Psitaku the Fallen (★☆)]

Dermo knew—
even weakened, the demon’s stats still surpassed his.

Still… I can handle this.

Graaah!

Psitaku burst through the flames,
his black fur scorched away in patches,
like a half-plucked chicken.

Step!

Dermo lunged forward.
Dust scattered beneath his feet.

Whoosh!

His sword sliced toward the demon’s neck.
Psitaku twisted backward just in time to dodge.

“Tsk.”

Dermo clicked his tongue and stepped back—
the demon’s clawed hand slashed past his nose.
If he’d been a fraction slower, it would’ve caught him.

I can do this.

The sun hadn’t fully set yet.
That sunlight weakened the demon’s movements,
making him sluggish and awkward.

Dragging the creature outside had been a smart move—
but even so, this “tutorial” was far from easy.

Finish it before the sun disappears!

Slash! Whoosh!

Dermo pressed forward,
swinging again and again,
not giving Psitaku a chance to counter.

A series of quick strikes let him circle behind the demon.
He swung his sword down to decapitate from the rear.

There was no way the creature could dodge this—

Thunk.

—or so he thought.
The sword stopped mid-swing.

“……!”

The demon’s twisted arm, bent at an impossible angle, had caught his wrist.
He’d underestimated it.

Crack. Crack.

Psitaku’s neck turned with a series of sickening bone clicks.
Now they were face to face—
its blood-red pupils, constricted from the sunlight, locked on his.

Even in pain, the demon didn’t look away from its prey.

With a snarl, Psitaku lunged, beak aimed for Dermo’s forehead—
strong enough to pierce a human skull.

Just before impact,
Dermo twisted his sword.

He couldn’t move much with his wrist trapped,
but that was enough.

The blade caught the sunlight—
and the reflection stabbed straight into the demon’s eyes.

Kieeaaagh!

“Eat this.”

While it flinched,
Dermo slammed his left fist upward.

Thud!

A solid hit under the chin.
The half-burnt demon staggered,
its grip weakening.

He’s leaning left…

Dermo saw the opening.
He swept his right leg low, tripping the demon.

Thump!

Psitaku fell hard.

“It’s over.”

Dermo raised his sword with both hands
and drove it straight down.

Shluk—

The blade pierced Psitaku’s throat and buried into the ground.
Its dull red eyes faded back to normal—
and then went still.

[Class Tutorial Completed.]
[Reward: Power Unlocked.]
[Power: Soul Absorption.]

[Class Tutorial (Chain): Absorb the demon’s soul from its corpse.]

Notifications popped up.
Some of the missing UI had returned to his vision.
Maybe the server errors were finally being fixed.

“Huh?”

Suddenly, his body moved on its own.
It yanked the sword from the demon’s throat,
slashed open its chest,
and thrust a hand inside.

Warm, squishy sensations surrounded his fingers.
Something solid caught his hand—
and when he pulled it out, control returned.

“This is…”

In his palm sat a glowing orb.
Something faint flickered within it.

“A soul stone?”

Soul stones—
items containing magical energy so dangerous
that long exposure could turn a person into a bloodthirsty fiend.

Even so, they were valuable in this world.
Once purified, they became pure mana—
a vital energy source used in daily life,
industry, and even war.

[Absorbing Soul…]

But now, through his class — Half-Demon —
it seemed to serve a completely new purpose.

Woom—

The soul energy shimmered like heat haze
and flowed into his body through his hand—
from hand, to heart, to every limb.

[Skill Acquired: Twisted Joints]

[Skill: Twisted Joints
Flexibility beyond human limits grants advantages in both combat and daily life.
Duration: 1 minute
Cooldown: 10 minutes]

[You have gained 2 stat points.]

[TIP: The Half-Demon class can only grow by absorbing demon souls.]
[TIP: Only skills obtained through soul absorption can be used.]

“No way…”

He murmured, then tried activating the skill.

[Using skill: Twisted Joints.]

Crack… Crackle…

His wrist began to rotate unnaturally—
just like Psitaku’s grotesque movements earlier.

“I can use a demon’s skill…”

Each demon had its own unique ability.
The idea that he could use them excited him.

But shaking his head, Dermo forced himself back to focus.
There was no time for that.

Now that the system errors were clearing,
this might be his only chance to log out.

“Log out.”

He planned to call the company afterward and cause a scene—
but that thought didn’t last long.

[Class Tutorial Completed.]
[Main Ques$%&^#$^.]*

The system glitched again.

Chzzz—
[Error. Fixed. Reoccurring. Reboo#$……]

He didn’t know what to do next—
until he heard footsteps.

Dermo turned toward the sound.
It came from the village entrance.

Torches flickered in the darkness—
more than a few of them.

“Survivors?” he muttered.

A man stepped forward from the group.
Just a simple question, but his presence was intimidating.
The scars across his face told of a hard life.

“Any other survivors…?”

His gaze fell to the demon’s corpse on the ground.

“You killed that thing alone?”

“……”

“What, cat got your tongue?”

“……”

“Tch. You don’t look like any knight to me.”

As their eyes met,
the man’s expression shifted—
his eyes trembled, startled.

“I… I spoke to a filthy one!”

Tch, I forgot.

Half-Demons had a defining trait—
one red eye like a demon’s.
It was why people despised them.

If they catch me now, I’m dead.

The man drew his sword,
and his dozen or so subordinates followed suit.

“Half-Demon…”

While he muttered,
Dermo took his chance and ran.

He knew exactly who they were.

“Boss! What do we do?”
“Do we chase him?”
“Boss?”

The brown-haired man barked an order:

“The boss said—kill all trespassers in our territory! CHASE HIM!”

“Yes, sir!”

A dozen armed men took off after Dermo.
Each bore the same insignia—
a rat with a long tail.

He recognized it.
A symbol of one of the underworld organizations.

And that brown-haired man… was no weakling.
Fighting him now would be suicide.

This was their turf.
And trapped inside the game or not,
Dermo had no reason to risk a fight.

He just ran—
breath burning in his chest,
doing everything he could not to get caught.