TDWAD 12

TDWAD

Posted by Fahad, Released on August 9, 2025

Chapter 12

“Wait, don’t hang up. Listen first. I sent the Siren to avoid unnecessary conflict.”

“Not because you could handle it without getting your hands bloody?”

“If I wanted to get rid of you, I would’ve chosen from the thirty-seven better plans I have.”

“Let’s see them sometime.”

“I already know who you are, so I’m not going to dig some petty trap—wait, did you just say okay?”

“Call me. The sooner, the better.”

Putting the Siren’s smartphone away, Do-yoon checked on the collapsed passersby.

They were still under the lingering effects of the Lion’s Roar, but with proper treatment, they’d recover.

Good… managed to stop it without casualties.

Do-yoon sent a surge of internal energy through his toes.

Sssst.

Then, with a light push off the ground, he vanished from the scene.

It was clear that Jo Yong-bae had taken inspiration from the Neo-Humanity Society.

Copied it outright… and of course, in a way that let him hog all the benefits.

In the cycle where he had built a private organization with himself at the top,
the guy had bulked up without brakes, eventually earning the fearsome nickname “Awakened Predator.”

So… did the Neo-Humanity Society just sit back and let him hold dual membership?

When Do-yoon pulled up his status screen, the Library of Memories interface appeared before his eyes.

—Neo-Humanity Society Organizational Chart—

The Neo-Humanity Society was a loose coalition of NPCs with only two core rules:

Do not invade another member’s territory.
In matters that threaten the organization’s survival, all members must actively cooperate.

They used monsters from Greek mythology as their code names.
Membership was always kept at twelve, and any vacant spot was immediately filled—
the new member would inherit the territory of whoever was gone.

Chiron: “Leader.” Since it was a horizontal organization, his authority wasn’t absolute.
Siren: “Recruiter.” Could control minds with her voice.
Hydra: “Enforcer.” Two tentacles strengthened by cannibalism.
Eidos: “Assassin.”
…
…

Neo-Humanity’s First Principle: Avoid unnecessary conflict among kin.

Right now, the NPCs were riding high.

When the Day of Awakening came and they were gradually overtaken by players who had adapted,
they’d be gnashing their teeth in frustration.

But for now, the pie was so big that no one wanted to break the peace.

…And the one making that possible is Chiron. Both Jo Yong-bae and I think we can control him.

In the early days—before the Hunter Association or even casual clubs had formed—
this twelve-member NPC group was like a wall of steel.

That’s why the first thing regressors worried about was:

“We need to get past the early stage safely. Away from the clowns in the prologue!”

They came up with all kinds of solutions—
some textbook, some crafty detours—
all strategies the guardian deities could nod at and say, “Makes sense.”

[Keywords: ‘NPC’, ‘Early Awakening’, ‘Neo-Humanity Society’, ‘Regressor’]
[Search Results: 17 volumes]

Strength in Numbers: Cooperative Player List — 3rd Cycle Regressor
Harvest Survival with the Seeds of Mistrust — 6th Cycle Regressor
Weakness Analysis of Neo-Humanity Members — 7th Cycle Regressors
The Hermit Life of a Regressor — 9th Cycle Regressor
…
…

But then, there was one “nonsensical” strategy that left all three dumbfounded.

“What… what the hell is he doing?”
“Shouldn’t we stop him…?”
“I think we might’ve messed up here.”

At the time, I thought he was just insane… But as always, he proved it with results.

Do-yoon’s eyes locked onto one particularly striking title:

11. Surviving as an Unawakened Player by Cosplaying an NPC — 4th Cycle Regressor

Of course, it was him.

The 4th Cycle Regressor.

While others had chosen the frontal assault, sowing discord, or hiding away,
this guy had secured a safe early game through reckless exploration of the unknown!

That level of detail in finding a crack in a stone wall… I have to see it for myself.

[Borrow book #11? Y/N]

Borrow.

[Unable to borrow book.]
[Insufficient user level.]
[Required Level: 4]

“…Hmph.”

So it counted as pretty high-value intel.

He could access future economic knowledge like coin price trends or dungeon strategies like the Fortune Gate raid,
but anything beyond that clearly required a higher level.

“…Putting restrictions on my own memories, huh.”

[Search Books]
[Borrow Books]
[Return Books]
[Donate Books]

Without feeling it was unfair, he tapped Donate Books.

[You may donate new books to add to the library’s collection.]
[In return, you will earn LP (Library Points), proportional to the memory’s usefulness and rarity.]
[VVIP Tip: Save LP to increase your user level. At Level 9, unlock the ‘Book Exchange’ feature.]
[Begin memory extraction? Y/N]

Begin.

Zwooom.

It felt like a scanner was sweeping through his brain.

[Author: ‘Nameless Descender’]
[Beginning extraction… Extraction complete.]
[Book selection finalized.]

Loans with SpeedCash! Don’t Worry—Wait, Actually, Worry?? (LP: 100)
Coin Investor Who Sees the Future: May 2017 Issue (LP: 300)
Jo Yong-bae, A.K.A. Human Predator (LP: 500)
My Hainan Trial Expedition Journal (LP: 1,000)
Biography of Sword Sage Dan Seol-woo (LP: 5,000)
How to Snag a Legendary Martial Arts Manual Without Lifting a Finger (LP: 10,000)

[Select books to donate.]

He touched them all.

[Donation complete.]
[6 new books added to the library.]
[Total LP gained: 16,900]
[User Level Up: 3 → 4]
[User Level Up: 4 → 5]

“…More shocking than I expected.”

He returned to the rooftop room, flipping through Surviving as an Unawakened Player by Cosplaying an NPC.

…Another presence?

This time, the annoyance outweighed curiosity.

Maybe it was because he’d gotten used to channeling his energy—
just from the sound of footsteps and breathing, he could picture the intruder’s identity.

“Why are you still here, loitering around?”

“H-Hyung!?”

Thud-thud-thud!

Like a man finding an oasis in the desert, Han Sang-il rushed in and threw himself flat on the concrete floor.

“Please, I’m begging you—save me!”

“I’m a doctor now? Go to a hospital.”

“Let’s say dodging Jo Yong-bae’s goons is my problem! But what about that monster from earlier…?”

Han Sang-il began trembling.

“What am I supposed to do!?”

“What am I supposed to do, then?”

“Protect me, of course!”

“…Pulled you out of the water and now you—”

Annoyance flickered across Do-yoon’s eyes.

“You really want me to beat you until your neck snaps?”

“H-huuh?!”

Han Sang-il went pale.

He’d been a former judo athlete—born with a natural physique,
never once intimidated by anyone.

Even after stepping into the underworld, he’d scoffed at the smell of blood.

Scary… way too scary…

Do-yoon’s killing intent felt beyond human—
not a predator, but something even higher on the food chain.

But his desperation to survive overcame the fear.

“H-Hyung!”

He grabbed onto Do-yoon’s foot.

“Get off me.”

“I won’t even ask for protection! Just let me stay near you!”

“You’re not even a petty crook—you’re a drifting piece of trash.”

“Petty crook? I mean, I was discharged as a sergeant, but—”

“Shut it. You’ve lived your whole life letting the wind blow you wherever—
started judo like that, jumped into loan sharking without a thought.”

“Uh…”

Han Sang-il’s face went blank.

“And now, when crisis comes, you’re licking the boots of an enemy? Always the same pattern.”

“Enemy? You mean that bastard Choi Ki-hyun?”

His teeth ground audibly.

“After I covered his ass and cleaned up his messes,
he tossed me to Jo Yong-bae as bait! But you, Hyung—you’ve saved me twice already.”

Han Sang-il straightened up, ending up kneeling naturally.

“Yeah, I’ll admit it—I’m doing this because I want to live.
But I’m not an ungrateful dog. Use me for anything. I’ll grind my bones to serve you!”

“…Hmm?”

That “anything” sparked an idea.

One of the future industries soon to appear—
huge profits, but brutal work:

Gate Residue Disposal.

It was exactly what it sounded like—
handling and processing materials and monster corpses from gates,
and delivering them to manufacturing companies.

Do-yoon rubbed his jaw.

“…Grind your bones, you said?”

“I’ll give you my marrow too.”

“Good. How much did you skim when you cleared out Choi Ki-hyun’s office?”

“I… didn’t say I did that.”

His voice shrank under Do-yoon’s sharp gaze.

“Not saying I didn’t either… About 200 million won.”

“Use it to buy a waste disposal company. Big lot, prime location, at least one 10-ton grapple truck.”

“U-Use the whole 200 million?”

“If you don’t like it, there’s the door.”

“N-no, it’s fine! Just… feels risky to blow it all at once.”

“You can spend more if needed. If it’s short, I’ll chip in—just make sure you find the right place.”