The Novel's Extra.
Solo Leveling, Tyrant of the Tower Defense Game, Second Coming of Gluttony, and more that he didn't even recall anymore.
Those occupied a good portion of his life in his late teens and early twenties.
Unfortunately, it had been close to a decade since he'd read any of those after starting his corporate life.
So, needless to say, he had a problem.
"Alright. Let's... sort this out." Lee walked over to his bed and sat down, covering his face with his hands to think.
He was in [The Novel's Extra]. The NovelBin where the author was hit by a writer's block so bad he agreed to a random email where a reader asked for permission to do a personal rewrite for self-satisfaction.
And as a result, that guy was pulled into the story itself.
"I'm FAIRLY sure I didn't have anything like that happen to me."
Lee DEFINITELY would remember something like that happening. Moreover, it simply wouldn't apply.
After all, it wasn't like he was an author. No, all Lee did in life was work a corporate job for some unremarkable company to make a living while he enjoyed an easygoing life.
In fact, life had been going VERY good for him.
It was a tad boring, yes. But not boring enough to where he would make some shady deal or respond to some mysterious spam mail to bring him here.
"So why the heck am I here? And who even is this person?"
Lee Shin...
Even though it had been almost ten years since he read the story, Lee was FAIRLY certain that the Novel's Extra didn't have a person named that.
The fact that Lee Shin apparently used a spear did seem a bit peculiar...
If Lee remembered right, there was a main character who DID use a spear.
But Lee was bad with Korean names, so he didn't remember.
In fact, the only characters he remembered at all were Kim Hajin and Rachel.
The former because he was the main character of the book. And the later because he had been amused at the fact that the author for the Novel's Extra took Queen Elizabeth's name and slapped it in the middle of a pair of French-sounding names like Rachel and Louise.
Well, also because Lee had thought Rachel was the best heroine only for Hajin to run around and play stupid misunderstanding drama with all the other heroines...
Who Lee absolutely didn't remember. Only that there was... what, a tomboyish girl and a rich girl who gave off heiress vibes?
"Oh, I am sooooo screwed."
Yeah... the usual advantage of someone getting transported or transmigrated into a novel ABSOLUTELY did not apply to him.
The only useful tidbits that Lee had regarding the Novel's Extra was knowing that Hajin LITERALLY had Deus Ex Machina on his side due to setting points and cheating by maxing out his luck stat.
Stupid build and stupid idea in his opinion. You were the author, after all. Why the hell wouldn't you like just spam the stats into magic and then break the setting over your knees?
An author's privilege as an extra was to be able to dictate the flow of the plot. Utilizing every advantage and ability to leverage a life where ridiculous things were common.
Not only that, but Hajin should have been from South Korea. That meant he DEFINITELY had mandatory military training. But he was so terrified of combat that he picked a gun instead of bothering to hone his body...
Hell, Lee distinctly remembered that guy mentioning that he wasted the first two weeks of being in the world by lazing around...
"No, no. Enough dogging on that guy." Lee rubbed his chin and said, "I have to prep for Cube. And my life here."
Although the reason why he was here was unclear, Lee decisively gave up the idea of going back home.
Not because he wouldn't be able to go home at all. No, Lee was fairly confident he could figure out a way to get back eventually if he wanted to.
That wasn't the reason why Lee gave up that idea.
No. The reason was because...
Lee laughed and picked up the spear resting on the wall. "Why wouldn't I stick around in this world?"
He was young again. Judging from the reflection he saw earlier, the vague recollection of Lee Shin's life that was starting to filter into his mind, and the fact that this was a world where mana DEFINITELY existed...
Who would want to go back?
Lee rested his spear across his shoulders and said, "Honestly. Hajin didn't know how to appreciate life."
Well.
Lee wasn't Hajin.
Moreover, Lee didn't have to be worried about the plot and future events or even characters because he had literally ZERO ties to this place other than the things he built up as he lived.
Meaning...
"Let's do some research and get me up to speed for my new life, hm?"
...It was time to do some studying.
===
It didn't take long to get up to speed on the setting and the world.
Although it was a while ago since he read the novel, Lee vaguely recalled the setting details. And after combing through this Earth's wikipedia, he got a general understanding of things.
Basically, there was a calamity in the past. Something something, dimensional incursions. Dungeons popping up all over the places along with mana. People awakening to superhuman powers called 'Gifts' and then lots of time passing as the status quo shifted to accommodate this new change.
It was definitely Earth though. Just a 'different' Earth.
For example, Lee was living in a small studio apartment in Seoul. Like he saw earlier, Rachel was from England... though it was apparently the Kingdom of Britain instead of the United Kingdom.
Interesting tidbit of information.
But that aside, not much to adapt to.
As far as Lee could tell, most things were the same as he was used to. In fact, for a novel that came out ages ago, the current level of tech was basically what he was used to in the 2020s.
Smart devices everywhere, famous Heroes actings as content creators, social media things...
A bit weird. Especially since people didn't bat an eye at Lee walking around with a spear in downtown Seoul other than to give him an appreciative nod.
But overall, it felt like home.
Well, 'home' would always be the Midwest America for him, but that was neither here nor there.
...Though he would KILL for a Chicago deepdish pizza right now.
'Okay, man. Gotta focus.'
Right.
Nostalgia and homesickness came later.
Right now, priorities. And first priority was checking his physical condition.
Lee Shin, as the acceptance letter said, was ranked 999 out of 1000 at Cube.
Barely above the bottom.
But the strange thing about that was the fact that his body was fairly built.
'This guy had more muscle than I did, and I worked out a ton in my spare time...'
So there had to be a flaw somewhere that Lee didn't know about.
Which led him to renting a training room at a nearby gym in downtown Seoul.
"Alright." Lee locked the door behind him and then turned on the training dummy. "This thing is supposed to read speed, force, and other metrics. So... Let's test this."
A step forward, the spear aimed for a single thrust, aligning all the muscles to follow through...
A loud crash and screeching metal echoed as the training dummy registered Lee's attack.
For a moment, Lee was worried he broke it. But the dummy was durable. Dented, knicked, and scratched. But durable. And despite his best strike, the dummy was intact.
Lee straightened and waited for the dummy to process the data. And then, after a few seconds...
*Processing complete!*
*Your estimated combat statistics are as follows!*
*Strength: 5*
*Speed: 5*
*Magic Power: 1*
"Hm." Lee tilted his head. "...So my attack DID have some mana in it, and my strength and speed are... average according to Cube standards. But the lack of mana is the main issue, I guess."
Lee was starting to see what the problem was.
In this world, mana existed. But Lee Shin apparently completely lacked the talent for it.
Just now, Lee definitely felt 'something' going along with his muscles as he thrust his spear. But it was just a faint tingle.
"If I remember right from those admission statistics I read, 5 should be the average for Cube cadets... in ALL stats. The fact that my Magic Power is only 1..."
No wonder Lee was ranked 999.
He must have barely made the cut off due to his academics. That, or he had ridiculous combat tactics to account for a lack of magic power.
'Well. That won't be a problem for me.'
Lee didn't know about Hajin... or why that guy never tried it.
But as far as Lee could tell, Murim rules applied in this setting. Sword intent, ki, body reformation, etcetera... those definitely existed.
And while Lee didn't know how to do it in detail within this world, he had a whole itinerary of things to test.
Moreover...
'That email said the mandatory exam was in two weeks from now, right?'
Like the acceptance letter said, there had been a follow up email that gave the date for Cube's entrance exam. Said date was two dates from today.
Which meant that Lee had exactly 14 days to test as much as he wanted before things hit the fan with him entering that academy filled with superhumans.
Though...
Lee idly spun his spear around and stabbed the dummy again.
Once more, the same results.
But...
"Huh."
The movements were a bit rough. Whether because he wasn't used to his current body, or because it was bulkier than the one he was used to, Lee wasn't able to use the martial arts he knew to the same extent.
Still...
"Plenty of time to train. And I always DID want to test that theory."
Most people trained until their body broke down, then let it heal to go past their limits.
It worked, that was for sure. After all, if you kept breaking your ceiling, then you could always reach greater heights.
But most people forgot about their floor.
They were always adding more weight instead of mastering the base they had built.
So...
Lee spun his spear around and said, "Let's master the basics again. Slashing with the blade, thrusting, staff techniques... Mm. Let's go slow until this feels as smooth as butter."
Even if 'Lee Shin' was at the bottom of the ranks, it didn't matter. A doctor at the bottom of his class was still a doctor. And all that Lee needed was access to the facilities.
Once he had that, he was sure of it.
'Slow and steady. That's all I have to do.'
He wasn't a teenager. He was a man from Earth who tolerated a soul crushing job during the day so that he had the money to enjoy his life on the weekends, holidays, and nights.
Compared to that...
'Grinding out martial arts techniques is nothing.'
...This was the most fun he'd had in a while. So...
"Ten thousand kicks, was it? Well, it's not quite 'kicks' but let's start with that benchmark. One." Lee thrust his spear at the dummy and then pulled it back. "Two..."