The 1st Squad

Lore & Background

In a world where a serialized novel has bled into reality, the 1st Squad was never simply a combat unit. Yoo Jonghyuk, the novel's designated hero, walks a path written for him by an unseen author, yet his will repeatedly fractures the script. Song Minwoo, the enigmatic Red Priest, operates as both ally and philosophical counterweight—his loyalty to Jonghyuk is absolute, but his understanding of the 'game' runs deeper than anyone else's. Together they form the emotional and tactical spine of the squad.

Baam's arrival changes everything. As the sole reader who consumed the entire novel to its final chapter, he carries knowledge of every twist, every death, every scenario's intended outcome. His presence transforms the 1st Squad from a group trying to survive a predetermined story into a group actively fighting to alter it. The tension between Jonghyuk's heroic resolve and Baam's god's-eye knowledge creates a dynamic that drives the narrative forward: one man wants to save the world by being the hero; the other wants to save it by refusing the story's rules.

The broader constellation of readers watches, bets, and manipulates from beyond the veil. The other squads—each with their own leaders, agendas, and tragic arcs—serve as both mirrors and antagonists to the 1st Squad. In the late-game scenarios, the lines between ally and enemy blur as the 1st Squad must choose between the ending the novel demands and the one its members deserve.

In Their Own Story

The scenario's sky was the color of a bruise—deep violet bleeding into sickly yellow. Rain fell upward, droplets lifting off the cracked pavement and vanishing into a ceiling of swirling constellations that pulsed like slow heartbeats. Yoo Jonghyuk stood at the edge of the plaza, his coat whipping in a wind that smelled of ozone and old ink. Behind him, Song Minwoo adjusted his gloves with the calm of a man who had already calculated the cost of every possible outcome.

Baam watched the rain rise. He'd read about this. He'd read about the way the ground would split in exactly four minutes and the way the 'boss' would speak a name that wasn't his own. He swallowed. Four minutes.

"Jonghyuk-ssi," Baam said quietly, "if I tell you what's coming, will you still choose to walk into it?"

Jonghyuk didn't turn around. He simply smiled—the tired, unbreakable smile of a man who had already decided. "Then walk with me."

The ground split. And the 1st Squad stepped forward.

Reader's Guide

The 1st Squad was formed around Yoo Jonghyuk's role as the novel's designated Protagonist. Its founding purpose is survival within the escalating scenarios that the story's structure demands, but it quickly evolves into something more: a collective will to resist the ending the narrative has written for its characters.

Core membership centers on Yoo Jonghyuk as leader and anchor, Song Minwoo as his unwavering right hand and the squad's tactical and spiritual backbone, and Baam (Kim Dokja) as the omniscient reader whose knowledge of the full story reframes every decision. Additional members join as the arc progresses, each bringing unique abilities and personal stakes.

The squad serves as the primary vehicle for the story's endgame. While other numbered squads pursue their own objectives—some aligned with the constellations, some acting as wild cards—the 1st Squad is the group positioned to confront the final scenario and the novel's ultimate conclusion. Their cooperation with, and clash against, other factions intensifies as the narrative nears its climax, forcing alliances to be tested and loyalties to be redefined.

What makes the 1st Squad distinct is the tension at its heart: a protagonist fighting within a story versus a reader fighting against it. That friction is the engine of the entire arc.

Did You Know?

• Yoo Jonghyuk is the 'Protagonist' of the serialized novel that forms the story's foundation, meaning his heroic arc was written for him before the narrative even began.
• Baam (Kim Dokja) is the only character who has read the entire novel to its final chapter, granting him foreknowledge no other character possesses.
• Song Minwoo is widely recognized by fans as the 'Red Priest,' a title tied to his role and appearance within the squad.
• The story's world is observed by 'constellations'—readers who exist outside the narrative and influence events through their attention and bets, making the 1st Squad's actions visible to an audience within the fiction it